Are any Vault of the Artificers challenges soloable..

[Gate-keeper]

...for a f2p Rgr9/Ftr1/Rog1? Maybe with a plat hireling.

[Jingwei]

You should be able to do any of the Rushmore's Mansion challenges just having the hireling follow you.

If you have trouble keeping yourself healed, think you'd have trouble with any of the Kobold island ones. Since leaving the hireling behind to protect an extractor is part of what you have to do. (And not just any hireling, think Flare (lvl 8 sorc) and Larafay (lvl 15 FVS) are the only two heroic hirelings who are both survivable and killy enough.

It's possible to do buying time (Dragons Horde) without actually fighting anything, so that one should be possible too. Not the other dragons horde things should be possible, though you may have to retry a few times to get a favorable crystal formation that doesn't require you to run around the dungeon. Also helps to be able to leave your hire at the start, to kill monsters to come to the base. You also have to know when the named monsters show up at the base, as even Lara has trouble against them alone.

For the Lava caves, think Circles of power and Time is money are doable. But think you'd have real trouble with Colossal Crystals, unless you have a pair of paralyzing weapons, or similar excellent crowd control options.

[OwenMay]

I will give you a starter way with which you should usually be able to complete and avoid a no gain situtation.
You need:
Striding, as all quests are timed.
A quickbar where you set up the items you get in the challenge for faster use.
An organized inventory with a free bag so you know where items will apear.
Some sort of self healing on the run.
Not bother with optionals the first 2 or 3 times.

Lava caves: Collect the 2 torches at the entrance behind you. Wait at the Kobold vendor until you can afford 1 healing, about 4 incense torches, a kobold teleporter and all extra kobolds. Collect the torches leading to the north and east, replace the one leading towards the teleporter field with a healing one, leave the hireling in aggressive mode there.
Lay a road of torches along the western path, make sure each torch is connected by a visible red (normal) or blue (healing) line. After you run out of torches continue that path until you reach a field that looks like the one in the starter room (light shield with sparks), place the teleporter in it and use it to go back to the start. Buy the rest of the incense torches from the vendor and again go the western path, this time collect the torches you just placed exept the healing one that leads to the teleporter.
When you reach the teleporter (Kobolds will go back and forth through it) start a line deeper down the path away from the entry. Eventually you will reach the minimum amount of crystal you need and have time left to figure it out a bit.
Colossal Crystals you shouldnt try as f2p, you can trade other resources in if you really want those scorpions.

Dragon horde works much the same way, do it after you completed lava caves a couple of times.

Kobold Island - you need to kill kobolds and destroy kobold shrines to get resources with which you have to activate machines placed over the map, the map will be revealed at the start, enlarge it and go to the symbols which say small extractor, activate and guard those (first one with your hire, later ones with towers that you can construct there). After you activated all four of them start upgrading them, upgrading also heals them to 100%, so go to the ones with the lower health first. Dont try to upgrade more than 2 in your first attempt, as it costs the same resources you need to complete the challenge and you will likely not be very fast.

For rushmores mansion you should read up on the wiki about it and look at the map there, you will likely still not be able to complete it on the first attempt though. Most important thing to know is that you should open all doors in the first level and destroy all the inventory in the rooms while your hire does the killing before you insert the crests in the door to the next level. Same for the inventory at the entrance area of the second level. That will most of the time give you enough crests to reach a boss room.

In all of those quests there will be mobs in the way and often mob spawns that try to hinder you. Kill them when you see them is a good rule to start with as they will also attack kobolds, extractors etc.
If you fail the main objective you get no resources, no matter the score. If you achieve the main objective the amount of resources you get depends on your score.
It dosent matter if you die, you still get resources if the main objective is met.

[AbyssalMage]

...for a f2p Rgr9/Ftr1/Rog1? Maybe with a plat hireling.

Of all of the challenges, the only one I currently struggle with is Rushmore Mansion. Rushmore Mansion: Moving Targets I complete but struggle with only because the Boss NPC's seem to have gotten a HP/DPS boost. Not saying this is true but I struggle noticeable on them. Rushmore Manshion:Picture Portals I have still yet to complete :( And I need for my ring.

Extra-planar Palace - I usually park the Hireling at the entrance with the Foreman. Work fast and make sure to fight the NPC's in the alcove. Otherwise I have yet to find anything "too special" about these.

Kobald Island - I have not done Kobald:Shortcuts yet so can't comment on that one. Kobald: Disruptor I have about a 40-60% success rate because I fail to find the Disruptor in a timely manner. If their is a secret to finding him/knowing his spawn location I haven't personally figured it out :( Otherwise the first two (Chaos/Disruptor) are not too difficult. Someone made a nice video where to park your hireling for easy completion.

Lava Caves - Lava caves: Colossal Crystal, you want a certain map. You want the map with the Octopus and Security Ward "near" the entrance. If you don't get it, shrine and recall. Circles of Power is pretty simple, if you get a good crystal cluster you will finish with lots of extra time. Time is Money I have never done :( I park the mercenary at the teleporter (Colossal/Circles) so that any incoming attacks come near them. The ability to use DD makes this challenge chain much easier. I have done it without but it's a pain when you get multiple "incoming" in short intervals.

I used Youtube to watch how to complete most of the ones above. I adapted them to fit my play style but basically without the videos I probably would have never finished some of them. Lava Caves: Colossal Crystal I struggled with A LOT until watching the video and excepting that you want the Security and Octopus Ward is specific places on the map. Rushmore Mansion: Picture Portals is just driving me crazy. I will figure it out sooner or later though.

[droid327]

Every challenge is completely soloable at-level for any viable build, although some of them you'll occasionally get skunked by random things (ie, bosses jump around in Moving Targets, or not enough good spawns of crystals in Lava Caves where you can get to them). All you need is a Cleric hireling, really, and a knowledge of what to do in the quest.

The only challenge I really avoid is Colossal Crystals, just because its super annoying having to protect the Kobold. I just run Moving Targets and convert the Manuscripts to Jade Scorpions.

on Kobold Island you can build up to 5 turrets to protect the Extractors, by the way - you'll get a feel for an order of operations that lets you activate them in the quickest time. I usually go due south, hit the Kobold camp, then activate 2, kill kobolds to the SW, build turret at 2, activate 1, build turret at 1, kill kobolds on the way to 4, activate 4, build turret, head up to 3 and activate, and then put 1 turret on either side of Extractor 3 at the access points. Then, upgrade the extractors in the same order (2-1-4-3).

Then I either hit secondary objectives for more XP, or I go activate a Large extractor and camp out there defending it manually to maximize my Dragonshards, and just let the small extractors last as long as they can :)

[nibel]

Kobald: Disruptor I have about a 40-60% success rate because I fail to find the Disruptor in a timely manner. If their is a secret to finding him/knowing his spawn location I haven't personally figured it out :(

He show up on the map as a red dot, like the portal keepers in CitW.

[Enguebert]

All challenges can be soloed
Be aware that challenges scales heavily with party size, and even a hireling can add a lot of trouble

For example, colossal cristal, when the kobold take the colossal cristal at bat crest, here is the following spawning

Solo : 1 scorpio, 1 drow, 1 drow, 1 or 2 lion, 1 giant
Solo + hireling : 2 scorpio, 1 drow, 2 or 3 drow, 4 lions, 1 giant

And all monsters have more hp in large group. So it is often easier to solo them to succeed. But if you go for starts, it is better to go in groups

The only exception is Dr Rushmore, where being able to split in 2 groups give you more time because you open more doors

Be also aware that some challenges are easier at lower levels (especially when you need to protect kobolds, it is easier when monster don't spam AoE spells), but sometimes higher levels are easier (especially for spellcasters, having instant death spell can help a lot)

The most difficult challenges are :

- Colossal cristal. You first need to find crests (sometimes they are badly placed), then the hardest part is to keep the kobold who get the colossal cristal alive and running (Invisibility can help a little, but basically you need to be all the time with him or just in front to get aggro). You don't need to kill all the monsters, you just be sure that nothing aggro on him (and nothing cast AoE spells)
- Disruptor. Especially EPIC one. The key is to kill quickly the giant skeleton, but as a melee, it can be a pain. And lately, in EPIC, i often have the disruptor spawning TWICE during the 15 min

[AbyssalMage]

He show up on the map as a red dot, like the portal keepers in CitW.
Thanks for the tip. I may have to run it a few times just so I can exact some revenge :) (And get my win % higher)

[EllisDee37]

If you can solo without a hire, Disruptor is one of the easier challenges.

1) Activate all 4 smalls, using the 4 totems near them for parts. As you turn on each one, wait for the 2 mobs to spawn and kill them before moving to the next small. It's not a big deal if one of these falls, but try to put it right back up if so.

2) Once all 4 smalls are up and running, start upgrading them. Each one you upgrade, also put a turret next to it. (Placement matters; make sure they're a little ways away from extractor with clean line of sight to where the mobs attack from.) Kill any mobs before upgrading and constructing the turret, so that when you leave that extractor it's 100% with a 100% turret defending it. NOTE: While running to each extractor, try to kill a non-totemed group of kobolds for extra parts.

3) Once all 4 smalls are upgraded with a turret on each, you're essentially done. You can run around and defend the smalls but you don't need to. With proper placement, the turrets can defend the smalls all by themselves. This frees you up to wait for and hunt the disruptor. When the disruptor isn't on the map, it doesn't hurt to help defend the extractors but there is very little pressure thanks to the turrets.

If you get this all set with 5 or 6 minutes left, and the disruptor isn't on the map, you can fire up a large if you like. But that you have to defend straight up, since you won't have any more turret reqs to work with. And if the disruptor shows up you have to abandon the large, and it will get destroyed pretty quick. So I typically just stick to smalls.

Any scaling beyond pure solo (ie: if you bring a hireling) makes this not work. The turrets get overwhelmed.

[johnnyputrid]

If you can solo without a hire, Disruptor is one of the easier challenges.

1) Activate all 4 smalls, using the 4 totems near them for parts. As you turn on each one, wait for the 2 mobs to spawn and kill them before moving to the next small. It's not a big deal if one of these falls, but try to put it right back up if so.

2) Once all 4 smalls are up and running, start upgrading them. Each one you upgrade, also put a turret next to it. (Placement matters; make sure they're a little ways away from extractor with clean line of sight to where the mobs attack from.) Kill any mobs before upgrading and constructing the turret, so that when you leave that extractor it's 100% with a 100% turret defending it. NOTE: While running to each extractor, try to kill a non-totemed group of kobolds for extra parts.

3) Once all 4 smalls are upgraded with a turret on each, you're essentially done. You can run around and defend the smalls but you don't need to. With proper placement, the turrets can defend the smalls all by themselves. This frees you up to wait for and hunt the disruptor. When the disruptor isn't on the map, it doesn't hurt to help defend the extractors but there is very little pressure thanks to the turrets.

If you get this all set with 5 or 6 minutes left, and the disruptor isn't on the map, you can fire up a large if you like. But that you have to defend straight up, since you won't have any more turret reqs to work with. And if the disruptor shows up you have to abandon the large, and it will get destroyed pretty quick. So I typically just stick to smalls.

Any scaling beyond pure solo (ie: if you bring a hireling) makes this not work. The turrets get overwhelmed.

Exactly the strategy I use myself. The only things I do different are to place a second turret on Extractor 3 set to cover the downslope area facing Extractor 4, because that one tends to be targeted by archers from below who can of course accurately fire an arrow from anywhere in the universe.

I also like to upgrade each turret to level 2 if I have the time for the extra star. Usually I kill the lantern archon 1st chance I get to cover the extra shards this costs. If for whatever reason I can't kill the archon or get to him quick enough, I don't bother with the upgrades. But when solo, a lvl 2 turret can usually kill the Entropic skeleton by itself.

I would also emphasize the no-hireling, no-party members thing. Challenges scale up ridiculously when you add party members, live or hirelings. Once you learn the maps and figure out the quickest routes to your objectives, challenges are a cakewalk. Now if they would only up the mat return rate on the stinking kobold island challenges....

[EllisDee37]

Exactly the strategy I use myself. The only things I do different are to place a second turret on Extractor 3 set to cover the downslope area facing Extractor 4Good call, I'll have to adopt that.


I also like to upgrade each turret to level 2 if I have the time for the extra star.Nice, I wasn't aware it was a star objective. Does it give more points? As in, is this a net gain in terms of necromantic charms awarded?

[johnnyputrid]

Nice, I wasn't aware it was a star objective. Does it give more points? As in, is this a net gain in terms of necromantic charms awarded?

You won't get extra points as a result, but it does make it less likely to have a turret go down, leaving an extractor undefended. You can set up 5 turrets without a requisition form and upgrading all 5 to lvl 2 gets you the extra star. Where this comes in handy is in the last few minutes of a good run, when the red-named wheeps and mummy avengers start to show up and really beat the tar out of your extractors. The lvl 2 turrets generally generate enough hate to keep the red-names occupied and away from the extractors until you can wing it over that way.

Again, it isn't necessary, but if you are having a good run and have extra parts and shards, it doesn't really hurt to apply the upgrades.

[MartinusWyllt]

As you start learning the caves recognize that the kobolds will always take the shortest path back to the top...even where this ignores a teleporter placed behind it.

[johnnyputrid]

Of all of the challenges, the only one I currently struggle with is Rushmore Mansion. Rushmore Mansion: Moving Targets I complete but struggle with only because the Boss NPC's seem to have gotten a HP/DPS boost. Not saying this is true but I struggle noticeable on them. Rushmore Manshion:Picture Portals I have still yet to complete :( And I need for my ring.

Picture Portals is all about speed and efficiency. Time and crest drops are your real major enemy, not the monsters. The key to beating PP is to constantly keep moving, kill everything, and smash every breakable you see. This is why I generally run a monk through this challenge when mat farming, because I can blitz through it at light speed. Some tips:

1. Always take the immediate right after starting to loot the three rooms there. Plenty of breakables and occasional crests laying on the ground.
2. After that, go up the ramp immediately left of the start point. More rooms, more breakables, more crests out in the open.
3. Go for Smiling Sam, the assassin boss first. Make him your priority. To reach him, make your way to the Bath House and take the crest-locked door to the right. This leads you down a trap-filled hallway called The Back Door. You can time the flame blasts and spinning blades or just run right through them and heal up after. This leads you to a waterway area on the right, which is where the Assassin's Roost is located. Dive underwater, collect a couple crests and hop up on the pier to open his door. Kill Sam, but head upstairs before you leave. Behind a secret door up top are two random crests.
4. Head back to the bath house. From here you can go two ways - the far-left crest-locked door will take you to the Succubus and Half-Orc bosses, while the secret door in the middle of the bath house will take you down to the Mother of the Nest orange-named optional spider. Assasssin -> Mother of the Nest is a quick and easy win for around 1,000 or so points per run. When you get more confident and learn the map better, you can go for more bosses and more points.

What you need:
Detect Secret Doors clickie or True Seeing. Couple of secret doors along the way that you don't want to miss.
Deathward clickie. Some of the caster mobs and bosses (particularly the Succubus and Rushmore) will throw Enervation at you.
Fire Resistance of some sort. This makes the Back Door easier to deal with and in particular, the Kobold boss is always surrounded by at least 2 fire elementals.
The ability to not lose your mind when dealing with air elementals. The Kobold and Rushmore bosses both summon them and can make fighting them either slow and painful or completely futile depending on the situation and time remaining.

[droid327]

Picture Portals is all about speed and efficiency...

To add/modify what he said:

The actual portals in Picture Portals are a gimmick; just ignore them and run it like you run Behind the Door.

1) Yes
2) Yes. I'd also point out that the Gallery has a large amount of breakables you should hit every time, too.
3,4) I usually run a different route...I go from the Courtyard through the Banner Hall to the Observatory and then hit the Succubus and Half-orc, then backtrack to the Banner Hall, down the secret passage to hit the Mother, and then if I have time and the right crests, continue through the Bath House to the Backdoor for the Assassin. Backtracking Observatory->Banner Hall is a lot quicker than backtracking Observatory->Backdoor->Bath House, IME.

Also, who uses a Detect Secret Doors clicky? :) You can just get a Goggles of Secret Door Detection (craftable, even), and switch them on and off when you're near a secret door.

Something about Rushmore that I just learned the last couple days - if you can run it without a hireling, its a LOT easier, especially the bosses. Apparently dungeon scaling is VERY kind to them. With a hireling, I was hitting Moving Targets on-level for about 2-3 bosses per run, and having trouble taking out Crystal especially with his CC's and Water Elemental healing. Without a hireling, I got a 6-boss run solo on my tempest ranger :)

[johnnyputrid]

3,4) I usually run a different route...I go from the Courtyard through the Banner Hall to the Observatory and then hit the Succubus and Half-orc, then backtrack to the Banner Hall, down the secret passage to hit the Mother, and then if I have time and the right crests, continue through the Bath House to the Backdoor for the Assassin. Backtracking Observatory->Banner Hall is a lot quicker than backtracking Observatory->Backdoor->Bath House, IME.

I generally run a monk through challenges, so speed is not really an issue. Basically, find a comfortable path that works for you and stick to it. You can take a path that might seem less than optimal to others, but as long as you are getting a win, that is what counts.


Also, who uses a Detect Secret Doors clicky? :) You can just get a Goggles of Secret Door Detection (craftable, even), and switch them on and off when you're near a secret door.

I use them on a lot of my characters, especially if they have greensteel hit point goggles or an essential stat-boost there. Clicky, true seeing, treasure finding pots, whatever - just have a reliable method of finding secret doors.


Something about Rushmore that I just learned the last couple days - if you can run it without a hireling, its a LOT easier, especially the bosses. Apparently dungeon scaling is VERY kind to them. With a hireling, I was hitting Moving Targets on-level for about 2-3 bosses per run, and having trouble taking out Crystal especially with his CC's and Water Elemental healing. Without a hireling, I got a 6-boss run solo on my tempest ranger :)

Challenge dungeon scaling has been borked since they first came out. Not only do you get the standard dungeon scaling based on party size, but you get extra scaling on top of that. The developers are well aware of this, have commented on it and essentially ignored it. If you want to farm challenges mats, do it solo. If you want to experience the thrill of absurdly inflated monster stats, run them with a full party. :)