It is time for the Blade & Soul Revolution Meca Ranking. April was a rollercoaster of balance adjustments, but we have finally come out the other side. May looks to be a relatively quiet period as we all wait for the new class teased in the recent developer notes. That said, we have seen some ripples in the ranker demographics, though it is mostly just players swapping between popular classes. If you are sitting on the fence about a change, keep your ears to the ground for the upcoming class news.

The fluctuations in combat power by class have been quite dramatic. While the player count is low, the Assassin class saw an average attack power drop of over 690,000, whereas the Musician class surged by about 490,000—a gap of over 1 million between the two. Despite these swings, the average across all classes only dipped by about 47,000. It seems the wild fluctuations eventually regressed to the mean.

On the other hand, the shifts in player numbers per class have been minimal. We can thank the end of the class balance adjustments and the 'Free Class Change Ticket' period for that. This trend is expected to hold until the May update. For the time being, the top 3 spots are likely locked between the 'Blade Dancer - Gunner - Archer' trio.

Integrated Server 'Ilchwicheoljang' Level/Attack Power Rankings and Class Preference

It is time to look at the stats from the 'Ilchwicheoljang' server, where players are steadily hitting Hongmoon level 95. Last week's leader, 'Zero', has been overtaken by 'Meonggu'. Since they belong to opposing factions, the rivalry is heating up. Interestingly, both rankers switched their classes; Zero moved from 'Warlock' to 'Lyn Blade Master', while Meonggu went from 'Lyn Blade Master' to 'Artillerist'. It seems the latter has the edge in this race, as the Artillerist is renowned for its leveling efficiency.

Zero is still leading in the attack power category, pushing past the 6.06 million mark. However, 'Cola' sits ahead of both of them; despite being one Hongmoon level lower than the top ranker, they hold the number one spot with an attack power of 6.26 million.

Mythical Guardian Spirit special option statistics

We compiled this week's Guardian Spirit and Guardian Deity charts a bit earlier than usual. I was curious to see how the landscape looked just one day after the server transfers concluded. I expected some turbulence as everyone settled into their new homes, but the changes were surprisingly minor. 'Great Sage' fell by 6 percentage points while 'Seonghwajo' rose by 5, with the rest remaining mostly stagnant.

As for special options, there is barely any movement. The first-tier option 'Intense' held its lead at 51%, and the second-tier options 'Galaxy - Sun' maintained their rankings as well. Paired up, 'Intense Galaxy' and 'Harsh Sun' remain the go-to choices, aligning perfectly with the popularity of 'Great Sage' and 'Torimwang'.

Guardian Deity combination statistics based on leaders

Unlike the stable Guardian Spirits, we have seen significant movement among the Guardian Deities. 'Fleet Admiral Eun Gwang-il' has reclaimed the top spot, while 'Awakened Poharan' has dropped two places. 'King of Bandits Hong Seok-geun' has squeezed into the mix, making the competition fiercer than ever. With only a 2-3% point gap between them, the leaderboard could flip at any moment.

While there is a notable gap between the top three and the rest, the battle for fourth is just as tense. 'Dark Witch Jin Seo-yeon' at 8% and 'Awakened Erna' at 7% are separated by a mere 1 percentage point. Their fates truly depend on when you check the data, as the former leans towards PvE while the latter dominates in PvP.

This Week's Ranker Setting

Full equipment enhancement, awakening, and blessing complete! 'Mangnan-s'

It has been quite a while since awakening and blessing were introduced for mythical gear. Finding a ranker who has fully mastered both across all equipment slots is a rare feat. Our featured ranker today, 'Mangnan-s', has conquered that very challenge.

Seeing all gear at +20 enhancement, 5-star awakening, and 5-star blessing is quite satisfying. With no red numbers and perfect U-grade refinement, they have pushed their stats to 7.24 million attack and 5.05 million defense, totaling 12.29 million. Every other metric—from the King of Bandits book to spirits and martial arts badges—is capped at the highest possible setting.

One interesting point is the 'Amgyeong' martial arts badge in the attack slot. While most ranged classes prefer the 'Pacheon' badge to boost damage ceilings, 'Mangnan-s' opted for 'Amgyeong' to secure a higher critical hit rate. Even with a penetration-heavy build, they have bolstered their critical rate to raise their damage floor. At this level of gear, it seems prioritizing critical hits offers better efficiency.

Blade & Soul Revolution User Poll

Our recent poll gauged the community's expectations for the new May class. It has become an annual tradition to ask this whenever a new class is on the horizon. We split the vote into 'Performance, Controls, and Visuals', and unsurprisingly, 'Performance' took the top spot by a landslide. It seems everyone is waiting for a class that can finally shake up the long-standing dominance of the Blade Dancer.

Second place went to 'Fun Controls', and third to 'Visuals', including aesthetics and flashy effects. I hope the developers can deliver a package that hits all three marks to satisfy all our players.

This week's poll focuses on the upcoming 'Unreal Engine 5' upgrade. The team has promised a more immersive and smoother Blade & Soul Revolution experience, which has certainly piqued everyone's interest. What changes are you hoping to see once the engine is upgraded? Cast your vote, and we will reveal the results in next week's Meca Ranking. Best of luck!