iPlayDN: Desert Dragon Nest Guides

Author: Chaose5 in MMOSite

Credit to: FREEDOM CDN

Zazad Phase Guide

Deser Dragon - Phantom Flower Guide

Style of Play

Generally I am a player that likes to dodge most of the attacks targeted at me without endangering the lives of my party members. The gears I owned is considered average at this point of time (with respect to CDN paladin population) and I do my best to maneuver out of harms way while maintaining aggro.

Gears

Difference between DDN
compared to other nests
Desert Dragon Nest is by far the hardest nest I have ever attempted. It requires very precise maneuvering at times and you will need very good team work in order to survive. In short, DDN requires you to have high survivability and high damage output. Depending on your party's lineup, you as a Guardian or Crusader might be required to deal high amount of damage. (which can be pretty demanding)

Most of the bosses in DDN have skills that ignore aggro, for e.g. Flower's Fire Ball, Scorpion's charge...etc. These skills are normally aimed at one of the highest dps character within the party. Our job is to get back the aggro as soon as possible, many times chasing after the boss.

Divine Avatar our best friend can also work against us in this nest on stages like Scorpion and Flower, where we need to navigate the burning platforms with precision. Certain attacks of the bosses cannot be blocked as well, which requires you to avoid them at all costs.

So a Crusader or Guardian?
It is solely up to your preference and I would cover the advantages of each class in brief detail.

Guardian is able to contribute to the party's survivability through the use of Guardian Force, basking party members in a protective aura that grants Super Armor and Damage Reduction is definitely very useful. Collecting counters requires practice and juggling between Block and Stance Of Faith as some of the bosses's skills cannot be blocked.

Desert Dragon – Barren Mist Garden

For the mechanics and details of this stage, you can check out Chaos's guide for more information. On this stage, the key to survival for yourself and your team mates will be the Guardian Force.

Skills that cannot be blocked : None
Skills that ignore aggro : FireBall

Flower x 4HP – 1HP
---------------------------------------
When you see the Flower cast the first Fire Ball, immediately cast Block and enter the fire patch. With that you are set for this stage. :)

Once you have Guardian Force, cast it immediately to grant protection to your entire party. The Guardian Force prevents any party members from been thrown backwards whenever they are hit.

Howto tackle some of the Flower's attacks:

Roar– Without Guardian Force,simply move away to avoid. With Guardian Force on, there is no way it can flinch you. =)

Bite– Cast Block to gain Guardian Bubbles, or if your Block is on cool down simply move out of the range of the attack.

FireBall– As discussed above, its the best time to gather Guardian Bubbles (if you can).

Flame Geyser – Watch the patterns and dodge accordingly. You can block if you wish to as long as there is a Cure Relic nearby.

Stomp– Can be blocked, as the guide suggest it can be a one time stomp or triple stomp.

Magma Wave EX – Can be blocked but it would be better to find a safe spot to attack with the party members.

For the Fire Platforms, you will need to jump onto the platforms to escape the Larva Flood. Please remember to cast Stance Of Faith sparingly as you do not want to be in a situation where you are not able to jump.

Tip* Always provoke the Flower whenever you are on a platform after jumping to prevent aggro lost.

Flower HP x 1HP till down
--------------------------------------
Flame Meteor – Cast Divine Avatar immediately when you see Flame Meteor. Divine Avatar neglects the meteor damage and throw back effect making it effortless to run through. However, please watch out for your team mates as your movement speed can be faster than some of them.

This stage can be summed up as hold the aggro well, constantly cast Guardian Force, heal up and finally deal damage. Below is a video of us attempting this stage.

Desert Dragon Nest - Sand Worm

Style of Play

Gears

My humble gears as of now is mainly +10 Level 60 Epic with Skill Necklace (Guardian Force), 60S Healthy Earrings and 2 x 60S Critical Rings. My current HP is close to 530,000 and both my Magical and Physical Defense is 23,000.

By regulating between dodge, blocks and Iron Will for certain damage that I need to take head on I find myself able to survive most of the stages.

Difference between DDN compared to other nests
Desert Dragon Nest is by far the hardest nest I have ever attempted. It requires very precise maneuvering at times and you will need very good team work in order to survive. In short, DDN requires you to have high survivability and high damage output. Depending on your party's lineup, you as a Guardian or Crusader might be required to deal high amount of damage. (which can be pretty demanding)

Most of the bosses in DDN have skills that ignore aggro, for e.g. Flower's Fire Ball, Scorpion's charge...etc. These skills are normally aimed at one of the highest dps character within the party. Our job is to get back the aggro as soon as possible, many times chasing after the boss.

Divine Avatar our best friend can also work against us in this nest on stages like Scorpion and Flower, where we need to navigate the burning platforms with precision. Certain attacks of the bosses cannot be blocked as well, which requires you to avoid them at all costs.

So a Crusader or Guardian?
It is solely up to your preference and I would cover the advantages of each class in brief detail.

Guardian is able to contribute to the party's survivability through the use of Guardian Force, basking party members in a protective aura that grants Super Armor and Damage Reduction is definitely very useful. Collecting counters requires practice and juggling between Block and Stance Of Faith as some of the bosses's skills cannot be blocked.

Desert Dragon – Sand Worm Hazar's Nest

After the flying ship, the party can attempt the 4 available stages at any random order, namely Sand Worm, Scorpion, Manticore and Flower.

Skills that cannot be blocked : Roar
Skills that ignore aggro : none

What I will touch on is from the moment you enter the clearing to beginning the fight with Hazar. Basically this stage is rather easy for us. The Sand Worm has only a few skills that it casts over and over again.

Objective : To deplete the Super Armor of the Worm in order to deal actual damage to destroy it.

Sand Worm X 4HP - 2HP
----------------------------------
From the start, provoke the Worm and make sure that it always face away from the rest of your party members. The Worm has a few skills that it can cast at you, namely Bite, Charge, Roar and Stomp. Other than Roar, the rest of the skills can be blocked so just regulate between Stance of Faith and Block to protect yourself. In the event that you get pushed away by Roar,immediately run back (Shield Charge) towards the boss to cast provoke again.

*In the event of a lost aggro, do not be too eager to get back the aggro, make sure that the Worm is not casting any skills when you are about to cast provoke.

For beginners who are attempting this nest, its best that you stay between 12-2 o'clock after provoking the Worm to ensure that you and the Sand Worm are far away from the rest of the party. This to prevent the rest of the party members from taking any damage from Stomps.

For advanced players, simply stay close to the Sand Worm which will be in the middle of the map. As soon as it casts Stomp, block or evade the skill and prepare to attack the Worm's head as it will be rooted to the spot for a few seconds. Cast Armor Break > Righteous Bolt > Electric Smite > Justice Crash to deplete the Super Armor of the boss. The Stomp deals high damage to whoever fails to avoid, so please take note.

There are only 2 ways to deplete the Super Armor of the boss, you can either try the advanced method above or wait for the Worm to cast the 3 Icy Pillar's skill, which I will share with you what to do.

3 Icy Pillars

The Worm will submerge and re-emerge itself from the sand to cast 3 Icy Pillars at 3 locations on the map.Our job is to provoke and pull the Worm to the Pillar that your party members are attacking. Take note that the Worm need to be within the yellow aura of the Pillar when the Pillar explodes to successfully deplete the Worm's Super Armor. This is also the best time to provide Guardian Force for your party members as they will be gathered.

*Key to pulling the Worm is after you successfully provoke the Worm, stand as far away from the Worm as possible so it will move towards where you want it to be.

Once your party has successfully deplete the Worm's Super Armor, it will faint and this is your only chance to deal actual damage to the Worm.

*Do not cast Divine Avatar to attack the Worm*

Sand Pit Hell

Run to your designated location and wait for the Sand Pit to spit out 3 Icy Pillars. (Yes, Icy Pillars again)
(Refer to Freedom Guide on the designated locations)

Cast Divine Avatar now and spam all your damaging skills on the Icy Pillars. Regardless of who is attacking the pillar with you, you need to reduce the HP of the Pillars to less than 50% asap.

*Failure to do the above or totally destroying the pillar due to accident will result in an instant party wipe.*

From now till the end of the combat, save your Divine Avatar for Sand Pit Hell.

Sand Worm X 2HP
---------------------------
The boss has a new skill which is Direct Stomp and Direct Stomp EX. Yours truly has "eaten" both of the skills before and glad to report that based on just 20k defenses, I won't die in one hit. You can still block Direct Stomp just like the regular Stomp or just evade it; shouldn't be too much of an issue as you will be looking at the Worm 90% of the time. If possible, shout out to your team mates when you see Direct Stomp.

Sand Worm x 1HP
-----------------------------
A new skill will be cast by the Worm from now on, which is the Rolling Attack. This is one skill you want to avoid as it deals high damage. Just look at where it is coming from and evade it. The casting animation is pretty slow so it should be easy to avoid.

That basically sums up the battle of the Sand Worm, its skills can become very predictable after a while.

Desert Dragon Nest - Mushroom Rock Canyon

Style of Play

Gears

In my opinion this is one of the harder stages in Desert Dragon Nest. As a Guardian you will need to hold the aggro and regulate your blocks and ensure a constant supply of Guardian Bubbles for the use of Guardian Force at critical moments.

Skills that cannot be blocked : Claw Swipe and Tail Swipe
Skills that ignore aggro: Charge

Skills that are good for collecting Bubbles:
i) Stomp
ii) Poison Spin , get moving once you collect the bubbles to prevent getting poisoned.

Skills not recommended for collecting bubbles and should be used in emergencies
iii) Poison patches, but you will need to ensure that there is a Cure Relic Nearby

Scorpion x 4HP

-------------------------
At the start of the battle, you will need to provoke the Scorpion towards you and make it face away from your party members. The first 5 seconds of the battle is a good time to attack the boss so attack if you wish. :)

Make use of the first 2 HP bar of the Scorpion to learn its attacks and cool downs to know when is ideal for collecting Guardian Bubbles.

Scorpion x 3HP

----------------------------
The new skill at 3 HP bar is Quake as referenced from Chaos guide or what we commonly call it as "STOMP" This is a very useful skill to collect bubbles and if you are using Stance of Faith, you can even walk towards the Scorpion in the process. :)

Scorpion x 2HP

----------------------------
The Scorpion will have a new skill, called the Poison Prison. This is the highlight of this stage and all your Guardian Bubbles that you have been collecting so far is used to save your party members here.

When the Poison Prison is cast, everyone will be drawn towards the boss. Immediately cast Guardian Force once you recover and make your way to the nearest "Poison Door" There will be 8 "doors" within the Poison Prison and each will only open for 1.5seconds.
Within the Poison Prison, there is a small suction that is constantly tugging at you from the centre of the Scorpion. You need to inch forward to try and keep as close to the "Poison Door" as possible.

If you missed the chance to get out, with the blessings of the Guardian Force you can attempt to charge out of the "Poison Door". However this is not recommended as it will inflict poison status on yourself. Poison status if not cured fast can drain as much as 200K HP within 6-8 seconds.

My tactic so far has been to keep myself as close to the "Poison Door" as possible. With any speed buff from Acrobat or Wax from Loli, you should be able to Shield Charge out just fine without having to force yourself out.

Clerics weakness is in our mobility so just keep practising until you get it right. Lastly, if you are inflicted with poison status and the Poison Prison has somehow claim your priest(s) or there is no cure relic available, try to heal yourself instead of Divine Avatar. If you cast Divine Avatar, you will risk losing all your hard earned bubbles. (very important)

Scorpion x 1HP

-----------------------
The Scorpion will have a new skill, Poison Spin EX. What it means is that instead of spinning stationary, it will spin itself towards the nearest player/player with aggro while throwing poison patches at each player.

While drawing aggro from the Scorpion, it is always important to stay close to it especially at the last HP bar. The Poison Spin Ex deals high damage to any player it attacks but it is a good skill to collect Guardian Bubbles. Its multiple hits will easily give you plenty of free bubbles. However you need to make sure that the Poison Spin EX do not trap you into a dead-end.

As you can see the most important thing in this stage revolves around drawing aggro, staying close to the boss and casting Guardian Force to save party members while within Poison Prison.

Desert Dragon Nest - Storm Ruler Zuul

Style of Play

Gears

By regulating between dodge, blocks and Iron Will for certain damage that I need to take head on I find myself able to survive most of the stages.

Difference between DDN compared to other nests

Desert Dragon Nest is by far the hardest nest I have ever attempted. It requires very precise maneuvering at times and you will need very good team work in order to survive. In short, DDN requires you to have high survivability and high damage output. Depending on your party's lineup, you as a Guardian or Crusader might be required to deal high amount of damage. (which can be pretty demanding)

Most of the bosses in DDN have skills that ignore aggro, for e.g. Flower's Fire Ball, Scorpion's charge...etc. These skills are normally aimed at one of the highest dps character within the party. Our job is to get back the aggro as soon as possible, many times chasing after the boss.

Divine Avatar our best friend can also work against us in this nest on stages like Scorpion and Flower, where we need to navigate the burning platforms with precision. Certain attacks of the bosses cannot be blocked as well, which requires you to avoid them at all costs.

So a Crusader or Guardian?

It is solely up to your preference and I would cover the advantages of each class in brief detail.

Guardian is able to contribute to the party's survivability through the use of Guardian Force, basking party members in a protective aura that grants Super Armor and Damage Reduction is definitely very useful. Collecting counters requires practice and juggling between Block and Stance Of Faith as some of the bosses's skills cannot be blocked.

This is the easiest stage for all Guardians. The stage mechanics are pretty simple and straight forward. The only thing you need to take note of is the Tracing Tornados as that is the only skill that can kill anyone upon contact. The rest of how you want to handle the fight is pretty much free play.

Skills that cannot be blocked : Claw Swipe, Stomp, Tracing Tornado and Crescent Cleave
Skills that ignore aggro : Charge

Skills that are good for collecting Bubbles:
i) Light Balls
ii) Trailing Explosions

While provoking the Manticore, try to stay at the head of Zuul so that you can have a clearer view of its attacks. With Guardian Force on, you can spam all your attacking skills at the Manticore as almost nothing would be able to interrupt you.

While running away from the Photon Missiles, try to keep to the centre of the map to make more space for other party members who will be running the exterior. With a Priest's Holy Shield, you can even stand still and take in all the Photon Missiles damage. Cast Iron Will to negate the negative defense down status that the Photon Missiles inflict and resume Provoking the Manticore.

The best time to cast Guardian Force is when your party move forward to attack the Manticore. So that is pretty much it for the Manticore stage. Enjoy~

I have chosen to omit the Golem Stage in this guide as its going to be pretty much the same as what Chaos has written.

Reference: DN MMOSITE