Thirsty River for my warrior while difficult was eventually accomplished when I led the team to success.
Not so with my ranger.
For one thing, it's so hard to get into a group. Not many seem to want a ranger anymore ever since they patched the sniping.
So I had no choice but to attempt this with henchies.
What do you know, I get further into the mission with henchies than with PUGs. I got as far as the 3rd arena and killed off the Ranger and Warrior bosses and got my elite skill. Unfortunately, all my henchies got killed and my rez signet had already been used up...so all I had was the damn Ghostly Hero, who seems to like using a bow when the leader uses a bow.
Obviously, this wouldn't work against the 3rd and arguably hardest group with the Monk boss.
I attempted this several times with henchies, and always something happens and the furthest I get to is the 2nd group in the 3rd arena.
I hate to say this but it seems like the standard of warrior players has dropped. I see so many warriors who die like flies. I also noticed many monk players are also crappy. They also get killed too easily or don't heal the tanks. Not sure if it's the monks or tanks at fault.
Lastly, I came across a number of relatively low level players, around level 16 or so. What do these people hope to accomplish is anyone's guess...they too are weak and die easily. I mean the monsters are all at least level 20, so it's not surprising.
Thirsty River and my attempts with my ranger
MaglorD
Axelia
Did you make Elonas Reach? I tried that for almost a week and finally said screw it. Henchies just don't keep up and I end up running out of time because I usually have to kill off a few groups when I run the Crystals back. Darn near made it tonight but fell short coming up the ramp to give the ghost the 3rd crystal. Needed maybe 30 seconds. 
MaglorD
Quote:
Originally Posted by Axelia
Did you make Elonas Reach? I tried that for almost a week and finally said screw it. Henchies just don't keep up and I end up running out of time because I usually have to kill off a few groups when I run the Crystals back. Darn near made it tonight but fell short coming up the ramp to give the ghost the 3rd crystal. Needed maybe 30 seconds.
I normally do Elona's last, as you get weird dialogues from the ghosts at Augury Rock otherwise...they may have patched it since.
I sympathise with you for having tried it for a week...must be really frustrating. I haven't yet reached that stage with my ranger but very well might...only attempted Thirsty River on Sunday evening. But I have already completed all the storyline missions with my Warrior so I don't really mind if my ranger cannot make it.
If this is your first character...then you might want to consider getting help from your guild, if you have one...random PUGs are just not as good from what I can see...maybe the better players have already moved on to PVP...certainly I did not see as many inept warriors before as I do now.
I sympathise with you for having tried it for a week...must be really frustrating. I haven't yet reached that stage with my ranger but very well might...only attempted Thirsty River on Sunday evening. But I have already completed all the storyline missions with my Warrior so I don't really mind if my ranger cannot make it.
If this is your first character...then you might want to consider getting help from your guild, if you have one...random PUGs are just not as good from what I can see...maybe the better players have already moved on to PVP...certainly I did not see as many inept warriors before as I do now.
Immortal Flame
River is IMO the hardest of the three ascension quests. When I finally beat it on my 4th try it was with the Necro exploit...im not encouraging its use...just pointing it out. But my Guildmate, a R/E did beat it legitly. Get a good group is all I can say.
phearless
i will try and help you tomarrow, i usually like doing that mission because i get good drops Add me to your friends list IGN Alexander Corinova, i can probobly get some of my guild mates to help aswell.
Drakron
I feel your pain, I tried with some diferent groups and the first group I team up almost did it by keep trying (we got better and better, we started to see what to do) but real life comes in and many log off.
Other groups simply fall apart when they failed instead of keep trying.
The group that I finaly did with knew the ropes (including the exploit but it was removed) and listen so it was relative well oiled machine that had a few people dying on it (including me, I got killed by the 2nd boss of the last arena) but overall we keep a cool head and had a not so tough time.
Here is a trick, try to keep one forgotten enemy near the monk boss since for some odd reason he was healing him as me and the archer were trying to kill him and everyone else was after the priest that was killed pretty fast.
Other groups simply fall apart when they failed instead of keep trying.
The group that I finaly did with knew the ropes (including the exploit but it was removed) and listen so it was relative well oiled machine that had a few people dying on it (including me, I got killed by the 2nd boss of the last arena) but overall we keep a cool head and had a not so tough time.
Here is a trick, try to keep one forgotten enemy near the monk boss since for some odd reason he was healing him as me and the archer were trying to kill him and everyone else was after the priest that was killed pretty fast.
=HT=Ingram
Yea my ranger got to level 20 around crystal desert area, and honestly, its getting harder to go solo atm... even as level 20 and best armor I can get at this time. Luckliy I'm half warrior so I can keep up and my pet is leveling up well, so he is gettting better to have in the area. Without endure pain I have no idea how I would get by as a ranger in this area alone. For now I'm going back with my secondary character to get it further along in the game. its still back in old ascalon as a level 10 monk.
pepper
I agree and can relate to what your saying, I have a R/E and I have now counted 43 times trying to get thru thirsty river, I have tried with grps and henchies over and over again , i get so far and then bang its over, how frustrating and disappointing, one grp i was with i explained to them of how to go about it and if they all worked together we could do it...sooo in we go and all was going super, i felt by the time we got all teams beat and only had the last one we would win and id be done with this nightmare, anyway we got to the last boss and he was almost dead just 20% more to go and mission won, it was then that i noticed the grp leaving mission one by one and i thought "what the heck? " we had lots of health to win and i was the one who was taking dmg and had to heal myself with regen and healing spring ( not sure why monk wouldnt heal me before he left at least ) and there i was boss building back up with health and me getting beat down bad, well 1...2.. i was dead..mission lost
i sent them a tell asking why they did that and they said we just needed someone who knew what they were doing and you were it we just wanted the capture signet spell so yes here today i am again trying and so far i have 8 new fails to add. they need to make this better so that you dont have such a bad time trying to get this done or like in some threads in here ive come across saying when ppl leave you in middle of mission thier class gets replaced automatically by a henchmen of thier class and if its already in your grp then one of a class to help balance it out.
well i just want to say if any of you need my help i have a monk named fixn payn who i have ascended already and id be more then happy to help you out if you need to get thru missions.
and with that being said ..off i go again for an all nite of trying to get thru thirsty river...wish me luck
i sent them a tell asking why they did that and they said we just needed someone who knew what they were doing and you were it we just wanted the capture signet spell so yes here today i am again trying and so far i have 8 new fails to add. they need to make this better so that you dont have such a bad time trying to get this done or like in some threads in here ive come across saying when ppl leave you in middle of mission thier class gets replaced automatically by a henchmen of thier class and if its already in your grp then one of a class to help balance it out.
well i just want to say if any of you need my help i have a monk named fixn payn who i have ascended already and id be more then happy to help you out if you need to get thru missions.
and with that being said ..off i go again for an all nite of trying to get thru thirsty river...wish me luck
Takedu
I hate people refusing to take you in their group because "you`re a ranger". A good player is efficient no matter what class they play.
I finished Thirsty River yesterday morning with a group of 2 warriors, 2 rangers (i was one of them), 1 necromancer and 1 elementalist. That`s right, not even 1 monk. So hang in there, it`s just about finding the right people to party with and doing the right things (focus fire helps a lot).
I finished Thirsty River yesterday morning with a group of 2 warriors, 2 rangers (i was one of them), 1 necromancer and 1 elementalist. That`s right, not even 1 monk. So hang in there, it`s just about finding the right people to party with and doing the right things (focus fire helps a lot).
Mitsu Bishi
I think it is one of the most difficult missions in the game, everything afterwards seems easy in comparison. Really, I didn't have to do any other mission more than twice from there on (apart from Iron Mines of Moladune to infuse my armor). For Thirsty it was like five attempts (one with henchies, got owned) and a focused group. We consistently got better and our teamplay increased on each try. First time we got wiped out in the battle with the two teams but next two times we got to the final area and beat it on the second one.
I can only give two clues - first, bring a mesmer. This guy can shutdown enemy healers or cast empathy on melee opponents so they beat themselves to death. This class is so underrated by a lot of "not so experienced" players but it is a great addition to any team. Second - always wait for the timer to hit the 2 (4, 6, ...) minute mark before you attack the next group. Even if it means standing around for some time - but this will give you a full 2 minutes to kill the minions and the priest which should be enough in a decent group. For god's sake, always kill the minions first, too. Often they are too far away from the priest to heal them, so they are easy to pick off but annoying if you want to battle the boss, the priest and them at once.
So good luck, I'm sure you'll beat it soon.
I can only give two clues - first, bring a mesmer. This guy can shutdown enemy healers or cast empathy on melee opponents so they beat themselves to death. This class is so underrated by a lot of "not so experienced" players but it is a great addition to any team. Second - always wait for the timer to hit the 2 (4, 6, ...) minute mark before you attack the next group. Even if it means standing around for some time - but this will give you a full 2 minutes to kill the minions and the priest which should be enough in a decent group. For god's sake, always kill the minions first, too. Often they are too far away from the priest to heal them, so they are easy to pick off but annoying if you want to battle the boss, the priest and them at once.
So good luck, I'm sure you'll beat it soon.
Genos
ahhhh yes.. i rember this. my group (compelte with lvl 6 and lvl 12 from another guild) did fine, fully annhilatign everything till we hit the healer boss.... Pain. and then we ended up with everyone but the lvl 6 and a necro/ranger (warrior? i cant rember) alive...
and got everyone alive succesfuly, gang bashed the priest, gang bashed the healer boss, and then spent antoher ten minutes chasing down all the rest of the mobs, thanks to the lvl 6 who actually saved our rear ends by leading these mobs through out the entire map...
i too was a ranger ele...really, get a good group. htats the soloution - PIE, and the Amazon Basin are both great, and im sure there are many other skilled groups otu there who would be willing to do it with you - rangers, imho, are a very powerful calss.. they just have to be used the right way.
throw Reeze Shard on your friends list - im sure i can convince some of my fellow Basiners to help..
and got everyone alive succesfuly, gang bashed the priest, gang bashed the healer boss, and then spent antoher ten minutes chasing down all the rest of the mobs, thanks to the lvl 6 who actually saved our rear ends by leading these mobs through out the entire map...
i too was a ranger ele...really, get a good group. htats the soloution - PIE, and the Amazon Basin are both great, and im sure there are many other skilled groups otu there who would be willing to do it with you - rangers, imho, are a very powerful calss.. they just have to be used the right way.
throw Reeze Shard on your friends list - im sure i can convince some of my fellow Basiners to help..
Aka
Just did it in a group lead by a ranger. He was a good leader and we did it in two tries. I don't know why someone wouldn't want to group with a ranger. Them little pets are so cute...
BTW I had done every mission in the game up to this point, including Elona and Dunes, with all henchmen. This was the first mission I couldn't beat (although The Wilds took me about fifteen tries.) It finally came down to getting two people who could interrupt the monk boss and the last priest at the same time, and the priest went down easily. It's all about interrupt. You'll get it.
BTW I had done every mission in the game up to this point, including Elona and Dunes, with all henchmen. This was the first mission I couldn't beat (although The Wilds took me about fifteen tries.) It finally came down to getting two people who could interrupt the monk boss and the last priest at the same time, and the priest went down easily. It's all about interrupt. You'll get it.
Axelia
I will come and help MaglorD. I usually on around between 6 and 9 CT. Only thing I have not been to TR yet. IGN is Hanna May
THAT IS PM
THAT IS PM
=HT=Ingram
I finally did it on my own... I killed EVERYTHING first BEFORE going into the gate to the ghostly hero. had a +10% bonus, and I guess that meant my henchies did too. as well as my pet. I kill the bow casters first then rush the monk, Ignoring the boss, having henchmen fighting outside. then rush back out and finish the rest off. back off and heal up and rush the boss.
In the second area I got the other two groups to fight each other by drawing them together... then I took out one groups monk and let them kill off each other as we stood back and watched.
I went and killed the boss, and then hit the last group on our own. I had -15% penalty by the time I was done. I just kept the monk protected and healed with healing spring. and kept my pet healed cause he was tanking away on many of the bosses, and enemy monks.
Every second time you resurrect AFTER using a res sigil, you get to use it again!!!. I never noticed that till this time, but that is nice to know for this mission. so use it as needed and make sure the monk is alive when you die, and get res... die again and get resurrected and you have res ability yourself again. that's an interesting ranger trick...
In the second area I got the other two groups to fight each other by drawing them together... then I took out one groups monk and let them kill off each other as we stood back and watched.
I went and killed the boss, and then hit the last group on our own. I had -15% penalty by the time I was done. I just kept the monk protected and healed with healing spring. and kept my pet healed cause he was tanking away on many of the bosses, and enemy monks.
Every second time you resurrect AFTER using a res sigil, you get to use it again!!!. I never noticed that till this time, but that is nice to know for this mission. so use it as needed and make sure the monk is alive when you die, and get res... die again and get resurrected and you have res ability yourself again. that's an interesting ranger trick...
Mitsu Bishi
I probably guess it was more so because every time you kill a boss, the signet gets available again 
MaglorD
I finally completed this mission last night with my ranger and a PUG led by none other than me
We had help from an ascended Necro. I think in my team's case, we got through because of good use of the resurrection signet. Everytime, someone went down, we or at least I quickly resurrected them. IMO, the resurrection signet is better than the regular resurrection cuz it doesn't take as long to cast and restores the person to full health but with a dealth penalty of course.
We had help from an ascended Necro. I think in my team's case, we got through because of good use of the resurrection signet. Everytime, someone went down, we or at least I quickly resurrected them. IMO, the resurrection signet is better than the regular resurrection cuz it doesn't take as long to cast and restores the person to full health but with a dealth penalty of course.
Eclair
Personally, I'd rather take a ranger in missions like Elona's Reach and Thirsty River than another warrior (1 is generally enough, 2 is overkill)
The thing is, if doing this right, you shouldn't be engaging any more than 2 enchanted armors and 2 snake thingies. One warrior is enough to distract the armors while a ranger would definately help with killing the ranged casters and disrupting them.
I'm pretty tired of warriors who do not understand pulling casters and archers means going back so that they follow us out of range of their friends, not going to attack them when they start attacking us =/
Also, having a ranger to disrupt the priest boss in the Thirsty River would make life MUCH easier for everyone ^^
The thing is, if doing this right, you shouldn't be engaging any more than 2 enchanted armors and 2 snake thingies. One warrior is enough to distract the armors while a ranger would definately help with killing the ranged casters and disrupting them.
I'm pretty tired of warriors who do not understand pulling casters and archers means going back so that they follow us out of range of their friends, not going to attack them when they start attacking us =/
Also, having a ranger to disrupt the priest boss in the Thirsty River would make life MUCH easier for everyone ^^
MaglorD
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eclair
I'm pretty tired of warriors who do not understand pulling casters and archers means going back so that they follow us out of range of their friends, not going to attack them when they start attacking us =/
Also, having a ranger to disrupt the priest boss in the Thirsty River would make life MUCH easier for everyone ^^ LOL, there was a warrior in my group who kept repeating the mantra: snakes(casters) first, then priests then warriors/avengers. Really 'smart' strategy. Poor monk and other cloth-wearing professions got swarmed with the warriors/avengers and died.
Drakron
Yes, thats dumb.
Enemy spellcasters sould be left to the group spellcasters and archers, the warrior sould make sure the enemy warriors dont pass him and attack the support classes, sure they can hold for a time but not forever.
Besides the way the groups come out in that mission they always send the enchanted swords first, no need to rush to get the archers since they only move to engage after the swords are down.
Enemy spellcasters sould be left to the group spellcasters and archers, the warrior sould make sure the enemy warriors dont pass him and attack the support classes, sure they can hold for a time but not forever.
Besides the way the groups come out in that mission they always send the enchanted swords first, no need to rush to get the archers since they only move to engage after the swords are down.
Odai
Quote:
Originally Posted by Immortal Flame
River is IMO the hardest of the three ascension quests. When I finally beat it on my 4th try it was with the Necro exploit...im not encouraging its use...just pointing it out. But my Guildmate, a R/E did beat it legitly. Get a good group is all I can say.
Just what Necro exploit are you talking about?
If your talking about necrotic transversal then that is a skill not an exploit.
Ever hear of Vampires turning into fog and bats? to get through windows or over walls?
*edited for typos
If your talking about necrotic transversal then that is a skill not an exploit.
Ever hear of Vampires turning into fog and bats? to get through windows or over walls?
*edited for typos
Dzan
Quote:
Originally Posted by MaglorD
Lastly, I came across a number of relatively low level players, around level 16 or so. What do these people hope to accomplish is anyone's guess...they too are weak and die easily. I mean the monsters are all at least level 20, so it's not surprising. Funny, my second character ascended at level 16 and he was quite useful to the group he was in for Thirsty River. But that is probably because I was an Ele and didn't ever receive much damager, I could see how a level 16 warrior would not do as well there.
MaglorD
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dzan
Funny, my second character ascended at level 16 and he was quite useful to the group he was in for Thirsty River. But that is probably because I was an Ele and didn't ever receive much damager, I could see how a level 16 warrior would not do as well there.
Yea, I came across a lvl 17 Warrior. There was a lvl 16 Elementalist who also kept dying.
Rajamic
Quote:
Originally Posted by Odai
Just what Necro exploit are you talking about?
If your talking about necrotic transversal then that is a skill not an exploit.
Ever hear of Vampires turning into fog and bats? to get through windows or over walls?
*edited for typos He is talking about Necrotic Transferal. It is an exploit because it allows you to get someone on the other side of the gate, kill most of the enemies before the timer starts, and then open the gate.
However, I hear this has been made impossible in the June 1st patch.
If your talking about necrotic transversal then that is a skill not an exploit.
Ever hear of Vampires turning into fog and bats? to get through windows or over walls?
*edited for typos He is talking about Necrotic Transferal. It is an exploit because it allows you to get someone on the other side of the gate, kill most of the enemies before the timer starts, and then open the gate.
However, I hear this has been made impossible in the June 1st patch.
Odai
MY bad I dont know my own spell names!!!
the Juhne 1st patch diodn't fix this becasue I used it jksut last week.
and I still don't understand why a vampire can't pass over walls and gates using a valid skill. Nectoric transferal is still a valid skill.
The target is the nearest corpse within range.
If Rangers can shoot arrows over the wall to create the corpses then why can't my poor defenseless little Necro pop over that same wall and raise havoc?
Or is shooting arrows over walls also an exploit?
the Juhne 1st patch diodn't fix this becasue I used it jksut last week.
and I still don't understand why a vampire can't pass over walls and gates using a valid skill. Nectoric transferal is still a valid skill.
The target is the nearest corpse within range.
If Rangers can shoot arrows over the wall to create the corpses then why can't my poor defenseless little Necro pop over that same wall and raise havoc?
Or is shooting arrows over walls also an exploit?
Jia Xu
I did this first time with my W/Mo mainly because i have done most of the missions with henchies. PUGs are amazingly gormless. later in the game, Lina The protection monk is far superior to almost any player monk (people who know what they are doing are excluded from that) and i get tired of explaining to people what target calling is, when to move forward and when to wait etc. It's just depressing, plus it takes an age to get a group together because for some reason, even if people would attempt the mission on their own with henchies, as soon as you form a PUG they won't accept healer henchies... wtf.
and the reason warrior and monk players suck a lot of the time - its the two classes that poor players know they will get groups with. Hence, a lot of poor players choose these classes without realising what they are getting themselves in for.
and the reason warrior and monk players suck a lot of the time - its the two classes that poor players know they will get groups with. Hence, a lot of poor players choose these classes without realising what they are getting themselves in for.
cannonfodder
Quote:
Originally Posted by Axelia
Did you make Elonas Reach? I tried that for almost a week and finally said screw it. Henchies just don't keep up and I end up running out of time because I usually have to kill off a few groups when I run the Crystals back. Darn near made it tonight but fell short coming up the ramp to give the ghost the 3rd crystal. Needed maybe 30 seconds.
This possibly the hardest one to do, The amount of idiots that I teamed up with was unbelievable, all were saying"stick together, dont run off, I know the way", and you can guess it they did the exact opposite, the number of times we got to the last crystal and died numbered about 30+
A friend said I solo'd it, jusy equip sprint, and run like hell, once i knew where the crystals were, it took me about 20 times or so, and eventually i did it, I just ran like a madman, trailing baddies behind me, mind you though, i just made it
This possibly the hardest one to do, The amount of idiots that I teamed up with was unbelievable, all were saying"stick together, dont run off, I know the way", and you can guess it they did the exact opposite, the number of times we got to the last crystal and died numbered about 30+
A friend said I solo'd it, jusy equip sprint, and run like hell, once i knew where the crystals were, it took me about 20 times or so, and eventually i did it, I just ran like a madman, trailing baddies behind me, mind you though, i just made it
citizen059
Just an FYI, I did Thirsty River as my Ranger at level 16, and my monk at level 16.
As my monk I went full healing/divine favor and was dropping heal bombs all over the place.
As the ranger, I was in full disrupt mode, minimalizing casters.
In each instance I was part of a team that worked very well together, and we steamrolled the mission taking less than 2 minutes per team to wipe out every single team on the map (with the exception of the healer boss who took a bit longer).
The point?
Yes, you can do it at low levels. Yes, you need a great team. Heck, you need a great team if you're all level 20's.
People shouldn't be so quick to dismiss those level 15/16/17's out in the desert.
Though I do admit that rangers get the short end of the stick on group invites. People are stuck on this notion that all you need are warriors, elementalists, and monks. Bah, I say!
As my monk I went full healing/divine favor and was dropping heal bombs all over the place.
As the ranger, I was in full disrupt mode, minimalizing casters.
In each instance I was part of a team that worked very well together, and we steamrolled the mission taking less than 2 minutes per team to wipe out every single team on the map (with the exception of the healer boss who took a bit longer).
The point?
Yes, you can do it at low levels. Yes, you need a great team. Heck, you need a great team if you're all level 20's.
People shouldn't be so quick to dismiss those level 15/16/17's out in the desert.
Though I do admit that rangers get the short end of the stick on group invites. People are stuck on this notion that all you need are warriors, elementalists, and monks. Bah, I say!
jtm
I personally think Thirsty River is easy, I have fun in that mission. You just need to fight the groups seperately, its not hard. At the end (last priest), go from the left side, not the right (if you are facing the priest). Also wait till times such as 1:45, 5:45, etc etc before you rush in.
MaglorD
Quote:
Originally Posted by citizen059
Yes, you can do it at low levels. Yes, you need a great team. Heck, you need a great team if you're all level 20's.
People shouldn't be so quick to dismiss those level 15/16/17's out in the desert.
Just curious were you all level 15/16/17s?I'd love to see a team consisting of all level 10s doing Thirsty River.
Point is as a level 15/16/17, you ARE weaker than a level 20.
MaglorD
Quote:
Originally Posted by jtm
I personally think Thirsty River is easy, I have fun in that mission. You just need to fight the groups seperately, its not hard. At the end (last priest), go from the left side, not the right (if you are facing the priest). Also wait till times such as 1:45, 5:45, etc etc before you rush in.
Tell me then, what is hard? Or is GW is too easy for you?
Dreamsmith
Quote:
Originally Posted by MaglorD
Point is as a level 15/16/17, you ARE weaker than a level 20.
Not necessarily. A level 20 with a superior fire magic rune is weaker than a level 17, or a level 15 with a minor vigor rune.
There is a difference. It's just not a very large difference.
There is a difference. It's just not a very large difference.
MaglorD
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dreamsmith
Not necessarily. A level 20 with a superior fire magic rune is weaker than a level 17, or a level 15 with a minor vigor rune.
There is a difference. It's just not a very large difference. But that's made up for with greater firepower. What I mean by weaker is lower base attributes/health.
There is a difference. It's just not a very large difference. But that's made up for with greater firepower. What I mean by weaker is lower base attributes/health.
Creston
Quote:
Originally Posted by MaglorD
Tell me then, what is hard? Or is GW is too easy for you?
I think a lot of people get really frustrated with these missions because of idiot players / henchies and consider them more difficult than they really are. A good group is really all it takes to get through them, and it's definitely possible to find good pickup groups. You just have to be a bit selective in whom you chose (ignore the idiot with the "Ipnwz0r Tehn00bies" nickname), then discuss some strategy beforehand. It also helps if you have someone who's done the mission before, but if you don't (which happened to me several times, where I was telling others what we needed to do, even though I'd never completed the missions myself ), read through some forums and stock up on tips.
In my experience, it also really helps if you take the henchies through at least once, as far as you can get, so you can get the layout of the levels, and know where you're going, where the really tough patrols are etc.
River is arguably the toughest, simply because of the opposition you face. Elona may be a bit more challenging to accomplish because of the time limit and the enormous amount of roaming patrols (most of which can be avoided by going BEHIND the mountain). Dunes is a cakewalk with regards to fighting, the toughest fight in the whole mission is the five losaru who guard the slow totem, and if your team can't beat five losaru you have no business being in the desert yet.
Dunes is more annoying than anything at the end, because of the siege wurms blasting you constantly while you're trying to keep the ghost alive. Hint : Mending on the Ghost works miracles, and try to have one primary healer and one backup healer, simply to negate all the damage from the siege wurms.
I tried all of them once with henchies, failed, then tried them again with a PUG, and with three different groups I did all three mission in the grand total of four attempts. (2 for dunes, 1 each for river and elona).
But, like I said, have a leader, discuss some tactics (who pulls, when do we attack, who kills the priests at 1:40 etc) and you should be fine.
Creston
In my experience, it also really helps if you take the henchies through at least once, as far as you can get, so you can get the layout of the levels, and know where you're going, where the really tough patrols are etc.
River is arguably the toughest, simply because of the opposition you face. Elona may be a bit more challenging to accomplish because of the time limit and the enormous amount of roaming patrols (most of which can be avoided by going BEHIND the mountain). Dunes is a cakewalk with regards to fighting, the toughest fight in the whole mission is the five losaru who guard the slow totem, and if your team can't beat five losaru you have no business being in the desert yet.
Dunes is more annoying than anything at the end, because of the siege wurms blasting you constantly while you're trying to keep the ghost alive. Hint : Mending on the Ghost works miracles, and try to have one primary healer and one backup healer, simply to negate all the damage from the siege wurms.
I tried all of them once with henchies, failed, then tried them again with a PUG, and with three different groups I did all three mission in the grand total of four attempts. (2 for dunes, 1 each for river and elona).
But, like I said, have a leader, discuss some tactics (who pulls, when do we attack, who kills the priests at 1:40 etc) and you should be fine.
Creston