How to beat Nezarec final boss in Root of Nightmares raid in Destiny 2

After much waiting and anticipation, Destiny 2's Lightfall expansion has launched, and with it comes the Root of Nightmares raid. Within this raid are four encounters, each featuring different bosses and mechanics. The final boss, Nezarec the Final God of Pain, has proven to be a great challenge to many players because of his unique mechanics. Due to this, players have had trouble finishing the raid, and thus cannot claim the spicy loot to be found on the end boss. Below you can find the mechanics for the Nezarec boss fight so that you can make mincemeat of this disciple of the Witness.

Destiny 2 Nezarec boss fight mechanics

Chaining nodes together

The first and most important mechanic in Nezarec's fight is the node mechanic that is present for most of the raid. This mechanic requires the group to designate one or two players as the chainer, designated as such due to their role. The chainer will be responsible for connecting nodes together by shooting the seed within them and gaining either the Flux of Darkness or Field of Light buff. The buff received is determined by whether the seed is light or dark.

After shooting a seed and acquiring a buff, the chainer needs to run to whichever node has a glowing light within it, as this is the node that the chain will be connected with. To complete the chain, the chainer must run into the node and shoot the floating sphere within it.

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After completing a chain, the chainer must then repeat the process by finding the node with a glowing light all around it, as this node will contain one of the buffs required to begin another chain. Once the new node is reached, the process will be the same, with the chainer shooting the seed, finding the next glowing node, and chaining it to the buff node. This cycle will continue throughout encounters usually until the encounters are finished, requiring the chainer to fully focus on this task rather than fighting.

In Nezarec's fight, two chainers are required due to the two sets of nodes as well as the fight-specific mechanics. One chainer should chain the dark nodes that give Flux of Darkness, while another should stay with the light nodes that give Field of Light. Chainers and tanks must coordinate with one another, as Nezarec's wipe mechanic is connected to the nodes. Specifically, whichever tank has Nezarec's attention needs to shoot one of the boss' shoulders.

The shoulder will explode into either a white or orange light, with white indicating the dark chainer needs to go to a completed light node and orange indicating the light chainer needs to go to a completed dark node. At these nodes, the chainer will need to turn it into a safe zone. This safe zone will be used by the group to avoid the wipe mechanic before the chainers get back to completing the chains. Upon completing the chains, an orange light will pierce Nezarec, indicating the start of the damage phase.

Nezarec's Hatred debuff

The debuff Nezarec's Hatred is the indication of who Nezarec is targeting currently. Hopefully, this debuff will be on one of the group's tanks. More importantly, this debuff will eventually wear off, requiring an aggro swap where the off tank will need to attack Nezarec to get the debuff and become the target. To draw aggro, a tank needs to shoot Nezarec's chest. Before this happens, the current tank needs to shoot one of Nezarec's shoulders so that the chainer can perform their role described above.

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Other enemies

At the beginning of the fight and throughout, multiple Colossus enemies will spawn and attempt to bring down the group, especially the chainers. It is the job of the remaining group members to clear these enemies so that the tanks and chainers can perform their assignments. On another note, be sure not to damage Nezarec, as he cannot be hurt during the chaining phase and you will draw his attention if shot in the chest.

Damage phase

The damage phase begins when each chainer has completed the chains and will be indicated by Nezarec being struck by an orange light. At this point, everyone needs to turn towards Nezarec and unload everything they've got on the boss to deal as much damage as possible within the window. When the damage phase ends, the chainer's cycle begins and more enemies will enter the area, so everyone needs to get ready for another cycle of mechanics.

Want more information on Destiny 2? Check out Best Hunter Void Build in Destiny 2 Lightfall and How to complete NODE.OVRD.AVALON Secret Exotic Mission in Destiny 2 from Pro Game Guides!