Dragonsong's Reprise Ultimate (DSR) Guide for Nidhogg
This page contains detailed information and strategy about the high-end Duty "Dragonsong's Reprise (Ultimate)", commonly abbreviated as DSR, specifically for the portion of the fight dealing with Nidhogg.
Phase 3: Nidhogg
Pre-fight preparation:
- Assign a duo of a tank or melee with a ranged or healer to each intercardinal.
- Everyone beware: Nidhogg's auto attacks cleave in a line onto its target. Steer away from the main tank whenever Nidhogg auto attacks. You can put a marker on the main tank to make it easier to see where they are.
Nidhogg Toolbox Resource
For the entirety of the phase, please reference this Toolbox for a detailed view of how each mechanic is handled.
Nidhogg Strategy
While this is a short phase, it is also one of the hardest in the entire fight. Depending on group DPS, it is suggested to always use potions during the raid buffs that happen at the end of Enumeration Towers. It is fairly easy to take a damage down here, which will result in a 50% damage reduction for a whopping three minutes. This is more harsh than the Brink of Death debuff and should be treated with the utmost seriousness. Dying in the wall and taking a raise is a better option than waiting out the debuff duration in most situations. Ensure mechanics are resolved before doing this.
Dive from Grace
- Nidhogg dives into the arena, casting Final Chorus. This is a heavy-hitting raidwide and needs to be mitigated before he appears.
- Nidhogg will auto attack twice before casting Dive from Grace.
- Numbered markers will go out. 3 one markers, 2 two markers and 3 three markers.
- Preposition the 1 markers on his hitbox east, south and west.
- Preposition the 3 markers on his hitbox north, and line up to indicate where you will swap to in the next part of the mechanic.
- Preposition the 2 markers behind the 3 markers north, and line up to indicate whether you will take east or west.
- A second debuff will now be given out, either a circle, a backwards arrow, or a forwards arrow. Each number group will either have one of each arrow and a circle, or all circles. It is not possible to have two cirlces and one arrow for example. For players marked with 2, both players will either have an arrow, or a circle. It is not possible to have one arrow and one circle. For groups using voice, it may be wise to call out which groups have arrows so the player without an arrow in the corresponding number group is aware of where they need to go.
- After the arrows and circle debuff expires, a tower will be left that needs to be soaked by another player. Circle debuff players will leave a tower centered on where they were standing, forwards arrow players will leave a tower several meters in front of where they are facing, and backwards arrow players will leave a tower several meters behind where they were facing. To ensure that there is enough space for the other players to soak the appropriate towers, the 1-marked and 3-marked players currently dropping their towers should be on the outter ring of Nidhogg's hitbox while the 2-marked players should go at least max melee distance on the "brick road" floor pattern to the northeast and northwest of Nidhogg.
For the players marked with 1:
- Preposition prior to the arrow and circle debuffs on Nidhoggs hitbox: east, west and south.
- If the 1-marked players have arrows, adjust to have the forwards arrow on Nidhogg's east side, the backwards arrow on his west side, and the circle on his south side.
- Before your debuff expires, aim so the arrow shoots across Nidhogg. Forwards arrow face into his hitbox, and backwards arrow face away from his hitbox.
- Now Nidhogg will either use Gnash and Lash or Lash and Gnash. This is a simple in and out mechanic. Lash is in, and Gnash is out. Resolve this in/out and move to the north safespot.
- The east and west players will soak the tower's placed by the 2's whilst the south person waits.
- After soaking the tower, bait the Gierskogul away from the party before stacking up again to soak the Eye of the Tyrant group soak and dodge another in or out.
- During the second part of the in or out, the south marked player runs over and soaks the south placed tower by the 3 person, followed by baiting the Gierskogul away from the group.
For the players marked with 2:
- Run north and indicate whether you will go east or west. Arrows should adjust so Spineshatter (forwards arrow) is east and Elusive (backwards arrow) is west. Stack up to soak the Eye of the Tyrant group soak after resolving your arrow/circle debuff.
- Dodge Gnash and Lash or Lash and Gnash.
- Place your tower to the northeast/northwest of the boss. 2-marked players should stand at least max melee from the boss along the "brick road" floor pattern. If you have an arrow debuff, the forward arrow player faces the other 2-marked player. The backwards arrow player faces away from the other 2-marked player.
- Return to the party to soak the Eye of the Tyrant group soak and dodge the next in/out.
- During the second part of the in/out, soak the east/west towers placed by the 3-marked players and bait the Gierskogul away from the group. Soak the tower on the same side where you were positioned to place your tower, with northeast taking the east tower, and northwest taking the west tower.
For the players marked with 3:
- Preposition to indicate which 1's tower you will soak. Then move north to to soak the Eye of the Tyrant group stack.
- If the 3-marked players have arrows, adjust which tower you will soak by having the forwards arrow go east, the backwards arrow go west, and the Circle go south.
- Dodge Gnash and Lash or Lash and Gnash. During the second part of this dodge, soak the towers dropped by the 1 markers, then bait the Gierskogul away from Nidhogg.
- Resolve your own arrow or circle debuff in the same spot that you soaked the 1's tower. Forwards arrow faces Nidhogg's hitbox. Backwards arrow faces away from Nidhogg's hitbox.
- Dodge another in/out.
Darkdragon Dive
- Nidhogg will start auto attacking the main tank again after the last towers are baited. Be careful to not be cleaved by Nidhogg's autos.
- After two auto attacks, Nidhogg will target a random player and cast Drachenlance. This is a cleave in front of him that knocks anyone hit into the wall of the arena. Simply dodge this attack to the side.
- Four towers will now spawn, one on each intercardinal. Towers will indicate how many players are required to soak it by having one spike for each player required.
- Assign a single ranged or healer player to "anchor" at each tower. Assign a single melee or tank player to each tower as a "flex" player. Pre-position at your assigned tower and flex players should be ready to adjust.
- If your starting tower needs two or more people, both players stay in your starting tower.
- If your starting tower only requires one person, then only the anchor player stays. The flex player will adjust to another tower.
- We recommend using the following priority system for flex players to adjust to the correct tower if your starting tower only needs one player:
- Check if the clockwise tower from you requires three or four players. If it does, go there.
- If the tower clockwise from you only requires one or two players, check the tower counterclockwise of you and see if it needs three or four players. If it does, go there.
- If neither the clockwise or counterclockwise towers from you need three or four players, go to the tower directly opposite of your starting position.
- After the soak, have the anchors bait the Gierskoguls away.
- Have non-tank players stack directly east or west of the boss after Girskogul has been baited.
- Tanks will need to intercept the Soul Tethers coming from the boss and from a random clone left by the towers. This tether resolves in a high damage AoE tank buster, and needs to be mitigated heavily to survive. Tanks should go to the north or south of the boss to resolve their tether to avoid hitting any party members with the AoE.
- Nidhogg will then turn to the main tank and auto attack them five times again before casting another Drachenlance, however, this one will always be aimed south so DPS can move out of the way before it starts casting.
- Lastly, Nidhogg will cast Revenge of the Horde. This is his enrage.
Changelog
- 04 Jun. 2022: Guide added.
- 25 May 2024: Guide updated with current community strategies.
Phase Guides for Dragonsong's Reprise
Torael Valdis, or Tor for short, is an experienced raider in FFXIV who has been playing the game since the tail end of the Heavensward expansion. His experience includes multiple Week 1 Savage Tier kills as well as completion of each Ultimate Raid in the patch they were released. You can find him in The Balance Discord where he currently is active as a melee DPS mentor. He also occasionally streams early prog on his Twitch.
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