The Rampaging Monolith

[Brohg]

As much as it annoys me how terrible my guild's luck has been with this encounter (our % on the sword is freaking ridiculous), I decided it annoys me more how few people do this raid at all. Thus, my guide to free loots for determined people:

Rampaging Monolith is a loot mission in DoN, limited to four groups participation. It's located in The Accursed Nest, so if you're on some bizarre new server where Yar'Lir hasn't been killed by the resident uber guilds, you can stop reading here. It's not built for true pick-up raids to beat, since the win is all about strategy, but neither is it so savage that the loot needs to be trivial for the encounter to be beatable. The tanking requirements aren't outlandish, an average number of healers is fine, and dps can be complete crap. Like I say, it's all about executing a strategy.

What It Takes To Win:

First, your raid needs two strong-ish tanks, of the style that can handle normal Nest missions with no problem. In my experience, that means basically any plate tank with better stats than me. 2k+ac, 10k+hp unbuffed. This may sound steep to those gearing up in Noble's Causeway, but it's very doable these days, even with one group stuff and RSS augments. Warriors are naturally preferred, as discs will help any raid get stabilized.

Your raid should have two clerics who aren't one-rounded by a Nest mob. When the sets of adds spawn, it's *extremely* likely that one or more mob will end up agro on the MT's healers. They're easily pulled off, but if the cleric has already died, there will be quite a scramble in the aftermath.

You should have four other melee who can handle WoS mobs. These adds aren't savage savage beaters, but they will happily flatten a Bazaar ranger in a New York minute. Anyone with defensive aa should do fine here. Knights are the ideal since they can agro at range and tank well. For reference, I can tank two of the adds on my own heals with no problem. At three I begin to need backup heals from a ranger or beastlord

Fill out your groups with solid folks that pay attention, target quickly, and keep their heads. An extra cleric is always welcome. Dps is not a huge factor, whoever you bring will have enough, I promise.

Getting There:

Gordish Frozenheart, who stands by the fire in the Norrath's Keepers camp in Lavastorm mountains has the two mini-raid missions in The Accursed Nest. If you hail him you'll get the [boxed text] indicating how to get the raid missions instead of the group missions. Circle of Drakes is the hard one, Rampaging Monolith is this one.

In The Broodlands, follow your compass to the same zone-in that Lair of the Black Wing begins with. Everyone can zone in safely with Invisibility.

The first stage of the mission is straight clearing, Nest mobs with normal hits but 2-3x hp. Pull & kill your way through the undead area in the Northwest corner of the map, a little more than a dozen mobs away. Stop before pulling the last room to make groups, go over strats, etc. All mobs in the last room can be pulled without agroing the Rampaging Monolith. He waits until you attack him to attack back.

Beginning The Encounter:

1: The wandering mobs in the hallway will respawn, either during the fight or shortly after.

2: There is an AE that matters.

Thus, positioning: once you've pulled the mobs out from around the Monolith, he'll be alone in his room. Have your two tanks lead the charge, agroing him and pulling to the far right wall. If your force is pushing it's boundaries to beat this encounter, use Bestow Divine Aura on the tank that you want to end up on Rampage to drag him to the wall. The DA effect will keep him from being snared. Simply having melee & pet swarms push the mob will work fine if you don't think that's neccessary. As soon as the mob is plastered on the west wall, all melee but MT and ramp tank should back off. The two clerics healing the MT should be safely outside range of the AE still able to CHeal.


The Rampaging Monolith:

The Rampaging Monolith encounter is all about managing the adds that he spits out. The big man himself has some melee, and has an AE, and throws out neat extras like charm, but all that doesn't have much impact on your success (or lack thereof). All that just spices things up

The AE is a super low resist heavy snare called Gravel Rain that's very hard to cure. But it's only 50 range, also called PB AE. Only the tank and the rampage tank should ever be hit.

He has quite low hp for a raid mob, and dps being too low on him won't be an issue. The opposite, dps on him being too high, might be an issue. Once agro is secure, normally when the first Defensive disc runs out, the tank should switch to his shield. The reason is:

Four adds are spawned every 15% of the Monolith's hp. Six sets of four total, at 85%, 70%, 55%, 40%, 25%, and 10%. They're named Flury/Whirl of Debris/Rubble. Whirl of Debris (iirc) is the mezzable one, all the rest have to be tanked. These adds spawn at the Monolith's feet, and must be targetted, agroed, dragged away, and slowed asap. *All* dps should switch to the adds immediately, assisting to kill each one in turn. These adds are kitable if they haven't been damaged.

Between waves, rez up, fill folks hp, then use ranged damage to knock the Monolith down to the next 15% mark, if your tank & ramp tank haven't done it on their own already.

There is a single-target charm randomly cast by the Monolith on someone in the raid. That's why you bring two warriors, so that if your MT gets charmed, the Monolith doesn't run over to the clerics and AE snare the whole raid.

And that's it. Handle the chaos of the four adds, six times, and you win.

Instructions to give to your raid:

Your MT/RT, add tanks, and healers will have their own instructions of course. These notes are for the raid in general. (paranthetical addenda are for you, so you understand why you're giving these instructions)

1: This encounter is all about controlling and killing adds.

2: Assist [guild_knight01] on whatever he's killing, this will only rarely be Rampaging Monolith.

3: Control your pets. (this is to keep them from accidentally knocking Monolith down another 15% spawning four more adds)

4: No damage shields. Not even little ones. Not even on the main tank. Not even the add tanks. Not even on you. I don't care if you're *not* tanking. They don't help. This means you. (adds that aren't damaged can be kited or rooted away without too much trouble. adds that are damaged, even a little, will summon and mess up your program)

5: Keep your heads, this encounter is managable and recoverable if something goes wrong.

The Punchline:

Claymore of the Dragon Warrior

Hoop of the Nest Defender

Young Dragon Mask

Dragon Nursery Ring

Happy hunting, y'all. Hope you have better luck on that ring than I have had.

[Beafly]

links...

[Katgo]

[Brohg]

[Andras]

[Gloriana]

[Brohg]

Absolutely, Andras. I've done it just like that. If the players with have their multi-agro skillz developed from Emperor Ssra or Hatred trial, and their gear can handle it (you mention Anguish, so any melee can easily handle two or three of the adds) the tanking numbers requirements lighten up even. One of the two better loots is a spiffy plate earring, though, so finding knights to participate isn't usually an issue

[Katgo]

[Brohg]

I don't know if the same raid is available through Dark Reign, since I was never able to find groups willing to do faction work with me. I froze in Indifferent, got pissed off for about two weeks, and have since flipped to Norrath's Keepers, with whom I'm now max ally. The same progression events are available (Emoush, Perseverance, Dojo, Ju'rek, Rikk/Kess/YarLir etc), but I don't know on these loot encounters. I suggest just heading over there and hailing folks. If it is available, the same guy who normally gives out their Nest single group missions should have it. Look for [boxed text].

[Katgo]

Rock on thanks a Ton Brohg