Boss guide: Zakum, Horntail, Pink Bean, Von Leon, Hard Magnus and more

How KuroMS expeditions work, what Perfect Pitch buys, and every boss from Balrog to Hard Magnus and Damien with level, HP, time limit, rewards and drops, plus the Evolution Lab and CWKPQ party runs. Updated October 27, 2026.

How expeditions work

Expeditions are a primary way to meet players, tackle challenging content and progress. They are the main source of Perfect Pitch (KuroMS Boss Coins), exchangeable for White Scrolls, Chaos Scrolls, Clean Slate Scrolls and more.

Completing one grants all party members EXP and Perfect Pitch; bosses also drop equipment/materials.

Key rules: Expeditions have a six-player maximum. Daily bosses target about 10 minutes and Weekly bosses about 20 minutes. Missed entries are stored until the weekly reset. Bosses are tuned so an expedition gives roughly 1.5 levels of EXP for players in the intended range. Zakum Jump Quest and most prerequisites are skippable. Hosts can use widgets to create expeditions. Expeditions are reached via the Widget or Dimensional Mirror in FM.

Difficulty, timers and extra rewards: Papulatus, Zakum, Krexel, Scarlion & Targa, Horntail and Von Leon let the party leader pick a difficulty from 1/6 to 6/6 (not available to Ironman leaders). It scales boss HP, drops and Perfect Pitch, but not EXP; the numbers in this guide are the 6/6 values. Horntail and Chaos Horntail timers reset per stage, so a full run can take about 30 and 40 minutes. Most bosses drop Blessing of Fairy Potions: 6 at 80% from daily bosses and 12 at 80% from weekly and Superior bosses (Papulatus, Arkarium, Gollux and Hard Magnus drop none). Clears also give keys: a Lionheart Castle Key from Pink Bean, a Key of Dimension from Von Leon, a Leafre in Flames Key from Cygnus, a Phantom Forest's Key from Arkarium, a Pantheon's Key from Gollux and a Root Abyss's Key from your first Hard Magnus clear.

Which bosses have 1/6 difficulty: The 1/6 to 6/6 difficulty (and any 1/6 HP or DPM numbers) applies only to Papulatus, Zakum, Krexel, Scarlion & Targa, Horntail and Von Leon. Every other boss, including Chaos Zakum, has no difficulty menu, so real runs are always full HP. Ironman is the exception: an Ironman leader can pick 1/6 to 6/6 at almost every boss, Chaos Zakum included, and it scales boss HP, EXP and clear rewards (an Ironman Gollux run below 6/6 still pays the full clear reward). A Solo Ironman must start alone (Cygnus also allows a party of Ironmen at 1/6) and a Group Ironman can only bring members of their own Ironman group. Hard Magnus and the Evolution Lab have no difficulty choice for anyone.

Attempts, deaths and revives: Boss runs reset every Saturday at 00:00 JST. A run is used by a clear, or by 3 failed tries with the same party; at Arkarium and Gollux only the kill uses it. Arkarium, Gollux and Hard Magnus give the party 5 shared deaths: every death takes 1 minute off the clock, the 5th ends the run, and a Bishop's Resurrection gives the death and its minute back. All three also offer practice runs with no loot, EXP or rewards and no attempt spent. You always revive with full HP and MP, and your buffs now survive death with their own timers (mounts, transformations, summons, Dark Sight and Wind Walk, chairs, healing over time, Dragon Blood, Recovery and boss encounter effects still end).

Entry fees and keys: Chaos Horntail costs 100m mesos and the Empress (Cygnus) 120m mesos to start. The leader pays when the fight starts, a failed start refunds it and practice is free. Castellan Toad is free: no Gigatoad Coin Purse and no palanquin fare. Lion King's Castle, Future Henesys / Twilight Perion and Leafre in Flames no longer need a key; Gollux (Phantom Forest's Key) and Chaos Root Abyss (Root Abyss's Key) still do. Those keys only need to be in your inventory and are never used up.

How hard bosses hit: a normal hit from these bosses deals at most the damage below. Lethal mechanics still kill outright, and Hard Magnus has no cap: his attacks take a share of your max HP (a blue stone takes 100%).

  • Boss | Max damage per hit
  • Pink Bean | 18,000
  • Chaos Zakum | 19,000
  • Chaos Horntail | 20,000
  • Von Leon | 25,000
  • Empress (Cygnus) | 30,000
  • Arkarium | 40,000
  • Gollux | 50,000
  • Chaos Root Abyss | 70,000

Screenshot from the original Bossing Guide post.

Perfect Pitch

  • Perfect Pitch: KuroMS Boss Coins, exchangeable for White Scrolls, Chaos Scrolls, Clean Slate Scrolls and more. Source: Expeditions

Perfect Pitch (item 4310000) is the in-game name of the boss coin, and it is the name the Free Market and the market page use. Some players call it Pitch Perfect; it is the same coin.

Spending Perfect Pitch on scrolls.

Early Game Bosses

  • Balrog: Level 60-300. 600k HP. Runs: 6 runs/week. Time limit: 10 minutes. Rewards: 20 Perfect Pitch and 1.5m EXP. Drops: Balrog Shoulderpad, weapons, shoes
  • Papulatus: Level 110+. 15m HP. Runs: 6 runs/week. Time limit: 10 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 20 Perfect Pitch and 22m EXP. Drops: Aquatic Letter Eye, Papulatus Curls
  • Zakum: Level 120+. 265m HP (three bodies at 25m, 35m and 85m, plus 8 arms totalling 120m). Runs: 6 per week (no daily cap). Time limit: 10 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 30 Perfect Pitch and 38m EXP. Drops: Zakum weapons, diamonds, hats
  • Krexel: Level 130+. 150m HP. Runs: 6 per week (no daily cap). Time limit: 10 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 40 Perfect Pitch and 65m EXP. Drops: Pinnacle/Revolution/VIP/Tempest rings, Giant Tree Branch. Rewards Pinnacle/Revolution/VIP/Tempest rings and Giant Tree Branch
  • Scarlion & Targa: Level 140+. 200m HP. Runs: 6 per week (no daily cap). Time limit: 10 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 50 Perfect Pitch and 110m EXP. Drops: Scarga/Targa hats, Pinnacle/Revolution/Tempest earrings
  • Horntail: Level 150+. 500m HP. Runs: 6 per week (no daily cap). Time limit: 10 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 60 Perfect Pitch and 190m EXP. Drops: Horntail Pendant, Nine Spirit Egg, Maple Warrior 30

Weeklies

  • The Boss: Level 160+. 700m HP. Runs: 1/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 160 Perfect Pitch, 320m EXP and 1 Golden Flower Scroll. Drops: Golden Flower Ring, Innocence Scroll 100%. Platinum Scissors of Karma are a boss drop since 2026-09-30 instead of an exit reward. Fought in Showa Town, Zipangu; the in-game boss list calls it Showa
  • Castellan Toad: Level 170+. 1b HP. Runs: 1/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: None (free entry: no Gigatoad Coin Purse or palanquin fare). Rewards: 170 Perfect Pitch, 550m EXP and 1 Golden Flower Scroll. Drops: Innocence Scroll 100%, Golden Sculpture Totems, Timeless Pendant Scroll 100% (x2). Platinum Scissors of Karma are a boss drop since 2026-09-30 instead of an exit reward
  • Pink Bean: Level 180+. 4b HP. Runs: 1/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: None (level 180+). Rewards: 180 Perfect Pitch and 925m EXP. Drops: Rock of Time, Timeless Earrings, Timeless Pendants, Timeless Pendant Scrolls. HP was lowered from 9b to 4b. Each clearer receives a Lionheart Castle Key, but Von Leon no longer needs it
  • Chaos Zakum: Level 190+. 8 hands, 212m to 320m each (about 2.07b total), plus three bodies at 8b each. Runs: 2/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 190 Perfect Pitch, 1.6b EXP and 1 Chaos Boss Accessory Scroll. Drops: Chaos Zakum Helmet, Condensed Power Crystal, Enraged Zakum Belt. The three bodies total 24b (confirmed on August 3)
  • Chaos Horntail: Level 200+. two pre-heads 1.138b each, other parts 650m each, Head B 35b. Runs: 2/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: 100m mesos entry fee (refunded if the start fails; practice is free). Rewards: 200 Perfect Pitch, 2.8b EXP and 1 Chaos Boss Accessory Scroll. Drops: Chaos Horntail Pendant, Chaos Dragon Stone Scroll 100%, Silver Blossom Ring, Maple Warrior 40. Most of the HP sits on Head B, a single-target check, because balancing found multi-target damage unreliable. Once the boss has been cleared, the split stays as it is
  • Von Leon: Level 210+. 36b main body plus six 3b spawns. Runs: 1/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: None (Lion King's Castle no longer needs a key). Rewards: 210 Perfect Pitch, 6b EXP, 1 Key of Dimension and 1 Miraculous Chaos Scroll. Drops: Noble Lion King Medal, Ifia's Earrings, Ifia's Ring
  • Cygnus: Level 220+. Cygnus 70b, Shinsoo 20b, Knights 20b. Runs: 1/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: 120m mesos entry fee (refunded if the start fails; practice is free). Rewards: 220 Perfect Pitch and 11b EXP. Drops: Cygnus Circlets, Cygnus Shoulders, Cygnus Ring. Multi-target damage matters most at the Empress's knight spawns; on August 3 the team said they would be adjusted to spawn 5 at once

Superior Bosses

Beginning of Superior Bosses:

Level gates: The Superior boss levels in this guide are the levels at which the Free Market boss mirror and the in-game @guide list open each boss: Arkarium 230, Gollux 235, Hard Magnus 240, Chaos Root Abyss 255, Lotus and Damien 260. The Chaos Root Abyss, Lotus and Damien NPCs themselves have lower entry gates.

Which Superior bosses give rewards: Arkarium, Gollux and Hard Magnus are open for real, rewarded runs. Chaos Root Abyss, Lotus and Damien run in practice mode only for now: no loot, EXP or rewards and no attempt spent. Their cards show what a real run pays.

  • Arkarium: Level 230+. 400b, plus 2 Netherworld Monks at 50b each (one at 10 and one at 5 minutes left). Runs: 1/week, used only when Arkarium dies. Time limit: 20 minutes (5 shared deaths, each death costs 1 minute). Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 230 Perfect Pitch, 23b EXP and a Phantom Forest's Key (for Gollux). Drops: Dominator Pendant, Guardian's Eternal Ring, Berserker's Eternal Ring, Fragment of Distorted Time. The rings and the pendant drop 2 copies each, and every copy rolls 80% on its own; the 2 Fragments of Distorted Time always drop. Only one Dominator Pendant can be worn. Everyone who entered is charged at the kill, and nobody can join after the fight starts. The Arkarium NPC also offers a solo 1/6 practice run (about 66.7b HP) with no loot, rewards or attempt spent and no EXP loss on death. Each Netherworld Monk drops a Secret Medicine that doubles your damage for 5 minutes inside the run
  • Gollux: Level 235+. Head 300b, Abdomen and both Shoulders 50b each, Veilstone Alpha 20b (must die within 3 minutes), other monsters 1.5b. Runs: 1 clear per week (Ironman: 4 per week, max 2 per day), counted per household. Time limit: 20 minutes (5 shared deaths, each death costs 1 minute). Prerequisite: Phantom Forest's Key (from Arkarium) to enter the Gollux area, never used up. Rewards: 235 Perfect Pitch, 30b EXP and a Pantheon's Key (for Hard Magnus; you can hold only one). Drops: Superior Gollux Earrings, Superior Engraved Gollux Belt, Superior Engraved Gollux Pendant, Superior Gollux Ring, Advanced Gollux Scroll. The real fight has been open since October 17. Enter at the Imitation Gollux Heart or the boss mirror, 1-6 players. Only a clear uses your weekly run (reset Saturday 00:00 JST); wipes and practice runs are free. The Heart always offers a practice run (no loot, rewards or attempt spent), and an Ironman leader can pick 1/6 to 6/6 HP for it. The Head drops 2 of each item and every copy rolls 80% on its own. Gollux Coins and Pennies no longer drop
  • Hard Magnus: Level 240+. 1.5T. Runs: 1 clear per week (Ironman: 4 per week, max 2 per day), counted per household. Time limit: 20 minutes (1-6 players, 5 shared deaths, each death costs 1 minute). Prerequisite: Pantheon's Key (from Gollux), never used up. Rewards: 250 Perfect Pitch, 40b EXP, an 80% chance of 5 Magnus's Letters, and a Root Abyss's Key on your character's first clear (untradeable, never used up). Drops: Tyrant Cloak (one of five, every kill), Power Elixir x40 (every kill), Crystal Ventus Badge (10%), Magnus Horn Throne (3%), Cursed Kaiserium (2%). Normal Magnus is closed: the boss mirror's Magnus entry (level 240) and Adobis in El Nath now take you to the Heliseum Heights Entry, where the Tyrant's Throne Entrance starts Hard Magnus. The quest "The Tyrant's Summons" is not required. Real runs are open, and a practice run (no loot, rewards or clear spent) is offered too; a real expedition takes priority. A clear is only used when Magnus dies, or after 3 failed tries with the same party. Tyrant Cloaks are tradeable, and the Tyrant glove, boot and cloak recipes at the Maker open after Hard Magnus's first defeat
  • Chaos Root Abyss: Level 255+. 3T per phase: Chaos Von Bon and Chaos Vellum 3T, Chaos Crimson Queen and Chaos Pierre two phases of 3T each. Runs: 1 per week for each of the four bosses. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: Root Abyss's Key (from your first Hard Magnus clear), never used up. Rewards: 245 Perfect Pitch and 60b EXP per boss. Drops: Shard of Eternity (Chaos Von Bon), Shard of Anguish (Chaos Crimson Queen), Shard of Mockery (Chaos Pierre), Shard of Destruction x3 (Chaos Vellum), each boss's own hat, Blessing of Fairy Potion x12. Chaos Von Bon, Chaos Crimson Queen, Chaos Pierre and Chaos Vellum. Each drop rolls 80%. The shards are Maker materials for the Root Abyss gear (for example Royal hats, Eagle Eye tops and Trixter bottoms). Practice mode only for now
  • Lotus: Level 260+. 15b per phase. Runs: 1/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 245 Perfect Pitch and 60b EXP. Drops: Extraordinary Energy Core, Berserked. Practice mode only for now
  • Damien: Level 260+. 15b per phase. Runs: 1/week. Time limit: 20 minutes. Prerequisite: None. Rewards: 245 Perfect Pitch and 60b EXP. Drops: Twisted Stigma Spirit Stone, Magic Eyepatch, AbsoLab Shoulders. Practice mode only for now

Party runs: Evolution Lab and CWKPQ

Two timed party runs sit next to the bosses. They pay Perfect Pitch, Hyper ETC items and their own reward boxes.

Evolution Lab

Talk to Nova Sage Ilya in Pantheon and pick Evolution Lab. Level 170+, 1-6 players, 20 minutes; the party leader starts the run and a Solo Ironman starts it alone. Up to 300 Evolved Mutant Slimes fly around the lab and keep refilling.

  • Runs: 2 runs are added per household every day (JST) and spent when you enter. Unused runs carry over until the weekly reset (Sunday 00:00 JST), up to 14 a week.
  • Each slime: 2b HP, 133,333,333 EXP and 20 Perfect Pitch. Every class's Hyper III item can drop at 10% each.
  • Boxes: when the timer ends, every player in the lab gets 1 Evolution Lab Box. An Ironman who enters alone, or a party made only of one Ironman group, gets 6 each. A run that ends early pays boxes only once the party has killed at least 100 slimes; the run is used either way.
  • 5th run bonus: from your household's 5th run of the week, the boxes from that run hold 200 Hyper III instead of 100.
  • Evolution Lab Box | Chance
  • 100 of a random class's Hyper III (untradeable) | 98%
  • Evolution Lab Master medal (+2 all stats, +2 attack and magic attack; you can hold only one, and a duplicate turns into 100 Hyper III) | 1%
  • Evolution Pendant (cash pendant) | 1%

The medal and the pendant are Superior items with 10 slots, and Nova Sage Ilya upgrades them 9 times for 300 Pantheon's Myth per level. New boxes and medals are untradeable.

Crimsonwood Keep Party Quest (CWKPQ)

Talk to the Crimsonwood Party Quest Jack in Phantom Forest (Dead Man's Gorge, on the stone platform up and left of Nyx) or the original Jack in Crimsonwood Keep. 1-6 players, levels 90 to 300, and you can solo it.

  • Runs: 7 per week per account (household), all available from the weekly reset (Saturday 00:00 JST). Unused runs do not carry over.
  • Final stage: Margana, Red Nirg, Rellik, Hsalf and the Master Guardian spawn together at 80b HP each. Ironman-only parties fight a share of it (solo 13.3b each, duo 26.7b, six players the full 80b); any non-Ironman in the party means the full 80b. The timer is 20 minutes for 3+ players, 30 for 2 and 40 solo.
  • Rewards: 2 to 4 Perfect Pitch and stage EXP, plus 1 CWKPQ Box per party member present (1 to 6 boxes each). Ironman characters always get 6. Boxes are untradeable and expire 24 hours after the clear.
  • Ironman milestone: every 15th clear of an Ironman character pays a Mark of Naricain and a Forest's Nightmare.
  • CWKPQ Box | Chance
  • 200 of your class's Hyper II (untradeable) | 97%
  • Mark of Naricain | 1%
  • Forest's Nightmare | 1%
  • Gelt Chocolate | 1%

Balance notes

Some bosses intentionally have very high HP. If a boss is unclearable after completing the relevant region and obtaining necessary items, players should report it. Pink Bean's HP was lowered from 9b to 4b; updates are handled in the Bossing Guide.