Auchenai Crypts Shirrak the Dead Watcher Exarch Maladaar Shirrak the Dead Watcher is the first boss found in Auchenai Crypts. Entrance Shirrak the Dead Watcher Abilities : This aura places a debuff on all players in its range, which increases casting time by 50% per stack. Stacks up to 4 times for a total of +200% to cast time. The maximum level of stacking is related to the distance the player stands from the boss; the closer you stand the higher it stacks. Casters can (and should) stand at maximum range to minimize the effect of this debuff. : Area effect attack that pulls party members closer to him like a reverse knockback. If you are far away, you are also pulled significantly upwards; if Shirrak is between you and the stairs, you can actually be thrown down them and take significant fall damage. This (obviously) interrupts casting, and being pulled in will give you the full Inhibit Magic debuff, which can be tough on healers if he does it multiple times. You can cast instant-cast spells while in midair. : Melee range bleed debuff that is applied on all nearby players roughly every ten seconds. This can stack if you stay in melee range, dealing considerable damage. He seems to always trigger it right after using "Attract Magic" (so that everyone getting pulled in will get it before being able to move away). Focus fire: Shirrak emotes "Shirrak the Dead Watcher focuses his energy on <target>" (this is actually a "raid message" type message, not an emote that only shows up as text). He places a static (non-targetable) beacon under one player; after 3-5 seconds, the beacon will "explode" and emit several pulses of AoE fire damage. This is about 1650 fire damage per hit in normal mode; 3500 in heroic. This is by far his most dangerous ability, and much of the fight relies on keeping good positioning and quickly reacting to this attack. General Tips This fight is fairly straight-forward, but the party must have room to maneuver. This means that you must fight him on the elevated areas where he spawns after you first enter the bridge of souls. Fighting him on the stairs and bridge will spell disaster in most cases. Shirrak's debuff will affect all casters so healers will need to put some lead time into their casts. DPS casters should focus on instant and channeled spells to provide consistent damage. Having a main and off-healer can be a life-saver, especially with the casting debuff. The main healer can focus on the tank while the off-healer catches the rest of the party. This also gives you backup when a flare focuses the main healer and they have to run. It is a great advantage in this fight to have at least some physical-based DPS, since the debuff will cripple casters. A hunter is ideal since they will remain mobile and not run the risk of attracting the boss' "focus" near the tank. An affliction-specced warlock is also an asset: using dots and drain life, he will pretty much do as much damage as in another fight, while healing himself and avoiding bites.