HoX Tips

[Isharah]

Just sharing some HoX tips we've gathered from running the raid.

On damaging Xyzzy:

• Guard procs damage the hound (untyped guards).
• Elemental spells DO NOT work on Xyzzy, even when she is vulnerable. Missile-type spells do not work either, but the disintegrate spell does.
• Summons DO NOT harm Xyzzy prior to her state of vulnerability. (TheDearLeader, http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php...44#post4230044)
• Evil outsider bane and other similar weapon effects DO NOT work on Xyzzy prior to vulnerability.
• The following spell-based debuffs DO NOT work (no roll): crushing despair, bestow curse.
• Weapon debuffs DO NOT work on Xyzzy (cursespewing, sunder, destruction, etc.).

On charms:

• Break enchantment removes the charm on puppies (with roll).
• Trash mobs can be charmed accidentally.
• Puppy charms DO NOT break when they go down to some hp value.
• Lesser globe of invulnerability DOES NOT remove puppy charm.
• Puppies DO NOT roll saves versus the charm. This means that spells/songs that increase saves (ex. GH song, holy aura) are actually beneficial to them.
• Artificer capstone DOES NOT increase the duration of the puppy charm.

On buffs:

• Relevant spell-based buffs: bull's strength, bear's endurance, cat's grace, haste, stoneskin, blur effects.
• All songs work on dogs, even the GH one (GH spell does NOT work).
• Augment summoning (feat or from Epic Roderic's Wand) works.
• Blur/displace helps (at least for the trash mobs attacking puppies).
• Rage DOES NOT work on dogs.
• Protection from evil DOES NOT prevent puppies from being charmed.
• Acid resist DOES NOT help puppies. Tharaak hounds are immune to acid to begin with.
• Lesser globe of invulnerability prevents bees on puppies, but it also removes all buffs level 4 and lower (ex. haste).
• Artificer weapon buffs DO NOT work on puppies.

To be verified:

• Effect of Sundering Ooze Guard on Xyzzy
• Charming a puppy inside a globe

About the requirements on elite PUGs, the following set-ups proved successful for us:
1. warchanter present, no augment summoning, intimitank, one center healer, one center scroll healer, 7-8 stones on 2-2-2-2 charm sequence (large beholder dispelled one set)
2. no bard present, augment summoning ok, intimitank, one center healer, one center scroll healer, 6 stones on 2-2-2 charm sequence (finished right after first large beholder spawned)
3. warchanter present, augment summoning ok, intimitank, one center healer, one center scroll healer, 6 stones on 2-2-1-1 charm sequence (small beholder dispelled one charm shortly after it was cast, 10-min completion)
3. warchanter present, augment summoning ok, intimitank, one center healer, one center scroll healer, 5 stones on 2-2-1 charm sequence (last puppy died, tank guards killed mommy dog before we could charm another puppy)


Hope this information helps, and good luck to all.

[Meficio]

Thank you for sharing.

I also like when I have a light monk in my group to have him fork by the middle and give Walk of the Sun to the puppies for +2 hit on harder difficulties...

Not sure too but if Zzyzzy breathes acid... maybe acid resists on puppies can help to save healers mana...

[Isharah]

Thank you for sharing.

I also like when I have a light monk in my group to have him fork by the middle and give Walk of the Sun to the puppies for +2 hit on harder difficulties...

Not sure too but if Zzyzzy breathes acid... maybe acid resists on puppies can help to save healers mana...

Yes, I cast acid resist on the dogs as well but I'm not sure if that helps.

It would be great if anyone can test this. XD

[MRMechMan]

Thanks for sharing.

I believe the puppies are immune to acid already-at least all other tharaak hounds are. I havent tested because I dont want to accidentally kill them

[Isharah]

Thanks for sharing.

I believe the puppies are immune to acid already-at least all other tharaak hounds are. I havent tested because I dont want to accidentally kill them

Strangely, they are still buffable with 30 acid resist... Then again, has anyone ever tried buffing fire elly pets with fire resist? XD

Right when Xyzzy becomes vulnerable to attacks, that's when we play with the puppies. It's then that we test the globe, break ench, etc.

[Roderickus]

Yes, I cast acid resist on the dogs as well but I'm not sure if that helps.

It would be great if anyone can test this. XD

I cast acid res. aswell, protects them against her breath at least. And always blur em and if memo displace in case mobs storm in... and they always do.

[MRMechMan]

I cast acid res. aswell, protects them against her breath at least. And always blur em and if memo displace in case mobs storm in... and they always do.

Shouldn't they always be displaced? It's a 5-10min raid, someone should be able to spare the 100-200 sp total to ensure the most important participants in the raid (the puppies) are safe.

[TheDearLeader]

Summons do not damage Xyzzy prior to her being vulnerable, tested as of this most recent update.

After being Vulnerable, I have noticed she is also still immune to alignment-based damages, like Axiomatic/Holy.

Regarding Acid Resistance on the baby puppies... Hit one of them with Black Dragon Bolt prior to Charming it. It'll say "Immune". Why? Thaarak Hounds are all immune to Acid, last I checked. So, the casting of Acid Resist 30 is indeed an effort in futility.

If I can get the same crew together that helped me test summons against Xyzzy, I'll hop back into HoX on my Wizzy and Black Dragon Bolt/Acid Splash/Acid Rain/Etc. the Puppies.

[EatSmart]

Holy aura and protection from evil do not make the puppies immune to the control stone charm, and the stacking save bonuses greatly enhance the puppies' ability to save against horrid wilting and bee breath.

By the way, has anyone tried the epic wolf whistle puppy against her?

[TheDearLeader]

Holy aura and protection from evil do not make the puppies immune to the control stone charm, and the stacking save bonuses greatly enhance the puppies' ability to save against horrid wilting and bee breath.

By the way, has anyone tried the epic wolf whistle puppy against her?

Click the link in the post above yours.

[Isharah]

Updated.

[Calebro]

Shouldn't they always be displaced? It's a 5-10min raid, someone should be able to spare the 100-200 sp total to ensure the most important participants in the raid (the puppies) are safe.

Displacing them is next to useless. Momma is blind, so it doesn't affect her at all. And if you have Reavers and Renders attacking the charmed puppies for more than 1 or 2 second then you have bigger issues to worry about.
Blur/Displacement is a waste of SP. But feel free to waste it. I mean, once the pups are charmed the arcane is just piking anyway.

[TheDearLeader]

Displacing them is next to useless. Momma is blind, so it doesn't affect her at all. And if you have Reavers and Renders attacking the charmed puppies for more than 1 or 2 second then you have bigger issues to worry about.
Blur/Displacement is a waste of SP. But feel free to waste it. I mean, once the pups are charmed the arcane is just piking anyway.

I have a hard time disagreeing with this.

I've seen HoX LFM's up for "High DC CC Wizard".

What I've found about this raid, via CC Spellsinger, Pale Master, and Water Savant, is that the trash has:

• Ridiculously High Saves
• Steep Spell Resistance (30+?)
• The Mind Flayers are now Redname, so can't be Instakilled. (Used to be different)
• High Elemental Resistances/Absorption.

So, agreeing with Calebro and even taking it a bit farther, I'm not sure what a Wizard/Sorcerer does in this Raid that can't be accomplished by another class.

[Calebro]

So, agreeing with Calebro and even taking it a bit farther, I'm not sure what a Wizard/Sorcerer does in this Raid that can't be accomplished by another class.

And that other class is Bard. There is nothing a traditional arcane does in that raid that can't be done better by a Bard with a handful of scrolls.

[TheDearLeader]

And that other class is Bard. There is nothing a traditional arcane does in that raid that can't be done better by a Bard with a handful of scrolls.

Yup, that's pretty much what I was thinking. Or, well, close.

Haste/Rage/Displacement/GH? - Bard
Energy Resists? Artificer, Cleric, Favored Soul, Paladin, Ranger.
Scrolls Heals, Mass Bears/Bulls? - Artificer, Bard, Rogue, or any other class with UMD.

I've just yet to see a time where I said to myself "Man, I'm glad I brought my Wizzie/Sorc along for the ride". The efficacy of spells in there is just...well, not efficacious at all.

[Aliss7]

• Puppies DO NOT roll saves versus the charm. This means that spells that increase saves (ex. GH, holy aura) are actually beneficial to them.
  
• All songs work on dogs, even the GH one (GH spell does NOT work).

1. So is GH beneficial or does is not work?

[Isharah]

1. So is GH beneficial or does is not work?

The save from GH effect is beneficial, but if you cast the spell, the dogs don't receive them. The dogs receive the song version, though.

Edited the entry to say "GH song" instead of just "GH".

[Missing_Minds]

Thornguard, untyped damage. Bramblecasters as well as craftable.

Mass bulls and bears work on the charmed puppies. (last I heard at least.)

[TheDearLeader]

Okay, went into a HoX just now, got to confirm a couple of things.

The baby puppies are indeed IMMUNE to Acid Damage. Attacked them with a Triple Earth Bow. Acid came up as "Immune", not as 0 or any other number. Acid Resist is a waste of time and resources.

Hit Xyzzy with a Dreamspitter. Indeed, she is Immune to the Prefix "Holy", but took the Suffix "Bane" damage fine.

[Isharah]

Hit Xyzzy with a Dreamspitter. Indeed, she is Immune to the Prefix "Holy", but took the Suffix "Bane" damage fine.

Interesting. Will try this as well next time.