RAIDS (wing 1-2-3-4 HoT Raids)
RAIDS (wing 1-2-3-4 HoT Raids)
Alright folks, we all know the drill. Raids—the PvE content that makes even the most hardcore endgame players sweat bullets and sometimes question why they even play the game. Yep, the stuff that’s both terrifying and oddly enticing. Sure, you can say, “Yeah, yeah, I’ve seen a thousand YouTube videos, I know the deal.” But let me tell you—watching videos is nothing like actually stepping into the raid with your squad of 10. That moment when you’re in there? Pure adrenaline.
Watching 10 people waltz through a massive dungeon, duking it out with bosses and crazy mechanics—sounds epic, right? But here’s the kicker: one tiny screw-up from one person, and boom—all of you bite the dust. Terrifying… and thrilling. Don’t worry, I’m not here to scare anyone. I’ve been playing for years, and yeah, sometimes I get stressed too.
So, a little history lesson: raids in this game are basically a decade old. With the Heart of Thorns (HoT) expansion, the raid system—also known as Wings, or W1-2-3… you get the idea—was set up. HoT gave us W1 through W4. Then Path of Fire (PoF) dropped three more raids, W5-6-7 (yep, those are already 7–8 years old). And just when we thought ArenaNet might chill, along came Jade Terrace DLC with W8, our most recent raid. So yeah, there are currently 8 raids in the game.
Well, first things first—raids are not like your average content. Nope. They’re huge, long, and require all 10 players to know their stuff. A few YouTube videos can help you not feel like a total noob when you first step in. Bonus points if you hit up some Training Raid groups to sharpen your skills.
In the rest of this post, I’ll share my own take on the raids, talk about roles, and sprinkle in some sarcastic commentary because… well, that’s more fun. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.
Chill, folks. Videos are coming eventually. But personally, I love reading, and I think sharing this with other players who enjoy reading is kinda nice.
Wing-1 (W1) – Spirit Vale
So, when you first hear “W1,” you’re probably thinking, “Pfft, this is gonna be easy, it’s the first raid, right? How hard can it be?” Oh boy… ArenaNet just smiled and said, “Hold my ale.” W1 is packed with mechanics—full-on chaos from the start.
You begin by fighting three different Vale Guardians. Sounds simple, right? Well, surprise! They merge into one super beefy boss in a circular arena. Now imagine this: a tank holding aggro, a healer keeping everyone alive, and all the mechanics going off like a festival. People are flying left and right, teleporting all over the place, and of course, anyone who strays too far gets eaten alive… until they respawn and run back to the team. Classic.
Then you’ve got the Condi folks, the Power folks—they have to split up, then reunite, rinse and repeat. Cut to the boss finally dying. Phew.
Next up: a garden-like area with a totally random mini-event where giant balls drop from above. Teamwork is key—you’re running left, right, everywhere trying not to get crushed. Survive that, and you move on. Here comes a tunnel/arena hybrid where we smash walls and collect balls mid-flight. Seriously, they threw everything into this section.
Then, enter Uncle Gorseval. This guy’s got jumpy mechanics—literally bouncing around—and each of us has to deal with his unique attacks. Take him down, flap over to the next area, and—oh look—a pirate crew awaits. We annihilate them, cross some rickety wooden bridges, and say hi to Sister Sabetha.
Sabetha’s got her own circus going on: a platform that’s either gonna collapse or crush you, team members dodging left and right, and turrets firing balls everywhere. Oh, and don’t forget Sabetha herself, spitting fire like she’s running a carnival attraction. It’s complete chaos.
Finally, we take her down, claim her loot, and just like that—W1 is officially done.
Wing-2 (W2) – Salvation Pass
Alright, folks, buckle up. W2 is basically a big “let’s watch you slowly melt from condi damage” simulator. So, if your squad has a condi cleanser—or better yet, two—you’re basically golden. If not… well, good luck.
You stroll in, and there’s a couple of wimpy worm mobs to munch on. Cute, right? Then their daddy shows up. Yup, it’s still adorable… in a “please don’t kill me” kind of way.
Here comes the fun part: four volunteers appear, staring at some poisonous mushrooms on the ground. They assign themselves numbers and take turns eating the shrooms to cleanse them. Step out of line, eat the wrong amount, and it’s a “bye-bye, team” moment. Meanwhile, the rest of your crew is hopping, jumping, and smashing their way through the first boss. It sounds easy when I say it like this, but trust me—it’s a legit mechanic-heavy fight.
After that, you wander into what I think is a pirate camp? Or maybe it’s just the forest—doesn’t matter, you kill stuff. Up, down, left, right, all while listening to the commander. And of course, three mini-bosses pop out—because why not? You slice those, then hike up to some temple-looking area, mowing down mobs along the way.
Enter Mattias. Big guy, loves mechanics. Poison, fire, knockback… it’s basically Rio Carnival out here. Step in the wrong place, get poisoned—run to one of four fountains to heal, or say goodbye to your HP bar. Got a poisonous puddle? Carefully place it between fountains without wiping the team. Skill check? More like “don’t be dumb.”
At a certain health percentage, Mattias loses it. Like, goes full-on monster mode. Turns into a huge creature and rampages. And eventually… he dies. W2 ends.
Honestly? I love this raid. It’s chaotic, mechanically rich, and makes you feel like a total badass when you actually pull it off.
Wing-3 ( W3 ) - Stronghold of the Faithful
It kicks off right away with a long event. Basically, we’re babysitting this friend named Glena, escorting her from the castle walls all the way inside. Yup, the game even calls this part an “Escort.” If we successfully shepherd her into the castle, our first boss shows up: Keep Construction, or KC for short. Picture a stone golem with a giant spinning head—yep, that’s him.
KC’s mechanics are wild: step in the green zones, avoid the red, break CC bars, or break lifelets before they merge… oh, and watch out for the rolling balls. Seriously, reading about it doesn’t do it justice—you gotta see it to believe it. Anyway, we take down this massive rock stack and keep moving.
Now we’re at the final stretch inside the castle to reach the big boss, Xera. There are 4–5 buttons here, and hitting them opens the doors that lead to her. This part is kinda annoying because between trying to figure out where to go and the area damage, you can die pretty fast. A bit of speed helps. Honestly, it’s got a bit of a Jumping Puzzle vibe—you’re teleporting through mirrors and stuff, it’s a whole different atmosphere.
Finally, we meet Xera. Our 10-person squad splits into two teams of five, spreading out left and right. We fight her in the middle of a dome-filled arena, jumping from dome to dome. This is phase 2; fall off, and it’s instant game over. To pull this off, Ley-Line Gliding masters need to be fully leveled—otherwise, no dome-hopping for you. Important tip, don’t forget it!
After a couple of intense phases, we regroup, finish Xera off, and that’s it—Wing 3 is done, and we’ve reached the end.
Wing-4 (W4) - Bastion of the Penitent
Should I say this is the prettiest raid? Or maybe the most player-friendly? Honestly, I’m torn. But looking at the other raids, W4 definitely throws us into a completely different environment. First of all, the best part? There’s no “escort this guy, kill mobs, protect the area” events—none of that. Instead, there are four bosses and it’s just slice, fight, slice, fight, keep going. Each boss has completely different mechanics.
When I first did W4, after the first three bosses, I thought, “Aha! The final boss, Deimosa, must combine all the mechanics from the first three!” Well… nope. Each boss is totally its own thing. So let’s start with our sweet little first boss, Cairn. We’re on a platform, kinda like a giant rock that escaped from Lake Doric or something. He throws people left and right, opens green areas you need to stand in—other than that, not much. And if you can deal damage while dodging all that, oh boy, the world ends and the boss dies.
After Cairn, we get a familiar concrete bust… meet Mursad, the training dummy uncle. Just run at him and smack away, right? But, of course, there’s a mechanic: iron spears pop from the ground, and when areas turn yellow, you gotta get out. Before fighting him, there are three stones right in front that give buffs, debuffs, and protective things that three players pick up during the fight. Sometimes, the whole platform turns yellow—this means we’re toast. The player holding the stone hits the SA key to clear the yellow zone. Tiny little mechanics make this boss fun.
Next up, after smashing the concrete, we face some multi-armed bull… I mean, whatever it is, it’s Samarog! He charges at us, throws spears, jumps on people, and to save anyone stuck underneath, you gotta break his CC bar. He has two phases where he retreats to his nest. Two puny mobs try to help him, and we kill them one by one while Samarog comes back for round two. After some epic brawls, we finally down the giant bull and face the last boss: Deimos—or is he Cerus’s brother? Cousin? Whatever. The guy’s got a scary, charismatic look.
Classic platform fight: don’t fall off. Deimos is angry and has pizza-slice-shaped attacks. Watch out. Hands pop from the ground, and one unlucky player has to “hand kite” (HK) them—basically collecting all the hands while taking damage. Meanwhile, our tank keeps talking to Deimos like he’s a chatty neighbor. We run up and down trying to obliterate this devil. At 60%, black holes start appearing—stay away or you die, because they spread and wipe the raid. When he hits 10%, we all go down to the lower platform, and whoever’s left standing… wins. Of course, there are 10 of us, so it’s basically a smooth finish. And that’s W4, folks—done and dusted!
Thanks for the effort pal.
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