Welcome to Metro’s 25 man Heroic Healing guides for the Siege of Orgrimmar!
It is important to understand that these guides are first aimed at helping healers understand their role, and then helping them maximize their play.
Each will feature a general overview of the mechanics that matter to the healers, and conclude with a class-specific discussion. Let’s begin!
I wasn’t joking, its really quite buggy.
Understanding the encounter –
Before we go anywhere, understand this fight is nuts. I’m going to explain all the mechanics, because none of them really effect healing directly, but everyone needs to be aware of them, especially the healers. If you don’t know exactly what one does, it will wipe you, so as a player who chose the healing role, it’s also your job.
Also, this guide will be extremely long, so feel free to skim through each section on the bosses and ask questions on the forums if needed. This fight is difficult because how everything pieces together, so it’s important to know it all.
To understand this fight is to realize that there are a LOT of different mechanics. I mean an absolute ton. Literally dozens and they can all kill you. Luckily, you’ll quickly realize that they all happen on very strict timers, so if you handle things properly this fight will appear a lot more basic after some progression.
The most important piece of wisdom I can lend is to make sure all 25 members of your raid are alert and aware of each combination of mechanics. They often overlap and happen 2 at a time, so if you aren’t paying attention to both you will certainly die to one. It should be stated again that with this enrage, if you have to blow 3 rezzes early, you might as well just wipe it, once you have completed the learning progression of course. There are just too many ways to die late to afford those early deaths!
Understanding the Healer’s Role –
The healer plays the innocent bystander on this encounter, much to both my dismay and enjoyment. It is a REALLY easy encounter as a healer, and I’d go so far as to say the easiest of the entire last half. I mean compared to Thok, this is snooze mode. But I suppose that’s a horrible way to preface the second most difficult encounter in the expansion, huh?
Let’s talk truths now. There are a handful of mechanics that can be survived if healed up, and there are handfuls that cannot be survived no matter what you do. In order to properly address this encounter and account for all different strategies, it will be best if we break down each mechanic, discuss how its handled by our group, discuss how its effects healers, and then conclude with ways it may interfere with other mechanics. Feel free to skip around to the difficult parts if needed!
- Skeer the Blood Dude:
Is our first target. Only real mechanic is Bloodletting. First set has to be forced to another boss, and second set needs to be controlled before they get to him. Paladin, Shaman, and Monk healers can all play a role in this by stunning, slowing, or rooting them. He dies first so nothing else matters. Just heal the tank.
- Rik’kal the whatever:
Rik’kal is the second target of our raid, and this means is mechanics will happen for two boss lives as he is down from the start. The Mutate: Amber Scorpion is the most important so let’s discuss that first. It’s going to pick three players each time to transform into a scorpion. As a healer, we are immune, luckily, but not immune to its downstream effects. When a player is turned, they deal a small pulse of damage to every around them, and often times this deals a TON of damage, especially if it picks 2-3 melee. If it picks 3, its near death every time. It’s so difficult to avoid, it’s really frustrating. Hopefully your health pools are quite high by now and it can be mitigated with random shielding, but either way, be prepared to heal the three targets up, as they will continue to be susceptible to extra damage.
Next mechanic of his is the Injection and subsequent Amber parasites. They come out three times for us, and this means that 6 people will be taking high physical damage quite often. The best way to handle this as a healer is to prevent the damage instead of heal through it – a theme that this raid has done well on capitalizing on. You can stun, interrupt, fear, root, or knock back and you will have relieved a LOT of damage. The most important thing to do is to prevent their channeled Feed cast. If you have a way to do it, you must. Otherwise, add Feed to your UI’s buff watch.
Spell ID: 143362
This will let you know when someone is taking the damage, then you can prevent the cast in some way.
Since Rik’kal is the second boss, none of his abilities actually interfere with others. Only thing you need to be aware of is the potential need to stop DPS and prevent as much damage from the scorpions and feed as possible.
- Korven the Lame:
This will be the third target, but comes down as soon as he is killed, so his mechanics will only happen for one boss life. He has two abilities that effect the Healers, but it’s important to make sure your group knows how to split damage to handle the Encase in Amber mechanic. If it’s the first time you are hearing this, make sure you bring it up!
The first thing you need to worry about is Shield Bash and the damage it will present. Its tied in with Vicious Assault so in terms of tank damage, let’s examine them as a whole first. The way we handle the mechanic is simply to eat the damage, and then swap tanks afterwards. Otherwise, he is cleaving in random directions and it turns quickly into a big mess. In order to facilitate this, it’s just big heals. Our tanks use their CDs and then call for external if they need.
The Vicious Assault also has a complication with it that, to my knowledge, it not intended. For some reason, this mechanic CONSTANTLY hits the melee who are behind the boss. I know what you are thinking, and trust me we have tried. Everyone is at max melee hitbox, and allll stacked up, yet every pull, 1 person gets hit while all the other melee do not. It’s obviously some type of glitch, but it’s something you should prepare for if it’s unavoidable. The way I handle it is simply to spam the melee with shields before it’s about to happen, to pad the damage. Otherwise, you can actually coordinate CDs like spirit shell or bubble if it’s an issue. These abilities will be up before you need them again
The boss is only out for one life, but his mechanics can result in a complication between Hisek, who has yet to be discussed. When Hisek chooses an Aim target, if its melee, and they are attacking Korven while he is doing his assault, they will die 100 percent of the time it lines up this way. There is no saving them, as they will take all 6 slashes, not just 1 random one. The best option to resolve this is just have them stand to one side of the boss and have him pointed the other way. It’s all very luck-driven though, so just be ready for it.
I’ll think twice before helping random quest mobs!
- Hisek the Sharpshooter:
Hisek is our fourth target, but starts the encounter active, therefore his abilities will happen for the duration of 4 lifes, the most dangerous being his own. He has three abilities, one being Multi-shot which cannot be controlled, but will put pressure on the group as its very likely that everyone will be clumped up in the start. Just always be AOE healing, and it’s a non-issue.
The next mechanic is Rapid Fire, which really gave our group fits, but realistically should also be a non-issue. It’s heavily complicated by other mechanics, however, but from a healing perspective this is one that if the player gets hit they die. There is no saving. We will discuss the complications after we examine Aim.
Aim is without question the most disruptive mechanic in the first 4 boss’s lives, and will REALLY pressure your healers if not handled properly. It chooses a target, and will do an INCREDIBLE amount of damage to them, but will be split to anyone standing in the line connecting the two. Five people + the aimed person are recommended as a minimum to split, but it can’t just be any players. Even with 6, that still means 700k+ damage to each, therefore they need to be certain classes that can take that damage. Mages, Warlocks, Rogues, and Monks are the only real options, but Shadow Priests can go as well if they have dispersion available. This is extremely important as the healer to recognize, because you need to be cautious of each effected player and give them some pre-shielding to pad, or heal them to full before they go in, then heal them up again quickly after it’s over, especially if they Cauterized as Mages. Another huge issue is the likelihood that one of these people will get selected, or die. Because of this, we have around 8-9 people responsible for it, but that’s on your general strategy, just mentioning it to alert healers to the potential.
Before we finalize the discussion, also be aware that you can use any ability that takes you off the combat table to escape the aim. Spectral Guise for Priests is the only healing spec that has one, but between mages, rogues, and hunters, you should have a large portion of your raid able to avoid ever having to soak it.
Both Aim and Rapid Fire can become extremely complicated by both mechanics Ka’roz does. He is the final kill, but has some really important mechanics, so make sure whoever is calling these things out is loud and clear. If Aim happens with a Whirl, be prepared to see some ranged get in serious trouble. If Rapid Fire happens with Hurl Amber, be prepared to see some ticks of magic damage go out from the puddles! They both overlap once each with our current strategy.
- Xaril the Colorful:
This is our fifth kill, and he is killed as soon as he is down so his extremely dangerous abilities will only happen for one boss life. Also, you should note that this is where we use Bloodlust, Second potions, and line up Skull Banners with Hisek’s death gift known as Compound Eye. If used by a ranged DPS, it makes the boss take 15 percent more damage for 10 seconds as well as doing a lot of damage. Use all these things to your advantage, and if you are lucky, you will only see one mechanic.
The mechanic set he possess is simple, but its combination is what makes it absolutely lethal. The mechanic is known as Catalyst, and happens in two steps. Firstly, he assigns each player a color. The next step is the toxin that is distributed, but it’s COMPLETELY different than it was on Normal, so let’s take a moment to learn each now.
Purple Reaction – Least deadly, should do zero damage unless player is DCed or colorblind. Have them run in a small circle and then make a Q shape at the last second. Only healing complication is that it should be ran far away from the other mechanics, so you may be out of range of tanks. Effects players with Red or Blue selection.
Orange Reaction – Middle of the pack, worry-wise, but if handled should also do zero damage. Expands a ring of death a few yards in a 360 degree area from the target when the toxin reaches them. Need all players to run far away so the whole raid isn’t in jeopardy. Melee have it the hardest, so be ready to heal them up quickly, especially if a tank gets it. Effects Yellow and Red selected players.
Green Reaction – Most retarded idea for a mechanic ever, and if you get it on this encounter, you are really pressured for the remainder. All targets effected place a small green cloud under them, which roams randomly and deals damage over time to anyone who gets in it, even for a second. This is the only one that should be an issue, so if you see it go out, be ready to heal the life out of the melee. The clouds do as they please, especially later on, and will just wander right into the tank or melee pile and make things ridiculously harder. Soaking them really isn’t an option, despite the journal entry.
We are fortunate to have enough burst dps to only see one set of mechanics, if everyone utilizes Lust, banners, totems, and the Compound eye along with their second potion. We 6 heal as well, while many groups want to 5 heal this fight. If you are lucky, you will never see green.
Since this only happens once, it’s unlikely it will be complicated by anything else, but it is possible the Hurl Amber may do so. If this is the case, you just have to hope you are in good position to dodge both at once, especially if it was just Orange reaction. This is why this phase is so difficult though.
- Kaz’tik the Bug Gym Leader:
KOOCHONGS! Actually, its spelled Kunchongs, but regardless, this is our 6th kill. He does nothing. His bugs do a LOT though. Obviously, if someone is too close to the bug, they die and it’s a wipe pretty much, as not only did you lose a player, but now you have to quickly burst down a bug before you lose more. Just don’t let this happen. Call out players that aren’t paying attention.
We will mention Sonic Projection, as it says in the journal that it picks a random player to fire at, but to my experience, it certainly does NOT. It just fires in the direction he is facing. If he turns to do something else, it will fire at the group, but otherwise, it just shoots at the tank, and they can dodge it if they are active. Either way, if it hits a player it will nearly 1-shot them, so be ready to heal them up quickly.
The only real mechanic is the Mesmerize that forces you to fixate on a bug and walk towards them. Once again, Spectral Guide etc can be used to break this. However, it you should have to deal with it, be ready to pump all healing into that target asap. They will immediately be marked with a star, and could use anything you can afford to give them, even an external.
Another really useful trick is to life grip them away if they are too close. Since there are three bugs and we are all spread out, it’s pretty likely that the one you target may be one closest to you, but if you get lucky, it will always be one across the room. Either way, heal em up!
The only real complication here is blindness. When the Hurl Amber comes out, you just see people moving for no reason, and quite often, this causes them to run into a bug and get eaten. Just stay calmmmm guys. Nothing about this is the healers fault though, so hopefully you don’t have to worry.
- Iyyokuk the Mentally Unstable:
It’s the finallll count down! WOOO you have reached the last three bosses, as this is our 7th kill, but is out for three life spans. This seems dangerous at first, but we found we had way more issues with the Kunchongs than we did simply healing through the fire, so we just elected to make a healing rotation, and worry about him later on.
Our Spread. Feel free to edit as your needs see fit.
I have no idea what any of his mechanics mean or how the whole selection process works, but it really doesn’t matter. Refer to the chart to see how we handle our Fiery Edge phases. We account for 9-10, but if you have strong DPS you should only see 8 using this strategy.
Also, account for Diminish. It can ruin you, but realistically, it shouldn’t be a concern. It will execute anyone low enough, so if you ever see someone sitting low, do anything in your power to heal them up immediately.
The fire complicates every other mechanic, and the Whirl, Amber, and various forms of spreading out make this even more difficult. The main reason, is people are trying to avoid the beams if they don’t have them, but forced movement forces even more movement. Just be preemptive with raid CDs and you shouldn’t have many issues. Hopefully this is where you will use your rezzes, so realistically, a few deaths aren’t that big of a deal.
- Kil’ruk I’m so Sick of Abilities that Force me to move:
If you are on this boss, it’s pretty much over unless you have like 7 people alive. This boss will still present some issues though, so let’s examine them.
Long story short, at this point, the tanks will be getting absolutely obliterated. Luckily, with Iyyokuk dead, there shouldn’t be any other damage going out aside from him. Keep the tanks alive at ALL costs here, because if they don’t survive, and you do hit the enrage, you probably won’t survive it.
Death from Above is tough to dodge, but shouldn’t 1-shot you. The only real option is to anticipate it and run before he jumps. Otherwise, it’s a non-factor. Just keep moving and hope players live.
Reave is the only thing that really sucks here. It does do a lot of damage, and can be a big pain if you aren’t noticing it. He will be down from the last few kills, so just be careful of the other mechanics out and don’t get dragged through them.
- Ka’roz the Pest:
This boss is the last kill, but is actually out since the first boss goes down, like 45 seconds into this 12 minute encounter. Because of this, his mechanics are extremely potent by the end, but luckily they are all 100 percent avoidable. They do, however, cause the most disruption with other mechanics, so its important we are aware of them and how they work.
The first one is called Flash and Whirl, depending on which you consider the actual mechanic. He will charge around at players and leave some greenish trail behind him indicating how insanely fast this man is, or something like that. That trail, if stood in it, will stun you next time he charges, which is just a second after. So all you have to do its move out of it, by strafing left or right! Easy!
Problem is, it’s extremely common for him to simply charge the same direction, just back the other way this time, meaning there are two lines right next to each other, causing you to move from one right into the other. This means you have to move again, and by that time, another mechanic has likely happened, and now you are either stunned or dead. RIP
Luckily for you, the debuff you get from being stuck, can be removed with Blessing of Protection! In order to make this easier, add the spell ID – 143701 to your frames, and then you will see when anyone is hit by them. Even if you aren’t a paladin healer, you should still be aware of this. Not knowing means them dying likely, but being aware may mean saving their life!
This mechanic is the main complicating factor in the encounter, and will happen with pretty much every other one out there. The biggest issue is after Korven dies, he does a flash and Hisek does Rapid Fire while everyone is heading to their spread locations. We almost always lose some one here, but the more you do the fight the better you’ll get at it. It’s also really handy that Rapid Fire is physical, because if someone DOES get stuck, they can be bopped and wont risk dying to either. This also complicates Fiery Edge and Aim quite severely, as already discussed.
The other mechanic he does is called Hurl Amber. It’s highly telegraphed, as he will fly up in the air, then leap down and throw the amber at a spot on the ground. This spot will also have a tell, a spurt of orange goo from the location. There will be three of these, so make sure you move as a raid when stacked up, and individually when spread. This mechanic will eventually grow so strong that 1 tick of it will be near instant death, especially if you aren’t prepared, so towards the end if you aren’t paying attention to it, you will wipe the group.
It’s complicated once again by pretty much every other mechanic, especially Rapid Fire and Reave, but also the Colored Reactions from Xaril. Having to move from two things at once is always tricky, especially when they are both in separate patterns.
TLDR Recap –
Well that’s it, that’s the entire fight. I’ll try to quickly summarize everything you need to know as a healer.
Only other thing to remember is using BoP on those stuck in Whirl, Lifegrip those with mesmerize fixation, and use Spectral Guise if you are targeted with aim or mesmerize yourself. Otherwise, just heal people who need it and pray everyone dodges all the mecanics!
As always, this guide is from the perspective of a Holy Paladin in 25 man heroic raid leadership perspective. Experience is limited when it comes to priest and monk healers, so if you have input feel free to join the conversation! Otherwise, if you have any questions feel free to ask! Enjoy SoO!