Milkyway Idle Beginner Guide
Author: Crazytrain Stella
Last updated: Jan 2025
Before Reading
- It is highly recommended to read the in-game guide first to gain a basic understanding of the game before proceeding further. You can also find explanations for various terms in the game guide.
- This guide is more pragmatic and is aimed at those who wish to have a structured plan. If you prefer a more casual playstyle, you do not have to follow it strictly.
- Single Account Only. No Alts, No Boosting. Detailed explanations and other game rules can be found in the in-game Rules section.
Beginner's Phase (Reaching a Total Level of 750)
What are the gamemodes?
There are 3[1] gamemodes in the game:
- Normal: This is the normal gamemode, nothing special.
- Ironcow(IC): This is a gamemode where you can't access the marketplace except for the CowBell bags.
- Legacy Ironcow(LC): This gamemode is basically Ironcow, but it was given to player who play as Ironcow before official Ironcow was invented, therefore you can't access this gamemode.
Why 750?
In the game, there are drinks that provide valuable buffs, such as Tea (for production) and Coffee (for combat), which significantly boost both production and combat efficiency.
We strongly recommend that new players focus on reaching level 750 early to unlock the Giant Pouch
. This will grant you 3 food and drink slots (you start with 1).
Key benefits of the Giant Pouch:
- +2 Food Slots
- +2 Drink Slots
There are 17 skills in total, so basically, the goal is to level each skill to around level 45.
The Early Game Leveling Guide
Milking, Foraging, Woodcutting, Cheesesmithing, Crafting, Tailoring
- It is recommended to prioritize maintaining your Cheesesmithing level at the beginning stage, as it allows you to craft tools needed for other skills, greatly boosting your efficiency.
- The required tool levels are: 1, 10, 20, 35, 50, 65, and 80.
- You can first level Milking and Woodcutting to level 10, then upgrade your Cheesesmithing to level 12 to craft new tools for other skills. This approach will also help you understand the game as you level up.
Brewing / Cooking
- Brewing: Prioritize making Gourmet Tea / Wisdom Tea for your own use. Once your brewing level is higher, focus on making Artisan Tea / Efficiency Tea. The teas mentioned above are not only suitable for personal use but also have high circulation and are easy to trade. (Refer to the Tea Guide below for which tea to drink.)
- Cooking: Cooking may not be very profitable in the early stages, but once you reach the Peach/Mooberry level, it becomes a very beginner-friendly way to make money. This is because food has a high circulation rate, ensuring smooth cash flow.
- Helpful Profit calculator: CowCulator Mooneycalc
Enhancing
- Buy a Gator Vest
and a sufficient amount of Swamp Essence, set the target level to 15, and let it run for a long time. - If you want a more efficient leveling route (which, of course, means it won't be as cheap): Gator Vest → Level 35 Tome of Healing
→ Level 60 Gobo Defender
→ Level 70 Tome of Elements
Alchemy
- Transmute or decompose items from Foraging that are above your current alchemy level, or coinify cheap essence.
Combat
- It is recommended to start combat after reaching a certain level (enough to equip medium or small pouches) and having sufficient food.
Ways to Gain Exp in Each Combat Skill
- Move your mouse over the Exp bar in-game (long press on mobile) to read detailed instructions.
Recommended leveling weapons and abilities
- Attack/Power: Sword
- Ranged: Crossbow
- Magic: Fire Staff
Remember to purchase ability books and equip them before combat. Start by fighting flies and gradually level up until you can fight the Smelly Planet
. After that, never combat with individual mobs.
Farm! (Earn your first bucket of gold)
The first thing to understand is that this is a game with a trading market. If you choose standard mode, it means you can acquire the items you need through more efficient trading, rather than spending a lot of low-efficiency time acquiring them yourself.
After reaching level 750 and equipping a large pouch, it is recommended to specialize in one or two life skills to quickly accumulate money. Higher levels lead to higher efficiency, so it is not recommended to level-up every skill by yourself.
Recommended Skills
Below are some recommended skills and their situations after reaching a certain level. Please choose based on your preferences and playstyle.
| Skills | Estimated Max
Daily Profit* |
Comments |
| Foraging | 15M | The simplest way to make money, suitable for true idle players. |
| Tailoring | 17M | Requires minimal purchasing of materials. Market is very stable, although you will spend a portion of what you make on materials. |
| Cooking | 18M | Requires purchasing raw materials, When funds are insufficient, regular logins are needed. Items sell quickly. |
| Brewing | 20M | Similar to Cooking, but with slower sales. |
| Alchemy | 20M | Coinifying ess, no market tax from reselling cutting into profit margin. |
*The daily profit is calculated based on level 90, with +10 holy tools, +10 related gears, and the market price on Dec. 2024.
Gears for Advanced non-combat Players
After reaching level 80, first upgrade to +5 holy tools (important), then upgrade to +5 gears (optional).
- Collector's Boots - Gathering
- Eye Watch - Cheesesmithing, Crafting, Tailoring
- Red Culinary Hat - Cooking/Brewing
- Chrono Gloves - Alchemy/Enhancement
If you plan to produce for more than a month, upgrade to +10 holy tools and +10 gears (basically BIS).
Tea Guide*
| Skill | Before Level 80 | After Level 80 |
| Milking/Woodcutting | Wisdom /Gathering /Efficiency
|
Gathering/Processing /Efficiency
|
| Foraging | Wisdom/Gathering/Efficiency(Processing is optional for cloth)
| |
| Cheesesmithing, Crafting, Tailoring | Wisdom/Artisan /Efficiency
| |
| Cooking/Brewing | Gourmet /Wisdom/Efficiency
|
Gourmet/Artisan/Efficiency
|
| Enhancing | Wisdom/Blessed /Super Enhancing
| |
| Alchemy | Wisdom/Efficiency/Catalysis
| |
*When there are insufficient drink slots, drink in the order from left to right.
It's time to combat
In the current version (Nov 26 2024 Philosopher's Stone version), the class rankings* are as follows:
*This is Stella's highly subjective rating based on Philosopher's Stone version, and you are free to have your own understanding. Additionally, the spear and bow weapons are currently not recommended.
The gears can be crafted by yourself or purchased from the market. Players with some accumulated funds can buy +10 to speed up leveling.
Note that equipment should be chosen according to the class. Carrying equipment not suited for your class will result in reduced damage/accuracy.
Entry-level/BIS reference
For entry-level gear ( main combat level around 85), +5 to +10 is recommended.
For BIS gear, it is recommended to start with at least +10.
Enhancement level/Ability level below is for display purposes only
| Entry-level | BIS | Abilities* | |
| Slash | 
| ||
| Smash | 
| ||
| Ranged | 
| ||
| Fire Mage |  **
Optional: | ||
| Water Mage |  Optional:
| ||
| Nature Mage |  ***
Optional: |
*In the red box are those carried after reaching level 90 Intelligence
**Note that the ability casting order is from left to right. If an ability with no cooldown (such as Fireball, Water Strike, or Entangle) is placed at the mid, the ability to its right will not be cast. This is especially important for all mages to keep in mind
***The Nature Mage can also play as a healer, making the skill combination more complex and flexible. It is recommended to use this after gaining some understanding of the game and play in a party
How to Choose the Planet That Best Suits You
● Go to the combat simulation website: MWICombatSimulatorTest ,or you can find the combat simulation in the bottom-left corner of the window after installing the MWITools addon（highly recommend）.
● After opening the combat simulation, click the button below to import your sets (MWItools needed)
● Click Start Simulation to begin, select the character and map, set the time to 24 hours.
Usually, you need to consider factors such as the number of deaths per hour, profits, experience, and other aspects. Choose the planet that best suits you.
It is not recommended to play in a party at the early stages, as the experience gained will be less, which is not beneficial for leveling up.
FAQ
Q: I want a term definition/more basic guide!
A: There is an in-game beginner's guide in the bottom-left corner of the game, which is worth reading.
Q: What is the difference between Standard and Ironcow?
A: Standard can use the market, while Ironcow cannot purchase anything except the cowbell from the market. Standard cannot party with Ironcow, but two Ironcow characters can party with each other.
Q: What if I can't defeat the quest mobs / what should I exchange tokens for?
A: It is not recommended to focus entirely on task-based playstyle, as task rewards are not high enough. Only do tasks that are by the way, and for tasks that are not, it is recommended to reroll or discard them. Token purchase priority:
- Maximize the cooldown.
- For combat main players: block slots for non-combat tasks.
- For production main players: block slots for combat tasks.
- Large Meteorite Cache/Large Artisan's Crate
Q: What should I buy with Cowbells?
A: Initially, use 100 Cowbells to buy the action queue and offline progress. Then it depends on personal needs:
- If you don't want to log in frequently, buy offline progress.
- If you don't want to manually change gears, buy equipment slots.
- If you want to store tasks, buy task slots.
- If you enjoy cosmetics, buy icons, name color, or avatar.
- Unless you are able to bring in a consistent amount of coins, and, furthermore, a consistent amount of cowbell bags, it is recommended against buying community buffs.
Q: What does efficiency mean, and why not shorten the production time?
A: Efficiency refers to the probability of immediately completing an action.
Q: How to level up abilities?
A: The main way to level up abilities is by using ability books. Ability upgrades significantly boost combat. It is recommended to:
- Reach level 40 with ability books early on.
- Reach level 60 in the mid-game.
- Continue using them endlessly in the end game.
Q: Can I get badge bonuses by not turning in a completed task?
A: NO
Q: What is back equipment, and where can I get it?
A: Back equipment is obtained by fighting in dungeons:
- D1 — Ranged Quiver
- D2 — Melee Cape
- D3 — Mage Cloak
Back equipment cannot be traded, so you must rely on yourself for enhancements.
Q: How to choose pouches and jewellery?
A: The end-game pouch and jewellery for all classes are Guzzling Pouch
and Philo’s Set.
Before that:
- Combat main players can equip Experience Necklace, Ring/Earrings of Regeneration.
- Non-combat players can choose Experience Necklace, Ring/Earrings of Rare Find.
Q: Does levelling alchemy and enhancing affect the success rates much?
A: Before reaching the recommended level for item enhancement/alchemy, level-ups will increase the success rate due to the existence of a level penalty.
After exceeding the recommended level:
- Enhancement levels will continue to increase the success rate.
- Alchemy levels will only improve efficiency
| Skills | |
|---|---|
| Gameplay | |
| Helpful Pages | |
- ↑ There are 3 Additional, Unofficial gamemodes: No Gather IC (NGIC) , COIC (Combat Only IC), and EXTCOIC (Same as COIC, but with enhancing allowed)