Bard / Monk / Necro — Bonucci's D4 Every-Boss Sweep
The no-priest sustain trio that soloed EVERY available D4 raid boss on camera — Yael, Nagafen, Vox, Innoruuk, and Cazic-Thule. Dots, lifetaps, and stance-dancing instead of a healer.
Bard
Monk
NecromancerOverview
Documented from Bonucci's capstone video, where this trio soloed all five available D4 raid targets in one run. Compiled guide, not his official write-up. Bonucci planned this trio going into launch: no priest class at all, just Bard, Monk, and Necro, built entirely around sustain — necro lifetaps, bard regen and slow, monk melee and feign death.
The slow is the D4 gate. Resists eat slows at D4 — mote-pump the slow's resist debuff (a rank-8 slow lands around -120 magic resist) or it never sticks.
Primary is Bard — the dot songs and slow are the engine, with monk melee/feign and necro taps as the sustain spine. This is the current answer to "one trio, every boss."
Stances & Invocations
Stance
Offensive
Outgoing melee damage +100%, chance to hit +25%. Every point of bonus damage consumes equal endurance (reduced by Strategy skill). Below 25% endurance the hit bonus shrinks. Crit bonus damage costs no endurance.
Warrior, Paladin, Ranger, Shadow Knight, Monk, Bard, Rogue, Beastlord, Berserker
Channeler
All incoming damage −40% and channeling chance increased. Half the mitigated damage is charged to both mana and endurance (Strategy-reduced).
Cleric, Druid, Shaman, Necromancer, Wizard, Magician, Enchanter
Invocation
Recovery
Mana regen doubled and spells cost 5% less mana. Out-of-combat regen unaffected; the regen modifier stays active out of combat even when the invocation isn't.
Cleric, Paladin, Ranger, Shadow Knight, Druid, Bard, Shaman, Necromancer, Wizard, Magician, Enchanter, Beastlord
Open Offensive on the weak bosses. Channeler on the hard casters. Recovery when a boss starts self-healing.
Key Abilities
Bard
| # | Name | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Slow SONG | The D4 gate. Mote-pump the resist debuff or it never sticks |
| 2 | Regen SONG | With the slow, the sustain beside necro taps |
| 3 | Resist song SONG | Bring it for Vox. Forgetting it dragged the fight |
| 4 | Dot songs SONG | Keep ticking while the boss wastes mana healing |
Necromancer
| # | Name | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lifetaps SPELL | Finish with life-taps once you are mana-flush |
Monk
| # | Name | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Feign Death ABILITY | With monk melee, the sustain spine |
| 2 | Melee ABILITY | Monk melee beside the dots and taps |
Targets
| Target | Zone | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Yael | Trivial. Offensive stance start to finish | |
| Nagafen | Drain his mana, then offensive. Blow life burn early for a crit | |
| Vox | Channeler to kill the opening giant, then dot her down. Bring the resist song | |
| Innoruuk | The real fight. Channeler and Recovery while he heals around 50% | |
| Cazic-Thule | Tank inside the pyramid using levitate. Equip pet weapons. Last 10% used Nagafen scrolls |
Playstyle Notes
Open Offensive on the weak bosses (Yael, drained Nagafen). On the hard casters (Innoruuk, Vox's giant add) go Channeler to tank their nukes without plate. When a boss starts self-healing — and Innoruuk burns his entire mana pool healing around 50% — flip to the Recovery invocation and regen your own mana from about 30% to about 70% while your dots keep ticking. Then swap back to Offensive and finish with life-taps once you are mana-flush.
Gear Notes
| Item | Source | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Woos Fist of Mastery | Other | +10 and +9 monk fists |
| Golden Sash of Tranquility | Other | Monk Sky item, about 46% haste. Low AC, haste is worth it |
| Engineer's Ring | Other | +6 |
| Mantle of the Songweaver | Other | Sky |
| Lustrous Russet vambraces | Other | +7. Stacked for hit points, endurance, and mana |
| Slime Blood of Cazic-Thule | Other | +6. With the vambraces, survivability over raw AC |
| Necro pet | Other | Level 49 at only +8. An augmentation quirk, not +10 |
Pros & Cons
- Soloed all five available D4 raid targets in one run
- No priest — lifetaps, bard regen, and feign death are the sustain
- Boss self-heals become free mana-recovery windows for a dot build
- Resists eat slows at D4 unless the slow's resist debuff is mote-pumped
- Forgetting the resist song dragged the Vox fight
- The Cazic kill was messy and finished the last 10% with Nagafen scrolls
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