Two Bosses Enter: Anub'Arak vs. King Dred
by Lisa Poisso 
Dec 31st 2009 at 4:00PM
Welcome to the semi-finals of the Wrath of the Lich King Original Five-Mans season of Two Bosses Enter, One Boss Leaves! This week's matchup is big -- really, really big. In fact, we're thinking about expanding the Two Bosses Thunderdome so that our opponents can physically fit inside (and because these adds are not something we want running loose in the stands).
Top-seeded Anub'Arak of Azjol-Nerub squares off against the ever-popular King Dred in this week's Thunderdome match. There are sure to be plenty of hasty conclusions: "It's Anub, man -- he rocks ToC!" (wrong fight there, dude) and the inevitable "OMNOMNOM" of the dino fanboys. Rescuing us from the tedium are our loyal fans, who've built an entire season of convincing scenarios that make weighing your vote a real pleasure. Be sure to read (and contribute to) the comments before you cast your vote -- you just might change your mind after seeing what your fellow spectators have offered up for consideration.
Let's review the ground rules:
- The Two Bosses Thunderdome is considered neutral territory, where both combatants are able to access their usual encounter mechanics and abilities.
- All of the competitors' abilities, including crowd control and other effects to which bosses are usually immune, work on their opponents.
- Assume that the opponents share similar levels, health pools and comparative overall damage output.
- Don't get caught up in gameplay mechanics and what actual players might do in each encounter.
- Don't neglect style, story and scale.
In Corner One: Anub'Arak (Azjol-Nerub) I was king of this empire once, long ago. In life I stood as champion. In death I returned as conqueror. Now I protect the kingdom once more. Ironic, yes?
Anub'Arak, the former king of Azjol-Nerub, was among the Nerubians slaughtered in the War of the Spider and later raised as Undead by Ner'zhul the Lich King to do his bidding. Read the extensive lore page on Anub'Arak to learn more about his background.
Anub'Arak's battle strategy includes truly relentless tactics. Besides wreaking havoc with vicious attacks and environmental damage, he swarms opponents with protective Locusts and nettling Carrion Beetles. He periodically burrows underground, besieging opponents with packs of summoned minions.
- Carrion Beetles
- Locust Swarm
- Impale
- Pound
- Anub'ar Assassin
- Anub'ar Darter
- Anub'ar Guardian
- Anub'ar Venomancers
In Corner Two: King Dred (Drak'tharon Keep)King Dred raises his claws menacingly ...
King Dred, the great Devilsaur, is found within Drak'tharon Keep. His vicious attacks are augmented by those of the smaller raptors he calls to his aid during battle.
- Bellowing Roar
- Fearsome Roar
- Grievous Bite
- Mangling Slash
- Piercing Slash
- Raptor Call
- King Dred also "raises his claws menacingly," after which he performs all three of his bleed effects in rapid succession.
Inside the Thunderdome
Two Boss matchups are about substance and style, not game play and mechanics. Don't base your strategies on player tactics, which opponent has been easiest or most difficult for you personally, or the difficulty of each opponent relative to instance progression. Vote for the spirit of the battle as set forth above. Set aside differences in opponents' health pools, game level and actual damage output. Absolutely no game-mechanic nitpicking!
Before you cast your vote, join the debate in the comments. Who wins, and why? Style points go to spectators who use the comments to sway other readers to their point of view!
| Anub'Arak wins (King Dred dies) | |
|---|---|
| King Dred wins (Anub'Arak dies) | |
| Tie (something else happens) |
Who rocks Wrath's five-man world? Add your own narrative on what would happen when these mighty opponents meet up inside the Two Bosses Thunderdome. Anything's possible in the semi-finals of Two Bosses Enter, One Boss Leaves: The Original Wrath Five-Man Season. Review who's up in the semi-finals here. Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Fan stuff, Features, Lore, Bosses, Two Bosses Enter
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Cuwi Dec 31st 2009 4:11PM
Anub'Arak. No question. Simply because fighting Anub'Arak requires you to be aware of your surroundings and MOVE. Dred just isn't smart enough. He'll ignore the ground rumbling beneath his feet and he damn sure won't move out of a Pound. The simple fact is that Anub is smart enough to deal with Dred's strengths and exploit his weaknesses. Dred is not smart enough to do the same thing in return.
Grievous Bite would suck for Anub, but honestly he'd probably just win the fight brutally fast (How many Pounds can you take, Dred?) and have one of his high priests fix him up afterwards.
Gankedd Dec 31st 2009 4:47PM
Just because ANUB is a harder battle in-GAME doesnt mean he'll auto win.
Think about it on Dreds turf.
Maybe the ground is too hard to burrow under.
Maybe Anub's adds can't get in the fight that quick.
Yeah, maybe Dred couldnt get under anubs shell but maybe he could.
I really dont think pound would affect dred, nor would a bug storm be that big a deal.
I still think Dred would rape this overgrown insect.
Anathemys Dec 31st 2009 5:56PM
Yes, but your assumption is based on Dred having his home-field advantage. This is specifically in NEUTRAL territory where BOTH guys have all their abilities available.
Let's say this is on Anub's turf, the platform is kind of small, who's to say Dred wouldn't fall off (breaking the web barriers due to him being a dinosaur)? Plus, Dred wouldn't have all his raptor buddies, lowering his dps and making it more difficult to deal with Anub's adds.
If you bring home-turfs into play, you can argue something either way, making the fight more about the field than the bosses.
Clydtsdk-Rivendare Dec 31st 2009 5:57PM
And maybe the match takes place on neutral ground that does not prohibit either side from any of its moves.
owait.
Deathknighty Dec 31st 2009 4:17PM
Ooh, tough one. But, King Dred could pretty much bite off all the pincer-y/leg-y bits of Anub until he's just a big, undead, legless, pincerless, spider-y thing, and I think his adds are too strong to be overcome by Anub's little spiders.
And I don't think Anub's pincer attack (assuming he still has them) would get past Dred's legs, rendering it almost completely useless.
So all in all, I'd say King Dred wins (despite all the ToGC roflstomping on Anub's part).
Deathknighty Dec 31st 2009 4:24PM
Also, I don't think Anub's pound would really have much of an impact on something as big as Dred.
Kinda like a pissed off, meaty six-year-old trying to beat up his big brother. :P
mtwcmarsh Dec 31st 2009 4:45PM
And I don't think Anub's pincer attack (assuming he still has them) would get past Dred's legs,
Bad logic. By that reasoning, nobody, certainly nobody the size of, say, a Gnome or even a Tauren could possibly beat King Dred. Beating the big dogs is what epic warriors do, regardless of arms' reach.
Deathknighty Dec 31st 2009 5:22PM
@Mtwcmarsh - I see where you're coming from, but as it's basically a giant pincer sticking out of the ground, and then has a limited reach: we'll assume that the space between the ground and King Dred's crotch is about 15 m. We'll say that Anub's pincer can get up to a height of 10 m.
So, while I'm not going to pretend that I know their exact heights, I am quite sure that the pincer wouldn't be able to do more than scratch at his legs.
Also, in regards to the gnome/tauren being able to kill him, I can only offer this explanation: while in the actual game mechanics, it is possible to kill him purely by hacking at his feet, I'm quite sure that lorewise, (which, I understand, is how these fights are to be judged) magical damage would be required to kill him.
So, while I fully understand where you're coming from, I still maintain that King Dred is near immune to physical damage, and, as so many of Anub's attacks are designed around squishing smaller things with large bouts of physical damage.
But that's just what I think. ;)
Feezee Dec 31st 2009 4:18PM
Usually 4 matches left = quarter finals, 2 matches left = semi finals, 1 match left = final. Is this bracket following that format or are the winners of these last 4 matches going to one big 4 way royal rumble final?
tatsumasa Dec 31st 2009 4:29PM
anub. he calls so many adds during his fight that dred's raptors wouldn't be able to handle them all. poisons and swarms and pound will beat out raptor call. piercing slash you say? time to burrow and spike you while the little bugs chew on you.
NoTomorrow Dec 31st 2009 4:29PM
Alright, I had to think about this for a minute.
Im going to go with Anub'Arak.
As someone mentioned before, Dred just isn't smart enough. When Anub goes underground, Dred will be utterly confused, and not even bother with the adds. His raptors will try to kill the adds, but they will get wiped out. Meanwhile, Dred will aimlessly wander around, looking for Anub.
Also, when Anub goes underground, he removes the bleed effects, so he has a massive advantage. Dred's lack of awareness will be his downfall I think.
It's a Trap! Dec 31st 2009 4:31PM
Im pretty sure when anub burrows he wipes the bleeds. so our "little" dinosaur friend's bleed effects dont affect anub has harshly as the other bosses he won against due to the bleeds. I'd give this one to anub.
Rexton Dec 31st 2009 4:39PM
In my mind, the Lich King is Lord Zed and all of his lines should be read in his voice.
The Lich King watches over Northrend from his castle in Icecrown with his telescope. Over on the Grizzly Hills/Zul'Drak border, he sees the Ice Trolls being eate-um, worshiping their T-Rex god. He ponders to himself, "Why don't I have an undead dinosaur in my army?" He turns to his right hand man Anub'Arak and says, "I have a mission for you." Giddy with finally having something to do than destroy 5 man PuGs and heroic raid healers hope, Anub'Arak takes the job without hearing what it is yet. "You see that Tyrannosaurus Rex that those Ice Trolls are worshiping? You are to kill it and bring it back to me. I trust this should be an easy enough job for you?"
Without answering, Anub'Arak tunnels through the citadel and calls forth his Nerubian army. Meanwhile, the Lich King is yelling that if his floors aren't fixed by the end of the day, he'll have Anub's head for it, not that it really matters, he seems to be able to regrow it. Tunneling with amazing speeds, the Nerubian army bursts through Drak'tharon Keep. "Underlings! Attack the trolls! Leave the giants to battle!"
Anub begins his attack with a pound, followed by a locust swarm. Dred, being the head-on guy he is, doesn't step away from the pound, having his troll healer start cussing over the party chat (the healer is then, of course, eaten). Dred starts to call his raptors to aid the fight as well as getting a good bite on the big bug. Seeing as his first strike with his Nerubians appeared to be a stalemate, with equal losses on both sides, he calls forth his smaller second round of nerubians as he burrows underground. The Nerubians and the raptors begin to attack each other with Dred wondering where the giant dead cockroach went. He starts to feel something under his leg.
Anub'Arak lunges out of the ground with impale, sending spikes right into Dred's right foot. Dred begins to fall over, but catches himself. He wasn't going to go down that easy. As the undead King comes up from the ground again, ready to make the final strike on the stumbling dinosaur, Dred makes a deafening roar, which knocks Anub back a little bit. Using this chance, the T-Rex lunges at Anub and uses a mangling slash on the bug. Realizing his time is short since the Nerubians don't train their healing spells, Anub tunnels into the ground once more, with an additional wave of Nerubians which focus this time on Dred. The bugs are able to knock over the dinosaur onto his bad leg. Anub uses this chance to impale the dinosaur straight through the heart, taking the win.
Two hours later, Anub'Arak stumbles through the hole in the floor he made in the citadel, dragging King Dred behind him. The Lich King looks over the dinosaur's body and smiles, and then looks at his underling. "Did it give you too much trouble?"
"A little. Nothing the Nerubian empire couldn't handle. I might need a rez once I die from bleeding."
"You're undead. Why are you bleeding?" The Lich King pondered out loud, but the undead Spider King collapsed. He sighed as he muttered something to himself about reviving Anub'Arak for the third time this expansion and told his undead minions to bring the dinosaur carcass to Krick. All in all, it was a victory for the scourge.
That floor was never fixed, though.
Deathknighty Dec 31st 2009 5:31PM
Love the story, amusing, interesting, and well thought through.
Just want to point out on a technicality though, that by comparing their sizes, Anub wouldn't be able to get his pincers anywher near Dred's heart, and seeing as that's how you're killing Dred off, is a pretty critical flaw.
Nevertheless, I loved the story, and it was very entertaining to read. :)
Rexton Dec 31st 2009 5:38PM
I figure Dred's pinned down by having a broken/sprained leg and a bunch of Nerubians. He's lying on his side. Those spikes have to be, what, 5-7 feet tall? If they don't hit his heart, they're hitting something vital. Or he could just go for the head shot, but I'm pretty sure the Lich King wants that intact.
Deathknighty Jan 1st 2010 7:28AM
Yeah, I guess they could trip him up without too much trouble.
Also, another thing about the story which I forgot to say was that seeing as Anub died too (even if to be resurrected almost immediately), that would make it a tie, which I, at least, don't see very much, giving it some nice variety.
solzean Jan 1st 2010 12:54PM
I can not imagine Anub being able to pound Dred at all. He is simply not tall enough, and in order to he would need to bring himself onto his back legs leaving himself exposed to an easy attack. Anub's only really strength is that he can burrow and impale.
Big problem here is that he needs to hit Dred directly in his foot and it can not be a glancing glow because his Scales would help to deflect it. This ends up with Anub also hoping that when he strikes Dred foot is not moving upward or he is not already gone. I ASSUME that Anub has little vision as to where he spikes are going also because even when the target moves he continues to spike the same spot but that could just be a game mechanic. Overall I simply dont see Dred as dumb enough to stand over shaking earth. Because he has a low IQ does not mean he is not designed for strat. in a battle or is not able to comprehend shaking ground = something is wrong.
Overall I give Dred the edge simply because once Anub is bleeding the fight is over. Dred only needs one hit to end this, and even if he dies after the one hit it is then a tie. To be honest I see it more as a tie but for the sake of arguement I give Dred the win because he would employ hit and run. Large dinosaurs likely were able to wound their opponent and simply watch them bleed out and let them leave, or they are even considering the Komodo Dragon effect now with bacteria. But I could be wrong so any debate is interesting!
WoWie Zowie Dec 31st 2009 4:40PM
king vs king
anub'arak starts off with a pound, catching dred off gaurd and forcing him into his dirt pile. his little insects start poking at dred and cause dred to panic and call his first and second raptors.
anub senses danger and quickly burrows, summoning his poison spiders.
raptors and spider adds go at it, but... uh oh! as anyone who's tried to heal through anub knows, there is a lot of poison on this fight. the raptors have no way to cleanse the poison! they fly through the air as anub spikes the ground from under them. dred regains his composure and gets himself unstuck from the dirt. he panics and calls another 2 raptors to his aid. his massive jaws easily help his 2 new raptors dispatch of the spider adds, but not before dred himself has been stricken with the poison!
anub resurfaces, performing a quick locust swarm to wipe up the remainder of the raptors' dwindled health pool. then pounds dred yet again!
but this time dred is aware of what is about to happen, and steps aside. he lets out a bellowing roar which sends anub and his spider nuisances scittering in terror.
dred's window to gain the upper hand opens. he piercing slashes anub with his left foot, and mangling slashes with his right. anub is weakened, bleeding, and running around. dred's raptors begin their attack! anub senses the turning tide and burrows yet again. his spider adds come down and lay seige to the new raptor adds while anub targets dred himself to spike. through poison and melee, anub's adds quickly kill the raptors. dred hasn't L2move properly and ate a few of the spikes. he's not used to avoiding danger, up until now he's been the alpha dino.
dred calls forth another 2 raptors as a last-ditch. anub resurfaces and senses his opportunity. he targets his pound on the new raptor adds! calling all spider forces on them to quickly kill them. locust swarm while they are stunned.
the two raptors barely had a chance, and a battered dred gets a final glimpse of what the nerubian empire looks like before succumbing with a feeble squeak.
anub spams trade chat, linking his "better off dred" achievement and ninjas the spider chitin in the gbank before /gquitting and relocating to icecrown, where he finds himself in a slightly colder, but MUCH better guild....
Gankedd Dec 31st 2009 4:42PM
You guys think about this WAY to much like your in the game.
News flash its a fantasy fight not; "Well this guy is this lvl elite" or what not.
Anub is a bug. Bugs get squished. Dino ftw.
Rexton Dec 31st 2009 4:46PM
B-B-But he's a BIG bug!