WotLK classic The Antechamber of Ulduar Wing Raid Guide

The Antechamber of Ulduar will provide a real challenge to champions. Learn how to defeat the three encounters in the second wing of this raid. 

Ulduar has 14 bosses you will need to face to get all the excellent and high quality rewards from it. These foes are scattered through five wings of the raid, and you need to complete four of them in a specific order.

Once you have finished the Siege of Ulduar, you will need to beat the bosses in The Antechamber before you can farm WotLK Classic gold in the Inner Sanctum. This guide will help players learn how to hit all the challenges in the second wing of this raid.

The Antechamber of Ulduar

This wing only contains three bosses, which players must face in order. Ulduar becomes increasingly more complex when you enter this part, as each fight will now have certain gimmicks that the party needs to figure out. Only one instance has a Hard Mode version to get better WotLK items since the other two are already complicated enough. Here are all the three main fights in The Antechamber:

·       Assembly of Iron (Steelbreaker, Runemaster Molgeim, and Stormcaller Brundir)

·       Kologarn

·       Auriaya

There are technically five bosses in the Antechamber since the Assembly of Iron has three entities that you fight simultaneously. These encounters will feature specific mechanics that players must learn to navigate through. 

The Antechamber Bosses

Assembly of Iron (Steelbreaker, Runemaster Molgeim, and Stormcaller Brundir)

The Assembly (also known as the Iron Council) is composed of three Titan-forged entities, Steelbreaker, Runemaster Molgeim, and Stormcaller Brundir. Each character has abilities and health bars, so champions must kill them one by one while fighting them simultaneously. However, the raid party’s main problem isn’t about their unique HP but how they react to others.

The main gimmick in the Assembly of Iron is that every time one of the bosses dies, the HP of the remaining foes will heal back to total health. In addition, the surviving Titan-forge will also gain stacking buffs of Supercharge and gain new abilities when one of them dies, which makes them even more vital. This encounter also has a hard mode, which makes these bosses more challenging.

The way this fight is programmed is that you should defeat Steelbreaker first, then Molgeim, and Brundir as the last one. To enter hard mode for this instance, you will need to beat the bosses in reverse. Brundir will be your first target, and you end up defeating Steelbreaker.

Normal Assembly of Iron

Since each boss functions individually, it is essential for players to learn their abilities and know why they need to defeat them in a specific order. The fight will get harder depending on the sequence the Titan-forge beings are eliminated. Here are the attacks of each boss:

Steelbreaker

·       Electrical Charge – The boss heals for 40% of his max health and gains a 20% increase in damage dealt every time a player dies. 

·       Fusion Punch – an attack that deals 35000 nature damage and adds 20000 DoT.

·       High Voltage – deals 3000 Nature damage every three seconds.

·       Overwhelming Power – Steelbreaker increases damage dealt to a tank by 200%, which results in a meltdown after 25 seconds.

·       Static Disruption – attacks enemies in an area with 7000 nature damage and increases their damage taken from this type of element by 75% for 20 seconds. 

Runemaster Molgeim

·       Rune of Death – summons a rune at a random player’s location, which deals 3500 shadow damage to anyone within 13 yards every half a second. 

·       Rune of Power – conjures a rune on an ally and increases the damage dealt to all allies and enemies within five yards by 50% for one minute.

·       Rune of Summoning – summons a rune near a random target, periodically spawning Lightning Elementals that will chase down a random player and explode. 

·       Shield of Runes – creates a rune shield around Molgeim, which can absorb up to 50,000 damage. If the protection reaches its threshold, it will transform into a burst of energy, increasing the boss’ damage by 50% for 15 seconds.

Stormcaller Brundir

·       Chain Lightning – attacks a player with a lightning bolt arc that bounces up to five times.

·       Lightning Tendrils – Brundir shoots out lightning tendrils from his chest, attacking every player around him for 5000 nature damage every second.

·       Lightning Whirl – the boss spins around to throw bolts of lightning at random targets, which deals 5655 to 6345 nature damage.

·       Overload – charges energy into a single ball of lightning, which grows for six seconds until it explodes. The explosion deals 20000 nature damage to any player within 20 yards and knocks them down.

·       Stormshield – conjures a shield that makes Brundir immune to stun effects and damages attacks for 250 nature damage.

When the fight starts, you will want to focus all your DPS on Steelbreaker. You wouldn’t want him to be 2nd or the 3rd foe to defeat because he has one of the most hard-hitting abilities among the three that can quickly kill tanks.

While you burst Steelbreaker, one of the tanks should ensure that they aggro both Molgeim and Brundir away to prevent skills such as Rune of Power and Overload from landing on the party. The most notable thing to do in this sequence is purge Fusion Punch as quickly as possible.

After Steelbreaker is taken down, you should employ a similar tactic while fighting Molgeim. As you fight the second boss, one of the tanks should maintain Brundir’s aggro and avoid the primary fight. Here is how players should deal with each attack:

·       During Rune of Power, ensure that the tank lures Molgeim outside the rune’s AoE but close enough for DPS members to receive the buff. 

·       Shield Rune should not be destroyed. Instead, try to Purge it or have a mage take it using Spellsteal.

·       Make sure that the Rune of Death never spawns near or inside the Rune of Power to avoid that area being unusable. 

After defeating Brundir, it is time to beat the final boss. The Stormcaller unlocks Lightning Whirl, Stormshield, and Lightning Tendrils upon gaining two stacks of Supercharge. Brundir has a lot of deadly attacks since he becomes fully buffed after the defeat of the Steelbreaker and Brundir.

Fortunately, his abilities should be easy to counter if you know when to use specific skills. Here are all the attacks to counter:

·       Overload should be avoided. You cannot dispel or interrupt this cast; it is one of the deadliest attacks in the Stormcaller’s arsenal. 

·       Lightning Whirl can be interrupted, so make sure one of your tanks has an interrupt or stun available. 

·       When Brundir casts Lightning Tendrils and flies up into the air, all melee players should move away from him while the targeted player runs around to kite the Stormcaller. Only re-engage the boss when he returns to normal. 

Hard mode 

If you are planning to enter Hard mode, you will employ a similar tactic until the last boss. Focus on the Stormcaller while one of the tanks lures Molgeim and Steelbreaker. Afterward, the party should operate the same strategy against the Runemaster as in normal mode. When Steelbreaker is left, the raid should be ready for a brutal fight. Here is how to deal with each of his attacks:

·       Be careful with Fusion Punch because it can melt down your tank, so healers should be ready to cure wounded members.

·       Static Disruption will apply a threatening debuff, so the best way to counter it is to lure the attack from the raiding party. The healers should be stationed away from the leading group to bait Steelbreaker to attack them instead.

·       Overwhelming Power will ensure that at least one tank dies every 30 seconds due to Meltdown. Make sure the buffed champion moves away from the leading group while another tank takes over the aggro before the status expires. Once Meltdown happens, an explosion will occur that deals significant damage and will insta-kill the affected player. Healers should make sure that they can revive the downed teammate.

·       Since the death of one teammate is ensured every 30 seconds, parties need to race against the time and defeat Steelbreaker before he gains too many stacks of Electrical Charge. After he reaches three stacks of this buff, it is almost impossible to defeat the boss because he can now one-shot your tanks. 

·       Aside from saving your bonus damage cooldowns for the final fight, players can also ensure that the Rune of Power from Molgeim is summoned before he is removed from the battle. This rune has an AoE buff that can significantly boost the party’s damage, but the tank should make sure that Steelbreaker is never under the affected area.

Kologarn

Kologarn is the second boss players will face in The Antechamber, which has a unique setup. This boss a stationary and cannot be rotated. The boss is targetable, but champions must also damage his two hands. The two limbs have separate HP, and you must defeat them separately while fighting them simultaneously. 

This fight is even more challenging because players can fall from the platform they are fighting on. Fortunately, this boss doesn’t have a Hard Mode, so you shouldn’t worry about accidentally triggering a more difficult battle. Here are all the abilities of Kologarn:

·       Focused Eyebeam – attacks enemies within three yards with 3238 to 3762 arcane damage.

·       Overhead Smash – buffs his next attack with bonus physical damage, which will also decrease the armor of players hit by 25% for 45 seconds. The debuff can stack up to four times.

·       Petrifying Breath – a breath attack that deals 18750 to 21250 nature damage every one sec, which will also increase the damage taken by affected players by 20% for eight seconds.

·       Shockwave – a massive arm sweep that results in a shockwave that deals around 15000 nature damage.

·       Stone Grip – grabs a player, rendering them stunned, and deals around 3500 physical damage every second until the arm has received 480,000 damage.

·       Stone Nova – attacks players with around 5000 physical damage within ten yards and inflicts a 5% increase in damage taken debuff for 10 seconds, which can stack multiple times.

The whole fight is about mitigating the debuffs and destroying each target in a specific manner. Every time the raid defeats an arm, Kologarn’s main body’s HP decreases by 15%, so players should prioritize the appendages. Unfortunately, defeating one arm will spawn constructs known as Rubbles, which can cast Stone Nova. The party should ensure that these adds have been destroyed before they move on to the next limb.

These adds should be lured away from the main party and into a corner before they can cast Stone Nova. DPS players with AoE attacks should ensure they destroy these constructs before they deal severe damage to the tank, luring them away. Ideally, only casters should attack these summs because melee champions will also receive the Stone Nova debuff if they attempt to cleave them.

The tricky thing about the fight is after defeating an arm since it will respawn after 50 to 60 seconds. While it can be a bit troublesome, it also gives the party multiple chances of removing 15% of the main body’s HP. Players will need to prioritize when arm over the other.

The right arm (the left one when facing Kologarn) is the high-priority target because it is the one used for Stone Grip. By focusing damage on it, players can clear the DPS check when three teammates get grabbed by the ability. Failure to release the raid members will result in their death. After dealing with the right arm and Rubbles that spawn after it, players can now move on to the Left Arm. 

Players should note that the main body is targetable during the whole ordeal, so cleave and splash damage attacks are effective in this fight. Gamers should know how to deal with each move to react accordingly. Here is what you need to do for each of Kologarn’s abilities:

·       Since Overhead Smash inflicts Crunch Armor, which reduces armor by 25% for 45 seconds, tanks should consider swapping out now and then to avoid the debuff from stacking. 

·       When Kologarn casts Focused beam, make sure the targeted player runs to the back of the platform and stays away from the leading group.

·       Ensure that members of your raid are in the melee range of Kologarn, or else he will cast Petrifying Breath, which has a high chance of wiping your party.

Auriaya

The third and last boss of this wing is Auriaya. Starting the encounter will require extreme caution as Sanctum Sentries accompany this Titan-forge being. These mobs can instantly one-shot most party members due to their Strength of the Pack Aura, which improves their attacks. Aside from the opening pool, Auriaya will also summon a Guardian Swarm and a Feral Defender, which players must also deal with.

The key to fighting Auriaya is properly pulling the mobs away from the boss to avoid unnecessary damage. To ensure that tanks can efficiently lure these foes, they should learn the skills these enemies can use in the raid. Here are all the abilities of the mobs and the boss:

Auriaya 

·       Guardian Swarm – orders the Guardian Swarm to attack a specific player.

·       Sentinel Blast – unleashes a massive blast that deals 6000 shadow damage, which also increases affected targets’ vulnerability to shadow damage by 100% for 5 seconds. 

·       Sonic Scream – releases a shockwave that deals 200000 physical damage to any enemy in its path. Damage is shared between those affected.

·       Terrifying Screech – unleashes a horrifying scream that causes players to flee in horror for 5 seconds.

Sanctum Sentry

·       Strength of the Pack – increases the damage dealt by all pack members by 30% if they are within 10 yards of each other.

·       Savage Pounce – lunges at a target for 6000 damage and inflicts 4000 physical damage every one sec for five seconds.

Feral Defender

·       Feral Pounce – pounces on a random target to deal shadow damage and stun them for five seconds.

·       Feral Rush – attacks a target with shadow damage and interrupts spellcasting for six seconds.

·       Seeping Feral Essence – when the Defender dies, it leaves an AoE zone that deals 6500 shadow damage every second.

The most challenging part of this fight is in the beginning because if you pull Auriaya incorrectly, your raid party will get wiped. The key to initiating the battle is to ensure that the whole group is behind one of the stairways to avoid the line of sight of the Sentries. Once the boss and the mobs are in melee range, one tank should pull Auriaya while another lures the four adds away.

The tank pulling the sentries should ensure they use their defense cooldowns efficiently. While these mobs are distracted, casters should ensure they burst down these foes quickly before they overwhelm the one pulling them. Hard-hitting AoE abilities should be used here to ensure that the sentries are quickly taken down.

After getting past the most challenging part, you can now safely DPS Auriaya, but you have to ensure that your utility spells are ready. There are also specific tactics during certain sequences that the party should take note of. Here are all the strategies you need to execute during the fight:

·       Every 40 seconds, Auriaya will use Terrifying Screech and follow it up with Sentinel Blast. Make sure to use your utilities to dispel the fear debuff so that you can interrupt the follow-up attack to prevent the heavy AoE damage. 

·       When Auriaya is about to use Sonic Screech, ensure the bulk of the party, if not everyone, is in front of the boss to spread the damage between the members. This ensures that harm to your tanks is mitigated.

·       Swarming Guardians that spawn every 45 seconds can be quickly cleared due to having low HP.

·       When the Feral Defender spawns, bring them to the edge of the arena or an area where the raiding party barely goes. Killing these mobs will spawn the Seeping Feral Essence, which will remain for the whole fight. Positioning them at the corners will ensure that the allies will not be hindered during the battle. 

·       Make sure to be generous in using your stuns and disable them against the Defenders to stop them from using their crowd-controls on the party.

Rewards

There are a lot of promising rewards from this wing, which many players may want. It is always best to run the 25-man party to get the most out of the loot. Here are all the drops you can get from each encounter:

Assembly of Iron 

·       10-man Party

o   Cloak of the Iron Council

o   Runetouch Wristwraps

o   Boots of the Petrified Forest

o   Leggings of Swift Reflexes

o   Circle of True Sight

o   Belt of the Iron Servant

o   Greaves of Iron Intensity

o   Stormtip

o   Lady Maye’s Sapphire Ring

o   Rune-Etched Nightblade

·       10-man Party (Hard Mode)

o   Belt of the Crystal Tree

o   Perilous Bite

o   The Masticator

o   Watchful Eye of Fate

o   Loop of the Agile

·       25-man Party

o   Drape of the Lithe

o   Overload Legwraps

o   Raiments of the Iron Council

o   Phaelia’s Vestments of the Sprouting Seed

o   Runed Ironhide Boots

o   Iron-studded Mantle

o   Runeshaper’s Gloves

o   Ancient Iron Heaume

o   Handguards of the Enclave

o   Steelbreaker’s Embrace

o   Rapture

o   Stormrune Edge

o   Insurmountable Fervor

o   Unblinking Eye

o   Radiant Seal

·       25-man Party (Hard Mode)

o   Drape of Mortal Downfall

o   Shoulderpads of the Intruder

o   Greaves of Swift Vengeance

o   Belt of Colossal Rage

o   Fang of Oblivion

o   Sapphire Amulet of Renewal

Kologarn

·       10-man Party

o   Shawl of the Shattered Giant

o   Greaves of the Earthbinder

o   Shoulderguards of the Solemn Watch

o   Sabatons of the Iron Watcher

o   Stoneguard

o   Spire of Withering Dreams

o   Mark of the Unyielding

o   Pendant of the Piercing Glare

o   Emerald Signet Ring

o   Spark of Hope

·       25-man Party

o   Robes of the Umbral Brute

o   Braces of Unleashed Magic

o   Handwraps of Plentiful Recovery

o   Shoulderpads of the Monolith

o   Leggings of the Stoneweaver

o   Unfaltering Armguards

o   Decimator’s Armguards

o   Gloves of the Pythonic Guardian

o   Saronite Plated Legguards

o   Giant’s Bane

o   Ironmender

o   Malice

o   Necklace of Unerring Mettle

o   Wrathstone

o   Idol of the Crying Wind

Auriaya

·       10-man Party

o   Raiments of the Corrupted

o   Mantle of the Preserver

o   Cover of the Keepers

o   Nimble Climber’s Belt

o   Ironaya’s Discarded Mantle

o   Archaeda’s Lost Legplates

o   Chestplate of Titanic Fury

o   Shieldwall of the Breaker

o   Nurturing Touch

o   Elemental Focus Stone

·       25-man Party

o   Cloak of the Makers

o   Cowl of the Absolute

o   Sandals of the Ancient Keeper

o   Gloves of the Stonereaper 

o   Unwavering Stare

o   Amice of the Stoic Watch

o   Greaves of the Rockmender

o   Unbreakable Chestguard

o   Shoulderplates of the Eternal

o   Siren’s Cry 

o   Stonerender

o   Runescribed Blade

o   Ring of the Faithful Servant

o   Platinum Band of the Aesir

o   Libram of the Resolute

Communicate with your team

Even if you have read and mastered the guide, your efficiency in the Antechamber won’t manifest unless you communicate with your party. Properly relaying messages and tactics will help the whole team farm WotLK Classic gold more effectively as you go through the Ulduar Raid.

Make sure to share what you learned with your teammates.