What’s New in HM?
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Harrowed – The hard mode “Harrowed” loot can drop with a max of 320 Attack/Defense and has a darker color scheme.
- According to the database, it appears that NM & HM loot has the same stats.
- If you’re 311+ Light, you’re guaranteed a 310+ item
- No elemental primary damage!
Elemental primaries are being left behind. They had the distinct and undesirable property of limiting a broad weapon sandbox to a few weapons. You’re free to disagree, but I strongly prefer the breadth of arsenal options, the potential of finding a better Legendary than you have to being stuck because of a damage color. Additionally, no Legendary weapons with damage colors has the property of making secondaries and heavies more important because of their damage color.
– Luke Smith
| Name | Type | Strength |
|---|---|---|
| Zaouli’s Bane (Harrowed) | Hand Cannon | Rate of Fire |
| Anguish of Drystan (Harrowed) | Auto Rifle | Impact |
| Smite of Merain (Harrowed) | Pulse Rifle | Stability |
| Doom of Chelchis (Harrowed) | Scout Rifle | Average |
| Defiance of Yasmin (Harrowed) | Sniper Rifle | Stability, AA |
| Midha’s Reckoning (Harrowed) | Fusion Rifle | Impact |
| Silence of A’arn (Harrowed) | Shotgun | Impact |
| Elulim’s Frenzy (Harrowed) | Rocket Launcher | RoF, Blast Radius |
| Qullim’s Terminus (Harrowed) | Machine Gun | Impact, Stability |
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Emblem – Awarded after killing HM Oryx.
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Shader – Unlocked at the Shader kiosk if you acquire the Harrowed Helm, Chest, Gauntlets, and Boots.
Encounters
You can find our full King’s Fall (normal) guide here. The Heroic version has mostly level 42 enemies, so Light level 307+ is recommended.
Helpful tips from Reddit user Imabetabiotch:
- You DONT revive. If you’re on the totems or a float, positioning is key. For example if you stand right in the middle of the totems, you are vulnerable from all angles, but if you crouch and hang out more towards your ogre spawn, the adds will have more trouble shooting you.
- If you’re floating, there are a few different ways to position yourself. The best I have found is that the two floats stand on the towers where the deathsingers were. This gives you a clear field of view for the ogres AND especially for those pesky light eater Knights.
- Acolyte Eyes: KILL THESE ASAP. The spawns are always relatively the same. So when you see one, always check that area. These things can turn the tide very quickly.
The following is exclusive to hard mode:
Warpriest
This boss gains a few new attacks, depending on what pillar is destroyed by the Oculus. Early reports from Reddit user Xiratava indicate that…
- If the Middle pillar is destroyed, the Warpriest will have tracking bolts from the Hobgoblin.
- If Right, the Warpriest gains a blinding attack, similar to the Taken Captain.
- If Left, the Warpriest fires off Taken Centurion-esque bolts.
Watch out for the Knights!
It’s still a good idea to stack up in the middle for the first damage phase while the Warpriest isn’t augmented by a destroyed pillar. In the ensuing damage phase everyone should be stacking up on the right so that his bolts have a harder time finding their mark through the multiple pillars. At this point, the Warpriest should be on his last leg, and it should just be a matter of survival until the third damage phase.
Golgoroth
- Standing in the Pool of Reclaiming Light will debuff 2 random people in the pool with “Unstable Light”
- Unstable Light will kill anyone who is standing close to the people with it; those 2 people are like Cursed Thrall until the debuff ends.
- Golgoroth also sends out more Orbs at the person who has the Gaze, and the Taken enemies will spawn in quicker.
Golgoroth brings a devastating AoE debuff that marks 2 random damage dealers standing in the Pool. The people who have the Unstable Light debuff should not be standing next to anyone when they ‘explode’ – it will detonate when the timer reaches 0. You’ll like a Cursed Thrall.
Daughters
- The 1-minute timer for the second run starts immediately.
After finishing the first song, make sure you’re ready to run because the next song starts immediately after. Moving towards the middle with the Aura will help mitigate some off that distance and save time.
Oryx
- Additional Knights spawn near the platforms and will try to detonate bombs early. 1 Knight will spawn for each Orge that’s killed.
- Platforms are harder to reach.
If you’re going in under 310 Light… good luck. Losing a member here will make the fight next to impossible. Runner and Floater should clear deadly Acolyte eyes after staggering Oryx to minimize the chance of unnecessary deaths. Manage the adds, be extra careful, and keep your ammo up with raid weapons.
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Hard Enough?
Have you attempted King’s Fall on Heroic? Is it more or less difficult than you imagined it would be? Are you satisfied with the new mechanics, or do you feel the challenges should be expanded?