Strategic Achievements: Sunken Temple

Say the words "solo instance" and the classes most people will come up with to do the job well are probably druids and paladins, or maybe even warlocks with voidwalkers. Mages, in all of our glass-cannon glory, don't usually rank high on the list of independent dungeoneers, who can walk into Onyxia's lair and down her without breaking a sweat, or take out Emperor Thaurissian and his lackeys all on our own.

That said, mages can be incredibly useful members of two-person dungeon teams, and Strategic Achievements is here with tips and tricks for 2-manning instances. No, you don't have to be maximum level, and no you don't have to be fully-dressed in epics. All you need to bring to the 2-man table, or dungeon as the case may be, is your arcane ingenuity and your magely skill.

Two-Manning Sunken Temple
Recommended Level: 50+
Recommended Spec: Frost
How I Did It: 1 Frost Mage, level 56, 1 Affliction Warlock, level 53

The key for most if this instance is AoE. You'll need to use your abilities to down multiple mobs at the same time to their utmost, as groups of trolls and their undead minions stalk the upper levels, and a host of dragonkin await you below. Make sure you have a good plan for keeping your mana pool filled, so you can whip out heavy doses of Blizzard, Arcane Explosion, and Flamestrike.

Ideally, you'd have a tank for your dungeon run - someone who can maintain aggro while you DPS the mobs down. If not, then try pairing with someone who comes with their own meat shield, er... pet: a warlock or hunter. Also, it helps if the tank (player or pet) can be healed in battle - a druid or paladin would be ideal, though I also found my warlock partner's Health Funnel ability to be a lifesaver - literally - on some of our boss fights.

Upper-Level Troll Mobs: Your strategy for the trolls lurking around the temple's upper level should be simple - send in your tank and AoE the mobs down. By level 50, none of these mobs hit very hard, and one or two channelings of Blizzard should do the trick.

There are a total of six troll mini-bosses in each of the alcoves overlooking the lower level. For a level 50+ 2-man team, these fights are a simple tank and spank, with the exception of Zolo, who summons Skeletons, and Hukku, who summons warlock pet minions. If you're running this dungeon for the achievement, all six troll mini-bosses must be defeated before you move on.

The Dragonkin Chamber: When setting up your 2-man dungeon group, don't forget to tell prospective members that this chamber is a skinner's paradise. Before you reach the final boss, all dragonkin in the lower level of the temple must be killed, or they'll come rushing to Eranikus' aid when you face him. The good news is, dragonkin supply leather.

Again, AoE abilities are key here, as every pull will involve multiple mobs. Counterspell may be useful in getting spellcasters like Nightmare Wyrmkin and Nightmare Suppressors to join you in melee range. Perhaps most importantly, the Nightmare Wyrmkin in this chamber can cast Sleep on one of your party members and should be taken down immediately.

Jammal'an the Prophet & Friends: The trolls in Jammal'an's chamber must be killed before you take on the Prophet himself. Don't tank these mobs inside the chamber, but rather pull them back into the hall. Each mob has its own special abilities, many of which can be dangerous to the unprepared party:

• Atal'ai Corpse Eaters: will consume nearby corpses to regain health unless killed.
• Atal'ai Deathwalkers: will cast Fear on your party. Once killed, Deathwalkers become spirits, who are immune to all damage and will attack within melee range. These spirits should be avoided - they hit hard and can easily cause a party wipe. Spirits will dissipate after 15 seconds.
• Atal-ai High Priests: These will heal their party members and summon skeletons to their aid.

Jammal'an casts damage spells but is also capable of healing himself and his cohort, Ogom the Wretched. He can also Hex your party members, turning them into Troll Warriors who will attack your team. Thus, it's a good idea to give him multiple targets on which to focus his attacks.

Jammal'an's companion Ogom can cast DoTs on your party, as well as Shadow Bolt.

Jammal'an must be defeated before you can fight the final boss, the Shade of Eranikus.

Shade of Eranikus: This fight is the "final" or "achievement" fight for a reason - it's hard, it requires fast reflexes, and it's not possible unless both members of your team are using every single ability at their disposal to the utmost.

First and foremost, before you begin this fight, make sure that every one of your abilities, from Cold Snap down to Evocation, are ready to be used. Get your potions ready, and conjure your best mana gem. Use any scrolls or elixirs on yourself and your friend, and agree on your plan before you enter combat.

Because you're ideally above Eranikus' own level, spell hit is not a big issue, but spell crit can be a life saver. Use anything in your possession which increases your crit chance - you may need it when your party's dead and you've just become an unwitting mage tank.

While it may be tempting to run into this fight spells blazing, the Shade of Eranikus has several abilities which can wipe the unprepared 2-man party. He's very sensitive to changes in aggro, and most of his attacks hit hard on mages. If you're with a tank, have them enter first and build up some threat. If you're using another player's pet as the tank, both of you should hold off the big guns for the first few seconds of combat.

Once threat has been correctly established, go all out. This fight is very hard on tanks in the mid-50s, and as the main DPS of your 2-man group, it's up to you to finish Eranikus off before he annihilates you both.

Among his more deadly abilities, Eranikus can send attackers into a 12-second duration Deep Slumber, which, as its name suggests, takes players out of commission for the duration of the spell. Here's where your Frost spec is really critical - use your Water Elemental as an off-tank, and make sure it has built up enough aggro to force Eranikus onto it should your main tank get stunned.

If you're working with another DPS class with a pet, then for this fight, that player is going to have to become a healer, and their primary goal is to keep their pet alive throughout the fight. Cold Snap is a real help here - if the main tank goes down or is incapacitated, use it to keep your Water Elemental in the fight. Having an elemental as an off-tank is also useful in combating Eranikus's knockback ability, which can send the tank flying.

If everyone else goes down, pop your shields and use your instant cast abilities. Hopefully as a team you've whittled down Eranikus' health enough that a few spells should finish him off!