I live in the Philippines and most of the time it rains in this tropical country so my last five or more climbs were pretty muddy and slippery. I have only used outdoor sandals from a local brand which have nonexistent traction but nonetheless are still intact after more than ten mountains. My last hike though was so muddy they came off multiple times and I even thought they were going to snap which thankfully they didn't.

I want to invest in shoes now. I've been reading about how trailrunning shoes are replacing hiking boots for some people, but there are just so many options. The ones that got my attention were the Merrell Moab Ventilator, Salomon Speedcross 4 and Fellraiser, and the Saucony Peregrine 6. Any advice as to what's the best for slippery mud? Also I jist saw a Youtube video where this guy's two big toenails died because of his shoes, also showed these crazy blisters, I want to avoid that.

I like this boot a lot. Super comfortable.
http://www.summitpost.org/outdoor-gear/ ... e-mid/8600

I have to agree with you regarding trail running shoes instead of boots, especially in rain forest territory. If my trail running shoes get sopping wet they dry in a couple hours whereas boots will soak your feet all damn day. I prefer Brooks Cascadia products myself (might try the GTX model next time now that I have beaten my 11's into pieces over the past six months) but really you're going to have to test the specific shoe and tread pattern in the area you hike in the most. If you are finicky about tread finding the right balance between what grabs on rock and what prevents you from slipping on mud slopes might take a bit of experimentation.

I run in a lot of wet and boggy mountain terrain in Wales, UK, so I have a lot of experience in really muddy conditions. I'd say look at British fell running shoes, they're designed specifically for wet and muddy conditions as opposed to a lot of other trail running shoes that are more for hard packed trails.

Inov8 and Walsh are the two brands I prefer, the Walsh waffle sole design is legendary and has superb grip, they are built on a spike last though and can be somewhat tight and uncomfortable for some people, when fell racing you need them to be on the narrow side and a little tight though as this helps the shoe perform better on steeper terrain, especially when contouring.

For hiking and all day comfort I'd recommend Inov8 shoes though, they even made a boot version of one of their trail running shoes, the 'Roclite', it's their all rounder shoe so it does have some short comings, it can clog in really thick and sticky mud which can be very annoying! The Mudclaw is better and as the name suggests, was specifically designed for muddy conditions, I find the Mudclaw has a very relaxed fit which I'm not keen on though. My personal favourite is the 'X-Talon', the grip is very good in mud and it also performs well on wet rock in a lot of situations too, the X-Talon comes in two widths and various stack heights and weights plus it drains fast too as every version I've owned has had a mesh upper, the same upper isn't very durable though, I reinforce mine with a bit of silicone sealant which doubles the life of the shoe.