The Dawnbreaker is a three-boss dungeon located in Hallowfall and one of the eight Mythic+ dungeons available in Season 1 of The War Within. Players must assist the Arathi aboard their new warship, Dawnbreaker, as they fend off an Azj-Kahet assault on Mereldar.
While The Dawnbreaker is a relatively short and straightforward dungeon in the current Mythic+ rotation, it may seem overwhelming at first due to its non-linear map layout and the inclusion of flying. As with the rest of the Season 1 dungeon pool, healing throughput is crucial in Dawnbreaker, as the bosses deal significant group-wide damage. This guide will cover the optimal approach to bosses and trash mobs, along with routing options players can use in pug groups for The Dawnbreaker in The War Within.
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The Dawnbreaker Mythic+ Route
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The Dawnbreaker MDT Import String |
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The Dawnbreaker offers flexible routing options due to the non-linear layout of Mereldar, allowing players to tailor their trash pulls based on their comfort level and team composition. Most recommended routes will focus on trash near the three mini-bosses for optimal efficiency.
For newer players, navigating the city portion of the dungeon can be quite disorienting, especially when paired with Skyriding. While Skyriding is the most efficient, new players might prefer switching to Steady Flight to get accustomed to their surroundings first.
The route listed above is just one of many variations that players can follow, even in pugs or uncoordinated groups, with straightforward and simple pulls. It is recommended for players to use the Addon, Mythic Dungeon Tools (MDT), to plan and customize their own routes or import existing ones, including the one mentioned above. This guide will reference trash pulls using groupings assigned to them by MDT.
The Dawnbreaker: Speaker Shadowcrown
Trash
The route leading to the first boss, Speaker Shadowcrown, is straightforward, with the only decision being which side-ship (G5 or G6) players choose to fly to first. The difference between G5 and G6 is negligible, so it ultimately comes down to personal preference.
Pull 1 (G1) Notable Enemies and Abilities:
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Nightfall Ritualist is immune to CC and routinely casts Stygian Seed and Tormenting Ray on random players.
- Stygian Seed places a large circle on a random player, dealing damage over time and exploding with AoE damage after 6 seconds. The afflicted player should move away from the group to be dispelled (Magic).
- Tormenting Ray deals heavy periodic Shadow damage over 5 seconds to two random players. Healers should focus on the afflicted players or have them use defensive cooldowns.
- Nightfall Curseblade regularly targets the tank with Darkblade, dealing Shadow damage and increasing their attack speed by 10% for 15 seconds. This effect stacks, so it is recommended to purge the buff to help the tank.
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Nightfall Shadowmage has two important casts to pay attention to: Ensnaring Shadows and Night Bolt.
- Ensnaring Shadows deals heavy Shadow damage followed by a DoT on a random player. It’s crucial to interrupt this cast, as it can easily kill squishier classes in higher keys. If the cast goes off, the DoT portion can be dispelled (Curse).
- Night Bolt deals Shadow damage to a random player. Players should use any remaining interrupts or CCs to prevent Night Bolt casts, as overlaps with other abilities can potentially kill a player.
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Pull 2 typically involves combining G3 & G4 together with Bloodlust/Time Warp, allowing for a potential third usage on the final boss. However, newer players can choose to pull these groups separately in lower keys, as The Dawnbreaker's timer is quite lenient. The combined pull includes three Nightfall Curseblades, one Nightfall Shadowmage, one Nightfall Ritualist, and a Nightfall Commander.
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Nightfall Commander is immune to CC and casts Abyssal Howl and Tainted Slash.
- Abyssal Howl applies an absorb shield to its allies, which also deals Shadow damage to players in the area. Players should interrupt this or purge the effect afterward.
- Tainted Slash deals physical damage to the tank and applies a bleed. Tanks should use a defensive cooldown or have the bleed cleansed by specific racial or class abilities like Cauterizing Flame.
Pull 3 and 4 (G5 & G6) can be done in any order. G5 consists of two Nightfall Curseblades, one Nightfall Shadowmage, and one Sureki Webmage. G6 contains one Nightfall Curseblade, one Nightfall Commander, and one Sureki Webmage.
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Sureki Webmage is immune to CC and regularly casts Bursting Cocoon and Web Bolt.
- Bursting Cocoon places a circle on a random player, inflicting periodic Nature damage and exploding with AoE damage after 6 seconds. Affected players should move away from the group and use defensives if necessary.
- Web Bolt inflicts Nature damage to the tank. Although this cast isn't highly threatening by itself, players should still use spare interrupts to assist the tank, especially if they are dealing Darkblade or Tainted Slash.
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Speaker Shadowcrown
After Pull 3 and 4, players will return to the main Dawnbreaker ship to fight against the first boss, Speaker Shadowcrown. This boss has two phases and three main abilities to watch out for: Collapsing Night, Obsidian Beam, and Burning Shadows. Speaker Shadowcrown also regularly casts Shadow Bolt at the tank, which should be interrupted to reduce tank damage and allow easier boss positioning.
- Collapsing Night spawns void zones under two random players that grow in size for 30 seconds, dealing heavy Shadow damage every half-second to anyone inside. This ability prioritizes ranged players, so they should rotate around the edges of the ship to bait the void zones while the tank and melee stay near the center.
- Obsidian Beam deals heavy Shadow damage to the tank and party, spawning three beams that rotate clockwise or counterclockwise for 7 seconds. Touching these beams is lethal at higher key levels.
- Burning Shadows is an uninterruptible cast that applies a Shadow DoT to a random player and slows their movement by 50%. When the debuff is removed, all non-tank players receive a healing absorb. Healers should dispel the affected player and be prepared to heal the group.
Groups without ranged classes should be ready to instantly reposition once Collapsing Night comes out.
At 50%, Speaker Shadowcrown becomes immune to damage and starts casting Darkness Comes, creating a large bubble of darkness that kills any player within it after 15 seconds. When the cast starts, players must get on their flying mounts to avoid getting caught in it. Be wary that the hitbox of the bubble is slightly larger than the actual animation.
After the cast, the fight resumes with phase two, which is nearly identical to phase one, except Obsidian Beam now rotates four beams instead of three. Tanks should always ensure that the boss is positioned away from any Collapsing Night void zones to give the party enough room to dodge the Obsidian Beams. At 0%, the boss casts Darkness Comes again, but this time, players can fly directly down to the city instead of returning to the ship.
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The Dawnbreaker: Anub'ikkaj
Trash
Before facing the second boss, Anub'ikkaj, players must defeat three mini-bosses around the city of Mereldar to remove the stacking Empowered Might buff they grant to the boss. Each mini-boss uses one of Anub'ikkaj's main abilities, giving players a preview of the upcoming fight. The routing through Mereldar is very flexible due to the abundance of enemies available for count, but it is generally recommended to stay near each mini-boss for efficiency. Players can choose to head to either Ixkreten the Unbreakable or Ascendant Vis'coxria first, leaving Deathscreamer Iken'tak for last due to its proximity to the boss.
Pulls 6 to 9 take place around the church area where Ixkreten the Unbreakable resides. Players can choose to tackle these in various orders or focus on different trash packs in the vicinity. While most of these pulls involve multiple trash packs, players can opt to handle them one by one or chain them together as each pack gets low. In addition to the Nightfall Curseblades (which players have already encountered), the other notable enemies include Manifested Shadow, Nightfall Darkcaster, Nightfall Tactician, and Nightfall Shadowalker.
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Manifested Shadow is immune to CC, interrupts, and silences.
- Black Hail spawns dark swirlies in the ground that players need to avoid.
- Abyssal Rot targets a random player with Shadow damage and DoT.
- Dark Floes pulses heavy group-wide damage for 5 seconds. Be careful when this happens, as overlaps with other abilities in the pack can easily kill a player. This is a good time to pop group defensive cooldowns such as Anti-Magic Zone.
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Nightfall Darkcaster
- Tormenting Beam channels Shadow damage on a random target over 6 seconds. Interrupt or CC the channel after it starts.
- Umbral Barrier creates an absorb shield that heals itself upon expiring. Interrupt this cast or purge it off if it goes through.
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Nightfall Tactician is immune to CC.
- Black Edge is a front cone that deals Shadow Damage. This cone is lethal in higher keys, so tanks should point this away from the group and sidestep it.
- Tacticians Rage buffs their damage by 50% but slows their movement by 70%. This enrage effect can be Soothed by certain classes such as Druids.
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Nightfall Shadowalker
- Umbral Rush deals Shadow damage to the tank.
Players can opt to do G13 with G14 (Pull 6) instead of G17 (part of Pull 8) for a slightly more efficient count. However, four Nightfall Tacticians can be brutal for the tank if the group does not have access to a Soothe ability. Alternatively, players can skip G14 and add in G22 & G24 to Pull 9 (G23).
Ixkreten the Unbreakable
Ixkreten is the mini-boss that resides in the church and possesses the Terrifying Slam ability of Anub'ikkaj. All three mini-bosses also have the Abyssal Blast ability, which deals Shadow damage and DoT to a random player.
- Terrifying Slam targets the tank with a giant circle dealing Physical and Shadow damage while knocking them back. Anyone else caught in the circle will be dealt Shadow damage and feared for 2 seconds. Tanks should position themselves in a corner to prevent the knockback and use a defensive cooldown for the hit.
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Ascendant Vis'coxria
Vis'coxria is the mini-boss directly east of the church, just outside a house, standing alongside two Nightfall Tacticians. In addition to Abyssal Blast, Vis'coxria has the Shadowy Decay ability of Anub'ikkaj.
- Shadowy Decay pulses heavy group-wide damage for 3 seconds. This is a great time to use defensives and group-wide cooldowns such as Spirit Link Totem from Restoration Shamans.
Since this is quite a tight area, players should be mindful of their long-range abilities that can accidentally pull unwanted enemies in the vicinity. Tanks should face the two Nightfall Tacticians away from the group and sidestep their Black Edge.
Players can also opt to pull slightly less trash in the church area and instead pull G8 and G49 together with Vis'coxria and her two Nightfall Tacticians. However, this pull can be quite difficult to pull off, so it should only be reserved for players comfortable enough with the dungeon.
Deathscreamer Iken'tak
After defeating Vis'coxria, players can head south to where the third mini-boss, Iken'tak, is located. It's generally recommended to pull G42 along with Iken'tak for efficiency, but newer players may opt to handle them separately. On higher keys, players can use Bloodlust/Time Warp on this mini-boss (Pull 11). Alternatively, saving Bloodlust/Time Warp for Anub'ikkaj is an option, though depending on key level and group composition, this could mean missing out on a third use during the second phase of Rasha'nan.
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Iken'tak's main ability is Dark Orb, which targets a random non-tank player and shoots a large sphere in their direction. The orb explodes for group-wide damage after traveling a certain distance or colliding with obstacles like walls. The further the orb travels, the less damage it deals to the group upon explosion.
- Players have 4 seconds to aim the orb down a clear path before moving out of the way. Touching the Dark Orb after it spawns applies a heavy Shadow DoT called Dark Scars.
- Even at maximum distance, Dark Orb deals significant damage, so healers should be prepared to quickly top off the group.
Tanks should face the Nightfall Tactician's Night Edge away from the group so they have room to aim the sphere.
Anub'ikkaj
The Anub'ikkaj boss fight centers around three key abilities from the mini-bosses: Terrifying Slam, Shadowy Decay, and Dark Orb, all dealing more damage than their previous versions, with Shadowy Decay also lasting 2 seconds longer.
Likewise, players should aim the orb down the road towards the west and be mindful of not pulling the Sureki Militant behind them. Healers should focus on topping the players off after Dark Orb and during Shadowy Decay.
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Tanks should position carefully for Terrifying Slam to avoid being knocked into trash mobs or use abilities like Death Knight's Death's Advance or Demon Hunter's double jump to counter the knockback.
Additionally, Anub'ikkaj periodically summons several small mobs with Animate Shadows. These enemies will cast Congealed Shadow at random players, inflicting Shadow damage. Tanks should quickly gather these adds and allow the team to CC and cleave them down alongside the boss.
Spacing out group and personal defensive cooldowns for each Shadowy Decay is the best way to help out healers during this intensive fight.
The Dawnbreaker: Rasha'nan
After defeating Anub'ikkaj, players must fly back to the Dawnbreaker ship to face a mini-boss and the last boss, Rasha'nan. Regardless of the route players choose, they should ensure that they have at least a 93.48% count before flying up.
Trash
The last mini-boss is Nightfall Dark Architect who deals all his damage as Shadow due to Dark Fervor. Tanks that are relatively weak against magic, such as Guardian Druid and Protection Warrior should be wary of their damage intake here.
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Tormenting Eruption channels significant Shadow damage for 6 seconds at two random players. Players should be preemptively spread as Tormenting Eruption also deals damage to other players near the targets.
- Players targeted by this ability should pop a defensive cooldown.
- Night Bolt should be interrupted so that it doesn't overlap with players targeted by Tormenting Eruption.
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Usher Reinforcements summons 3 random Nightfall mobs when Dark Architect reaches 75%, 50%, and 25% health.
- These mobs have reduced health and damage due to Rapid Summoning.
- These mobs can spawn quite far away from Dark Architect so players should be ready to interrupt them or bring them in with displacements such as Death Grip.
Rasha'nan
Rasha'nan, Queen Ansurek's secret weapon, is the final boss of The Dawnbreaker and shares several abilities with its raid version in the Nerub-ar Palace. Rasha'nan spawns on the side of Dawnbreaker shortly after Dark Architect is defeated. Players should ensure that their healer has enough mana before starting the fight, especially if any leftover mobs remain from Dark Architect.
In Phase 1, sets of 3 Arathi Bombs are routinely thrown onto the ship. These bombs will explode after 20 seconds, dealing damage to all players. Players must interact with the bombs, move them near Rasha'nan, and toss them at him to deplete 5.8% of his health per bomb. It is highly recommended that DPS players deal with these bombs as healers must handle the group-wide damage intake. To transition into Phase 2, 6 bombs and additional player damage are needed to bring Rasha'nan below 64% health.
Tanks need to remain in melee range of Rasha'nan so that he does not cast Tacky Burst, which deals continuous damage to the party.
Rasha'nan has several key abilities during Phase 1:
- Expel Web shoots two lines targeted at random players, dealing Nature damage and rooting anyone caught in them.
- Erosive Spray is his primary group-wide damage, dealing three instances of Nature damage and applying three stacks of the Lingering Erosion DoT. Group defensives, healing cooldowns, or personal defensives should be used whenever this ability occurs.
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Rolling Acid targets a random non-tank player, causing a poisonous wave to roll across the platform from their location. The targeted player should move to the side the wave is pointing towards, ensuring the solid green line faces the rest of the group.
- Players caught in the wave are stunned and have Corrosion (DoT) applied to them.
- The targeted player cannot avoid the wave, so healers should be wary of their health.
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Once Rasha'nan drops below 64%, he flies away, and players must chase him on their flying mounts. While Rasha'nan takes a roundabout route to reach the Veneration Grounds, located directly west of Mereldar city, players can fly straight there without following him. Depending on the distance between the Dawnbreaker and the Veneration Grounds, players may need to grab a golden orb mid-flight to avoid being killed by Encroaching Shadows.
When Rasha'nan lands, he knocks back players nearby and begins casting Acidic Eruption for group-wide damage until he is interrupted. In Phase 2, there are no Arathi Bomb interactions, but Rasha'nan continues using Expel Web, Erosive Spray, and Rolling Acid and gains the new ability Spinneret's Strands.
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Spinneret's Strands targets two random non-tank players with a giant web circle, dealing Shadow damage after 2.4 seconds, dropping Sticky Webs, and tethering the players to the center until they move 10 yards away
- Players must quickly move to the sides of the platform to drop these webs before the cast finishes (2.4 seconds), so that the center can remain clear of Sticky Webs.
- Being tethered and standing in the Sticky Webs deals damage over time, so players should quickly move away once the webs are dropped. A small defensive cooldown may be necessary to survive on higher keys.
- Breaking the tether deals a small amount of damage to the group.
- Rolling Acid clears the Sticky Webs from the platform but replaces them with a smaller Acid Pools that deals damage to any that stand in them. This is important for clearing up room on the platform.
The encounter ends once players push Rasha'nan to around 59.5% health.
World of Warcraft: The War Within
- Released
- August 26, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- Base Game
- World of Warcraft
- Developer(s)
- Blizzard
- Publisher(s)
- Blizzard
- Franchise
- Warcraft
- Platform(s)
- PC
