Two Bosses Enter: Keristrasza vs. Ley-Guardian Eregos
by Lisa Poisso 
Nov 5th 2009 at 7:00PM
We've let reader votes seed the battles for the next bracket of Two Bosses Enter, One Boss Leaves, which leads straight away to this epic pairing: Keristrasza (The Nexus) versus Ley-Guardian Eregos (The Oculus). To get these two into the Two Bosses Thunderdome, we're going to stage a jailbreak. The two dragons will meet in the swirling skies above The Nexus. We'll remove the drake-riding mechanic from the encounter - there's enough draconic blood here already, don't you think?
The ground (err, air?) rules:
- Assume that the opponents along with their minions share similar levels, health pools and comparative overall damage output.
- This deathmatch takes place in skies above The Nexus, (or a Thunderdome facsimile thereof). This shall in no way hinder either opponent from using his or her usual resources.
- All the usual minions will be available to each boss.
- There will be no drake-riding mechanic involved.
- Don't get caught up in gameplay mechanics and what actual players might do in each encounter.
- Don't neglect style, story and scale.
Keristrasza (The Nexus)Finish it! Finish it! Kill me, or I swear by the Dragonqueen you'll never see daylight again!
Keristrasza, a servant of Alexstrasza's flight, plotted to distract Malygos from his efforts in the Nexus War by offing his consort, Saragosa, and facing him down with a fleet of red dragons. While the plan did serve to divert his attention, Malygos imprisoned Keristrasza within The Nexus. She's currently held there, and players must kill her in order to preserve her ultimate freedom. We'll set this battle, however, in the skies above the Nexus, where Keristrasza will be free to move and fly as needed.
- Crystal Chains (restricting her opponent's movement in the air)
- Crystalfire Breath
- Crystallize
- Enrage
- Intense Cold
- Tail Sweep
Ley-Guardian Eregos (The Oculus)Simpletons! You cannot comprehend the forces you have set in motion. The ley line conduit will not be disrupted! Your defeat shall be absolute!
Ley-Guardian Eregos, the great Blue Dragon boss, flies at the pinnacle of The Oculus. Players normally battle him astride drake mounts with various abilities; here, Eregos and Keristrasza will meet in the air, without the drake mechanic.
- Arcane Barrage
- Arcane Volley
- Enraged Assault
- Planar Anomalies
- Planar Shift
- Whelps Two to three spawn at a time; heavy DPS can push Eregos into a Planar Shift before he has a chance to summon
The deathmatch
Remember: no game-mechanic nitpicking. Set aside differences in opponents' health pools, game level and actual damage output. Vote for the spirit of the battle as set forth above, considering each opponent's abilities -- plus the style, scale and story he or she brings to the table.
Let's hear your theory on how things will go down up there. Can you come up with a convincing scenario in the comments that will sway other readers to vote for your victor of choice?
| Keristrasza wins (Ley-Guardian Eregos dies) | |
|---|---|
| Ley-Guardian Eregos wins (Keristrasza dies) | |
| Tie (something else happens) |
Who rocks Wrath's five-man world? We're winding up the second bracket in the five-man Wrath of the Lich King season. Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Fan stuff, Features, Lore, Bosses, Two Bosses Enter
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
t0xic Nov 5th 2009 7:08PM
There will be way too many sympathy votes for Keristrasza. Once you get past the popularity contest, Eregos destroys Keristrasza with raw power.
Wulfkin Nov 5th 2009 8:04PM
Its got nothing to do with sympathy. Keristraza will win because she can freeze Eregos in place, interrupt his spells and slow his casts whilst she damages him (in fact very similar to how players beat him). It'll be a fight of attrition, and whilst it'll be a tough one, she'll break him down.
Arathanar Nov 5th 2009 9:50PM
I must agree.
You see, the main problem Keri has is that her transition from Red to Blue (if that is indeed what is happening) has effectively given her the worst of both worlds. Blue powers rely on coldness and raw power, whereas Red powers rely on life and warmth.
As a Red Dragon, we must assume that Keristrasza does not have the arcane focus required to tap directly into the flow of the Nexus.
Eregos? Does.
Wilder Nov 5th 2009 7:12PM
I'm gonna have to say Ley-Guardian Eregos.
elstor Nov 5th 2009 8:01PM
tie something else happens: this happens:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WgT9gy4zQA
Alucard396 Nov 5th 2009 7:29PM
In the skies, nothing can beat a red dragon other than Deathwing!
Nolls74 Nov 5th 2009 7:24PM
Keri got captured by the Blue Flight once before, what makes anyone think she will fare any better this time around? First off, Eregos will keep moving, negating the cold debuff. 2nd his adds are a total pain and while *they* might die off to the cold effect, they will live long enough to hamper Keri just enough. 3rd, when Eregos does his phase shift, he is immune to damage, which will also negate Keri's attacks, and I will give her credit as a dragon and assume she is capable of flying, however I think she will take enough damage from his giant balls....of arcane energy to lose this fight.
DruidGuard Nov 5th 2009 7:26PM
In her maddened sate I'd say Keristrasza is at a large disadvantage. All too eager for her own death, driven mad, and facing down one of the major blue dragons that helped imprison her, Keristrasza might very well eat a full planar shift burst to the face. Not to mention she'll be facing down a very angry Ley-Guardian Eregos every so often with his Enraged Assault.
If she was on her A-game she might have a chance with careful kiting and freezing, but in her current mental state I'm not sure how well she'd act. Ley-Guardian Eregos just seems too strong and cunning for this battle, so I'm afraid Ley-Guardian Eregos gets my vote on this one. Such a shame, but remember, this IS ultimately what Keristrasza wants.
RetPallyJil Nov 5th 2009 7:26PM
Keri, because her human form uses ret pally Jil's face. A ret red dragon? Holy crap - run!
fuser197 Nov 5th 2009 7:31PM
Keristrasza. "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned".
geveldion Nov 5th 2009 7:41PM
She's screwed. As Druid said, she might have a better chance in her right mind. But as a berserker with a death wish? Keristrasza is in too much of a battle rage to move out of the way of the arcane balls of doom. And I honestly think Eregos hits harder. Not to mention, flying in of itself, may negate the chains of ice. Simply because it is movement, albeit merely to maintain altitude.
alexurface1 Nov 5th 2009 7:54PM
geveldoins right eregos hit harder than keristraza therefore she dies faster even though keristraza has so many abilities that slow down/stop eregos
Thyrial Nov 5th 2009 8:11PM
"Assume that the opponents along with their minions share similar levels, health pools and comparative overall damage output."
hmmmm
naixdra Nov 5th 2009 7:59PM
Keri would win, it took the Blue Aspect himself to contain her. Also notice that when Eregos shifts he is only immune to magical damage, she can still wail on him with fang and claws while he sits there helpless.
Also she can just hit him with the chains and kite him whenever he enrages. Also she can use crystallize against him, to further keep him rooted and allow the intense cold to come into play.
The anomalies can be out maneuvered easily. And the whelps, while annoying aren't that threatening that a crystalfire wouldn't take them out.
arcaneterror Nov 6th 2009 7:26AM
I agree. Add the fact that Keri is probably really, really mad at the blues and Eregos is going down.
dancinglion Nov 5th 2009 8:07PM
My vote goes for Keri here. Eregos is a tough cookie, no doubt, and a hard encounter for people just learning the instance. However, Keri has a crazy, no-holds-barred attitude. Her cold debuff would stack like crazy on Eregos and his whelps, as they just hover there and cast magic missile over and over. With their low health pools, the whelps would bite the dust in just a few seconds. Eregos may be an elder blue dragon, but he fights in the same fashion as a whelp does. Let's just say the blue dragons haven't attended the Top Gun school in aerial combat. Maybe he learned from Malygos how to fight, who knows, but apparently hovering in one spot while casting worked for them in the past.
Not only would Keri's cold debuff stack to obscene amounts on Eregos, but she also uses (gasp!) melee attacks! You could equate it to a warrior dueling a mage, but with the mage being a keyboard turner, who does not play with a mouse, and forgets the W and S keys existed. Keristraza's pure craziness would let her negate most of Eregos' magic damage, since she is infused with so much Blue Dragon energy already, one would think she was a bit attuned to it already.
In short, I think that Keristraza would win because she is ruthlessly crazy, ready to tear anyone in front of her to shreds, be it adventurers or Malygos, and she has the ability to do it. Eregos' only motivation is "oh, Malygos might get upset if someone loots this chest of blue items."
Raemsie Nov 8th 2009 6:01PM
Well, you do realize that the whelps as well as eregos never touch ground, unless keri has used one of her moves on a whelp. Eregos will destroy Keri. He has no need to jump, because he is flying. Chains will keep him in the air. He is going to win, plain
Siaperas Nov 5th 2009 8:13PM
Keristrasza is an extremely P.O.ed and crazy dragonness, and she's going against a dragon appointed by Malygos himself to guard the Occulus. She may be confused about a lot of things, but I'm pretty sure, she's fuming at the blue flight still. Eregos is toast in this fight.
Eregos will slowly attack Keristrasza, bombarding her his abilities, smugly taunting her, paying no attention to the fact that rather than try to run (kite), or stand back and fight, she's taking the beating and flying directly to him. Only when she's on does he realize what she's going to do. She doesn't attack with the flurry of spells commonly used on Eregos. She shreds him. Her claws tear at his wings and she quickly latches on his throat.
The two of them crash into the Occulus, with Eregos unable to scream, as Keristrasza shakes him by his neck like a pit bull with a chew toy. Slowly he freezes while she tears at him, leaving him a frozen, multilated monument atop the Occulus. In my opinion Eregos doesn't have a chance against the dragon who still has the passion of a red with the magic of a blue.
Fyril Nov 5th 2009 8:23PM
Of course Eregos wins. Faced with the prospect of fighting Eregos, Keristrasza types:
/sigh
/logout
EREGOS: FLAWLESS VICTORY
Ablimoth Nov 5th 2009 8:34PM
It's gotta be Keri. She hates *HATES* the Blues and Eregos fights like a bad, bad elemental shaman. Stand and shoot.
Keri can let intense cold stack up, chains him, breath on him, melee him. Oh she would snap him.