This week's mutation is hazardous Hellfire
Look who’s back, good old Laz, making an appearance for the second week in a row! We can look forward to a week of Tempest abandons and people trying to run Tarn for Frigid Dawn gear with a mutation that’s opposite to its natural element.
Contents
Mutation
- Ignited – 50% of all enemy damage is Fire.
- Fiery – Burn is applied on hit – M1: 4% Fire damage over time, M2 & M3: 8% Fire damage over time.
- Enflamed – Enemies with this title cast a Burn zone that deals Fire damage over time. M1: 20%, M2 & M3: 40%.
- Explosive – Enemies with this title explode on death, dealing 70% Fire damage.
Promotion
- Enraged – Each hit on an enemy generates a stack of Fury. At 20 stacks, the enemy grows 15% larger and does 50% increased damage.
- Shattering – Enemies deal additional stamina damage and apply a bleed on breaking your block. M1: 20% increased stamina damage, 5% bleed, M2 & M3: 75% increased stamina damage, 8% bleed.
Curse
- Blowback – Using abilities builds up to cause a zone of Silence that prevents the use of abilities. When it expires, the zone explodes, dealing 65% Fire damage.
- Truncated – During active periods of Silence, players lose natural mana regen. Standing in the Silence zone grants 25 mana per 0.75 seconds.
Consumables
- Flame Protection Amulet
- Rubies in Armor/Jewelry
- Desert Sunrise
- Fire Absorption Potion
- Honing Stone
- Attribute bonus food
Gearing up
- M1 – Opals in your armor is fine
- M2 – Add the Flame Protection Amulet
- M3 – Swap most of your Opals for Rubies
- Enchanted Ward – Aim for 4 or 5 pieces with this perk
- For more detailed advice on gear, check out our Gear Guide.
Dodge Explosions
Explosive enemies go boom! Not only does this do a big chunk of damage but it also throws you around, even off the edge of the dungeon, if you’re close. Look for the title and be ready to dodge or get out of the way.
The floor is lava
The Burn zone from Enflamed enemies can get pretty hot, so make sure you’re stacking on, and staying in, the heals. Leaving and returning to this space may cause an (unintended?) double stack of burn, so either stay with the clump or stay out of the fire.
M2 - The best defense is a good offense
It’s best to get in first and kill these guys fast. After being hit 20 times, Enraged enemies are going to get bigger and stronger. Your tank will also need to draw on more skills than right-click, with Shattering enemies around. A side-step can help avoid a hit without using precious stamina, if you have the footwork skills for it.
M3 - Strategic Abilities
Silence is incredibly annoying for every class. Tanks can’t taunt, Healers can’t heal, DPS can’t debuff or optimise damage. The excellent thing about Blowback is that you can see the gauge and can set off the silence deliberately, before entering a big fight. If you can’t help setting it off in the middle of a fight, try to stack and then move the group.
Glacial Tarn
Enemy Type: Ancient and Human
Weaknesses: Ancient: 30% Lightning, 20% Strike, 15% Void. Human: 15% Slash
Note: there are multiple unique weaknesses in this expedition, see below for more details.
Consumables
- Ancient Ward potion | Human Ward potion – 10% damage absorption
- Ancient Coating | Human Coating – 15% bonus damage
- Ancients Combat Trophy | Human Combat Trophy – 3/4/5% bonus damage x3
- Strike damage – Hammer, Void damage – Void Gauntlet | Slash damage – Sword, Greatsword, Hatchet, Great Axe
- Topaz gem in weapon for Lightning damage*
Note: *Elemental damage gems in your weapons are simply recommendations based on the elements your enemies are weakest to. Your playstyle may suit non-elemental gems better and you are encouraged to continue using those if so.
Artifact: Deep Freeze
Dropped by Snorok Ice Fist.
- +38 Magnify (selectable attribute)
- Chilling End: Frozen, rooted or chilled enemies take 15% additional damage (on both weapons).
- Empty Socket: Attach a gem to add its effect.
- Vicious: +7% critical damage.
- Refreshing Move: Light and Heavy attacks reduce your active weapon cooldowns by 2.5% (0.2s cooldown).
Strategy and tips
Partner to the Empyrean Forge, Glacial Tarn is the icy portion of the underground Great Cleave. You will see fire pits along your journey, which provide you with a buff that melts through ice-forged enemies. As long as one person with the buff has attacked the enemy, everyone will be able to do normal damage. If no one has the buff, your attacks become weak and the enemies take a long time to die. Sometimes the group needs to decide whether to go back for a buff or whether to run forward to the next one.
The puzzle rooms in the second half of the expedition require some coordination. Each door requires someone on the previous plate in order to unlock it. There are ice-forged enemies here and a sheet of ice that cleanses the fire buff, so again you’ll have to choose whether to fight or run. If you do run and jump down, make sure you step out of the archer’s line of sight.
Not only does Glacial Tarn have two enemy types, a number of the mobs have different weaknesses than normal Ancients and Humans do.
- 30% Fire, 30% Lightning, 15% Strike – Ancient Sanctifier, Ancient Elemental Archer
- 30% Nature, 15% Ice, 10% Strike – Protector of the Ancient Spring
Main Damage Type: Ice/Strike
Snorok is categorised as an Ancient Guardian but has his own specific weaknesses – 20% Lightning, 15% Thrust, 15% Fire.
This Ice Troll throws plenty of temper tantrums, smashing the ground and bringing down stalactites on unsuspecting heads. Ranged weapons can be useful here, due to the slow and hypothermia effects from his large blizzard spell, although if you can stand the cold, melee will kill him more quickly. DPS should probably use a Frozen protection amulet in here, while the tank would be best off with Strike protection. While all his moves are predictable, it’s still easy to just miss one mechanic and get wiped out with one hit, so play carefully.
- Frost Breath – Snorok will emit a cone of icy breath about half the arena’s length. Be aware that this will follow you as you move out of it, so you might need an extra dodge.
- Charge – If a blue symbol appears above your head, get ready to move. Snorok will make a quick charge across the room and being hit generally results in death. He’ll usually do two in a row, not always to the same person.
- Personal Pound – Stalactites will drop in the melee vicinity of the boss, doing strike damage.
- Stalactite Storm – Snorok will rage and stalactites will drop everywhere in the arena. You have some warning of the drop zone by a circle appearing on the ground just prior to the drop. These do high amounts of ice damage, so do your best to avoid being hit.
- Blizzard – Snorok summons a large aura of cold, that almost fills the arena. If you are playing ranged, look for the edge of the storm and stand outside it.
Main Damage Type: Slash/Ice
This is an interesting boss fight, because it includes multiple enemies. Our task is to defeat Ser Loth, but he is supported by the giant Ice Entity in the centre of the area and the four Spellcasters who bring it to life. Ser Loth does mostly slash damage with his giant sword, while the Ice Entity does Strike and Ice. The arena consists of four island platforms joined by bridges, that form a ring around the giant Ice Entity. It is possible to fall off, so watch your footing.
The four spellcasters spawn periodically, initially with a protective aura. When this aura drops, they can be attacked, and killing all four mages puts the Ice Entity to sleep temporarily. When this expedition was first released, there were many bugs, and if you killed the mages at the wrong time it could prevent the fight from being completed. So, many groups simply ignore the mages and dodge the Entity attacks.
- Ice Javelin – a blue symbol will appear above the head of the player Ser Loth is throwing the ice javelin toward, warning you to dodge. Anyone else in the line of fire will be hit.
- Ice Wave – same as the Ice Javelin but a wider wave.
- Frost Breath – The Ice Entity will breathe on an island, making it slippery and spikey and causing damage – you need to get off the island!
- Ice Bomb – The Ice Entity will throw a bomb onto one island – you need to destroy it before it explodes.
- Break Bridges – a red symbol will appear above all bridges just before the Ice Entity breaks them. If you are on a bridge, you will fall and be out of the fight. After a period of time, bridges can be rebuilt by interacting at the edge of the island.
- Weak Spots – three greenish discs will appear on the Ice Entity. While these are up, Ser Loth will resist most of your damage. Ranged attacks need to destroy the weak spots.
Interesting Loot
- M3 – Verglas weapon set for skins – Weapon scaling attribute (except War Hammer has Dex, Fire Staff has Str, others have secondary damage stat), Vicious/Blessed, Weapon Ability Perk.
- Frigid Dawn Set – Heavy armour with Elemental Aversion and Enchanted Ward (illegal combo), upgradeable.
- Verglas Amulet – Strength, Health, Divine + Random perk.
- Verglas Ring – Dexterity, Leeching, Keen Awareness + Random perk.
- Verglas Earring – Intelligence, Refreshing Toast, Nimble + Random perk.
Tempest's Heart
Enemy Type: Corrupted
Weaknesses: 30% Arcane 20% Thrust 15% Nature
Consumables
- Corrupted Ward potion – 10% damage absorption
- Corrupted Coating – 15% bonus damage
- Corrupted Combat Trophy – 3/4/5% bonus damage x3
- Thrust damage – Spear, Rapier, Bow, Musket, Blunderbuss
- Sapphire gem in weapon for Arcane damage*
Note: *Elemental damage gems in your weapons are simply recommendations based on the elements your enemies are weakest to. Your playstyle may suit non-elemental gems better and you are encouraged to continue using those if so.
Artifact: Magnetic Gauntlets
Dropped by Isabella.
- +32 Magnify (selectable attribute)
- Magnetic: Crit chance increased by 50%, but crit damage reduced by up to 30%.
- Empty Socket: Attach a gem to add its effect.
- Refreshing: Reduce max cooldowns by 4%.
- Physical Aversion: Receive 4.5% less damage from ranged, physical attacks.
Strategy and tips
The Tempest is a long dungeon, so players often like to run from one gate to another and fight whatever follows, when it catches up. This can be a little overwhelming for newer players, or in higher mutations. There are lots of resources to gather, and some of the mini-boss fights are quite challenging, especially Ekheke, the spriggan. DPS should clear the 2 musket enemies while the tank moves Ekheke either on or next to the stairs, to try and reduce his movement. You’ll also meet Isabella a few times. When she has her acolytes with her, make sure you kill them to reduce her power.
Main Damage Type: Void
Neishatun’s arena looks like it’s filled with fire but it actually does Void damage. Another of Aeternum’s snake-like bosses, Neishatun will slither away multiple times, leaving you with an arena full of fiery circles. Zoom your camera right out and look for a gap, because if you get caught in the fire when it pulses, you’ll get a Void DoT that can’t be cleansed until the fight is over. Trash mobs appear during this phase, and you can usually tell where a clear spot will be next by watching where they spawn.
Other moves to look for include a symbol above your head that means Neishatun is going to shoot at you – just move to the side to avoid it. An orb can also appear in the middle of the arena, which you need to destroy before it explodes and gives everyone a Void DoT. For those up close, be careful of the Tail Slam, Tail Swipe, Charge, and Charge Tail Whip, which all do Strike damage.
Main Damage Type: Void
At the end of this expedition, you can finally fight Isabella to the death – yours or hers. The shape of this boss arena is like a triangle, with 3 clearings on the corners. The space in the middle and on the edges is filled with a murky corrupted liquid that we call the spaghetti. Do not stand in the spaghetti, it does a fast DoT and will kill you quickly.
Isabella has really grown into her wings for this fight and uses them as a weapon, as well as to swoop down on players throughout the arena. If you get a symbol above your head, it means she is going to swoop you, so be ready to duck, dive, and roll. She also sends out tendrils of corruption along the ground, that cause a slow and DoT. You can avoid them by moving toward and to the side, but it’s difficult. Corruption Tinctures can help in here. Another attack is a wide slash of corruption that moves quite slowly and can be dodged forward into.
At about 40% health, she will put up a corrupted tower on one of the clearings. If you’re killing her quickly, you can just avoid this by fighting on another clearing. If it’s taking a bit longer, you can destroy the tower by pressing E. Beware of meteors – you can see if one is about to drop by a red circle outline on the ground. If the circle overlaps where you are standing, step out of the way and then resume destroying the tower.
Once Isabella is dead, you need to go to where she lands and use your Azoth Staff to make sure she stays dead. Otherwise, the fight starts over.
Interesting Loot
- M3 – Isabella’s Set – Light armour with Enchanted Ward and Void Harnessing, upgradeable.
- M3 – Befouled weapon set for skins – split stat Con/Weapon scaling attribute, Refreshing Move, Weapon Ability Perk.
- Myrkgard’s Amulet – Health, Empowered + Random perk and attribute.
- Myrkgard’s Ring – Hearty, Crippling + Random perk and attribute.
- Myrkgard’s Earring – Refreshing Toast, Healthy Toast + Random perk and attribute.
The Lazarus Instrumentality
Enemy Type: Ancient
Weaknesses: 30% Lightning 20% Strike 15% Void
Consumables
- Ancient Ward potion – 10% damage absorption
- Ancient Coating – 15% bonus damage
- Ancients Combat Trophy – 3/4/5% bonus damage x3
- Strike damage – War Hammer, Flail
- Topaz gem in weapon for Lightning damage
Note: *Elemental damage gems in your weapons are simply recommendations based on the elements your enemies are weakest to. Your playstyle may suit non-elemental gems better and you are encouraged to continue using those if so.
Artifact: Spark of Mjölnir
Dropped by Chardis.
- +38 Magnify (selectable attribute)
- Mjölnir Blessing: 99% of hammer damage is converted to lightning, and you deal 20% more lightning damage with both weapons.
- Spark: Mighty Gavel causes a lightning strike that inflicts a 30% weaken for 7s.
- Refreshing Mighty Gavel: Mighty Gavel hits reduce the ability’s cooldown by 10% (Max 2 activations per impact).
- Refreshing Move: Light and Heavy attacks reduce your active weapon cooldowns by 2.5% (0.2s cooldown).
- Cannot add Gem Setting Pin
Strategy and tips
Lazarus is a dungeon of puzzles, the first being the Door Room. Mobs spawn in front of a door with three spaces for symbols above it. The first symbol is lit up, and you need to stand on its match from the circle on the floor in the middle of the room. This will open the door and release more enemies, lighting up the next symbol, and so on. When the third symbol is activated, the door closes and another door to the right opens. The symbols are best activated by someone with range, usually the healer. The key is to open them fast enough to keep the fight flowing but not so fast the team gets overwhelmed. It’s good to kill the archers before moving to the next door.
When you get to Cilla, one person should run across to talk to her while the rest fight the enemies. The next fight, Alcyon the mage, can be challenging. The Overhead Staff attack does heavy Strike damage, while all his spells do Void. Look out for him raising his staff above his head and be ready to dodge. The two archers can also be problematic in this fight, so try to clear them early.
Be careful in the handwashing room, as using the fountain will spawn the mini-boss by the door. Make sure everyone is through before you wash your hands. Use the architecture in the room to get out of the ranged attacks line of sight to bring them to you, or just kill the archers quickly.
Main Damage Type: Arcane
Physical Phase: Cilla is a fairly straightforward fight, to begin with. While the tank holds her aggro, the DPS hit her from behind. She has a buff that increases stacks over time, making her hit harder. There are three ports in the floor, where a stone orb can emerge from. Once an orb has risen, you can interact with it to reset the stacks. This will also progress her into the next phase.
If you can withstand the damage through good tanking and healing, the game forces the next phase by reducing damage done to Cilla until the orb is pulled.
Magical Phase: In the magical phase, it is important that the team clump together. Cilla will cast a spell that makes each player leave a pool of Arcane damage at their feet. You have a few seconds to get to a clear area before she makes it explode. She also shoots out orbs that will root you in place if you touch them.
Main Damage Type: Strike and Arcane
Chardis is about the least mobile boss in the world of Aeternum. He is a giant stone automaton, who uses his detachable hands and a beam from his single eye to attempt to defeat you. When he first awakens, there will be an orb on each side of the room, trapped in a force field. You need to break the field to release the orb, which will spawn a mage over an orb port on the ground. Kill the mage and place the orb.
To fight Chardis, the whole group should stand at the edge of the arena closest to him, in a Sacred Ground. You can block or avoid most of his physical attacks. If you get a symbol over your head, it means you are going to drop a Slicer. Head to the back of the arena to drop it, then return to the fight.
After some time, Chardis will start beaming one player with his eye. This player needs to run to the orb that was placed previously, which will cause both the orb and Chardis to drop to the ground. Once down, players can do increased damage so be sure to use all your Oblivion and Rend to make the most of this advantage.
If there is no orb up, the beam will continue damaging the player it is on. With careful healing, lifesteal, etc, players can continue to fight Chardis while someone is being beamed. But where possible, the orb is always the better option. If an orb is available but not placed, everyone except the healer should work to place that orb.
Interesting Loot
- M3 – Chardis’ Set – Heavy armour with Slash Conditioning and Refreshing, upgradeable.
- M3 – Bone Wrought weapon set for skins – split stat Con/Weapon scaling attribute, Keenly Fortified/Blessed, Weapon Ability Perk.
- Instrumentality’s Amulet – Health, Shirking Debilitate Cleanse + Random perk and attribute.
- Instrumentality’s Ring – Sacred, Infected + Random perk and attribute.
- Instrumentality’s Earring – Healing Heart, Refreshing + Random perk and attribute.
