Iron Reaver Encounter Mechanics

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The Iron Reaver encounter has two phases, oscillating between a long, single-target phase and a shorter multi-target phase. Players should spec and gear for single-target damage, as damage on Iron Reaver is the most important part of the encounter.

Ground Operations

During the Ground Operations phase, Iron Reaver is grounded, fighting players directly, while she builds up Energy. Upon reaching 100 Energy, the Iron Reaver will launch into the air, becoming unattackable, and throwing down obstacles for players to clear until she lands. The Ground Operations phase lasts a little over 2 minutes, while the Air Operations phase lasts exactly 1 minute.


Barrage fires a cone of projectiles

Barrage is nearly fatal to players caught in its path
While in Ground Operations phase, Iron Reaver follows a very rigid series of events:
Barrage - Pounding - Barrage - Barrage - Blitz - Pounding - Barrage - Pounding - Blitz


Barrage is the trickiest of these mechanics. Iron Reaver will face in a random direction and begin to "wind up" for a Barrage, eventually firing a cone of flaming ammunition in the indicated direction.
  • Players struck by Barrage will take near-fatal damage
  • Iron Reaver has a very long cast-time and wind-up animation for Barrage
  • Barrage will be aimed in roughly the same direction her left foot is pointing, not her torso
  • Do not try to out-range Barrage; rather, run to the side
  • Small patches of Immolation will remain on the ground after the Barrage impact; standing in these fires will afflict players with a stacking Immolation DoT
Pounding is a simple raid-wide AoE mechanic; Iron Reaver will repeatedly slam her fist into the ground, causing it to tremble and dealing Nature damage.
  • Raid CDs should be used to heal through this damage
  • The force of the Pounding causes patches of Immolation to move away from the boss a few yards
  • Players should move in closer to the boss to avoid the Immolation patches as they are pushed away
  • Healers who are not currently using their raid CDs should focus on healing players with the Immolation or Unstable OrbDoTs

Blitz will drag players along the Reaver's path
Twice during the phase, Iron Reaver will choose a random direction in which to Blitz. She will charge up for several seconds, then rush in that direction, sweeping up any players in her path. She will then turn around and re- Blitz back to the tanks.
  • Players caught in the Blitz path take heavy initial damage and are left with a Blitz DoT effect
  • These players are dropped when Iron Reaver reaches the end of the Blitz, but it is very easy to get swept back up again on the re- Blitz
  • Healers can dispel Blitz from affected players
  • Avoid Blitz by watching Iron Reaver's feet and moving away or well behind her
  • The Blitz path will push Immolation patches off to the side, so nearby players should be mindful of the moving fire
Melee DPS should probably not chase Iron Reaver during Blitz, as they will be very likely to get caught in the re- Blitz.

Outside of these abilities, there are two more mechanics for players to contend with.

Iron Reaver will target a tank with Artillery; 13 seconds later, she will fire a rocket at that tank that will deal damage to the entire raid.
  • The amount of damage each player takes is based on their distance from the affected tank; at 40+ yards, players will take the minimum possible damage
  • This is the tank-swap mechanic; the off-tank should taunt when the current tank gains Artillery
  • The Artillery target should run away so they are more than 40 yards from the raid when their debuff fades
  • Artillery debuffs will overlap slightly throughout the fight; be sure not to run away from the boss until the previous tank has returned

Spread out for Unstable Orb
Additionally, Iron Reaver will frequently fire Unstable Orbs at ranged players.
  • Unstable Orb deals a moderate amount of damage up front, and leaves a stacking DoT
  • The damage from Unstable Orb will splash onto any other players within 8 yards of the initial target
  • The force of the impact will push any nearby Immolate patches away from the targeted player
  • Healers should focus on healing players with the Unstable Orb DoT, particularly during Pounding
The ranged DPS and healers should stay spread out at least 8 yards apart to avoid splashing the Unstable Orb damage onto one another. Raid damage will quickly get out of control if Unstable Orb spreads too much.

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