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By JGJTan (Farneka Laisara)
Hey everyone, I'm just updating my old guide (previous one was for Snake Dance and Prophet's Path) to recent times as we all know that ArenaNet nerfed the over-abused farming spot in Prophet's Path outside of Augury Rock.
I'm posting this guide because the Blessed Griffons outside of Snake Dance drop items of lesser value than those compared to Desert Griffons. Although if you want Monk items more than Warrior or Ranger items, then feel free to use this build to plough through Blessed Griffons outside Camp Rankor in Snake Dance. You can get a decent amount of money per run and there are quite a few times when gold items will drop but a lot will be either plain or blue items, collectable drops or money. The monsters here also have a chance to drop Elonian Keys which are good along this route.
This build requires the following skills and also requires you to have Destiny's Gorge mapped (located through the northeast exit of Skyward Reach). Oh and it also requires both the 15 Attribute Points quests however I guess it wouldn't hurt to try without them. If you wish to know, I did not steal this build from anywhere as this is a home-made build just in case people don't like using builds which everyone uses.
What equipment should you have?
The best armour for this would have to be the Droknar's Rogue's Attire as it gives an additional +10 armour bonus against physical damage on top of the maximum +60 armour rating which works quite nicely for you as you'll be mostly fighting monsters which deal out physical damage. Although this armour set is the one which reduces the total energy you can have, you won't be needing much energy and even if you do run out of energy at one point, you should be at the final stage of killing that monster.
You will also need the Mesmer's Costume Mask as you'll need the extra +1 to Illusion Magic to boost your important Illusion skills. Cheap ones can be found in the Amnoon Oasis from the collector there as I think you need 2 Bleached Shells for one and it's easy to get as you'll be fighting Sand Wurms along this farming route. It is also optional to have an extra Costume Mask equipped with Superior Illusion as it will boost your Illusion of Weakness spell from +227hp to +253hp.
The runes you will require are Minor Illusion, Minor Inspiration, Minor Fast Casting and either Minor, Major, or Superior Vigor depending on what you have or can afford.
As a weapon, the most desireable would be a sword or axe with an enchanting mod. Of course everyone would want a 20% mod however if you are unable to obtain one, 14% or 15% and above should suffice. For a focus item, I use The Rockmolder which is an Illusion Focus Item obtained from Gorrel Rockmolder. Basically all that is important is the +12 to your energy however a faster recovery for spells and a +1 to Illusion Magic or a faster cast can help. As a backup ranged weapon, take along an Illusion cane. Only use the cane if your Illusionary Weaponry spell was interrupted, if you don't feel like running into Rockshots amidst their traps or if you want to interrupt monsters.
How many attribute points in each skill?
This is the requirement for the build however I guess you could tweak it around if you like. These stats use up all 200 attribute points leaving you with a nice number of 0.
Fast Casting: 7 (6+1)
Illusion Magic: 14 (12+2)
Inspiration Magic: 7 (6+1)
Healing Prayers: 10
What's the point of each of the chosen skills?
Vigorous Spirit: This spell works really well in three ways. First, you can use it to regain health (10hp per hit) which is the main purpose for it in this build, but it also works as a great cover-enchantment because it only costs 5 energy to cast and has a recovery time of 4 seconds. So if you happen to fighting some nasty Mesmer or Necromancer who decide that you don't deserve an enchantment, quickly cast this spell so that none of your other more important enchantments get killed. Thirdly, it is a great cover-interruption spell against those who wish to stop you from using magic.
Illusionary Weaponry (Elite): This is the important skill. This skill will be your main damage dealer against monsters and works really effectively against tough-skinned monsters like Sand Wurms and the like. With a constant damage-dealer of 38+ per hit for a minimum of 30 seconds, it's perfect for those without Warrior as a primary and who want to be able to deal damage in melee. Every strike hits the opponent for 0 physical damage (even under ailments such as blind you'll hit) however they take 38+ damage. The downside to this is that you cannot interrupt monsters with this spell since you deal 0 weapon damage.
Sympathetic Visage: This spell is a killer. Not damage-wise but it's hindering power is immense. For every time an opponent deals melee damage against you, all opponents surrounding you lose all adrenaline and 3 energy. This works wonders against Warriors. If you use this, you will take the minimum amount of damage you can from opponents as they'll lose energy and adrenaline everytime they hit making you last a little longer to fight another day.
Orison of Healing: Ok this spell isn't as important. You could substitute it for another spell if you like since this is a backup emergency spell. If you've used up Illusion of Weakness and you're down to 1/4 of your health, use this spell to last a little longer. Although 53hp may not seem much, it can buy you enough time to finish off your opponent so you don't fall prey to the desert environment. This also works as a great cover-interruption skill as 1 second (with Fast Casting piled upon it) is long enough to grab the attention of Disrupting Shot.
Healing Breeze: A favourite spell to all those who ain't a Monk primary, Healing Breeze can help you in the worst of situations. Only use Healing Breeze when you run into all those nasty traps when fighting Rockshot Devourers as it'll counter burning and the damage over time. Only use this spell if you want to preserve Illusion of Weakness when fighting 3 Desert Griffons or when fighting Rockshot Devourers.
Physical Resistance: And of course I have to use my favourite Inspiration skill. For 58 seconds, you can have an extra +40 armour against physical damage but -18 armour against elemental damage. Thankfully we don't fight too many opponents with elemental damage (Rockshot Devourers and their traps) so this stance works wonders. Since it's a stance, it cannot be stripped like an enchantment and only a skill like Wild Blow (which monsters here don't have) can remove it. This is the skill which can make a Mesmer "tank" against Warriors or Rangers but die against Elementalists.
Illusion of Weakness: An enchantment which can turn the tide of a fight, Illusion of Weakness is one of the famous Illusion Magic spells. You lose a certain amount of hp (in this case, 227 or 253) and when your health goes below 25% of your maximum health, you gain that much back. The trick is to cast this before you fight and heal up before running into the midst of all the action. You can dumbfound your enemies as they watch your health slip below 25% then immediately recover to about 3/4 of your maximum health. This is the Mesmer's lifesaver as it can buy you enough time to either run (not advisable here in the desert) or finish off your opponent.
Mending: Of course lots of people love Mending. For just one pip of energy regeneration, you can get a constant +3 health regeneration. This spell will ensure you live to fight another day and makes it so that you don't have to heal yourself all the time and waste all your energy. Combined with Healing Breeze in dire situations, who couldn't say no to 10+ health regeneration? This spell is your friend so don't let it down.
I have all that's needed, what's my route?
Ok so I got a bit lazy and didn't want to farm. But I've marked out the map and that's the path you'll soon never forget. This is a general map since it's from memory so some dots might be out of place but don't worry - it's the general area. You can stray off the path if you like, all you have to do is be careful of Rockshot Devourers and just look out for Desert Griffons and Sand Giants. That's only the general route one usually takes in The Scar if you have a really good spawn. There are usually one or two chests in this area so take some Elonian Keys if you have them.
Equipment, route, skills, how should I do this?
So you have everything prepared, time to go farming!
Once you leave Destiny's Gorge and enter The Scar, equip your Superior Illusion Costume Mask (if you have it, not vital) and cast Mending and Illusion of Weakness in that order. Switch back to your normal Minor Illusion Costume Mask and wait for your energy to recover. Once full of health and energy, run up the path and stop by the Ressurection Shrine.
You should immediately spot 4 Desert Griffons (when you press ctrl). Just wait. They should then aggro two Rock-Eater Scarabs. Wait for them to die. If there are no Rock-Eater Scarabs, don't panic. Cast Physical Resistance and run into the Desert Griffons. This should be the only mob of 4 Desert Griffons, the others usually consist of 2 or 3. Once you get them in your aggro circle, wait and watch them use Beserker's Stance. Wait about 1 second, then cast Vigorous Spirit, Sympathetic Visage and Illusionary Weaponry, in that order, as 3 of the 4 Griffons run towards you. Target one of the Griffons and hack away at this guy. While fighting 3, your health should go down at a moderate pace so at 2/3 of your max health, cast Healing Breeze. This should stop your health enough so that you can kill one of them. Re-cast all your spells when they run out and recover however keep Physical Resistance up all the time. When you kill two of them, the 4th Griffon should join in the fray so just don't panic, cut the last two down like normal.
There. That wasn't too bad. If you managed to survive that, well done! If you didn't use up Illusion of Weakness in that fight, excellent! Re-cast Illusion of Weakness if you did and re-cast Physical Resistance if it runs out. Wait for your energy, then continue along the path hunting out Desert Griffons. You will run into Rockshot Devourers at some point though so here's what to do.
Travel with caution. Rockshot Devourers usually hang out in groups of 2-3 with the rare 4 in one mob. Sometimes there are two groups together with 6 to fight. Run away if there are 6. 6 Distracting Shots + 12 Traps altogether = not a pretty sight. You want to aggro 3 at best, 4 if confident. You'll note that 2 of them will prepare traps and 1 will go to attack you. You can either do one of two things. Interrupt some of the Rockshots with your cane or cast your enchantments. Be careful when casting your enchantments though. Keep distance before you first cast. Use Vigorous Spirit and make sure that Rockshot Devourer didn't send off a Disrupting Shot. Once that's done, use Illusionary Weaponry and check again for interruptions. Once good, use Healing Breeze and run into a Rockshot of your choice. Hack away and ignore the traps (Healing Breeze will counter). Use Vigorous Spirit and/or Orison of Healing as a cover-interruption spell at close range so you can still use Illusionary Weaponry and Healing Breeze.
Knock 'em down, that's the spirit! With those two kinds of monsters covered, you'll be able to fight the majority of the monsters in this run. With that, continue your journey along the route. Note that if an Elonian Chest is by itself with no visible monsters around it, there will be one or two groups of Rockshot Devourers under the sand so be warned. With that, there's one more monster in the first area to be warned of and that is...
The Sand Wurm. This guy doesn't care about anything. If you invade his privacy or run along the sand where he happens to be sleeping, he'll get mad like any person woken up abruptly from sleep and he'll invade your farming. He can be found along the top half of The Scar by all the Desert Griffons, Rockshot Devourers and the first few Sand Giants. Don't worry though. This build knocks him out in two Illusionary Weaponry casts. Just wait until he goes back underground and re-surfaces, then you can get the party started. Cast Vigorous Spirit, Illusionary Weaponry and Healing Breeze then hack away at his tough exterior. Re-cast Healing Breeze when it runs out as with the other skills, while keeping Physical Resistance alive. With that sorted, this guy doesn't stand a chance. Continue along your journey.
So you've got past all the Desert Griffons and all the Rockshot Devourers which have popped up. Maybe even the elusive Sand Wurm if he decided to show himself. What's next? You'll note groups of Sand Giants wandering around. Go get 'em.
The trick with Sand Giants is to get rid of their energy. Vile Touch can be nasty with every hit taking around about 50 health per touch. So, what should you do? First, check how many are in the groups. Usually there are 2-3 per group with the extremely rare 4th Giant hanging around. If there are 2, you're all good to go. If there are 3, pray. If there are 4, avoid them at all costs. To kill them, you must do this.
For a group of 2 Sand Giants, aggro them from afar and immediately when they notice you, cast Vigorous Spirit, Sympathetic Visage and Illusionary Weaponry. Hack away at one until he decides to give you a nice Giant Stomp. Once that happens, the second one should follow that up. Once they've both let out a bit of rage, give yourself Healing Breeze and hack away at one. Keep up your enchantments when possible and you'll be fine. Just make sure they don't interrupt Illusionary Weaponry (which they shouldn't if you do it right) with Giant Stomp.
For a group of 3 Sand Giants, this requires luck. Aggro them from afar and immediately cast Vigorous Spirit, Sympathetic Visage and Illusionary Weaponry. Again attack until you've been interrupted 3 times then use Healing Breeze. If necessary, pull off an Orison of Healing and keep on killing. You should use up Illusion of Weakness if unfortunate but don't worry. When you hack down the first Sand Giant, run away! Once they break aggro, re-cast Illusion of Weakness, wait for your health and energy, then attack them as if they were 2 Sand Giants, which they are. Finish off all the Sand Giants you can in this area, then head down the middle of the gorge towards...
The Dune Burrower. Ok so this guy doesn't seem tough. Wand him from afar to interrupt his Healing Spring, then cast Illusionary Weaponry and Vigorous Spirit (in that order) and go in for the kill. He isn't that hard to kill however there is a likely chance he'll have some friends hidden nearby which are...
Jade Scarabs and Rock-Eater Scarabs. You'll note the Jade Scarab is a Necromancer and the Rock-Eater Scarab is a Warrior. Necromancer. Not good. However that's why you have Vigorous Spirit cast on you first as it is used as a cover-enchantment spell. Target the Jade Scarab when he comes near and ignore the rest. It should use Chillblains removing Vigorous Spirit. Re-cast Vigorous Spirit then use Sympathetic Visage and Healing Breeze. You'll easily take out the Jade Scarab so then move onto the Rock-Eater Scarab. These guys are pathetic. They like to use Frenzy so make the most of the opportunity by dealing double damage with Illusionary Weaponry which is either 76 or 80 damage.
Once done, continue along the path through the gorge and that's the end of the run since you can't kill that last group of Forgotten. Well you could try. I haven't managed to pin them down yet but I'll find a way. And that brings us to...
THE END! You can repeat this run as many times as you like and it'll become more and more familiar. Soon you'll be able to identify each spawn and you'll be able to predict where Rockshot Devourers (and sometimes the Sand Wurm) will pop up. I hope all you young Mesmer/Monks benefit from this guide and if you have any questions or wish to make any comments, feel free to state them. Happy farming!
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