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Ah, the Stone Vanguard! A formidable opponent indeed, a true test of your combat prowess and understanding of its stony wrath. Many an adventurer has stumbled before its crushing blows and earth-shattering attacks. But fear not, brave warrior, for with this comprehensive guide, you will learn to dominate this rocky behemoth and emerge victorious!
The Unyielding Challenge: How to Beat the Stone Vanguard
Are you ready to turn this mountainous menace into mere rubble? Let's begin!
Step 1: Know Your Enemy and Prepare for Battle
Before you even think about charging in, we need to understand exactly what we're up against. The Stone Vanguard is a pure physical attacker, relying on its immense strength and geological fury. There are no elemental weaknesses to exploit in the traditional sense, but understanding its moveset is paramount.
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Sub-heading 1.1: Location, Location, Location
First things first, where do you find this stony beast? The Stone Vanguard resides in the Fright Cliff region, specifically the Rockrest Flat area. You'll need to navigate past the Sandgate Village, defeat the King of Flowing Sand and Second Rat Prince (if you haven't already), and then cross a bridge into Rockrest Flat. Look for a distinctive rock archway – that's your entrance to its arena.
Sub-heading 1.2: Gear Up, Warrior!
This fight is a test of endurance and damage mitigation.
Tip: Reading carefully reduces re-reading.
- Armor: Prioritize armor with the highest defense. The Ebongold set, if available, is an excellent choice. Every point of damage resistance counts.
- Weapon: Equip your strongest staff with the highest attack power. The Twin Serpent Staff is a solid option. While there are no unique elemental gimmicks to exploit with other equipment, maximizing your raw damage output is crucial.
- Spirit: Consider equipping a spirit that boosts your defense or allows for powerful burst damage. The Wandering Wight spirit, which offers a defense boost and enables a swift headbutt, is highly recommended. Avoid ranged spirits; you'll want to be in its face (or rather, its stony backside).
- Consumables: Stock up on healing items! This is a long fight, and you'll inevitably take hits. Potions that increase your physical damage resistance can also be incredibly beneficial. If you've crafted any Evil Repelling Medicament, now's the time to use it.
- Skills: Focus on upgrading your Thrust Stance. Its extended range allows you to deal damage while maintaining a safer distance. Also, invest in Cloud Step for crucial evasive maneuvers. The Immobilize spell can also be a game-changer, allowing you to create openings.
Step 2: Mastering the Vanguard's Attack Patterns
The Stone Vanguard is slow but incredibly hard-hitting. Don't let its size fool you into thinking it's clumsy. Its attacks are telegraphed, but the AoE (Area of Effect) aftershocks are what often catch unprepared players.
Sub-heading 2.1: Primary Attack Patterns and How to Counter Them
- Leaping Strike & Ground Slam: The fight often begins with the Stone Vanguard leaping towards you, followed by a ground slam.
- Counter: Immediately dodge sideways as it leaps. Its ground slam is very slow and easy to avoid with another quick dodge.
- Single Arm Slam with Delayed Detonation: It will slam one of its front arms down. Watch for its arms to glow immediately after the slam. This signals a delayed AoE earth spike detonation.
- Counter: Do NOT rush in. Hang back and use your Thrust Stance for a charged hit from a safe distance. The detonation creates rocks ripping upwards in front of it. While you can dodge these, you can also negate the tremor by using your charged Pillar Stance if timed correctly and from a reasonable distance.
- Double Arm Slam (Wide AoE): It will slam both arms down with the points straight up. This creates a larger, wider circular AoE around it.
- Counter: Again, maintain distance. If you have enough lead time, the Pillar Stance can lift you above the tremor for an attack from above.
- Repeated Arm Stabs & Ground Burst Blast: Watch for it to raise both arms to the side in a half-swing. It will then stab the ground repeatedly with alternating arms (four times), before raising both arms high for a final ground-bursting blast.
- Counter: During the repeated stabs, you can actually stick close and dodge to the side, potentially getting in a few quick hits. For the final blast, prioritize evasion and create distance.
- Rock Guai Summon: A unique attack where it taps the ground repeatedly with one arm. This summons a horde of Rock Guai that burrow up and launch themselves at you, exploding on impact. The Stone Vanguard will join the last two.
- Counter: Backpedal and take evasive action, or use Cloud Step to get behind them. The key here is consistent movement and dodging each individual projectile, and then the final combined leap.
Sub-heading 2.2: Identifying Openings and Punishing the Boss
The Stone Vanguard has a slow recovery time after its heavy attacks. This is your window!
Tip: Summarize each section in your own words.
- After a successful dodge of a ground slam or AoE attack, quickly close the distance and unleash a short combo.
- The Thrust Stance's heavy attack is incredibly effective due to its range, allowing you to land hits without being too close to potential AoE retaliation.
- If you've built up enough Focus Points, a heavy attack spending both points can deal significant damage and temporarily stagger the boss, creating a larger opening for free hits.
- When it throws boulders at you (if you're too far), these are generally easy to dodge. Use this opportunity to close the distance.
- The Immobilize spell is your best friend. Use it during one of its attacks to freeze it in place, allowing you to unleash a flurry of focused attacks. Avoid using Immobilize during its jumping attacks if you can't reach it for punishment.
Step 3: Strategic Movement and Positional Advantage
This isn't a stand-and-trade fight. Your mobility is your greatest weapon against the Stone Vanguard's ponderous power.
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Sub-heading 3.1: The Art of the Dodge
- Perfect Dodges: Practice your perfect dodges. They not only keep you safe but can also build up Focus Points quickly, leading to more devastating heavy attacks and potential stuns.
- Side-Stepping: Many of the Vanguard's melee attacks can be easily sidestepped. Don't always roll away; sometimes a quick sidestep puts you in a better position for a counter-attack.
- Cloud Step for Emergencies: Reserve Cloud Step for those tricky situations, especially when multiple Rock Guai are incoming or when the Vanguard makes a surprisingly fast leap. It has a cooldown and consumes mana, so use it wisely.
Sub-heading 3.2: Utilizing the Terrain (If Applicable)
While the Stone Vanguard arena is generally open, some areas might have slight elevation or obstacles.
QuickTip: Highlight useful points as you read.
- The Stone Vanguard has limited mobility. If there are higher grounds or certain obstacles you can use to avoid its AoE, consider doing so. However, relying too much on this might leave you open to its ranged rock throws. It's often better to stay relatively close and focus on precise dodges.
- If you find yourself behind the Stone Vanguard, you only need to worry about its slow backhand attack and its vertical leap attack, both of which are easily dodged by moving away. This can be a prime position for sustained damage.
Step 4: Advanced Tactics and "Cheese" Strategies
Sometimes, a little ingenuity goes a long way.
Sub-heading 4.1: The Shigandang Summon (The "Easy" Button)
This is a fantastic "cheese" strategy if you want to avoid a lengthy battle.
- How it Works: In the Stone Vanguard's arena, near the entrance archway, there's a large stone with many heads carved into it on the side. If you've collected all six Buddha Eyeballs (found from statue heads around the Fright Cliff), you can interact with this stone.
- The Result: Interacting with it will summon the mighty Shigandang boss, who will immediately engage the Stone Vanguard in a fight! Shigandang is incredibly powerful and will likely defeat the Stone Vanguard for you, granting you all the rewards.
- The Catch: Once the Stone Vanguard is gone, Shigandang will turn on you. He is an extremely tough boss, especially early on. Only use this strategy if you're prepared for a potentially even harder fight immediately after, or if you simply want to get the Stone Vanguard out of the way for rewards. You can always resummon Shigandang later for a fairer matchup when you're stronger.
Sub-heading 4.2: Pillar Stance "Cheese"
This is a more subtle "cheese" that uses the environment.
- Some players have reported that if you can position yourself behind a specific stone (often found in the arena) and use a Level 3 Pillar Stance, the Stone Vanguard will continuously stagger if it tries to attack you through it. This allows you to chip away at its health safely. This might require some experimentation to find the exact spot.
Step 5: Victory and Rewards!
Once you've whittled down its colossal health bar and landed the final blow, the Stone Vanguard will crumble, leaving behind valuable rewards. You'll typically receive:
- Will: A significant amount of the game's currency, crucial for upgrades.
- Yaoguai Core: Essential crafting materials.
- Sternness of Stone: A unique item dropped by the Stone Vanguard.
- Mind Core: Another valuable material.
And of course, the most important reward: the bragging rights of having conquered this formidable foe!
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| How To Beat Stone Vanguard |
10 Related FAQ Questions
How to prepare for the Stone Vanguard boss fight?
- Quick Answer: Prioritize high-defense armor (like Ebongold), your strongest staff (Twin Serpent Staff), and defensive/damage-boosting spirits (Wandering Wight). Stock up on healing items and physical damage resistance consumables.
How to dodge the Stone Vanguard's ground slams?
- Quick Answer: Its ground slams are highly telegraphed and slow. A simple dodge roll to the side or backward as it raises its arms should suffice. Be wary of the delayed AoE spikes that often follow.
How to deal with the Stone Vanguard's AoE attacks?
- Quick Answer: Keep your distance when its arms glow after a slam. You can dodge the earth spikes, or, if timed correctly and from a reasonable distance, use a charged Pillar Stance to negate the tremor.
How to counter the Stone Vanguard's Rock Guai summon?
- Quick Answer: Backpedal and continuously dodge the incoming Rock Guai. Utilize Cloud Step for quick evasions, especially when the Stone Vanguard joins the final leaps.
How to create openings for damage against the Stone Vanguard?
- Quick Answer: Exploit its slow recovery after heavy attacks. Use Thrust Stance for ranged hits and unleash focused heavy attacks after perfect dodges or staggers. The Immobilize spell creates prime damage windows.
How to use the Immobilize spell effectively against the Stone Vanguard?
- Quick Answer: Cast Immobilize during one of the Stone Vanguard's ongoing attacks. This will freeze it, allowing you to land several free hits. Avoid using it if the boss is mid-air or out of reach.
How to utilize the Thrust Stance against the Stone Vanguard?
- Quick Answer: The Thrust Stance's heavy attack is excellent for hitting the Stone Vanguard from a safer distance, especially after it performs an AoE attack and you need to wait for the aftershock to dissipate.
How to trigger the secret Shigandang boss fight to "cheese" the Stone Vanguard?
- Quick Answer: Collect all six Buddha Eyeballs. In the Stone Vanguard's arena, find the large stone with carved heads near the entrance archway and interact with it to summon Shigandang. He will fight the Stone Vanguard for you.
How to build Focus Points quickly during the Stone Vanguard fight?
- Quick Answer: Executing perfect dodges against the Stone Vanguard's attacks is an effective way to quickly build Focus Points, enabling more powerful charged attacks and staggers.
How to avoid taking damage from the Stone Vanguard's ranged rock throws?
- Quick Answer: The boulders it throws are relatively slow and easy to dodge. Use these opportunities to close the distance and resume your offensive.
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