Last Epoch - Cycle Two - Stepping into the Empowered Monoliths
So, when I last wrote about Last Epoch, I had the three level 90 monoliths before me.
At first I thought that I would try to reach at least level 88 before attempting them, simply to be closer in level. After all, when I reached them, I was a mere level 82. In the end though, I decided to just jump in and see if I could handle it, despite being underlevelled, and whaddaya know! I completed all three level 90 monoliths and the end boss and the first real Harbinger at the lowly level of 85.
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As such, I unlocked the new Forgotten Knights faction that is directly linked to the Nemesis and Harbingers for this cycle. And I unlocked the ability to visit the level 100 Monoliths and started empowering them.
![20240714140357_1.jpg](https://images.hive.blog/768x0/https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/kaelci/23swbZjLxQLLyjfRHmvChbTUdRT9tuULCkEpDUjKJryriyd6SQera3a2Qh4beWBModj37.jpg)
Despite being a lowly level 85, I jumped straight into the level 100 monoliths and got to work! And by work, I mean, fighting all the things, finding gear, and trying to level and gear up ready for my next harbinger fight. xD
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In the screenshot above is a list of all the harbingers that are available to fight, with a nice little tick on the one I completed to even get to this window.
![20240716120853_1.jpg](https://images.hive.blog/768x0/https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/kaelci/23swZXFidiHE22SSbBoicDDkcV4gLyswo5ygkBh1U5LxM5JgCJrcMiGnczfjPSvy4v91F.jpg)
When you fight the Shade of Orobos in these empowered monoliths, you can choose if you'd like a Harbinger to spawn after the shade has been defeated, and away you go!
I do think that the Harbinger fights shouldn't be directly connected to the boss fights though. That first one really took me by surprise. I had just defeated the boss and was ready to revel in my glory when BAM! The Harbinger spawns and one-shots me because I wasn't expecting it. Sooo I had to defeat the boss all over again and then the Harbinger, this time knowing it was actually there.
![20240716115617_1.jpg](https://images.hive.blog/768x0/https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/kaelci/23tkmzBTqhoUZhBkmu5cxnwyqSfZe5pyEQq8KbcCyJw1toXrfDh2Nb25Wq3WJ8EcXHWEn.jpg)
As of writing this, I'm level 91! And I'm re-adjusting my build a little.
Before, my little lady warlock was focusing on cursing everything and then bashing everything down with a melee scythe ability called 'Harvest.' Which does more damage against cursed enemies. So it seemed like a wise choice.
But then I decided to give this other ability a try, called Spirit Feast. Which expels a bunch of spirits out of my person, doing damage against cursed enemies, and giving me Ward in return. My Ward has zoomed up to over 7000 using this ability so it's nice and tanky.
I've also specc'd into two things - one that self-inflicts my curses onto myself as well, and then one that clears all the curses and grants me health and ward if I suddenly go below 35% health. It's a nice combination!
![20240715140749_1.jpg](https://images.hive.blog/768x0/https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/kaelci/23swhwX7pcoffNrHUYeLyawb1rQfXRJwNkpivYZw5gg5N1QgGv5RGc5zi14Xw2PsSxpwf.jpg)
I'm still trying to find some uniques that'll go nicely with my build. Most of them have a set drop from a specific boss in a certain monolith timeline, and, admittedly, I've only browsed the first monolith timeline in its empowered state so far.
I decided not to use the two-handed unique that I had found in my last post, despite the many benefits it gave. It was just too slow, and after re-equipping a one-hand/off-hand it was evident how much more damage I was doing and how better my build seemed to flow.
Sadly most of the warlock uniques are to do with minions, but there are one or two good things for me. For the most part though, I'll be trying to min-max some purple pieces. Which means I need a lottttt of "Glyphs of Despair," and a lot of luck. 😅
I guess I'd better get hunting them so I can gain MOAR POWAH! xD
Until next time! 😊🎮🐲
I had completely forgotten that this game existed! I love how familiar it looks to the Diablo series and PoE, I'm sure I could really enjoy this one.
Yeah! It's really good. It's basically a more complex version of Diablo, or a less complex version of PoE, depending how you look at it. XD When it first launched a few months back it was a bit iffy, but this new season/cycle has fixed a lot of things — really enjoying it now! :D
Sweet! I remember hearing a few folks on those first days had a bunch of trouble connecting but that's pretty typical for new releases with hype lol
Lol yeah, the connections definitely weren't stable. xD But to be expected. There were also a lot of bugs and glitches that had made it through to the 1.0 release, and when I first got to monoliths I just didn't feel the need to progress further? Whereas with something like PoE I'd be there grinding for weeks trying to progress and become the most powerful person ever! >:D
It's much smoother this time around. No disconnections, no lag, no stutters, haven't come across a single bug, and things are actually working as they should. I want to progress and become super powerful! XD
Had an issue with fps drops after an extended time of play, but that appears to be fixed with the latest driver update, so woo!
That's really encouraging! I'm glad to hear they've managed to get the early issues worked out. Definitely going to be keeping this on my radar!
Not exactly this game but I have played some such games on my mobile phone, and believe me that create such a mess when it comes to have a fight in the game. Level 91 sounds pretty good
Yep - just 9 more levels to go! :D haha.
Another great version from you on this game, I would really love to see you play it up close with the look of things the camera view is just my kind of games