[phalanx13]

<NAXXRAMAS>

This is a definitive guide to Naxxramas on Eternal-WoW, primarily on the PVE realm - Redemption.

Naxxramas is an entry-level raid to the Wrath of the Lich King expansion. Normally it's done by players in blues/reputation items.
Still, even in the best possible gear, Naxx presents a challenge due to fight mechanics that are not based on gear, but coordination and individual skill.

This guide is done partly within the perspective of an end-game raiding guild The Nexus; although I've toned things down a bit to ensure it's more generalized for the average player.
The same mechanics still apply for each fight; and yes, most are fully scripted as in retail.
Major differences are obviously fights taking longer, more phase transitions, a set group composition and the need for an actual class instead of a hybrid, etc.

As always, it's best you have Deadly Boss Mods + have read guides and watched videos to know what needs to be done.

Code: Select all

001 Anubrekhan
002 Grand Widow Faerlina
003 Maexxna
004 Noth the Plaguebringer
005 Heigan the Unclean
006 Loatheb
007 Instructor Razuvious
008 Gothik the Harvester
009 The Four Horsemen
010 Patchwerk
011 Grobbulus
012 Gluth
013 Thaddius
014 Sapphiron
015 Kel'Thuzad

=========

SPIDER WING

001 Anub'Rekhan
- a simple fight with easy kiting by the MT involved
- alternatively a modified tank and spank

Group Setup:
10m = 1 MT, 1 OT, 2 healers, rest dps
25m = 1 MT, 2 OTs, 4 healers, rest dps

Spells and Abilities:
- Corpse Scarab Adds = adds guarding the boss, more may be summoned later on
- Impale = an attack that hits a straight line from the boss to its target, dealing AoE damage
- Locust Swarm = a DoT which damages those near the boss and silencing them

Strategy:
(1) The OT/s pick up the adds, and hold aggro; dps will ignore these and focus on the boss only
- If you do not kill them (and none in the raid die), no further adds will be spawned

(2) RDPS/Healers should spread out horizontally to minimize the damage from Impale

(3) Locust Swarm
Kiting = the tank runs the boss around the edges of the room during Swarm; the rest of the raid remains at the center to prevent damage/silence
Soaking = a good-geared tank can simply soak the entirety of the Swarm; the rest of the raid remains at the center to prevent damage/silence


002 Grand Widow Faerlina
- a relatively simple tank and spank encounter, provided your MT has outgeared it

Group Setup:
10m = 1 MT, 2 healers, rest dps
25m = 1 MT, 4 healers, rest dps

Spells and Abilities:
- Poison Volley = a spell that does nature damage on multiple targets; nature resistance totem/aspect of the wild easily mitigate this
- Hellfire = a spell that does aoe fire damage; fire resistance aura offers good mitigation
- Frenzy = increases the melee damage of the boss

Strategy:
(1) Simple tank and spank; kill all the surrounding adds; heal through the damage.
- When the boss casts Frenzy, the tank simply pops his defensive cooldown/s and healers keep him topped up

Related Achievement:
- Momma Said Knock You Out = defeat the boss without dispelling frenzy
NOTE: Relatively easy as you will simply be spankin' the boss


003 Maexxna
- a simple tank and spank encounter involving minimal difficulty in freeing incapacitated members and anticipating damage

Group Setup:
10m = 1 MT, 2 healers, rest dps
25m = 1 MT, 4 healers, rest dps

Spells and Abilities:
- Spider Webs = when cast on specific targets, they need to be attacked to free them; when cast on the entire raid, it will do minimal raid-wide damage and temporary incapacitation
- Spider Poison = a frontal spray and a debuff which reduces healing (this needs to be abolished)
- Frenzy = a soft-enrage at 30% health

Strategy:
(1) The MT simply turns the boss away from the raid since her poison abilities are frontal ones

(2) On enrage, simply pop cooldowns; adds will spawn so, if everyone is gathered together, they can easily be aoe'd down

Related Achievement:
- Arachnophobia = defeat Maexxna within 20 minutes of killing Anub'Rekhan
NOTE: This is quite easy since you'll be breezing through the wing, as long as you don't waste too much time inbetween trash pulls.



=========

PLAGUE WING

004 Noth The Plaguebringer
- a fight which spikes in difficulty based on group coordination
- the focus is on removing debuffs (that may cause instant wipes), and management of adds, and snap-aggro/damage reduction abilities

Group Setup:
10m = 1 MT, 1 OT/good-geared plate dps, 2 healers, rest dps; it is important that you have at least 1-2 decursers (mages/restokins)
25m = 1 MT, 2 OTs/good-geared plate dps, 4 healers, rest dps; it is important that you have at least 3-4 decursers (mages/restokins)

Spells and Abilities:
- Curse of the Plaguebringer = curses 3/10 players in the raid; will need to be decursed fast within 10 seconds or will cause a wipe
- Plagued Adds = summons melee and caster adds
- Blink/Cripple = teleportation which completely resets aggro; the other ability automatically slows movement speed for all surrounding him

Strategy:
(1) Decurse, decurse, decurse!

(2) Add management
- melee adds (large warrior skeletons) need to be picked up by the OT/plate, turned away from others and Aoe'd down
- caster adds (headless mages) need to be kited/slowed and nuked by rdps since they do an AoE spell damage
- it's highly possible to nuke the boss before more adds appear

(3) On the blink, the threat is completely reset so the MT must immediately taunt
- if the MT is slow on reaction or movement, a plate dps can taunt/hold aggro for awhile
- likewise, any non-tank which takes aggro should immediately pop defensive skills until the tank re-takes the boss


005 Heigan The Unclean
- a famous boss fight due to sheer emphasis on movement and group coordination
- that said, you will see here which of those in your group are mindless dps/healers, and those which are eager to pay attention and prefer survivability

Group Setup:
10m = 1 MT, 1-2 healers, rest dps (all understand your language)
25m = 1 MT, 2-3 healers, rest dps (all understand your language)

Spells and Abilities:
- Spell Disruption = an aura which increases cast time by a huge amount
- Decrepit Fever = a spell which does aoe nature damage and decreases hp
- Ground Eruption = flames erupt on various areas of the floor *see Heigan Dance + Illustration
- Phase Transitions = the boss will be in Phase 1 (movable) for 90 seconds; then he switches to Phase 2 (channeling on platform) for 45 seconds
- Plague Cloud = while channeling in Phase 2, anyone on the platform/near boss will die from this attack

Strategy:
(1) Heal through Decrepit Fever; casters/healers should be aware of the Disruption debuff and use instant-casts should they be affected

(2) The Tactical Heigan Dance = this is recommended for a group with an assorted class
- On Phase 1 = the tank moves Heigan around the room to avoid the slow eruptions; the rest of the raid follows him around
- On Phase 2 = all focus will be on moving around the room on designated spots fast enough to avoid massive damage from faster eruptions

(3) The Burn-Through/Nexus-Style Heigan Dance = this is recommended for a heavily outgeared group, heavy on melee, or has a HoTs-using healer
- On Phase 1 = the tank positions Heigan to the wall of his platform; the rest of the raid simply nukes him
- On Phase 2 = the raid immediately moves to the first area of the "dancefloor" a few seconds before phase 2 begins; the dance begins as normal

Related Achievement:
- The Safety Dance = no one in the raid must die
NOTE: As long as healers keep everyone topped up through Fever, and everyone moves coordinated during the dance, this should be no problem

Illustration (from Wowwiki):



006 Loatheb
- a great test for healers in how they correctly time their heals; and for the rest of the raid in using defensive cooldowns

Group Setup:
10m = 1 MT, 2 healers, rest dps
25m = 1 MT, 5 healers, rest dps

Spells and Abilities:
- Necrotic Aura = healing is completely nullified
- Deathbloom and Doom = spells which cause nature and shadow damage
- Fungal Buff = a crit buff received when killing a spore; players must be gathered near a spore to receive the maximum benefit

Strategy:
(1) You have a few seconds to heal until Necrotic Aura is cast once more
- Healers need to fully top off everyone within this time
- Other players need to pop defensive skills when Necrotic Aura is active/when HP is dangerously low
- A good bet is to have a Discipline priest spamming PW:Shields to reduce a good amount of damage; the proc from Valan'yr is also good

(2) Usage of nature resistance totem/shadow prayer or aura is highly advised

(3) Killing fungal spores while people are bunched up together is the best way to get buffs for all

Related Achievement:
- Spore Loser = defeat Loatheb without killing a spore
NOTE: If you've outgeared the encounter, there's virtually no need to gain the extra buff. Simply avoid doing AoE, reactive damage, crazy pets, and Shadowmourne proc



==========

MILITARY WING

007 Instructor Razuvious
- a relatively easy encounter highlighted by using adds to tank the boss

Group Setup:
10m = zero tanks, 1 healer, rest dps; preferably 1 priest
25m = zero tanks, 3 healers, rest dps; preferably 2-3 priests

Spells and Abilities:
- Shout/Knife = this abilities hit the raid as an aoe, or one person respectively, and are easily healed through
- Strike = this ability does a massive amount of damage and should only hit the tanking add

Strategy:
(1) In 10man, there are two orbs which give control of two adds; in 25man, you need to bring enough priests to MC the adds

(2) The adds have three skills = a high threat attack, a taunt, and a shield
- spam blood strike to gain aggro and do damage
- use taunt to switch aggro between adds (especially for the add which has bone barrier available)
- use bone barrier to anticipate an incoming strike


008 Gothik The Harvester
- a "timed" encounter which focuses on proper group division and add management

Group Setup:
10m = 1 MT, 1 OT/or good geared plate, 2 healers, rest dps
25m = 1 MT, 1 OT/or good geared plate, 2-4 healers, rest dps

Spells and Abilities:
Live Side Adds = the weaker adds which spawn on the left side of the room
Dead Side Adds = slightly stronger versions which spawn on the right, and are copies of the adds which are killed on the Live Side

Strategy:
(1) Split the group evenly into Live and Dead Sides.
- Since the Live Side has weaker adds, put your OT + slightly weaker dps/healers there (no offense)
- The Dead Side should have your MT and stronger dps/healers

(2) For each Live Side add killed, a Dead Side version spawns
- Note that (for starter groups), if Live Side players burst down the adds too fast, there may not be enough time for the Dead Side group to prepare each wave

(3) Gothik, as a "timed" encounter, will only be attackable 4 1/2 minutes after the start of the fight.
All adds should be dead at this point, and his relatively low hp makes this phase an afterthought.


009 The Four Horsemen
- regarded on original/Vanilla WoW as one of the hardest encounters ever made; taking many months before an actual kill was recorded
- the WotLK version, despite how unbelievably good geared your group is, will test your ability to coordinate and balance the group evenly

Group Setup:
10m = 2 MT, 3 healers (1 tanking), rest dps (1 tanking)
25m = 2 MT, 5-6 healers (1 tanking), rest dps (1 tanking)

Spells and Abilities:
- Horsemen Marks = the marks cause increasing damage and stack, therefore switching needs to be done in order to properly manage them
- Meteor = aoe fire damage cast by Korthrazz; split among those near him
- Unholy Shadow = shadow damage cast on the Rivendare tank
- Shadowbolt/Void Zone = shadow damage spells cast on the Blaumeux "tank" (rdps that can heal)
- Holy Bolt/Holy Wrath = holy damage spells cast on the Zeliek "tank" (normal healer/preferably paladin)

Strategy:
(1) Split the group evenly (also refer to illustration):
Red (Korthrazz) = 1 MT with a healer, and your 2 best dps
Purple (Rivendare) = 1 MT or OT, with a healer, and 2 average dps
Green (Blaumeux) = 1 range dps that can heal itself (druid/shaman/Spriest)
Orange (Zeliek) = 1 healer

(2) Switching:
- the Green/Orange "tanks" switch positions every 3 marks
- the Red/Purple actual tanks run to each other (bringing their boss with them), and taunt the other one's boss
- only the boss places need to be switched, the dps/healer for each group remains where they are; the tanks go back to their old corners as well

(3) Kill Order:
- Burst Korthrazz first due to his more dangerous ability, next is Rivendare, followed by Zeliek and lastly Blaumeux

(4) Damage Management:
- The longer each person stays stationary on a specific Horseman, the more marks stack, and eventually the damage will be impossible to heal through
- If people are not within range of any Horseman within a few seconds, an AoE will wipe the raid

(5) 25man Difference:
- The best suggestion is to practice in 10man mode first
- Upon mastering or at least becoming aware of tactics, you'll simply have to note the balance between the Red/Purple groups.
- The Orange "tank" remains a competent healer; the Green "tank" should be a healer as well; a third healer (if needed) will support them

Related Achievement:
- And They Will All Go Down Together = when the first Horseman dies, you need to kill the rest within 15 seconds
NOTE: This requires good coordination, not mindless dps. An illustration is provided also.
The dps needs to switch from the melee Horsemen infront, to the ranged Horsemen behind. One player may be necessary to soak another meteor cast.
Bring each Horseman down to 5% and coordinate the timing of the kills.

Illustration:




==========
CONSTRUCT WING

010 Patchwerk
- a gear-check for most starters; enrages in 6 minutes

Group Setup:
10man = 1 MT, 2 OT (or two high-geared plate dps), 1-2 healers, rest dps
25man = 1 MT, 2 OT, 2-3 healers, rest dps

Spells and Abilities:
- Hateful Strike = a high damage attack that is split between the MT and the two highest aggro among melee

Strategy:
(1) This is a simple tank and spank. The only thing of note is Hateful Strike which is aggro dependent.
- It's best you have Omen Threat Meter; if not, make sure that the MT/soakers attack the boss first and build aggro before the rest of the melee dps
- Hunters and rogues may also be designated to transfer threat to the OTs to ensure they are second or third in aggro

Related Achievement:
- Make Quick Werk of Patchwerk = kill Patchwerk in 3 minutes or less
NOTE: Considering end-game groups, this should be quite easy


011 Grobbulus:
- an easy fight that's all about movement and avoidance

Group Setup:
10man = 1 MT, 1 OT, 2 healers, rest dps
25man = 1 MT, 1 OT, 3 healers, rest dps

Spells and Abilities:
- Slime Spray = the boss sprays nature damage to those infront of him
- Poison Clouds = the boss drops gas clouds near him that do constant nature damage to those standing in it
- Mutated Infection = a plague which transfers to other people if standing close to the initial target
- Ooze Adds = regularly spawn and must be picked up by an OT; dps may simply focus on the boss

Strategy:
(1) The tank moves the boss around his room; the rest of the raid should never be infront of the boss due to spray

(2) When Clouds appear under the boss, simply move away from them immediately

(3) The target of Mutated Infection should quickly run away from others, to a safer area/corner, until its gone; this creates a Poison Cloud upon disappearing


012 Gluth
- the sibling of Precious and Stinky from ICC, this fight is very simple and only an occassional damage spike will need to be anticipated

Group Setup:
10man = 1 MT, 1 OT (optional), 1-2 healers, rest dps
25man = 1 MT, 1 OT, 2 healers, rest dps

Spells and Abilities:
- Mortal Wound = reduces all healing done to the tank
- Decimate = reduces all players' hp to 5%; top off the tank first then the rest of the raid immediately
- Enrage = increases damage/speed; can be removed by tranq shot, purge and anesthetic poison

Strategy:
(1) If necessary, an OT may take the boss away from the MT if he accumulates too many stacks of Mortal Wound

(2) Zombies when eaten by Gluth heal him, normally they are killed once they are affected by Decimate
- if a group has high dps output, it's possible to just burst the boss down


013 Thaddius
- if you're an average raider, many bosses you've faced thus far pale in comparison to the challenge this boss presents
- not only do you have to contend with the actual fully-scripted mechanics, but you have to work around a persistent bug
- if you're familiar with events, you'll know the spell which causes massive wipes/lightning sparks on players (it came from this boss)

Group Setup:
10man = 1 MT, 1 OT, 2-3 healers, rest dps (preferably you have high-geared plate dps)
25man = 1 MT, 1 OT, 4-5 healers, rest dps (preferably you have high-geared plate dps)

Spells and Abilities:
*Feugen and Stalagg:
- Revival = both need to die within 5 seconds of each other, otherwise they resurrect with full health and you have to start over
- Magnetic Pull = switches the tank for each miniboss
- Static Shock = an occassional aoe nature damage

*Thaddius:
- Chain Lightning = occassional multi-target nature damage
- Ball Lightning = massive nature damage on the tank if no one is in melee range
- Polarity Shift = gives half the raid group a positive charge, and a negative charge (explanation below)
- Enrage = will berserk 6 minutes after becoming active

Strategy:
(1) Phase 1: Feugen and Stalagg
- Divide the group evenly and coordinate on when to slow down, stop dps, and kill the minibosses
- The tanks get pulled to opposite platforms; possible bugs include an aggro reset (which should not happen) or the tank falling off the platform upon being switched

= Bug Workaround:
- Every 30 seconds, the tanks are switched, time this correctly and have low armor classes pop their defensive spells
- It's possible for a hunter or rogue, to Misdirection or Tricks of the Trade to a high-geared plate dps then attack the boss; the plate dps pops defensives until the MT can re-establish aggro

(2) Get to the Boss!
- You have 15 seconds to jump from both platforms to Thaddius until he becomes active

(3) Polarity Shift (cast every 30 seconds)
- The boss gives positive and negative charges to the raid
- Standing near SIMILAR charged players increase your dps
- Standing near OPPOSITE charges players will do damage, multiplied by how many people are of the opposite charge
- the damage for being near opposite charges occurs within 5 seconds, you have enough time to move

(4) Charged Points
- Pay attention to your charge, and move to a designated side until another Polarity Shift is cast
- Refer to the illustration
- the RIGHT SIDE of the boss is for POSITIVE (+) charged players
- the LEFT SIDE of the boss is for NEGATIVE (-) charged players

(5) Movement
- to minimize damage movement is the key
- move AROUND the boss in a counter-clockwise manner

Related Achievement
= Shocking - Kill Thaddius without anyone crossing the positive/negative charges
NOTE: This means the entire raid must not, even once, take damage from being close to people of the opposite charge

Illustration:



=========
FROSTWYRM LAIR


014 Sapphiron
- the zombified remains of a blue dragon using highly damaging Frost abilities on the raid
- anyone familiar with Sindragosa should be slightly familiar with mechanics, and vice versa

Group Setup:
10man = 1 tank, 2-3 healers, rest dps; 1 decurser is needed (mage/restokin)
25man = 1 tank, 4-5 healers, rest dps; 3 decursers are needed (mage/restokin)

Spells:
Phase 1
- Frost Aura = constant raid-wide frost damage during the fight
- Life Drain = a curse on 2 people (10 people on 25man) that drains their health and heals the boss; must be decursed immediately
- Chill = a blizzard that causes slight frost damage to anyone standing under it
Phase 2 (Air Phase)
- Ice Bolt = direct damage frost spell on 3 people, freezing them to ice blocks and damaging those near
- Frost Breath = a brutal spell that will kill absolutely anyone, unless, they are hiding behind ice blocks/frozen people

Strategy:
(1) As with majority of dragon bosses, the boss cleaves infront, and tailswipes behind
- The rdps/healers position spread out on one side; the melee dps attack from the side of her leg

(2) Decurse decurse decurse!

(3) Upon Air Phase warning, watch for the people turning into ice blocks.
- Hide behind the ice blocks/frozen people immediately (out of line of sight from the boss)
- Heal through any damage taken
- Reposition the boss normally upon its landing

Related Achievement:
- The Hundred Club = defeat Sapphiron with no one in the raid above 100 Frost Resistance
NOTE: With end-game geared healers, it's easy to heal through the damage that the boss does


015 Kel'thuzad
- the final boss of Naxxramas is the Arch-Lich and one of the leaders of the Undead Scourge
- a fully scripted encounter will test the very best of your skills as a starter
- if an avid raider, then surely, you will see the familiarity with this boss and Lady Deathwhisper, Sapp/Sind and Lord Jaraxxus/BQL

Group Setup:
10man = 1 tank, 2-3 healers, rest dps
25man = 1 tank, 1-2 OTs, 4-6 healers, rest dps

Spells:
Frost Bolt = massive frost damage which needs to be interrupted (avenger shield, BE silence, mind freeze, silence, etc)
Frost Volley = non-interruptable, raid-wide spell
Mana Detonation = target explodes for aoe damage in 5seconds and losses part of his mana
Shadow Fissure = a flaring red effect on the ground, anyone standing under after 5seconds will be killed
Frost Blast = an ice block effect on a target, freezing anyone near him; anyone frozen will die in 4seconds if not killed
Chains of Kelthuzad = the boss mind controls multiple players; they can instantly kill the raid or heal the boss; they must be CC'd immediately (poly, hex, cyclone, fear, etc)

Strategy:
(1) Phase One = Adds
- Melee dps and the tank need to bring down the abominations
- RDPS focus on the banshee/soldier adds

(2) Phase Two = Positioning and Awareness
- ensure that all adds are dead once KT emotes (a few seconds later and phase 2 begins)
- the raid needs to be spread out to minimize the freezing chain; melee dps should stand in different sides of the boss
- it's important to focus heals on the ice blocked player
- reposition/move out immediately when a fissure appears
- the player targetted for mana detonation should run away from others
- interrupt all frostbolts

(3) Phase Three = Guardians
- entire phase 2 continues but adds will be spawned; dps will ignore these
- on 10m, a nicely geared MT can easily pick these up and tank them as well as the boss
- on 25m, depending on the gear, one or two off-tanks may be needed to pick them up

Related Achievement:
- Just Can't Get Enough = kill 18 Abominations during the KT fight
NOTE: Since only around 8 abominations "spawn" (walk towards the raid), you will need to pull those idle at the corners, and anticipate more adds that may be aggro'd as well



==================================================
That's all for Naxxramas.

I hope this guide will help you out.
Thank you for reading.

Please post any comments or questions you may have.

Goodluck on getting achievements and titles.[/quote]