Return to Empyrean Core

Cheevos found in H > Dungeons > Nightmare Tide > Return to Empyrean Core

General

Location: Kingsward
Waypoint: /setwaypoint 5791 8674

There is no Standard mode.
Number of Expert bosses: 5
Level of Expert bosses: 67

Solo at 70?: Yes
All cheevos while solo?: Yes

A level 70 player can easily kill everything in this dungeon.
This guide is mainly designed to show you how to get the cheevos and do the quests.
If the content becomes ‘relevant’ again then I will expand the boss guides as needed and add more detail.

Note: This guide is for the level 65 Nightmare Tide version Return to Empyrean Core. Click here for the level 60 Storm Legion version Empyrean Core.

Boss 1 - Baird - Expert Mode

Kill the trash in the room and then click any of the levers to spawn the first boss.

The boss has a few abilities to watch out for..

Manic Assault – Targets a random player and channels this for 5 seconds, it hurts! This can be interrupted.
Red Floor – A few seconds after Manic Assault the floor will be split into quarters and the opposite quarters will turn red, this effect is centred from where the boss is stood, so be sure to stand near the boss so you don’t have to travel too far to get out of the red. The red halves will then switch positions, so move back to the other quarter to avoid death.
Power Core Explosion – After the red floor mechanic, the boss will do another Manic Assault and then he will teleport to one of the power cores around the room. He will activate the power core to make it explode, this is shown with a red pulsing bubble emanating from the power core. You need to line of sight the power core before it explodes, using the pillar in the middle of the room. The boss will make 3 cores explode, one after the other, move around the pillar to LOS each one as it explodes.
Blighted Aura – A 5 second long DoT on a player that will damage anyone stood nearby. This can usually be outhealed, if not then the player will need to move away from the group.
Spur Growth – Summons a Tartary Sprout (plant) – The plant casts Lifegrip (A stun/snare) – DPS the plant down quickly!

Boss 2 - Kaliban's Bodyguards - Mercutial and Strauz - Expert Mode

Mercutial and Strauz, otherwise known as Kaliban’s Bodyguards, are 2 bosses that you fight at the same time. They each have different abilities. While fighting them, you should aim to keep their health equal so they die at roughly the same time, as when one dies, the other will gain a buff that makes them deal 200% more damage.

Strauz

Draining Field – Strauz places a red circles at his feet, the longer you stand in it the more damage you will take. Move out of it!
Siphoning Vortex – Not interruptible (unlike the level 60 version) – Strauz will pull all players to his location. Be sure to tank Strauz next to Mercutial so that when players are pulled in they are then close to Mercutial for ‘Enter the Warp’.
Murmuring Incantation – This targets a random player and deals a lot of damage, to mitigate this, the targeted player must line of sight behind Strauz, use the barrels on the sides of the room to LoS.
Slow Burn and Stunning Smash – Mercutial casts Slow Burn while Strauz casts Stunning Smash on a random player. The player needs to move on top of Mercutial and then Strauz will Smash into them, hitting Mercutial at the same time and interrupting Slow Burn.

Mercutial

Purging Shot – Target a random player – The player has a yellow bubble grow around them, this is used to remove the red circles from Draining Field from the floor.
Enter the Warp – Places a purple circle around herself, all players must be inside the circle before the 3 second cast finishes or take damage. (Can one shot a low level player)
Finger of Desiccation – A 3 second cast followed by a 10 second channel – This targets a random player and deals a lot of damage, to mitigate this, the targeted player must line of sight Mercutial, use the barrels on the sides of the room to LoS.

This is a lot of confusing and conflicting abilities! The best way to do the fight is just to all stack up on the two bosses, keeping the bosses as close together as possible and DPS them both down quickly.

Boss 3 - Mad Doctor Perfidus - Expert Mode

The Doctor starts the fight with a shield buff called ‘Impenetrable Barrier’, this makes him immune to damage. This shield can only be removed by guiding ‘Unstable Experiment’ mobs into the boss, these mobs looks like white water elementals. The Unstable Experiments will spawn one at a time, it will follow random players around the room. Drag the Unstable Experiment to the Doctor and kill it to remove the Impenetrable Barrier for a short time. DPS the boss while he isn’t immune. Then repeat the process till the boss is dead.

Adds – During the fight, groups of adds will spawn, with 1 large add and 3 small ones. – The Doctor will throw an elixir at a random player and the 3 small adds will chase that player. The player will need to kite the adds around in a circle while the DPS kills them asap. – The larger add can be picked up by the tank.
Gripping Goop – Purple AoE Circles – These will spawn around the room. – Anything that passes through them will be slowed, including the adds! – The player being chased by the 3 smaller adds should try to drag the adds through the purple.
Lightning Crash – Red AoE Circles – Deals damage to players – Don’t stand in the red!

Boss 4 - Cor - Expert Mode

There are a few abilities to watch for..

Radiation – A AoE circle around the boss – Everyone (including the tank) needs to kite him. He may drop threat after this, so the tank should taunt him back. If the tank taunts just before this cast completes, he will not chase other players.
Alter Force – Knocks back nearby players and stuns them.
Mutation Contamination – Cast on a random player – The player will be turned into the same creature as Cor and will attack their friends! (Mind control)
Frenzy – When he’s near death (30% health), he will cast Frenzy. Cor will have an AoE damage circle around him and charge random players and stun them. – It is best for everyone to stack on Cor and DPS him down asap.

Boss 5 - Prince Kaliban - Expert Mode

The boss has a few abilities to watch for..

Princely Radiance – If you are looking at the boss after this cast has ended you will stunned. Turn around!
Vitality Leech – Deals a lot of damage to the player targeted – This can be interrupted!
Trample – Knocks back the group and charges a player. If the player is stood near a core then the boss will hit the core and it will explode.
Wrath of the Beastlord – A large frontal cone AoE – Try to be out of it.
Pestilence Elixir – Adds a debuff to the player that deals damage over time to them for 10 seconds – If the debuff is cleansed off then the player will damage all nearby players.
Growing Corruption – The boss spawns a cluster of mushrooms in front of him. They deal damage but the tank can usually stand in them.

Achievements Available

Conqueror: Return to Empyrean Core

Complete all the cheevos listed.

Return to Empyrean Core

Kill all 5 bosses of Return to Empyrean Core.

Rapid Assault: Return to Empyrean Core

Defeat all the bosses in Return to Empyrean Core within 30 minutes.

Baird

ReBaird

Kill Baird

Stifled Growth

Kill the Tartary Sprout’s as soon as they spawn to prevent them from having time to cast Lifegrip.

Kaliban's Bodyguards - Mercutial and Strauz

Lady & the Champ

Kill Kaliban’s Bodyguards – Mercutial and Strauz

Strauz Binge

The player with the yellow bubble from Purging Shot needs to be careful not to overlap the yellow with the red circles from Draining Field from the floor.

Fast Burn for the Slow Burner

Mercutial casts Slow Burn while Strauz casts Stunning Smash on a random player. The player needs to move on top of Mercutial and then Strauz will Smash into them, hitting Mercutial at the same time and interrupting Slow Burn.

Keep Strauz and all players away from Mercutial to get this cheevo.

Mad Doctor Perfidus

Malpractice

Kill Doctor Perfidus

Stabilizing Agent

Be careful not to be too close to the Unstable Experiments when they die.

Cor

Hard Cor

Kill Cor

An Ounce of Prevention

There seems to be no way to stop this except from killing the boss before he casts it!

No Charges Filed

Ensure the whole party stays close to the boss in melee range during the Frenzy cast when the boss is low health.