Welcome to junior world boss raiding! This guide gives some info on how to join in (or organize), how we do the fights, and what loot drops you can expect.
The junior world bosses are Stryga the giant mandrake in the Meadowlands (level 15), Capav'lik the giant ant in Dryfoot (level 20), Todee the giant ashen toad in Flooded Ruins (level 25), and the not-so-junior world boss Queen Verdigrax, the rather large Scarabax beetle in Dryfoot Fortress (level 36). You are welcome and encouraged to participate in any boss fight you are reasonably leveled for; with GEL that means you can come even if you are about 3 levels below those listed.
The Very Essentials (or, TL;DR)
- Find the monoliths (in Meadowlands, Dryfoot, and Redshore) ahead of time, and have enough essence, so you can get to each boss quickly.
- Spots are first-come, first-served, and higher-level players looking for legendary loot upgrades are entitled to their spots if they get in before you. (Often they are just there to help, though.)
- Be prepared with appropriate Chemical, Ember, and Stun resist stuff as appropriate (see the next section).
- It's best to coordinate these chaotic fights on Embers Discord voice channel (usually Group Chat #1). Please join that server beforehand (you can join it by typing /discord in game). If you cannot use Discord voice, the leader can post raid instructions in text chat, but don't expect frequent tactical updates via text.
- Gear drops are soulbound and cannot be traded! If you meet class/skill and level requirements for an item, go ahead and roll NEED. If you don't meet level requirement, roll GREED (this gives priorty to those who can use it now, but still gives you a chance to win it if nobody does roll Need on it). If you can't use an item at all, PASS. For non-soulbound drops like recipes, follow usual etiquette.
Raid Preparation and Organization
You can announce a junior world boss a few days ahead of time on the Embers Adrift Discord server (which you can join or open by entering /discord in game). You might want to create a Discord event on your own server and link it on Embers Adrift's. If you see a raid announced, spread the word to your friends and guildies! If there is no raid alreadyscheduled, and you see enough people online to start one on the fly, feel free to just announce in /world and see who bites!Note that junior world bosses respawn 2-3 days after they are killed. Keep this in mind when scheduling or when starting an impromptu raid.
Being Ready for the Raid
- Be ready to get to each boss! (See below.) Discover the Meadowlands, Dryfoot, and Redshore monoliths well before the raid time, and have enough essence to teleport to those locations.
- Stryga does Chemical Damage. Get and equip some Chemical Damage Resist gear. This is pretty easy to farm off Grub Bats in Northreach, and the Ant Queens in Dryfoot also drop some.
- Capav'lik can do Chemical damage as well as Physical.
- Todee does Ember damage up close and at range, and also does annoying long stuns. Bring some Ember Damage and Stun Resist gear, and potions too. Check the auction house, and ask higher-level Provisioners, we can make those potions for any level...but give us a little advance notice!
- Queen Verdigrax does physical damage, but there are also poison clouds, so both Physical and Chemical Damage resists are good here.
Assembling
Thirty minutes to an hour before the raid's posted (pull) time, start announcing in game that it's coming up. At about thirty minutes before, start forming parties into a raid. Sometimes raids take a long time to fill up, sometimes they don't fill up, somtimes they fill up right away! Spots are first-come, first-served.To request a spot in a party, post an "x" in /world chat. You should get an invite shortly. To get your party into the raid, post "rx" in /world chat. A raid can contain up to four parties of six (24 people). We may have to do some manual shuffling of raid members so be ready for that.To start a raid, or add a party to a raid, use the /rinvite command with the name of any player in another group (doesn't have to be the party leader). The raid UI isn't much: You can't rearrange members; they have to drop out and get invited to the party you want them in. But it gets the basic job done.These raids are a community effort that sometimes attracts higher-level players who are just there to help; they are usually gracious about bowing out if level-appropriate players want to join in the fun. On the other hand, some of the loot is so good that even high-level players can benefit from it, so don't expect them to drop out just because you are lower level.Note: When you are in a raid party, you do not gain experience, and with a few exceptions (like Todee), you do not get ember essence either. Make sure to fill your ember stone before the raid assembles.
Raid Communication
To talk to the whole raid, use the /raid channel. Raid organizers can use this handy compilation of chat messages[docs.google.com] that provide info on etiqette and tactics and such.Some raid leaders like to use voice comms, as the fights can get real crazy. If so, just use the Embers Adrift Discord server's voice channels, for example, “Group Chat #1”. It can be very helpful to have audio callouts in real time for some of the fights. If you are just participating in the raid, you don't need to talk, of course.
Getting to the Boss
It's important to get to each boss promptly. It's a real drag for 20+ people to have to wait for one person to run all the way from Meadowlands to Dryfoot, because they haven't unlocked the monolith, or they emptied their ember stone. So please be prepared well before the raid starts!
- Stryga is behind Paytyr's farm in the Meadowlands, just east of the monolith.
- Capav'lik is not far from the monolith in Dryfoot, in one of two possible spots.
- Todee is inside the Flooded Ruins ember vein Redshore. You should have the Redshore monolith unlocked at the very least. If you can unlock the ember ring inside Flooded Ruins, all the better, that way once some folks arrive there, you can ley link in right away.
- Queen Verdigrax is inside Dryfoot Fortress, which we just have to run to from the Dryfoot monolith. Getting inside is a bit of a deal, but, if you have been in there before, you will be able to ley link once some people are inside.
Switching Characters Between Bosses
If you have characters at different levels, you are welcome to switch between them from boss to boss. Please tell your party leader you are switching, and leave party before you log out. When you log back in, send a tell to your party leader asking for an invite.
Loot Etiquette
When the boss dies, DO NOT LOOT until everybody is revived. We've had bugs where people couldn't receive loot they'd won if they were downed when boss was looted.Most drops are soulbound; you can't auction or trade them, and they don't even vendor for much. Please be considerate of your fellow raidiers when rolling on loot.
- If it's an upgrade you will use, and you meet the level requirement, go ahead and roll Need.
- If it's an upgrade you want but you don't meet level req, it's polite to roll Greed. Then, if nobody who can use it rolls Need, you still have a shot.
- Otherwise, Pass.
Consider carefully whether you will actually use an item. An armor piece might be too heavy to fit into your build, or an item might have great numbers but in stats that don't fit your build. Scroll down for screenshots of (nearly) all the loot these bosses drop, so you can figure out ahead of time what you can use.If you aren't sure about an upgrade, or just want to try an item to see how it works, it's polite to roll Greed in deference to those who are certain it's a needed and useful upgrade. You can ask for advice about whether something is an upgrade (and feel free to link your current gear when asking), but time is limited!Some drops are best in slot right up to level 50 (particularly Todee rings). Do not be surprised if a high-level character rolls Need on some items.
General Fight Strategies
For all fights, you should designate a main tank (or several). The tank is responsible for starting the fight. Please let them get a little aggro before you launch in! A few hits makes a huge difference. Count to 5 before you start swinging.When you run in, clump up on the boss so everbody is in range for heals. None of these fights requires range, and distance won't save you from their attacks...but it will put you out of healing range. Anybody doing side positional should pile up on the tank's left-hand side.Try not to pull aggro; max DPS that pulls aggro, messes up everybody else's positionals, and gets you killed, is not max DPS! If you have aggro-shedding abilities (Fading Strike, Disengage), slot them on your hotbar and use them! If you are likely to pull aggro, for whatever reason (particularly if you are higher level than the boss and tanks), you do the raid a service by standing with the tanks rather than wherever gives you the best positional.Some effects like stuns on the main tank mean you will get aggro anyhow. If you do get aggro, do not run around wildly! Run to the main tank; that's where the mob needs to be facing, and that's where the healers can find you to heal you (but know that their first priority is the tank).
Level 15 · Stryga · Meadowlands
Stryga does Chemical damage. Equip that resist gear! You can find Chemical Resist gear off Grub Bats and Mistcrawlers in Northreach, and off Ant Queens in Dryfoot (and perhaps the Ant ember vein in Newhaven Valley).Stryga puts up a defense & damage shield with 100 stacks, that reflects 3% of your damage back at you. Switch to your fast, low-damage weapons and use ONLY AUTO-ATTACKS while it's up. We will try to call out in raid chat and on voice comms (if using) when the shield goes up and down. If you aren't on voice, watch for it.
Armor Drops (All classes, inner armor so no weight)
Note that the set includes the role-specific rings below, so you can get your full 5-item bonus even without all of these if you get a ring or two.
Defender Drops
Note that the Nature's Guardian Band gives 1H Weapon Dmg only, no 2H Weapon Dmg.
Striker Drops
Note that the Ring of Nature's Wrath gives 1H Weapon Dmg only, no 2H Weapon Dmg.
Supporter Drops
Recipe Drops
((Probably shirt, gloves, hood, cloth, thread, and bowstring too, but I haven't seen them drop yet.))
Miscellaneous Drops
Level 20 · Capav'lik · Dryfoot Edit
Capav'lik hits with a Chaos Strike that has different effects, the worst being a full aggro drop. Expect some mayhem, and remember to run to the main tank if you do get aggro. It's best to have more than one tank to handle aggro drop, and two healers dedicated to them.Capav'lik has many adds! The raid should designate an Add Lead, and EVERYBODY not tanking Capav'lik or healing tanks must assist the Add Lead and AUTO-ATTACK the adds—save your stamina for the boss. And assist the Add Lead! (The default keybind for Assist Defensive Target is F.) If you go rogue and whack some random ant, it will whack you right back and you will die and a healer might try to heal you instead of assisting the Add Lead and everything will just take way longer than necessary or the whole raid will wipe.Add Lead: Target Consturction ants first as they heal the other ants (and presumably Capav'lik).Capav'lik's armor drops are HEAVY plate. Look closely before you roll. Her weapon and other drops are oriented toward particular builds; look closely at stats and positionals before you roll.
Outer Armor Drops (All classes, but very heavy)
We have not seen a cuirass or faulds drop yet, and given the set bonus is 7 pieces, it's unlikely we will
.
Multi-Class/Role Drops
Defender Drops
Capav'lik has not dropped any 2H Defender Weapons. Note that the Runed Blade featues Parry and Riposte.
Striker Drops
Capav'lik has not dropped any 2H Striker Weapons.
Supporter Drops
Capav'lik has not dropped any 1H Supporter Weapons.
Level 25 · Todee · Flooded Ruins Ember Vein (Redshore) Edit
Todee has long AOE stuns, and does Ember damage in a chain-lightning effect. Equip that resist gear, use those potions! Apart from that it's a pretty strightforward fight.Todee's armor drops are heavy leather. Look closely before you roll. His weapon and other drops are oriented toward particular builds; look closely at stats and positionals before you roll. All of the rings are class-specific; you won't even be able to roll Need on a ring that isn't for your class so don't worry about that.
Armor Drops (All classes, but on the heavy side)
We have not seen pauldrons drop yet, and given the set bonus is 7 pieces, it's unlikely they will.
Defender Drops
I don't know why Juggernauts get only 2H Weapon Dmg on their ring when the Berserker gets both 1H and 2H, and the Knight gets two stats, and the Marshal gets over twice the amount on their Riposte.
Striker Drops
Todee has not dropped any 1H Striker weapons yet.
Supporter Drops
Level 36 · Verdigrax · Dryfoot Fortress Edit
Verdigrax is surrounded by grubs. They must come to Verdigrax during the fight and give her (and us) a debuff. Do not attack the grubs, and NO AOE. If grubs are sitting in the corner, go face-pull them and lead them to Verdigrax.This is an endurance fight so be ready for it to take a while. Use your armor-breaking abilities liberally. Zoom them up with alchemy if you can!If we get repops of Scarabax beetles, switch to them and take them out. There shouldn't be as many as with Capav'lik so just pile on them as they appear.
Outer Armor Drops (All classes, but heavy plate)
Inner Armor Drops (All classes)
Defender Drops
Note that the ring is not soulbound.
Striker Drops
Supporter Drops
Skill Book Drops
We can safely assume that any class's level 38 skill book could drop. These are the ones I've seen actually drop so far.
