Beginners Guide

Melvor Idle is an idle game and as such much of the time spent playing you can be away from the game. However, the game does have some interaction and on this page we will try to teach you the basic interactions.

Before we get started it is recommended that you set up an account with Melvor Cloud. This provides some basic backups for save files.

The interface

The interface is split in three sections.

The left menu

The bar on the left side of the screen is a menu filled with a list of buttons. There are buttons for every skill, a couple of information pages, your Bank, and a Settings page. Please take note of the fact that you can scroll in this window.

The top bar

In the top bar you can see what page you are currently on. You can also see if you are currently logged into Melvor Cloud on the top right. If you see a letter c in a green oblong you are logged in. If the oblong is red, you are not logged in. You can find a login button in the Settings window or by clicking on your user name in the top right.

The main section

The main section of the screen can be filled with a plethora of content. It can be filled with the Bank, Settings, a Skill, or one of the information pages.

The bank

- Main article: Bank

The Bank is where your items are stored. Weapons and armour can be equipped in a menu opened by clicking on the item in the bank. Bank slots can be bought in the shop. You can sell your items with the menu opened by clicking on the item in your inventory.

The shop

- Main article: Shop

The shop is where you can spent your hard earned gp. Here you can buy things like better pickaxes and axes, more bank slots, a couple of ingredients for various skills and a bit more.

Basic skilling

One of the main aspects of the game is gathering resources with the various gathering skills and then processing those resources into more refined products with the various other skills.

The fishing window.

One of the most simple production lines is with Fishing and Cooking. To begin one should click on the fishing button in the menu on he left which opens the fishing skill. To then start fishing you have to click on the area in which you want to fish. At fishing level 1 you only have access to Area One, so I would suggest clicking on that.

Actively fishing.

Now that you have started fishing the fishing window has changed slightly. First of all near the top of the window you will see that the experience bar slowly makes its way across the window indicating that you are gaining experience. Secondly the selected area is shown in blue indicating that you are fishing. In the menu on the left you will also notice that Fishing is now shown in green indicating that this skill is active. And finally, near the top right you will be able to see what your last three caught fishes are.

The cooking window.

Active cooking.

Now that you have caught some fish it is time to cook them. This is done with the cooking skill. When you have opened the cooking window you will notice three columns. The first thing you should do is in the left column select what fish you want to cook. Then in the right column you should light a fire, and finally in the middle column you should select how many you want to cook. Please note that you need logs gathered with the Woodcutting skill in order to light a cooking fire. The cook 50 and cook all buttons will unlock when you have achieved a higher mastery with the specific food item you are trying to cook.

Basic combat

- Main article: Combat

To fight monsters navigate to the combat page by selecting any combat skill from the left menu. The combat page contains a map of Melvor displaying all the available locations where monsters can be fought. Selecting "Switch Map / List View" will display all the locations on the map in list form, allowing you to easily select your preferred combat area, slayer area, or dungeon. Selecting an area will display the enemies which can be found there, along with their Hitpoints, Combat Level, and Attack Type. Highlighting an enemy will display their possible loot drops and selecting an enemy will begin combat. When combat begins you will not be able to browse the map and location list until you run or die. Enemies are fought automatically, however any items enemies drop upon death must be looted manually by selecting "Loot All" or the item itself.

Combat skills are levelled by damaging enemies with weapons, and magic. To train a specific combat skill match your Attack Style icon with the relevant combat skill. Most combat skills have a passive effect even when the relevant style is not selected. Weapons, armour, and food can be equipped for use by selecting them in the Bank. Weapons and armour provide various bonuses and penalties to your combat stats, while food can be used for healing in combat. Upon death a random piece of Equipment worn will be lost forever, however unique items lost this way like Skillcapes can be repurchased at the Shop.

Combat Skills

Attack

Attack increases your accuracy rating with melee weapons which affects your chance to hit. Higher tiers of melee, and magic weapons, require higher Attack to be equipped.

Strength

Strength increases your Max Hit with melee weapons. Max Hit determines your maximum potential damage on a successful hit.

Defence

Defence increases your Melee and Ranged Evasion Rating, which decreases the likelihood you will be hit by melee and ranged attacks. Higher tiers of some armours require higher Defence to be equipped.

Hitpoints

Hitpoints affect your maximum life total and your passive regeneration rate. After receiving damage you will heal slowly over time, the speed at which your heal is based on your Hitpoints level. In addition to passive regeneration, your hitpoints can be replenished by consuming any food you have equipped. Hitpoints experience is earned by damaging enemies with any weapon.

Ranged

Ranged increases your Accuracy Rating and Max Hit with ranged weapons, which affects your chance to hit and damage respectively. Higher tiers of ranged weapons and some armours require higher Ranged to be equipped.

Magic

Magic allows you to cast Spells from your Spellbook provided you have the required Runes in your Bank and a magic weapon equipped. Magic increases your Accuracy Rating with Spells, which increases your chance to hit while using them. Magic also increases your Magic Evasion Rating, which decreases the likelihood you will be hit by magic wielding enemies. Higher tiers of magic weapons, and some armours require higher Magic to be equipped.

Prayer

Prayers are passive bonuses that expend Prayer Points to remain in effect. You gain Prayer Points by burying Bones, which are dropped by Monsters upon death. Prayer experience is earned by damaging enemies and is further increased by having prayers active at the time damage is dealt.

Slayer

Slayer experience is earned by killing enemies in slayer areas or by completing Slayer Tasks. Slayer Tasks also earn you Slayer Coins which are used to purchase Slayer Equipment from the Shop. Slayer areas are unlocked by raising your Slayer level.

Skills

For a more in depth look at these skills and the mechanics associated with them, please visit their respective pages.

Woodcutting

Woodcutting is a strong choice as a first skill to level first in Melvor Idle and is the best way to obtain Wood for Firemaking and Fletching. You can cut two trees simultaneously by purchasing the Multi-Tree upgrade from the Shop for 1 million GP (1000k).

Cutting Logs from Yew, and Magic Trees, to sell for GP is one of the best early game Money Making strategies. This will earn you between 150,000 and 220,000 GP per hour with a Dragon Axe depending on your Tree Mastery Levels. At level 99 Woodcutting you can purchase a Woodcutting Skillcape from the Shop to increase your Woodcutting speed, further increasing your profits.

Fishing

Fishing allows you to catch raw fish which can be Cooked for food. At level 30+ Fishing you will find a Treasure Chest 1% of the time while fishing. The Treasure Chest will contain an Amulet of Fishing 1% of the time, which increases your fishing catch rate from 70% to 100%.

Firemaking

Firemaking is levelled to unlock higher tier Cooking Fires and create Coal Ore. Cooking Fires are Skill Upgrades purchased from the Shop and are used in Cooking to obtain a Cooking Experience Bonus. You will only earn Coal Ore 40% of the time from burning Logs and other methods - such as Mining - are more efficient for gathering coal.

Lighting Bonfires will only give an Experience Bonus to Firemaking while active.

Cooking

Cooking is used to turn your raw fish into edible food. Cooking Fires can be purchased from the Shop and are unlocked by raising your Firemaking skill. Cooking Fires let you cook without manually lighting a fire and grant an Experience Bonus to Cooking.

Food burns 30% of the time until 50 Mastery Level when food will burn 1% of the time. Burnt food is inedible and can be sold from the Bank. Cooking Gloves can be purchased from the Shop will prevent food from burning when worn.

Mining

Mining is another strong option to level first. The Mastery Level of each ore affects how many times you can mine it before it's depleted and needs to respawn. The more valuable the ore is the longer the respawn time will be, with durations ranging from 1 to 120 seconds. Every time you mine there's a 1% chance you will find a random Gem in addition to your ore.

Mining with Gem Gloves is one of the most effective Money Making strategies available in the early game. At 99 Mining with Gem Gloves and a Mining Skillcape you can earn up to 500k GP an hour while idle mining.

Smithing

Smithing is used to turn ore into weapons, armour, and arrowtips.

Armour made with Smithing is powerful although the best armour in the game can only be obtained using Slayer Coins at the Shop or by killing enemies.

Thieving

Thieving lets you Pickpocket for GP and items. Thieving Gloves sold at the Shop give you +10% to your Thieving success rate when equipped. Thieving is the only way to find the Chapeau Noir hat and is arguably the best way to obtain Seeds. At level 30 Thieving the Farmer will be unlocked and is a prime target for acquiring seeds early on. You will only earn experience and on successful Pickpocket attempts.

Farming

You can Farm and complete other tasks simultaneously, Fertilising, Planting, and Harvesting does not interrupt other skills. Farming is one of the most time efficient ways to obtain food, which is used for healing in Combat. Farming is also the only way to obtain the Herbs used in potion brewing with Herblore.

Seeds planted without fertiliser have a 50% chance to yield crops after growing. To increase the chance above 50% you must fertilise the Seeds using Compost. Each Compost used on a Seed will increase its survival chance by 10%, raising your Compost Level to 5 will guarantee your crops survive. Compost must be used every time a Seed is planted to have an effect. Any crop that reaches Mastery Level 50 will always survive without Compost, and any crop that reaches Mastery Level 71 will yield enough Seeds on average to be replanted perpetually.

To start Farming you will need Seeds. The most efficient way to gather Seeds is to level Thieving to 30 and Pickpocket the Farmer. Seeds can also be found by killing enemies like the Junior, Adult, and Master Farmer, in the Farmlands, from Birds Nests found during Woodcutting, and from Chests acquired in Dungeons. It is recommended that you start levelling Farming early on as the levelling process is fairly active and lengthy.

Fletching

Fletching is used to make bows and arrows.

Fletching Magic Longbows using Magic Logs and Bowstring is one of the most profitable Money Making Strategies, although this method requires 99 Woodcutting and Fletching to be the most efficient.

Crafting

Crafting is used to make Leather/Hide Armour, Rings and Necklaces. Leather and Hide Armour is used to boost the power of Ranged attacks. Using Crafting to turn Bars and Gems into Rings and Amulets is less profitable than just selling the raw materials.

Runecrafting

Runecrafting uses Rune Essence to create Runes which are used to cast Magic Spells.

Herblore

Herblore is used to Brew Potions. A single Potion has many Charges and can be equipped to the Potion slot available for each Skill, which is accessed from the top right of your screen. Once the Charges from a single Potion have been consumed, a new one can be used automatically if "Auto re-use potion" has been enabled in the Settings Menu. Bird Nest Potions are useful in the early game when levelling Woodcutting for extra Seeds or GP.

Early game goal

A good early game goal to keep in mind is to prepare yourself for combat. So you will need armour, weapons and food.

Melvor Idle version v1.2.2 (Released: 15th November 2023)
Combat: Attack Strength Defence Hitpoints Ranged Magic Prayer Slayer
Skills: Woodcutting Fishing Firemaking Cooking Mining Smithing Thieving Farming Fletching Crafting Runecrafting Herblore Agility Summoning Astrology Township Cartography Archaeology Alternative Magic
Other: Beginners Guide Guides Bank Combat Mastery Money Making Shop Easter Eggs Pets Golbin Raid Full Version Throne of the Herald Atlas of Discovery
Reference Tables: Items, Equipment, Experience Table, Upgrading Items, Combat Areas, Slayer Areas, Dungeons, Chest Loot Tables, Monsters, Monster Loot Tables