These traps will allow you to catch forgotten mice much more easily than using a Shadow Trap. In fact, with the exception of some of the LE Shadow Traps, Arcane Traps are typically the trap to use if you're hunting Forgotten OR Shadow mice. Let's take a look at them.
In-Game Arcane Traps
Obelisk of Slumber
2,100 power, 0% power bonus, 10% attraction bonus, 0 luck, Extremely Fresh Cheese Effect
This is your first option for hunting in the Catacombs. No, it's not entirely powerful, but it does the requirement nicely until you have the necessary items to craft a stronger trap. It is possible to completely skip the USE of this trap (though you still have to buy it for 316,350 gold) and immediately craft a better one if you purchased materials in the King's Arms (like scrap metal). More on this below.
Obelisk of Incineration
2,150 power, 10% power bonus, 0% attraction bonus, 1 luck, Insanely Stale Cheese Effect
This is the a stronger version of the OOS, but just barely. The blueprints will cost you around 45,000 gold, which is still a lot of gold at this point of the game, but not prohibitively. Still, it's not necessary to make this trap, it's mostly just a waste of gold, time and energy. You will be better served (if you don't take the shortcut route) to save all that gold for the next trap on the list, because it is not cheap.
Arcane Capturing Rod Of Never Yielding Mystery
3,800 power, 12% power bonus, 0% attraction bonus, 18 luck, Insanely Stale Cheese Effect
A very strong non-LE arcane weapon, the ACRONYM costs a lot of gold, 950,000 gold to be exact. Part of that is already accounted for when you purchase the OOS, which is smashed and made into this awesome trap. Using this trap will be your main money maker for a long time, as hunting with radioactive blue cheese in the catacombs with this trap will earn your gold investment back in no time at all. Craft it, use it, love it. The ACRONYM is your best in-game arcane trap until you reach the Living Garden.
To use this trap first and never hunt with the OOS, you need to purchase the necessary parts (refer to the FAQ on Bristle Woods) and have enough scrap metal on hand, which the only way you can obtain at this point without hunting with the OOS is to buy it from the King's Arms in Valor with King's Credits.
The pinnacle of Arcane traps as of November 2012, the GAT is the upgraded version of the ACRONYM. The blueprints cost one Gur and one Icari essence to craft, and then the parts to build the trap cost another 4.9 million gold (5.8 if you consider the 950k you've already spent on the ACRONYM). So, not cheap by any means. But without a doubt, a very serious and very powerful trap that will make hunting in the Lost & Corrupt City much easier.
To use this trap first and never hunt with the OOS, you need to purchase the necessary parts (refer to the FAQ on Bristle Woods) and have enough scrap metal on hand, which the only way you can obtain at this point without hunting with the OOS is to buy it from the King's Arms in Valor with King's Credits.
Grand Arcanum Trap
4,800 power, 12% power bonus, 5% attraction bonus, 22 luck, No Cheese Effect
The pinnacle of Arcane traps as of November 2012, the GAT is the upgraded version of the ACRONYM. The blueprints cost one Gur and one Icari essence to craft, and then the parts to build the trap cost another 4.9 million gold (5.8 if you consider the 950k you've already spent on the ACRONYM). So, not cheap by any means. But without a doubt, a very serious and very powerful trap that will make hunting in the Lost & Corrupt City much easier.
Limited Edition Arcane Traps
Arcane Blast Trap
3,400 power, 8% power bonus, 0% attraction bonus, 20 luck, Insanely Fresh Cheese Effect
Brought by Ronza in 2010, this trap, because of it's extra two luck, actually performs better against Catacombs mice than the ACRONYM, despite the extra power. That being said, the difference is fairly small, and the price tag associated with this trap when hunters could buy it (1.47 million) was rather steep. Still, it does its job nicely, and hunters who were fortunate enough to have the funds to buy it back then were rewarded with the best Arcane Trap in the game, bar none.
Nutcracker Nuisance Trap
3,000 power, 18% power bonus, 15% attraction bonus, 16 luck, Insanely Fresh Cheese Effect
Another quest-oriented trap that was the reward for completing the toy-drive during the 2011 Great Winter Hunt, the NNT was a free trap, relatively speaking. It has a niche bonus as well: catch one of the three lich mice in Balack's Cove and there is the chance it will drop double the loot. But let's examine the stats. Since Arcane Traps are meant to be paired with special cheeses with very high attraction rates, the attraction bonus here is irrelevant. Also consider that almost all of the mice you're catching with Arcane Traps are much more susceptible to luck than power, the power bonus (compared to the ACRO), is irrelevant to. So again, it comes down to luck, and the ACRO bests it by 2 and the ABT bests it by 4. In other words, veteran hunters basically got a worthless trap. But newer hunters who got it honestly could consider not even buying the ACRO. And yet another slap in the face to the long-time players. The developers have made the early and middle stages so easy now compared to what it used to be.
So what's the verdict? If you got this trap before the ACRO, use it, though you might have problems in Balack's Cove because this trap is under-powered when compared to ACRO (especially to Lich mice), but it'll save you some gold. For veterans, this trap is basically worthless.
