Drycrown the Ancient, Sleeping Protector: how to beat

Drycrown the Ancient, Sleeping Protector — dungeon “The Blighted Sanctum (East Wing — Prison of the Ancients)”, level 36. The deck: phases, turn cycle,…

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Dungeon The Blighted Sanctum (East Wing — Prison of the Ancients), boss 1 of 4, level 36.

The boss plays its own deck: every turn it plays the next line of its phase’s cycle, with no randomness. Learn the cycle and you know what is coming. The numbers on this page are the same as in the card tooltip in combat: before Hardiness and Defender’s Stance. Mechanics in detail — Boss mechanics.

In short

Modes: Heroic (at level 60), Normal (at the place’s level, 36–46), Keystone +10 (Mythic+, at level 60).
2 phases, 7 cards in the deck. Schools: 🌿 Nature 4, ⛰ Earth 1, 🩸 Blood 1, ⚔ Physical 1.
“Damp from the Roots” cold: every enemy turn, everyone through shields — heroic 700, keystone +10 580 to each before Hardiness. No cold in normal mode.
“Cracking Branch” test strike — on boss turns 7 and 15: heroic 7,000, keystone +10 8,000; 40% weaker with a defensive card on yourself.
The heaviest hit is “Cracking Branch”: heroic 7,000, keystone +10 8,000.

Phases and turn cycle

The phase changes with the boss’s Health. In each phase the boss goes round its own cycle: at the end it starts again. The boss’s next turn shows on its portrait.

1. “Asleep” — from the start of the fight

Down to 35% Health.

Cycle step	What the boss plays
1	🌿 Vine from the Floor + 🌿 Dry Branch
2	🌿 Dry Branch
3	🌿 Vine from the Floor + 🌿 Dry Branch + 🌿 Drinks Ink
4	⛰ Creak
5	⚔ The Trunk Cracked

2. “It Woke Up” — below 35% Health

Below 35%: vines every turn, angrier.

On entering the phase the boss plays at once: 🩸 It Woke Up.

Cycle step	What the boss plays
1	🌿 Vine from the Floor + 🌿 Dry Branch
2	🌿 Vine from the Floor + 🌿 Drinks Ink
3	🌿 Vine from the Floor + ⛰ Creak
4	⚔ The Trunk Cracked + 🌿 Dry Branch

The “Cracking Branch” test strike is not part of the cycle: the boss announces it on its turns 6 and 14 and hits on turns 7 and 15.

Cards and numbers

The number is what a hit takes before Hardiness (through shields — from Health only), how much the boss heals itself, the shield it puts up, a minion’s Health. A dash means the card is not in that mode or has no number. Keystone: +10 numbers; hits are the same from +7 to +9 and weaker per level below +7.

Card	What it does	Heroic	Normal	Keystone +10	How to answer
🌿 Cracking Branch · Nature, test strike	A test strike on whoever holds the boss’s attention (usually the tank). The boss announces it on its own, outside the cycle, and hits on its 7th and 15th turn; one turn before, there is a countdown on the portrait and a warning above your hand. The target plays a defensive card on themselves before the hit — it is 40% weaker. Not in normal mode. Through shields.	7,000 · with a defensive card 4,200	—	8,000 · with a defensive card 4,800	Test strike, one turn of warning. The tank plays a defensive card, the healer tops him up in advance.
🌿 Dry Branch · Nature, hit	A hit on whoever holds the boss’s attention (usually the tank).	2,350	600	4,100	A plain hit.
🌿 Vine from the Floor · Nature, summon with a task	Summons “Vine”. While it lives, it covers the boss: damage to the boss ×0.5.	Health 590 · hits 71	Health 50 · hits 18	Health 2,460 · hits 123	While at least one vine stands, damage to the tree is halved. They are flimsy: cut them.
🌿 Drinks Ink · Nature, self-heal	Heals itself.	heals 1,100	heals 90	heals 4,600	Heals himself for 1,100 (heroic) / 90 (normal) / 4,600 (keystone +10).
⛰ Creak · Earth, charge	A charge: in 1 turn it hits everyone, the number is for each. Shields hold half, ignores 50% of Hardiness.	776	132	902	One turn of warning. Half through shields at everyone.
⚔ The Trunk Cracked · Physical, opening: more damage to the boss	The boss is open: damage to it ×1.3 for 2 turns.	—	—	—	+30% damage for 1 party turn if there are no vines.
🩸 It Woke Up · Blood, boss empower	The boss’s hits ×1.15 until the fight ends.	—	—	—	Stronger by 15% until the fight ends.

“Damp from the Roots” cold

The walls of the book vault are wet from the roots. So are the books.

Heroic: 700 to each per enemy turn, before Hardiness.
Keystone +10: 580 to each per enemy turn, before Hardiness.
Hits every fighter in the party through shields; Hardiness reduces it — better gear takes less.
The answer is healing every turn: shields do not stop cold. Healer cards do it best — they heal Health only.
No cold in normal mode.

Test strike

“Cracking Branch” — on boss turns 7 and 15, through shields, on whoever holds the boss’s attention (usually the tank). On heroic, while the party’s tank is alive, it goes to the tank. Not in normal mode.
Heroic: 7,000 before Hardiness; 4,200 if the target answered with a defensive card.
Keystone +10: 8,000 before Hardiness; 4,800 if the target answered with a defensive card.
One turn before the hit there is a countdown on the portrait and a warning above your hand. The target plays a defensive card on themselves: a self-shield, damage reduction or “cannot be killed”. A card someone else plays on the target does not count.

Enrage

Heroic: from party turn 40, every boss turn is 4% stronger, and it stacks.
Normal: as before — if the fight drags on past its expected length, the boss hits harder every turn.
Keystone +10: as before — if the fight drags on past its expected length, the boss hits harder every turn.

Roles

Tank

The “Cracking Branch” test strike lands on the boss’s 7th and 15th turn (heroic and keystone +10). One turn before, play a defensive card on yourself — a self-shield, damage reduction or “cannot be killed”: the hit becomes 40% weaker. Keep such a card in hand for those turns.
Shields do not stop this hit: the healer tops up your Health before it.
“Dry Branch” hits you. Keep Taunt on rhythm: while the boss hits the tank, the rest stay whole. The heaviest is “Dry Branch” (“Asleep” phase, cycle step 1).
Do not fall: on heroic, mythic and in keystones, without a living tank the boss’s hits on its focus go through shields. A resident can be the tank too.

Healer

“Damp from the Roots” cold hits everyone through shields every enemy turn: heroic — 700, keystone +10 — 580 to each before Hardiness. Heal everyone every turn; healer cards do it best — they heal Health only.
“Creak” hits everyone. Before that turn, get everyone above half Health; it goes half through shields: shields hold half, the rest hits Health.
“It Woke Up”: the boss hits harder — keep crystals and heals in reserve for those turns.

Damage dealers

“Vine” covers the boss: while it lives, damage to the boss ×0.5. Kill it first.
“The Trunk Cracked”: the boss is open and takes more damage — save your strong cards for that turn.
“Drinks Ink”: the boss heals itself — keep the pace up.
Do not drag it out: heroic — enrage from turn 40.

The heaviest hits

“Cracking Branch” — test strike, through shields.
“Dry Branch” — on the tank; “Asleep” phase, cycle step 1.
“Creak” — on everyone, half through shields, ignores 50% of Hardiness; “Asleep” phase, cycle step 4.

Loot

All of the boss’s loot with rough drop chances is in the item atlas; rules and items by boss are on the The Blighted Sanctum (East Wing — Prison of the Ancients) page.

Next boss — Rotbloom the Sporeling, Devourer of Roots.

All bosses of the place — The Blighted Sanctum (East Wing — Prison of the Ancients). Rules of a fight against a boss with a deck — How to beat: every boss.