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Surviving the loss of a tank on the Terror From Beyond, 2nd Phase


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So, if you've pugged TFB SM, or even run it with your guild while learning it, you've probably experienced losing tanks on the Terror fight. Traditionally this results in a wipe if you don't have a battle rez, because the tank swap is a mechanic of the fight and if you get hit while you have the Scream debuff on - you die.

 

This does not have to be the case.

 

In HM, the Scream debuff does not time off like it does in SM. The tank has to return to the first platform, which will clear the debuff from you.

 

This ALSO works in SM. If your other tank goes down and can't be battle rezzed, the surviving tank can single-tank the rest of the fight by moving to a platform closer to 1, and hopping up there *quickly* to clear the debuff after getting Screamed. You have to be quick, particularly if your healers stay on that platform - you have to clear the debuff before the Terror attacks you again, and you don't want those healers to get hit more than once. The important thing, though, is that this is doable and it is very survivable if you just try it.

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You can avoid getting the Scream debuff completely by timing your platform jump so the Scream is cast while you're in transition. This works more often than not.

 

Also, don't forget to utilize your dps as off-tanks in situations like these. Shadows, Guardians and Vanguards have their taunts available and can soak up a Scream.

Edited by slafko
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You can avoid getting the Scream debuff completely by timing your platform jump so the Scream is cast while you're in transition. This works more often than not.

 

Also, don't forget to utilize your dps as off-tanks in situations like these. Shadows, Guardians and Vanguards have their taunts available and can soak up a Scream.

 

Do you mean jumping off the platform completely, or so that the scream hits when you're moving from one platform to another?

 

I don't like the prior, because I've yet to figure out where it's safe to jump off the platform so that it puts you back at 1 instead of killing you. I haven't been willing to ask people to endure that fight more than once while I test it. :-)

 

If it's the latter, that could work as long as you have three platforms in a row you can maneuver between - the first one to get spit on, the next one for you to jump to to avoid the spit, and the third to jump to while the scream hits. But I'd imagine if that worked at all you'd need extremely good timing.

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You watch the Scream cast bar and enter the little portal thingy just before it finishes casting. That way it gets cast while you're travelling between platforms and usually bugs without giving you the debuff.

 

I've done this a few times by accident. While it does reliably bug, it doesn't reliably avoid the Scream debuff. What normally seems to happen is the debuff goes onto someone else (either a healer or a DPS) without the boss target swapping. This is sort of ok, but it's a lot of damage in an unexpected location. Also, if it's a healer, they need to be quick about cleansing it in HM lest an anomaly spawns on top of them, instantly nuking the debuffed healer.

 

Regarding tanking near platform 1, this is indeed a possibility. In fact, I think you can actually tank *on* the starter platform and just take a few steps backward (the debuff cleanses at the midpoint of the platform). Healer LoS would be an issue though. More importantly, the boss does much, much higher damage to targets on the high platforms than on the low. Also, that damage cannot be mitigated except by armor, which makes tanking largely an exercise in large health pools. This is a somewhat viable strategy in story mode, but it is nearly impossible to pull off in hard mode. (cue: all the guilds who proudly tank this fight in a sub-optimal manner and post about it on the forums) So, I really wouldn't recommend it.

 

Generally, when the second tank goes down and a battle rez isn't up, we use a taunting DPS to pull the boss immediately prior to the Scream. If we don't have a DPS with a taunt, we rely on a stealth rez (this is usually tried concurrent with the DPS taunt strat). If neither of those options are available, we just wipe it. In general, we prefer not to lose a tank. :-)

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Generally, when the second tank goes down and a battle rez isn't up, we use a taunting DPS to pull the boss immediately prior to the Scream. If we don't have a DPS with a taunt, we rely on a stealth rez (this is usually tried concurrent with the DPS taunt strat). If neither of those options are available, we just wipe it. In general, we prefer not to lose a tank. :-)

 

Indeed, this is the best way to go about losing a tank there.

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I've done this a few times by accident. While it does reliably bug, it doesn't reliably avoid the Scream debuff. What normally seems to happen is the debuff goes onto someone else (either a healer or a DPS) without the boss target swapping. This is sort of ok, but it's a lot of damage in an unexpected location. Also, if it's a healer, they need to be quick about cleansing it in HM lest an anomaly spawns on top of them, instantly nuking the debuffed healer.

 

Regarding tanking near platform 1, this is indeed a possibility. In fact, I think you can actually tank *on* the starter platform and just take a few steps backward (the debuff cleanses at the midpoint of the platform). Healer LoS would be an issue though. More importantly, the boss does much, much higher damage to targets on the high platforms than on the low. Also, that damage cannot be mitigated except by armor, which makes tanking largely an exercise in large health pools. This is a somewhat viable strategy in story mode, but it is nearly impossible to pull off in hard mode. (cue: all the guilds who proudly tank this fight in a sub-optimal manner and post about it on the forums) So, I really wouldn't recommend it.

 

Generally, when the second tank goes down and a battle rez isn't up, we use a taunting DPS to pull the boss immediately prior to the Scream. If we don't have a DPS with a taunt, we rely on a stealth rez (this is usually tried concurrent with the DPS taunt strat). If neither of those options are available, we just wipe it. In general, we prefer not to lose a tank. :-)

 

We've generally tanked him on the higher platforms. Haven't reached the 2nd phase in HM yet, so we may switch strategies there.

 

Unfortunately at the time we didn't have a taunting DPS, and stealth rezzes have historically not worked for us in the hypergate. Not sure why.

 

As far as tanking entirely on platform 1 - the problem I see with that (aside from healer LOS) is the spit. Granted platform 1 is larger and the spit may not cover the whole thing, but regardless you don't want the spit up there at all.

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if you get hit while you have the Scream debuff on - you die.

.

 

You'll get hit for a fair amount of damage, but you won't automatically die. I have tanked the boss with scream on myself in TFB HM. I died when the boss cast a second Scream while the first Scream debuff was still on me.

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You'll get hit for a fair amount of damage, but you won't automatically die. I have tanked the boss with scream on myself in TFB HM. I died when the boss cast a second Scream while the first Scream debuff was still on me.

 

As has been established, the difference is in 99% of the runs I've been in the tanks have been on the upper platforms instead of the lower ones, where you take more damage. You get hit with a Scream on one of those, you die.

 

On the lower platforms it's survivable.

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As has been established, the difference is in 99% of the runs I've been in the tanks have been on the upper platforms instead of the lower ones, where you take more damage. You get hit with a Scream on one of those, you die.

 

On the lower platforms it's survivable.

 

I've survived through a Scream with the other tank dead numerous times, with Energy Shield up and while tanking up top (SM). You do take a lot more damage for sure, but if your healers are prepared and amazing you can make it - credit to them as I certainly don't stack Endurance. Pretty sure I've even survived one Scream without my CD, but that was likely just luck.

 

That said I think your way is likely more healer friendly as long as you're quick with the jumping. Dunno why, but I always seem to end up tanking this thing with new tanks that have trouble seeing the spit, so I'll likely be trying this out the next time I end up there on my tank.

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