Zerging Bahamut

One of the most challenging tanking experiences I’ve had in the game is The Wyrmking Descends, also known as Bahamut Version 2, or Bv2 for short.Part of the challenge is simply because we would use a solo PLD on Bv2, with a second for grabbing the summoned wyrm buddies, and stepping in should the main PLD get toasted by Megaflare (see Astonishing Wyrms from last year).

As fun as this fight can be with a manaburn style, it can be very risky if things go sour, and if you wipe, there really isn’t any way to recover, so the Monarch Orb, and all the work that went into acquiring it, is completely wasted.

So, after much urging from linkshell members, and one failed manaburn too many, Ali agreed to try a zerg strategy. For this, we had 3 DD parties, each with 4 Dds, a BRD, one with a WHM, and two with RDM/DRKs. Any DRKs would go into the party with the WHM, and the DDs would include DRKs, WAR/SAM, SAM/WAR, DRG, MNK, and a token THF. This also let people who didn’t have a PLD, BRD, WHM, RDM or BLM levelled to participate in the fight, getting them new shiny titles.

The goal in a zerg is to basically kill the monster as fast as possible, before it gets a chance to kill the team. To help accomplish this, we would all use our two hours, and take advantage of 6 soul-voiced Bard songs on each party in the alliance. First thing we do upon entering the battlefield is to have all the damage dealers either use Meditate or an Opo-opo Necklace and Sleeping Potions to build up over 100% TP. Once that’s done, the bards all use Soul Voice, and we quickly rotate them through each party, with one bard using Madrigal (accuracy), one using Minuet (attack), and the third using March (haste).

Then the damage dealers use all their job abilities and rush in behind the lead RDM/DRK, who starts the fight with Chainspell-Stun. The DDs do as much damage as they can in as short a time as possible, and within 30 seconds, Bahamut falls to the ground, defeated. No muss, no fuss, just a whole lot of damage in a very short time.

After our first attempt at this was an easy success, we haven’t gone back to our old methods. Some of us lament the lack of skill required to zerg this, but understand that there are times when taking the easy way out makes the most sense.

Plus I get to see things like this: