by Chase Christian
the Keepers, the real meat and potatoes of Ulduar. These bosses drop our coveted Tier 8 (complete with its fantastic 4-piece bonus!) and other loot that you’ll want to get your hands on. These fights are also more technically complex, and so you’ll want to be prepared before attempting to down these bosses for the first time.
Hodir
Role: DPS
The Hodir fight is characterized by massive raid damage, both incoming and outgoing. The adds on the fight provide two buffs of great interest to Rogues: Starlight and Storm Power. With these two abilities, Rogues can gain a massive amount of haste and critical strike damage. While active, Rogues are amongst the top DPS classes in this encounter. Mages have the additional benefit of Singed, but can have a lower uptime due to movement to avoid being afflicted by Biting Cold. Be sure not to use Cloak of Shadows to try to avoid moving out from under Icicles, as they will still knock you back even if resisted.
I have two suggestions that will make Hodir significantly easier for you. The first is to Feint every time Frozen Blows becomes active, as it will mitigate much of the damage you take. This is key to giving your healers some breathing room while dealing with the hardest part of this encounter, very similar to the XT-002 fight. Secondly, keep moving throughout the entire fight. Even slight sidesteps will keep the Biting Cold debuff from building up on you. You also want to be keen to move into Starlight beams or near Toasty Fires when available, as this will let you make the most use out of the buffs available. You have 180° behind the boss to work with, maneuver yourself to the best possible location.
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by Chase Christian
With Ulduar laid wide open, many Rogues and their guilds are flocking to its gates. Brand new bosses and shiny gear upgrades are just two of the reasons that I’ve seen so many ‘LFM Ulduar’ advertisements in trade chat. However, as the dungeon is still relatively new, many of us haven’t had the opportunity to confront every giant-sized boss in the instance.
I’ve compiled a list of basic roles for each boss fight in the instance, as well as a list of cool tricks and tips you can use to make your first (or eighth!) run through Ulduar as smooth as possible. Blizzard has included several fights in the instance where it is advantageous to bring a Rogue, and being able to proactively seize these opportunities will put you at the head of the pack.
Flame Leviathan
Role: DPS
Flame Leviathan is a fight that I can get behind as a Rogue (pun intended). With no healing during the fight, and no true tanking either, all of our holy and prot friends are forced to play the DPS game along with us. I recommend asking for Chopper duties, if you’re able to convince your raid leader that you’d be best suited in one of these fine motorcycles. They have the ability to strafe and move quickly: you should feel right at home. Playing one of the other vehicles may feel clunky (I know it does for me), but work with what you’re assigned to. If you end up piloting a Siege Engine, remember to interrupt FL’s Flame Vents ability.
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