Dungeons & raids
Raid guide · Patch 12.1 · Normal / Heroic / Mythic
The Venomous Abyss is Midnight Season 2's eight-boss raid beneath Atal'Utek on the Coiled Isle. Every fight layers venom, soul-binding rituals, and add control — but Nek'zali sets the tone: nothing reaches the Soulcoil Well. Branch left (Sentinels, Vashnik) or right (Lost Explorers, Sszorak) after pull 1; reconvene at the Convergence Bridge before Twin Fangs and the Ula'tek finale.
Nek'zali guards the Soulcoil Well at the center of the hall. Restless Amani adds path to the well and feed her energy; at 100 energy she enrages with Uncoiled Rage. At 50% she retreats into Ritual of Awakening — kill Echoes of Jawae to pull her back. Phase 2 is a race: Invoke stacks Soulcoil Rite permanently while Uncoiling ticks raid damage every second.
Break add shields, keep well clean, handle Ignition and Barrage.
When coffins glow, drag Nek'zali to the largest cluster. Magic DPS break Restless Amani shields — not Hunters. Never stand in Soulcoil Well or die inside it. Active tank runs away from raid during Possession Barrage; everyone stays out of the ghost path.
EveryoneKill Echoes of Jawae; soak Hungering Pyre on corpse piles.
At 50%, kill Echoes of Jawae one at a time on opposite sides. Tank drags active Echo onto corpse piles; raid soaks Hungering Pyre on top of them. Cleave Restless Amani while focusing the active Echo. Do not let adds live through intermission.
DamageLust on return. Invoke stacks Soulcoil Rite — burn before 100 energy.
Lust when Nek'zali returns from intermission. Invoke applies Soulcoil Rite to everyone — stacks no longer fall off for the rest of the fight. Healers ramp for every Invoke; DPS ignore everything except killing the boss.
DamageAdds keep coming; Uncoiling ticks forever. Kill boss fast.
Adds keep spawning in Phase 2 and Uncoiling ticks raid damage every second. Break shields and kill adds before they reach the well — each add that touches it grants energy. Energy still matters; do not let her reach 100.
EveryoneBoss dies before Uncoiled Rage at 100 energy.
At 100 energy Nek'zali enrages with Uncoiled Rage — +500% damage, taunt immune, no recovery plan. Burn before 100 energy. Heroic: enter Soulcoil Ignition with zero Ritual Burn stacks or the overlap wipes you.
EveryoneStay away from the well at all times. Never die inside it. If an add is heading for the well, break its shield and kill it immediately.
Necrotic well at room center. Adds reaching it trigger Soulcoil Rite; standing in it deals heavy damage.
When coffins glow, move Nek'zali to the biggest cluster. Magic DPS break shields (not Hunters). Once unshielded, cleave them down before they reach the well.
Undead adds spawn from glowing coffins with magic absorb shields and fixate the well.
Dodge Anguished Echo impact circles. Pop raid healing cooldowns. On Heroic+, enter with zero Ritual Burn stacks or the overlap will wipe you.
Nek'zali ports center and applies 5 stacks of Soulcoil Rite. Triggers 4 rapid Rites; Anguished Echoes spawn.
Call it: Each Ignition grants 25 energy — fourth cast hits 100 unless adds fed the well.
If targeted, run to the outside edge of the room. Healers: do not dispel until the player is at the wall — dispel leaves a Latent Cultist add.
Random players pulled toward Nek'zali, then flung away with a dispellable debuff.
Active tank runs directly away from the raid. Everyone else stays out of the path between boss and tank. Tank returns and picks up spawned adds.
Boss fires ghosts at the active tank. Damage scales with travel distance; ghosts spawn adds on impact.
Tanks swap at 5–6 stacks. Time swaps so the outgoing tank has max stacks right before Possession Barrage.
Melee attacks reduce healing received and deal shadow damage. Stacks on the active tank.
Kill the first Echo on one side, then the second on the opposite side. Cleave Restless Amani while focusing the active Echo.
At 50% Nek'zali becomes immune. Two Echoes of Jawae must die to end intermission.
Tank drags the active Echo onto corpse piles, then raid soaks Hungering Pyre on top of them. Heroic: ranged who skip soak use Slithering Flame to burn stray corpses.
Group soak on the active tank during intermission. Destroys corpse piles it hits.
Healers ramp for every Invoke. DPS ignore everything except killing the boss — energy still matters in Phase 2.
Phase 2 only. Applies Soulcoil Rite to everyone — stacks no longer fall off for the rest of the fight.
Do not let her reach 100 energy. In Phase 2, lust and burn — there is no recovery plan.
At 100 energy: +500% damage, +150% speed, taunt immune. Soft enrage.
As Nek'zali energizes the Soulcoil Well by invoking the Soulcoil Rite, she provokes the Restless Amani to the well. Upon reaching 50% health, Nek'zali retreats to begin the Ritual of Awakening. Destroying Echoes of Jawae removes their Tethers of Awakening and draws her back. Upon reaching full energy, she unwinds the Soulcoil and begins Uncoiling, empowering her with new abilities until her defeat.
From Blizzard's Encounter Journal (game data API). Ability tooltips via Wowhead.
