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Darkness of the Abyss

Everything you need to know about the Darkness of the Abyss Raid!

Last updated: 19/08/2024

This cute little fellow is the Darkness of the Abyss (henceforth we’ll call it “Gorgon”), and it serves as the boss that spearheads the Mane’s Bulletin gamemode. Its Afflatus is Mineral, so you are advised to utilize Star oriented teams while dealing with it; specifically 37 is good against this boss, and we’ll go into why.

When it spawns it’ll spawn to “Tentacles of the Abyss” alongside it These will be important for an upcoming mechanic. You may also notice that the boss has a [Eureka] bar instead of a Moxie bar; this will serve as your primary indicator of what kind of mechanics Gorgon will perform.

• In this fight, Star characters gain +20% to their stats.
• Gorgon passively takes +75% DMG from Genesis. This makes 37 an extremely appealing unit to run as Carry, and some even consider her the only unit that can directly attack Gorgon. Instead, most other characters will be relegated to dealing with the Tentacles as killing those deals damage to Gorgon itself.
• At the end of a round, Gorgon cleanses itself of all debuffs. Initially you may have considered using a Plant team with Jessica and Sotheby for the Genesis DMG from [Poison], but they lose viability due to this gimmick.
• In addition, if Gorgon goes undamaged for a round, it applies a layer of [Sturdiness] to itself, so make sure to at least tickle it every round especially if you’re trying to set up for damage.
• [Frostbite] is the main mechanic for this fight.
• Every 2 rounds, Gorgon targets the two characters with the highest percentage of HP left and inflicts 2 stacks of [Frostbite] on them. When this reaches 5 stacks, the target is inflicted with [Freeze] and takes massive damage when [Freeze] ends.
• The Gorgon’s Ultimate will inflict 5 stacks of [Frostbite] immediately.
• [Frostbite] stacks can be removed by taking active actions twice in one round.
• The Tentacles will also occasionally inflict [Frostbite], so temporarily taking down one of the two Tentacles will help mitigate the danger of [Freeze].
• When Gorgon reaches max [Eureka] it will enter into a special shield phase. If the shield isn’t taken down within 3 rounds, Gorgon will dispel all buffs on your team before hitting them with an AoE nuke and inflicting [Freeze]. This sequence deals a dreadful amount of damage, so it’s advised to break the shield over trying to survive this mechanic.
• In Endless Mode, after casting their Ultimates, Gorgon/Tentacles gain an undispellable buff that reduces incoming damage, so it is imperative that you either time your damage correctly or prevent a majority of the Ultimates from going out utilizing things like [Silence] or Moxie reduction.
• The Tentacles may also apply a layer of this buff on themselves and the boss with one of their skills.
• Also in Endless Mode, 4 stacks of [Frostbite] will be applied per attack instead of 2.

In terms of dealing with this fight, you have a few options when it comes to team composition. Usually you’ll be running a Star oriented team, with some unique picks here and there. Consider the following compositions:

STAR TEAM

Carry

Carry / Support

Support

Any other healer.

Sustain

TEAM EXPLANATION

This is a full Star team, drawing utmost use out of the Afflatus advantage against Mineral. It also features 37 and Voyager, both of which have major or continuous sources of Genesis DMG to exploit the +75% Genesis DMG Taken passive of Gorgon.

• 37 is naturally there to provide strong Genesis DMG as well as a bit of offensive coverage using her Ultimate “Realm of Numbers and Geometry” to apply stacks of +DMG Dealt to all allies. Due to Gorgon taking increased Genesis DMG, 37 is the only character that can reliable deal damage
• Depending on your Portrays on 37, you will be using Lilya as your Main Carry (if you have 37 at P0-1) or as a Support (if you have 37 at P2+). The reason for this being that Lilya’s “Crosswind Takeoff” skill has an Extra Action feature, which helps 37 stack her [Eureka] to trigger the [Supplementary Formula] attack.
• Contrary to some belief, Voyager’s [Counter] effect sadly does not count as an Extra Action, and therefore does not help 37 stack up [Eureka]. However, Voyager does inflict consistent 2-target [Confusion] and applies [Sturdiness], which helps with triggering crits as well as keeping up the defense as you run late into Endless mode.
• Tooth Fairy is the obvious pick for a Healer here. Absurd Crit-based debuffs, the uptime of which can be basically permanent due to the added AP (at P2) from 4-man content. Powerful healing with “Lullaby”, and decent single-target damage and some cleansing using “Song for the Bad Tooth”.

For other options:

• Charlie - Due to the additional team slot being able to dedicate itself to another Crit-oriented Support character like Voyager, Twins Sleep (or Ezra Theodore by 1.5) it is a lot easier to make Charlie crit despite her disastrous Crit Tech.
• Regulus - Given that Regulus is a defensive damage dealer with access to crit conversion, she’d naturally fit in well as fulfilling both the Carry and Support role. Moxie reduction works on the Tentacle mobs and [Riot and Roll] is one of the best defensive buffs when you’re knee-deep in an Endless run.
• Baby Blue - A more niche pick for a Support but potent if you’re running something like 37 / Regulus / Tooth Fairy. The extra AP allows you to set up debuffs more easily with Baby Blue without impeding on your Carry.
• 6 - While not available until the second phase of the patch, 6 on his own is a staple Support especially for Mane’s Bulletin. He can be used in pretty much every team due to the versatility of his buffs, debuffs and access to semi-on-demand [Incantation Empowerment] for your Carry.
• Ms NewBabel - Finds a spot in 37 teams, especially in the Gorgon fight specifically. Gorgon and its mobs deal Reality DMG, something that NewBabel excels at protecting your team against. Unlike Voyager’s [Counter], NewBabel’s Ultimate does count as an Extra Action, allowing you to quickly charge 37’s [Eureka].
• Healers - As a rule of thumb, very few healers are restricted to particular teams, as their main role is to keep the team alive. It is also not uncommon for Endless teams to feature 2 healers, one occupying a Support slot.

BEAST / MINERAL TEAM

Carry

Carry / Support

Support / Healer

Any other healer.

Sustain

TEAM EXPLANATION

This team focused around Melania’s Portray 2. Despite being at an Afflatus disadvantage against Gorgon, Melania’s consistently growing single-target damage output and ceiling of that damage output is so great that it practically overshadows the advantage bonus. Plus, due to how independent she is, she can be paired up with 3 powerful Supports and still cover the potential damage lost from not having a second Carry.

• Melania is practically made to function in Mane’s Bulletin; extended fights with a single-target are her specialty as she can comfortably stack [Fixed Plan] to ramp up her damage without worrying about killing her opponent too quickly. Do note that, despite Gorgon not having Moxie, Melania can still “steal” Moxie from it to charge her Ultimate.
• Pickles here, while not having to provide his AP-generosity in this setting, allows for an easy time setting up with his long-lasting +DMG Dealt buff from “Thus Spoke Pickles” and desire to AFK every other turn. It is also way easier for him to proc the condition for the extension of his buff due to having extra room to act and not act.
• Medicine Pocket is picked because their single-target +DMG Taken debuff synergizes well with Melania. In addition, since Melania is at an Afflatus disadvantage and will take additional damage from the boss, MP’s on-demand [Studiness] helps a lot to cover the outgoing damage from Gorgon.
• Tooth Fairy is another obvious Healer here. Absurd Crit-based debuffs, allow Melania to run a Crit Resonance build and still provide good damage. Solid healing with “Lullaby”, and decent single-target damage and some cleansing using “Song for the Bad Tooth”.

For other options:

• Kaalaa Baunaa - In the Mineral variety of this team, Kaalaa Baunaa is the obvious pick when it comes to single-target damage in a setting where AP is generally easier to come by. Her incredible damage ceiling, synergy with Pickles/Tooth Fairy and self-sustain all make her a great potential pick for Gorgon.
• Necrologist (P1-5) - Among the more surprising options, Necrologist finally finds her niche, and can replace both Pickles and a Healer in the Mane’s Bulletin environment. While usually AP-Greedy, this trait’s severity is dampened by the additional +1 AP from 4-man content. Keep in mind that if you use Pickles and Necrologist together, you will have to be more careful about the timing of their Ultimates, as they overlap.
• Shamane - A somewhat surprising but not unwelcome pick considering the usage of Tooth Fairy in this team, Shamane made his name as one of the most flexible debuffers in the game with a separate niche as a Crit-oriented semi-Carry. In case you’re using Necrologist over Pickles, consider Shamane in order to keep Melania/KB’s damage optimized while fitting neatly into the rest of the team.
• 6 - While not available until the second phase of the patch, 6 on his own is a staple Support especially for Mane’s Bulletin. He can be used in pretty much every team due to the versatility of his buffs, debuffs and access to semi-on-demand [Incantation Empowerment] for your Carry.
• Healers - As a rule of thumb, very few healers are restricted to particular teams, as their main role is to keep the team alive. It is also not uncommon for Endless teams to feature 2 healers, one occupying a Support slot.