Hunting the Satyr Islands

Too often I see folks in need of comps from the friendly denizons of The Satyr Islands. Skeleton sternums, Ghost vapors, abomination chestskulls to name a few always seem to be in demand and in short supply. Without doubt, blue vexator fringes are the most sought after and the least available.

Why is this? I know! They are too hard to kill, there aren't enough of them, the spawns are too small and scattered, the drop rate is too low and so on. Well, some of that just ain't true, at least not entirely true.

We have 4, count em 4 Satyr Islands. I would say Alged is the smallest, and most dangerous for groups. Elnath is the largest by far and more group friendly. Corvus and Dahibi are smaller than Elnath and larger than Alged, small groups can operate there with care.

Elnath is the one island where a large group can operate if a little intelligence is present. 8 or 10 folks running hither and thither, chunking AoEs like it's confetti, not watching for adds and wandering mobs is gonna get a reason to recall in very short order. The Elnath landing pad is adjacent to a rather large undead spawn, sometimes mixed with any or all of the other mobs to be found in the islands. From there one take the road to the interior, run over to the penninsula to hunt bugs or just move to the edge of the undead spawn and happily pick off undead one at a time.

Alged is the smallest of the four islands. The pad is adjacent to a mixed bug and undead spawn and this is really the only place where a good sized group can operate. The interior is best done alone or in a group of at most, 3 very smart and self-reliant hunters.

Dahibi is a bit larger than Alged and is interesting in that a biped can run all the way around the island in the water, under water or on land at water's edge. The under water part can be tricky, stay as close as possible to the island and use the Q key to jump up for a breath of air when needed. Furthermore, do this run in 1st person mode. You get a better idea of the water depth and where a shoal or stretch of shallow water is in front of you than you ever would in 3rd person view. The Dahibi pad is very near a spawn of undead and a spawn of bugs and both area can be hunted by fairly large groups. The interior is best one alone or in a group of at most 3.

Corvus has about the same amount of land area as Dahibi, maybe a bit more. There is a bug spawn not far from the pad that can be hunted by as large a group as you wish. Directly across the island from the bugs is an undead spawn that can be hunted the same way. The interior is best hunted alone or at most in a group of 3.

Ok, that's the brief over-view of the islands, now let's get into some details.

I mentioned the groups of the 3 for interior hunting. The is a very good reason for this. We have dynamic spawns, The 1st person through triggers the spawn, the 2nd and 3rd have just enough time to get past the mobs without drawing aggro. More than 3 aint getting through without bringing some unfriendly visitors to the fight at best, or getting stunned, mezzed and smoked at worst. Any attempts to rescue will result in many more DP as this usually occurs in the middle of a spawning ground. Nobody said the islands were easy, they can be hunted but, certain rules and conditions apply.

So, how does one hunt the interiors(excluding Elnath, more on this island later)? I don't know about anyone else but, I learned by exploration and I collected more than a few DP in the process. What you are looking for are safe spots, a place where you and maybe 2 others can stand and fight without drawing aggros. Yeah, you may encounter the occasional wandering mob but, for the most part that is a rare occurance. For example, Corvus is my favorite island to hunt. I know of 8 good productive safe spots in the interior where I can make a stand, pull the mobs, kill the mobs and loot the mobs without interference from adds. It took some time to find the spots, some DP to learn how to survive in the spots and the patience to keep after it till I got it right. I also know of a few spots on Alged and Dahibi. The greatest majority of these spots are near the roads that traverse the interiors and most are near trees growing alongside the roads. I would also be willing to bet there are other spots I haven't discovered.

So, here you are on the landing pad of an island(excluding Elnath, for now) and ya want to hunt the interiors. Here's what you need to do it.

Speed is life...speed teched boots, Swift Feet spell, Sprint and Quint's Quickstep potion. Stick to the roads where ever possible and don't stop till you reach your destination. If you get an aggro, deal with it when you arrive at your chosen spot.

A good map is a great asset. Don't be afraid to fill it with icons noting mob locations, safe spots, routes and waypoints whatever you think will aid you

Have a plan in mind. Know in advance what you want to accomplish. Once you have your safe spots, plan yourself a route to each one. See what's there, if it's something you're after, pull it and kill it. Then move to the next spot. At the end of you route, do it in reverse.

Energy ward and resistance. The more, the merrier. Vexators and T5 blights do energy damage and both have energy based stuns. These are mobs that are most likely to stop you in a bad place. If possible, you will want some manner of Attack Negation, Foresight for example. And a Detox ability, you'll need it.

You will need way to pull a target from at least 40 meters. The mobs you will encounter on the Satyr Islands will generally take notice of you at about 30 meters range. To avoid getting unwanted adds, a ranged pulling method is essential.

Be aware that some mobs run in small groups and be prepared to deal with this either through crowd control measures or retreat. Retreating can be risky if done wrong. DON'T PANIC. Know in advance that at any time you may get more than you can handle and have a retreat plan in mind should the need arise. Calm execution of a tactical retreat will save the day for you more often than not.

PATIENCE! I can't emphasize this enough. Above all other considerations, Patience is the key to successful Satyr Island hunts. Patience to find the safe spots, patience to take the time to learn the mobs and what YOU have to do to beat them, patience to spend the time necessary to get what you want. If you want to go to a Satyr Island with an expectation of getting 12 blue vexator fringes as easily as getting a sack of cheeseburgers from the McDonald's Drive-Thru, I suggest you go shop at Nadia.

Hunting Elanth is the easiest IMO. It is a great island to learn some group and/or solo tactics against the mobs you will encounter. Unlike the other 3 islands, Elnath offers some room to maneuver in battle. Most of the spawning grounds are near unoccupied lands. Roam the borders of the spawning grounds and look for targets of opportunity. Pull em and learn the most efficient way for YOU to kill em.

The most common complaint I hear from folks wanting to hunt the Satyr Islands is that the mobs are too hard or impossible to kill. This simply isn't true. These are T5 mobs, a T5 character with T5 abilities, spells, weapons, armor etc can kill em. A lvl 60 character ain't gonna get it done and in all probability will be a liability in a group. The undead can be killed with relative ease with a few exceptions. Abominations are not that tough. Kwellans, vexators, and aegrors are tougher fights but, very winnable fights. I've written 2 other posts on how to kill these mobs and how to survive the effort. Give em a gander...

There aren't enough of the mobs or the spawns are too small and scattered. Wrong!! Undead spawns are just fine, it's the content that can get to be a problem. Sooner or later, a spawn is going to get disproportionate numbers of healer and shaman types. You have to learn to deal with those boys. The other mobs have good numbers as well. Running my route on Corvus I can see on average 18-24 vexators, a dozen or more abominations, 5-8 kwellans, and several aegrors. Include also good numbers of undead and blights. It takes me about 1.5 to 2 hours to complete one circuit of the route, less if I am concentrating on one mob type only.

The drop rate is too low...it does seem that way doesn't it? Now consider the numbers. There aren't numbers like one would find at a golem spawn. Consider also the luck factor. Sometimes the luck just ain't with ya, sometimes it is. It takes a willingness to tough it out and do what needs to be done to get the drops. They will come, it's only matter of time and patience.

One final note on group hunting vexators. Chain lightning stun, it doesn't last too long but, it jumps from member to member and can get nasty if you are dealing with more than one vexator. If at all possible, get separation between yourself and your groupmates. As much as possible. Detox or Cleanse each other if you see the stun effect, this will break the chain. Synaptic spasm is another stun vexators use and it causes some big damage. If a groupmate has this on him, detox or cleanse ASAP and then heal up. If you should get a group of 3 vexators, try to keep 2 of em mezzed and concentrate on the 3rd. Vexators are weak vs stuns and mezzes and very weak vs slash and flame damage.

I hope this is of some use... Good luck and happy hunting

I concur. Yes the drop rate seems low, but its not. The drop rate of all mobs are the same, its the fact that there are not as many of these as like you say Golems.

And yes, Healer and Shaman can cause fits. If I encounter them I go for them first at full strength and take them out before they know what hit them. And The healer always first. Those guys can heal their allies so quick it will not only surprise you but annoy you even more.

If you are learning I suggest start at Elnath. More room to manuver. And it is still one of my favorite islands due to my style of hunting and the fact that I don't have a 30 meter pull ability.

Remember to have fun! One of my favorite things to do is what I call "Frustrating blights". I look for a kwellen group and I hit it full speed and kill the kwellen and take off. Then I sit back and watch how frustrated and lost the blights become when the kwellen is gone.

I also like to do the same when I find a wraith group with a Ogre zombie. I'll pull the Ogre and kill him quick, one to two hits. Watch out the mobs start to rush at you. Once I loot I take off and watch them, so funny. But one of the main reasons I do that is alot of the time for some odd reason, the Ogre will respawn almost instantly. Then I do it again. I have done this repeatedly at least ten times in a row. So instead of thinking that there is only one Ogre, try this and maybe you'll get lucky and get more toes too :)

Yes I too have my routes. This is important. Most in my guild and close to me know what I'm talking about when they ask what I'm doing and I say I'm on my "rounds". I am taking a lap around the island. You need to establish your own routes. And know them by heart, you should never need to bring up a map. Thats a big no no on the satyr's. Pull up your map and all of a sudden your dead. If you don't know your bearings then you will die and if in group you can easily bring the whole group to an unhappy and quick death. I can't tell you how many times I have taken someone to the satyr's to help them and they are more a burden then they are worth. Many can't understand and just aren't aware enough to be there. So many have just backed up into mobs and say "Hey where did they come from?" It's nothing to be ashamed of, but if you find it hard to get your bearings you will have to work twice as hard to be efficient at it. Don't give up keep practicing :). Its a good thing to bring a healer with you to learn. Then you can at least get a res. Nothing more frustrating then to run your butt all the way to a port to one of the satyr's only to get killed the first 5 minutes and have to recall. That gets old real quick.

And even though as Kwinn said they are T5 mobs don't under estimate them. I can safely say that I have been killed by those mobs more then any of the T6 mobs in ED. I don't know why, but it's true. And don't get to bold to quick. you may be able to take on the mobs one at a time and think "hey these guys are easy". Then you decide to pull 2 or 3 to quicken the process and find yourself laying on your back. And before you know it your asking someone you don't like for a res, because you dislike the run back to the port even more, LOL

And of course there is the infamous mummys. There comp isn't used for anything that I know of so I usually just leave them alone. no sense killing something for nothing in my opinion. Tease them a little but, I usually just let them wander aimlessly around, besides they smell.

In closing I will say I tend to hunt the Satyr's alone, and it's not hard to do that. When I do a search there most of the time I'm the only one there. And if not most usually hang out near the landing pad. It's not that I am unsocial because I do love to chat and have fun killing with others, but some go into shock when they they try to hunt with me. Not many can keep up with my style. Although I can adjust mine, it also slows me down. I recall hunting with a draggie once because they were there and it was the nice thing to do, being the sweet fiend that I am. Anyway, I am running around killing as quick as I can and really forgot that I was with them. I guess it was so quick that they kinda had the jaw hit the floor look on their face because they then say "Do you always hunt like this?". I am like what do you mean? They say "Your running all over the place to kill everything". I say "Yes, thats what I do" :) I guess they were just content to stand in one spot and wait. Well if you do that, don't expect to get very many Ogre toes or blue vex fringes. Mobs can disappear just as quick as they pop.

Jayne

My recommendation for a small to medium (not heavily multiclassed) group would be to run to Corvus for general undead. There is a small group of undead right on the hill near the pad, as well as a better and large mix for bigger groups around the corner from that hill. The other side has fyakki and necroflies in moderate numbers with a mix of the rarer mobs in the back (abominations, vexs and kwellens).
Those rarer mobs can also be found limited in the field of undead behind the hill, but not on top. All three areas have good wide open escape routes.

There is some decent hunting on Corvus for more, if you want to venture in, but like Kwinn says.. if you are a group be very good, you will get swamped fast.

:D I love Kwinn's guides.

I used to have the darndest time hunting the islands for my comps as a Spirit Disciple, Once I got close to finishing Guardian and started to hunt for armour comps it suddenly made sense and I started holding my own.

Patience and practice DO make a world of difference. You have to get used to the reactions of the different monsters and how you deal with them. So you keep going back after dying and try to figure out what went wrong, and when it went wrong. (For example, be VERY conservative and stay healed with the Vexes, you never know when the spasms will hit you, use magic on Spearmen or you'll be there for an hour, even without a healer, or start with a defensive tactic on Warriors until they blow their crits/cleaves and multi's).

DETOX and Roots are a must. Patience once again go along with them.

Not everyone can be a Hurricane Jayne or a Dragon ;) For the rest of us who can't run up to a mob, 1 hit it and loot it before drawing agro from it, learn to pick your timing. As Kwinn's other guide said, always have an escape route, and if you get wiped up by T5, go to the T4 or T3 blight areas to perfect your tactics.

After a week of hunting I finally got to the point I rarely died and would end up harvesting a good number of Red/Blue vexes even as a Spirit Disciple. If a Monk class can do it, anyone can. Even got to the point I could sneak assassin grouped mobs most of the time.

-HratLi

another great guide!

Alged is by far my favorite place to hunt. Two mage types can really have a lot of fun hunting up to the machine. Not much room for error the farther in you go.

What other have said...Kwinn's guides are the best I've had the original "Satyr Island Hunting Guide" post on my favorites bar for some time. Actually, I'm kinda mad that he brought this up again - means it will get crowded over there in some of the sweet spots.