You just started Library of Ruina. You’re feeling good. You’ve beaten some rats, some thugs, and maybe you think you’ve got a handle on how the dice roll. Then you meet Malkuth. Or rather, you meet her Floor of History. It’s a brick wall for a lot of players, and honestly, that’s exactly what Project Moon intended.
Malkuth isn't just another boss or a quest giver. She’s the Sephirah of the Floor of History, and her character arc—from the traumatizing events in Lobotomy Corporation to her role as a Librarian—is one of the most cohesive stories in the game. But if you’re here, you probably care more about how to stop getting bodied by her realizations or how to actually use her floor to win the late-game.
The Floor of History is weird. It’s focused on burn, green gluttony, and a very specific type of aggression that rewards you for playing on the edge. If you don't understand the mechanics, you're going to have a bad time.
Who is Malkuth Anyway?
Before we get into the math and the cards, we have to talk about who she is. Malkuth was originally Elijah. She was an employee at Lobotomy Corp who desperately wanted to be "useful." That desperation led to some pretty horrific outcomes. In Library of Ruina, she carries that baggage. Her floor reflects her desire to move forward, to keep walking even when things are falling apart.
Her personality is peppy. Almost too peppy. It’s that "I’ve seen the end of the world and I’m still smiling because I have no other choice" vibe. You'll notice her floor's Abnormality pages are mostly themed around things that consume, burn, or transform. It’s about the cycle of history repeating itself.
The Mechanics of History
Let's get technical. Malkuth’s floor is the first one you really get to develop. Early on, people sleep on it because they want the raw power of Yesod or the healing of Hod. But Malkuth has the Burn niche.
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Burn is often misunderstood in Library of Ruina. People think it’s just passive damage. It’s not. It’s a pressure tool. When you stack burn on an enemy, you aren't just ticking their HP down; you're changing how they have to play. In the early to mid-game, Malkuth’s access to pages like Scorched Girl and Happy Memories makes her floor a beast for sustained fights.
Happy Memories is probably the most broken Abnormality page if you know how to abuse it. It reduces the cost of a specific card every time you use it. You take a high-cost, high-impact card, and by the end of the fight, you’re playing it for zero light. It’s disgusting. It’s beautiful.
Beating the Floor of History Realizations
The Realizations are where the boys are separated from the men. Malkuth’s Realization is the first major marathon. You’re going through the Scorched Girl, the Teddy Bear, the Fairy Festival, and the Queen Bee.
The Scorched Girl part is easy. Just don't be dumb with the matches. But the Teddy Bear? That’s where the frustration starts. It punishes you for using the same pages repeatedly. You have to rotate. This is Project Moon’s way of teaching you deck diversity. If you brought a deck with three copies of one card and just spammed them, the Teddy Bear will crush your soul.
Then comes the Queen Bee.
Honestly, the Queen Bee is a nightmare for players who rely on single-target nukes. You have to manage the spores. If you ignore the minions, you get overwhelmed. If you focus only on the minions, the Queen will bleed you dry. The trick is balance. You need enough mass-attack or multi-target capability to keep the hive in check while slowly chipping away at the boss.
Why Burn Matters in the Late Game
As you progress into the Urban Nightmare and Star of the City tiers, Malkuth stays relevant because of how she scales.
- Xiao’s Page: Once you get Xiao’s Key Page, Malkuth’s floor becomes a literal god-tier setup. Xiao is the queen of burn. Putting her on the Floor of History is like giving a pyromaniac a flamethrower in a woodshop.
- Matchlight: This Abnormality page adds a massive burst of damage but can hurt you too. It’s the definition of "high risk, high reward."
- Lumber: This page can make your dice rolls go nuclear based on how much damage you've taken or dealt.
The synergy here is that Malkuth doesn't just do damage; she manipulates the state of the board. You’re playing a game of attrition. You aren't trying to one-shot the enemy (usually). You're trying to make their existence so painful that they crumble by turn four or five.
Common Mistakes Most Players Make
I see the same errors constantly on Reddit and Discord. First, people forget about the Abnormality Page tiers. They pick whatever looks cool instead of building toward a specific win condition. If you pick Happy Memories, you better have a card worth reducing the cost of. If you pick Gluttony, you need to make sure you're actually hitting the enemy to get that heal.
Second: ignoring the "Elijah" aspect of her character. The lore isn't just flavor text. The bosses in the realization act out her trauma. If you understand why she felt suffocated, you understand why the mechanics of the Teddy Bear fight focus on restriction.
Third: not using the EGO pages correctly. Malkuth’s EGO set is incredibly versatile. Wingbeat can heal you for an absurd amount if the RNG gods favor you. Fourth Match Flame is a classic "clear the screen" button. Don't just fire them off because they're available. Wait for the moment where the enemy's resistances are weak or you need a desperate clash win.
The Best Deck Builds for Malkuth
You want to win? Stop overthinking.
For the mid-game, focus on the Crying Children pages. They are the backbone of any Malkuth run. Searing Sword is your bread and butter. It applies burn and has decent rolls. Pair this with Philip’s unique pages and you’ve got a core that can carry you through most of the Urban Nightmare.
When you hit the late-game, it's all about Xiao and Lowell. You want high-roll capability. You want the Fervid Emotions card. It’s a 3-cost card that becomes cheaper and applies burn. On the Floor of History, with the right Abnormality pages, this card eventually costs zero and hits like a freight train.
Also, don't sleep on Dust to Dust. It’s a defensive page that can really save your skin when you’re waiting for your burn stacks to do the heavy lifting.
What Really Happened with the Floor of History?
There was a lot of debate early on in the game's life about whether Malkuth was "underpowered" compared to Yesod’s blunt-force trauma or Tiphereth’s "Exodia" strategy. The truth is, Malkuth requires more thought. You can’t just "unga bunga" your way through with her as easily as you can with Yesod’s Dark Flame.
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But Malkuth is consistent.
Her floor is about the long game. It’s about the fact that history—much like a stack of 20 burn—is inescapable. You can run from it, you can try to heal through it, but eventually, it catches up. That’s the "expert" way to play her. You aren't looking for the highlight reel one-shot. You’re looking for the inevitable victory.
Step-by-Step Focus for Your Next Session
If you’re stuck on Malkuth’s floor or want to optimize it, here is exactly what you should do next time you boot up the game:
- Audit your decks: Check if you have a "Happy Memories" target. If you don't have a specific 3-cost card you're trying to make free, you're wasting the floor's best perk.
- Re-read the Abnormality pages: Stop skipping the text. Look at Vines. Look at how it affects speed. Speed is everything in this game. If you can control the speed, you control the clashes.
- Farm the Crying Children: If you haven't fully committed to a burn build, go back and get those pages. They are essential.
- Practice the Queen Bee Realization: If you haven't beaten it yet, stop trying to rush the boss. Focus on the workers. Learn the rhythm of the spore application. It’s a lesson in patience that you’ll need for the rest of the game.
- Check your passives: Equip passives that boost burn application or give you strength when the enemy has negative status effects.
Malkuth isn't just the "tutorial floor." She’s a masterclass in status effect management. If you treat her floor with respect, she’ll burn down everything the City throws at you. Just remember to keep moving forward. That’s what she would do.
Practical Insight: To maximize the Floor of History, always aim for Emotion Level 3 as fast as possible. This floor’s power spikes significantly once you can access the Tier 2 Abnormality pages like Happy Memories or Gluttony. Use cheap, multi-hit pages in the first two acts to farm emotion coins without risking too much HP. Once you hit that level 3 threshold, the cost reduction and healing will allow you to outlast even the tankiest Urban Plague bosses. Focus on "locking" the enemy into clashes they can't win because of your burn-related power boosts.