Guild Wars Guru

Dunes of Despair bonus and mapping

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Wyldchild777
Wyldchild777
Academy Page
• #1
Greetings,

I'm needing some help here. I'm having trouble figuring out how to do the Dunes of Despair bonus and mapping. I've read all the tips, I've done the search thing (both on these forums and Google), and yet it's just not clicking into place for me.

The only effective way I've found involved a necrotic traversal off of a corpse from the south gate. Problem is, there is nothing outside the south gate in range to kill. The boss and his minions on the bridge are out of range of even a longbow shot. Supposedly, there are scarabs that pop-up, but I've never seen them (have tried at least 10 times now).

How does one complete the bonus for this mission? How can the area outside the fort be mapped?

Edit: I'm attempting this with a monk primary. As far as skills are concerned, I can change to any secondary. I have access to all Tyrian skills (finished the game), or Canthan skills up to, and including, House zu Heltzer.

Merry meet, merry met, merry meet again,
Wyldchild777
Skids
Skids
Frost Gate Guardian
• #2
Necrotic traversal is the way to do it. there are scarabs you can kill as well as the others.

The trick is that you have to get them in range. We found that they run in and out of range and it takes a while so you have to keep hitting them with a degen skill or poison and just keep waiting and trying.
Effendi Westland
Effendi Westland
Wilds Pathfinder
• #3
Or, 2 monks, 2 tanks, 2 others... at 6 min mark one monk and one tank stay behind while the other 4 get the bonus.
Free Wind
Free Wind
Frost Gate Guardian
• #4
Sometimes when you come up to the gates a scarab pops up behind it.
You can also try to walk along the very edge of the hill on the right to the south gates - this also may help to trigger the scarabs to appear
DFrost
DFrost
Krytan Explorer
• #5
The southern boss spawn is a bit random. The boss has been in longbow range maybe 40-50% of the times I've attempted the bonus. There has been a convenient scarab spawn only once. Keep at it, sooner or later the boss will spawn close enough to be lured and killed. Then just use necrotic traversal to get to his corpse. Have other party members pack a vampiric weapon or some sacrifice skills, when they're dead you can rebirth them on the other side.
Free Wind
Free Wind
Frost Gate Guardian
• #6
Other party members should go back to the bridge lowered by the ghost. There are several scarabs under that bridge. Get themselves killed by the scarabs and rebirthed on the other side
Nestaron
Nestaron
Krytan Explorer
• #7
Way i've done it afew times is to kill the naga looking snake things, then send 3 players and a monk to kill the bosses. Whilst they do that you leave a monk and a warrior back to protect the ghostly hero.
Free Wind
Free Wind
Frost Gate Guardian
• #8
The subjects states "mapping". Mapping that area takes a lot of time (and nets you as much as 0.8% - 1%). So full mapping can be done ONLY with traversal trick
Mournblade
Mournblade
Furnace Stoker
• #9
No, thats not exactly true. Put your ghost on the altar and run your butt out of the fort as quickly as you can. If you get out fast enough the counter wont start, or the attackers will never go down to the ghost - either way if you do it just right you can explore at your leisure.
S
Samuel Dravis
Lion's Arch Merchant
• #10
You can achieve the bonus easily by bonding a warrior and the Hero and letting everone else go after the bosses. For example, bring Mending +4, Watchful Spirit, Life Bond, Life Barrier. Also maybe whatever other maintainable enchants you think advisable. That will keep the warrior and Hero alive long enough to get the bonus.
C
Cherno
Forge Runner
• #11
Quote: Originally Posted by Free Wind
Other party members should go back to the bridge lowered by the ghost. There are several scarabs under that bridge. Get themselves killed by the scarabs and rebirthed on the other side '
What? If you are talking about the first bridge into the area then there are no scarabs there. If you are talking about the south gate, then there really isn't any point to the trick is there?

The key to this if you are using the trick is the spawn. Most of the time you are more lucky to be able to get the boss than the scarabs to pop up. The traversal necro or monk with rebirth over. Rest put on a vampiric weapon, and wait for rebirth. We also had an assassin try to shadow over to the enemy once it was within range, but the gorge prevented that. Not sure if you can do recall or not on the ally.

If you do this, make sure you have discussed it with your team before leaving and they understand how the trick works and that it might have to be redone due to spawn. I don't know how many times I have gone through all the information, we get to the cliff and tell people to put on their vampirics and they say "why? I didn't bring one"
heroajax1
heroajax1
Frost Gate Guardian
• #12
If you guys are referring to the bridge in the South West corner of the map. You don't need any trick to get across it. Just run straight at it. You'll be like Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Floating in mid air. That bridge is up, but just run past the Enchanted guarding it. When you get across is the problem. There are about 8 Losaru and 8 Scarabs. You have to kill them all to get completely unfogged. They tend to body block you and then kill you.

This is confirmed. I just did it last night.
jjiinx13
jjiinx13
Frost Gate Guardian
• #13
Quote: Originally Posted by Mournblade
No, thats not exactly true. Put your ghost on the altar and run your butt out of the fort as quickly as you can. If you get out fast enough the counter wont start, or the attackers will never go down to the ghost - either way if you do it just right you can explore at your leisure. I was with Wyldchild(OP) this last attempt. Problem was there were no scarabs on the other side of the wall. He and I have tried this a total of about 25 times between the 2 of us. There have never been scarabs on the other side of the wall (and yes we followed the very edges of the 'fort') and the Enemies you can see are out of reach of Longbow range. Wyld was Monk primary. I have done this with all but warrior primary and like Wyld I can change secondary to any. So how do we get across for exploration (without starting timer)? I had thought about doing what Mournblade suggested before but which gate do we need to run to in this instance?
Mournblade
Mournblade
Furnace Stoker
• #14
You can run to any gate after they open, but i've had the best luck running to the one on the left (as you enter the fort and face the ghost).
d
dare49devil
Wilds Pathfinder
• #15
People...You don't need to use any necrotic rebith shit trick. Just go henchway 1 human monk, 1 human warrior. (I am guessing your warrior = explorer?)

Go to the alter...Cap...Warrior goes out to explore everything. Monk + henches finish mission in the ten minutes.

If you are talking about the south west gate which is closed...You do not need to explore that.

You really only need to explore around 99% to really have 100%.
fenix
fenix
Major-General Awesome
• #16
anyone know if you can still do the Necrotic Traversal trick to get past the gate without it opening? I'm talking about the first gate/bridge, that you have to cross to kill the enemy Ghostly Hero...
Free Wind
Free Wind
Frost Gate Guardian
• #17
Quote: Originally Posted by Cherno
'
What? If you are talking about the first bridge into the area then there are no scarabs there. If you are talking about the south gate, then there really isn't any point to the trick is there?
Here is how we did it several times (i dont know if the image will get attached though):
Green line - first party member (Mo/N or N/Mo with traversal and rebirth) uses scarabs to travers and then follows the way shown on the map

Black line - the rest of the party goes there and get themselves killed by the scarabs (red dots). Then Mo/N or N/Mo rebirthes them on the hill
W
WinespringBrother
Frost Gate Guardian
• #18
You can leave just one bonder Monk behind to keep the ghostly hero alive, while the other 5 go south to kill the generals. As long as the Monk stays on the ramp out of aggro range of the Forgotten, they won't attack her. If you want the mission also, I recommend that after everyone goes out to kill the generals to stay away from the Hero after they are done. I got the bonus but not the mission the first time I tried it, because when the rest of the party came back, they brought a bunch of extra foes who overwhelmed my healing and got the Hero killed...
TAZTG
TAZTG
Academy Page
• #19
I have been trying the Necrotic Traversal trick for some time. Last nite I finally was able to reach the Boss and 2-Enchanted Bows at the South Gate. They were just close enough to aggro them.

My W/N got over and unfogged the area and I eventually killed the 2-other bosses to get the bonus. It took me 10+ tries to have the Boss and enchanted in aggro range and I never saw a scarab pop up. I figured it got nerfed but its possoble just keep trying.
Sjeng
Sjeng
Desert Nomad
• #20
How on earth are you supposed to do this bonus without the traversal trick...
All my characters got it that way, and When trying to split up the party with 2 people keeping the ghost alive and 4 killing the bosses, they never got back in time to save the 2 that stayed behind and the ghost got killed...

Dunes is imho the worst bonus in the entire game. Hell, Glint and Thunderhead is easier! Ah well... Guess it just takes a new fresh tactic...
Suggestions anyone?