Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial
By
Aibheil,
Posted on: 2010-09-23 18:52 in Player Guides
Very nicely done.
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Great guide, Amy, and thanks.
@Celestial Lord and @Celestial Lord Too
Thank you so much Amy!
Thank you for all the CoP' fun too!
Great guide 
That about sums it up. From those of us who have yet to add nukes/temps to our CoP wins. Thank you.
Space reserved for a super awesome Signature, someday...
Lovely guide. Just one note though, Mind Link is not limited to Fortunatas. It is essentially a Arachnos Widow power. Unless of course your stressing the use of Fortunatas as a ranged class.
Quote:
Although casting PBAoE buffs while at range and fighting the AV is beneficial, I wanted that section to focus more on which buffs are available, period. So I've edited it because the wording was misleading. Thanks for the catch. |
Originally Posted by Bringer_NA
Lovely guide. Just one note though, Mind Link is not limited to Fortunatas. It is essentially a Arachnos Widow power. Unless of course your stressing the use of Fortunatas as a ranged class.
|
Leader of Renaissance de la Veritas
Moderator of ChampioNexus
Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial
Where do you go if you wish to try the CoP? Or how do teams form for that and such
i'm an idiot. I should have actually read your guide instead of just skimmed it. thx for the guide!
Excellent guide Amy, glad I could help with the quote boxes 
Hopefully this will go some way to dispelling a lot of the silliness about the CoP trial.
Support Guides for all Corruptor secondaries and Fortunatas
The Melee Teaming Guide for Melee Mans
The Melee Teaming Guide for Melee Mans
Excellent guide! Very comprehensive and organized.
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Thanks guys.
I've added a few things:
- My measurements of timing regarding the shield on the obelisk and AV
- An improved screen shot of the map with the portal and obelisks
- A screen shot of Lanaru's Hurricane's Tohit debuff value
- More detail on the enemies spawned by the Willforges/cubes
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Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial
Very nice guide, I'll be posting this to my VG's GP page.
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Updated to reflect today's patch notes:
Quote:
|
Tasks * Cathedral of Pain - Fixed Merit diminishing returns. Merit rewards were dropping off too quickly when diminishing returns kicked in. This has been fixed. * Warburg Missiles can no longer be used in the Cathedral of Pain. |
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Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial
Updated section on trial rewards to reflect recent statement made by Castle.
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Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial
I would like to add some additional measurements if I may that could assist for the initial attack against the Aspect of Rularuu.
When entering the Cathedral it is important to note that the Willforge spawns are co-aware. That is; that an attack on one immediately draws reinforcement from the others.
There is also no noted difference across several measurements between the shield down time when spawns are defeated by 1 team per spawn (with the intention of bringing them down at once) or by defeating them sequentially.
I would suggest that when the first assault is made, attack the left spawn when entering as a group and holding that position until the shields go down, that way any AoE buffs that are cast, will effect the majority of teams rather than just the individuals, giving a higher change of causing additional damage during the first phase of the shield coming down.
Several raids were attempted on Union last night (We got the Purple AV twice) and these measurements and observations were also consistent there.
In-game and now on Twitter @Tsumiju Zero "The Nightmare of Dra'Gon"
"The flow of battle can only be influenced, not by realtime tactics, but by strategy."
Proud resident of the Union EU Server.
B.A.F. Trial Guide
Have we gotten any confirmation that Ru Paul-adek is no longer attacking through his shield? During Closed Beta, the official statement was that his attacking through PFF couldn't be duplicated, even though the testers never had him not attack.
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Quote:
Thank you for the feedback and additional notes!|
Originally Posted by TsumijuZero
I would like to add some additional measurements if I may that could assist for the initial attack against the Aspect of Rularuu.
When entering the Cathedral it is important to note that the Willforge spawns are co-aware. That is; that an attack on one immediately draws reinforcement from the others. There is also no noted difference across several measurements between the shield down time when spawns are defeated by 1 team per spawn (with the intention of bringing them down at once) or by defeating them sequentially. I would suggest that when the first assault is made, attack the left spawn when entering as a group and holding that position until the shields go down, that way any AoE buffs that are cast, will effect the majority of teams rather than just the individuals, giving a higher change of causing additional damage during the first phase of the shield coming down. Several raids were attempted on Union last night (We got the Purple AV twice) and these measurements and observations were also consistent there. |
I had also taken some measurements of my own with regards to shield down time, and it appears to be 45s flat. I had also read an earlier post of yours confirming the same observation.
The reason that we had decided to assign each team to a cube was not to affect the window of time the shield was down, but to clear the spawns faster so those intervals were closer together, allowing less time for the AV to regenerate. We had tried to go cube to cube in earlier runs, but found that, as you mentioned, the mobs would spot you from across the room and start flying around. In the end it took us longer to clear them simply because more had to be chased down. We found that having each team go directly to their Willforge kept the spawns together and lead to a faster defeat.
Though, at the end of the day, it's about what works for you and your teams. I'm a firm believer that there's not only one correct way to do something. There are obvious benefits to not splitting up the 3 teams, since that enables buffs to overlap more, and there's something to be said for focused fire from 24 people on a spawn vs 8. But like I said, it just didn't pan out for us when we had tried it like that due to spawn movement.
If the issue of the AV attacking through his shield has indeed been fixed, then each team taking on a spawn should be even easier, especially if groups had no trouble with the obelisks (since that's a fairly good indicator of how the teams handle the spawns separately).
I very much appreciate the observations, though. If anything, at some point I'd like to add a troubleshooting section to the guide discussing common issues and how to overcome them, including alternate approaches. So if the method you described works out, I will be happy to create a link to it. I recently checked out the Union forums and it sounds like some great progress is being made, so I will keep checking back.
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Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial
Quote:
I find for the initial insertion taking and holding the left cube works nicely, then on the first raising of the AV's shields and subsequent passes, one team per cube is definately more effective.|
Originally Posted by Amygdala
The reason that we had decided to assign each team to a cube was not to affect the window of time the shield was down, but to clear the spawns faster so those intervals were closer together, allowing less time for the AV to regenerate. |
Whilst there has been some heated discussion about CoP in general, I'm keen to gather as much data as possible and hopefully as offered earlier, willing to share any data we measure here EU side to assist! There must me a mathmatical lynchpin for this trial, and I hope we'll find it!
In-game and now on Twitter @Tsumiju Zero "The Nightmare of Dra'Gon"
"The flow of battle can only be influenced, not by realtime tactics, but by strategy."
Proud resident of the Union EU Server.
B.A.F. Trial Guide
Quote:
Ah, I missed what you were saying first time I read your post. Interesting idea. |
Originally Posted by TsumijuZero
I find for the initial insertion taking and holding the left cube works nicely, then on the first raising of the AV's shields and subsequent passes, one team per cube is definately more effective.
Whilst there has been some heated discussion about CoP in general, I'm keen to gather as much data as possible and hopefully as offered earlier, willing to share any data we measure here EU side to assist! There must me a mathmatical lynchpin for this trial, and I hope we'll find it! |
PS Congrats to Union for their recent victory vs the HurRAWRicane.
Leader of Renaissance de la Veritas
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Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial
I found it a more secure insertion method and it made a bigger dent in the AV's hp first round. Feel free to experiment with it, I found it easier to insert the groups into position that way (with a co-ordinated and fixed position group of ranged attackers) with melee toons breaking off for the willforges.
In-game and now on Twitter @Tsumiju Zero "The Nightmare of Dra'Gon"
"The flow of battle can only be influenced, not by realtime tactics, but by strategy."
Proud resident of the Union EU Server.
B.A.F. Trial Guide
Quote:
To answer my own question, yes, it is confirmed. The Aspect will no longer attack through his shield.|
Originally Posted by Kheldarn
Have we gotten any confirmation that Ru Paul-adek is no longer attacking through his shield? During Closed Beta, the official statement was that his attacking through PFF couldn't be duplicated, even though the testers never had him not attack.
|
We ran a CoP last night, and took him down at about the 43 second mark the first time his shield dropped. My team was assigned to the Cube behind him, and he didn't agro as we ran past, nor when I started attacking him before I realized we had already defeated all the spawns from that cube, but before his shield dropped.
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Updated to remove all parts of the guide referring to the AV attacking through his shield. Player reports confirm this has been fixed.
Added Drain Psyche and Envenom to list of powers with -Regen.
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Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial
Still says something about him attacking through his shield... <_<
"a. Ruladak the Strong
...This AV doesn't pose much of a threat, despite him attacking through his shield. ..."
Thought I'd let you know.
Still a fantastic guide though, awesomely written and extremely helpful.
Life is something that happens while making other plans.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
My impression of the Cathedral of Pain Trial.
2. About the Trial
General trial information, rewards, badges, etc.
3. Base Requirements
What you'll need in your base to get started, including Energy/Control costs and crafting information.
4. Team Composition
A review of the enemies you'll be up against and how different ATs can contribute. Includes an analysis of useful buffs/debuffs.
5. Trial Part 1: Obelisks
How to best co-ordinate your teams for a quick and easy first phase of the trial.
6. Trial Part 2: Inside the Cathedral
General strategy and tips when inside the cathedral, plus notes on each of the 2 possible AVs:7. Screenshots and Videos
Includes a video of a 10 minute run with Ruladak.
8. Closing Remarks
TLDR version of the guide. Final thoughts.
1. Introduction
Your highschool teacher decides to give you and your 23 classmates the day off to go to an amusement park. You arrive and are arguing which ride to go on. Finally, you all decide to go on Drop Zone. There's a long line up, and much anticipation and fear of the thought of nearly dropping to your doom. You finally get on, survive, and think "With a line up that long, there's got to be more to it than that." You secretly hope that giant, evil space monkeys will come down from the sky, flinging their excrement at an unsuspecting crowd. Now THAT would be exciting. But no such monkeys appear, and you are left longing for another ride. At that moment, the girl you are dating pulls you aside and points to the "Tunnel of Love". It's cheesy, but you're obviously not going to say no. You hop into a giant swan with your lady friend and off you go. About mid way through the tunnel, she says "So I've been meaning to talk to you about something." You know where this is going. Panic ensues. Where the [censored] are those monkeys when you need them. At the end of the ride, you are single. Your now ex girlfriend gets out of the giant swan and goes over to the guy operating the ride and gives him a kiss. The irony is not lost on you. She turns to you and says "I thought this would bring closure to our relationship." As you storm off into the crowd, you shout over your shoulder "Stop looking at me, swan!" You are miserable and full of so much self-loathing, you decide to ride the Teacups by yourself as "You Spin Me Round" by Dead or Alive booms in the background.
The Cathedral of Pain Trial is fun, but challenging. One could say it's more like a raid because unlike other trials, you can have up to 24 people (or 3 full teams) join at a time. It can either be the source of enjoyment, or extreme frustration, for many people depending on how it goes. For example, when a CoP is successful, it can take as little time as 10 minutes, leaving you thinking "That's it?" It's pretty much like riding Drop Zone. If it is unsuccessful, it can take the full hour and leave you wondering if it is even possible to beat. You are frustrated and just want to go ride some Teacups.
Thus, I am writing a guide with the hopes that, should you read it, you will not find yourself in the latter position. I am also writing the guide with the assumption that nukes, Shivans, HVAS will not be used. As of recent patch notes nukes have been disabled during CoP runs. It is for this reason that I've written a guide based on success I've witnessed without the use of nukes. The patch makes no mention of disabling Shivans or HVAS, but these things were also not used on successful runs vs either Lanaru or Ruladak.
The following guide is based on my experiences thus far with the CoP and what I've seen lead to successful runs. I will not, however, be giving advice on what to do after your woman leaves you for a carnie. If you are in that position, I do not have a guide for you, but I will give you my sympathy.
2. About the Trial
The Cathedral of Pain trial can be hosted on either blueside (for heroes and vigilantes) or redside (for rogues and villains). It is accessible via your SG or VG base and can be started by clicking on the Mission Computer/Oracle. (For more information on how to set that up, see 3. Base Requirements). You may have up to 24 people participate, but they do not all have to be from your SG or VG. The only people that must be in the SG/VG are the team leaders (so 3 SG members minimum).
If you are hosting a trial and inviting people other than your SG mates, Pocket D is a popular start up location given the close access to a SG base portal relative to the rezzers. Should people not in your SG die and have to enter again, this will make it easier on them. Otherwise, SG mates can go to the hospital in the base. In Pocket D, there are also inspiration vendors nearby should you wish to purchase any. You may also want to recommend that people grab Jet Packs for easy travel, since the first part of the trial takes place on a Shadow Shard map.
Characters level 35 to 50 are able to join this trial, but I would recommend bringing level 50 characters to give yourself the best chance of success. The trial is on a 60 minute timer, so it cannot take longer than an hour of your time (this does not include prep time).
If you are successful, you will receive:
Pain Killer badge for completing the trial
AND a choice between the following:
OR
11 merits AND
Master Thief (for taking the buff reward as a villain/rogue)
Power Liberator (for taking the buff reward as a hero/vigilante)
As per VoodooGirl's guide, the buff rewards are random and include:
The Perfect Eye
+50% Perception
+15% Accuracy
The True Furnace
+10 Max End
+33% Endurance Drain Resist
Heart of a Storm Elemental
+5% HP
+40% Regen
Anger Monument
+25% Smashing/Lethal Damage
+20% Damage (all other types)
Monument of Iron
+1 Mag Stun, Hold, Sleep, Immob Protection
+50% Stun, Hold, Immob Resist
+75% Sleep Resist
These buffs last 7 days real time.
OR
Penumbra of Rularuu
A common Incarnate component. You may also craft this component using 4 shards.
3. Base Requirements
To start the CoP, you will need:
2. A Raid TP
3. Enough Energy and Control to power both of these units.
This is perhaps the beefiest section of the guide. This is not because you need X of Y AT. If that were the case, I'd list off the ATs and be done with the guide. Instead, teams are the strongest when you have a mix of buffs, debuffs, damage and aggro control. You will be up against some pretty difficult mobs and you will also need to build teams that are balanced enough that they can defeat mobs at similar rates. For this reason, I've expanded upon what support sets have to offer, because many offer a unique variety of buffs or debuffs. For example, many people associate Rads with debuffing Regen. However, -Regen is available from Dark Miasma, Cold Domination, Thermal Radiation, etc. Buffs come in many different forms as well and can help your teams immensely. If anything, I hope to show through a break down of powers that help is available from many power sets, and that success with this trial does not rest on the shoulders of a select few ATs.
No one wants to be the guy who brought a knife to a gun fight. So before deciding what your going to want on your CoP, it's important to know what you're up against. Here is a list of what to expect:
Level 52 LanaruuOne of 2 possible Level 54 Aspect of Rularuu (AVs)
To view a screen shot of the Power Analyzer on Aspect of Rularuu's base stats, click here!
Melee
Melee (specifically Tanks, Scrappers and Brutes) can be highly useful during a CoP because they contribute damage, control aggro and limit spawn movement. A successful trial, for the most part, depends on how fast you can take down spawns of Rularuu. Rularuu generally have high resistance to status effects (holds, immobilizes, etc.) and are therefore difficult to pin down in one location. They also fly around a lot, and therefore, a significant amount of time can be spent chasing after them. In my experience, the easiest way to keep the Rularuu spawns localized are melee toons jumping in and drawing aggro. This will be explained in greater detail later on.
Ranged Damage
When building your team, I'd recommend a mix of melee and ranged damage. Since you don't know which of the 2 AVs you will get, having a strong core of ranged damage in the mix means damage dealers can stay out of range of Hurricane and blast away.
Healing
No, I'm not saying you need a h34l0r. I can already sense the Defender forums stirring over this. However, you will be up against level 52 Rularuu spawns which can be difficult for a lot of toons. Having some heals available to patch up the damage that gets through your buffs is highly useful. Many toons with heals have a variety of other buffs and/or debuffs, so this is not to say they should not be making full use of their set!
Buffs
I've broken down buffs under the following categories: Shield Buffs, Toggle PBAoE, PBAoE. I feel this is more relevant than listing the name of each power because in my opinion, understanding how to use them is more important what they're called.
We know that we're going up against mobs where the main damage types will be Smashing, Lethal, Energy and Psionic. These mobs have very high Tohit that enables them to hit easily through your Defense. Protection against Smashing/Lethal/Energy (S/L/E) is far more common than Psionic Defense/Resistance for most characters. However, most Psionic attacks from the Rularuu can be mitigated by Positional Defense (i.e., Ranged, Melee, AoE) with the exception of Dominate power used by Wisps. Both Positional Defense buffs and Typed Defense buffs are fairly common across support sets, and for this reason should stack well with the different types of protection available to other characters. See below for a list of the relevant damage types and which sets offer Defense or Resistance to them and in what form (i.e., Shields, PBAoE, Toggle PBAoE).
Defense
Positional (Ranged, Melee, AoE) + Smashing/Lethal/Energy Psionic Resistance
Smashing/Lethal EnergyPsionic In addition to buffs that will help you survive, several sets offer buffs that will increase your damage output and Tohit. Some of these buffs are single target (ST) buffs, while others are PBAoEs. Therefore, if you want to use these most effectively, remember to call for them once gathered and fighting the AV.
+Tohit
Empathy (ST)
Thermal Radiation (ST)
Pain Domination (PBAoE)
Mind Link (PBAoE)
+Damage
Empathy (ST)
Thermal Radiation (ST)
Pain Domination (PBAoE)
Radiation Emission (PBAoE)
Kinetics
Debuffers are perhaps the most important aspect of the team for a variety of reasons. There are many sets that offer debuffs, so instead of listing each power set specifically, I'll go over the 3 most important debuffs available and why you'd want to use them.
I've read a few comments that the AV's Regen seems obscenely high and that you'd probably need 24 Rads to make it manageable. While this statement was likely an exaggeration, it prompted me to calculate exactly how many Rads (only considering Lingering Radiation) it would theoretically take to bring the AV's Regen right to zero. I took a screen shot of the Power Analyzer screen when it was targeting the Storm AV, and it listed his Regen at 0.78%/sec (or 597.58HP/sec). There are several -Regen powers that do -500% Regen. This includes Lingering Radiation from Radiation Emission, Howling Twilight from Dark Miasma, Benumb from Cold Domination, and Heat Exhaustion from Thermal Radiation. Some powers offer a little less, such as Transfusion from Kinetics (which is -50% and stackable) and some a little more, such as Poison Trap from Traps (which does -1000%). The recharge time on these powers varies as well. Overall though, -500% is the most common, so I decided to use it as a benchmark for the calculation.
First thing's first, your AV is going to resist your debuffs. In this case, the AV will resist them by 87%. So,
Instead of doing -500% Regen, you are doing -65% Regen. The AV further resists your debuff due to the Purple Patch by another 50%. So,
Regen debuffs are applied to base Regen. The AV has a base Regen of 0.42%/sec (319.56HP/sec). So,
Using Lingering Radiation as an example, each application will lower his Regen by 0.137%/sec or 103.86HP/sec. He has a total of 0.78%/sec Regen or 597.58HP/sec. So,
Since we can't have fractions of players (or maybe we can depending on your sense of humor), we can estimate it would take 6 Rads with Lingering Radiation (or debuffers with the equivalent amount of -Regen) to bring his Regen right to zero. In other words, a total of -3000% Regen. This could also be looked at as 3 Traps (each does -1000%).
My interpretation:
What this means is that you do not, in fact, need 24 Rads to do the CoP. Since Regen bottoms out at zero, and you can't have negative Regen numbers, you aren't adding anything in the -Regen department if you are over -3000%. Does this mean more than 6 toons with -Regen is a waste? ABSOLUTELY NOT. Most toons with -Regen powers also have -Resistance and -Defense. Since those debuffs don't stop at zero, you can't have too much of them. Does this mean you MUST HAVE 6 toons with -Regen? The answer again is no. Like I said before, -Regen makes your damage stick, -Res makes you do more damage, and -Def makes you do damage more often. They are all important. It is up to you what you feel will be needed given what you have. I only did these calculations to show that the AV's Regen is not some impossible obstacle that cannot be overcome.
Radiation Emission: Lingering Radiation (-500%), EM Pulse (-1000%)
Cold Domination: Benumb (-500%)
Dark Miasma: Twilight Grasp (-50%), Howling Twilight (-500%)
Traps: Poison Trap (-1000%)
Thermal Radiation: Heat Exhaustion (-500%)
Trick Arrow: EMP Arrow (-1000%)
Kinetics: Transfusion (-50%)
Psionic Assault: Drain Psyche (-500%)
Mental Manipulation: Drain Psyche (-250%)
Poison: Envenom (-50%)
The team template below is one I've used to lead a few CoPs (with SG folks and PuG folks) that were successful. It uses the categories I've discussed above. It is not meant as a 'must have' list, but rather a rough idea of what to look for. You'll notice that there's a lot of overlap, simply because several power sets do not fit in just one category. E.g., Thermal has heals, shield buffs and debuffs. Note: not all available power sets/ATs are listed below. This is not an indication that they aren't useful, I simply did not want to overload the list.
Example Team:
1. Melee (Tank/Brute/Scrapper)
2. Heal Source (Empathy/Pain Domination/Thermal/etc.)
3. Debuffs (Rad/Dark/Cold/Thermal/Traps/etc.)
4. Debuffs (Rad/Dark/Cold/Thermal/Traps/etc.)
5. Ranged Damage (Blaster/Dominator/Corruptor/etc.)
6. Ranged Damage (Blaster/Dominator/Corruptor/etc.)
7. Shield Buffs (Force Field/Sonic/Cold/Thermal)
8. Any AT
1. Teams should be balanced. Each team by itself should have a good mix of buffs, debuffs, and damage. You don't want to have a team of 8 Blasters and a team of 8 Emps. The reason for this is because success in the first part of the trial relies on dealing damage to the obelisks at a similar rate across the 3 teams (more on that to come).
2. Buffs and Debuffs are important. I don't want to give the impression you need X of Y AT on each team, but having a solid core of buffers/debuffers will make the trial substantially easier. Remember, the enemies you face can debuff you while having bonus Tohit for themselves. Having a layer of protection can help immensely. Also, remember the AV you are up against has 76K HP (over 9000!) and very high Regen. In order to do damage to him and do it quickly, debuffs are essential.
The person starting the trial will get the following mission information. (Participants of the trial can view this same message by clicking on 'Mission' from the nav bar, then clicking on 'more').
After the trial has started, everyone can enter through the raid TP in the base. You will arrive on a map with 3 obelisks called Gloom, Woe and Despair. The obelisks themselves are always in the same location, but Gloom, Woe and Despair are not always in the same place. Therefore, it is easier to refer to each one according to their position on the map: NE, SE or SW. At the center of the map is a portal, which is the entrance to the cathedral. Click here to view the map.
In order to open the portal, the obelisks must be defeated within 30 seconds of one another. In other words, co-ordination during this part is key.
All obelisks will be encased by a shield that renders them unaffected. Next to each obelisk is a Willforge (AKA "cube") that spawns Rularuu. In order to drop the shield protecting the obelisk, the Rularuu spawn must be defeated. Once the shield has dropped, you will notice swarms of Natterlings around the obelisk. These mobs increase the obelisk's regen. However, they are not much of a threat and strong damage can easily overcome their presence. Therefore, have all teams ignore them completely and focus on the obelisk.
Each team should be assigned to an obelisk by the raid leader and gather up by it and start buffing. Make sure the teams are close enough to see the obelisks, but far enough away not to draw any aggro. Once all 3 teams are ready, the raid leader can give the signal to start attacking.
1. Clear Rularuu spawn and drop the obelisk's shield.
2. Target obelisk and defeat it.
3. All 3 obelisks are defeated within 30 seconds of each other and the portal is opened.
If things don't go well, one of the obelisks will be restored before the others are defeated. If this should occur, don't worry. It's not a big deal. The best thing to do is regroup and start again after you've determined the cause of the lack of synchronization. If one team is slow, have the fastest team fly over and help them out after their obelisk is down.
Here is the general timing of events based on my observations:
- If you start to clear Rularuu, but don't clear them all, you will get a respawn
- If you start clearing Rularuu, and clear them all, the obelisk's shield will drop
- The obelisk's shield will come back up as a respawn of Rularuu occurs if the obelisk has not been defeated
Here are some measurements I was able to make based on these events:
- Time from assault to respawn (if the Rularuu are not completely cleared) = 1:30
- Time from when the shield drops to when it is restored (occurs with respawn of Rularuu) = 30s
Based on these observations, you have 30s to defeat your obelisk once the shield has dropped. Additionally, once an obelisk is defeated, the other 2 must be defeated within 30s.
The Trial Part 2: Inside the Cathedral
Once all 3 obelisks have dropped, the portal at the center of the map will be open. There will be a cut scene (or mini movie) starring either Ruladak the Strong or Lanaru the Mad. It is at this point you will know which AV you will face once inside the cathedral. Ruladak the Strong will appear in red, whereas Lanaru the Mad will appear in purple.
Have all teams enter the cathedral and start to buff up inside. Once inside, you will notice that you have a very similar situation as you did outside: there will be 3 cubes with Rularuu spawned and this time an AV with a shield instead of an obelisk with a shield. With that said, the strategy when inside is very similar to the strategy you just used outside in the sense that each team will be assigned to a cube to clear the Rularuu to drop the shield on the AV, then once the shield is down, fire away at the AV. The main difference is that with the AV, you will have to clear the Rularuu spawn and attack the AV for multiple cycles, whereas the obelisks can be dropped in one cycle.
The general overall strategy is the same for both AVs. Clear Rularuu, fight AV, clear Rularuu, fight AV, and so on and so forth. The name of the game is to clear the Rularuu fast. The faster you clear them, the more time you have to attack the AV. Also, while the AV's shield is up, he can regenerate, meaning any progress you might have made can be undone. So the quicker you are about getting back to him, the faster he will be defeated.
Note: Recently the AV was fixed so that he can no longer attack while his shield is up.
Here is the general timing of events based on my observations inside the cathedral:
- If you start clearing Rularuu, but don't clear them all, Rularuu will start to respawn
- If you start clearing Rularuu, and clear them all, the AV's shield will drop
- The AV's shield will come back up as a respawn of Rularuu occurs
I have taken a few measurements of these events:
- Time from respawn to shield up/next respawn (includes Rularuu assault + AV assault) = over a minute and variable
- Time from when the shield drops to when it is restored (AV assault) = 45s (consistent over several measurements)
Based on these observations, it appears that the length of time you have to attack the AV is a constant 45s, and you can expect a respawn 45s after you have dropped the shield. You will still want to clear the Rularuu as fast as possible to allow these blocks of time to be as close together as possible. When the AV's shield is up, he will regenerate quickly.
Using -Regen Effectively
Since no one really wants to say 'Ruladak the Strong' over and over again on Vent, it is common practice to nickname the AVs. Some may call him Big Red, whereas myself and associates have affectionately nicknamed him Joe. There is no particular rationale behind this name that I can think of, other than in this place we call the internet where brevity often rules, monosyllabic names are preferable.
This AV doesn't pose much of a threat. He's basically a sac of HP and Regen, so nothing beyond following the general strategy is necessary. Just carry about your business and clear the spawns to drop the shield. The CoPs I've completed with this AV generally go very quickly. One was as fast as 8 minutes and change.
This AV is undoubtedly more difficult than the previous one. However, not impossbile! With some co-ordination and diligent timing, you CAN defeat him without using nukes, Shivans, HVAS, etc. WARNING! Side effects of this AV include extreme frustration and hate for Storm Summoning. It is possible you will hate Storm Summoning so much, you'll kick every one that shows up on a team. Conversely, you may be the type that thinks it was so horrible that you now want to play a Storm and inflict the horror on others. Whatever your reaction, don't let it get you down!
You're going to use the exact same strategy that was discussed for the red AV, but with a few minor modifications.
When you are engaging the Storm AV:
1. If you are a RANGED toon, stay at RANGE. Do NOT stand so close that you're all up in his swim suit area. Not only is that inappropriate, but your Tohit and Range will be debuffed substantially. Stand far enough away that you are not in the Hurricane.
Lanaru is a tough AV for many reasons, but his Hurricane is what will keep most teams from doing any appreciable damage to him quickly enough to succeed. The Tohit and Range debuffs from his Hurricane are substantial. (In the neighborhood of -53% Tohit). As previously mentioned, there are 2 ways to overcome this:
1) Debuff Lanaru's Defense. (However, you will have to take into consideration that Defense debuffs are resisted by AVs, and then further resisted again due to the Purple Patch. As an example, when a single RI slotted for Defense debuff is cast on Mako from the STF, it's about equivalent to popping a small yellow inspiration). See Paragon Wiki: Archvillain
2) Buff your own Tohit. This is possible through buffs from others, powers you may have in your build, and yellow inspirations. (E.g., a small yellow inspiration will boost your Tohit by 7.5%).
Because it is unknown how much +Tohit your teams will have or how much -DEF you will have available, the more all purpose solution is to keep everyone at range who can be at range, and out of the debuff. You may lose use of some short range, high damage attacks, but overall, the raid will be able to do more damage. The radius of the Hurricane is 40ft. Many attacks and debuffs have a base range of 80ft. With that said, it should be easy to stay at range. If you were at one point in the Hurricane, the debuff should wear off fairly quickly once you move outside of its radius. Red Tomax: Lanaru.Hurricane.
3. If you are MELEE, then go about your business attacking the AV if you are not handling cube spawns. I would recommend that you go into your Combat Attributes and monitor your Tohit, and pop yellow inspirations accordingly. If you are on a team with an Empath or a Therm, make sure they cast Fort/Forge respectively on any melee. These powers will buff Tohit, in addition to any Tactics or other powers that may be running. Smart use of these buffs and Defense debuffs will help melee toons when faced with substantial Tohit debuffs.
While these points may seem obvious, it is easy to forget to do them. For example, I've watched a group fight the Storm AV all being in the Hurricane and the AV hardly took any damage at all. As soon as people moved away and out of the debuff, we were able to do damage.
October 2010: Here is a screenshot of a particularly successful run done in about 13 minutes vs the Storm AV by Champion players.
November 2010: I want to share a video of a CoP run on Champion vs Ruladak. It was done in 10 minutes with a mixed group of people: those who were experienced with the CoP and several who had not done one before. There is some time cut out in the middle, which is just me explaining the second phase of the trial to the group. I hope you enjoy.
March 2011: Here is a screenshot of a 9 person CoP, which was lead by my SG mate Kahlan.
8. Closing Remarks
TLDR version of the guide:
Balance your teams! Defeat the Rularuu FAST! Keep ranged toons TOGETHER when fighting the AV so PBAoE buff coverage is maximized! Do NOT stand in the HurRAWRicane if you are RANGED!
The above information has worked on several occasions. Now that the issue with the AV attacking through his shield has been fixed, the trial should be a lot more manageable.
The first time we tried this trial, we were unsuccessful. This may be the case for many groups that attempt the CoP, especially if they encounter the Storm AV. And that's OK. The CoP really is a challenging trial, and like most things that are challenging in the game, it will get better with practice and experience. The first Hami raid I ever lead took 3 hours. These days, Hami raids can take as little time as 15 minutes. I use Hami as an example because this trial is better thought of as a raid encounter instead of a trial. So if you are unsuccessful at first, do not be discouraged, do not ride the Teacups. Think about what could be improved for next time and try again. Like anything else, once people get in the swing of things, doing the CoP will be like taking a ride on Drop Zone.
Acknowledgements
My SG and coalition, for helping host CoPs and contributing to guide information
The Champion server, for participating in many of them
Silas, for suggesting the use of quote boxes
ItsCamRUN, videographer
Leader of Renaissance de la Veritas
Moderator of ChampioNexus
Amygdala's Guide to the Cathedral of Pain Trial