Onyxia's Lair

Raid Group : 40 Player Limit
Instance Location : Dragonmurk in Dustwallow Marsh
Instance Boss : Onyxia
Instance Trash : Onyxian Warder (55-63), Onyxian Whelp (51-57)

You must first be "keyed" before you can enter Onyxia's Lair, and you must have the key, Drakefire Amulet, in your inventory or equipped, to gain access (it's a +15 Fire Resist necklace). The key progression for Horde begins with Warlord's Command, in Kargath, Badlands. For Alliance characters the quest chain begins with Dragonkin Menace in Burning Steppes.

Raid Strategy: When you are ready to enter the cavern where Onyxia rests, use a 5, 4, 3, 2, go! countdown. On go! the Main Tank charges, with everyone else in the raid group following by two to three seconds. Raiders in the even numbered groups head right, while those in odd numbered groups head left.

Stay away from the small caverns that are on the east and west sides of the Onyxia's cavern. They contain whelp eggs, which if broken, spawn dragon whelps in large masses. This will often lead to the death of numerous members of the raid group.

The Main Tank heads directly past Onyxia, which will pull her to the far north end of the cave, facing the wall. The rest of the raid group heads to the northeast and northwest walls, making sure they stay away from the small caverns that are on the east and west sides of Onyxia's cavern. They contain whelp eggs, which if broken, spawn dragon whelps in large masses. This will often lead to the death of numerous members of the raid group.

Melee characters should be positioned closest to Onyxia, with ranged and healing characters next. One or two AoE characters should be positioned at the end of the group, ready to deal with whelps if they are pulled.

The Fight: There are three phases to this fight:

Phase 1: Onyxia remains on the ground, and uses Flame Breath, Knock Away, and Tail Swipe. Flame Breath targets everyone in front, and to some distance to the sides of her, and can do upwards of 4000 fire damage. Knock Away targets people in front of Onyxia, and knocks them back a distance. Knock Away targets have their hate reduced; when it's reduced enough, she will switch targets. Tail Swipe targets anyone behind Onyxia. Although it does only a small amount of damage it sends targets flying sideways. Targets can end up in the whelp caves, and this can cause the entire raid to wipe (this can't be repeated often enough).

Once the raid group is in position the Main Tank begins his offensive. At this point the healers assigned to the MT use a healing rotation to ensure he stays healed, and that they are regenerating mana sufficiently. For the first minute, only the MT engages Onyxia. When she is at 99 percent health, the rest of the group enters combat. DOTs are applied slowly, and all characters must ensure they do not do enough damage to draw aggro from the MT. If this happens she will turn sideways to face her new target. When she breathes, casters and healers in cloth armor will most likely die, and a full wipe is the likely result. Phase One is a slow steady fight. Max DPS for each person should be 50-75 percent of their output.

If you pull aggro from the MT, try to transfer it back to him by using Ice Block, Divine Protection, Divine Shield, Feign Death, or Vanish. A Flask of Petrification may also be used if available. If that strategy fails, run directly to the MT. You may die but the rest of the raid will survive.

Phase 2: Phase 2 begins when Onyxia reaches 65 percent health. At this point, she takes flight and starts to move about the cave. Players need to keep from clustering together, so that her fireball attacks do not harm large numbers of players.

When Onyxia takes flight, a large group of whelps from each whelp cave will spawn. They must be dealth with immediately. A tank placed near each whelp cave is a good idea. He can cast Challenging Shout, which will draw the whelp aggro to him. Mages can AoE the whelp groups with ease at that point. Whelps will continue to spawn in small numbers and should be killed off as soon as they spawn.

Onyxia stays in flight during this entire phase, stopping periodically to attack. When she stops, there's a possibility she will use a Deep Breath attack. To avoid death, you must run to a safe wall area. The safe areas are those that are at a 45 degree angle from the direction she is facing. If she is facing east, run north. If she faces north or south, run east or west (staying on the side of the cave your group has been assigned to).

The battle strategy during this phase is to get her to 40 percent health as quickly as possible. Ranged DPS will do the most damage, so DoTs must be kept full on, while melee use special attacks to keep damage at its maximum. The less time that Onyxia is in the air, the fewer Deep Breath attacks she can use.

As Onyxia nears the 40 percent range of her health, she will land, and within seconds of landing, cast a fear spell. It is very important at this point that players position themselves so as not to be feared into the whelp caves. As she nears this 40 percent range, the MT should apply Sunder Armor, and casters should slow or stop attacks.

Phase 3: Everyone should move back to their Phase 1 positions when Phase 3 begins, making sure they are not standing on the cracks on the floor (lava will erupt from these cracks and can cause massive damage). There should be no attacks from anyone but the MT until he has regained aggro. Anyone drawing aggro should use the same tactics as in Phase 1, and head for the MT. Warlocks, mages and priests are very likely to draw aggro at this point, and should be ready.

Keep DPS under control during this phase, just as in Phase 1. As Onyxia nears death, which occurs when she is at 5-10 percent health, she enters a rage state, which causes her damage to go up sharply. The MT will need a lot of healing at this point, so healers need to be ready, and the MT should be their main priority, with DPS characters their secondary concern.

Fear is a major factor during Phase 3. If she fears the MT, she will turn whichever direction he is feared to, and may breathe fire on players on that side of the raid. Players other than the MT should not use tactics which break fear, since she will attack unfeared targets before feared targets. If you are feared and break the spell, she may turn to you, and breathe fire on you (and everyone around you). Wait out the fear, then resume your position and continue.

Tactics to help the MT avoid being feared are to use a Dwarf Priest (Alliance) to heal the MT, or to use Tremor Totems (Horde) planted near the MT. Dwarf Priests can cast Fear Ward on the MT, while Tremor Totems planted about three seconds apart will usually break the fear spell quickly. Totems need to be planted throughout this phase if this tactic is used.

Helpful Tips: Do not, under any circumstance or for any reason, run back into the tunnel after you have entered the cavern Onyxia is in. It's instant death for you and anyone near you.

If you die and run back to the Lair while the fight is in progress, do not enter the gate. Warders respawn as soon as Onyxia is engaged, and will attack.