Elite Chronicles: Rogues Guide to Elite Rooks Nest
We come here for one reason...Malison Eggs. With Malison being such a popular and well-rounded pet, anyone that doesn't have him wants him, and those that get a Malison egg can be rewarded handsomely, even though this pet is many seasons old.
Even in our current season, Elite Rooks Nest remains a very popular map, for both guild/party runs and for PUGs (Pick Up Groups). There are points in this map which undergeared players can still be overwhelmed, and soloing is seen by some as too much of a challenge that they deem this map not worth the effort. I believe that this map is a terrific place to improve your attack skills, and with a solid soloing strategy, this map is not particularly difficult - plus the payout is a potential Malison egg.
Initally, you will see two archers at the end of the bridge, send off a couple of arrows towards them to ensure you aggro them and force them to chase you. Next, you will see a collection of mobs off to your left, again fire off a couple of arrows to aggro them as well. Finally, two mobs wielding daggers will jump onto the map, round them up with a couple of arrows as well. At this point, you will have a lot of angry folks attacking from all angles, so the best strategy is to position yourself with your back to the wall in between the two boulders. If you have Shadow Veil, this is a good time to drop a charged smoke bomb. From here, cycle through your attack skills to clear this collection of mobs.
Party Strategy: When in a party, while other players are managing aggro/crowd control, your responsibility is to take out the archers that setup outside of melee range. These archers can do substantial damage, so it is always best to target them first.
Pro Tip: For those that have Architect Quills, take advantage of the fact that the proc is a +50% Crit bonus. Whenever you have mobs packed tightly, charge up your auto attack, then follow with an uncharged Aimed Shot, Noxious Bolt, Shadow Pierce combination. Not only does the initial charged auto attack damage up to 3 enemies and stun them as well, but when you proc, your 3 skill rotations generally will Crit, resulting in significant damage output.
Next, proceed to the bridge. When solo, it is generally better for pot consumption to keep your pulls relatively small when possible. What I prefer to do is to aggro the two dagger mobs standing under the light post and make them attack you by the flag. Dispense of these two and proceed.
Now, this is the first of three pulls that have the potential to be overwhelming. Focus all of your attacks on the wizard first. If you take too long, the wizard will summon an army of skeletons. At this point, proceed into the corner where the barrels are and engage the mobs at that point. Again, drop a Shadow Veil, if that is in your skill rotation. From here, your order of attacks are the wizard first, archers next, skeletons and dagger mobs last. The point here is that you are focusing on the highest DPS mobs (wizard and archers) and attacking the melee mobs last since they tend to have higher armor and lower damage.
Party Strategy: When in a party, bypass the first two dagger mobs standing under the light post and allow your team to position themselves in the corner. While they are getting into position, proceed forward to the two cannons and aggro the three mobs that are standing there. Draw the three mobs back into the corner where your team is waiting - this strategy will speed up the run by a few seconds.
If you are still solo, proceed ahead to the two cannons and attack the three mobs that are waiting there.
At this point, when solo, continue following the small pull strategy, so proceed until you find the one mob standing next to the flag post. Attack him at range and wait for him to approach.
Now, ahead, you will see three archers and a dagger mob. Initiate your attack at range. Do not proceed beyond the barrel if you are solo. Dispense of these four mobs prior to continuing.
Here, you are essentially one-on-one with the wizard. As before, if you take too long to kill him, the wizard will summon a skeleton army to fight you. Avoid this if possible. Begin by stacking crit with Aimed Shots when you are well out of range. Then after two Aimed Shots, you will be as buffed as possible, so proceed with your attack just beyond the two flag posts.
Party Strategy: If you have effective tanks accompanying you, or a Sorcerer that is good with crowd control, the most efficient run is to proceed directly to the wizard and bypass the small pulls.
If you cannot finish off the wizard in time, or you are in a party, this is the moment when the skeleton army is summoned. Position yourself with your back against the wall and attack from here. Any AoE attacks like charged daggers and Nox will be especially effective since these are mostly melee mobs and will be positioned tightly around you.
Proceed forward to where three archers, two dagger mobs and the wizard is waiting. Again, focus your attacks on the wizard first (to prevent the skeleton army summoning), then the archers and finally the dagger mobs. Try to position yourself with your back against the boulder if possible as it ensures that your attackers will only be in front, which makes AoE attacks more effective.
Here is another point where it can be easy to become overwhelmed if you aggro too many, or take too long and allow the skeleton army to be summoned. Just like before, stack crit with aimed shot so that your initial attack is fully buffed. Initiate your attack just beyond where the bridge opens up.
Position yourself into the corner, if possible, don't aggro the three mobs standing on the bridge to the right of you. This will only increase the number of mobs attacking you simultaneously. Attack using the same strategy as the rest of the map - focus on the Wizard first, archers second, melee mobs last. After you dispense with these mobs, it is safe to proceed to the remaining three mobs standing on the bridge to the right before you continue on to Bael.
Party Strategy: Proceed ahead and draw aggro from the two archers that are further up on the bridge, and on your way back into the corner where you party is setting up, fire off a shot towards the three dagger mobs standing on the bridge to the right. The purpose of this is to ensure that any AoE or snare/stun attacks (like Windmill, Nox, Clock, Ice, etc.) affects the maximum number of mobs.
Now, it is time to proceed on to Bael! Initially, you may be able to get off one or two attacks before he shields up. Once he shields, a portal will open next to the cannon on the left. Don't bother laying down a Shadow Veil, because the cannon fires as soon as all mobs jump out, effectively scattering them across the open area. From here it purely a matter of dishing out as much damage as quickly as you can. Once all the mobs have been killed, Bael will drop his shield and rush in. Spam attacks as quickly as you can. You have a very limited amount of time before he shields up again. Generally, you can get him down to about 70% health before he shields up again and another portal opens next to the cannon at the top-right.
It is random, but occasionally, a Wizard will jump out of this second portal. Focus all attacks on him first to prevent the skeleton army summoning.
Again, as soon as all mobs have been defeated, Bael will attack once again. Continue attacking him as quickly as you can. When he gets to around 50% health he will shield up. As soon as he shields, run to the top left corner of the screen to get out of the range of the Ninjas that jump out of the third portal. These Ninjas are actually more difficult to kill than Bael, so avoid them and just stay out of their range. Simply wait for Bael to drop his shield and attack, this may take about a minute, so be patient and do not attack the ninjas while you are waiting.
Pro Tip: The poison from Noxious Bolt is the only attack that can affect Bael through his shield. While standing next to the fire pit, launch charged Nox attacks at Bael. When in a party, have any Rogues with Nox do the same. The poision from Nox can reduce Bael's HP to approximately 35-40%, so it is well worth the mana cost here.
So, there you have it. This is an effective strategy for running Elite Rooks Nest, both Solo and in Party. Note the slight differences in your pulls between solo and party runs. If you are well equipped, you can certainly do the pulls that a full party would do, but for purposes of HP pot consumption, I suggest you keep your pulls small, since it really doesn't improve your times by very much.
As thanks, feel free to give me all your Malison eggs :-)
Originally Posted by GoodSyntax
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