I've told all of my friends that this was going to be the first map I would solo as soon as the new elites came out because, no thanks to Algaran's pulls, I've spent a lot of platinum here, so payback was pretty sweet.
In a word, tough.
This was so much more difficult than I had expected. The Armadillos/Scorns/whatevers, are so heavily armored and do so much damage, that it took me a long time to figure out how to handle the first pull. Once the first pull was down, I met the cluster of snakes. Again, these hit incredibly hard, and their range negates any kiting tactic I know of. Basically, it's run around, Nox, Aimed and never stop potting.
The third difficult spot was the tribesman surrounded by a pack of Scorns. Fortunately, the shielding totem isn't any stronger than in normal, so I managed to quickly bring down the shield by luring everything out of the room and into the hallway. Then, charge through the pack and attack the totem with everything I've got. I think I found a tactic on how to handle the pack here by using the magma pool as a choke point, but I will have to investigate it further.
From there, it is a run to Algaran's lair. This is a long run and basically, I used Scorch's shield and potted the whole way through. It's a long and tough walk.
Once in Algaran's lair, kite and Nox the trailing pack of whelps and Scorns. From there, you work your way backwards, picking off mobs one at a time. Avoid the cluster that is hidden in the corner, hug the wall and work your way backwards.
When you work your way back around the corner and back down the path, after you kill the last two Scorns in the hallway, Algaran will spawn.
Algaran himself isn't that difficult. I spent a lot of time working out a strategy on him, so I didn't feel particularly threatened. I didn't bother to use a stun pet, so I cannot comment on whether George/Kelvin resummoning will work on him in elite mode. Bascially, I kited him, alternating between charged Nox and charged Aimed. When I was pulled, charged pierce to evade.
At some point, I may write up a detailed guide, but for now my initial thoughts are that the mobs are supremely difficult. The boss absorbs a ton of damage and it must have take 4 or 5 minutes to kill him.
I'm not sure if there is a good way to separate the cluster of snakes - that was the most difficult aspect of this entire run.
I would like to say this was fun, but it was supremely difficult, and it is tough to figure out the best strategy. I'm sure after a few dozen runs, I'll have a better approach, but for now, I feel pole-axed.
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