Summary of 吃鱼的小宇's Mu Yifeng Musician video guide

summarized by Xom from 吃鱼的小宇's 2023-8-26 Mu Yifeng Musician video guide at https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1yp4y1E7vs/

Preface

I reached 10000 rank points in both Spring and Wind Rise seasons, but I didn't see anybody else playing Mu Yifeng Musician!

[Translator's note: The build in this guide is approximately how I used to play Long Yao, when I was new to the game and didn't know the Coral Sword synergy. Hopefully I can find time to translate a Long Yao Musician guide eventually.]

Core Cards

Meditation:

• Thunder Sword
• Sword Slash
• Sword Defence
• Flying Fang Sword
• Qi Perfusion

Foundation:

• Contemplate Spirits Rhythm
• Consonance Sword Formation
• Sky Spirit Tune

Virtuoso:

• Heartbroken Tune
• Tremolo
• Cloud Dance Rhythm
• Tri-Peak Sword

Immortality:

• Inspiration Sword
• Flow Cloud Chaos Sword
• Nine Evil Ruptsprite
• [TL: I wonder if Egret Spirit Sword should be listed?]

Incarnation:

• Predicament for Immortals
• Apparition Confusion
• Chord In Tune
• Flying Spirit Shade Sword
• Dharma Spirit Sword
• Sword Intent Surge
• Cloud Sword - Dragon Roam
• Rule Sky Sword Formation
• Chain Sword Formation

Core cards are cards related to Sword Intent and to qi. Transit using Sword Intent while holding on to some qi cards. In lategame, transition to Dharma Spirit Sword, because Chord In Tune + Sky Spirit Tune adds qi very quickly; both lv.max is 13 qi. At the same time, you have many counter cards, many techniques for guessing games; you can flexibly counter any sort of deck.

Final Builds

Many of these have unused slots at the end where you can add supplemental damage.

Four-move kill with no Predicament

All lv.2 = 151 damage.
All lv.max = 238 damage.
If all lv.1, and insert lv.max Qi Perfusion, it's 114 damage in five moves. That is to say, one copy of each of the five cards in the screenshot is enough to assemble the build.

Five-move kill with Predicament

Predicament for Immortals costs a little bit of qi, so it costs a little bit of damage; you can still kill in five moves. It's hard for other decks to kill in five moves without Chase.

Three-move kill with Dragon Roam

Requires more quality, but still attainable. It's hard for other decks to kill in three moves.
Two copies of each card = 104 damage.
One more of Chord In Tune (*or two more of Sky Spirit Tune) = 122 damage.
Two more of Chord In Tune = 137 damage.
One more of Chord In Tune and two more of Sky Spirit Tune = 137 damage.
Two more of Dragon Roam = 115 damage.
Two more of Dragon Roam and one more of Chord In Tune (*) = 135 damage.
Two more of Dharma Spirit Sword = 113 damage.
Two more of Dharma Spirit Sword and one more of Chord In Tune (*) = 133 damage.

Four-move kill with Ignore DEF

Two-move kill

Four copies of each card = 110 damage. (Round 18 default HP is 109.)

Five moves high damage

The screenshotted example is 136 damage by turn four, and 89 more on turn five, totaling 225.

Perfect 4-Chase

Immortal Fate choices

The build is relatively reliant on cultivation.

Foundation, Virtuoso: Epiphany (probably free with 0 exchanges stored) > Thunder Tribulation > Foundation-phase Store Qi > card draw > card gain [see my guide on card pool mechanics] > Virtuoso-phase Store Qi > Shattered Dao > Foundation-phase Recuperate > Sword In Sheathed, Endurance As Cloud Sea > others

Immortality: Shade Of Cloud

Incarnation: Shattered Dao > Store Qi > Thunder Tribulation > card draw > card gain > Spring Course Tea > Fortunes and Luck (only a few are useful) > Solid Foundation > others

Daoist Rhyme Omen: Dharma Spirit Sword > Flow Cloud Chaos Sword > Flying Spirit Shade Sword > At Own Pace

Other cards are not recommended because they're not as immediately useful.

Transit

Don't absorb cards in the first six rounds, or you'll run out of cards to exchange. The following typical result, usually assembled on Round 6, is 77 damage in six moves. (It's four copies each of five cards, so it's exactly possible on Round 6 if you didn't absorb any cards (or merge any other cards).) With this, you should have no problems before Immortality.



If you happen to max Sword Slash, Qi Perfusion, and Sword Defence before Round 6, you can consider breaking through immediately; you don't need to max Flying Fang Sword and Thunder Sword.

In Round 1, try to kill in six moves. Or deal as much damage as possible in five, because you'll probably go second since you won't absorb cards.

Here, this translation omits some advice that's the same as in the Lin Xiaoyue Sword Intent guide, section I. Earlygame: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3060759603
While max HP is low, you may still have to choose a non-lethal five-move combo if the opponent will kill you in six moves, assuming you go second.

After breaking through, don't exchange except with Shift As Cloud's free exchanges.

Sometimes you can leave Normal Attacks after your combo in order to contend to go first.

You can start with Qi Perfusion + Giant Roc Spirit Sword for more damage.

If you find Heartbroken Tune, hold on to it. It looks symmetrical, but it's not, because the opponent loses HP first. You can insert it at various positions depending on how much more damage you need. It's especially useful against heavy defense, such as qi-DEF, Earth, or even Hua Qinrui.



In Immortality, some other builds may roll down and come together, and you may be weak, but still don't exchange. Reaching Incarnation with 40 Destiny is bearable.

On Round 12, break through and expend your exchanges in search of your core cards. Keep all that you find, even if not immediately useful, even if you lose Destiny; you'll use them later. Keep the cards you're using until you find their replacement, such as Flying Fang Sword, whose replacement is Sword Intent Surge. Inspiration Sword can replace Sword Slash, and with enough qi, Sword Defence. [TL note: Sword Slash + Sword Defence are useful in the example deck vs. mono-Earth in the next section, because Qi Perfusion could only apply to one of Inspiration Sword or Dharma Spirit Sword.]

If you can't go first, don't absorb cards; they could be useful later if you end up needing more cards to exchange.

Sword Consonance Formation can be useful if you have Dharma but no good multi-hit.

This build is already decent upon finding just lv.1 of the cards. Usually it comes together around Round 14-15.

Matchups

1. The core of the build is really Predicament for Immortals. Most opponents can beat you if they guess right on whether you deploy Predicament for Immortals.
2. Don't deploy Predicament for Immortals when you don't need it. Don't expose it too early.
3. Try not to use Predicament for Immortals two battles in a row.
4. Late in the match, sometimes you can surprise an opponent by absorbing a lot of cards to go first, if they let their guard down seeing the large cultivation difference.
5. Calculate what turn the opponent can kill you. Calculate how much damage you need.
6. Scout every round for what opponents are playing. Cide, Guard Up, Weakened, etc. Your opponent may not play their counter card in the round before you battle.
7. As Incarnation phase continues, the game becomes more and more about counter cards.
8. Consider whether you can compete with your opponents on cultivation. If you can't, then give more consideration to non-cultivation Immortal Fate choices.

Weakened and Dive are easy for you to deal with, but Guard Up and Cide are difficult, and will be discussed separately after the matchups.

Matchups vs. Five Elements Alliance

Mono-Wood, mono-Fire, Overcome with each other, Ultimate World Formation

Five-move kill with Predicament for Immortals. They rely on Chase.

Mono-Metal

Without Chase, mono-Metal pretty much can't kill you in five moves. Consonance Sword Formation plays around Iron Bone. It can also block Giant Tripod. This is pretty much impossible for mono-Metal to beat.

Mono-Water

You need high damage to beat Dive / Combine Rivers. There's a guessing game with Predicament for Immortals vs. Five Elements Heavenly Marrow Rhythm:





[Translator's note: It's true that the deck with Predicament in the first screenshot loses to the deck without Marrow in the second screenshot. But the deck without Predicament in the second screenshot beats both decks.

However, if I'm doing the arithmetic correctly, the opponent is close to being able to kill in five turns. Normally, that would require separate copies of Great Waves and have no room for defense (so it wouldn't survive the Flying Spirit Shade Sword on turn four), but with the help of Sky Spirit Tune, three Great Waves is enough. So if the opponent doesn't have another Great Waves, they shouldn't have merged. Furthermore, at some point since this match was played, lv.2 Marrow was buffed to add 2 qi, which is significant here. Assuming lv.max Marrow was also Qi+1 before the buff, for which I can't find the patch note:

lv.2 Marrow + lv.2 Water Formation + lv.2 Turbulent + Great Waves + lv.2 Echo + Great Waves + Dive + Great Waves = 103 damage by turn five, pre-buff, not quite lethal. Were the first Great Waves lv.2, it would be 105, which is lethal in Round 16 but not Round 17. Were Marrow post-buff, it's 108 damage with all lv.1 Great Waves, which is enough for Round 17.

With Combine Rivers instead of Dive, it's definitely enough damage, but the question becomes whether it's enough HP to survive the lv.2 Flying Spirit Shade Sword in Round 17. If my arithmetic is correct, either the Marrow buff or the Great Waves upgrade results in surviving it at 1/137 HP, otherwise it's death at 0/136 HP.]

Mono-Earth

With Qi Perfusion, it's a free win, because mono-Earth can't kill you in the first cycle. Except Mu Hu Painter mono-Earth, against whom you can play Predicament for Immortals, and then he probably can't kill you in the first cycle:

World Smash

Turn-one Ruptsprite:

Hua Qinrui: Water-Wood, Ultimate World Formation, or even Chase-less anticipating Predicament

Nine-turn kill. Plays around Dive and Thousand Evil Incantation. Hua Qinrui won't kill you in nine turns.

Flame Soul Rebirth (or Ashes Phoenix)

If you can K.O. with Sword Intent, you can finish with Dharma Spirit Sword:



Assuming K.O. with Dharma Spirit Sword, you can also finish with Chain Sword Formation (copying Rule Sky Sword Formation) + Mirror Sword Formation if you have enough upgrades for it to be lethal.

Matchups vs. Heptastar Pavilion

Polaris Citta-Dharma

Predicament is not needed. Use Chase cards against Cide. The following is enough damage to kill through Weakened:



If you don't have enough quality to kill through Weakened, try dodging it. Here's a turn-two burst followed by Apparition Confusion:



The following qi-removing deck is an advanced tech. Polaris is very reliant on qi.

Hexagram Formacide

The Hexagram Formacide deck deals big damage in four turns. If you just go for four-turn kill, you probably go second and lose. Use DEF to survive:



This doesn't account for the possibility of Ice Spirit Guard Elixir.

Jiang Ximing Painter, Formation Master

They rely on Chase. Use Predicament and high damage:

Wu Ce Post-Action

If they don't play around Predicament for Immortals, you can attack freely, as long as you play around Cide:



If they play around Predicament, and also use Escape Plan, you can counter with Apparition Confusion:



For any Escape Plan played after Hunter Hunting Hunter, the HHH trigger will trigger Apparition Confusion, removing the Guard Up. The deck also uses Giant Roc Spirit Sword in case there is 1 Guard Up, such as against the following deck:

Internal Injury Musician

They don't have a four-turn kill, but you may need to play around Cide and Ruptsprite. The following deck plays around all three of Chord + Heartbroken Tune + Cide, Chord + Predicament + Cide, and Chord + Strike Twice + Cide, protecting Inspiration Sword:

Yan Chen Elixirist

As long as they don't use Ice Spirit Guard Elixir, you can use Predicament for Immortals and attack freely.

Matchups vs. Cloud Spirit Sword Sect

Sword Intent

Just do four-turn kill.

Sword Formation

You need to compete to go first, so that you can use Flying Spirit Shade Sword to add qi before your opponent has DEF:



The same deck also works against Long Yao. She'll go first, but she won't add DEF turn one.

If you don't have enough quality to kill with the above, then you can fight this way. Start with Predicament, and attack early with Dharma Spirit Sword to destroy DEF so that it's not there for Mirror Sword Formation. Then put your qi cards, including Qi Perfusion, so that Dharma Spirit Sword is lethal in the second cycle:

Elixirist Cloud Sword

It's difficult, because they have Ice Spirit Guard Elixir and high damage, and they can use Rule Sky, Giant Kun, etc. to protect their Guard Up.

Do your damage early, then rely on Apparition Confusion to finish them off:



If they do full Chase and Guard Elixir, it may not be too difficult. Start with Predicament, and use Apparition Confusion to counter the Guard Up. You can finish them off with Sword Intent:



This is a seven-turn kill. If they're playing full Chase and Guard Elixir, they won't kill you first.

Spirit Sword

It's a bad matchup, because they can take advantage of your Sky Spirit Tune.

Hold on to Nine Evil Ruptsprite and Concentric Tune:





As long as you line Concentric Tune up with Thousand Evil Incantation, you can attack freely.

Unrestrained Sword, Cloud Sword - Avalanche

They rely on Chase. With Predicament for Immortals, you can attack freely.

Long Yao Musician

Using Qi Perfusion against Sword Formation was already discussed, but she may also try Nine Evil Ruptsprite. So if you also hold on to a Moon Water Mirror Flower deck, it may be easier:

Long Yao Painter

Use Apparition Confusion or Heartbroken Tune to counter Guard Up. Then you can attack freely.

vs. Guard Up

Best if your Cloud Sword - Dragon Roam is sufficiently upgraded to break the Guard Up.

Otherwise, against turn-two Guard Up, consider the following deck. Against no defense, it deals 118 damage by turn three. If Inspiration Sword hits Guard Up, then Flying Spirit Shade Sword breaks the rest of the Guard Up, and Egret + Dharma kills on turn five:



Against turn-three or -four Guard Up, deal damage with Egret on turn two, then use Inspiration Sword and Flying Spirit Shade Sword to break Guard Up on turns three and four:

vs. Cide

Against single Cide, use Chase cards. [The following is a repeat of the first screenshot in the Heptastar section.]



Against Divine Walk Fulu + Strike Twice + Cide, there are two cases.

Against Jiang Ximing Fuluist, you can contend to go first. In that case, the double Cide skips Rule Sky + Flying Spirit Shade Sword in the following deck, and Dragon Roam + Dharma is lethal. If Jiang plays Tiger instead, you do high damage in four turns to kill through Weakened:



If you go second, such as against Yao Ling, the double Cide skips Qi Perfusion + Rule Sky in the following deck:



Against turn-four double Cide, with you going second, the double Cide skips Flying Spirit Shade Sword + Dragon Roam in the following deck: