> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.4thewords.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Monster Mastery
> Defeat monsters repeatedly to raise your mastery level and earn exclusive badges, hideout items, and wardrobe rewards.
## Overview
Mastery tracks how many times you've defeated each monster. The more you fight a creature, the higher your **mastery** grows, earning you badges and, at higher tiers, exclusive hideout decorations and wardrobe items.
Players build mastery differently, and your most-fought creature can be featured on your public profile.
## Where to Find It
> **Where to find it:** Left sidebar → **Journal** → [**Compendium**](/character-and-gear/items-and-spells/overview) tab → **My Masteries** tab [Open in 4TW ↗](https://app.4thewords.com/journal/compendium)
## How Mastery Works
Mastery is built automatically as you win battles:
1. **Defeat a monster** in any battle. Solo, endurance, or co-op.
2. **Kill count increases** by 1 for that creature.
3. **Level up.** When your kill count hits the next tier's threshold, your mastery levels up.
4. **Earn a badge.** You get a unique badge image for that creature at its new tier.
5. **Unlock rewards.** At certain tiers, you also receive a hideout decoration and/or wardrobe item named after the creature.
6. **Keep going.** Fight the same creature to reach higher tiers, all the way to the Ascended Badge. Multiple levels can be earned in a single session.
**Looking for monsters to grind?** Browse and filter all available creatures in the [Monsters](/adventure/adventure-world/monsters) tab. Star your favorites for quick access, then add them to your [Battle List](/writing/writing-battles/battle-list) to chain fights.
## Mastery Levels & Rewards
10 mastery tiers per creature. Higher tiers require more kills but reward exclusive items you can't get any other way.
| Level | Badge | Kills Required | Hideout Decoration | Wardrobe Item |
| ----- | -------------- | -------------- | ------------------ | ------------- |
| 1 | Forest Badge | 10 | - | - |
| 2 | Desert Badge | 25 | - | - |
| 3 | Water Badge | 50 | - | - |
| 4 | Dust Badge | 100 | - | - |
| 5 | Ghost Badge | 250 | - | - |
| 6 | Gold Badge | 500 | ✓ | - |
| 7 | Light Badge | 1,000 | ✓ | ✓ |
| 8 | Dark Badge | 2,500 | ✓ | - |
| 9 | Fire Badge | 5,000 | ✓ | ✓ |
| 10 | Ascended Badge | 10,000 | ✓ | ✓ |
Reward items are named after the creature and tier. For example, a level 6 mastery on a Wignow earns you a **Wignow Gold Badge** hideout decoration and a **forum avatar badge**. Each creature and tier combination produces a distinct, unique item.
Grinding a single monster is the most efficient path to hideout and wardrobe rewards. Exclusive items start at level 6 (500 kills). Pick a creature you fight often and focus on it.
## Viewing Your Progress
Click any discovered monster in the **My Masteries** list to open the detail panel. From the detail panel, click the info icon (**ⓘ**) to open the full monster profile. The profile has three tabs; select **Mastery** to see:
* **Current Level** and the number of battles you've won at that level
* **Next Level** and your progress toward it (e.g., *47/100 Battles*)
* A progress bar filling toward the next tier
* **Level history.** Every tier you've already reached, with its badge image and rewards earned
The **Mastery** tab only appears for monsters you've already fought at least once.
## Browsing & Searching
The **My Masteries** list in the **Compendium** shows every monster in the game alongside your current mastery progress. Each card shows a progress bar so you can see at a glance how far you are from your next level. Use the tools at the top to find what you're looking for:
**Search** (type in the search box to filter by monster name. Use the filter icon next to the search bar to narrow or expand what the search matches). you can choose to include or exclude **Drops**, **Requirements**, **Areas**, and **ID** from your search.
**Sort**. Use the sort dropdown to reorder the list:
| Sort option | What it does |
| ------------------ | ---------------------------------------- |
| **By Id** | Default order by monster ID |
| **Alphabetic** | A–Z by name |
| **Most mastery** | Highest mastered creatures first |
| **Least mastery** | Lowest mastered (or never fought) first |
| **Recently Added** | Newest monsters first |
| **Featured first** | Your featured monster appears at the top |
If your search or filters return nothing, you'll see **No Items By Filters**. Click **Clear Filters** to reset and see the full list again.
## Featuring Your Favorite Monster
You can mark one creature as your featured monster. It appears on your public profile to show other Dust Warriors what you've been fighting.
1. **Open the detail panel.** Click a monster in **My Masteries**.
2. **Click the star icon** in the panel header to toggle it as **featured**.
3. **Tooltip confirms:** **Add to featured** or **Remove from featured**.
4. **One at a time.** Selecting a new featured monster automatically replaces the previous one.
Only one monster can be featured at a time.
## Frequently Asked Questions
No. Your kill count only increases when you win. Losses and fleeing don't affect mastery.
Yes. Any battle win against a creature counts toward your mastery for that creature, regardless of battle type.
Rewards are awarded automatically when you reach the qualifying tier. Check your hideout element collection and wardrobe for the new items. They'll be named after the creature and its badge tier.
Mastery is tracked per account, not per character. All your heroes share the same mastery progress.
Your featured monster (one creature, set from the detail panel) appears on your public profile. Your mastery badges are separate. They're displayed as part of your overall badge collection.
The tab only shows for monsters you've already fought at least once. If you haven't battled this creature yet, the tab won't appear.
You haven't reached the next tier's kill threshold yet. Check the progress bar in the **Mastery** tab. It shows exactly how many more wins you need.
Rewards for hideout decorations and wardrobe items only begin at level 6 (Gold Badge). Tiers 1–5 award a badge only. If you reached level 6 or higher and still don't see the item, check your hideout element collection and wardrobe. It may have been added there without a notification.
These are placeholder items. You've reached a mastery level with a monster that no one had reached before and the reward hasn't been created yet. Because all of our art is hand painted it might take some time for our team of artists to paint your reward.
**Find monsters and gear up**
Browse, filter, and find creatures to fight across all unlocked areas.
Explore the interactive world map, unlock new regions, and discover quests and markets.
Equip gear to boost Attack, Defense, and Luck for more efficient mastery grinding.