Raid Discussions

Mo - Sorry guys, I was really sick last night. I'm sure I feel better by Friday. I will be there. Thx

Mo Lighting

Some thoughts on tonight:

- We started late and really sloppy. We got into a good rhythm, but it was already fairly late ate that point.
- Some small tweaks to positioning in phase 3 seemed to help with cleansing twist.
- Overall DPS was decent. We had no issues unless there was a death during a phase, and we managed to push into phase 4 a few times without using Limit Break.
- The phase 4 divebombs were still ending us, but there seemed to be an improvement.
- We're very close to having elements handled well, but the mistakes are still fatal.

For Tuesday 4/14:

- Be ready to go on time! Hop on early, get repairs and food handled and stay refreshed on mechanics
- If everyone is prepared and in sync we have a good chance to start surviving divebombs and close in on the winning attempt
- Focus on attaining those i130 weapons! At least for the Friday 4/17 run, as it will really help to keep phases 1 thru 3 ending fast enough
- Once phase 4 hits, mechanics take top priority!! We need everyone to survive and the key to that is always being in/knowing where you have to move to and when. Don't try to choke out as much DPS as possible - if we can keep all 8 players alive then Nael will die before enrage.


Keep your heads up! This turn has really tested our patience and focus, but we're getting close.

Jemy

Feedback on the Tuesday 4/14 run...

- Great job with phases 1-3! Up until our last 3 pulls, we cruised into phase 4 every pull and saw lots of it.
- Our handling of thunder is a bit sloppy. Remember to get behind Nael after she lands on her (fire) target and only by a few paces. Do not dash out into the center of Lunar Dynamo and risk death.
- We still need to clean up our handling of supernovas, and escaping the final thunder that comes after we gather back into center.
- We still need to navigate divebombs smoother. We're very close though.
- Overall great attempts, we got her below 20% at least twice.

For Friday 4/17

- Be prepared to go for the win. If there's any piece of the last phase that you don't understand 100%, study up and/or ask questions. One single misconception could mean the difference between a wipe and a clear.
- I'm going to go over our phase 4 wipes in a bit more detail on Friday, so we can make the final adjustments needed to win.
- When there is a 'Fire In' coming up, it is worth checking your debuffs to be 100% sure that you don't have fire on you already. If you do, get out of there or you will die immediately. This situation doesn't happen in a 'perfect' run, but we're not quite smooth enough yet and it's picking off our folks. It's most noticable when that person also got tagged with thunder just before dying, which results in a wipe.
- Mechanics before raw DPS! Know what's coming up next and what you may need to do. Watch your debuffs like a dragon guarding its gold. Move around efficiently when needed. In phase 4, I'll tell you when we're in the "free phase" part of the cycle which is where you can go all out.

Jemy

Did this in party finder today and got him to 20%.....Fight is pretty straightforward, but gets dicey in the 3rd phase.  Trick is knowing the 3 possible outcomes of mechanics and knowing where your going to be when they hit.  This video does a real good job of explaining the mechanics and showing you what they look like in game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xWCNQkwa5Y

Wydiculus

Just a couple of things from our T10 runs this week from Tues and Friday.

• We need to do better on the phase 2 to phase 3 transition
• Only the SCH (if we have one) should be shielding people from Prey
• We need to keep the middle clear
• We are going to tank switch on every 2nd heat lighting

Overall, we had a good run Tuesday and a subpar run Friday. We did have to pug 3 people for Friday so I wasn't expecting much but had hoped to see the last mechanic in phase 3. I hope everyone at least got some good notes that you can take with you to try and improve upon. We should have our whole gang for Tuesday, so I would really like to see phase 2 to 3 done clean and get some reps dealing with the last mechanic.

Tomas

For Tuesday:

As always, please come prepared. I think we will clear T10 as long as everyone is focused and ready to cooperate as a team.

I'm confident because I know that at least 3 members on the team have the clear already, and the rest of the team understands the fight. Personally, I've cleared it numerous times now (I was in a farm group with 0 wipes this weekend, clearing as both WHM and SCH) and I know the fight very well. I am now able to give everyone some helpful tips to try and make the more confusing parts easier. I'll hit on these when we form up on Tuesday, but for now here are the basics...

Everyone: In phases 2 and 3, NEVER eat both attacks from the boss. For Heat Lightning + ANYTHING (charge or cyclone), if Heat hits you then stay clear of the center and charge line. If you did not get hit by Heat, go in to help soak the follow-up attack. If we get Cyclone + Charge then I want to see Raven & Jonas soak the Cyclone along with the targeted person (Wyd as backup to ensure there's always 3 soaking) and everyone else soak the charge - tank first in line as always.

Tanks: Communicate with swaps. You absolutely CAN swap on every Heat Lightning + Charge, even in phase 3. The other two combos in the last phase do not require a swap. Also, on add phases it is helpful to backpedal a short bit once you have the mobs in position (facing North/South). This creates much more room for DPS & healers to operate since the tail swipe is a narrow cone (where the frontal is a very wide cone). The more space we give DPS, the better chance they won't get hit while being locked onto with Prey. With the extra set of adds in phase 2, take them northwest and pull the Son out into the damage floor just before it dies so that the field left behind isn't in our way.

DPS: In the add phases, be very careful about stepping in the frontal cone radius. It goes off with no warning and can cause you to get hit by Prey if you're already targeted, resulting in a big DPS loss. Tail swipes however - they have enough warning to escape and are actually beneficial to trigger as it slows damage going out to the tanks. Do bait them. In phase 3, watch out for the combos and react accordingly. The goal is to always get hit by one of the two attacks, but never both. Also, ensure you spread out enough so that no Heat Lightnings overlap - get back in position after it lands on everyone, don't move too early.

Healers: WHMs should keep stoneskin up on all non-tanks through phase 1. The goal is to have all 6 players skinned when the adds spawn, giving them an extra layer of protection when the double-prey happens. SCHs can pre-cast Fey Illumination + Succor just before the phase shift to provide a 2nd good shield to everyone. These two things combined will allow lots of room for error if Adlos don't get out fast enough and/or the targeted person takes a hit before Prey explodes. Repeat this strat after the first Heat Lightning + Charge in phase 2, to prep for the 2nd adds. In phase 3, WHM should focus on raid heals (Med II, Med I, Cure III) every time a combo happens and otherwise keep regen & small cures on the tank. SCH can handle big tank heals and shielding for Prey.


If anyone wants to practice T10 tonight, I'm willing to build out a group in PF. Otherwise I'm going to try and get a head start on T11 so we have a better chance to learn quickly as a team next week.

Jemy

Tuesday Feedback:

We did well in general, getting to 1% on our best pull. There's just a few small things we need to clean up:

 1.) Wild Charge - We had a few breakdowns here. There wasn't always enough mitigation up to prevent tank deaths in Phases 2 & 3, as 1 healer was often the stunned person. I spent a good bit of time looking at logs and breaking down what happened on our team's runs vs those where my group won... on the best runs I noticed that the PLD saved Sentinel or Rampart (only one, not both together) for when they had to soak a charge. I couldn't pin down what WARs were using, but they seemed to have the raw HP to sort it out easily. Also, while other groups haven't been doing it we can get Sacred Soil down to soak a little damage for everyone. Last, I'm seeing that it may be classified as a magic-based attack so we can try Fey Covenant and/or Apocastasis too.

 2.) Melee Positioning - We sorted it out after a few pulls, but in order to keep the tanks safe (they're too important to put at risk) we give them one of the two flanks ("B") and the melee DPS take either the rear or the other flank ("A"). Spread out enough so that you know where you're going when Heat Lightning starts to cast. Keeping organized up near the boss helps tremendously when handling the combos in phase 3.

 3.) Cyclone (Tether) + Wild Charge - Know when this is happening, and where you need to be. Since the other two combos start with Heat Lightning, watch out for "either" the tether or the charge marker... if Heat Lightning isn't casting when they appear, then it's this combo. Raven & Jonas always soak tether unless they have the charge marker. People marked 3 & 4, be ready to run in for the Cyclone if there's less than 3 total people in there.

 4.) Overall DPS - We're a bit light, though not by too much. If we can crank out a little extra in phases 1 & 2 then we'll have better boss positioning as we'll bypass the Wild Charges we get as the phase is about to change.


Side Notes

- Congrats to Raven & Jonas for doing some extra runs and getting a clear.
- Study T11!! I'll put a link below, and know I plan to take us in tomorrow if we beat T10 quickly. Focus on Phases 1 and 2; I can simplify Phase 3 for everyone in chat as I've done some (successful) T11 farming yesterday myself. Most of the mechanics are similar to various mechanics from past turns, which may help with the learning process.
- If we do not clear T10 tomorrow, we're leaving it behind and moving to T11 next week. Use this as motivation to give it your all and get our whole team thru.
- For those who need to clear and/or farm any turn keep your eyes open - Wyd is building farm groups often and I'm willing to build T10 & T11 clear groups when I'm on. T11 is very useful for loot as Carboncoat and Encrypted Tomes both drop there.


General T11 Guide:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SyAeMRSqiw
T11 WHM Guide (I found this VERY helpful!):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNnqLkC4NJc

Jemy

One last thing for T10 - I saw this sample layout on Mr. Happy's guide and thought it worth posting. While the 'exact' positions are slightly off (flank melee should be a hair farther South to avoid the cleave), it's a great example of how we should be spread during the non-add phases. Staying close together, but spread out enough for heat allows more AoE heals to land when we're topping everyone off.

Here's what I'd like to see, ideally:

Top - Main Tank
Flanks - 1 melee DPS and Off Tank (B Side)
Center Rear - 1 melee DPS (ideally Raven Soul, just watch where the other DPS goes)
Center Left/Right - Alexis (A side) and Mo (B Side)
South/Far Back - 2 ranged DPS

Jemy

I'll be on.

Mo Lighting

I'll be on.

Tomas

Aw man, i hate to say this, but i dont think i can make it tonight. I have a family event to go to, and i dont get to see them much, so id really like to spend some time with them today.

Ravensoul

Gotcha Raven. The two Fridays I'll be out for are a family outing and a wedding. The wedding is in Baltimore.......

Jemy

Some notes on T11 to keep in mind for Friday

- If you're studying, focus on phase 2's quirks. Here's the breakdown by role:
  - Everyone:  Forked Lightning MUST NOT BE IGNORED! This is as just as deadly as the Thunder in T9, and works exactly the same. Check for it and get away from the team.
  - Tanks:  Ideally a PLD will be on the Cube & WAR on the Sphere. PLD can use Awareness to counter the high crit rate, and Fight or Flight to raise damage to help hold hate. WAR can keep Storm's Path up on the sphere to soften the damage of repelling cannons (heavy PBAoE) and help the healers. Rotate the mobs after the center nodes fire their 3 ground target lasers, and take them far across and towards the outside of the arena.
  - DPS:  These things cleave - don't do the bad and stand in front. Watch the HP of the Weapons & Gravity nodes closely, and slow up if yours is under 10% and the other looks high on health.
  - Healers:  AoEs and cooldowns are a good thing! Just bear in mind that the SCH should have at least 1 Aetherflow charge (for Sacred Soil), Virus, and Fey Covenant all available at the phase change to handle the crit Nerve Cloud. Otherwise folks may die unless they have both Stoneskin & Adloquium up on them.

- Don't let the tethers in Phase 3 intimidate you. When you see Nanospore Jet start, spread out loosely to see if you have a tether and what color it is. if you see the opposite color pointing to someone at/near "B", then it is NOT tank tethers and you need to get to the correct flank. The Red/Green/Black one goes to "A" (the red marker) and the Blue/White one goes to "C" (the blue marker). If you're nervous about tethers, then try this - spread away ASAP during the cast to see if you have one. If you do, go 'halfway' to the correct flank position and then see if the other color is attached to non-tanks. From there you can either go all to way to your flank (no tank tethers) or head back to "B" (for tank tethers). Also, someone should be calling it out in Vent to help make it easier. Once you have this down, phase 3 is simply phase 1 mechanics with a slightly different order of attacks.

- We have some solid experience among our team now, so lean on that. Let those who have handled the entire fight (Wyd, Mo, Jonas... also Lemon & Mystic if they attend) provide input and offer tips. This is the type of fight I think our team is well suited to handle, we just need to get into rhythm for phase 2 and have folks experience the tethers. A win Friday is a serious possibility.

- For those who cannot attend Friday and/or do not get the clear, keep an eye out over the weekend. I will be looking to get at least 1 good party going for T11 whether it's for a clear or a farm. There's good loot to be had in there, so it's very much worth getting comfortable with.

Jemy

Will be here tonight if running!!

Jonas

Short & simple reminders for T11 since everyone has had a clear...

Phase 2:  Watch for Forked Lightning Debuff. Dodge all the things and balance the damage on orb & cube.

Phase 3:  If NOT tank tethers, both people with Green/Red/Black go to A and the two with Blue/White go to C. Call them out. And do not forget to dodge to the left if the first Nerve Gas is pointed at you - stay with your buddy or you both die!


On a side note - 6 of our 7 current team members were present last night for the wins. Great job!!

Jemy