View source for Temple of Febe Strike Mission Strategy Guide

<div class="alert alert-success" style="margin-top: 15px;">This guide provides tips and strategies for the fourteenth strike mission and how to defeat Ceus in the Temple of Phoebe. If your group is struggling, the guidelines in the [[Guide:Introduction to Raiding|Introduction to Raiding]] will apply here as well. Check out the [[Guide:PvE_Glossary|glossary]] page if you're not familiar with a term used in this guide and make sure to run an optimal [[Raid_Builds|build]] from our list of recommended builds for this encounter.</div>

__TOC__
==Introduction==
Entering the white AoE near the start of the map will bring up a dialogue box to proceed, but the fight won't actually start until players reach the platform. Shortly afterwards, Cerus will leap to the center of the arena and the fight begins.


This encounter has a unique feature whereby the group can target specific abilities to prevent a more powerful version occuring. This allows teams to reduce the threat from the mechanics they struggle with most.



==Strategy==
<div style="padding:0.5rem;text-align:center;background:#1d1d1d;color:#fff;border-bottom:1px solid #111111;border-top:1px solid #292929;">'''Crushing Regret'''</div>
<div class="row" style="background:#171717;border-bottom:1px solid #292929;">
<div class="col-md-6" style="width:350px;padding:1rem;border-right:1px solid #111111;">[[file:Shooting Stars.mp4|420px]]</div>
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Shortly after spawning, a random player is targeted by a green AoE as Cerus prepares to slam a claw down on the target, dealing very heavy damage. Players should stack inside the green within five seconds to reduce the damage taken.

If fewer than five players are within the green, Cerus will gain five stacks of [[File:Empowered.png|25px|link=https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Empowered_(Cerus)|Empowered]] [https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Empowered_(Cerus) Empowered], and players will take very heavy damage and get a stack of {{tooltip|Exposed}}. If five or more players are inside, they each take a moderate amount of damage. The damage can be blocked or avoided with invulnerability.


''Note'': The actual size of the green AoE is 50% larger than the visual suggests.

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<div style="padding:0.5rem;text-align:center;background:#1d1d1d;color:#fff;border-bottom:1px solid #111111;border-top:1px solid #292929;">'''Wail of Depair'''</div>
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<div class="col-md-6" style="width:350px;padding:1rem;border-right:1px solid #111111;">[[file:Spinning Nebula.mp4|420px]]</div>
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Next, every player is targeted by a small AoE. After five seconds, this detonates, dealing heavy damage and leaves an AoE on the ground that also ticks heavy damage and {{tooltip|Torment}}. Players should move these away from Cerus, but it doesn't need to be too far. 

These AoEs can be stacked, but players will need to dodge precisely, or have a channelled block or invulnerability to survive the damage.

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<div style="padding:0.5rem;text-align:center;background:#1d1d1d;color:#fff;border-bottom:1px solid #111111;border-top:1px solid #292929;">'''Envious Gaze'''</div>
<div class="row" style="background:#171717;border-bottom:1px solid #292929;">
<div class="col-md-6" style="width:350px;padding:1rem;border-right:1px solid #111111;">[[file:Demonic Blast.mp4|420px]]</div>
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A large arrow indicator appears on the group and a short while later, Cerus fires a demonic beam that rotates anti-clockwise around him, dealing very heavy damage and corrupting three boons on players it hits.

The most efficient way to avoid this attack is to stand just to the left of the arrow when it appears (facing Cerus), then take a few steps to the right as it rotates.
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<div style="padding:0.5rem;text-align:center;background:#1d1d1d;color:#fff;border-bottom:1px solid #111111;border-top:1px solid #292929;">'''Malicious Intent'''</div>
<div class="row" style="background:#171717;border-bottom:1px solid #292929;">
<div class="col-md-6" style="width:350px;padding:1rem;border-right:1px solid #111111;">[[file:Demonic Fever.mp4|420px]]</div>
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A random player is tethered to Cerus and received a timer above their head as well as a white screen border. After five seconds, a [https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Malicious_Shadow Malicious Shadow] spawns at their location and begins slowly walking towards Cerus. The Shadow is immune to [[Guide:What_are_CC_and_Breakbars|hard CC]] but can be soft CC'd. If it reaches Cerus, he gains five stacks of [[File:Empowered.png|25px|link=https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Empowered_(Cerus)|Empowered]] [https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Empowered_(Cerus) Empowered].


It is recommended that targeted players move backwards from the group a short distance. The Malicious Shadows do not have a lot of health and therefore shouldn't survive walking through the stack.
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<div style="padding:0.5rem;text-align:center;background:#1d1d1d;color:#fff;border-bottom:1px solid #111111;border-top:1px solid #292929;">'''Insatiable Hunger'''</div>
<div class="row" style="background:#171717;border-bottom:1px solid #292929;">
<div class="col-md-6" style="width:350px;padding:1rem;border-right:1px solid #111111;">[[file:Demonic Fever.mp4|420px]]</div>
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Cerus pulls in a series of orbs from the edge of the arena. Each one that reaches Cerus will provide him a small amount of barrier, but they can be body blocked by players. More conveniently, they can also be blocked by [https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Block#Projectile_destruction projectile destruction].

In addition to the small orbs, three larger ones spawn that will provide the boss with a stack of [[File:Empowered.png|25px|link=https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Empowered_(Cerus)|Empowered]] [https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Empowered_(Cerus) Empowered]. These orbs can only be body blocked by players, and doing so with inflict the player with {{tooltip|Insatiable}} - causing them to take a small amount of ticking damage for 30 seconds.
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<div style="padding:0.5rem;text-align:center;background:#1d1d1d;color:#fff;border-bottom:1px solid #111111;border-top:1px solid #292929;">'''Cry of Rage'''</div>
<div class="row" style="background:#171717;border-bottom:1px solid #292929;">
<div class="col-md-6" style="width:350px;padding:1rem;border-right:1px solid #111111;">[[file:Demonic Fever.mp4|420px]]</div>
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Cerus charges up a large AoE attack that deals very heavy damage and applies {{tooltip|Exposed}} to each player hit. The attack can be dodged, but is otherwise unavoidable.
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==Split Phase 1==
At 80% health, Cerus gains a defiance bar [strength: ??] and begins channelling '''Petrify'''. Failing to break this bar will stun the group for [??] seconds.


Whether '''Petrify''' succeeds or not, Cerus will split into six Embodiments, each corresponding to one of his six attacks:
* Embodiment of Regret: '''Crushing Regret'''
* Embodiment of Despair: '''Wail of Despair'''
* Embodiment of Envy: '''Envious Gaze'''
* Embodiment of Malice: '''Malicious Intent'''
* Embodiment of Gluttony: '''Insatiable Hunger'''
* Embodiment of Rage: '''Cry of Rage'''


The split phase ends when two of the Embodiments have been defeated. There are three large and three small Embodiments, all of which have the same health. Killing the large Embodiments will prevent Cerus from gaining the Empowered version of their related skill, but killing the small Embodiments has no effect (other than ending the split phase).

As such, groups will want to choose two of the large Embodiments to kill.


Additionally, the large Embodiments will cast empowered versions of their related skill. Failing to deal with these mechanics as normal will give the embodiment stacks of [empowered], which will be inherited by Cerus in the next phase.



==Phase 2==
Phase 2 is the same as Phase 1, with the exception that some of his attacks will be empowered.



==Split Phase 2==
At 50% health, Cerus once again gains a defiance bar as he attempts to cast '''Petrify'''.


Upon breaking, the group will once again be faced with the six Embodiments. Assuming two large Embodiments were killing in the first split phase, these two will be small and invulnerable. All the remaining Embodiments will be large.



==Phase 3==
Phase 3 is similar to Phases 1 and 2. Two more of the boss's mechanics will now be empowered, and his attack pattern is slightly different:

: '''Crushing Regret''' {{to}} '''Envious Gaze''' {{to}} '''Insatiable Hunger''' {{to}} '''Cry of Rage''' {{to}} '''Malicious Intent''' {{to}} '''Wail of Despair''' {{to}} repeat



==Phase 4==
Upon reaching 10% health, Cerus gains a defiance bar once more as he attempts to cast '''Petrify'''. There is no split phase coming, but instead Cerus will regain a significant amount of health, essentially preventing the fight from ending if the group cannot break the bar. Once broken, for the rest of the fight Cerus will spam '''Enraged Smash''', dealing heavy damage with each cast.

[does health regained depend on amount of defiance bar remaining?]