Ahn'kahet's Herald Volazj: Quite possibly the coolest boss ever
by Alex Ziebart 
Nov 18th 2008 at 2:00PM
Not only is Ahn'kahet visually stunning, but it gives you a glimpse into the story of Yogg-Saron and his relation to the Scourge and other forces. It's a little repetitive in some places (the first boss is a bit boring), but it also houses some of the best 5-man bosses we've seen yet. The final boss, Herald Volazj, is the embodiment of the technical advances Blizzard has made with the gameplay in Wrath of the Lich King. I almost feel bad mentioning him at all, because I've been running Ahn'kahet repeatedly with people who have never done it before. Seeing them wig out the first time they do the boss is awesome.
I don't want to spoil the mechanics of the encounter, so I won't. Saying something is going to happen is kind of a spoiler in itself because saying "Hey, watch this!" sets off all kinds of alarms, so it'll dull the edge a little. I think it's worth to make sure people actually do this dungeon, though. Do it! Go! Right now! You can start doing this dungeon at level 73, maybe a little earlier if you have good gear from The Burning Crusade.
You guys that have done Ahn'kahet, back me up on this one. Herald Volazj, one of the best 5-man bosses we've seen yet? Yes? No?
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Instances, Bosses, Wrath of the Lich King
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Flashalas Nov 18th 2008 2:04PM
Can't wait to try it out tonight when I ding 73...I've heard it's everyone's favorite so far!
Nathan Nov 18th 2008 2:39PM
Can we have Manatank's comment removed since he was a jackass and spoiled it for people that don't want to know?
ButtercupSaiyan Nov 18th 2008 2:43PM
Manatank: Thanks a lot, asshole.
Manatank Nov 18th 2008 2:58PM
I just don't understand the idea that there can be spoilers in Wrath. I only posted what I did because of how retarded I thought it was that a whole article would be posted about something that wasn't even discussed.
subbie Nov 18th 2008 2:06PM
i remember hearing about this encounter at blizzcon and it didn't disappoint.
schmunkel98 Nov 18th 2008 2:06PM
The guy reminded me of Lo'pan from Big Trouble in Little China. Very cool fight.
Ruxpin Nov 18th 2008 2:18PM
This comment alone has me more excited to run the dungeon than the article itself. :)
73 will be mine tonight... shortly followed by this run.
Fung Nov 18th 2008 3:13PM
lo pan? but i didn't see him use his famed SHOOP DA WOOP!!!
MisterDude Nov 18th 2008 2:07PM
Oh I totally agree! This was definitely one of the more interesting boss encounters I've experienced. Really highlights the individual / group dynamic.
Karlei Nov 18th 2008 2:09PM
I just did that boss last night. It was awesome. My whole group was in vent and we were blown away by it.
skreed Nov 18th 2008 2:10PM
:( The instance bugged (crashed... hard) on us as we were approaching the 1st boss the other night. Havent had enough guildies on at once since. Hopefully we'll get to it tonight.
Both (Azol Nerub and Ahn'kahet... at least as much as I saw) are really beautiful.
Musik Nov 18th 2008 2:11PM
Yeah... I was on vent freaking out when doing this fight. For sure one of the most memorable boss fights in a while.
Snuggles Nov 18th 2008 2:12PM
I love the Herald Volazj fight. Blizz did a great job with it
rogue Nov 18th 2008 2:13PM
I thought it was a neat mechanic but when I went in the first time, the tank had already run it so explained it... maybe that took something away from it, but I just didn't get the "zomg wow this is awesome" feeling from it. I thought it was cool to be sure, just not amazing. Maybe it's because I could take care of my part so quickly and easily that it didn't seem to have much impact on me, I don't know.
superfrank Nov 19th 2008 8:25AM
i feel sorry for you - I first ran the dungeon at L71 with a bunch of people, none of whom had done the dungeon before so the mechanic of every boss fight was a complete surprise to us and it enhanced the enjoyment so much - if only every dungeon was like that all the time!
theta Nov 18th 2008 2:17PM
Really a great instance, but definitely wait until you're 72 or 73. I did it at 70 with a well geared group out of BC, and while we did manage to clear it, it took positively forever.
Salculd Nov 18th 2008 2:16PM
Personally, when I'm in a group including people who haven't done it before that would prefer to have boss synopses beforehand, I just tell them that all they need to know is "kill the adds." It's true, isn't it?
Jelement Nov 18th 2008 2:21PM
Our guild did the first run of Ahn'kahet this past Sunday night. We had 4 73's and a 72, decided to do it without looking anything up first and it didn't disappoint. None of us had been there before and we had a couple surprises but it was really fun.
The last boss encounter was definitely considered a favorite among everyone in the guild that has been there over the last couple days, and while the instance is somewhat disappointing in length after doing Azjol-Nerub beforehand in no time at all, the end is worth it.
Kellhouse Nov 18th 2008 2:26PM
Yah I got to agree it was fun though the I was kind of told what to do when it happened :) Was realy fun.
The technical aspect of it was interesting and how it was done realy show that they can do much much more then tank/spank with variation of moving around. Realy hope that this means new bosses will be more divers and fun. I have not been to all the instances yet eventhough i am lv79 atm .
I want to also point out how uber cool the boss looks it has that unexpected alien look with wowish factor :P Have to say same thing about last boss in Utgard Keep the whole resorection and just how cool it looks took me aback the first time i saw it ( was about 2:00am on 13th:) ) Back then i knew that i will see realy fun stuff in the days to come.
Manatank Nov 18th 2008 2:29PM
I didn't think it was all that noteworthy considering just how amazing all the new bosses have been. And what's with the idea of running into a fight not knowing what is going to happen? I've never been surprised by a boss, and I'm sure I never will be unless I somehow end up in world first raiding guild that attempts encounters during PTR or beta.
For what it's worth I thought the last boss of Drak'tharon Keep was much cooler. Being turned into a skeleton and having a new set of abilities was pretty awesome.