For normal post-quest Vardorvis, use slash melee, keep Protect from Melee active, switch briefly to Protect from Missiles for the head’s green projectile, and move away from axes and ground cracks. Defence-reduction specials do not lower his Defence, so bring damage or sustain instead.
This guide covers the repeatable encounter after completing Desert Treasure II. It does not use the awakened fight’s extra axes or mixed-style head attacks. Learn a controlled ordinary dodge before trying tick-perfect axe skips.
Prepare your route and slash setup
A strangled tablet unlocks the ring of shadows teleport to the temple entrance. Before obtaining it, fairy ring bls and the rowboat provide a route into the Stranglewood. Use the temple shortcut to reach the ritual site once unlocked. The surrounding monsters can still damage you on the approach.
Bring a suitable slash weapon, melee armour, combat boost, Prayer restoration, high-healing food, some quick combo food and an emergency teleport. A one-handed weapon with a defender can give a learner useful defence compared with a two-handed option. Check the actual slash attack setting, including on a special-attack weapon.
An abyssal whip or tentacle is a usable starting point; stronger slash weapons can shorten the fight. Do not treat a particular expensive weapon as an entrance requirement. Multiple gear downgrades can nevertheless compound into a long attempt, so review damage and recovery if you repeatedly run out of food despite handling mechanics.
An optional thrall setup needs the correct Arceuus spellbook, Book of the dead and runes. Use it only if maintaining the summon does not distract from overheads and movement. Avoid bringing an extra switch you cannot operate during enrage.
Cue | Response |
|---|---|
Ordinary body attacks | Protect from Melee; maintain health against chip damage |
Green projectile from the head | Protect from Missiles for impact, then return to Melee |
Axes rise around the arena | Read their lanes and move to a clear tile |
Cracks form on the ground | Move off before the spikes emerge |
Spore overlay appears | Click every spore promptly, then resume the fight |
Why taking damage makes the fight longer
Vardorvis heals for part of the damage he inflicts. A missed prayer or axe therefore costs both supplies and damage progress. Protect from Melee reduces ordinary body damage substantially but does not eliminate it. Keep enough health to survive a second problem while recovering from the first.
His Defence falls as his health falls, while his Strength rises. This is why a defence-draining special is not the right plan, and why the final section can feel more dangerous even though your attacks land more easily. Choose a damage special or a sustain option you can afford to operate.
Do not initiate the encounter with a Voidwaker special expecting guaranteed opening damage: its special hits zero when used to start this fight. Start with an ordinary attack, then use the special after combat has begun if it is part of your setup.
Axes: move with a destination, not a panic lap
Axes appear around the arena and travel in straight or diagonal lanes. A hit also causes bleeding, and running while bleeding accelerates its damage ticks. The priority is avoiding the original hit, rather than assume you can eat through repeated axes while circling the room.
Choose a repeatable edge position with a clear view of the relevant lanes. From a threatened position, moving two tiles diagonally can avoid many patterns, but it is not a universal click for every set of three axes. Read where all axes are travelling and ensure the destination and route are clear.
A row of axes may require a longer move or a different destination. Stop attacking briefly when you need to resolve the pattern. Do not cross several lanes solely to remain in melee range. Ground markers are helpful only when you understand what each tile solves.
Axe skipping uses exact timing to cross an attack lane and return. It is optional for normal learning, and a written distance alone is not a timing demonstration. Add it after you can recognise the spawns and recover from missed head prayers consistently.
Head, cracks and spores need separate responses
Once Vardorvis is below 570 health, the head can launch a green projectile. Watch for the head and its message, switch to Protect from Missiles before it lands, then restore Melee. His body does not perform its ordinary melee while that projectile is airborne, giving you a deliberate window for the prayer change.
Missing the head drains Prayer and temporarily disables overhead protection. Move away from overlapping hazards, eat if needed and restore the correct protection as soon as available. Repeatedly clicking an unavailable prayer while standing in an axe lane usually makes the initial error worse.
When Vardorvis darts, cracks can form beneath or around you and erupt into spikes. Step onto clear ground. Staying close to the arena edge reduces how many cracks appear, but it does not exempt you from axes or head projectiles. Recheck the floor when moving to a new position.
The Strangle overlay contains spores that must all be clicked within five game ticks in normal mode. Clear the overlay promptly rather than try an advanced extra-attack trick. Vardorvis can still threaten you during the sequence; return your attention to Prayer and the arena immediately after the last spore.
Enrage: preserve the same priorities
Below roughly one-third health, axes and head attacks become more frequent. There is no dramatic transformation you can rely on to announce the change. Check supplies before reaching that part of the health bar, and avoid entering it with empty Prayer or dangerously low health.
Use your chosen damage specials when you can do so without missing the next response. Using high-accuracy specials early can also be effective; reserving everything for the ending is a learning choice, not an absolute damage rule. Survival actions remain more valuable than an extra attack that triggers a healing mistake.
When threats overlap, identify a safe destination, block the head and return to Melee. Do not abandon the prayer sequence because the boss looks one hit from death. A missed head followed by a body hit can reverse an otherwise successful attempt.
Repeated problem | Change for the next attempt |
|---|---|
Boss regains too much health | Reduce missed prayers and axe hits before buying more damage |
Prayer disables during axe sets | Track the green head projectile separately from body attacks |
Damage after darting | Check cracks before clicking back onto the boss |
Deaths during spores | Clear all spores promptly; remove the extra-hit trick |
Chaotic final third | Enter it healthy and prioritise movement over damage |
Escape, recover and build consistency
Bring an emergency teleport. The tendrils can also provide an arena escape after the fight begins, while the ordinary rock exit is unavailable. Learn where that interaction is before you need it under pressure.
A death places the grave by the rocks leading into the ritual site. Reclamation is reduced for the first five kills, with an existing active gravestone able to affect that reduction; check the actual fee. Death remains unsafe for Hardcore accounts. Finish a first clean kill, then aim to repeat the same safe responses without adding unnecessary switches.
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