Misc Tips for Challenge Modes

[Deleted]

Since there has been a surge of interest in Challenge Modes lately, here a list of tips/exploits i learned during the cm runs and did not find in any guides. You might want to use them in your CM runs (be it the first 9/9gold or whatever else)

Sholomance: You can skip the intermission phase on the Barov encounter (2nd boss) by pulling her in between the book stands in front of her. As soon as she starts the intermission, you just chill there and she will return after 4-5 seconds.

Scarlet Halls: When doing the archer event, you can reset the archers after killing all small ones (except the boss), and all running back to the corridor you came from. This allows you to do the archer event a second time, which saves you:

1. Dog group around the corner after the archer event.
2. Pulling last group after invis pot before the 2nd boss.

Niuzao Temple: Apparently there is a glitch that allows you to slip through the crack of the gates baring you way after the second boss encounter (until the panda comes down and plants his mines), which includes using the motorcycle mount to get through the crack and then have the rest of the players jump unto the mounts side-kick through the gate and dismount on the other side till the whole group passed the gate (long before mines are planted and exploded)

I am not sure whether this really works or in the specific case where i experienced it the player in question used a wallhack, but i was not able to recreate this exploit.

Shado Pan Monastery: You can initiate the cleansing ritual (after the sha encounter) with several people at once to have it count more than once. Doing it right will set the requirements counter for the challenge mode to 4/4 on the first cleansing, allowing you to skip all groups until the last on right in front of the bridge.

Most of these will not necessarily help you with a faster time, but might help you if you struggle with certain pulls or with simply getting gold.

If you know of any other stuff, feel free to list them as well.

[Senen]

Sholomance: You can skip the intermission phase on the Barov encounter (2nd boss) by pulling her in between the book stands in front of her. As soon as she starts the intermission, you just chill there and she will return after 4-5 seconds.

I haven't timed it precisely (because CM aren't proper speedrunning ) but I'm quite certain it's a time loss, tbh.

Scarlet Halls: When doing the archer event, you can reset the archers after killing all small ones (except the boss), and all running back to the corridor you came from. This allows you to do the archer event a second time, which saves you:

1. Dog group around the corner after the archer event.
2. Pulling last group after invis pot before the 2nd boss.

Ok, now THAT sounds fun.

[Deleted]

as i said, those things wont necessarily improve your times if you are going for realm first stuff, but might help people who are struggling with getting gold.

The resetting trick in halls will probably also not save you any time, but will reduce the number of big pulls in that instance from 2 to 1 (if you do it as i know it)

[Senen]

Yeah, it's actually way safer and depending on how far you need to go to make them reset it may actually save a bit of time. Obviously not worth it for people aiming for amazing timers (they don't invis pot in the same room anyway), but for gold and boost it seems pretty interesting.

[Archermit]

This post right here shows that the concept of CM's are flawed. They were meant to be harder dungeons that awarded extra rewards for doing them fast, not be cheesing mechanics or skipping things.

[Senen]

Actually, if they haven't expected us to skip things, the requirement would have counted all the mobs in the dungeon. Heavy invisibility potion usage was probably planned from start. But yeah, some of strats are flirting with bug exploit, I grant you that.

[Raiju]

Actually, if they haven't expected us to skip things, the requirement would have counted all the mobs in the dungeon. Heavy invisibility potion usage was probably planned from start. But yeah, some of strats are flirting with bug exploit, I grant you that.

Agreed, although I hope next expansions do require all mobs "in the way" at least for the timer. I've done CM's on a couple characters and on both it's been an exercise in practiced exploiting rather than good play with the class for 95% of the time to gold. I'm sure realm firsts are different but meh, I'm not one of the gifted specs anyway and don't feel like playing something I don't enjoy so repetitively.

[bals]

Actually, if they haven't expected us to skip things, the requirement would have counted all the mobs in the dungeon. Heavy invisibility potion usage was probably planned from start.

it was planned from the start since during the mop release they (blizzard employees) had a competition with some top guild racing through a cm and the blizzard employees had invis pots

[Glaziola]

This post right here shows that the concept of CM's are flawed. They were meant to be harder dungeons that awarded extra rewards for doing them fast, not be cheesing mechanics or skipping things.

Isnt it the same concept with Lichking, Ra-den and Yoggsaron brainroom exploit? Most pve content promotes exploiting
Why work hard when you have an easy alternative?

[Archermit]

Isnt it the same concept with Lichking, Ra-den and Yoggsaron brainroom exploit? Most pve content promotes exploiting
Why work hard when you have an easy alternative?

but they are exploits that get people in trouble or are fixed to stop them happening.

[Alroxas]

This post right here shows that the concept of CM's are flawed. They were meant to be harder dungeons that awarded extra rewards for doing them fast, not be cheesing mechanics or skipping things.

It's not about just doing them fast but also as efficient as possible.

For instance, you can shave off a minute to a minute and a half by killing Lillian Voss in Scholomance before she moves to P2/3. Or how about the 1~2 minutes saved if you have a DK who MCs a Frenzied Spirit in Scarlet Monastery for the first boss fight?

What really irks me about CMs is that class compositions matter especially if you're going for realm/world best times. I have yet to see a world best time with a group that excludes mage/shaman/bm hunters because of Hero. Blizzard should have allowed Drums of Rage to be used in CMs but they were only introduced in 5.4.

[Squirl]

There are a lot more tricks than that. I don't see this as a problem, though. Most of the fastest times in the world are posted on YouTube. It's pretty easy to see what they're doing and very few of these "exploits" have been fixed, so they're still available to everyone. It's very much still an even playing field. I don't know of anyone that has been banned for taking advantage of bugs for CM times, either.

I think it's neat because some of them give you a little glimpse behind the scenes of the game. It's also nice to have to do a little more than just play well. Everyone would probably prefer it if CMs were just about pulling as much as you can, doing as much damage as you can, and moving as quickly as you can. However, that's really an unrealistic expectation. There are always going to be bugs.

Also, absolutely nothing special is required just to get Gold. You don't even have to use Invis Pots. The obligation to play this way only exists at the very, very top end.

[Spotnick]

Well, I posted this in another thread, but here it is:

Scarlet Cathedral: In the Cathedral, pull the first few mobs when you are getting inside, then, pull the boss, stack behind a pillar to LOS everything while the tank runs out with the boss.. the boss will reset (then tanks run back and go stack with group on pillar) and you'll be able to kill every mobs into one single pull and save tons of time.

[Deleted]

Well, I posted this in another thread, but here it is:

Scarlet Cathedral: In the Cathedral, pull the first few mobs when you are getting inside, then, pull the boss, stack behind a pillar to LOS everything while the tank runs out with the boss.. the boss will reset (then tanks run back and go stack with group on pillar) and you'll be able to kill every mobs into one single pull and save tons of time.

if you're going to pull all the mobs anyway, you might as well keep the boss in there and take advantage of the insane vengeance the tank gets to rape the boss faster.

[Schizoide]

Glitching through the wall in nuizao really is an exploit. I wouldn't do that. The rest are all very common.

[Glurp]

Well, I posted this in another thread, but here it is:

Scarlet Cathedral: In the Cathedral, pull the first few mobs when you are getting inside, then, pull the boss, stack behind a pillar to LOS everything while the tank runs out with the boss.. the boss will reset (then tanks run back and go stack with group on pillar) and you'll be able to kill every mobs into one single pull and save tons of time.

I don't understand how that is a tip. You're better of keeping the boss there so the tank can do 400k dps to it.

[Oggiva]

I don't understand how that is a tip. You're better of keeping the boss there so the tank can do 400k dps to it.

There are probably groups out there that can't deal with the entire room and the boss. Everything doesn't have to be about server first. Some people just want gold.

[Teebu]

Ah, the Niuzao one reminds me of the C'thun skip where you could skip to C'thun after just killing Skeram.

[Glurp]

There are probably groups out there that can't deal with the entire room and the boss. Everything doesn't have to be about server first. Some people just want gold.

If you are struggling for gold times I doubt you're going to be competent enough to survive the entire room at once.

[CausalXXLinkXx]

I haven't timed it precisely (because CM aren't proper speedrunning ) but I'm quite certain it's a time loss, tbh.

At the time we used it we got us 2nd so it was pretty good for us