Notes on owning Oryx in Hard Mode, the Kill Everything and Leave Nothing to Chance strategy

We developed this strategy with two titans and two hunters, but it can probably be tweaked to work with most groups, if your light is high enough and you have the right gear. We finally cleared with an average light level of about 315. This is not a no-knight strat. Taking knights down was important, but staying alive was more important.

The three plateholders will have a number and rotate with Oryx's starting position.

4 people will be assigned to detonate a particular bomb, which does not rotate. They will also run around the platform next to their bomb during lightning rounds.

Start by Generating Orbs

A nightstalker draws the first add spawn into the center lane, drops a tether about halfway back to daughters platforms, and retreats to between the daughters platforms so orbs all drop in that central location. The rest of the team tears through the thrall and the knights. If you have 3 hunters, have plateholders 1 and 3 save their supers. If you have two hunters, plateholder 1 should generate orbs, since it is easier to deal with adds and knights on the space side of the map.

The Real Fight

Spark Runner

Being a rezlock is nice, in case you get into trouble while stealing the aura, but not necessary.

Put on your raid boots and book it. Call out when you are getting close to the spark, so nightstalkers can drop tethers to tie up remaining knights. Call out as soon as you have the spark for everyone to get off the plates. Drop down and steal the aura, chase the Vessel to the middle of the map, damaging him along the way. When help arrives to take the vessel down, focus on oryx. Be ready to call for the team to stop everything and shoot his chest. You are responsible for shooting his chest until the bombs go off.

Ogre DPS Team

Ideally you will have two defender titans running Touch of Malice, one weapons bubble, one armor bubble. Running a high recovery build here is nice. Designate one as the primary DPSer, secondary DPSer may need to switch to add duty before all ogres are down (raid launcher with cluster bombs is great for this).

As Oryx sets up, make sure you have one round left in your ToM. Take note of which plateholder is alone on which side of the map. When Oryx slams, pop bubbles right in the middle of the daughters platforms. ToM ogres until you lose your overshield, pop back in bubble to rejuvinate overshield if need be. Primary DPSer calls out ogres as they go down. If you are staying well ahead of the ogres, save grenades for adds and knights.

Primary DPSer focuses on taking all 4 ogres down in sequence, then focuses on cleaning up any remaining acolyte eyes or knights.

When ogre 3 is halfway down, secondary DPSer shifts focus to add duty on the side of the map with only one plateholder. First priority is acolyte eyes and acolytes near the middle lane, one rocket can be enough. Then help finish off ogre 4. Jump up and send a second rocket to the 4th add spawn (pro tip: don't get run over by the ship). Finally, watch for the 4th knight crossing the lane, and take him out. The 4th knight will always need to be cleaned up, since the plateholders will be retreating about the time he spawns.

Finally, ogre DPS team can help take down the vessel if he is still up.

If the sparkrunner calls for DPS on Oryx, primary ogre DPS drops everything and does so. Secondary DPSer may clean up a knight if need be.

Plate Holders

Ideally you have a good rocket launcher and sniper. The raid rocket launcher with cluster bombs is good for clearing adds and weakening knights. If you don't have a rocket launcher, you should be a Nightstalker with Black Hole tether. If you have two hunters, have them hold plates 1 and 3, so you are sure to have a tether on each side of the map when needed.

Priority is to kill ogres, then any acolyote eyes, and finally knights. Drop a grenade on the ogre next to your platform as he spawns, then follow up with your primary. As soon your ogre is down, focus on adds. Ideally, you have a rocket launcher to knock out the adds that spawn in the puddle on the opposite side of the room from your ogre. You will have line of site of the add spawn when space-side, but the spawns will be obstructed by the opposite plate when ship-side.

When the spark runner calls out that he is close to the relic, if knights are still up, drop a tether in the central lane where the knights cross to get to their bomb.

When the spark runner calls to get off the plates, get off quick. If your knight is still up, call out "knight up shipside/spaceside." Retreat to defender bubbles and get ready to take out the vessel. If you have time to focus on a knight that got away, do so.

If the sparkrunner calls for Oryx DPS, immediately stop what you are doing and shoot Oryx's chest.

Detonate the Bombs

Appoint one person in charge of the count. When oryx staggers, do a 10 second countdown for clearing adds, followed by a 5 second countdown to syncronize getting into the bombs, followed immediately by a 5 second countdown to leave the bombs. The last countdown ensures the bombs are triggered, and also that no one lingers too long and can't get back to the aura. The counter also needs to keep an eye on the kill feed in the lower left corner. If someone tiggers their bomb really early, be prepared to call everyone back to the aura before the end of the countdown.

Each person goes to their same appointed bomb on each round, regardless of what plate they were holding for the sparkrunner.

Lightning Rounds

Each person who detonates a bomb runs around the plate next to their bomb. The safest place for the two remaining players is on top of the daughters platforms, if you can do so without getting dizzy.

The Shade

There is time to switch to Red Death or something that is not Touch of Malice, if you want, and switch back after the Shade is dead. When you get teleported into the Shade dimension, immediately jump up, in case you got unlucky and the Shade is also slamming at the same time. Snipers and machine guns are great here. Do not use a tether on the Shade. He will slam multiple times while bound, making a wipe more likely.