It is time for the Blade & Soul Revolution Meca Ranking. This week’s chart marks the first results following the arrival of the new class, the Miho Swordmaster. It secured 2nd place with a 15.5% share right out of the gate. While it fell just 0.4% points short of the 1st place Spellcaster, one might call this a flying start. The average combat power is also quite impressive. I will dive into the details while examining the combat power fluctuation table.

The arrival of the Miho Swordmaster has caused significant shifts across the board. The class recorded 99 players each in the attack and defense categories. Consequently, the Spellcaster saw the largest drop in headcount, losing 54 players across both categories, making its 1st place spot look rather precarious for next week.

Furthermore, the Miho Swordmaster's average attack power sat at approximately 3.01 million, with defense just over 2.56 million. Since both figures are lower than the overall average, it seems many players—or 'Sahyung' as they are called—simply jumped in to test the new class regardless of raw power.

Come to think of it, the average attack power surpassed the 3 million mark with the Miho Swordmaster's release. It exceeded expectations by reaching 3.07 million, indicating a faster growth rate. The Hongmun Origin campaign event, which launched with this update, seems to have played a significant role.

Combat power rankings and class preferences for the new server 'Ever-Changing'

We are now in the first week of the 'Ever-Changing' server. As players must digest various content early on, combat power fluctuations among rankers are high due to frequent setting changes. Additionally, although it is a new class release server, free class change tickets are provided, allowing players to experiment with various classes beyond the Miho Swordmaster. It is, true to the server name, a very ever-changing time.

As expected, the Miho Swordmaster showed a downward trend in popularity, yet it comfortably held 1st place with a 46% share. The remaining slice was divided among the Gunners, Archers, Dual Blade users, and Spellcasters. Among legacy classes, the Destroyer remained popular, though curiously, a high ratio of the top-tier 'vanguard' players are enjoying that class alongside the Swordmaster.

Statistics on special options for Mythic grade Guardian Spirits

Guardian Spirits remained largely unmoved by the Miho Swordmaster's release. Sun Wukong and the Earth King saw slight dips, with the Firebird absorbing that share, though rankings remained static. However, the special option ratios shifted slightly; 'Harsh' dropped by 7% points, widening the gap with the 2nd place 'Life'. Meanwhile, 'Life' climbed 2% points, beginning a race to catch up with 'Intense'. In the second special option slot, 'Sun' has begun its pursuit.

Combination statistics based on Guardian Spirit leaders

The Guardian Spirit leader board maintains its usual rhythm. The back-and-forth between Admiral Eun Gwang-il and Awakened Poharan continues, and it seems King Hong Seok-geun has joined the fray as well, teetering on the edge of taking the spot from the Dark Witch Jin Seo-yeon.

Meanwhile, Admiral Eun Gwang-il is the only Guardian Spirit leader on the chart utilizing 'Awakened Erna' in a combination. While the 'Awakened Poharan - Sword Saint Bicheon' combo remains highly prevalent, Awakened Erna has climbed to 24%. It wouldn't be surprising to see it become a staple member soon.

This week's ranker setup

Miho Swordmaster overall attack power 1st place 'JokerSuhan'

For this ranker setup, I analyzed the gear of 'JokerSuhan' from the Lightning Fast server to examine the Miho Swordmaster. At the time of the investigation, this player held the highest attack power among all Miho Swordmaster rankers on the server—though, ironically, the #1 spot on the Meca Ranking chart went to someone else who has since switched to an Archer. Keep in mind that rankers are constantly cycling through classes.

JokerSuhan’s Mythic gear includes a weapon, a necklace, and a pair of earrings, all refined to +15~16 for practical use. Other slots utilize +22 'Radiant Dragon Tiger' gear. In short, the player is benefiting from the 7-set Dragon Tiger and 3-set True Moon bonuses.

It is unclear what class JokerSuhan played before the Miho Swordmaster, but it is highly likely that the gear was transferred over. By selecting the 'Life's Galaxy Firebird' and Admiral Eun Gwang-il as the leader, the player has achieved a solid balance between offense and defense. Refinement options also lean towards a balanced mix of defense and penetration.

The Martial Tome setup is a standard combination using 'Jinhyun/Repair' and 'Heavenly Demon/Advance'. The focus is on maximizing the efficiency of the Miho Swordmaster's core skills, such as Spirit Slash and Fragment. To compensate for any potential lack of attack power, the 'Incarnation' attribute was selected, bolstered by the 'Spiral' Martial Tome. Note that the Tome refinements are set to 'Heavenly Return/Spirit Slash/Fragment'.

Blade & Soul Revolution user poll

Last week, I surveyed Sahyung on their satisfaction with the Miho Swordmaster. I evaluated performance, fun, and appearance on a 10-point scale. The result was an average of 6.23, with the appearance scoring the highest at 8.09. It seems the unique, adorable charm of the Lyn race truly captured hearts.

Performance received a mediocre 5.65. However, following the temporary maintenance on August 4th, some skill balances were adjusted—specifically, the invincibility on Fragment's 3rd stance was changed to crowd control resistance, but invincibility was added to the 'Damage Rampage' skill, and 'Spirit Unity' can now be used while moving. This is why participation scores were higher after the patch.

The next user poll will cover expectations for the August updates announced in the developer notes. With a new 4-person dungeon 'Baekcheong Ice Jade', improvements to the integrated dungeon matching window, and further class balancing, there is plenty to look forward to. Please vote for the update you are most excited about, and I will share the results in next week's Meca Ranking.