Introduction to Bilerot Burrow

Bilerot Burrow, often abbreviated as “BB” in Looking For Group (LFG) channels, is a challenging Level 40 City Dungeon within the world of Warhammer Online: Return of Reckoning. This dungeon is a pivotal battleground where the insidious influence of Nurgle’s corruption infiltrates The Inevitable City, prompting forces loyal to Tzeentch to intervene and cleanse the spreading blight.

The dungeon underwent a significant re-launch in May 2024, introducing enhanced mechanics and expanding its boss encounters to six distinct adversaries. Successful completion of Bilerot Burrow rewards players with pieces of the coveted Sentinel Armor set and an array of unique weapons.

 

Why Undertake Bilerot Burrow?

Beyond the intrinsic challenge and immersive lore, Bilerot Burrow offers compelling rewards that make it a highly desirable activity for level 40 players:

• Sentinel Armor Set: This complete armor set provides a strong defensive and offensive foundation for characters, making it a valuable acquisition for new and gearing players alike.
• Sentinel Ring: Acquired as the final Influence Reward after multiple boss clears, the Sentinel Ring is a highly sought-after jewelry piece. Its unique feature is a dedicated Talisman slot designed for the powerful 7-day Talismans obtained from the Stalwart Soulstone. For many classes, this ring is considered Best-in-Slot (BiS) due to this specialized slot, offering a significant advantage over other jewelry options. While the Triumphant Ring offers an alternative, it requires a substantial grind of 9999 War Crests, making the Sentinel Ring a more accessible and often preferred choice.
• Unique Weapons: The dungeon drops specific unique weapons that can provide significant upgrades for various classes.
• Vanquisher Ward Synergy: The Sentinel Set offers a strategic advantage by providing the Vanquisher Ward bonus. This allows players to achieve this crucial set bonus without needing to acquire the more expensive Vanquisher armor pieces, making it an excellent option for players saving War Crests for Warlord or Sovereign Sets.
• Set Bonus Maximization: Many experienced players opt to combine two pieces of the Sentinel Set with other armor sets. This strategy effectively maximizes various set bonuses while retaining the potent benefits of the Sentinel Ring’s special Talisman slots, optimizing character performance.

 

Difficulty and Key Changes

Bilerot Burrow is recognized as being more challenging than Mount Gunbad. The May 2024 overhaul not only introduced new mechanics and two additional bosses but also streamlined the dungeon experience. The previously linked dungeon, Bloodwraught Enclave, is no longer part of the Bilerot Burrow run, focusing the encounter on a single, cohesive experience.

While veteran groups may navigate the dungeon with relative ease, parties composed of newly-minted level 40 characters or those unfamiliar with the updated mechanics are strongly advised to thoroughly review the boss strategies outlined below. Understanding these mechanics is crucial for a successful and efficient clear.

 

Comprehensive Dungeon Guide

This section provides a detailed breakdown of each boss encounter within Bilerot Burrow, outlining their abilities and effective strategies for victory.

Before commencing, locate the dungeon entrance near the Sewer grate north of The Monolith in The Inevitable City (coordinates approximately 22k / 35k). A small ramp will lead down to the entrance. Upon arrival, it is highly recommended to accept all repeatable quests to ensure guaranteed armor pieces, supplementing potential boss drops. Once your group is prepared, proceed through the initial mob packs until you reach an open chamber with three walled-off sections.

Boss 1: Maggotfiend Urhil

Maggotfiend Urhil serves as a relatively straightforward introductory encounter.

• Cleave: As with most melee bosses, tanks must position Maggotfiend Urhil facing away from the group to prevent frontal cleave damage to allies.
• True Damage: This boss possesses an ability that deals 50% of the current target’s HP as true damage, which cannot be blocked or avoided. Healers should be vigilant and prepared for these incoming spikes on the tank.
• Debuffing Add (Maggot): Approximately every 30 seconds, Maggotfiend Urhil spawns a “Maggot” add. This add emits a powerful Area of Effect (AoE) debuff that significantly reduces Strength, Ballistic Skill, and Intelligence for anyone within its radius. Groups have two primary strategies:
  • Movement: Tanks can periodically reposition the boss away from the newly spawned Maggot to avoid the debuff.
  • AoE Elimination: If the group possesses sufficient AoE damage, the Maggot can be stacked on top of the boss and quickly eliminated.
• Terror: Like all bosses in Bilerot Burrow, Maggotfiend Urhil inflicts Terror, preventing the resurrection of fallen allies during the encounter.

Strategy: Maintain proper tank positioning to mitigate cleave damage. Healers should prioritize keeping the tank’s health stable, especially after True Damage hits. The choice between moving the boss or AoEing the Maggot will depend on group composition and damage output.

 

Boss 2: Ssrydian Morbidae

The second encounter is against Ssrydian Morbidae, a Chosen who demands careful management of debuffs and damage reflection.

• Slicing Cleave: Similar to the previous boss, tanks must ensure Ssrydian Morbidae is faced away from the party to avoid cleave damage.
• Auras: This boss possesses three distinct Auras, characteristic of a Chosen:
  • Reduces incoming healing by 25%.
  • Increases cast times for players within range.
  • Inflicts constant pulsing damage, particularly impacting healers.
  • Players (especially casters and healers) can move out of these aura ranges if they are causing significant issues.
• Damage Reflect (Bane Shield): Ssrydian Morbidae will periodically buff himself with “Bane Shield,” reflecting incoming damage back to attackers. Tanks and healers should prioritize shattering or stripping this buff to prevent significant self-damage to DPS. If stripping is not possible, healers must compensate for the reflected damage.
• Stacking Heal Debuff: The boss applies a stacking debuff to party members that further reduces incoming healing, compounding the effect of his base 25% healing debuff. While healers can cleanse these, and in-game cauldrons are intended to assist, their functionality may vary. This ability often turns the encounter into a DPS race to minimize the duration of these stacking debuffs.
• Terror: Resurrection is disabled during this fight.

Strategy: Tanks maintain cleave positioning. Healers should be proactive in cleansing stacking heal debuffs and prepared for increased healing demands due to the Auras and potential reflected damage. DPS should focus on quickly stripping Bane Shield when it appears to minimize self-inflicted damage.

 

Boss 3: Bartholomeus The Sickly

Bartholomeus The Sickly is a boss that heavily emphasizes interrupt coordination. After defeating Maggotfiend Urhil, backtrack and proceed through the newly opened tunnel. At the next split, you can choose to face Bartholomeus (left) or The Pox-Bloated Child (right). Most groups tackle Bartholomeus next.

• Interrupt (Spin): This is Bartholomeus’s signature ability. Similar to a White Lion’s Spin or the Morale 2 ability “Raze,” the boss will spin, dealing massive damage to the entire party. This ability must be interrupted quickly. A tank’s “Taunt” ability can interrupt this, as can any other non-CC (crowd control) interrupt available to the party. The cooldown on Taunt is shorter than the spin’s cast time, allowing for consistent interruption.
• Nurgling: Throughout the fight, Bartholomeus spawns a “Nurgling” pet. These can be easily dealt with through AoE damage.
• Curses: The boss will apply debuffs (curses) to the tank. Healers should cleanse these.
• Positioning: Due to the large radius of the spin damage, it can be beneficial to have one healer positioned outside the spin’s range as a contingency, should an interrupt be missed.
• Terror: Resurrection is disabled during this fight.

Strategy: The key to this fight is consistent and timely interruption of the “Spin” ability. Tanks should be ready with Taunt, and DPS/healers with interrupts should be prepared to assist. AoE down the Nurgling adds. Healers cleanse curses on the tank.

 

Boss 4: The Pox-Bloated Child

The Pox-Bloated Child is one of the new bosses introduced in the Return of Reckoning update, heavily focused on cleansing and coordination. After defeating Bartholomeus, or if you chose to go right at the split, you will encounter this boss. Groups running with a single healer will find this fight significantly more challenging.

• Cleanses: This boss applies a massive number of debuffs to players. Constant cleansing is paramount. Groups with AoE cleanse abilities will have a much easier time.
• Furthest Player DoT: The boss will apply a noticeable Damage over Time (DoT) debuff on the player furthest from him. While this can be healed through, cleansing it is also an option.
• Buffs and Destroyable Objects: At 60%, 40%, and 20% HP, the boss will become empowered. Simultaneously, Game Objects will spawn in nearby tunnels connected to the boss room. These objects grant the boss powerful bonuses, such as stacking damage increases or a significant 90% damage reduction.
  • Center-screen messages will announce the appearance of these objects.
  • DPS players must immediately locate and destroy these Game Objects. Failing to do so will lead to the boss’s stacking enrage reaching critical levels (e.g., 700%+ bonus damage), resulting in a party wipe.
  • The Game Objects are visually identifiable as: a rock with a Nurgle symbol, a corrupted bowl of porridge, and a larger rock with a bigger Nurgle symbol.
• Terror: Resurrection is disabled during this fight.

Strategy: Healers must be highly active in cleansing debuffs. At each empowerment phase (60%, 40%, 20%), dedicated DPS players must swiftly move into the surrounding tunnels, locate the Game Objects, and destroy them. Groups with two healers may consider sending one healer to support the DPS assigned to object destruction, as the furthest player DoT will still be active.

 

Boss 5: Ekscremite the Septic

Ekscremite the Septic is another new addition to Bilerot Burrow, demanding precise movement and a critical mechanic that can instantly incapacitate players. While the previous fight heavily relied on healers, this encounter places significant pressure on the tank and requires every party member’s attention.

• Tiny Room: The fight takes place in a cramped environment, which intentionally exacerbates the impact of certain mechanics.
• Fire AoE (Puddle): Ekscremite will drop a persistent fire puddle on his current main target (typically the tank). Tanks must strategically place these puddles near the edges of the room or even up the ramp to avoid running out of space.
• True Damage: Periodically, the boss will deal true damage to the tank, which cannot be mitigated or avoided. Healers must be ready for these unblockable damage spikes.
• Infected Blood (Key Mechanic): This is the most crucial mechanic of the fight.
  • At 75% HP, Ekscremite will apply “Infected Blood” to a random player. This player has 12 seconds to locate and right-click a nearby “Crystal of Change.” Doing so allows Tzeentch to cleanse the debuff, preventing fatal blood coagulation. Infected players will be visibly marked by a large red beam, similar to picking up a supply box.
  • At 50% HP, two random players will be infected. Both must use Crystals. Ensure center-screen messages are enabled in your interface settings for clear alerts.
  • At 30% HP, three random players will be infected.
• Crystals of Change: There are three Crystals of Change that spawn during the fight. Any of these can be used to cleanse the “Infected Blood” debuff. The presence of multiple crystals ensures that if a tank drops a fire puddle on one, other options remain available.
• Terror: Resurrection is disabled during this fight.

Strategy: Tanks must manage their movement carefully to drop fire puddles in optimal locations, preserving open space. Healers should be prepared for bursts of true damage on the tank. The most critical element is the “Infected Blood” mechanic. Infected players must immediately identify the red beam and quickly reach a Crystal of Change within the 12-second window to avoid instant death. Communication within the party is essential for calling out who is infected and which crystals are being used.

 

Boss 6: The Bile Lord

The Bile Lord, a Great Unclean One in service of Nurgle, is the final encounter of Bilerot Burrow. With Tzeentch’s influence prevailing in The Inevitable City, this champion of a rival god must be eliminated.

• Puddles (Tank/Closest Target): The Bile Lord spawns AoE puddles under the tank or the closest target. Players must move out of these puddles to avoid damage. These puddles should always be visible regardless of graphics settings.
• Furthest Puddles: The player furthest from the boss will also have puddles dropped at their location. These puddles persist for most of the fight, requiring the designated player to strategically place them to avoid filling the entire area and limiting movement later in the fight.
• Add Phases: Throughout the fight, the Bile Lord will summon packs of adds. Tanks must challenge these adds to gain aggro, and DPS should quickly swap to and eliminate them. Some adds can be particularly dangerous if they aggro onto healers, so prompt targeting is crucial.
• Om Nom Phase (20% HP): At 20% HP, the boss will stun and consume the entire party. Players will then be transported inside the Bile Lord’s “innards.” To escape, the party must DPS his internal organs until he vomits them back out onto the ground. This is a DPS check phase.
• Terror: Resurrection is disabled during this fight.

Strategy: This fight requires constant awareness of positioning due to the various puddles. Tanks and the furthest player must coordinate puddle placement to maintain ample movement space. DPS and tanks must prioritize and quickly eliminate adds during the add phases. The “Om Nom” phase at 20% HP is a straightforward DPS race to break free from the boss’s internal stun.