Overgrown Guardian

Overgrown Guardian
Bestiary portrait
Info
Species	Sentinel

“	An ancient sentinel constroct of Ithos, overgrown with moss and foliage	„
	~ Bestiary Entry

The Overgrown Guardian is a boss found within Hero's Grave. It will attack in a multitude of ways:

• The Guardian will hop around the stage, jumping diagonally forward wherever they are facing before dropping straight down.
• The Guardian will hop off the stage, causing rocks to fall from the bridge above. They can repeat this a number of times.
• The Guardian will stop in place, charging up an attack through its eye, then fire 3 short, but fast, bursts of energy, which deal damage. When these bursts collide with a wall, they split, with one part going up the wall and the other part going down, traveling back onto the stage.
• The Guardian will retract its legs, then roll forward to the other side of the stage.

Upon reaching 4/5ths of its health, this attack is added to the pool.

• The Guardian will jump high into the air, outside the perimeters of the screen, then land in the center of the stage, causing a large shockwave to be sent out from both sides of the Guardian. This will also cause rocks to fall from the bridge above. The Guardian will then leap into the air, near the top of the screen, and land in the center, causing the same shockwave and rocks, and repeat this action a couple times.

When the Guardian reaches 1/5th of its health, it will jump to the center of the stage and sprout wings, gaining a new attack set:

• The Guardian fires a wide beam from one side of the arena to the other, with your only refuge being the sides that are blocked by the stage.
• The Guardian hovers above the stage, spewing fire from its eye that lingers for a short duration.

Upon being defeated, the crystal in the center conjures a yellow Rune, allowing you to absorb the power of the Energy Strike.

Appearance

The Overgrown Guardian is a construct of metal, with 3 gemstones in the center of its body, one large, two small. It has vines growing over its body, and its head is topped by a mossy covering, resembling hair. It has two small, bird-like legs, and when it reaches 1/5th health, it sprouts large wings, egg-white in appearance.

Location

It is found at Hero's Grave, next to the 2nd Statue of the Blue Lady that you find.

Strategies

Each of its attack patterns has a counterattack that you can employ to deal the most damage in the least time:

• While it hops around, time your dodge so that you roll just underneath its landing point, then attack its back with your Riposte.
• When it hops off the stage, you can dodge through the rocks to gain your Riposte and deal extra damage. You can hit the Guardian while you are on the stage.
• When it fires its burst attack, jump over the blasts, then over 2 of the 3 parts that come back. Dodge through the last one, to gain your Riposte, then attack.
• When it rolls, dodge through its roll to gain your Riposte, then attack its back.
• When it jumps to the center of the stage, you can either stand off to the side to avoid the shockwave entirely (though you will still have to contend with rocks), or you can time your jump to go over the shockwave, allowing you more time to deal damage, and a possible Riposte should a rock fall on you.

Once it gains its wings, it becomes much easier to deal with.

• When it fires its beam from one side of the arena to the other, you can either go to the side that the Guardian isn't at, to avoid the damage safely, or you can go behind the Guardian as it goes down, giving you the opportunity to deal more damage.
• When it hovers over the arena, jump and swing upwards to hit it. Use the fire to your advantage by dodging through it, allowing you to gain your Riposte and deal more damage. Since the fire lingers, it isn't as demanding of your reaction time to gain Riposte.

Bestiary Entry

Constructed of bronze and strange alloys. The power source appears to be a spherical chunk of yellow crystal. It trembles slightly when touched.