1,399
Having trouble beating the final boss fight with Oryx in the King’s Fall raid?
Having trouble beating the final boss fight with Oryx in the King’s Fall raid? Follow this detailed Destiny raid guide to ensure the Taken King falls as fast as possible.
As most people know by now Destiny has released its Year 2 expansion The Taken King, and brought with it a wealth of new changes. There are new story missions, new pieces of gear to collect, and so many minor tweaks that the game genuinely feels like a more polished experience. But of course, most of those smaller changes and story details pale in comparison to the new Destiny raid, King’s Fall.
It’s been more than 9 months since Destiny players have had a new raid to explore, and while some are still trying to reach the recommended light level of 290, others have already made their way to the Dreadnaught in the hopes of killing Oryx.
However, felling the titular Taken King is not so easy. In fact, the Oryx fight is easily one of the most challenging experiences in all of Destiny . It requires perfect execution, excellent communication, good chemistry, and, of course, solid gear. If any of those elements are missing, then players are likely to fail.
Even then, it’s still possible to struggle with Oryx, simply because the fight is so detailed. To that end, we’ve put together a guide that should help any fireteam better understand the mechanics of the Oryx fight and hopefully take him down. It really is a satisfying accomplishment.
How to Setup the Team
Before even attempting a singe run in the Oryx fight it’s important to assign roles. Like with past raids, there are certain classes that might be better at roles than others, but no one class is essential. Some teams have beaten the raid without a single Titan, while others feel a Titan is a must. Additionally, a hunter will help ease certain sequences of the fight, where a Warlock can help in others. Ultimately, it comes down to finding a setup that works best for the classes available, and finding how they fit into the below roles:
The Platform Team (4 Players) – These three players will be responsible for jumping onto three of the four platforms, making sure they don’t land on their platform until the person ahead of them has landed. It’s exactly the same as the Daughters of Oryx platform procedure – moving counterclockwise – except no one needs to be on the platform below the relic. Make sure to assign these platforms to players with strong weapons, preferably with solid range.
The Runner (1 Player) – This player will start at the platform in front of Oryx and move counterclockwise to claim the relic. They will then need to take the relic and pull a special ‘Aura of Immortality’ shield/debuff from a knight that protects from all damage, kill said knight, and make sure the shield is protecting the entire team. Since this team member is doing a lot of jumping it’s important that someone confident and with solid platforming skills fill the role. Many prefer hunters for this role, since the hunters jump isn’t as floaty as the Warlock’s and Titan’s.
The Floater (1 Players) – These players will hover around the middle during Phase 1 and will assist with killing Light Eater ogres. They don’t need to verify the kill, but they need to make sure every ogre dies as close to where they spawn as possible. It’s also imperative that the final ogre gets major priority when it spawns, since no one will be focusing on it to start. Warlocks with Nova Bomb or Sunbreaker Titanscan be a big help here. NOTE: There are technically two Floaters, but that person is always changing.
Important Pieces of the Fight
Light Eater Ogres – During Phase 1, four Light Eater ogres will spawn on the outside corners (when facing the center of the room) in the order the platforms are activated. They need to be killed quickly because they will draw aggro and run when left unchecked. After death, each ogre will leave behind a ‘Corrupted Light Bomb’.
Corrupted Light Bomb – One player stands next to each of these to detonate it. Wait until the kill feed says your name and then head back to the protection aura.
The Vessel – This armored Hive knight spawns in off a Tomb Ship towards the end of The Runner’s platforming. He has the protection aura around him, which The Runner steals using the relic. Be careful, though, because the Vessel will try to absorb the Corrupted Light Bombs. Swords can make quick work of the Vessel.
Phase 1: The Relic and the Ogres
After starting the fight, a few Taken Thrallswill spawn in the top left and top right (when facing Oryx) of the room. Clear these quickly and then make sure to kill the Taken Knights that spawn on top of the two front platforms. Then get in position and wait for Oryx to pick a front platform.
Whichever platform Oryx selects is the start of the Runner’s path. He/she will move in a counterclockwise motion across the invisible platforms, collecting the wisps that are necessary to get the relic. All the while the platform team below needs to jump on the platforms in a clockwise order, making sure they don’t activate their platform until the person before them has done so. If done correctly, the Runner should have a path of full wisps, but if a platform disappears or the wisps aren’t present, then someone hit their platform out of order.
The player whose platform has the relic above it does not need to jump on their platform, and will rotate into the role of the second Floater. Make their way to the first platform activated and prepare to help with the Light Eater Ogres.
Although the Platform team cannot leave their respective platforms until the Runner is done, they can assist with Ogre kills. Using a sniper or any weapon with good range, one platform team member can help down the ogre of the person across from them, and vice versa. Even if the ogres are not all dead, once the Runner grabs the relic they should give a call out, so some of the team can clear the platforms and assist with the ogre or move to help with killing the Vessel
After the ogres are down, every team member should move to the Runner and help with killing the Vessel. Once the Vessel is down it’s time to focus on Oryx.
Phase 2: Damaging Oryx
If all of the timing is right, soon after the Vessel is down Oryx should slam his fist onto the platform closest to him. After that he will lean back and his chest will open with a bright light. Once that happens, the entire team must do maximum damage to the small black circle in the light in order to stagger Oryx. If he is not staggered, Oryx will clap and wipe the entire team.
For this DPS segment, there are currently two setups. One likes to arrange in the center of the room – essentially between the two large pillars where the Daughters were – and shoot Oryx from there. From this spot it’s important to use weapons with good range and to ensure the damage falloff isn’t too great. If there is a Titan on the team it might be a good idea to put a Weapons of Light bubble nearby just to ensure maximum damage.
The other setup involves moving right up to the platform in front of Oryx and damaging him from there. In this situation, the team doesn’t need to worry about damage fall off and they can see Oryx’s weak point better, but it also requires a lot more coordination. If some team members miss the jump it can unravel everything.
After Oryx is staggered, all four of the platform team members, including the rotating floater, will run back to their Corrupted Light Bomb and trigger detonation. After doing so they need to run back to the protection aura for safety. If they don’t, the bomb will kill them. For this part, some teams like to call out a 3-2-1-GO for the detonation so everyone activates their bomb at the same time, but it’s not essential. The only thing that does is ensure everyone has the same amount of time to get back to the protection aura.
While the four platform team members are activating their bombs, the Runner and the Floater should continue to shoot Oryx for damage and to keep his weak point open. If they do not, the bombs won’t hit the weak point, and that’s what does the most damage. After the bombs detonate keep shooting Oryx’s weak point until he crawls underneath the platform.
Phase 3: The Light Bombs
After Orxy has crawled underneath he will reappear at the front of the room. At this point, the entire fireteam needs to find a spot on the map and prepare to run in a circle. The four platform team members should run around their platforms, and the floater and runner should pick a spot, one in the front of the room and one in the back.
As the team is running, Oryx will hover back and call forth little light bombs that will surround the player and try to detonate on them. A player will know when a bomb is about to detonate on them because a green flash will fill the screen. Once that happens, bunny hop to make sure the blast doesn’t kill you.
Also, make sure no one’s path overlaps, or else the blast might kill a team member. Oryx will let the team know the phase is over by grabbing back onto the map. Once Oryx has returned to the map, he will rotate to one of the two back platforms and the team repeats all of the steps from phase 1 and phase 2. The only difference will be the order the Runner jumps to the platforms, the order of the platforms, and which player becomes the second floater.
Phase 4: Fight the Echo of Oryx
In an ideal situation, repeating phases 1 and 2 should bring Oryx under 50% health. If he’s not under 50% health, then the team will need to repeat phases 1 and for a third time. However, the team should be aware that they to make up for lost damage by using better weapons on Oryx’s weak point.
If Oryx is under 50% health he will stay at the front of the map instead of rearing back for the light bombs. When this happens Oryx will summon a small black dome at the front of the room and begin to teleport players into it one by one. Inside the dome is an Echo of Oryx, which will move around in the mist surrounding the edges of dome so make sure to keep a bead on it while also doing damage. Occasionally the Echo will also charge in for a sword slam, so be prepared to jump out of the way when it does. The charge is also a good opportunity for a Nightstalker Hunterto tether the Echo for more damage and to keep it in place.
It’s important to note, though, that health does not recover while in the dome; so be mindful of damage. There will be Taken that run into the dome from outside so keep an eye on the surroundings, either by bobbing and weaving or having players clear the area.
Once the final player is teleported into the dome there is only a short amount of time left to kill the Echo or else a Doxology debuff triggers and wipes the entire team. As each member is teleported into the dome, they should call out their teleport number (i.e. “1 in”), so that the team knows when everyone is in. At that point, if the Echo isn’t close to dead, it might be a good idea to start using more supers or using heavy weapons. If the fight is done right, the Echo should die and everyone should be teleported out of the dome. Return to your places and prepare for another round of phase 1 and 2.
Repeating Past Phases
After completing another phase 1 and 2, Oryx will call another dome and it will be time to face the Echo one last time. Considering how close this is to the end of the fight, players may want to burn all of their supers, but be mindful that they may also come in handy towards the end. Make a judgment call based on how quickly the Echo is losing health and when the sixth person enters the dome.
Once the second Echo fight is done, there is one another round of the first two phases and these are obviously the most important. Everything needs to go off without a hitch here and Oryx needs to take as much damage as possible. If all has gone according to plan, Oryx should have the tiniest sliver of health and will disappear and appear at the front of the room. If he has any more than a sliver, the team did not do enough damage at some point during the fight. Either a bomb didn’t go off or the DPS wasn’t high enough after the bombs went off.
Phase 4: Killing Oryx
Phase 3 is the easiest part of the entire fight, but also the most stressful. If the team cannot kill Oryx in time then it’s a complete wipe. Because of that we recommend using every heavy weapon, then snipers, then primary that’s available, as well as Golden Gun shots if you have them. Weapons of Light will also be helpful, but is not essential. The only thing the team should avoid is a sustained super, like Hammer of Sol or Blade Dancer. These do more damage, but not quickly and in a short amount of time.
If the team does enough damage, Oryx will die and fall away from the platform and out into space. Now it’s time to collect loot and take pictures!
<