Harrowstorm dungeons - great experience (imo)

Darkenarlol

me and my wife cleared both new dungeons vet blindruns tonight and...it was awesome!

bosses with intresting mechanics, beautifull level design and a lot of fun because we met

some nice people during our dungeon crawling


i really appreciate the difficulty levelt at which you have to follow mechanics

but don't experience stupid oneshots from every random monster sneeze

it was really fun and we're gonna be back for the rest of the achievements in next days

thank you dev team


and what was your experience with the new dungeons guys?

Myrddin1357

I did one of the dungeons and was thoroughly impressed. I agree this is great work by the designers! Looking forward to Greymoor! The recent released have all been very good.

ZOS_Adrikoth

Hey there @Darkenarlol we're glad to hear that you enjoyed Icereach and Unhallowed Grave.

mimisapje

I loved it! My friends kinda pushed me to do it on vet, and I reluctantly agreed, as i usually run the new dungeons on normal to experience the store and get to know the bosses. I didn't wanna spend my whole evening on a boss, just cause I don't understand the mechanics.
But it actually went surprisingly well. Only one of us died at the first boss of the icereach dungeon and that was it. All the other fights went smoothly and we quickly picked up the mechanics. Only hardmode will be tricky to figure out. But that's for another day to figure out.

I loved in unhallowed grave the grappling hooks. It gives a completely different experience in running a dungeon & the end boss in there just gave me massive Mass Effect 2 endboss flashbacks, i loved it!

Im sure to be back the upcoming days to get the next batch of achievements!
Glad to see other people are enjoying it as well!

zaria

Only done them in normal, Unhallowed Grave will be an pug killer. Fun but it looks easier for an group in vet with voice than an pug with chat off in normal. Other one was easy in normal.

And yes liked the puzzle design, only issue is the boss with the 6 or more platforms its hard to res and get out of taunt to discuss tactic

stefan.gustavsonb16_ESO

Got an almost full guild group together, but chickened out and ran them both on normal the first round, seeing how our tank would be a random guest. We should have done them on vet to make them last longer, because from what I hear from others they are fun, not just frustrating, in vet mode. Still, we had a blast, wiped a few times before we figured out the mechanics, and left generally happy and impressed with both places.

The first random tank who left the group as soon as they saw that their random daily ended up being a DLC dungeon doesn't know how much fun they missed out on. Maybe they were fake and realised they couldn't get away with it, I don't know, they just flashed by and left within seconds. We soldiered on with a sort of heal-tank and two dds for a while, surprisingly doing rather well, until a replacement random tank arrived. That one was great and is now a guild member.

All in all, two very nice dungeon runs. Looking forward to doing them both on vet later.

Sarousse

The difficulty is insanely low in veteran mode for a DLC donjon.

We didn't read strats, and totally destroyed both of the 2 new donjons.

Totally disppointed.

SpaceElf

Darkenarlol wrote: »

me and my wife cleared both new dungeons vet blindruns tonight and...it was awesome!

bosses with intresting mechanics, beautifull level design and a lot of fun because we met

some nice people during our dungeon crawling


i really appreciate the difficulty levelt at which you have to follow mechanics

but don't experience stupid oneshots from every random monster sneeze

it was really fun and we're gonna be back for the rest of the achievements in next days

thank you dev team


and what was your experience with the new dungeons guys?

How do I get there?

Elwendryll

We cleared Unhallowed grave today with my guild on a blind run. On veteran Hard Mode (we didn't even try the other difficulties), with all the optional parts. I want to point out that in my opinion, this is a dungeon where getting spoiled might really make it less enjoyable.

Great experience. This dungeon feels so different from all the previous dungeons, in the best way. Everything was satisfying about it, it felt fair, it felt challenging, it encouraged us to explore, to take risks.

Some would even say, a leap of faith

Figuring out the solutions was very satisfying. The bosses were epic. Really really good dungeon, I left it feeling nothing but happiness, a smile stuck on my face. That was awesome.

On the other hand! 100% not a dungeon I would consider doing with a PUG. There is also one AOE effect during the last phase of the last boss that probably has an issue with its telegraph.

When the giant bone colossus summons an area on the ground

There is a fire effect, and then something similar to a "black hole", on the ground, that kills you very quickly, most of the time it looked like a shadow, very hard to spot if you don't know it's there.

Also, with all the optional parts, there are a lot of bosses, it feels like a trial for 4 people, (except the mechanics are very engaging), and as a result, you get a lot of loot

Overall, 10/10, would recommend, best dungeon experience ever.

And 18M health final boss with the most epic execute phase xD

I want to thank all the dungeon team for their hard work. This really made me happy.

Elwendryll

So. We went into veteran Icereach, blind run as usual. We got no death and speedrun on the first try, and then we tried HM, and we managed to clear it after some time.

I'm not a big fan of the Hard modes that are just all the mechanics of a dungeon stacked in a single fight. This single fight was very interesting, but as a result, the non-HM feels very underwhelming. The whole dungeon is just an introduction to the Hard Mode fight, and without it, it's... Well, just like any other dungeon, we didn't need to use our brains all that much, we mostly burned through it.

The HM was very good, it makes the whole dungeon. It feels very overwhelming if you don't take a step by step approach, but again... Without the HM the dungeon feels too simple.

Overall, Icereach is a nice dungeon, but it just feels like every previous dungeon. After Unhallowed grave, it was a bit disappointing.

ArcVelarian

Unhallowed Grave is definitely the most inventive Dungeon so far.

furiouslog

Ditto on the positive comments. Loved both dungeons, but especially UG.

emilyhyoyeon

I have only done Unhallowed Grave so far and I loved it. I think the first boss could use some extra spice but otherwise very nice

Raisin

UG definitely trumped Icereach because of mechanics. However, Icereach HM was a little more interesting than UG HM I found. Both HMs felt a little lackluster in the end. Moongrave Fane HM was really fun and actually became one of my favorites very quickly, so it's a shame coming from that high! Did love the overall feel of both dungeons though, and though Icereach seemed to be missing something, the concepts of the mechanics it did have were actually pretty interesting. Definitely would like to keep seeing similar stuff.

Edit: And the Hidden Bosses were a really, really good move. Absolutely adore that. Please give more.

Jenzi

I pugged both on normal then vet and really enjoyed them. I especially liked finding the secret in Unhallowed Grave. Gotta say I’m loving the new bloodrune tattoos too.

Septimus_Magna

Ive only done Unhallowed Grave but I really liked it, probably one of my favorite dungeons so far. The Kiln boss can be tough with a PUG when people ignore chat and all the mechanics.

Moonsorrow

Unhallowed Grave was especially fun, the hidden path extra stuff was really great addition all the way to the epic last fight.

Arunei

As much as I criticize ZOS about most of the decisions they make, I admit the Harrowstorm dungeons are pretty good, especially Unhallowed Grave. As someone who hardly does dungeons these days but has done pretty much all of them at least once, it's something when I say Unhallowed Grave is my favorite out of all of them. Well put together, fun mechanics, neat hidden bosses. This is the sort of dungeon we need more of.

zaria wrote: »

Only done them in normal, Unhallowed Grave will be an pug killer. Fun but it looks easier for an group in vet with voice than an pug with chat off in normal. Other one was easy in normal.

Really? A friend and I ran both dungeons on the PTS on normal, just the two of us, and the only boss in Unhallowed Grave that gave us any real problems was that one with the fire room. Even then once we figured out the mechanics that became super easy. We haven't done them on vet yet, we intend to most likely tomorrow, but normal at least seems like it would be fine for pugs. Vet, maybe not so much, especially because of that fire room boss. Then again, difficulty can be subjective, and what's easy for one person might not be easy for another.

SidraWillowsky

Yes! I wanted to make a post too but it's good to see one up already. Unhallowed Grave especially was a blast. I was really worried we'd deal with ridiculous mechanics again like Frostvault and whatever the new Elsweyr dungeons are called, so this was really great- unique mechanics that were actually fun.

Nice job ZOS

karekiz

Did both dungeons on HM.

This is the takeaway from both compared to older content.

Base Vet non Final bosses - They seem very easy, and that isn't a bad thing. Encounters that punish low DPS players should honestly be saved for HM, and things like Vault Protector or strangler encounter only server to deter casual players from entering base vet clears. I honestly do not wish to run Lair of Maarsalok with low DPS casual players. Did it three man with a mag DPS would would essentially be a more DPS than two low DPS players, and we all agreed it felt a bit more rougher than it should <That same three man team can speed run things like March for comparison>. So I am glad they toned the base bosses back.

HM Encounters - They seem easier, though ice-reach is for me seems like the hardest for DPS, while unhallowed was very spiky on the tank <Someones it felt I got one shot by abyss for no reason>, but its recoverable and we moved on. Did HM the day it launched. Icereach was more chaotic, but to me felt more akin to older HM's, I suppose if they really wanted to up it a tad they could cut phase 2 by making X2 mini's active at the same time, shorter but harder.

Themes - Unhallowed takes it with the bosses and use of grappling hook. There is one question though: Why wasn't the hook used on the final encounter? You use it throughout the entire dungeon on both secret and regular bosses, and get to final boss then poof no more. That was kind of a disappointment.

Icereach was ok theme wise. Definitely had that classic Direfrost sort of Vibe, but its own thing. As for cold dungeons I do like SCP / FL better as you have nice vista's and feel like you are climbing the mountain, and Fang Lair was super expansive, and felt like a delve on steroids.

There is one sad issue I have. Man I wish that resist tank set had at least double the radius. I got a setup and thought: Devs whinned about people not using defensive sets, why not try this one. Its great in very specific situations <Basically where Lord Warden hits peeps>, but sadly the radius is super small. It is a great arena setup for some tankyness on people for stuff like BRP, but if tank has to move <And you will> that people immediately lose any benefit. If the thought process is "A 2 piece set should be better than a 5 piece always", then definitely this should be noticeable better than Lord Warden.

Dragonnord

They should be harder but they are easier than some previous DLC dungeons, and didn't like that at all as I prefer a REAL challenge, not a dungeon (two in this case) that can be completed (both hard modes included) on the first day of being released.

And I like to highlight that my group is not a pro group like many out there, just a regular 4 friends kind of good players group.

Non-HMs are a walk in the park for any average group.

They are the last two new dungeons in the game and both dungeons should have been a lot harder.

So thumbs down for me, at least regarding difficulty.
 

hexnotic

I feel like UHG is the extremely fun dungeon out of the two new ones. UHG drops some nice sets as well, so icereach feels kind of tacked on but the HM for icereach is fun for sure (nerf stranglers tho?) ! For both dungeons there's been some fun secret mechs to learn, which have been a satisfying experience.

The new dungeons have breathed some life into the group that I run with, and has definitely peaked interest! Yes the difficulty isn't crazy, but the innovative mechs get some points for sure.

SHANKS_63

I just cleared Unhallowed Grave on vet last night and absolutely loved it. It was such a great balance in my opinion. Like the first post stated, not every monster sneeze was a one shot mechanic. Voria's fight was so different, I really enjoyed that. I usually avoid ANY dlc, but can see myself doing this one many times for fun!

Hallothiel

Does the vet mode need full roles - ie does need a dedicated healer or one that can also dd? (On console so getting ready)

Konstant_Tel_Necris

Last battle in Unhallowed Grave remind me Gashadokuro in Takiyasha the Witch and the Skeleton Spectre
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takiyasha_the_Witch_and_the_Skeleton_Spectre

HappyTheCamper

As a console player who loves vet dungeons my mouth is salivating over these positive comments.

I felt like Scalebreaker was a weak set of dungeons, and I’m glad to see so many people like these new ones (especially Unhallowed Grave apparently!)

myskyrim26

Players: please, give us a solo mode!
ZOS: here's a 4-player mechanics!

karekiz

myskyrim26 wrote: »

Players: please, give us a solo mode!
ZOS: here's a 4-player mechanics!

These are tailored much easier than previous dungeons. They are easily the most pug friendly encounters for new DLC we have seen in awhile. Hallow - Maybe the chain boss would be hardest, where you jump from area to area killing the adds then go back to middle. Even so if people die its very very easy to rez. Icereach - I honestly don't know of a pug killer fight. I guess last one? On non HM it strips out all the mechanics and its basically Hit Bosses till dead. Repeat and win.

As for forced multiplayer mechanics. Off the top of my head, can't think of much. Run it solo on normal and you should be able to do it. There isn't a CC -> Death mechanic or such.

Konstant_Tel_Necris

myskyrim26 wrote: »

Players: please, give us a solo mode!
ZOS: here's a 4-player mechanics!

Its actually possible solo new dungeons on normal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmPln4KuMwM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9TjzYLwtfQ

Varana

Studio boss: "So, how do you want to use the grapple mechanic?"
Dungeon team: "Yes!"

Unhallowed Grave is probably the most fun dungeon since, ever. It might get old after a while but for the moment, it's absolutely hilarious and entertaining. It seems a bit like the dungeon team got told "you can use grappling in this dungeon and never again, so cram all the things you can think of into this one" , but the result is great.

Icereach can be evil for the tank. It's fun (esp. the "let's sabotage our own team!" approach) but weaker in terms of aesthetics and spectacle. Maybe it'll grow on me over time but for the moment, it's okay. (Esp. the section near the end with its endless running from one platform with a few mobs to the next is unnecessarily drawn out.)

I like that they're not another step upwards, in terms of difficulty. It's good that the vet version is PUGgable almost right away; that will make sure that people will run them somewhat regularly.

Noxavian

Darkenarlol wrote: »

me and my wife cleared both new dungeons vet blindruns tonight and...it was awesome!

bosses with intresting mechanics, beautifull level design and a lot of fun because we met

some nice people during our dungeon crawling


i really appreciate the difficulty levelt at which you have to follow mechanics

but don't experience stupid oneshots from every random monster sneeze

it was really fun and we're gonna be back for the rest of the achievements in next days

thank you dev team


and what was your experience with the new dungeons guys?

I wish I could do the dungeons, though finding a group interested in getting the achievements and running them in general has been rough.

Glad to hear they're very good tho!