Rite of Passage (quest)

Diablo II Notation Basic Class Skill Item Ally Quest Area Monster Tale The Sightless Eye Secret of the Vizjerei The Infernal Gate The Harrowing Lord of Destruction Special Siege on Harrogath Rescue on Arreat Prison of Ice Betrayal of Harrogath Rite of Passage Eve of Destruction Type Mandatory Initiation Talk to Qual-Kehk after killing Nihlathak or Enter Arreat Summit and activate Altar of the Heavens Objective(s) Defeat all three Ancients without leaving Mount Arreat Area(s) Arreat Summit Item(s) None Reward Entry to Worldstone Keep and ≤ 1,400,000 Experience in Normal if clvl ≥ 20 Entry to Worldstone Keep and ≤ 20,000,000 Experience in Nightmare if clvl ≥ 40 Entry to Worldstone Keep and ≤ 40,000,000 Experience in Hell if clvl ≥ 60 Every time I hear of you, warrior, your deeds become more legendary. But take heed. You are approaching the very summit of Mount Arreat. I have never dared venture there. It is sacred -- our most holy place. The legends say it is guarded by the Ancient Ones, who block the path of all who are unworthy. Your reputation here does not matter...It will be the Ancients who determine your worthiness. Good luck. - Qual-Kehk Navigation From waypoint in Crystalline Passage, exit to Glacial Trail is normally found most quickly by going left (entrance from Arreat Plateau is normally found first). From Frozen River, exit is normally found most quickly by going right. From entrance to Glacial Trail, exit to Frozen Tundra is normally found most quickly by going left. Frozen Tundra extends above entrance from Glacial Trail; exit to Ancients' Way is at other end, beyond three barricades crossing tundra. From entrance to Ancients' Way, exit to Arreat Summit is normally found most quickly by going left. It is advisable to find waypoint if it is not encountered along the way (normally found most quickly by going right from entrance, or continuing left from exit to Arreat Summit). Objective Upon entering Arreat Summit for first time, it will not be possible to exit to Ancients' Way or Worldstone Keep Level 1: only way to exit is by casting Town Portal or saving and exiting game. Ensure that character level ≥ 20 in Normal, ≥ 40 in Nightmare and ≥ 60 in Hell: otherwise upon defeating Ancients, quest log will reveal following: You cannot complete this quest in this game. You can complete it by creating a new game. Level restrictions are only mentioned in 1.08 patch notes (and have been corroborated): character will not gain Experience or access to Worldstone Keep, although it will now be possible to return to Ancients' Way. Altar of the Heavens stands at middle of Arreat Summit, surrounded by snow-covered statues of the Ancients. Clicking on Altar will cause the statues to come to life. Casting Town Portal at any time will return Ancients to statues, as will death of character and all other allied players. Upon activating Altar again Ancients will all be reset and any existing Town Portal(s) will disappear, so all three must be defeated without leaving Arreat Summit. Ensure character has sufficient ammunition and potions before facing them, dropping surplus on floor if need be. We are the spirits of the Nephalem, the Ancient Ones. We have been chosen to guard sacred Mount Arreat, wherein the Worldstone rests. Few are worthy to stand in its presence; fewer still can comprehend its true purpose. Before you enter, you must defeat us. - The Ancients Talic is armed with sword and shield (although he has no Chance of Blocking), and uses Whirlwind. He is Immune to Fire (110%) in Hell. Madawc is armed with two throwing axes, and casts Shout. He is Immune to Lightning (100%) in Hell. Korlic is armed with polearm, and uses Leap Attack (fortunately only for closing distance; he does not use it as an attack). He is always Immune to Cold (150%) in Hell. Ancients are all Super Unique, receiving one random Unique bonus in Nightmare and two in Hell. This is one reason why they can be the greatest challenge in the game, with combinations of the following damage-enhancing bonuses having the greatest potential for danger: Aura Enchanted with Might or Fanaticism Cursed Extra Strong Also have highest Fire Enchanted explosion damage in game, which can become even more dangerous when Cold Enchanted or Lightning Enchanted (while Knockback does not apply, Ancients can be put into hit recovery, although their high life makes this unlikely). Being Cursed or Aura Enchanted with Conviction would increase explosion damage. Talic and Korlic have 0 chill effectiveness, so neither cold length nor Holy Freeze will slow them down. Also equip the following items: Ancient Difficulty level Normal Nightmare Hell Korlic Crown Field Plate Voulge Ring Grand Crown Sharktooth Armor Bill Ring Corona Kraken Shell Colossus Voulge Ring Madawc Throwing Axe Throwing Axe Greaves Gauntlets Francisca Francisca War Boots War Gauntlets Flying Axe Flying Axe Myrmidon Greaves Ogre Gauntlets Talic Field Plate Broad Sword Tower Shield Greaves Sharktooth Armor Battle Sword Pavise War Boots Kraken Shell Conquest Sword Aegis Myrmidon Greaves [1] Affixes of these items can dramatically improve Ancient stats, particularly defense, damage and resistance: affixes applying Resist +% can result in them becoming immune when this is added to inherent resistance, even in Normal. If Ancient can only become immune due to item affixes, immunity is not displayed. Affixes may result in more than two immunities. Although unlikely, when this occurs it prevents Resist +% from Unique bonus(es) from being applied if doing so would increase any of two or more existing immunities. However, immunities displayed correspond to any inherent immunity and first applied by Unique bonus(es). Korlic is not poisoned by Rabies in Normal as a combination of his own Poison Resist 70% and PR ≥ 30% from item affixes makes him immune. Madawc isn't damaged by Fire Ball in Hell as a combination of his Fire Resist 50% and FR ≥ 50% from item affixes makes him immune. Madawc is damaged and chilled by Glacial Spike in Hell despite displaying Immune to Cold as a second immunity has already been applied by item affixes before Cold Enchanted bonus. Talic and Korlic can become Immune to Physical (120%) when Stone Skin in Nightmare, but not in Hell (maximum Damage Resist 90%). None can become Immune to Magic (although Magic Damage Reduced affixes may negate small amounts of Magic Damage). All can become Immune to Fire, Immune to Lightning or Immune to Cold as early as Normal due to item affixes, although it is far more likely in Nightmare and Hell due to inherent resistance or immunity and Unique bonus(es). All can also become Immune to Poison as early as Normal due to item affixes (although this is far less likely for Madawc). All can spawn with Poison Length Reduced items, although only Talic and Korlic can spawn with PLR ≥ 100% (reducing poison length to a single frame). If Unique bonus(es) or item affixes make contest too frustrating, difficult or dangerous, casting Town Portal will return Ancients to statues: activating Altar of the Heavens again will reset them to maximum life and randomly select new Unique bonuses and item affixes. Order in which Ancients should be defeated may vary depending on character and any Unique bonuses: Madawc may be a priority for melee and ranged attackers due to his ability to cast Shout, enhancing defense of all three (he also normally has the lowest defense). Unless Immune to Cold, he is also the most susceptible to cold length and Holy Freeze. If other two are greater priority (for example, if Cursed or Aura Enchanted) then it is possible to position pillar between character and Madawc so that his axes are thrown into pillar. Ledge between entrance from Ancients' Way and cliff can be a good place to be if confident of surviving the other two, or able to escape at will with Teleport, Dragon Flight, Leap or Leap Attack. Arreat Summit is a comparatively small area, but it is still possible to separate Ancients and fight them one at a time by running around edge of area and waiting until only one Ancient is following: this is particularly useful if reliant on a mercenary to take their attacks. This is easier when one is Extra Fast in Nightmare or Hell, but more difficult if two or more are Extra Fast. When Ancient dies, returns to statue (only golden rather than snow-covered). Reward You are a worthy hero! We augment your skill and grant you entry to the interior of Mount Arreat, wherein lies the Worldstone. Beware. You will not be alone. Baal the Lord of Destruction is already inside. The Archangel Tyrael has always been our benefactor, but even he cannot help us now. For Baal blocks Tyrael's spiritual presence from entering the chamber of the Worldstone. Only you, mortal, have the power to defeat Baal now. Baal threatens the Worldstone -- and through it, the mortal realm, itself. You must stop him before he gains full control of the sacred stone. With it under his control, Baal could shatter the boundaries between this world and the Burning Hells, thus allowing the hordes of the Prime Evils to pour forth into the mortal realm like an unstoppable tide! If you are weak, the world as you know it could be lost forever. You must NOT fail! - The Ancients Player can now enter Worldstone Keep Level 1 (or return to Ancients' Way), and gains Experience: Stat Normal Nightmare Hell Maximum Experience 1,400,000 20,000,000 40,000,000 Maximum Experience is only gained when it only results in gaining one character level at most: if it would result in gaining multiple levels, Experience gained is restricted to that normally required to gain second level. For example, level 60 character in Hell with 117,772,849 Experience (minimum required for level 60) becomes level 61 with 129,773,364 Experience after defeating Ancients, a gain of just 12,000,515: this is Experience required to increase from level 61 (128,782,495) to level 62 (140,783,010). Experience gained does not change, regardless of player count or character level penalties beyond level 75: Ancients should only be spawned at higher player counts for increased challenge, while players seeking higher levels should avoid completing quest for as long as possible. Reference Act V: Lord of Destruction (Arreat Summit) Quest Rewards (Arreat Summit) Onderduiker, Monster Resistances and Immunities Guide (Technical Discussion)