A Guide To The Forge

[xyrilyn]

Hi. I main as Woodie and I wrote this because I couldn't find a guide that I was satisfied with (and I like making guides so). I hope this helps some people, and if you have anything you want to see added and/or modifed in this guide, kindly post below for the benefit of everyone in this community C:

 

Public Service Announcements

1. Generally, do not attack when in the heal circle.
2. Focus attacks on one or two enemies at a time. (Decide on who takes the lead for attacking.)
3. Generally, do not cast AOEs on petrified enemies.
4. Use your mouse to target to prevent accidentally waking up enemies.

 

General Gameplay Tips

1. Use chat keybinds if not voice chat. [reference link]
2. Keep an eye on your teammates' health and general position.
3. Special attacks are not just for dishing out damage.
4. All non-tank players, please do not stand behind your tank(s).

 

Role-Specific Tips

Tank

• Main: Wolfgang, WX78
• Alternatives: Woodie, Wigfrid
• Stand such that your non-tank players do not get hit by enemy AOEs.
• WX78 has a passive ability where enemies that attack him have a chance of being shock-stunned. (This can stop boss attacks and Snortoise's spin attack.)
• Woodie can double as Tank early game, and then be Runner (or switch between Tank / Runner) for the boss rounds.
• Wigfrid can double as Tank if needed (just put on the right items), and be DPS otherwise.
• You can unequip MaxHP-increasing armour to heal up quicker. This works because equipping the armour will give you that amount of MaxHP right away, while retaining the HP you regained without the armour. [reference link]

 

DPS

• Main: Willow, Webber, Wigfrid, Wickerbottom, Maxwell
• Alternative: Wilson
• Use the rapid fire trick and increase your DPS. [reference link 1] [reference link 2]
• Molten Shot (Molten Dart's special attack) is a quick-casting stun and is very good for stunlocking bosses.
• Willow and Webber are pure DPS. Not much else I can say.
• Wigfrid's 25% damage boost triggers every 8 attacks.
• Wickerbottom's amplification takes around 15 non-consecutive attacks, affects all cast spells, and is indicated by her sparkling hands and a jingle sound. [reference link]
• Maxwell's shadow minion attack triggers after attacking the same enemy for some amount of damage (200 damage?). The shadow attack is a mini-stun. [reference link]
• Use the Tome of Beckoning when the mobs are asleep. Picking up the book and using it takes time, and doing it when the mobs are awake means lower DPS.

 

Healer

• Main: Wickerbottom, Winona
• Wickerbottom or Winona, you decide. (Personally, I prefer Wickerbottom.) [reference link 1] [reference link 2] [reference link 3] [reference link 4]
• Wickerbottom's amplification plays a role here as well. (See DPS section for more details.)
• Winona has a bit more HP than Wickerbottom and a passive 10% faster cooldown.

 

Crowdcontrol (CC)

• Main: Wickerbottom, Maxwell
• Wickerbottom's amplification plays a role here as well. (See DPS section for more details.)
• Cast petrification in the direction of movement of the enemies. The enemies do not need to be in the target circle at the start of cast to become petrified.

 

Runner

• Main: Woodie, Wes
• You only need a total of 20% movement speed bonus to play this role. Ditch the speed armour and put on protection armour instead.
• Woodie can throw Lucy at an enemy every several seconds and will instantly draw that enemy's aggro.
• Woodie's Lucy can cancel Boarilla's roll attack, some of Boarrior's attacks and Rhino's charge. To have a greater chance of cancelling Boarilla's roll, throw Lucy every second Boarilla melee swipe and keep as much distance as possible.
• Woodie can also kite Boarilla to some extent. Hit Boarilla 1 to 3 times as your game latency allows, and then dodge its melee swipe. Throw Lucy to regain aggro, and then dodge swipe. Hit it a few more times and let it go into shield mode (if not, dodge swipe; repeat). When it is in shield mode, position yourself between Boarilla and your team (in case you lose its aggro, so it will automatically go for you instead). Throw Lucy right as it comes out of shield mode, and then repeat.
• Woodie can also completely dodge Boarilla's roll attack, by running small, tight circles around it. This can be done with 20% movement speed bonus. At around 700 to 750 damage dealt to Boarilla (use the Forge Damage Meter mod to keep track), it will start to roll at you every two to three melee swipes. When it starts its roll, run towards the Boarilla at an angle (around 45 degrees) beside it immediately and then run in circles for about two to three seconds as it tries to hit you. Throw Lucy at the Boarilla immediately after it ends its roll (or better still, before), because you can lose its aggro during the long attack animation.
• No tips for Wes from me. There's a guide in this link for Wes though: [reference link] (Sorry, I have never played Wes in a serious match before. I play Runner most of the time, but I usually pick Woodie lol.)

 

Reviver

• Main: Wilson
• Wilson revives fallen players faster, and revives them with 3x more health.
• Anticipate deaths by paying attention to your teammates' health. Do not wait for them to tell you.
• Is Wilson required for every team? Take a look at the leaderboard and you will find that the answer to that question is no. Wilson's only redeeming ability is his revive ability. If your team somehow does not die, then you can replace Wilson with a DPS, no? Should you play with no Wilson in your team? Only you have the answer to that.

 

Known Team Setups

There is no fixed team setup that guarantees a win. These are just team setups that I have seen being used, and they all work. If you wanted, you could even win with 6 Wilson's or Wes' or Wendy's.

 

[Most Common] One Main Tank + Woodie as Runner + Wilson

Higher team DPS. Runner doubles as Tank as needed and during Rhinocebros stage. Standard team setup.

1. Tank - WX78 / Wolfgang
2. Runner - Woodie
3. Healer / Crowdcontrol
4. DPS / Crowdcontrol
5. DPS
6. Reviver - Wilson

 

[Uncommon] Two Main Tanks + Wilson

Lower team DPS. Runner deals damage if not luring / kiting.

1. Tank - WX87
2. Tank - WX87 / Wolfgang
3. Runner
4. Healer / Crowdcontrol
5. DPS / Crowdcontrol
6. Reviver - Wilson

 

[Weird But It Works] Two Woodie + Wilson

Why? Because having another Lucy in-game means more deliberate interrupt opportunities. Both Woodies must be at least decent at aiming Lucy though, especially during the Snortoise stage to counter spinning Snortoises. Two Lucy in-game means it's also easier to aggro any boss. A different way of playing the Forge.

1. Tank - Woodie
2. Tank / Runner - Woodie
3. Healer / Crowdcontrol
4. DPS / Crowdcontrol
5. DPS
6. Reviver - Wilson

 

[Speedrun / Leaderboard] No Deaths + No Wilson

Hahaha. I can't even. I can only dream. //goes and cries in a dark corner//

1. Tank - WX78 / Wolfgang
2. Runner - Woodie
3. Healer / Crowdcontrol - Wickerbottom
4. DPS - Willow
5. DPS - Wigfrid
6. DPS - Webber / Wigfrid

 

Battle Tips

Small Mobs

• Scorpion launches its poison AOE every few attacks in the direction of the player who has its aggro. Non-tanks should stand to the side or directly opposite tank(s) to avoid the poison AOE. The DoT from the poison is almost instantly cured by entering / remaining in the heal circle.
• To dodge Snortoise's spin, walk diagonally, or in a circle. Alternatively, stop it from spinning using certain special attacks like the hammer slam, molten shot or Lucy. Spinning Snortoises also fall asleep if their spin passes through a heal circle. Spinning Snortoises also have a chance of being shock-stunned out of their spin attack when WX78 walks into them.

 

Boarilla

• When Boarilla appears, non-Runner players should focus on killing the small mobs first. Runner should lure / kite the Boarilla. Small mobs should be dealt with in this order of priority: Croco / Scorpion > Snortoise / Pit Pig.
• Boarilla only starts using the roll attack after it has taken around 700 to 750 damage. (Forge Damage Meter mod can help you track this.)

 

Boarrior

• Boarrior enters the arena when the last Boarilla is at low HP.
• Boarrior's final phase, where he summons the Pit Pigs, is always preceded by his spinning attacks. An amplified Wickerbottom equipped with Clairvoyant Crown can cast Meteor on the Pit Pigs to insta-kill them. Get the Pit Pigs together in one spot by getting them to sleep using the heal circle. A Meteor followed by Hammer Slam combo should finish them off easily.
• In Boarrior's final phase, four banners / totems are also summoned near the center of the arena. They can be attack (skull), defence (shield) or healing (wreath) banners. Attack and healing banners are less problematic - you should be more worried when defence banners are summoned. Defence banners reduce the damage the Meteor does to the Pit Pigs, possibly allowing them to survive and overrun your team unless you have AOEs prepared and/or an experienced team.
• Boarrior avoids walking into heal circles during the final phase. Cast a heal under the Boarrior, and then follow up with a stunlock (or have a Tank keep him occupied) to trick him into staying inside the circle. Stunlocks include most weapons' special attacks, especially Molten Shot and Lucy. To achieve this mini-stun using Lucy, throw Lucy at the Boarrior from a close to medium distance and then walk right up to the Boarrior and then do not attack.
• You can attempt to dodge Boarrior's stronger, second shockwave of his sunken sword attack by walking perpendicularly to the first shockwave.
• You can trap the Boarrior in a corner near any of the four spawn points with a well-placed heal circle. The best corner is the starting corner (the one near Pugna) because it has more space for your team to move around.

 

Rhinocebros

• Have one tank glue themselves to each Rhino. This is to prevent the Rhino from using its charge attack. It uses its charge attack whenever attacking a distant player.
• The Rhino's appearance becomes more beaten up when he is at low HP. (There is a large bruise on his face and his horn becomes damaged.) The Rhinoes can be put to sleep in the heal circle and they will willingly walk into the circles.
• Woodie can throw Lucy to cancel the Rhinoes' attack buff. Molten shots can do this as well. Other stun specials can work as well, but take longer to cast. (This attack buff is marked by an animation where both Rhinoes stop attacking, approach each other and start chanting.)
• When a Rhino is revived, it gets revived with around 2550 HP. [reference link]
• Generally, distribute damage across both Rhinoes as equally as possible. Save stuns (molten shot, Lucy, hammer slam, etc) when at least one Rhino is at low HP. When one Rhino dies, stunlock the remaining Rhino and spam attacks on him. If your team messes up the timing, do not panic. Heal up, wait on skill cooldown and try again.

 

Useful Mods

• Chat Binds - https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=921637415
• Forge Detailed Summary - https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1214260891
• Forge Speedrun Timer - https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1206714776
• Forge Cooldown Timer - https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1205841537
• Forge Damage Meter - https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1205709275
• No Click To Move - https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1558835899
• Toggle Click to Walk - https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1225360454

 

The chatbinds I use for the Chat Bind mod are listed below. Feel free to copy and paste into your own chatbinds.lua file and / or edit them to your liking. C:

• ONE - To explain to my teammates that I'm using the Chatbinds mod
• TWO - To remind my team to save Meteor for when Boarrior summons the Pit Pigs
• THREE - To remind my team to get out of the heal circle if the Boarrior is not asleep in it
• FOUR - To remind my team to distribute damage
• FIVE - To inform my team that one Rhino is at low HP
• SIX - To inform my team that both Rhinoes are at low HP
• Z - To call for a revive / heal
• X - To tell my team to stop attacking
• C - To tell my team that someone is dead
• G - To tell the healer to cast heal
• V - To name items on the floor that have not been picked up

{ ONE, ":lightbulb: I am using the Chatbinds mod. This is one of my chatbinds. :lightbulb:"

	,"print",
},

{ TWO, ":arcane: Next phase incoming! Prepare Meteor! :arcane:"

	,"print",
},

{ THREE, ":web: Boarrior outside of heal circle, run! :web:"

	,"print",
},

{ FOUR, ":battle: Distribute damage between both Rhinoes! :battle:"

	,"print",
},

{ FIVE, ":arcane: One Rhino is at low HP! :arcane:"

	,"print",
},

{ SIX, ":arcane: Both Rhinoes are at low HP! Prepare specials! :arcane:"

	,"print",
},

{ Z, ":heart: I have <health> over <maxhealth> HP :heart:"

	,"print",
},

{ X, ":lightbulb: Stop attacking! :lightbulb:"

	,"print",
},

{ C, ":grave: Someone needs a revive! :grave:"

	,"print",
},

{ G, ":heart: Need healing! :heart:"

	,"print",
},

{ V, ":backpack: [ <mouse> ] on floor! :backpack:"

	,"print",
},

 

Credits

• Everyone who wrote / created the stuff in all of the links above. Go check them out.
• Majestix - for informing me of stuff I missed (WX78's shock-stun, armor-unequip trick, etc) because I main Woodie all the damn time and forget all these small things lol

[Majestix]

Pretty comprehensive. One small thing that is missing: WX has a chance of stopping the snortoise spin by walking into its path.

Also, the point about using the molten dart special and/or Lucy to (a) stun lock the boarrior just before the heal, and (b) prevent the rhino buff and resurrection (actually did you mention stunning during resurrection?) is so important, and so frequently ignored even by some high level players, that it should be in the DPS section. I really think this is one of the main functions of the dart users.

And an advanced tip: drop +HP armor during heals to heal faster. Only do this if you trust your teammates to not randomly shoot at the boarrior from a safe distance while you stand there naked (I mean, who would do such a thing, anyway, right?), and if you trust yourself to not forget to pick it up again. And, of course, only do this if you need it, don't run the extra risk unnecessarily.

And another one: as Max with fire staff, time taken to pick up the golem book and summon the golem is almost always time wasted. Only exception: if everybody is asleep and you can prepare their breakfast and be fresh and ready in the morning with your staff by the time they wake up.

[xyrilyn]

1 hour ago, Majestix said:

Pretty comprehensive. One small thing that is missing: WX has a chance of stopping the snortoise spin by walking into its path.

Also, the point about using the molten dart special and/or Kucy to (a) stun lock the boarrior just before the heal, and (b) prevent the rhino buff and resurrection (actually did you mention stunning during resurrection?) is so important, and so frequently ignored even by some high level players, that it should be in the DPS section. I really think this is one of the main functions of the dart users.

And an advanced tip: drop +HP armor during heals to heal faster. Only do this if you trust your teammates to not randomly shoot at the boarrior from a safe distance while you stand there naked (I mean, who would do such a thing, anyway, right?), and if you trust yourself to not forget to pick it up again. And, of course, only do this if you need it, don't run the extra risk unnecessarily.

And another one: as Max with fire staff, time taken to pick up the golem book and summon the golem is almost always time wasted. Only exception: if everybody is asleep and you can prepare their breakfast and be fresh and ready in the morning with your staff by the time they wake up.

I knew I was forgetting something. To think it was WX78's shock-stun... (facepalm)

I incorporated all of your tips into the guide. Thanks for the feedback!

[Atkvin]

One thing I learnt recently tanks may attempt if they are focusing one or two Scorpions - every third attack of a Scorpion will be its poison attack. It is very possible to run around a Scorpion to dodge the aoe poison - even with the slow tank armor, so long as you know it's targeting you and know the poison is coming.

This is really useful for no-death runs, where poison that damages through armor can shred down tanks should the healer mess up or otherwise. Just safer not to have anyone low in general anyways.

[Viktor234]

3 minutes ago, Atkvin said:

One thing I learnt recently tanks may attempt if they are focusing one or two Scorpions - every third attack of a Scorpion will be its poison attack. It is very possible to run around a Scorpion to dodge the aoe poison - even with the slow tank armor, so long as you know it's targeting you and know the poison is coming.

This is really useful for no-death runs, where poison that damages through armor can shred down tanks should the healer mess up or otherwise. Just safer not to have anyone low in general anyways.

I've already seen Scorpeons who used their Acid attack right after their last one or made more than two melee attacks between their Acid attack.

Maybe it depends more on time or randomness than on attacks.

[Zeklo]

Scorpeons seem to use their acid more the closer they are to death.

Every 3, then every 2, then every 1.