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Betrayal of Harrogoth
Recommended Level: 29-35
Quest Given By: Malah
Location: Halls of Vaught
Difficulty: Moderate
Reward: Personalized Item
Main Objective: Kill Nihlathak
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Entering Nihlathak's Temple:
Now that you're ready, begin your quest by stepping into Anya's portal. This will bring you right to the entrance of Nihlathak's temple.
Spell Casters Beware: You'll see a lot of corpses outside the temple entrance, but these are far from being harmless. Walk forward slowly and you'll see them rise from the ground to fight you. Run towards the temple entrance too fast… and they'll surround you. Not good, unless your Sorceress has a love for melee combat.
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| Pindleskin is the unique monster that guards the temple entrance, but even your Barbarian hireling can solo him. |
The walking corpses are Prowling Dead, tougher versions of the Rot Walkers you found in the Frozen River previously. The big difference is some of these guys don't like to stay dead, so don't be surprised if their corpses rise up from the ground to fight again. Fortunately, they're slow and weak, hardly a thread unless they get you surrounded.
After you cleared the guards, enter the temple. You'll meet with more Rot Walkers, plus 'Pindleskin', a fire enchanted unique. There's nothing to worry about though; your level 30+ Barb hireling can take him out single-handedly. Now proceed to the staircase, and you'll be in the Halls of Anguish.
Exploring Nihlathak's Temple:
Nihlathak's temple is a three level dungeon, consisting of 'Halls of Anguish', 'Halls of Pain' and finally 'Halls of Vaught' (For the few who wonders what the hell Vaught means, you'll find Fred Vaught as a background artist in the credits of the section of the Diablo II expansion manual). The first two levels are fairly similar, featuring a maze of moderately narrow passages. The staircase down to the next level is usually located near a corner of the area.
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| While Death Brawlers have a nasty ranged attack, they ain't tough, and are ideal candidates for a magical barrage. |
Halls of Anguish:
The two types of monsters that inhabit this level are Prowling Dead and Night Lords. The latter is a fairly dangerous enemy; they are fast and can deal large amounts of damage in a few strokes. Spellcasters should avoid being surrounded by them at all costs. Let your mercenary take the hits while you deal the serious damage with skills such as Whirlwind, Poison Nova, Firewall etc.
Halls of Pain:
The Halls of Pain feature more Rot Walkers, plus Death Brawlers (Tougher Death maulers) and Ice Spawns (Tougher Enslaved with significant Cold Resistance). There's also a few 'Putrid Defilers', but these support units are nothing to worry about. They are very weak in terms of hit points, and can be easily eliminated by a single targeted attack.
Halls of Vaught:
The final level of Nihlathak's features a predetermined layout. You always begin in the center of the area, and there'll be four passageways leading off to each of the corners of the level. Nihlathak is located in one of the corners (randomly generated).
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| When you see this icon above your forehead, it's a good idea to watch your life carefully. |
The monsters featured here include those in the previous levels, but you'll also see the Hell Temptress (Tougher Stygian Hags). These are the first of the Succubi class that'll make frequent use of the specialized curse that'll force you to expend your life rather than mana when casting spells. Beware of a spinning red icon above your forehead, or the next Frozen Orb you cast may well be your last.
You'll know that you're on the right passage when you get a new Quest prompt. The prompt is simple: Kill Nihlathak.
To Kill Nihlathak
Nihlathak has surrounded himself with minions, so your best bet is to first lure out as many as possible. Approach the corner slowly, and deal with the Hell Temptresses that come flying out; wait out their curse, this will ensure you have all your skills available in the next battle.
Nihlathak has a decent amount of hit points, but he's certainly not tough for a boss. The problem will be living long enough to get out a few clear shots. As soon as you see the traitorous mage, he'll send his three dozen Ice Spawns charging out. Whatever you do, do not stand in one spot and face their onslaught with a melee weapon, or you'll get annihilated by, of all things, Corpse Explosion.
Nihlathak's primary attack is Corpse Explosion and each shot can deal well over a hundred hit points of damage, and a few hundred more in multiplayer games. Fighters will live through half a dozen hits while spellcasters could die within two or three. So basically, make sure there's always a good distance between you and the corpses. In addition, Nihlathak can also cast a cone of cold, but this does comparatively little damage. In short, try to use as many corpse destroying skills as you can.
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| Stay cleared of the corpses and you will live. Nihlathak is like the Summoner in Arcane Sanctuary, weak once you reach him. |
Once the Ice Spawns are dead and their corpses destroyed, Nihlathak is as good as dead. Hack or shoot him all you wish, he'll die soon enough.
Sorceress Tip: Erect a few firewalls between you and the Ice Spawns, then throw in a Blizzard. Make sure the Spawns shatter from your barrage of cold.
Necromancer Tip: Use any skill you have that'll send the corpses to destruction. While Revive may cost too much mana in this case, raising a Skeletal Mage is always good. You'll remove a corpse by casting the spell, and Nihlathak will waste another by exploding a corpse near your newly summoned Mage.
Barbarian Tip: Whirlwind through the whole mess of Ice Spawns, making sure you don't stop in the middle. Equip yourself with a Cold Damage weapon if possible. Use Leap Attack to kill Nihlathak from long range.
Assassin Tip: Charge yourself up with Tiger and Phoenix Strike by attacking the Ice Spawns, then use Dragon Flight on Nihlathak to deliver the combo home.
Druid Tip: While most druids don't advance the Vines sub-tree, Solar Creeper does find its use here. After all, don't let good corpses go to waste.
Conclusion:
The reward for this quest has little gameplay value, although it does have a good 'show off' value. Once you take a portal back to Anya, she'll offer to personalize one of your items by inscribing your name on it. The item, unfortunately, doesn't gain any extra bonuses.
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