Dungeons & Dragons Online Litany of the Dead Quest Guide: Pre-Raid to Ascension Chamber

Name	Litany of the Dead Quest Guide: Pre-Raid to Ascension Chamber
Category	Quest

Litany of the Dead is the level 15 quest which happens to be the pre-raid to the Black Abbot raid called the Ascension Chamber. Getting to this point is no easy task. In fact, you need to repeat the major quests at the Orchard of the Macabre to get hold of the eight (8) sigil pieces. [Note: See the guide on where to get what sigil piece]. Once you have completed the sigil pieces, you have to turn them into Sir Rohine Stiedra over at the northernmost part of the Necropolis. He will grant you access to the Black Mausoleum where the pre-raid takes place.

In this pre-raid, you will again face the four bosses you had encountered in the four quests. They are: Mentau (The Fleshmaker's Lab), Cholthuzz (Ghost of Perdition), Cinnis (Inferno of the Damned), and Vol (Temple of Vol). Take note that you will face them one at a time, so that means you have to run the pre-raid four times. Think of it as one quest with four different endings, depending on which boss you wish to slay first. The quest is long so you may not have time to do all four runs in one go. The beauty of it is that you can always re-run the quest until you have defeated all four bosses. Only then can you advance to the raid itself.

To choose which boss to deal with first, you have to answer a set 15 of questions that corresponds to the alignment of a particular boss. That being said, you have to know the alignment of the bosses. Here's the list:

Mentau: Chaotic Good
Cinnis: Chaotic Evil
Vol (High Priest): Lawful Evil
Doomsphere: Lawful Good

PREPARATION

The enemies you will encounter inside the Black Mausoleum are a combination of creatures you've encountered in the Orchard quests. They include: Shadows, Blacbones, Wheeps, Quells, Giant Skeleton, Gargoyles, Ogre Magi, and Human and Elven Cultists. Depending on the end boss you choose to defeat first, you will encounter the creatures that are prominent in the pre-requisite quest. For example, if you are doing Mentau side, you will see lots of fleshmakers; and if you are doing Vol side, you will encounter Quells and Wheeps. So, you need to buff up accordingly. But the staple will be Deathward, Greater Heroism, Resists (Fire, Acid, Electricity), Blur, Displacement, and Stoneskin. Of course, more buffs are desirable. Just buff with everything you got and you will stay alive longer. Also, you will stand to get many negative levels, so Clerics will have to bring greater restoration to save up on mana (as opposed to using just restoration and casting it x number of times).

While creatures are manageable, you will have to content with a series of traps en route to the dragon that will ask you the questions. Unfortunately, these traps cannot be disabled. You will have to rely on your evasion skills (read: dodging the traps through timing). Now, if you have evasion feat, then you will probably be the one to grab stones and raise dead party members. The traps are whirring blades and seemingly endless force traps. If you count collapsing floor as a trap, then make that three major traps in the quest. In this kind of situation, you have to be patient and learn how to time your movement.

GUIDE/WALKTHROUGH

Upon entering, buff up and head to the hallway and you will encounter several cultists and an Ogre Magi. Killing them all will cause a black barrier to drop, allowing you to move further along the hallway. As you proceed, prepare to fight with a few more cultists. You will then reach an area that seems harmless, but you do know that it is a trap. The trap will be activated once somebody steps on it. It is a good idea to have someone with evasion to trigger the trap so that the rest will know where to go to avoid it. Remember that the trap cannot be disabled. But if there's no one with evasion, the trick that always works is to run straight to the right side, without stopping. Sure, it will trigger the traps, but the blades on that side will only pop out after you've crossed it. So you will get to the other side unscathed. Please note that if the traps hit you, you can die (yes, they deal massive damage).

After you survive the traps, head down the hallway and you will reach a room that will automatically open when you get there. This is the first big fight in the quest. You will be facing one tough Blackguard who has many tricks up his sleeves. It's not wise to rush ahead because the doors will close and will leave you all alone with the Blackguard boss. So make sure everyone moves in at the same time. To make things even more difficult, you will have to contend with his bodyguards consisting of human and elven cultists. Now, the blackguard is a skeleton with a really intimidating look. If looks could kill, you'd be long dead. But seriously, he has massive hitpoints and he casts spells and give you negative levels via his aura of withering. His spell resistance is very high and he saves a lot.


But what really makes him tough are the weapons he use. He switches weapons throughout the fight. Just like you, he has the ability to use vorpals, wounding, puncturing, enfeebling and even cursepewing weapons. One strategy that works is to set up multiple blade barriers and firewalls on the left corner of the room. To make sure he stays in the area where the blade barriers and firewalls can reach him, you have to trap him or box him in by shieldblocking. This also protects the caster and the cleric from getting much of the aggro. Another way is to run him around the pillar where the blade barrier and firewall are. However, he really has the tendency to move a lot and he is most likely to avoid the crowd control.

After you kill him, proceed down the hallway and you will see three chests at the end of the hall. They may really look like they have nice fat loot inside, but the truth is they are just there to fool you. Once you open the big chest, the floor will collapse and will drop down to an area with green fog. There will be several undead that will come attack you. Over in one corner is a huge pillar. Behind it is a safe spot where you can stay. What needs to be done is to use the lever in room to start the fears moving. The door will open after a couple of minutes so you need to hold out against the undead ambush.

You will have to fight giant skellies and blackbones. Squishies can stay behind the pillar while the tanks try to ward of the undead until the path opens. This path will lead you to an force trap pit. This is a very tricky run. When you drop down the pit, there is a chance that you will trigger the force traps. It's important that party members drop down one at a time to avoid setting off the traps before you reach safe spot. What you need to do is to remove your feather fall so that you drop down real fast without triggering the drops. The pit is like a maze as well, so there will be dead ends and if you stay long in those dead ends, you will get hit by the force traps.

Rogues or those with evasion types should drop down last so that they can pick up stones of dead party members. Once you reach the safe spot, there's no way to come back up. Note that even if you have survived the traps, you might not survive the spike traps in the middle. What you need to do is drop drown, always turn left to avoid force traps and when you are near the safe area, hug the rightmost or leftmost wall. This way, you will avoid the spike traps. Stay in the safe area until everyone drops down. Wear your featherfall item again because it's quite a long drop from the safe spot down to the cage where a dragon is waiting. You can talk to the dragon even if there's steel railing between. This is where the question and answer portion takes place. Remember to answer the questions based on the end boss' alignment.

To make things easier for you, here are the 15 questions as well as the answers depending on which end boss you want to defeat first.


QUESTION #1: Which group would you seek membership in?

Silver Flame(Lawful Good) A: Doomsphere or Mentau

Emerald Claw(Chaotic Evil) A: Cinnis and Vol
Neither


QUESTION #2: If the Black Abbot gave you an offer to join his forces, what would you say?

Stand by his side as he brought Stormreach to its knees (Evil) A: Cinnis or Vol
I would have to know the details first
Never, he is a scourge on X'endrik and must be stopped (Good) A: Doomsphere or Mentau


QUESTION #3: Cinnis seeks to destroy all things that taunt him with heat. How do you feel about this?

It's not my place to judge
If something has heat, it should be left as it is and Cinnis should deal with his hatred internally (Good) A: Doomsphere or Mentau

Let him destroys what he wants, let him suck the heat out of all living things.(Evil) A: Cinnis or Vol


QUESTION #4: Mentau agreed to help the black abbot, because the lich was the only one who could save his daughter from his terminal illness.
In trade for saving her, the abbot demanded mentaus eternal service. Would you have agreed to that deal?

I would have offered him anything but my freedom.

I would have done anything to save my daughter. (Good) A: Doomsphere or Mentau

I would not have traded my freedom or anything else for her life. (Evil) A: Cinnis or Vol


QUESTION #5: Vol desperately wants the litany of the dead. If you find it, what would you do with it.

Deliver it to Vol and claim all the rewards she can offer.(Evil) A: Cinnis or Vol

Carry it around for a while, occasionally peeking what’s inside.

Destroy it once and for all. (Good) A: Doomsphere or Mentau


QUESTION #6: What are your thoughts on Mentau?

He seems to be an alright guy
He and his creations are abominations. (Lawful) A: Doomsphere or Vol
I think using his artificing skills to make flesh golems is ingenious.(Chaotic) A: Cinnis or Mentau


QUESTION #7: If you had been buried with the high priest when the temple was desecrated, what would you have done?

Sat in a corner and cried
Stay faithful to the lady, knowing she would be my salvation. (Lawful) A: Doomsphere or Vol
I would have ransacked the temple for anything i need to stay alive, and killed anyone who got in the way of what i needed. (Chaotic) A: Cinnis or Mentau


QUESTION #8: Cholthulzz obeyed the conditions set out by the black abbot upon losing his duel for centuries until you exposed a loophole. What would you have done?

Broken the arrangement as soon as I could strike down the black abbot. (Chaotic) A: Cinnis or Mentau
I would have immediately bartered for my freedom.
The contract is binding, i would follow the conditions.(Lawful) A: Doomsphere or Vol


QUESTION #9: If the Black Abbot succeeds in his plans, to grasp the power of the gods, and Sir Rhonine orders a full assault, would you go, knowing you would be fighting an immortal that would surely slaughter you all.

Forget that, it’s not my fight, I would leave and go somewhere where the abbot would never try. (Chaotic) A: Cinnis or Mentau

I would follow the orders I was given. (Lawful) A: Doomsphere or Vol

Id sit back, and hope that the first wave defeated the abbot.


QUESTION #10: What do you think of kai-tengs betrayal?

If the black abbot offered him a better deal, I can’t blame him for taking it. (Chaotic) A: Cinnis or Mentau

He was just another enemy to kill.

He deserved to die, for betraying his faith and oath to vol. (Lawful) A: Doomsphere or Vol


QUESTION #11: Which title do you feel the most drawn to?

The crusader (Lawful Good) A: Doomsphere

The destroyer (Chaotic Evil) A: Cinnis

The rebel (Chaotic Good) A: Mentau

The dominator (Lawful Evil) A: Vol


QUESTION 12: How do you feel about those who stand with neutrality?

They lack the will to take and do what they want. (Chaotic Evil) A: Cinnis

They lack both a free spirit and a good heart. (Chaotic Good) A: Mentau

They lack intentions, plans, methods and the stomach for what must be done. (Lawful Evil) A: Vol

They lack honour and compassion. (Lawful Good) A: Doomsphere


QUESTION 13: If after you died, you could be re-incarnated as any colour dragon, which would you choose?

black or blue (Lawful Evil) A: Vol

gold or silver (Lawful Good) A: Doomsphere

red or white (Chaotic Evil) A: Cinnis

brass or bronze (Chaotic Good) A: Mentau


QUESTION 14: what would you do, if you were me, and a party of adventurers, came seeking access to my master the black abbot?

Destroy the adventurers without pause or consideration. (Chaotic Evil) A: Cinnis

Engage the adventurers in a battle of wits and if they win let them pass. (Lawful Good) A: Doomsphere

Tell the adventurers they could pass if they won the battle of wits, then destroy them all. (Lawful Evil) A: Vol

Let the adventurers pass then aid them in their assault of the black abbot. (Lawful Good) (Chaotic Good) A: Doomsphere or Mentau


QUESTION #15: which guardian do you identify with the most

High Priest of Vol
Mentau the Fleshmaker
Cinnis the Cinderspawn
Cholthulzz the Doomshere


For Question #15, you will have to choose the end boss you will be fighting whose alignment is the basis of your answers for questions 1 to 14.

A single incorrect answer will cause every member of the party to die and you will have to do the quest all over again. If all questions are answered correctly, you will drop into an area where there is a chest, a shrine and a table where you need to get a key to proceed. Once you're done shrining and buffing, head on to the hallway that leads to the end boss you chose. Remember that this is the same end boss you have fought with in the pre-requisite quests, so you already have an idea on how to defeat them. At the end of each quest, you will have to go out the door to the tower to get your chest.

You will have to repeat this 3 more times in order to gain access to the raid. What's great is that once you are flagged, you don't need to do this over and over again. But you will probably want to keep running the quest for the awesome loot. This is also the quest where you get your tome pieces (for the tome of legends collectibles quest) so you will want to keep repeating. It's a challenging quest that will require preparation and teamwork. It's a fun quest to say the least and you might even be greatly rewarded if you're lucky enough.