Before that...
It seems that server non-response may have been... well, compromised. Not so much on the frequency, but rather where you'll end up next. In the past, seeing that message in red means you're really screwed. The next time you logged in, you're most likely dead. The reason why is that the AI will keep hitting you while in stasis. Which is not fair at all. If you get yourself into a stasis for the correct reason, there's no need to complain. If it's for the wrong reason, then you'll have every right to make noise.
Another problem previously was that you'd have to redo any lair quest. Say for example I'm in the middle of whacking the real Zulkir of Illusion in his Phantasmal Fortress. Server non-response>have to relog>end up at the lair entrance. For the woefully idiotic, it means I'd have to redo the whole damn quest all over again. Period.
While the server non-response problem is still alive, at least your quest(s) won't hit reset mode. So long you're in the process of killing stuff (so as to speak), the server non-response won't affect your journey beyond the need to relog.
Case in point: Cyrea Durothil was done in by a server non-response last night during a Demonic Slaughter heroic encounter. Initial fears of restarting proved to be unfounded. Despite having to relog when that nefarious nalfeshnee was nearing death, the heroic encounter was deemed as successfully completed.
As for any potential unwanted death in the name of unnecessary stasis, I've yet to get any. Be noted though: You may still get screwed if you get that red message in the middle of a private instance run.
Note: So far so good, I've yet to experience a server non-response during a dungeon/skirmish run.
And now onto the titular topic...
I find it quite hilarious. Someone once mentioned a bunch of "Jews". Guess what? My party also got an Einstein. The only catch? I never truly professed to be one (if I've ever done so, it's down to jest). That fellow was like "ty and crap dps". If we never had a bunch of Einsteins running about in phase 1, I doubt he/she would have said that. I don't profess to be a top tier dps (in fact, my boons are focused on defense and critical), but at least I tried my best taking down the boss. I knew what I was doing (read: doing a super mass hemorrhage via a Gushing Wound-Aimed Strike one-two), I chose to take the risk by triggering the soulforged effect despite knowing that there's a 50-50 chance of failure.
With insults finally done, let me just say that you can never get a gold ranking unless you get a gold for all three phases.
The thing with the gigantic goristro this time round lies in an upgrade in defense and HP. Which means it's now harder to kill it without baiting it into a golden pit (more specifically impossible). As every Neverwinner may know by now, the devs will always review the difficulty of specific aspects of the content every now and then. And that includes Demogorgon, both normal and epic. Unless you manage to get gold for phase 1, you're gonna have a tough time dealing with that minotaur.
In fact, your score in any phase will have an immense bearing on how the next phase will turn out. When Underdark first came out, it's actually possible for the party to get an overall gold ranking via 1 silver and 2 gold. Not this time round. Unless the silver ranking is really damn close to the gold threshold, you're not gonna get an overall gold score this way. While this nearly-rule applies to the skirmishes, it may not be the case for Demogorgon.
Tip for dummies 1: Open only the purple portals
Even at this point of time, there are still people who don't understand how important this rule is. The moment any joker starts opening a green/blue portal, you can kiss goodbye to your gold medal. If we're talking about first timers, then I can cut them some slack. And we should as well. Otherwise... well, a fellow member of my guild alliance actually said that expecting gamers to be intelligent is a case of misplaced expectations. Willy was definitely right on this one.
Note: Above rule applies for both normal and epic.
Tip for dummies 2: Goristro is secretly a Singaporean
No offense to my fellow S'poreans because we all can never forget Sun Xu. No offense to the Hindus as well because we all know where the phrase "sacred cow" comes from. I swear that fellow has upgraded himself/itself. Higher defense and more HP, it's now harder to kill. Personal experience, however, seemed to indicate that nothing changed much. Maybe a higher frequency of paranoid delusions spawning, but that's most likely it (then again, these unreal holograms form the bulk of challenge in any epic Demogorgon run). Definitely, you'll need to do more in baiting it to headbutt the golden pits.
The problem with tanking that animal lies in the what-if scenario where the headbutt will go straight into a black pit instead of a golden one. If this happens, good luck. If in normal mode, you're most likely not gonna get gold. If epic... well, epic good luck to you. The most straightforward way is to know which direction to taunt once the red arrow pops up. To do so means having 2 tanks instead of 1. One tank to constant aggro grab, the other to direct where the headbutt should be going. An interesting tactic lies having 1-2 ranged dps as tactical markers just behind the tank in charge of main aggro grab. The moment they start moving upon the red arrow showing, it means where they're going indicates where the headbutt should go. This is particularly useful in epic Demogorgon due to the hologram spawning.
Note: I've yet to try this out because Arylos is my main, not Bhaasmond Taran. However, it must also be stated that the proof of quality in any strategy lies in using it.
Tips for dummies 3: Only epic Demogorgon needs to apply
This time round, the epic version of Demogorgon has gotten very annoying. The normal version is still quite easy to kill (only that it's harder to get an overall gold). The problem the devs were facing not so long ago is that epic difficulty is looking not-so-epic right now. There's a need to raise the bar and they really did so. However, Neverwinter (like so many MMOs, WoW or no WoW) is extremely reliant on sound strategy and efficient tactics. Not so much in normal difficulty, but sometimes in epic mode. Demogorgon happens to be one of the elite few.
The difference between normal and epic phase 3 lies in the Death Star.
I know part of the language sounds like a Teutonic knight errant who happened to graduate from some ah-beng ah-lian school (never mind whether it's Gan Eng Seng or It's The End). If my future girlfriend's BFF sees this, let's hope she;doesn't understand German. Ah well, at least Der Diktator never died until the climatic end.
Let's talk about Demogorgon's epic laser beams. Unlike phase 2 where it's relatively easy to get away (so long that minotaur is close enough to the sanity wells nearer to the entrance), the current upgraded version entails a double fatality shot. What it means is very simple: You get shot once=you get shot twice. To those with no means of auto-rez, it's no big deal. All you need is a costume in red.
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| Wonder if my future girlfriend likes the color red... |
For those with any means of auto-rez, be careful. While I don't know whether using a scroll of life would circumvent the death ray effect, what I do know is that soulforged armor won't bail you out like what the EU has done so far for the Greeks, Romans, and Iberians. You'd just waste your get-out-of-jail-for-free card. If you're a tank, it's only natural for you to run a straight line down to the other end like what a certain Steven used to do in his prime (not this Steven, but the other Steven).. I assure you that death is never an option because it never will be (unless you're dumb enough to run the fight on a rank 5 dark enchantment for every utility slot). For the dps and healers, the tricky part lies in following the leader. People tend to make fun of us S'poreans because of our lemming mentality. No. A big fat no. A bloody Dr No. Don't follow the leader in the same direction. Grow some brains, I assure you that being persecuted like a Jew (like yours truly in the past) won't be on cards. See the blue zones at the edge? Yes, that's your intended sanity wells. Just do a detour. The reason why being that your movement will always suffer a consistent debuff status, if not on a stacking basis. What this means is that everyone will be moving slower than usual. At the same time, the damaging effect (very literally) of the terrain will open you up for a Demogorgon Super Tentacle Slap across the face. Once you get it, you're pretty much deadpool.
What you should do is to run along the edge, so that the sanity wells can minimize whatever damaging debuff caused by a hostile terrain. Listen to me, I know it works. I tried it after realizing what the devs have done to the difficulty level. Like your favorite Korean dramas, it's tried and tested. Not to mention successful as well.
Whatever you do, do not try engaging Demogorgon in the middle. The moment his Death Star starts aiming left, right, and center, you're a dead man walking. And I don't mean this type of dead man walking below.
Unlike the normal version, the epic Death Star rays will cause a severe movement slowdown. Therefore, it's imperative to have a sanity well less than like... maybe 10-20 ft away. At the same time, it also seems that fleeing into a sanity well just 1-2 seconds before Demogorgon fires his assault rifle merely means the trigger will be pulled. To make things worse, the sanity well will go "poof" upon you getting shot this way. In other words, no way out where a second death is concerned.
Conclusion
Epic Demogorgon isn't really that hard per se. The difficulty is more about whether you're able to get an overall gold score. At the same time, it also seems that finishing off an epic Demogorgon would have a high chance to drop any +1 ring. Which really sucks (to set the record straight, I've yet to get anything beyond a +2 ring ever since the devs opted for an upgrade). At the same time, using a solo-heal strategy no longer works wonders like last time round if you're gunning for gold. It's highly recommended to have a devoted cleric capable of doing mass heal and Hallowed Ground at any possible moment. Just don't ask me when Cyrea will be ready for this one. She's yet to finish her Dread Ring campaign.
P.S: Kymil Nimesin is still alive apparently. Because he's an elitist traitor, I'm pretty sure Arylos will try to do something about this living problem. After all, he's Cyrea's lover despite House Durothil still remaining as a house of elitist jerks. If only I can be given the right (from Ed "not Miliband" Greenwood himself) to justify Lolth's (far greater) role in the grand scheme of things. *shrugs*
Add P.S: Elaith Craulnober should have buried a knife between Kymil's shoulder blades, with style or no style.
Add P.S: Elaith Craulnober should have buried a knife between Kymil's shoulder blades, with style or no style.
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