Guide to Frost-Covered City (Frost)

Alphae - Lost City

Elviron - Dreamweaver wrote: »

@Alphae
Well my comments were more from my experience.

I used STA the first time around when me and my factionmates went it. You must understand that we were all below 85 with just 1 cleric of lvl85 (none of us charmed or having awesome genie skills). So yea it was useful then (10~12% off of 100k hp mobs and mil+ bosses was useful).

Ofc at 9x its not required and frowned upon due to the exp loss.

As for the 79 skills, IF an archer has it (like I do), it might be useful

As for genie skills, well i have 4 genies so yea, I switch them between bosses and passages depending upon what am doing.

In any case, some of them are useful while some not really applicable. Just helping out b:victory

Well what I'm saying about STA is that, in my opinion, the amount of time it saves / amount of HP it shaves from mobs is really not worth the exp loss. In my opinion.

If 8x squads want to use it to shorten their runs the first time around, so it's a little less difficult, that's their prerogative, but I don't recommend doing it. If you can survive frost (using this guide) with STA, you can survive it without it.

Yeah, as for the 79 archer skill it would be useful. I guess I'll make a note on the class descriptions that archers should be using every speed buff they have on the pullers. The cleric will still just have to provide for themselves though.

GrimReaperHC wrote: »

Thread stickied ^^
Well done Alph, keep up the good work!

Thanks *^.^*

meidoka wrote: »

I know you can trade 999 pasts of FC for an Aquadash, my question is where?? Apparently its an NPC but no one seems to know..

You do this at the "Martial Arts Master." I -think- this guy is in the same area of arch as the Crazy Stone NPCs. I can't say for sure, I never do crazy stone xD

ArchSaber - Sanctuary

Alphae - Lost City wrote: »

Mm, Psy and wizzy are close for me. But if I could pick I'd take an archer just for zhen.

I replace Psy with archer now. I like archers now because they can STA up until exp room, barrage is a killer aoe, and archers can have crazy aps with claws. Thunderclaw died in about 40 seconds. And full big exp room died in 13 seconds due to my level 7 HF and her Triple Spark+Level 10 Barrage.

Alphae - Lost City

ArchSaber - Sanctuary wrote: »

I replace Psy with archer now. I like archers now because they can STA up until exp room, barrage is a killer aoe, and archers can have crazy aps with claws. Thunderclaw died in about 40 seconds. And full big exp room died in 13 seconds due to my level 7 HF and her Triple Spark+Level 10 Barrage.

Blah STA for aforementioned reasons. But while I love wizzies (and I play one rofl, I couldn't stomach an archer), barrage rocks. It puts wizard zhen to shame :C imho.

Notgood - Raging Tide

I would like to add that sins should use tidal protection to dodge the sleep effect when possible.

Pareee - Lost City

Great post - thanks so much!

Alphae - Lost City

Notgood - Raging Tide wrote: »

I would like to add that sins should use tidal protection to dodge the sleep effect when possible.

Great, thanks Added.

@Pareee

Thanks ^.^

JadeFarmer - Dreamweaver

Very nice guide.

Going to send a lot of archers here as im real fed up with to many of them saying STA does not affect xp as they only do it at start of boss, They just cant seem to grasp that xp is worked out on how much total hp you take from boss (lower max hp at start + lower hp taken from boss = lower xp at end)

A level 10 STA takes 16% of bosses max hp, so a x12 hyper turns into a x10 hyper (16%x12=192%) so for the sake of killing the boss 20 or so seconds quicker you lose the equivalent of two bosses exp.

Gryphyyn - Heavens Tear

JadeFarmer - Dreamweaver wrote: »

Very nice guide.

Going to send a lot of archers here as im real fed up with to many of them saying STA does not affect xp as they only do it at start of boss, They just cant seem to grasp that xp is worked out on how much total hp you take from boss (lower max hp at start + lower hp taken from boss = lower xp at end)

A level 10 STA takes 16% of bosses max hp, so a x12 hyper turns into a x10 hyper (16%x12=192%) so for the sake of killing the boss 20 or so seconds quicker you lose the equivalent of two bosses exp.

Here's the STA guides that go into more detail:
Sharpened Tooth Arrow Explained (you should thank Elenacostel for having taken the effort for collecting the information and making the STA guide)
STA reduces experience! (Sakubatou's thread)

Many skills from other classes fall under this HP-debuff dilemma:
-STA (Archers)
-Blood Vow (Archers)
-Deicide proc (Barbs/BM's/Archers/Sins)
-Soul Degeneration (Veno's)
-Sage Ribstrike (Sins; refer to Sakubatou's thread)
-Ice Blast (Genie skill; not 100% about this one, but if someone wants to test it out, it would be much appreciated).

Cheers!

Gryphyyn

AngelValmont - Harshlands

for everytime blades or sins have tangling mire and use it
i always get tons of lag
(i.e. exp room mob pull. bb is up. tangling mire used. when lag is away i get the mission and then right when i get it the last head dies
and everytime we do a pull to the boss i ask nicely for the ones with it to not use it on the boss till after the pull
90% of the time and its the sin who has it they will say ok and not use it
10% of the time they say ok and still use it then they leave the squad and pk the cleric (me)
100% of the times when its the blade they say ok and then they dont use it
i just want to live during the slash boss and thats when i ask them not to use it 1 boss and they get pissy at me for asking nicely


7th boss is ok to aoe but only when clone mob is dead and thats when the blademaster should dg

Alphae - Lost City

@AngelValmont

Yes, you can AOE at 7th boss, but only if you really know what you're doing, even then sometimes the timing is messed up. I would recommend, especially if you are just starting out, that you do not aoe at all during this boss. If you and your squad feel confident, feel free

Brigid - Harshlands

Haven't read the whole thread, but the last bit about tangling mire brings up another point that I'd like to make.

Tangling mire on Oceania Master (7th boss) makes it quite difficult to see the Raging Thunder (hand) suicide mobs if they spawn while the animation is running. This could lead to a squad wipe if the timing is bad.

threepointone

Brigid - Harshlands wrote: »

Haven't read the whole thread, but the last bit about tangling mire brings up another point that I'd like to make.

Tangling mire on Oceania Master (7th boss) makes it quite difficult to see the Raging Thunder (hand) suicide mobs if they spawn while the animation is running. This could lead to a squad wipe if the timing is bad.

QFT. And, his AoE can interrupt the person killing hands.

Alphae - Lost City

Brigid - Harshlands wrote: »

Haven't read the whole thread, but the last bit about tangling mire brings up another point that I'd like to make.

Tangling mire on Oceania Master (7th boss) makes it quite difficult to see the Raging Thunder (hand) suicide mobs if they spawn while the animation is running. This could lead to a squad wipe if the timing is bad.

That's a good point. I think it just makes more of a case not to use any aoe skills during this boss, especially if you're unsure of yourself.

TeraDisaster - Dreamweaver

What is the minim hp to survive in FC runs? in half run and in full. class: wizb:shocked

Alphae - Lost City

Frankly that depends on your squad and your abilities. I've frosted with 3k HP wizzies who know how to manage their aggro and health, and did fine. I've frosted with 7k HP wizzies who are lazy and die all the time. Just level to 85 and immediately go and frost--lost experience won't matter b:chuckle

Boogiepanda - Raging Tide

2.5k HP. Buffed to ~3k should be fine.

SoniMax - Sanctuary

PSY>ARCH
We heal

Lelouchvi - Sanctuary

SoniMax - Sanctuary wrote: »

PSY>ARCH
We heal

No one cares since the cleric does the main healing.
Other than that small fact, archers>psy

violetvalor

Lelouchvi - Sanctuary wrote: »

No one cares since the cleric does the main healing.
Other than that small fact, archers>psy

The psychic's heal is nice to have when the cleric gets the bubble.

Lelouchvi - Sanctuary

violetvalor wrote: »

The psychic's heal is nice to have when the cleric gets the bubble.

Sure when its a noob squad like at 70-80 when the cleric doesnt have enough hp to survive it or when he doesnt know how to handle that attack.
After 80 most clerics already know how to iron heart themselves once in a while so sure, i guess they are useful with the 2nd boss.
I would still prefer archers DD

Ulvhedner - Harshlands

You should consider adding some info about interrupting on certain bosses. It might be less of an issue when you're higher leveled, but it really help reducing the over all damage on certain bosses. Not to mention this should be an everyday thing for barbs, but sadly there's really few who doesn't know their class properly enough.

I would make a more insightful post about it when I've actually done the whole thing, taken a few notes and figure out when Dreadindra cast purge.

Thunderclaw have nothing special to interrupt

Diabolic Shocktrooper, pretty much the same

Cyclotra Syren, worth interrupting when you see the quote *insert right quote here*

Dreadindra, I have only a vague idea how to interrupt this boss to avoid his purges, so everytime there's a cirlce under or turning another squad member (might be hard to notice if you're all stacking), interrupt it if possible. Also as an additional note, a bishop will be spawned when he says "Let it all fade away". (I'm specculating that the purge is being channeled when he says "Let it all fade away", but it's a bit hard to tell since squad members get purged at random moment, clarification would be appreciated

Asoteric Runewolf, DO NOT INTERRUPT THIS BOSS AT ALL (unless experienced), if you by some random chance interrupt his casting when he does the Slash AoE, it will go off early, killing all melee for sure. When you're comfortable with doing the boss you can run to the boss immediately after the slash, and interrupt his cast. You can also interrupt one of his more nasty skills that have random aggro, and he will start casting it when you can see him say *insert quote about something something frost*, but not recommended since he can be casting his AoE slash right after and a bad intterupt will make the slash go off immediately.

Messenger of Fear, now this is my favourite boss in whole FC, his AoE is interruptable but the sleep is unavoidable. You should save your interrupt for canceling the AoE, he will start casting it when he says *insert quote here*. Not that if you interrupt immediately after his qoute, you might interrupt too early, it is REALLY annoying.

Oceania Master, another fun boss when it come to interrupting, it's hard to interrupt him (it?) due to his short channeling time, but it's doable. He start casting when saying *qoute about despair*, but it is a bit random if you get it right.

Now since I haven't done a full FC run yet this is all the information I can supply with

Additional notes about interrupting as a barb:
Alacrity is used for interrupting channeling (duuuurrr, adding this for barb who use this at random)
Alacrity will not go off in the middle of a normal attack, it will go off after, so even if you react at time you might not hit in time.
Even if the cleric doesn't mention anything about you interrupting THEY DO APPRECIATE IT and not every cleric have been playing for years and know every class by heart
Making interrupting to a game makes FC more fun, try to do a clean kill where you interrupt every single cast.

I'll try to update this post a bit later, and hope this helps

Choze - Dreamweaver

Just wanted to say thanks for taking the time to make this guide. I recently went on my first FC run, and of course it was very helpfull to have read what to expect before attempting a run.

Part that can't be emphasized enough: If you don't know what you're doing, tell the squad :P

Luckily I ran with a good group of people that didn't mind taking the time to explain what to do at each stage. Although I'm sure the run would have gone faster if we all were pros at it, we did a full run quite successfully.

FC is something I have been skeptical about doing for awhile now. Mainly because I know they take some time, and people invest in hypers & such for the runs, so obviously being a total n00b and causing wipes could quickly make people very irritated.

Read the guide, be honest with your squad, listen to what they say, and you may find FC to be a very fun & rewarding experience. I certainly did = )

halberstam

first of all tyvm for this wonderful guide , it helped alot (: b:chuckle
ok i dont want to sound like a jerk or offensive
but you totally under-rated the psychics in your guide

why would you prefer a veno , archer or wizz than a psy??

#1 : Psys do have vicious aoes if compared with those of wizards or archers
#2 : Psys aoe does "aoe stuns , aoe freez , aoe decrease the mobs accuracy , aoe slow"
#3 : Psys don't need sparks for 8/10 of their aoes unlike other aoe classes
#4 : Don't underestimate a psychic's sage bubble of life that group heal + purify
(Very Useful in most bosses)
#5 : With my sage Psychic will (10 sec physical ammunition) i am able to pull half the exp
room and also aoe solo the frost mobs
#6 : With Sandtrap , torrent ,soulburn , red tide (Bleeding) then normal attacks psychics
are considered to cause damage as almost the same power of 3 DDers at the same
time

I've ran dozens of FCC runs and i can assure you that it would barely take around 45 min using the following squad in case all were exp'd

1 : Mystic
2 : Seeker
3 : BM (aps)
4 : Psychic
5 : Psychic
6 : Psychic

and btw i know sins are recommended but in my squad it takes less time than to let a sin solo the shades as the mobs disappear as soon as the 3 psys perform earth vector (stun aoe) and the seeker & BM aoes
No single deaths were recorded at any of my FCC runs with this squad

Note: this post just represent my opinion or point of view from where i am standing , it doesn't at all offend the thread author or any other classes at any means of way
Not sayin that you must run with psys in fccs
but just sayin that you cant under-rate their DD , AOE ,Buff & debuff power at any FCC run

Alphae - Lost City

Ulvhedner - Harshlands wrote: »

You should consider adding some info about interrupting on certain bosses. It might be less of an issue when you're higher leveled, but it really help reducing the over all damage on certain bosses. Not to mention this should be an everyday thing for barbs, but sadly there's really few who doesn't know their class properly enough.

That's good info. I'll make a note that certain bosses should (or should not) be interrupted by the barb if possible. Unfortunately I've never played a barb higher than 20 (lol) so if anyone has more info about what signs specifically to look for when interrupting a certain boss's skill(s), please let me know.

@Choze: glad I could help I have always liked to do frost. when run with a good squad it's fast, fun, and gives some wonderful experience. mostly its just a lot of fun though. wish i still had time to play regularly

halberstam wrote: »

first of all tyvm for this wonderful guide , it helped alot (: b:chuckle
ok i dont want to sound like a jerk or offensive
but you totally under-rated the psychics in your guide

why would you prefer a veno , archer or wizz than a psy??

#1 : Psys do have vicious aoes if compared with those of wizards or archers
#2 : Psys aoe does "aoe stuns , aoe freez , aoe decrease the mobs accuracy , aoe slow"
#3 : Psys don't need sparks for 8/10 of their aoes unlike other aoe classes
#4 : Don't underestimate a psychic's sage bubble of life that group heal + purify
(Very Useful in most bosses)
#5 : With my sage Psychic will (10 sec physical ammunition) i am able to pull half the exp
room and also aoe solo the frost mobs
#6 : With Sandtrap , torrent ,soulburn , red tide (Bleeding) then normal attacks psychics
are considered to cause damage as almost the same power of 3 DDers at the same
time

I've ran dozens of FCC runs and i can assure you that it would barely take around 45 min using the following squad in case all were exp'd

1 : Mystic
2 : Seeker
3 : BM (aps)
4 : Psychic
5 : Psychic
6 : Psychic

and btw i know sins are recommended but in my squad it takes less time than to let a sin solo the shades as the mobs disappear as soon as the 3 psys perform earth vector (stun aoe) and the seeker & BM aoes
No single deaths were recorded at any of my FCC runs with this squad

Note: this post just represent my opinion or point of view from where i am standing , it doesn't at all offend the thread author or any other classes at any means of way
Not sayin that you must run with psys in fccs
but just sayin that you cant under-rate their DD , AOE ,Buff & debuff power at any FCC run

There are a huge number of possible squads you can take to frost. I generally prefer a wizard or archer (mostly an archer) over a psy for the simple fact that a wiz/archer can zhen. Psys can't. I agree with a previous poster as well that bubble of life is a bonus, not a necessity, and sage bubble of life (haven't checked AH in a while but I'll bet that it) is hella expensive. That being said psys are fine and I've run many frosts with 1 up to 3 of them and it went just fine. It's a matter of knowing how to play your class and make up for missing some strength of another class (i.e. utilizing veno and psy stun aoes when there's no BM, etc.).

SkogDyr - Lost City

First off... not a necro, just some added info for clerics...

Clerics... make sure you have HP and MP pots! When you are in RB or BB they will keep you from ticking the charm. Also bring along a rez scroll just in case. That way there isn't a long wait for you to return from town.

Good Genie skills for a cleric to have for FCC:

Holy Path (a must!)
Absolute Domain (during the big room mob pull can help if something goes wrong with the BM stun.)
Extreme Poison (for the mobs at the 2nd boss... they go down quick with this debuff)
Tangling Mire (for aoe pulls)
Bramble Rage (again for aoe pulls)
Phoenix Dance for when I'm in RB in the EXP room duing heads. Allows you to remain in RB and get the heads within reach (aoe skill)
Another skill I've used ( and it is underestimated imho) is Rainbow Blessing. You can use it on the barb when he is tanking. Will increase crit stirke % as well as other added buffs.

(some like TOP and Cloud Eruption but I use pots for HP and Chi so decide for yourself)

Clerics can debuff, purify, heal and DD if you know what you are doing. Just remember, job 1 is to heal and pure tank. #2, aoe heal for the squishys when needed #3... be ready to do the impossible if needed! If your squad dies (in hall of magic mobs), have the chi ready to tempest, razor feathers, siren's kiss, heal yourself... You can plume shell and aoe these mothers if you have too... then revive the squad. Which brings to a really important note... Clerics, don't run away at the first sign of trouble. Acting like a chicken with yer head cut off will get the squad wiped! Remain calm, heal, aoe if needed and be ready to do the impossible... (get the point yet?)

Most of all... clerics, TALK TO YOUR BARB! They know their limitations so find out where they want the BB. My FL is full of barbs I've met during FCC. Barbs and Clerics tend to add each other if you are both good.

FCC can be lots of fun for us clerics if you do your job, talk to your barb and are prepared.
b:bye

necamus

I didn't read everyones comments, so if someone suggested ignore!

On your Pull Two that you said didn't really count as a pull,

have sin kill first 2 shades, and meet at 3rd shade before Trooper. Depends on lvl of your barb, but at 87 lvl, with crab meat, 2 holy paths, 2 speed potions ( since 90TT armor dont use potions now), I pull 2 sets of mobs up 1st ramp, 3 sets in next room (shade 2), down hall DON'T turn, keep going down hall (everyone else stops at door to left) and get all the magic mobs 3 or 4 sets, turn around and go back to door, turn right, grab mob there, and first set, set off to left, and set before 3rd shade (DON'T grab back right, bishop) and pull to shade. Invoke, roar, sunder, frighten, and surf (alpha male if you have).

If you hyper it actually gives more exp then bishop to slash pull. Every pick up group i have ggone with freaks when I do it, but I am always on top of everyones list for FC. Can't be a squishy barb, and use a lot of crab meats (usually start clicking as soon as i get to 1st magic mobs). Mystic is awsome for yellow bubble.

Anyways, helps with Exp and quicker runs! Enjoy all.

StreamElf - Sanctuary

It's a very good guide, but Holeen also stuns (not sure if it's aoe or random). The cleric should watch out not to stand too close, otherwise he'll be kicked out of BB (had that happen to me a few times, so i know xD)

madrith

ERM, are seekers included in this at all? I've heard their good AoE dd's for this, and good to pull the mobs and vortex them in the exp room.

Conalll - Archosaur

Very nice guide. Great for those new to FCC, as well as those still getting the hang of it.

I actually have one thing to add for the Oceania Master. When he's about to trigger his AOE, a blue fountain-like effect (best way to describe it) appears at his feet. It is hard to see, especially if skills are hitting at the same time. I always turn my camera so when it's there, part of it contrasts against a leg, making it easier to see. I watch for this more than the text as the timing is more reliable.

Also for the last mob pull in the heads room, I often use Alpha Male to grab aggro on the run once I have all the mobs following me. That way I can Invoke(turtle) within BB range, just in case lag chooses the worst time to bite me. Personal preference, probably not necessary I know, but I like to play it safe when I can without risk to others.

Alternately, I just did a run where a guy got mad at me for pulling all the mobs for the 6th mob pull just before the Messenger of Fear. He said something about they go into the boss (I think typos were in play here) and we would have gotten more experience. This is the first time anyone's said anything about NOT pulling those mobs, and your yourself say pull them. So I'm trying to figure out what this guy was talking about. Assuming it was anything at all accurate.

Hazuki_chan - Archosaur

Conalll - Archosaur wrote: »

Very nice guide. Great for those new to FCC, as well as those still getting the hang of it.

I actually have one thing to add for the Oceania Master. When he's about to trigger his AOE, a blue fountain-like effect (best way to describe it) appears at his feet. It is hard to see, especially if skills are hitting at the same time. I always turn my camera so when it's there, part of it contrasts against a leg, making it easier to see. I watch for this more than the text as the timing is more reliable.

Also for the last mob pull in the heads room, I often use Alpha Male to grab aggro on the run once I have all the mobs following me. That way I can Invoke(turtle) within BB range, just in case lag chooses the worst time to bite me. Personal preference, probably not necessary I know, but I like to play it safe when I can without risk to others.

Alternately, I just did a run where a guy got mad at me for pulling all the mobs for the 6th mob pull just before the Messenger of Fear. He said something about they go into the boss (I think typos were in play here) and we would have gotten more experience. This is the first time anyone's said anything about NOT pulling those mobs, and your yourself say pull them. So I'm trying to figure out what this guy was talking about. Assuming it was anything at all accurate.

Nub barb

For the Messenger of Fear pull, a lot of people normally Skip the mobs in the room where the shade is, and go straight to boss. Now once the boss is at say ~150k hp, someones goes and pulls the mobs (note thats the time when you're also supposed to hyper) and brings them to kill all together with the boss, so then they can leave hypers on and use the hyper jump (or so called npc quest that ports you to the shade just before big room) and hyper those aswell.

Though, I don't know how it would be less experience if you added those mobs to a hypered pull rather than killing them together with the boss. As long as they are hypered, the experience is still there, and the same.