I have been thinking of what a no-parchment glitch speedrun of Arena would look like, and I know that it is possible, with a strong enough Open spell, to basically skip the Labyrinthian. (With a Sorcerer, level 10 with a 50%/level chance is enough.) The problem is, of course, being a high enough level to cast such a spell. Therefore, I am wondering if there is a way to reach the needed level fast enough to cast that spell in a reasonable amount of time.

Here are some likely parameters of such a run:
Class is Nightblade. (Note that Nightblades pay only half the cost of custom Open spells, and you can get money by stealing magic items from the Mage's Guild (Invisibility helps you escape if you get caught, and that spell effect is *also* cheaper for Nightblades).)
Stats are chosen to favor Speed. The Any% uses a male dark elf (a combination that has higher stats than it probably should). Of course, Fortify Attribute spells are a viable option.
There is (at least in 1.06, haven't tried 1.07) a glitch where you can get your Spell Points over their maximum; this means that, if leveling up takes too long, this glitch could be used. However, there's still the issue of the per-level component. (To do this glitch, cast an expensive spell, use an item that casts a targeted spell and cancel it, then use the item again and cancel it.)

So, in summary, is there a fast XP method that is speedrun-viable and can be done before the Labyrinthian?

Anyone here?

Anyway, I just went through the Labyrinthian with my Nightblade.

At level 9, 30/level was not enough for the first door, but 50/level was. It might be necessary to actually reach 10th level to skip this dungeon.

I reached level 10 before the second door, which opened to 50/level but not 30/level.

I suspect the Ice Fortress might be a good leveling spot (depending on how much XP Snow Wolves are worth); we just need some way to reflect spells (Buckler of Reflection or a spell) and a Passwall spell effect to skip most of the first floor (I would expect Passwall to be a very important spell for this speedrun category, and I would be surprised if someone finds a route that doesn't make heavy use of this spell).