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Ascalonian Catacombs Story

Published Nov 7, 2022 Updated Mar 11, 2023
Moe

Ascalonian Catacombs (often shortened to "AC") is a legacy Dungeon available in the base game. The Ascalonian Catacombs Story needs to be completed once in order to be able to open the Exploration Mode for this dungeon on a character. Your objective is to prevent King Adelbern from killing Eir Stegalkin.

Completing this will reward you with 63 Silver and some Experience. You can use and as well as for Ghost enemies to maximize your damage output in this dungeon.

Way and events of Ascalonian Catacombs Story

Ossuary Crypts

Start and Gate Guardian Napa

After talking to Rytlock to start the dungeon, a door will open. The room behind will contain several coffins and two blue dusts on the ground. Going near those dusts will spawn an Elite Ascalonian Warrior or Mesmer. You need to open 7 coffins in order to spawn the boss, Gate Guardian Napa.

Opening a coffin can have several effects. It can cause a Knockdown, can give you an Ascalonian Hammer that should be dropped immediately, it can open any Elite Ascalonian enemy or some Spider Hatchlings.

You can just quickly interact with 7 coffins, ignore the enemies and quickly CC and kill Napa in order to advance.

Napa himself is a hammer wielding Warrior and has 3 attacks:

  • Bash: His auto attack, he charges his hammer for 2 seconds behind him, dealing mediocre power damage.
  • Stomp: Comparable to the warrior's . He jumps into the air and Launches everyone in the landing AoE.
  • Earthshaker: Just like warrior's , an AoE stun.

You can bring Stability, Aegis or Stun Breaks if you struggle with Napa's CCs. Staying ranged can help if you can't sustain her attacks.

The Ascalonian Hammer skills Spin (#2) and Leap (#3) both do CC and might help with breaking Napas breakbar.

Once you killed Napa, the next door will open.

The blue dust that you will see multiple times throughout this dungeon

Way to Eir

For the rest of the dungeon, the blue dust mechanic will be found repeatedly.

If you are in Stealth, walking near the blue dusts won't spawn enemies.

The corridor you want to take is full of Spike Traps and Flame Jets as well as some Elite Ascalonian enemies. If you decide to kill and not run past them, focus the Monks first since their attacks are extremely deadly. In the beginning, you find a switch to the left to disable the traps, although this switch is bugged and you need to use a leap/jump skill from the stairs to reach the top of the switch to interact with it.

You will encounter a closed gate and some stairs to left that lead to more enemies and a room full of traps. Pick up the Boulder at the end of the room, use the functioning switch next to it to deactivate the traps if necessary, and place the Boulder on the pressure plate located in the middle of stairs in front of the gate. The pressure plate will radiate shiny particles, which makes it easy to spot.

The next room is full of Flame Jets that could be deactivated by interacting with the switch to the left, but simply running ahead and dropping down to the next room is easier. Once you get close to the door, a Graveling Burrow will spawn to the right. Kill it in order to progress. The corridor up ahead is guarded by 3 Ascalonian enemies that need to be killed to open the gate that leads to Eir.

Kill the Ascalonian Captain that she is fighting with. He has several greatsword attacks which he uses to deal high power damage in a short time range. CC him to make the fight easier.

You may also encounter a Cave Troll here that can spawn at multiple random points throughout the dungeon. He is super deadly and can wipe whole parties quickly. He is not required for path completion, hence it is advised to just run away from him.

The dangerous Cave Troll

Foefire's Heart

Ascalonian Lieutenant

In the center of dungeon, Foefire's Heart, you encounter the Ascalonian Lieutenant. Kill some of the 15 Ascalonian Ghosts that will spawn after a small dialogue to make him attackable. Defeat them quickly to avoid having to deal with too much of them at the same time.

If in a group, make sure to spread out in the room to kill the ghosts as efficient as possible, they dont have much health and die quickly.

The Lieutenant's attacks are the same as Napa's. After he is dead, you need to kill 3 bosses in any order to spawn the endboss, King Adelbern.

The Ascalonian Lieutenant and his ghosts at Foefire's Heart

Master Ranger Nente

Run west and over the bridge that is guarded by an Elite Ascalonian Warrior and Necromancer. More enemies will spawn as you enter Nentes room where he waits on top of a pillar. You can climb up the plank holding the pillar to reach him. The fight will start on the pillar. Nante will hit you with his longbow for some damage, but the pressure is fairly low. At 75%, he will teleport to the outer ring, swap to a Hammer, and summon Fang, a ghost dog that causes Bleeding and medium power damage. While on hammer, he has 3 attacks:

  • Hammer Bash: he lifts up the hammer and smashes it into the ground, hitting for low damage.
  • Crude Swing: He swings his hammer in a circle, hitting everything around him for moderate damage.
  • Hammer Swing: He swings his hammer from behind him, causing Knockdown for 2 seconds.

At 50%, he will return to the pillar and equips his longbow. At 25%, he will return to the outer ring again, swaps to hammer and summons Shadow, another dog that will act just like Fang. Killing him unlocks .

  • CCing him right before 75% causes him to delay his teleport. He can be killed completely in that time frame to avoid any ports.

Master Range Nente in the Hall of Murals

Kasha Blackblood

From the center of the Foefire's Heart, head east and over the bridge. You can go north to reach Kasha. This will trigger another Graveling Burrow event, but you can easily walk past it. Alternatively, go south to the room where Relana and Vassar are and put a Boulder on the pressure plate next to the door in the north to avoid the event spawn. Kasha is very easy to fight and has 3 attacks:

  • Summon marks: She will summon red AoEs on the ground that deal Chilled, Poison, Weakness and Vulnerability.
  • Summon Flesh Golem: She will summon a Flesh Golem that causes Knockback.
  • Summon Bone Minions: She will summon 4 Bone Minions that will connect with her via a purple light beam. She will drain their health to regerenate. This attack gives her almost no health back and can be ignored. Killing Kasha unlocks .

Kasha Blackblood in the Votive Cathedral

Ralena and Vassar

Reach them either by using a Boulder and a pressure plate south after fighting Kasha or by going east and then south from Foefire's Heart. Both take no Condition Damage, so make sure you are on a power damage build. If they are too close to each other, respectively the white AoEs around them touching, they will gain Lover's Embrace, which causes Vassar to reflect all incoming projectiles and Ralena to Launch players that come too close to her. Keep the bosses apart at all times. Sometimes, the dungeon will be buggy and they won't gain Lover's Embrace. If so, feel lucky and defeat them easily. Vassar has 3 main attacks:

  • Chaos Storm: Dazes and applies Chilled, Poison, Weakness or Vulnerability randomly each tick.
  • Phantasmal Mages: He summons Phantasmal Mages that deal high power damage and Confusion and Burning on top.
  • Shared Burden: He will throw a knife projectile at you that deals high damage when it hits. Can be reflected or destroyed.

Ralena also has 3 main attacks:

  • Lightning Storm: Summons a Lightning Storm that deals high damage.
  • Lightning Orb: Her auto attack, a ranged projectile with medium damage. Can be reflected or destroyed.
  • Branded Lightning Strike: A ranged attack that is extremely hard to see and dodge. Applies high damage and Blind.

The lovers Ralena and Vassar in The Lovers' Crypt

King Adelbern

After killing all 3 bosses, King Adelbern will spawn in the middle of Foefire's Heart.

If you fought Kasha or Ralena and Vassar last, it saves a lot of time to port to instead of walking.

He is a stationary boss and has the following attacks:

  • Fire Swing into Gash into Final Thrust: His auto attack chain, inflicting more power damage each hit and one stack of Burning after a completed chain.
  • Foefire: He spawns an AoE dealing high ticking power damage after 4 seconds. Only happens when fighting him ranged.

If you fight him ranged, he will occasionally cast a big attack that Pulls everyone in the arena close to him. Make sure to fight him melee and the fight is a piece of cake.

King Adelbern at Foefire's Heart

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