To get to know about an overview and the details of the game, best source is

https://loveofmagic.fandom.com/wiki/Walkthrough

Other important links: https://discord.com/invite/NQrQrht and Droids page on Patreon ofc.

You will find out about almost all possibilities the game provides, leaving it up to the player to experiment with the different possibilities and come to individual conclusions and preferences.

This guide of mine - on the other side - comes with my personal weighting and subjective judgements, my own conclusions after hundreds of hours being in EW. Reading this makes it also possible for you not only to go easily through the game on Ultra, but after some time you will even say that ultra is too easy for you too. In this case, just let us know. I have an idea to handle this.

And coz I am always eager to learn more and to get better, I would like to know about YOUR way to play and win on ultra, so that many ppl can learn from it. Again, there is no obligation to follow this guide ofc. Get some ideas, experiment and have fun.

If you are new to this game, and unacquainted with the Poker mechanics of LoM, it is recommended that you start with Default difficulty level (Normal), or even with Easy.

Later, after having some experience, and after you realize that you are eager for some more challenge, Hard may be your choice. Only if this is no match for you, Ultra may be the level where you have the challenge you want to master.

This guide may be also helpful for you, if you are still playing on Normal difficulty. Many basic game mechanics are explained to get a deeper understanding of the things in LoM.

But on Normal, the game is much more forgiving to suboptimal choices. Many ways lead to a successful playthrough. You can enjoy the story without bothering too much about mistakes in the Poker part or in the daily life in Edinburg.

On higher difficulty levels, fighting Monsters (M) in Elsewhere (EW) might give you hard times, if you don’t follow some strategic concepts and guidelines. For that, this guide will (hopefully) help you.


If you want to be a good strategist and win the game on a ultra (or even hard) difficulty level, it is not only important to increase your strategical skills while fighting in EW, and to choose your allies and your gems for the according slots, but also to manage the daily life in the Old World (OW) = City of Edinburg.

While playing on casual, easy or normal (default), many strategies will work, even no strategy at all may work. On “hard” it starts to get difficult, and one has to “think hard” about strategies and tactics, but still many ways to play may work, more or less, even suboptimal ones.

When “Ultra difficulty” level was created a few days ago (Droid, thanks again for that), the number of strategies which work well are quite narrowed down.

In my first try I felt like Robin Williams in Jumanji, thrown into the deepest jungle with horrible monsters. I was not sure if I can survive more than a few seconds.

My first thought was, “Oh Droid will make some fun of us, increasing the stats of the new level above “hard” in such an incredible way that no one will ever ask for more difficulty.” That’s absolutely impossible to survive that, was my first thought.

And my fears got validated: My first opponent was a Defiler, which should be the absolute easiest enemy you can find in EW.

He hit me once, and I was like 99.5% dead (just one HP left).

But then I realized that - for me - things work even smoother on Ultra than on Hard level, which I used to play before Ultra came into existence. Why? Let’s say I tried harder.;)

In OW there is a lot to do for the foundation of having a chance to survive in EW. In daily life there happens most of the story, which is btw. the best I ever experienced. Beside that we earn money to buy gems and other stuff, we upgrade our skills through reading and training …

On hard, my strategy was to earn lots of money soon, and spend as little money as possible on books or whatever - to buy early gems (day 12). I was convinced that this is a good strategy. It worked well, coz “hard” is forgiving, ultra is not. We do not necessarily and urgently need a lvl7 gem for 250£ on day 12, coz Mollies Jokers come much later.

It is easy to discover that we need STR (strength) against the early monsters from day 13 on. STR as much as possible. Money is important too, but only as a second priority.

You need money for Arnie’s book (100£) on gaining STR. Ofc you also need CHR for Chloe - to get her Fire3 gem when you talk to her about gems (CHR 6), and to have her in your EW team from day 13 on (CHR 12).

But don’t overdo with CHR, it is the one stat which comes a lot by itself, and when you stress on CHR, you soon have much more than you will need in the beginning. Having 12 is enough until day 13. If you have the choice, take - as first priority - STR, then CHR (but only until you have 12), then INT. Later you will need 20 CHR (Pixie). After that, CHR is last priority. It will increase to more than 60 by itself.

To buy Arnie’s book for early STR soon, best is to take the “1 CHR+100£” when you are asked about which stat you want, quite in the beginning. Don’t forget to visit the gym for Katies gift (gems).

“Story only lovers” tend to neglect to visit EW. On ultra (and hard), one should not leave out any possibility to visit EW, coz it is the most lucrative way to get stats (STR), gems, money, ingredients (50 for a flawless diamond). If you have no fun to fight the magic poker against monsters, ultra and hard is definitely not for you.

This means, if there is no lecture or any other event, MORNING is “hunting time in EW”. But that’s after day 13 (until the end of book1).
EVENINGS are for coffee+reading, or for working in the bar (+35£).

Phase I (start)
Before day 13, drink coffee in the morning a/o evening and read the book for STR (A. Schwarzenegger). Early socializing (=no reading) at Starcucks once is an easy +2 CHR. Avoid the second socializing, until you really need CHR (20 for Pixie). Second and fourth socializing gives nothing, third and fifth gives 2 again. 7th gives 4 CHR (some say it is a talk with Sean C.), after that, socialization has no use any more, it’s wasting moves if you still do.

Arnold S. book costs 100£ + 25£ for coffee. This equals 4.5 evenings working, beside 5 dayparts reading. Altogether 9.5 dayparts reading and working.

His book gives 7 STR. This means: only about 1.4 dayparts per 1 STR (time is the currency here, the bottleneck).

Bruce Lee’s book costs 125£ too.
Gives 3 STR, 2 INT, 2 CHR. If we count only STR (first priority for Ultra), this is about 3 dayparts for 1 STR. Imo not recommendable in the beginning.

Skipping all books in the beginning (after Arnie’s book ofc) may be a good choice (saves you a lot of money). Look into the Wiki and decide, if the stats a book delivers are worth the time and money to read it. The one book which is really essential is the “Art of War”. It will come to MC much later, in the bookstore, when you are ready for it. You will get 2 SWORD stats with it, beside lots of other stats.

Another possibility to get stats (STR) is Katies gym. 2nd, 4th, 6th … time hitting the bags gives 1 STR each. Cost is zero. That’s 2 dayparts for 1 STR. Recommendable after finishing the Arnie’s book for increasing STR, until the end of book1 in evenings.

10 dayparts are 350£ on the one hand (working in the bar in evenings), and 5 STR on the other hand (10x gym). I personally prefer a mix of both (work+gym). Books are only for later, when there is plenty of money and a need for increasing INT (to go on with Emily).

At some point there is also a possibility to spend time in the Uni Library upstairs. You get 1 INT for 3 dayparts, very far away from being attractive imo.

To make it clear: I recommend “No reading in the Uni Library”. No need to go there, unless you come for talks with crazy Olivia (the latter can be postponed. It does not have anything of value for EW, only for progressing with Jennies Rose events later).

On day 12 and after that, you can buy gems in the Uni Library (Adrian). A lvl 4 and a lvl 2 gem will do for a start, preferable pure damage. Without high INT, they are quite good in the beginning. A little later, if you have the money, a lvl 7 diamond for 250£ will be useful, although 4s (=4 of a kind) without Molly are rare. A Lightning2 is also fine to buy.

After analyzing MORNINGS and EVENINGS, we need to have a look at the nights.

In the NIGHT, you can visit the Grassmarket for a beer (10£) from day 4 on, or you can go for a free shower which you reach through the public bar 😉.

Let’s compare: Go for beer 15 times at night (=150£). You get 4.5 CHR (30%) and 5x nothing (rng). Plus about 3.2 STR and 2.2 INT.

For these 150£ you work 4 evenings: That’s 19 dayparts for a little more than 3 STR (plus some other stats, which are less important at start). With other words, you need more than 6 dayparts for 1 STR.

Shower for 19 nights gives you between 4 to 5 CHR, which ofc is less important too, but it’s free at least.

Nothing else to be done at night (before you bring your 3rd special ingredient to Chloe and are allowed to do night shifts in the bar for 75£).

My choice is: After buying the needed gems, and when I still have an overflow of money, I go for a beer now and then. Beside that: lots of cleaning in the shower. When nightshift is possible, things change ofc. 😉

Talking about showers. If you find yourself in the sleeping room at night, and you realize that you did not yet had a shower, don’t forget to do. (This happens after first homework with Emily, or when you get “the talk” with your landlady in your sleeping room.)

But you have to enter the shower through the bar (imagine you are wrapped with a towel, entering the pub full of drunken guests, hoping your towel will keep in place. And after shower, all the way back again 😉 ).

When you found your first “special ingredient” and give it to Chloe, you are able to work at night for once. (Avoid to meet Pixie when your CHR is below 20. No hurry to meet her.).

Special ingredients are rare, until you have Bella in your EW team. You might not find your 3rd special ingredient without Bella.

After giving the 3rd ingredient to Chloe, you are able to do nightshifts. Phase II begins.

Watch out for Bella on day 20 at night! (Grassmarket), after that you will receive an email from her for another meeting.

With Bella you will find lots of normal ingredients (treasures in EW). Do not give them to Chloe, until you have collected 50. After succeeding, give these 50 to Chloe for a Diamond9. I would always take this Diamond9 and NOT the also offered money (1500£) coz money you will get plenty with working, while the gem is priceless and unmatched for a long time (cannot be bought nor found).

With start of Phase II, NIGHTS are for working in the bar. Ten nights is 750£. Soon you can buy a lvl 8 gem in the Uni Library for 1000£.

This money tops all the alternatives for the night. Imo do not bother to read in the cafe at night, when you can read there in the evening and earn tons of money at night.

Summary: After day 25 or a little later, when you are allowed to do regular nightshifts:

Do your thing in EW in the MORNING and work in the bar at NIGHT.

EVENINGS are for increasing STR in the gym (preferrable) or for reading at Starcucks (if you are in need for other stats than STR, like INT).

If you have your STR increased up to around 30 or more, you might want to bring your INT up to 10. This could be done with the speedreading book e.g. After that, the MMA fight with Katie is possible, which gives you 3 stats (1 each). Then, you can focus on STR again, if you like.

A word about the importance of STR on Ultra: What Ms you encounter depends on MC’s Level (you can see it only when you level up after winning a fight). The higher his level, the tougher the Ms, specially on Ultra. In case you have too little STR compared to your level, then the Ms you encounter might be too hard for you. Gain lots of STR from fights in EW and from events in OW to be ready for the tough ones. The relation STR per level matters 😉 .

If you do well in these hints, you will be strong enough to encounter many of the stronger monsters in EW. Just leave the strongest ones alone, until you are ready for them (I am talking about the Hellion Captain and the higher Guardians). Having X (Excalibur) is definitely a big help with that.

After a while you have enough gems to sell some.

Go to the gem dealer (Adrian). He will pay you half of the normal price for them.

Look your gems through, choose what you will need for yourself later. Use the registers I, II and III to sort your decks. From the rest of your gems on the right side, you will keep one gem of every kind automatically. The superfluous ones are all sold to the dealer with one click.

This should give you hundreds or more than thousand £.

There is also a private stash, where you can buy all gems up to lvl 8 for double price, even gems like Clusters, Ice and Pierce. The Lvl 2, 4 and 7 (the ones you could get from day 12 on) are still on sale for normal price.

About the registers I II and III: Personally I prefer to have just one gem deck (Rage /Cluster). In the second register I have an experimental deck with Lightning /Poison (/Ice). This cannot be used universally (like the first one) coz of immunities. With low INT, it is also quite weak, therefor it might be useless at all. In the third deck I keep gems which I do not use in the moment, but also do not want to sell them right now. They might be of use later.

With X you can place all gems one slot down. Your lvl 2 gem can be placed in the Pair slot now. This will improve your battles with the magic cards, and you will be able to fight even the nastiest monsters in EW and get their loots and lots of EXP.

Be careful when you buy gems. There will be many you will find in EW, even high tier ones like lvl 6 up to lvl 8 (rarely ofc). Save money until you can decide which ones you miss and which ones you really need for the gem decks of your choice.

Phase II lasts until end of book1.

In the second half of book1, getting X and again, getting the mantle, means real power shifts for MC. But the priorities of Phase II are still valuable.

Ofc it is up to you to decide, if you want to spend the NIGHT at Starcucks, with Jenny and coffee and reading books. This is possible after succeeding with the first quest “Black Rose”.

How much money you want and need is a question of taste and playstyle.

If you have an abundance of money and you want to get a special stat for it (like STR only; or INT only), you might want to have a good meal by yourself alone in the Nepali Restaurant at Night. Take the first meal if you want STR, take the second for INT.

This is more expensive than a beer in Grassmarket, but with the chance of getting 75£ a night in the bar, money is not the bottleneck any more. Time is it actually. Use the time to level up fast.

Two nights working in the bar plus 5 meals in the Nepali Restaurant, that’s 7 nights, giving you 5 stats of your choice. That’s a really good ratio - (also better than reading most of the books, or hitting bags in gym, assuming you have the money for the nepalese meals through working at nights in the bar.).

After succeeding with the first quest “Black Rose” at Starcucks, you could also read books at night there, if you prefer that. Look out which stats you will get for a book and how much time it takes to finish it (incl. the time for working for the money). There is no obligation to read all the books, btw.

Also consider which gems you need for fights in EW. 2 or 3 lvl8 gems for 1000 or 1500£ each may be useful. That’s means lot of nightshift in the bar. Sometimes you will also find high amounts of money in EW (or even a lvl8 gem or two).

Don’t forget to trigger some of the events in other places, which are timed exclusively at night.

There is also LATE NIGHT. But this is not really a daypart. Absolutely nothing can be done then. You may get some messages, but nothing else.

There are different strategies on stats.

STR empowers your primary damage which is specially very helpful with Diamonds, Pierce, Cluster (and ofc with the primary damage of other gems). This is +1% for every STR. And it pushes up your HP (+10 HP for every STR).

The last is important for Dylan’s Regen. It is always 10% of the max HP, and the higher the max HP, the more HP will be regenerated every turn.

INT empowers the secondary effects (which are decreasing from turn to turn) of gems like Fire, Ice, Poison … as well as Lightning and Shields.

In addition to this, INT helps with increasing experience after winning fights, leveling MC up faster and gain stats even faster.

These effects are round about 1% for every INT, but not exactly. The curve for adjustment is: Y = 100*X/(X+50).

This means, with INT=50 we get the same value (50). The adjusted effect is +1% for every INT.

INT= 0 - +1.82% (adds +1.82% effect for every additional INT).
INT= 25 - +1,33%
INT= 50 - +1.00%
INT= 75 . +0.80%
INT=100 - +0.67%

As you can see, there is a decreasing additional effect with every INT gained above 50, but the effect is still increasing.

CHR effects the recharging time of allies. In case you have many Shield gems and no Rage (which I don’t recommend), this will slow down recharging rate of the allies a lot. Otherwise, no need to stress on high CHR.

CHR will go up to around 60 and more, almost by itself anyway. Story wise in book1, a CHR of 25 is enough (to continue with Emily). Same for INT.

About the question what is best to favor: STR or INT ?
This depends on your strategic choices.

If you prefer the Rage /Cluster combo (and Dylan), STR is possibly for you.
If you are into the Lightning /Poison (/Ice) combo, with lots of secondary effects, you might tend to high INT.

There is still much to say about EW things, about allies, about gems and about Poker strategies, but that’s for other guide parts.

If you like to share your experiences and comments, you are welcome. Have fun.