Enter the Dragon's Nest : Guides for Nests and Raids
Nests and Raids are the primary end game content of Dragon Nest. The instanced boss runs include some unique mechanics that will keep any adventurer on their toes. Each nest is different from the last, with various mechanics at specific bosses. Nesting or Raiding requires careful attention, teamwork, and thorough knowledge of not only your class but also of the enemies you face and the working of the nest.
Step into the Nest : Nests
Various Nests are available for different levels of adventurers, and are all challenging according at their intended level. They require 1 - 4 players (with the exception of Minotaur nest which allows only one), and have varying difficulties from Normal, Hard, and Abyss that offer different amount of rewards depending on difficulty. Nests with more mechanics are usually considered more difficult overall.
The nests you can try out are..
Nests are usually abbreviated by title. VN for Volcano Nest, GN for Guardian Nest, ABN for Archbishop Nest, etc. Most nests below 50 do not have abbreviations; Mino, Cerb, Manti, and Apoc are used respectively.
Drops and gold by difficulty are..
The nests you can try out are..
- Lvl 24 : Minotaur Nest (Solo)
- Lvl 32 : Cerberus Nest
- Lvl 40 : Manticore Nest, Apocalypse Nest
- Lvl 50 : Archbishop Nest, Titan Nest
- Lvl 60 : Professor K Nest, Typhoon Krag Nest
- Lvl 70 : Guardian Nest, Mist Nest
- Lvl 80 : Volcano Nest
Nests are usually abbreviated by title. VN for Volcano Nest, GN for Guardian Nest, ABN for Archbishop Nest, etc. Most nests below 50 do not have abbreviations; Mino, Cerb, Manti, and Apoc are used respectively.
Drops and gold by difficulty are..
- Normal : 10%
- Hard : 50%
- Abyss : 100
Time for a Challenge : Challenge Nests
70 Cap brought a new type of nest to the PvE field. Challenge nests made nesting even more difficult. These nests offered a new mechanic : Challenges. Also known as Trial nests in other versions, these nests combined the already difficult bosses of the nests for that level with trials that interfere with smooth nesting. Ranging from bouts of blindness, sudden HP cuts, and a no buff trial, challenge nests offer a variety of trials to mess up your nesting. These are randomized for each stage, and are NOT required in stages should you choose not to. Passing the stage with a trial will offer more rewards than choosing to pass the stage without one.
Challenge Nests available are...
Challenge nests are named by title as well, but may include a T instead of a C for "Trial" ; ACN/ATN and VCN/VTN respectively.
Challenge Nests available are...
- Lvl 70 : Arendel Challenge Nest
- Lvl 80 : Volcano Challenge Nest
Challenge nests are named by title as well, but may include a T instead of a C for "Trial" ; ACN/ATN and VCN/VTN respectively.
Call an Army : Raids
Raids are like Nests on steroids. Raids are the Dragon Nests, and you will be fighting dragons. These menacing nests are for daring adventurers, and at their level cap are the highest PvE content available. They are ridden with mechanics to know, and filled with the dangers of team wipe mechs and very angry bosses. Raids require a team of 5 - 8 people. One Raid Leader will be able to send shout chats to the entire raid.
The raids to try are...
All raids have a normal mode, and a Hardcore mode. Normal modes will offer Unique grade weapons and equipment, and Hardcore modes will offer Legendary grade. The raids are named by title; SDN, GDN HC, DDN, BDN HC, RDN, etc.
Raids have a Practice Mode which can be run. SDN and GDN have practice modes that require the normal amount of people and can be accessed at the raid portal. These have no drops. DDN forward have a Memoria, that is split up into parts and lets you practice different stages of the nest piece by piece. There are usually Memoria 1 - 4 (also known as Mem I, II, III, and IV) available for DDN, BDN, and RDN. Memoria stages are at a separate portal than the raid and do reward players with dragon scales, but no equipment or weapons.
The raids to try are...
- Lvl 40 : Sea Dragon Nest, Sea Dragon Nest Hardcore
- Lvl 50 : Green Dragon Nest, Green Dragon Nest Hardcore
- Lvl 60 : Desert Dragon Nest, Desert Dragon Nest Hardcore
- Lvl 70 : Black Dragon Nest, Black Dragon Nest Hardcore
- Lvl 80 : Red Dragon Nest, Red Dragon Nest Hardcore
All raids have a normal mode, and a Hardcore mode. Normal modes will offer Unique grade weapons and equipment, and Hardcore modes will offer Legendary grade. The raids are named by title; SDN, GDN HC, DDN, BDN HC, RDN, etc.
Raids have a Practice Mode which can be run. SDN and GDN have practice modes that require the normal amount of people and can be accessed at the raid portal. These have no drops. DDN forward have a Memoria, that is split up into parts and lets you practice different stages of the nest piece by piece. There are usually Memoria 1 - 4 (also known as Mem I, II, III, and IV) available for DDN, BDN, and RDN. Memoria stages are at a separate portal than the raid and do reward players with dragon scales, but no equipment or weapons.
Basic Mechanics and Terms
Different mechanics are seen in different nests, but the general gist can be found in various nests. See the guides for each nest to learn about specific mechanics.
- Stomp/Jump Mechanics : Many bosses will stomp the ground hard, doing high amounts of damage to anyone standing on the ground; stomps may also knock in some cases. This is where you jump. Jumping will make you immune to this damage. Timing is important for any jump mechanic.
- Wipe Mechanics : Some bosses have a skill that will deal incredible amounts of damage to your entire team if you mess up. These skills, at the level cap, will likely kill you... and your team. In some cases, no amount of prayer to the Goddess or defense buffs will help you. There is usually a way to avoid these mechanics by jumping on platforms or etc.
- Summon wipes : Skills that remove summons. Oftentimes, this is for the benefit of the players as a prelude to a skill that requires precision. If the summons are alive and hit things they aren't supposed to, it can wipe the team. This, however, causes problems for classes like Tink that rely on summons.
- Rage : Certain bosses, when their HP is low, will enter Rage mode. They will glow red and do more damage than usual.