Monster evolution in Dark Summoner is very straightforward. First of all, it can only be done with Rank A and Rank AA monsters, not A+ or AA+. Second, you must use the exact same monster. So, if you sacrificed a Rank A Witch of Snakes to another Rank A Witch of Snakes, you would get an A+ Witch of Snakes, with much higher starting stats and higher stat gain per level.
Note that your evolved monster's level and skill level will be reset to 1 after evolution, so it may be temporarily less powerful than your original monster. In addition, an evolution costs significantly more than a sacrifice. However, a Rank A+ monster will quickly overtake its Rank A counterpart in overall statistics, and they are considered both very rare and desirable. A significant number of A's (such as Punisher Sphinx) gain abilities once they evolve. Post-evolution, over 90% of A+ monsters have skills(either through originally possessing them or through evolution). In the long term, evolution is generally a good decision.
Evolution costs for all A rank monsters is 29900 gold, which can be significant at lower levels. This price, however, does lower if the monster that is being sacrificed to is higher level. The price drops by 100 gold for every level of the monster being sacrificed to (A monsters only). This is quite significant with rank AA monsters, since the price can easily be over a million for evolution without leveling. After leveling, this price can drop to the ten thousands, which is much cheaper.
A+ monsters being sacrificed to A+ monsters will produce nothing other than exp and possibly skill lvl up. Same for AA+ monsters.
Souls
If you do not have two of the same monster, you can use a rare (usually event only) soul. This takes care of the second monster, but not the evolution cost.
| Soul | Effect |
|---|---|
| Evolution Soul | Evolve an A rank monster into A+ |
| Great Evolution Soul | Evolve an AA rank monster into AA+ |
| Epic Evolution Soul | Evolve an AAA rank monster into AAA+ |
Formulas for Evolution Cost
- Evolver = The monster to be evolved
- Sacrifice = The monster being sacrificed
- Rank A Cost = 30,000 - ( Evolver * 100 )
- Rank AA Cost = 1,120,000 - ( Evolver * 9900 ) - ( Sacrifice * 900 )
- Rank AAA Cost = 4,455,000 - ( Unknown/Level ) - ( Unknown/Level )