Challenge Mode Noobs - Took a long time to brew this Silver!

Desperate to do ANYTHING except Scarlet Monastery, some weeks ago I suggested to the other Challenge Mode Noobs we do Stormstout Brewery.  It was painful the first few times we did it, ages ago and we hadn't gone back, but I figured any time we got would be an improvement on what we had before.

The first time we tried it, Lush wasn't there - he was sick with that lingering cold that seems to be upon many of us this winter.  Even I still have it and it's been more than a month.  It was a difficult time because you really need some consistency when you're trying things again and again, and though we got Moopie in for a go, he could only stay for one attempt and then we had Xyn come and had to teach all over again.  Sev came a few times and last week Lush was better so we went and tackled it again.  But Luxy, Arv and I were pleased when Lush came back and we had our 4 regular CMNs again.

The first boss, Ook-Ook isn't really an issue.  However, what we didn't know was that killing the little neutral spirits in the first trash room reduced the health of the trash mobs by half.  That saved time.

I'm so cute and neutral... but kill me anyway!  Poor little elemental!

Also, Sev noted that the barrels in the next trash room could be detonated and wipe out the mobs.  Arv tends to like to charge in like a pain in the ass hero and Sev started running ahead of Arv to blow up the barrels before Arv could pull the whole room and wipe us LOL.

Hit me hit me!  But don't stand near me...

We had to keep an eye out for the exploding hoplings in the gauntlet because more often than not, that would kill us.  You can't invis that bit because they can see you, and I just ended up loading Arv up with hots and then we'd get a roar and run.  Once we got to the door of Hoptallus' platform I'd displacer to the far end, blow the annoying little rodents back and then cast a tranq.  Often meant that my mana was a bit screwed for the fight, but if we got our hammers ok and got rid of the exploding ones during the boss fight and not get hit by things like carrot breath, then we'd go ok and it would die.  We had a few where we'd wipe on that and need to reset.

But it was Yan-Zhu which is the BIGGEST PAIN.  Trying to block each healing little elemental could be a little hit or miss!  Just one heal for one second would stuff up the whole thing and we'd miss it.  We would get to Yan-Zhu with at least 6-7 minutes left on the silver timer and then get screwed by healing from the adds. We only had one really good attempt in earlier times where we didn't get the adds healing (but by then we'd already wiped on it so we were in bronze times) but it was what was stuffing our silver up every attempt.

Luckily, last weekend we managed to get it!  Lush was going to go on his monk, but she hadn't done Brewery on heroic so we couldn't and Lush came on his boomkin.  It didn't take him long to catch up on the strats and when we got Yan-Zhu we were all packed in nice and close (except me - I got knocked back by Arv's bloat) and I even took Heart of the Wild for that part just so I could help DPS for 15 seconds when the bloodlust went off.  Not that my DPS did much LOL.  But we did it!

Gold... well I dunno how we're gonna get that.  Maybe not with me healing.

So 3 more silvers for Luxy, Lush and myself before we get the whole shabang.  Hopefully Sev doesn't mind being dragged in for CMN runs.  Oh and you can also read Arv's version and Luxy's version.

Mini Luxy, Mini Arv, and Mini Navi, standing with giant Lush and giant Sev.  Gotta love that Shrinka!

I have a bad feeling but I think it might be time for Scarlet Monastery again (/covers ears to muffle the groans from Lushnek and Luxy).