If you find that you’re stuck on a specific boss, consider the following. Note that these are the strategies that I used personally to beat every boss in the game.
Generalized Boss Help / Strategies
Note: This guide was written with bosses up thru Temple of Darkness in mind. Bosses past that point tend to require more specific, tailored strategies.
Ensure that You Have an Apprentice Loadout Prepared for Combat
This loadout should contain no resource generating spells except for spells that generate mana, or spells that generate resources required to maintain your generation of mana. ie (thunder tower spoiler) if you need to have enchant lumber active in order to power generators in order to run Mana Fountains.
Slow It Down, See Whats Happening
There are a few time manipulation spells in the game that are very useful for getting thru tough boss fights. If you don’t have access to any of these yet, you can skip this section.
- (Illusion Lv23 spoiler) If you have time contraction enabled, disable it.
- (Illusion Lv14 spoiler) Consider using Time Dilation to slow the fight down even more.
Note the where and why of your death. Often times this is enough on its own to show you what you’re doing wrong, and help you to figure out how to fix it. ex: maybe the enemy is casting a debuff that you can either dispel or interrupt.
Check Your Gear
This one seems obvious but can make one of the biggest differences. Though it seems obvious that you are meant to use combat type gear for combat encounters, that isn’t always the best practice. Sometimes swapping to a robe and wand actually works out better than armor and weapon because it may allow you to cast more. Play around with mixing armor / casting gear in the fight you’re stuck on a few times, trying different combinations to see what is more effective for your current situation.
Also, consider the tier of the gear that you are using. It may seem like you’re using the best gear available to you, but its also possible that you may just need to level up conjuration / enchantment / etc to be able to craft something better. Clicking on the individual spell schools in the stats page shows you when your next unlock is. Sometimes, it may be wise to swap gear mid-fight. (endgame spoiler) The Temple B3 boss is a good example of this – once you’re fully silenced, there is no good reason to keep a wand equipped.
Check Your Spell Loadout
Do you have all the necessary spells you need assigned to quick slots, so that you can fully utilize everything you need quickly? Personally, I like to organize my spell quick slots like this:
- Page 1 – Damage spells (& armor break).
- Page 2 – Healing & mitigation.
- Page 3 – Long duration debuffs / buffs.
If you loadout is over encumbered, consider assigning some of the spells you find yourself using consistently to apprentices.
The order in which I like to utilize spells in boss fights is:
- Get health to > 90%.
- Cast any buffs & debuffs.
- If 1 & 2 remain true, cast attack spells.
Note: As you progress further into the game, applying debuffs becomes more and more important. Slow and dazzle are both supremely useful thru most of the mid-game, and stun becomes increasingly relevant the farther you get. Do not underestimate the utility of properly utilizing these spells.
Midgame Spoiler!
Are you using a summon to help you tank damage?
Often, having summons at the ready can be incredibly helpful. Best practice will be to summon before the fight and wait for the cooldown to finish, so that you have a 2nd summon immediately ready, should your first summon die. If you find that your summon is dying very quickly to whatever boss fight you’re in, check the stats tab to see how long it would take for you to unlock a higher tier summon, and consider trying to do so.
Are you leaning into alchemy?
If you have alchemy unlocked, some of the potions that come along with it can make a massive difference. Run the boss fight a couple of times to see where your weak points are, and try crafting potions to compensate for those weaknesses. A good way to find your weaknesses is to run the boss fight and only focus on staying alive. Try to keep yourself healed to the max, and pay attention to what kind of leeway you have while doing so.
Consider the opportunities that present themselves while doing this, and keep them in mind for when you come back to the fight fully equipped with some potions. Potions and other creations can be assigned to your quick slots as well. Remember that alchemical creations that can heal you exist on their own cooldown timer – just like everything else – so they can easily be used to supplement your healing capabilities if you find that you are falling short. Mana potions and mana regen potions can have a similar effect.
If all else fails – Retire
Don’t under-estimate the strength you can gain from retiring. Even just a 15% gain on retirement can make a large difference, especially if you’ve paired it with a couple story unlocks.
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