Moving on to the fourth and final boss was a rapid affair. With nobody hitting them, the little Wasps do a huge amount of poison type damage. It is a flat amount, not a percentage of life per second like Poison Arrow, but with ten of them and the bonuses from Cain's gear, they can really bring things down.
The Dragon is their last target for the day. A huge, red scaled Lizard, the wind from its wings throws ranged members back towards the ring of fire surrounding the room and pushes melee to the floor where it stomps and claws at them.
So, everyone sets up as close to the middle as they dare, and tries to dodge the tail attacks and flame breath. The whole fight is a heal check, damage everywhere with random targets getting huge attacks.
"Aren't you glad you've got Legendary armor now?" Cain jokes with the Shaman.
"Good thing too. Last time I was here one of our mages got too close, trying to avoid the wings and was knocked down and squished in one shot."
Well that sounds gruesome and unpleasant.
As damage is top priority in this fight, Cain switches the Greater Golems back to their high damage demon forms before they enter.
The Dragon is a savage from the moment they enter. No intelligent talking magical being, just teeth, claws and fury. They barely have it in position when the first wing blast hits, nearly knocking Mythryll and two Gnomish mages into the flame pits.
Cain, who was nearby when the attack started, grabs Mythryll into his arms and runs her back to the group before setting her down, making Misha and Char laugh.
"You must be careful, or he will take more than one bride." Char laughs, nudging Misha as they return to position.
Misha sticks her tongue out at the Shaman but doesn't say anything. Instead, she returns to her heals, focusing on the one mage who fell partially into the flames.
The Golems seem to have done something to personally offend the beast, as every single stomp is aimed at one of the greater Golems. Cain summons the wounded constructs back in top form and the giant Lizard roars.
Then he notices that Mythryll, now in her demon form for extra damage and training both a Blizzard and Demonic Fire upon the Dragon at once, has become the primary target of the tail.
"It is the Demon Form. It's attacking anything demonic with priority." Cain shouts to the tanks, ordering his Greater Golems to the front and off to one side a little bit, hoping to distract the flame breath they know is coming.
Sure enough, it turns its giant scaly head and burns the Golems to ash, howling in victory, then rage as they immediately reappear.
"Good thinking Golem Man." Red Beard cheers. That flame breath is one of the hardest things to survive, as a good hit right afterwards can kill the tanks before the first heals come through.
The tail knocks most of the ranged members down right before the wings send everyone tumbling. Cain grabs Mythryll and Char grabs Misha, the extra weight keeping the four of them closer than the others to the center.
"Next wing attack, link arms with your neighbors and crouch down." Cixelcid calls. "It will keep you closer to the center."
All the lighter players find a buddy, shifting around to safer positions for the next attack. They're going all out on damage, but the Dragon is the final boss, not an easy monster to bring down by any means.
In fact, the only ones having an easy time of it are the Poisoned Wasps. They're right over the beasts back, and nothing is hitting them at all. They're just happily burrowing under scales and stinging away.
The next wing attack, things go wrong. One of the Rangers moved too close and gets knocked down instead of blown back. Cixelcid leaps to his rescue, saving his life, but leaving both severely injured. Only the ticks of the Heal over time effects save the Rangers life from the next stomps, leaving them both red lined before the Healers can stand back up.
Both chug a potion and regain a little health, but it's the renewed attacks of the Greater Golems, their innate resistance making them the first to their feet, that stops the barrage and secures their lives.
"That was entirely too close. Glad you're alive." Cixelcid winks at the flustered Ranger and gets back into position as a set of healing spells reach him.
The Dragon dies without further incident, their innovative tactics working very well and everyone eagerly awaits the notice as the boss drops.
[Level Up]
[Cain Has Received An Ability Book]
[Cixelcid Has Received An Ability Book]
[Mythryll Has Received An Aura Book]
[Misha Has Received A Legendary Item]
[Char Has Received A Spell Book]
Loot notifications fill everyone's screens, very few not getting an epic or better drop from the final boss. The effect is to create an absolutely silent room as everyone checks their notifications.
After a few minutes, Red Beard breaks the ice. "As agreed, drops are personal and private, so we will break up here, and everyone can check their loot for the day in the comfort of their own homes."
Cid and Lickity, plus Char decide to come visit the hotel, with its spacious suite and hot tub.
"So, how did we all do?" Cixelcid asks. "I'll start." He shows the group a Rank A Earthquake skill book plus two epic armor pieces before using the book.
"I got [Book of Lightning Armor]." Char smiles and uses her drop.
Lickity got a Legendary pair of boots and three epic cloth armor plans.
Misha got a legendary Bracelet that heals her when she heals someone else, a great compliment to her heal over time abilities.
"I got two epic pieces plus [Book of Thorns Aura] Rank A, binds on drop. Enemies take 5 percent of damage dealt to allies within 20 meters as reflected damage." Mythryll tells them.
Now that is impressive, mages don't get many party wide buffs, even from the books they can use. It's not really part of their class role.
"And last up, the man with the craziest of luck. Cain!" Cixelcid announces in a game show voice and everyone cheers and claps.
"As you all know, I traded for the [Summon Insects] skill. But I got an epic pair of boots and this humble book."
[Book of Summon Cloning] Rank S. Passive. Doubles the number of created summons when a summoning Ability or Spell is used.
"It's alright if I strangle you a little bit, right?" Misha asks, looking entirely too serious for his liking.
"Dude, really?" Cixelcid asks. "Weren't you broken enough before, you had to add another half dozen summons?"
"Seventeen." Misha says helpfully. "He's got those bugs now too."
"Can we tell Char about your other passive?" Cixelcid asks and Cain shrugs.
"Might as well, we're going to invite her to party with us full time anyhow." Mythryll says and Char gives her a big hug.
"This broken character here adds 20 percent to everyone's experience gained for every player and construct in his party. As a passive skill no less."
Char looks stunned, counting something on her fingers. "So the rapid leveling?" she stutters.
"Happens everywhere we go." Misha smiles "Want to join our party? I feel we should actually ask you instead of just assuming you're one of us now."
"Yes, 100 percent yes!"