Hamidon Raid Strategy, Revised and Finalized
By
AngelsFist,
Posted on: 2005-04-14 24:20 in Player Guides
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Follow Orders and ask questions ....Its pretty simple do what your told and then if you want to understand the "whys" ask
) At least thats my philosophy....I just did my job and later started asking questions...
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Yeah, that's the point I think Control Queen was bringing up - if a raider's doing hami for the first time it's ok that they don't know what's going on. Yes we should check before the raid for newbies and educate them but no matter what THEY SHOULD LISTEN TO THE RAID LEADER AND CAPTAINS. Even when they don't understand why. And if they don't understand, no one's stopping them from asking. A lot of times, a raid captain tells newbies not to do something - but they just keep doing it while asking why at the same time. And a lot of times they don't agree >< and keep doing it.
Back when *I* was a newbie hami raider and we walked uphill through the snow without any SHOES all they way to the hive entrance and gathered at 8:30EST and started the raid at 9:00EST........ well, I mean, when I first started, I had no idea what was going on. It didn't really make sense to me that we should clump the PA together instead of spreading them out but I still stuck with the rest of the PA droppers. Didn't make sense to me for another 5 raids or so - course, could've saved myself a whole lot of trouble had I just asked.....but I did follow orders.
However, not all newbies ignore orders that they don't understand. A couple raids back an illusionist raiding for the first time had her phantasm out during the hami holding phase. I sent her a tell to remove it and she promptly left hami and got her phantasm killed. While she did that, I explained why a phantasm at that point was a bad idea, saving us much hami aggro. Yay for hami newbies that listen! 
one thing I've noticed the past few raids is getting tells from folks I've never met before asking me if the raid is still going on and at what phase it is at.
At first I was polite - but then.. I got wise. Last night I got a tell from someone with the above question and I did a quick "find member". The hero was a lvl 50 sitting around in Peregrine. I told him it was underway and within a few minutes he was in the Hive. I looked him up a few more times and he was still in the Hive but nowhere near Hami. I only saw him running in to take a swipe at hami during the melee phase and then he left in the direction of the entrance.
I may be wrong, but I believe most of these people are leechers who just do a search of who is in the Hive- and it has to show a HUGE list if the raid is going on so there is no way for them to NOT know if the raid is underway. In the future, I am just going to ignore any more tells like that unless they are from people I know. Anyone who has done a few raids knows to get their tail into the Hive and help out. Anyone else is just a leecher who is even too lazy to come to the Hive for a chance at a Hami-O and has to ask the folks who are doing all the work to tell them if it is 'worth their time' or not to make the trip.
Control Queen
Mind Control/Empathy
Lvl 50
Champion Server
Battle Cry:"Oh, Honey, I don't THINK so!"
No, no. Always reply. Always tell them that you've only just started, but please hurry because you could use the initial help.
Those that are interested in helping will show up quickly, and thus deserve their reward.
Those that are interested in leeching will wait too long, and thus deserve their lack of reward.
Problem: "Ghost Tiger's melee lead guide" is gone.
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Forum not found.
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Can this be re-posted and petitioned for stickyness?
Looks like today's forum cleanup whacked both Ghost Tiger's post and Genna's healer post. Can we get reposts please? Might even be able to petition to change the links once they're done, too.
-M
Marut, 50 FF/Rad/Power Defender - Champion
Leader of The Earthguard
Leader of The Galactic Empire
Yes, please. GT's post is the definitive melee guide, invaluable for all newcomers. I hope we get it back.
�Life's hard. It's even harder when you're stupid.� ― John Wayne
�Just think of how stupid the average person is, and then realize half of them are even stupider!� - George Carlin
Post them in the Guides section, so they don't get wiped.
Hopefully GT has it on his web page still....Ill get to typing ... 
Blaster Guide to Raiding
I've been the Blaster Lead on Champion for a few occasions and I thought I'd post some thoughts up. As a Blaster doing the raids you will have primarily one duty - dealing damage to Hamidon (target assisting the Rangefinder and using Single target attacks) however depending upon other circumstances Blasters have been called in for other duties as well.
Gathering
Blasters and non-EMP/non-RAD Defenders should rally at one locaton for a headcount and quick rundown (on Champion this is most frequently Blaster Hill - the hill south of the Hive Entrance).
Into the Hive!
Get into the Hive and rally at the "East Stone" (Champion). At this point Defensive Toggles should be on until you rally at the desired point.
Monsters can see through stealth at close proximity and the Swarms can ground you and disable your toggles if you are struck by them.
Once you reach the grouping area assist the Melee squad in finishing monsters then disable defensive toggles. The only Toggles a Blaster should have running are Targeting Drone and Hover. The only Autoclick power that should be running is Hasten.
Into Hamidon's Bubble! (the Mito Phase)
Once Aggro is established the Raid leader will give the signal to go into Hamidon's bubble. As a Blaster you will be asked to Target Assist the Rangefinder/Targeter and use Single Target Attacks only - any attack which affects a Single Target (Power Bolt, Burst, Total Focus).
Why no Sniper attacks?
Sniper type attacks are interruptible and cannot be used in Hamidon's bubble.
What about AoEs/Cones? They do good damage and they'll take down mitos faster since we hit more... NO..
The use of FullAuto, Firebreath, Fireball and other Cone and AoE attacks leads to Mito Splits which means more time taking down Hamidon. The use of AoE and Cone Attacks on a Mito close to Hamidon often (99.9%) will result in Hamidon firing a very nasty AoE upon the whole raid team.
Once all the Mito's are taking down everyone rallys to a certain point.
The Melee Smackdown stage!
To ensure our melee brothers earn an HO just after we take down the Mitos we ask our melee brothers to lay one hit on Hamidon and then exit out. Use the time here to catch a quick break, talk about pizza, flirt with female superheroines etc. There should be no Blasters in Hamidon's Bubble unless you are taking a snapshot of one of your melee buddies
Holding Hamidon!
Once Melee lay the smacketh down on Hamidon - next up is the Defenders and Controllers to Hold Hamidon. At this point it is important to pay attention to Broadcast/Request/Global Hamidon Chat/Whatever. Unless otherwise instructed by Blaster Lead or Raid leader Blasters will remain outside Hamidon's Bubble until called upon.
On Champion Blasters have been asked on many occasions to assist with holds. However it is up to the individual Raid leader's discretion. If called in a Blaster should either hover some distance above Hamidon or stay out to maximum range which should be anywhere from 60-80 feet from Hamidon. While Blasters have access to two melee holds (Shocking Grasp and Freezing Touch) it's better to use just Ranged Holds to prevent any lag for the Controllers/Defenders. A complete list of Blasters Holds can be found in the guide in my sig.
Fire at Will!!
Once instructed Blasters will be given the signal to fire at Hamidon. On Champion I've tried starting a tradition of using a Sniper style attack on Hamidon before entering the bubble. Upon entering Hamidon's Bubble, Blasters should spread out and stay at maximum range and cycle their attacks. A Blaster may use any ranged attack available. Unless cycling a Hold with their attacks all Blasters should be at least 50 feet away from Hamidon. Blasters should be cycling their most powerful Ranged attacks without being so close as to lag out Controllers/Defenders. This means it's preferable to use Full Auto and Fireball but less desirable to use Firebreath and FrostBreath. Use of Storm powers such as Rain of Fire/Freezing Rain/Ice Storm is solely the discretion of the raid leader. Blasters should be using an efficient RANGED attack chain. An Energy Blast Blaster/Defender should be cycling Power Bolt / Power Blast (and Power Burst if slotted for range or enough Range/Damage HO's) at least 80 ft from Hamidon.
If a Blaster cannot target Hamidon use either the Rangefinder or a pet such as a Dark Fluffy (Dark Defender's pet) or a Singularity (Gravity's pet)
Hami Beaten! Now what?
After Hamidon is beaten it is important to kill all the buds so that Hamidon will Respawn.
@Deadboy
Just curious I guess but looking at your plan would a melee blaster be any use at all in a hami raid? 
Here's a repost of the Controlling guide for hami since it has fallen off of the Champion boards.
Controlling Hami and You
I. Before the Raid
Illusion controllers
1. Illusion! Represent!
As an illusion controller your loyalty should be to your primary always. If you are Ill/Emp or Ill/Rad, you belong in the PA drop team. Under only the direst circumstances healing blanket has only 4 members should you be with the healing blanket. If there are not enough phantom armies being dropped continuously, no amount of healers in the blanket will protect the raiders from mito aggro.
2. I need some fairy dust
If you dont have fly or hover, notify the illusion lead immediately. We can and will find someone with group fly for you but we need time to do it. That being said, if you plan to attend many hami raids in the future, you may want to consider respecing in hover or fly.
3. Positions, everyone!
The PA drop team goes into the Hive the same time melee goes in to clear out monsters. That gives us enough time to get into position above hami west side and to work out any traveling issues. That being said, if you are flying to hami, fly high. There are swarms floating in the hive that have a really nasty sting. If you touch them at all, you will lose any and all traveling powers for a long time. If you are a group flyer, use group fly to travel to hami. It takes time to activate and switching between fly and group fly will drop you a decent distance
.usually right into hami lovin zone. Non flyers, wait for a tp next to the group flyer. If no one with a teleport is available, travel the distance to hami by foot, as should the group flyer. Once you are near hami, slowly work your way up into position above hami with your group flyer.
Non Illusion Controllers
1.Mmm
.warm and toasty
If you are not illusion and you are /emp or /rad, join the healing blanket. We can never have too much green goodness. If those are not your secondaries, join the main raiding group. Enter the hive when commanded by your lead.
II. Mito love
Illusion controllers
1. Drop it!
Once you are in position, drop PA whenever you have them. Dont stop until the last mito goes down. If you want to optimize your phantom army for hami raids, it should be six slotted with recharge rates.
2. Following the leader
All independent flyers should have the illusion lead on follow. Group flyers should have the illusion lead on follow and non flyers should have the group flyers on follow. Non flyers should stick with the group flyers no matter what. If the illusion lead says shifiting, wait for the group flyer to shift. Do not shift with the lead if you cannot fly on your own. We want to keep the mito aggro in a focused group so stick with the illusion lead.
3. This way to the lake!
Once the last mito is down and the raid leader calls for all out north, head down north of hami to the healing blanket and await for further instructions.
Controllers
1.Focus
Stay in the blanket, use only single attacks, no AoEs.
2. No Pets Allowed
No pets should be out at this time. Drawing aggro of any kind to the healing blanket is unpleasant. The only pets you should see are the PA on the other side of hami.
III. Hami love
1. Hold me close, hold me tight
Once melee have gotten their hits in and gone south, the raid leader will call in defenders and controllers. Set your hold on auto-hit. If you can hold, you must hold hami starting at this point and you should not stop holding until hami goes down no matter what. The only exception to the rule is if the raid leader gives the all out call. At that point you must leave the bubble immediately. If you have attacks, your first priority must still be holds. Do not interrupt any holds to attack. If you have the vanguard medal, use it. You may want to wait until crucial points to use it 50% or 10% health but use it at some point. When you hold hami, use all the holds you have but only use pure holds. Do NOT use immobilize, disorient, fear, or slow. If youre not sure what your powers do, look at the power info and it will tell you. There is also a list at the end of this guide listing all controller powers and notes whether or not they are holds.
2. I cant see!
If you have trouble targeting hami you have several options. However, you should NEVER spawn pets for the purpose of targeting only. There should be plenty of dark servants and singularities that you can assist in targeting hami. The range finder will also have hami targeted and you can continue to use them to find hami.
3. No pets, no pets, NO PETS!
There are only two pets that should be out during the hami phase of the raid. These are dark servants and singularities. That is because they have their own holds. Any other pet is not welcome. Ever. They cause aggro and lag, both of which we want to avoid. No phantasms, no phantom army, no fire imps, no jack frosts, no earth pets. No exception to that rule. Ever. Even with the I4 changes to Jack Frost. If you need a target, use darks or sings.
4. Cut the lag
If anything causes lag, it is not welcome even if it has a slightly beneficial purpose. No capes and auras on outfits. No shields should be up you shouldnt need it with hami aggro control and the healing blanket and if hami decides to hit you, it wont save you. No freezing armor. No fire shield. No invisibility. No steamy mist. No storms or rain of any sort. If you have storm as a power set, you should not be using ANY of those powers in this phase. No lighting storm, no tornado, no freezing rain, ice storm, blizzard, rain of fire and anything else that has been left out. No ice patch, no earthquake. Once hami is held, the heals should be cut and the only ones healing should be pets. The only debuffs allowed are rad debuffs. Nothing else is welcome or worth the lag from the graphics. Also, help reduce lag by spreading out. Hover if you have it. Use that shiny brand new graphics options enabling the filter for extra graphics.
IV. Bud love
Once hami pops and the buds come out, take them out before trading. Feel free to let anything loose pets, storms, everything. Let them have some fun. Yes there is a bud timer now but if you are looking to do 2 raids a night, you better clear those jello bits.
Repost of something Genna found that might help:
Hope this helps for Controllers.
Earth Controllers
Fossilze and Volcanic Gasses are a hold
Stone Prison and Stone Cages are not holds (immobilize)
Quicksand is not a hold (slow)
Salt Crystals is not a hold (sleep)
Stalagmites is not a hold (disorient)
Earthquake is not a hold (knockback)
Animated Stones have no holding ability, they only damage.
Fire Controllers
Char and Cinders are both holds
Ring of Fire and Fire Cages are not a hold (immobilize)
Smoke is not a hold (debuff)
Hot Feet is not a hold (slow)
Flashfire is not a hold (disorient)
Bonfire is not a hold (knockback)
Fire Imps have no holding ability, they only damage.
Gravity Controller
Gravity Distortion and Gravity Distortion Field
Singularity is a good pet to use because they cast holds
Crush and Crushing Field are not a hold (immobilize)
Lift and Propel are not a hold (knockback)
Dimension Shift is not a hold (intangible - especially bad since no one can then hold him while he is phased)
Wormhole is not a hold (disorient)
Ice Controllers
Block of Ice and Glacier are holds
Chillblain and Frostbite are not holds (immobilize)
Arctic Air is not a hold (confuse and slow)
Shiver is not a hold (slow)
Ice Slick is not a hold (knockdown)
Flash Freeze is not a hold (sleep)
Illusion Controllers
Blind and Flash are holds
Spectral Wounds and Phantom Army not a hold (damage)
Deceive is not a hold (confuse)
Superior Invisibility and Group Invisibility are not holds (duh) and shouldn't be used because of lag caused using them.
Spectral Terror is not a hold (fear)
Phantasm is not a hold (knockback)
Of course, Phantom Army is needed for the Pet Drop phase.
Mind Controllers
Dominate, Telekinesis and Total Domination are holds
Mesmerize and Mass Hypnosis are not a hold (sleep)
Levitate is not a hold (knockback)
Confuse and Mass Confusion are not a hold (confuse)
Terrify is not a hold (fear)
Until we got off our butts and make them separate guides..
here is a repost of my Hamidon guide for Melee:
Melee: Raiding Hamidon and You
Greetings to my fellow melee warriors of Champion.
This post is to serve as a quick guide for those melee (Tankers/Scrappers) who have little
to no Hamidon Raid experience; for those that are experienced, please read the two
major rules of the raid anyway. Following the rules, I have written an overview of the raid
process, from the melee point of view.
RULE 1) One hit on Hamidon, one HO for you.
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It has been shown time and again, that everyone on a team where even one team
member damages Hamidon, will get their HO when Hammi dies. The raid captains on Champion
have gone so far as to add a phase to the raiding process when all melee are unleashed to
hit Hamidon, and then move away. We have been getting a bad reputation at raids because of
melee players parking on Hamidon and swinging at him. Please, don't be that guy.
RULE 2) Cut the chatter, Red 2.
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Please, do not use the request channel unless you are a designated raid captain.
This channel is where the captains are giving their requests, leading the raid to a
successful completion. By using their channel, you slow down the raid, because everyone will
be reading your message, assuming it is critical. Again, please don't be that guy.
The broadcast channel is a touchy subject, because it is not the raid captain channel,
but it can be heard by everyone, so it will clutter the screen, and even possibly push
request channel messages out of sight before they are read and processed by everyone.
The most recent policy is to please stay off of broadcast, just as you stay off of request.
I recommend putting the request channel in its own text window, to prevent missing
leader messages.
On the other hand, feel free to use team and local channels for all the fun
banter that should be part of such a big gathering of heroes.
Melee's Role at the Hamidon Raid
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Phase A) Prep East
Melee are expected to team together, like everyone else. Our first task will be to enter the
Hive and decimate the monsters in the area East of Hamidon. This is where the whole raid
force will gather initially. Please, it is critical when at this prep area to stay out of
Hamidon's range. He and his Mitos can shoot you at a range that you have to see to believe,
and we have had mass deaths due to people getting too close to him. If you're not sure how
close to get to Hamidon, please err on the side of "farther away".
Phase B) Mito killing phase
At this stage, melee can either stay at the prep area patiently, or choose to join the Mito
killing force.
If you choose to join in killing Mitos, please keep in mind that you should shut off toggles,
as they add lag for everyone. There will be a healing blanket to stay in, but the blanket is
on the ground, mostly a good help for ranged attackers, because the Mitos tend to hover high
in the air. There will be a designated "targetter" or "rangefinder", whom you should target
and follow, to assist in striking down his target Mito. Add the targeter to your friends
list, so that you can quickly target him using that list. Attacking or even getting close to
some Mitos without killing them very quickly will cause them to multiply. No one hero can
kill a Mito quickly enough to prevent this, please stick to the rangefinder's target.
There will usually be a designated raid Bubbler with his large bubble toggle up. The Mito
team should stick together in that bubble, more as a visual aid and organizational tool than
for its protection. This keeps the healing effective as well.
Phase C) Prep North
When all mitos are clear, everyone regroups North of Hamidon. Again, melee is to clear the
monsters out.
Phase D) Melee hits on Hamidon
This recently added phase is when we melee move in, hit Hamidon and then gather South of
Hamidon, clearing monsters there if needs be.
Please remember Rule 1; Hit him, and gather south. Dance party melee style.
Phase E) Holding Hamidon
Melee is to stay out of the action, unless you are a tanker who can help with holds.
Phase F) The Beating and Killing of Hamidon
Melee is again, to stay out when the blasters are called in. If there are enough damage
dealers without melee, we can relax, let them do their job, and anxiously await our HO
enhancement. If there is not enough damage, the raid leaders will call for scrappers to join
in the attack. This is another time when some melee players cause us to get a bad reputation.
Do NOT enter the fray unless we are asked to.
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It was more work for you to read this post than it is to join in the raid, follow the rules,
and get your Hamidon Origin Enhancement.
Thank you for your time, see you all at the raids!
hey guys,
I've thrown a couple of PMs to Lothiriel, but for the rest of you, a quick explanation... I've been playing COh in the US for over 6 months now, but am UK based. When COH launched over there, I started up an Ill/Rad on the server closest to Pinnacle in spirit... when it came to our first ever hami raid, I came across this thread... I play an Il/Rad and was part of the PA drop team, so read the thread and and Lothloriel some questions via PM... we did a lot of research but the info on holding hami and lag mitigation we were given was absolute gold - so much, we took hami down on our first EVER attempt... so thanks guys ... check out this thread for the gory details (I'm light petting over there by the way, an obscure piece of slang I don't expect to translate well).
so thank you for the advice and particular thanks to lothloriel...
Still looking for the re-post of Genna's healer guide. I've only played a blaster and a controller over on Triumph server's raids, and the strategy there isn't exactly the same as the one here, so my idea of healing at a raid is just "spam heals during mito phase, rez the dead, don't spam heals during the hold phase."
I'd like to join the upcoming raid with my ice/emp controller and would appreciate a peek at Genna's healing guide or a brief explanation of what my role will be as a healer.
Thanks in advance.
Thanks for the great guide! My main is only 36, so at least 9 levels til he can go to raids, but nice knowing I have a leg up on the other future raiders.
Also, bump.
I'm still unclear about the positioning of the PA drops. I've been told you want to position them near Hami on the opposite side of the raid party. Is that it? Is there an optimum distance from Hami? Marut suggests that there are times you need to "fly aroung like a bat out of hell" to get aggro back. What exactly do you do? Also, if the PAs are supposed to be holding Hami and mito aggro, I would think that the PAs would be more effective spread out rather than in a tight group. Yes you would want to stay away from the rest of the raid so that the raid doesn't get caught in the AOE mito attacks, but I would think a large spread out group of PAs would hold aggro better than a tightly packed group. I would think that you would want to drag the PAs around bringing them close to unmolested mitos to keep their attention but I've been told that it is better to keep the PAs still. What am I missing?
Hrm... Let me see what I can clarify.
1. The PA drop should go opposite the initial foray into Hamidon, preferably as close to him as possible. Movement of the group after this point depends largely on how the targetter is picking targets, but in a perfect world, with a raid moving clockwise or counterclockwise around Hami, the PA drop also moves to stay opposite the raid group, and as close as they can get to Hami.
2. If the PA group loses Hamidon aggro, they more or less have to shuffle the PA around like hell until they get it back. They'll need to move in close to get the PA to all attack him, move back out to pull the aggro away some, back in to make sure they still have it, etc. In short, if they lose aggro, they want to run the PA up against Hami again and again until they get it back, like waves breaking on a pier.
3. Mitos are single target attackers. Only Hami has an AoE. The PA drop tends to grab a lot of Mito aggro by default, but the primary job is getting Hami aggro. If you have a decent healing blanket, and a bubbler for mez resistance, you shouldn't have to worry so much about mitos. The raid group will still lose people, but a very small number in the grand scheme.
4. You want the PA packed tightly together for two main reasons: First, you're after Hami aggro, not mito aggro primarily. If you spread the PA out, you increase the chances that Hami will start firing at a different set of PA than the one he shot at last. Since the whole point of dropping them in the first place is to control where he's shooting, spreading them out would be a bit counterproductive Secondly, PA drops tend to vanish faster than they recharge, which is one of the reasons several droppers are used: so that there's a constant group of them attacking Hami. If they were to be spread out, there would be PA over here some times and not others, and over there at other times, but not the same ones, etc. So, you run into the same problem above, as attacks would be coming from inconsistent directions. By concentrating them into a group, you create a consistent, unending assault on Hamidon from one direction, in one tight group, to lock his aggro down. That tight group can then be moved as neccessary around him as the raid group shifts position.
Hope that helps
-M
Marut, 50 FF/Rad/Power Defender - Champion
Leader of The Earthguard
Leader of The Galactic Empire
Thank you. That explaination helps a lot. There is still one thing confusing me though. In the few raids I have been on, we have been dropping the PAs from so high that I don't think they are attacking at all. They are falling out of "activation range" and just standing there drawing aggro only from their presence. Have we been doing it wrong? Do we need to hover lower (and risk becoming targetted ourselves) in order to keep the phantoms actively attacking?
I suppose the optimum position would be to hover just out of Hami range so that the phantoms would attack as they initially fell while they are still in active range and then could just stand there once they hit the ground. It would be hard to tell when you are at that range without risking getting too low.
I guess the ideal PA dropper would have phase shift. He could phase out and come low to keep the PA active and then rise up out of range and phase in when PA recharged. I doubt there are many illusionists that could do this. I would have trouble justifying taking the invisibility pool when I have invisibility in my primary power set.
Anyway, back to my question. Have we been doing it wrong on the last few raids? Do we need to hover lower so that the phantoms actively attack Hami, at least as they drop, or is it good enough to just keep the phantoms positioned near Hami?
Keeping them positioned near him should be enough after the first drop; They do need to hit him to start though, or else they don't do much more than someone standing in there with PS on. You might try measuring the distance of his blast, and having the drop team hover about 20 feet over that, and drop. That's worked for us
-M
Marut, 50 FF/Rad/Power Defender - Champion
Leader of The Earthguard
Leader of The Galactic Empire
Not a bad guide at all..
Us raiders on infinity usually do things slightly differently, but the phases are the same and whatnot.
Pets during hold phase: Jack Frost has a melee hold, don't forget about him... Also, Fluffy (Dark Servant) has 7 or 8 attacks he cycles through before he gets back to his hold, plus he spams an AoE heal... That's why we usually approve fluffy near 60% health (when we couldn't stop damage if we wanted to) as extra hold insurance...
Same time as we approve debuffs, as well. Just input from your friendly neighbours in Infinity
Just a few more points on pa drops.
I usually determine the optimum position for dropping pa visually - it's the easiest way to do it. Given my resolution (1440x900), I stay at an altitude where you can see all of hami in the screen but with little extra space around him. Any lower and hami starts shooting at you, a little bit higher and pa stop being effective in getting aggro - they spawn on the rock formations or get stuck in unwanted parts of hami. You want to position the pa drop halfway between hami and the edge of the cytoplasm normally. If the raiding team gets hami aggro, the pa is shifted so that they sit on the opposite edge of hami. When the raiders are working close to hami, it's a good idea for the pa lead to warn the drop team to be alert for any position changes as well as moving in the pa a little closer - 1/3 away from hami instead of 1/2 out from hami. Last note about dropping pa - always keep an eye out for nearby rock formations. It's a good idea to check them for pa. If you are too high up or just a little too close to the outside or just too close radially to a tall rock formation, pa will spawn on the rocks instead of in hami.
I can offer you my experience and possibly some help in a few of the roles of raiding. I have been the targeter and the aggro team lead and have also coordinated the PA team on pinnacle while being in one of the other roles on Pinnacle.
Targeters, Follow and lead need to be clearly stated at the beginning of the raid. Targeter: Add to your friends list, target him and if you are melee get used to using /assist to see their target. If you are not attacking their target, you are wrong. Follow: This is the hero that leads the movement of the healing umbrella, stick close to them as they will move under the current target and you will be in your best and safest range to attack. Lead: This is the one that has to coordinate everything, they will provide instructions before the raid and during each and every phase. They will let you know when to attack, when to hold, when the aggro team is set up, and when the best time to take your snack or drink break is. The leaders will talk in request. No one else should talk in that channel. If you have pertinent information to the current state of the raid it is reccomended that you send a tell to someone in the raid leader team. Keep in mind the leader and targeter will be extremely busy and you do not want to have them flooded with tells.
There are two other teams that are more behind the scenes in their roles but are very necessary. These are the aggro and PA teams. Aggro Team: Pinnacle usually uses a regen scrapper during the mito phase with 2-3 healers, and a tanker for locking down aggro during the hold phase. The aggro team is moved in after enough targets have been elminated to form a wedge. PA team: A team of Illusion controllers that drop their Phantom Army to draw Hamidon's aggro. Flyers are needed for this team since they drop from a position overhead Hamidon. If the illusion controller cannot fly, a group flyer is usually added to the team to get them up there. It also helps to have a kinetic and/or Radiation controller/defender to boost recharge to keep PAs dropping without much space without PAs.
Pinnacle maintains a set starting point of the south rock. The reason for this is that we can gather the most in one spot visibly, tighten up our healing umbrella as well as time heals. During this time we coordinate through request and our Hamidon raiding channel what types of controllers and defenders we have currently in the hive to determine if we have enough for the PA team and healing umbrella. Some leaders will treat each raid as if it is someone's first raid and explain the roles they should play while on the south rock. This is not to be insulting but to get new raiders up to the speed of the more experienced raiders. Once we have established that we have the necessary numbers and groupings, We will send in the PA team to begin dropping Phantom Armies to absorb Hamidon aggro. If the raid group plans to go in a counter-clockwise pattern, it works best for us to have the PAs dropped on the west side, approximately 1/3 to 1/2 the distance from the Nucleus to the outer edge of the jello. Once the PAs are set up and seem to be grabbing Hami's aggro the targeter will head in to pre target the first target.
Since I have targeted many times I can offer this advice. I myself use overhead targeting. This is best done at about half the height in the jello, and centered as much as possible between the Mitos. I also use a camera distance of 250(/camdist 250) so I can see a good amount of Mitos. I've tried the facing away from hamidon targeting and sometimes due to lag, Mitos can derender and targets can be missed. With overhead targeting one can determine easily the Mitos on top of Hami and plan out the next mito that is not too far away from the current target. This also helps in determining when a proper wedge is cut for the aggro team to move in. I usually move in a pattern that goes in and out from the Nucleus to keep the targets close and minimize drastic movement to the next target which sometimes results in several dead heroes.
As a note the targeter should have set up 2-3 binds. The first one is to note that we are approaching a new target. The current Follow will follow this with a similar bind to reinforce that the umbrella is moving. One should also set up a bind to state that we are attacking said target to reinforce which target everyone must be attacking through. One bind that not all targeters have but can help is one to notify splits in the mitos and to state that they need to be held. Mitos split less when there are more holds on them and when they are damaged quickly. I have gone 10 targets without a split with holds enforced on at least one raid. Another bind that some targeters use is one to hold fire while they select the next target.
In the process of attacking it is usually good for Kinetic defenders to spam Inertial reduction so non flyers can jump to be able to reach the higher targets. Also it is good for radiation controllers to use Accelerate metabolism to keep attack rates up. AoEs and cones are prohibited as they can sometimes aggro other mitos within the range or even worse Hamidon if the target is close. Having the bubbler as a follow makes it easier to see where people are moving to so if one doesn't have the follow targeted they can at least see the bubble.
A proper wedge can be cut in about 6-8 targets. If the last two targets in the group are blue and/or green, you can move the aggro team in at the left side of the wedge (facing Hami) and begin to grab aggro since the blues can't effect you if you have your status protection toggle enabled.
As we approach the west side where the PAs were stationed at the beginning of the raid, the aggro team and the PA team are moved slowly and carefully to avoid moving out of range counterclockwise from Hami (if raid has proceeded counterclockwise) Once the last mito is down I refrain from targeting anything and head back toward south rock, since we have now gone full circle and ended up back in the starting position.
At this point controllers are asked to move in and begin spamming their single target holds. Healers are not as necessary since Hamidon's aggro should be on the Aggro team tanker or Scrapper. We usually have several kinetic and radiation controller/defenders to speed up the recharge on the holds. In a Pinnacle raid you will usually see someone that in their excitement will count how many AMs they have on them.
I have a bind that I periodically use in request if I am part of the lead team, or in broadcast if I am not, that states that if you can put a hold enhancement in it, it's a hold, and to use it until hamidon dies. We will usually bring in the blasters for additional holds while the melee remain out of the grouping that is trying to hold hami. If your character has hover it is reccomended to fly above hami while you hold him to cut down a bit on the lag.
The strength of the hold is determined by the amount of time since the tanker or scrapper of the aggro team has not been hit. We will usually time this to about 2-3 minutes to be sure that he is held. Once the 2-3 minutes have passed, the leader will sometimes call for the AoE holds to be used to lock in the hold. Holders are reminded to continue to spam holds until Hamidon's health drops to zero. Any drop in holding could result in hamidon breaking free and possibly spawning a mito for every hero currently in his vicinity. After about a minute more of the tanker not receiving damage, the leader will then ready the raiders for the attack phase. DO NOT ATTACK UNTIL THE LEADER SAYS SO This is extremely important since if he is not completely held and hits 50% health he will spawn mitos. Once the attack phase has begun if he does attack the aggro team, attackers must not attack until he is determined to be held again. If he does not attack the aggro team again and his health reaches 50% (about 26K), we will call the vanguard, an accolade power that increases the duration of the hold, to make sure he is nicely locked down as we take out the rest of his health.
Once we pop the hamidon, do not begin trading, instead everyone needs to attack the Hamidon Buds that spawn shortly thereafter (usually after a nice big lag surge). When all buds have been cleared you can begin trading and be sure to thank your raid leaders.
Pinnacle
CrimsonShadow Lvl 50 Katana/Regen Scrapper-Leader of Shattered Dimension
Arkhan Phaeros lvl 38 Empathy/Dark Blast Defender-Great Minds SG
Shatter Freak lvl 29 Mind Control/Kinetics Controller -Captain of Shattered Dimension
Project CABAL lvl 13 Invulnerability/Energy Tanker
Napalm Trigger lvl 11 Assault Rifle/Devices Blaster
Tyr Radaken lvl 50 Warshade
Arayis Takaren lvl 6 Peacebringer
Fauxtempest lvl 12 Illusion/Storm Controller-Rubicon Breach Regulars
Infinity
Caliga Levis lvl 20 Dark Miasma/Psychic Defender
Solis Centuri lvl 16 Peacebringer
Ferbinator lvl 14 Warshade
Acid Stoner lvl 17 Earth/Rad Controller
Elementalis lvl 33 Ice/Stone Tanker
Javelisk lvl 13 Spines/Super Reflexes Scrapper
Orbisanus lvl 8 Gravity/Sonic Resonance Controller
Bump. And voting for a sticky
It's so exciting to read the tactics for taking down hami, but it's like reading about yesteryear from a book.
I can't remember the last time Virtue did a hami raid. Oh, actually, I think there might have been a raid after Issue 5 but no one showed up and it was cancelled. Too bad.
Great game plan Marut. Maybe it'll renew interest in hami again.
Very Good Points Z
) At least thats my philosophy....I just did my job and later started asking questions...
I have found more and more as I speak to people kindly and directly they listen...Rather than a mob shouting in Broadcast...
.. Trust me it will be appreciated by all and much more effective
in all honesty its not fair to say someone making mistakes at a raid is PLd and clueless....I went to quite a few raids before I really understood even the basics...The thing is ...you dont really need to understand
Follow Orders and ask questions ....Its pretty simple do what your told and then if you want to understand the "whys" ask
I would like to see AT leads checking their teams before Raid and sending everyone the links they need to review. Educating our troops is something I will never mind delaying the raid start for
The lesson that not everyone who is messing up at the raid is a griefer though is one that needs repeating often
If you see someone making a mistake send a tell to their AT lead...dont say it in Broadcast