The Mortar strategy

Long story short: build Ship, learn Prospecting (Iron sand), build Furnace lvl. 2, build Workshop lvl. 4, craft Mortars and solve a lot of huge nonograms with these Mortars (preferably from Treasury of Mental power) and getting a lot of items and Mental power.

Not so long ago I have built all the "important" buildings and had no need for Wood or Stone. I decided to craft Fans and throw them into the Cauldron. I threw Stone directly into the Cauldron, since there was no better way to get Coins - I really needed Coins. A couple of days after that, I saw a Reddit post about the best route for the ship - Prospecting. The OP (Original Poster) suggested to craft Shurikens and throw them into the Cauldron, but I thought: "What if I crafted Mortars or Battering rams instead?" I have Wood, I have Iron sand, which means that I have Steel, and I have Gunpowder - I really don't need these items anymore. But what I really need is MP (Mental power). And so it began...

Mortars vs Battering rams

Let's compare Mortars and Battering rams:

• 1 x Battering ram:
  • Cost: 20 x Wooden beam and 4 x Steel.
  • Raw cost: 10 x Wood + 2 x Iron sand + 4 x Charcoal (1 x Wood) = 11 x Wood and 2 x Iron sand.
  • Time to craft: 3 hours.
  • Solves: 25% (can be used only once per puzzle).
• 1 x Mortar (2.5 x Mortars [adjusted for % solved]):
  • Cost: 2 x Wooden beam, 2 x Gunpowder and 6 x Steel (5 x Wooden beam, 5 x Gunpowder and 15 x Steel).
  • Raw cost: 1 x Wood + 2 x Gunpowder + 3 x Iron sand + 6 x Charcoal (1.5 x Wood) = 2.5 x Wood, 2 x Gunpowder and 3 x Iron sand (6.25 x Wood, 5 x Gunpowder and 7.5 x Iron sand).
  • Time to craft: 1 hour (2.5 hours).
  • Solves: 10% (25%), but can be used multiple times i.e. solves the whole nonogram.

Although Battering rams are cheaper to build, they take longer to build and can't be used to fully solve a puzzle. They are great to craft overnight when time doesn't matter. Battering rams and Mortars don't pair nicely with each other, because the puzzle can be solved to only 95% and using a Mortar for only 5% is a waste. But they do nicely pair with Drums (acquired from the dungeon).

With all these weapons you can easily solve hard 80x80 colored nonogram (see Treasury of Mental power) and get a lot of items, expedition progress and MP. The items you get from solving puzzles can then be invested into crafting even more Mortars. The MP can be spent in the dungeon, either for farming Catacombs map fragment (Very old scroll -> Historical library) or Drums, which will also get more items and more MP - kind of like a perpetual motion machine. Either Catacombs map fragments or Drums dungeon 2A is the best for both. 2A can be completed with lvl. 5 hero and lvl. 1 equipment. It costs ~90 MP, isn't hard and it doesn't require much food. With frequent visits to the dungeon you'll accumulate a lot of Mushrooms and Ultraviolet cherries. They can then be cooked into Mushroom rice (Bento) and Cherry buns, and sold in Shop. This will accumulate a lot of Coins, which are much needed for Technologies or can be used for skills.

Praising the Mortar, lol.

Not a late game strategy

This might seem like a strategy for the late game, where the player has too much items, but it actually isn't. Even though it seems like this strategy consumes a lot of items, it doesn't. On the contrary it "produces" items. I am still throwing away Wood and Stone, because I still have too much of it. Although the strategy is great, it does require some buildings to get started.

Building order

The building order is mainly focuses on getting the items required for crafting Mortars and buildings that craft the required items. Although the start is the same as the building order for passive (or active) players, it changes course when Ship is built.

1. Guild lvl. 2 (increases daily rewards).
2. Warehouse lvl. 1 (unlocks Bourse - watching ads for Treasure map fragments, Katanas and Coffee beans).
3. Shop lvl. 1 (enables the purchase of Chemicals to construct Alchemist's Hut ).
4. Alchemist's Hut lvl. 1 (unlocks crafting Charcoal, which is needed for Steel).
5. Alchemist's Hut lvl. 2 (unlocks Cauldron).
6. Rock Garden lvl. 1 (creates passive income of Stone. Get Rock Garden before Garden as Stone is harder to acquire than Wood).
7. Rock Garden lvl. 2 (increases passive income from 1 Stone to 2).
8. Garden lvl. 1 (creates passive income of Wood).
9. Garden lvl. 2 (increases passive income from 1 to 2 Wood).
10. Dungeon lvl. 1 (enables converting experience points to Mental points, which are key to progressing through the dungeon).
11. Lumber Mill lvl. 1 (enables producing Wooden Beams, which is required for some lvl. 3+ buildings).
12. Lumber Mill lvl. 2 (increases production of Wooden Beams).
13. Guild lvl. 3 (enables building lvl. 3 buildings, also increases daily rewards).
14. Rock Garden lvl. 3 (increases passive income from 2 to 3 Stone).
15. Garden lvl. 3 (increases passive income from 2 to 3 Wood).
16. Field lvl. 1 (creates passive income of Rice).
17. Food Stall lvl. 1 (enables crafting dungeon-related items, which will help a hero stay longer in the dungeon).
18. Field lvl. 2 (creates passive income of Wheat).
19. Windmill lvl. 1 and 2 (enables crafting Flour from Wheat).
20. Lumber Mill lvl. 3 (enables production of Wooden planks).
21. Pier lvl. 1 (the Pier is required to advance in the Shogun's Katana quest (Chapter II) and to build the Ship, which allows you to go on ship missions which will allow you to collect items like Spices, Pearls and Salmon, which are necessary to build some buildings).
22. Ship lvl. 1 (get at least Ship lvl. 1 and unlock Prospecting (requires 20 Bombs and 60 Steel) as soon as possible; you will also want to unlock Fishing (requires Pearls) to collect Salmon and Tuna to learn Boatswain and speed up the ship).
23. Furnace lvl. 1 and 2 (for crafting Steel).
24. Workshop lvl. 1-4 (allows crafting Mortars).
25. Ship lvl. 2, 3 and 4 (for more ship missions, which work better with your sleeping schedule and getting Spices).
26. Dungeon lvl. 2 (unlocks 2A).
27. Smithy lvl. 1-3 (you might need Sword for a hero lvl. 1 for 2A, which gives you +3 Attack; this allows you to 2 hit enemies and thus taking less damage; Sword can also be acquired in Bourse, but it costs 1 x Ruby; even with only Sword and Mechanical spider 2A is quite easy).
28. Workshop lvl. 5 (allows to craft Battering rams; useful for overnight crafting; you also now have Drums).
29. Guild, Food Stall, Bridge, Outpost, Coffee Bonsai, Onsen, Caravan, Tailor, etc.

There's also a "Mortar rush" order, which might be more suitable for active players. This order focuses only on the buildings, which are relevant to this strategy.

1. Guild lvl. 2 (required for Alchemist's Hut lvl. 2).
2. Warehouse lvl. 1 (watching ads for Katanas and solving 80x80 puzzles with them, and watching ads for Potion of healing, which will be needed in the dungeon; it also allows you to trade Crypto-coins for Gold ingots, Wood or Stone).
3. Shop lvl. 1 (required to purchase Chemicals and upgrade Alchemist's Hut).
4. Alchemist's Hut lvl. 2 (crafting Charcoal and Cauldron is a must, because you'll receive a lot of weapons from this strategy; start saving your Steel).
5. Lumber Mill lvl. 1 and 2 (crafting Wooden beams, which are required for Mortars).
6. Guild lvl. 3 (enables Lumber Mill lvl. 3).
7. Dungeon lvl. 1 (at this point you might already have 100 Steel; allows you to collect Crypto-coins and exchange them in the Bourse; it also allows you to level up your hero; get Mechanical spider and only do 1A).
8. Lumber Mill lvl. 3 (Wooden planks are required for Pier and Ship).
9. Pier lvl. 1 (required for Ship). Note: You need character lvl. 22.
10. Ship lvl. 1, 2 and 3 (required for acquisition of Iron sand; if you don't have enough Steel build Furnace lvl. 2 before).
11. Guild lvl. 4 (required for Workshop lvl. 4).
12. Furnace lvl. 1 and 2 (required for crafting Steel; you might want to build this earlier in case you need Steel or you don't have the level required to build Pier and Ship).
13. Workshop lvl. 4 (crafting Mortars).
14. Dungeon lvl. 2 (unlocks 2A -> Drums and Catacombs map fragments; it does require equipment lvl. 1, which you can get from Bourse).
15. Field lvl. 1 (doing dungeon with only Potion of healing (from ads) and Charge of motivation (hero skill) is quite a waste of watching ads for potions instead of Katanas and a waste of MP).
16. Food Stall lvl. 1 (allows crafting items for dungeon).
17. Guild lvl. 5 (required for Workshop lvl. 5).
18. Field lvl. 2 (Wheat for Flour).
19. Windmill lvl. 1 and 2 (Flour for Flatbread and Cherry buns).
20. Workshop lvl. 5 (crafting Battering rams).
21. At this point you might want to complete the Shogun's Katana questline, which rewards an eternal mortar and katana, so building Food Stall lvl. 2 and 3 is required. Then you can focus on passive income buildings or go for Outpost, Caravan and then for Airship.

Items

There are 3 items, which are needed for Mortars: Wood, Gunpowder and Iron sand. These are the basic components, which can then be crafted into other items via buildings.

• Wood is not a problem. I get a lot of Wood from puzzles solved with Mortars. I even have to throw it in the Cauldron. Note: Because Workshop will be busy, crafting Fans (most profitable for Cauldron) is not an option. That's why I craft Wooden beams instead and throw them into the Cauldron.
• Gunpowder might be a problem. I get most of my Gunpowder from Cauldron and it's enough. I have never run out of it. But Gunpowder is also needed for lvl. 3 expeditions, which I am not currently doing. In case you might feel like you are running out of Gunpowder, you can always upgrade the Alchemist's Hut to lvl. 3.
• Iron sand is not a problem, as long as the ship is Prospecting. The ship going for Iron sand is the key to this strategy. Otherwise you don't get enough Iron sand just from Cauldron, and buying it in Shop feels like a waste of Coins.

What about Katanas?

Let's now look at Katanas.

• 1 x Katana (80 x Katanas):
  • Cost: 2 x Steel and 1 x Charcoal (160 x Steel and 80 x Charcoal).
  • Raw cost: 1 x Iron Sand + 3 x Charcoal = 1 x Iron sand and 3/4 x Wood (80 x Iron sand and 60 x Wood).
  • Time to craft: 30 minutes (40 hours).
  • Solves: 1/80 or 1.25% (100%), but can be used multiple times i.e. solves the whole nonogram.
• 1 x Battering ram (4 x Battering rams):
  • Cost: 20 x Wooden beam and 4 x Steel (80 x Wooden beam and 16 x Steel).
  • Raw cost: 10 x Wood + 2 x Iron sand + 4 x Charcoal (1 x Wood) = 11 x Wood and 2 x Iron sand (44 x Wood and 8 x Iron sand).
  • Time to craft: 3 hours (12 hours).
  • Solves: 25% (100%), but can be used only once per puzzle.
• 1 x Mortar (10 x Mortars):
  • Cost: 2 x Wooden beam, 2 x Gunpowder and 6 x Steel (20 x Wooden beam, 20 x Gunpowder and 60 x Steel).
  • Raw cost: 1 x Wood + 2 x Gunpowder + 3 x Iron sand + 6 x Charcoal (1.5 x Wood) = 2.5 x Wood, 2 x Gunpowder and 3 x Iron sand (25 x Wood, 20 x Gunpowder and 30 x Iron sand).
  • Time to craft: 1 hour (10 hours).
  • Solves: 10% (100%), but can be used multiple times i.e. solves the whole nonogram.

Just by looking at Katanas stats, they can't compare with Mortars or Battering rams. Although Katanas are not worth crafting compared to them, if you have too many items (Wood and Iron sand/Steel), it's still better crafting Katanas... sometimes. The Smithy is free (unless crafting Swords or Gears), but with Wood and Steel you can also craft Shurikens and throw them into the Cauldron. With the amount of Iron sand needed to craft 80 Katanas you can craft 640 Shurikens (Cauldron rewards: ~5 Gold ingot + other items) and Shurikens also craft in less time (13.4 hours compared to 40 hours). If you really need MP and have too many items, you should craft Katanas. If you need Coins, Gold ingots, Wood or any other item, which you can get from Cauldron, craft Shurikens instead.

Classes

By using this strategy you want to prioritize classes, which reward you with Mortars and/or Katanas. This way you'll get some Mortars and Katanas back. There are really only 2 classes, which synergize well with this strategy: Samurai and Zen Master. Samurai rewards +20% drop chance for Katanas, +15% drop chance for some weapons (can be thrown into the Cauldron) and a chance to find a Mortar. Zen Master rewards +30% experience, +20% drop chance for Katanas and Treasure, and a chance to find a Mortar. Zen Master is clearly better, but it also requires level 80. Samurai can be learned at level 21, which is just around the time you can build Pier and Ship. The additional experience gained from Zen Master can not be undervalued, because a new level rewards a Battering ram, Coins and Ruby/Rubies.

Steamobile

Steamobile can only be crafted after Airship was built (plus some other late game requirements).

• 7 x Mortar:
  • Cost: 14 x Wooden beam, 14 x Gunpowder and 42 x Steel.
  • Raw cost: 17.5 x Wood, 14 x Gunpowder and 21 x Iron sand.
  • Time to craft: 7 hours.
  • Solves/time: 10% per 1 hour = 70% per 7 hours.
• 1 x Steamobile:
  • Cost: 2 x Mechanism, 2 x Meteoric Steel and 2 x Charcoal.
  • Raw cost: (4 x Gears and 2 x Meteoric Steel = 12 x Meteoric Iron, 8 x Charcoal (2 x Wood) and 12 x Charcoal (3 x Wood), 4 Meteoric Iron, 2 Chemicals = 16 x Meteoric Iron, 5 x Wood and 2 Chemicals), (12 x Charcoal (3 x Wood), 4 x Meteoric Iron and 2 Chemicals) and 0.5 x Wood = 20 x Meteoric Iron, 8.5 x Wood and 4 Chemicals.
  • Time to craft: 4 hours + 2 hours (2 x Mechanism).
  • Solves/time: 70% per 6 hours.

Pure "crafting time per puzzle solved" Steamobile is better, but it also requires 20 Meteoric Iron, which might be needed elsewhere (technologies, equipment). Steamobile is definitely better to craft than Battering ram overnight, and also better to craft than Mortars through the day, although Mortars will be needed to complete the puzzles. The crafting times from Gears, Charcoal and Mechanism were not accounted for, because they are crafted in separate buildings (and also faster). My warehouse is currently full of Steel and Iron sand (I am not even going Prospecting anymore), but I am short on Meteoric Iron, so I will be crafting Mortars and Battering rams for a quite some time.

Closing thoughts

Overall I think this is a great strategy for all players (especially for those who don't have much time to solve puzzles). I've been using this strategy for a couple of weeks and I really like. I also have more time to spend it on the wiki and my guild progress is progressing much faster. This is more of a mid-to-late game strategy since it requires some buildings to get started, but when it does get started, it just keeps going (perpetual motion). This way people can progress much faster. Thinking back, this strategy has been around since the implementation of the guild, but nobody has made any public posts about it. It's even more relevant now, because of the Dungeon and MP requirements.

With this strategy, you actually don't have to solve nonograms (missing the whole point of the game). That's why I think the developers might not like this strategy, thus getting nerfed or removed. For those reading and wanting to use this strategy, consider disabling automatic updates for the game. :)