Reading boss attacks
What each ground warning means, when to move and the must-knows of each of the seven bosses.
The language of warnings
Bosses don't attack at random: each one has its own attacks, charges every blow and, for the big ones, draws a warning on the ground. Almost all of them aim and lock a point just before releasing: moving once the warning is drawn works; moving earlier often doesn't, because the boss tracks you until it locks. The warning's fill shows how long is left before the hit.
| Warning | What it is | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Wedge | A cone-shaped hit in front of the boss. | Step out to one side or get behind it. |
| Circle | A round area that fills up; when full, it hits. | Leave the circle before it fills. |
| Strip | A straight line of fixed width: charges, arrows, waves. | Step sideways, not backwards. |
| Row of circles | Eruptions advancing in a row toward the point it locked. | Get off the line. |
| Chasing circles | Circles appearing one after another under your feet. | Don't stop. |
| One circle per player | One circle under each player. | Move; in co-op, spread out. |
| Ring | A ring: the ring strikes first, then the inside bursts. | Cross the ring as soon as it appears. |
| No warning | Fast combos, single arrows, kicks. | Read the animation and keep your distance. |
Rage and entrance
All seven enter a rage once, below half their health: they hit harder, attack more often, charge faster and change something in their moveset (more arrows, more eruptions, spells in pairs…). Six have an entrance animation when they wake up; the Ghost of the Dwarf King doesn't: it attacks as soon as it appears.
Statuses that slow them down
Stun and Shock stop every boss from starting an attack; on the four phase bosses they also cancel the one being charged if the blow hasn't landed yet (the warning disappears and there's no damage). Chill stretches their cadence. No boss is immune; only Azhakar refuses them while nobody is inside his arena.
Boss by boss
| Boss | Where | The must-know |
|---|---|---|
| Nekhtar | Kharvalen Desert | If you see a strip, step sideways: the Jackal Charge is his ranged strike. |
| Dark Elf | Meadow Forest | Always move sideways at mid range; if you stick to him, he slips away with the Shadow Step. |
| Corrupted Mystic | Corrupted Desert | When you see a ring, cross it outward before the centre bursts. |
| Swamp Witch | Swamp Marshland | Against the geysers and the swarm, keep moving; the flasks are avoided by stepping toward her. |
| Ghost of the Dwarf King | Frozen Ghost Dungeon | Leave the Stomp circle if you have been hitting him a lot in a row; the Skullbreaker marks where he lands. |
| Dwarf King | Dwarven Dungeon · Phase 2 | The same fighter as his ghost: beware of the Stomp up close and of where the Skullbreaker marks. |
| Azhakar, the Fallen God | Dwarven Dungeon · Phase 4 | Stay inside his arena (otherwise you do nothing to him) and step sideways from the Thrust and the Crushing Leap. |
Special rules
- Azhakar can't be sniped: if nobody is within 32 m of the centre of his arena, nothing gets through. And if you all walk away, he loses interest and goes back to his spot without healing. Climbing a pillar or a high rock he can’t reach on foot doesn’t work either: up there he’s immune and walks home.
- The kings punish long melee: the Dwarf King and his ghost prepare the Stomp after taking 10 direct hits in a row (periodic damage doesn't count).
- The Dark Elf won't be cornered: if you stick to him, he kicks and vanishes to reappear at a distance.
- The Corrupted Mystic escapes: in melee he releases a nova and teleports away.
- The Swamp Witch's swarm is slower than you: don't face it, outrun it in a straight line.
- Climbing a rock won't save you: the Survival bosses don't follow you up, but they answer with ranged attacks (geysers, curses, arrows).
When the boss falls
The killing blow disarms it on the spot: its attacks still in the air fizzle out without dealing damage, the warnings on the ground fade and, for the Witch, her summons die with her. Then it falls —the Ghost of the Dwarf King stays on his knees and rises away in wisps—, drops its weapon if it has one, stays a few seconds on the ground and dissolves.
Everything it gives arrives at that very instant, without waiting for the fall: 25 Mithril and 2 Legendary chests that appear beside the body. In Survival the portal gets marked and you can use it as soon as the phase clock runs out; in dungeons the exit (or the portal to the next phase) opens right away. A single banner sums it up when the body hits the ground, and in co-op everyone sees the same fall in the same place.
Guide checked against game v0.9.16.