Tuesday, June 02, 2020
Yer a wizard, Evoker.
In Mojang Studios' franchise-expanding ARPG Minecraft Dungeons, there are a total of eight bosses. Four of these bosses are weaker "mini-bosses" that may appear in a multitude of places throughout, and the other four are stronger "main bosses" that only show up at pre-determined locations. In this Minecraft Dungeons guide series, we'll go over each and every boss, their strategies and attack patterns, how to fight them, and ultimately the best ways to come out on top in every battle, even on Apocalypse Difficulty.
The first mini-boss in the game is the evoker. Here's everything you need to know.
What is the evoker in Minecraft Dungeons?
Evokers aren't new to the Minecraft universe. Many people aren't familiar with them, because they're extremely rare, only showing up in a few different places. They're an illager-type hostile mob that has near-magical abilities and are truly effective if they catch their target off guard with their powerful attacks.
In Dungeons, the first boss you'll face picks up a couple of extra tricks, making them a pretty great introduction to boss battles in the dungeon-crawling title. Evokers are fairly predictable, and a multitude of different strategies can be effective against them.
An evoker's first ability is summoning little minions that fly around the map. These minions don't have a ton of health, or cause a lot of damage, but they can hamper your movement and whittle your health down at the same. Next, evokers have devastating pincer-like traps they can summon from the ground to crush you. These traps will either be summoned in a frontal assault, or summoned in a wide circle surrounding the evoker, depending on the situation.
If simply knowing how an evoker attacks is enough for you to take them on, then you're set. Otherwise, read on to learn the best strategies to use against evokers, no matter the difficulty.
How can I beat the evoker in Minecraft Dungeons?
An evoker's biggest weakness is quite simply its rather specific range. Evokers aren't effective in close combat, lacking any semblance of a melee attack, and they're primary attack, while potent in its power, has a very limited distance in which it's effective. Finally, while an evoker's minions can go wherever they want (giving them practically infinite range), they aren't that dangerous on their own. These limitations open up evokers to attacks from almost any kind of player.
Melee-focused players
Melee-focused players might be initially intimidated by an evoker's terrifying pincer attack, and rightfully so. These attacks do a ton of damage, especially at higher levels, so unless you're set up with major mitigators like damage reduction (provided by artifacts like the Iron Hide Amulet and Gong of Weakening) or powerful healing abilities (provided by enchantments like Radiance and Life Steal), you'll want to avoid these attacks.
However, even an evoker's frontal assault attack is actually relatively easy to dodge. There is a gap between the evoker and its summoning attack, giving nimble players an opening to attack. Evokers aren't particularly fast to move, either, so it's not hard to simply walk around evokers when they're trying to attack and watch the pincers clash on empty air right next to you.
Melee can be time-consuming against an evoker though since you'll need to constantly watch for those pincer attacks. Evokers aren't known for their fortitude, so artifacts that focus on damage output like the Death Cap Mushroom are awesome. Evokers also know their weaknesses, and generally will try and stay away from you. Enchantments like Gravity on your weapons can do a lot to keep an evoker close and prevent it from getting away.
Range-focused players
Due to an evoker's very limited range, fighting one with a bow is one of the easiest routes to take. You can nearly feel the frustration emitting from an evoker as it desperately spams pincer attacks in your direction, only for them to end a harmless distance away. An evoker's only defense against ranged players are their minions, which are easy to deal with as long as you pay attention.
Minions by themselves aren't that big of a threat, but you shouldn't let them build up. They can make it more difficult to move, and over time or with numbers can do some serious damage. Take a moment to clear out minions as they come, taking advantage of area-of-effect attacks like the Fireworks Arrow artifact and your melee weapon. Evokers have no limit to how many times they can summon minions, but they won't do it in rapid succession, which gives you plenty of time to attack in return.
Damage increasing artifacts, like the Flaming Quiver are fantastic options for any range-focused player, increasing your damage and giving you some extra arrows as well. Just make sure you go into the fight with plenty of arrows, since you're unlikely to get drops for an evoker's minions.
Souls-focused players
Players that primarily use souls for offense and defense will find evokers one of the easier bosses to fight. Some bosses don't summon or create mobs to help them in battle, but the evoker can summon minions that can help players refill and harvest souls as they fight. This in turn lets you lose powerful abilities against an evoker.
Artifacts are the centerpiece of any souls-focused players, and artifacts like the Corrupted Beacon are incredibly effective against slower, range-orientated bosses like evokers, as it deals a ton of damage at a distance. Artifacts like the Torment Quiver are also useful for souls-focused players that prefer a cautious approach, allowing you to turn your souls into ammunition against evokers.
Evokers don't have any real defense against players that use souls, but make sure you don't stay in place for too long and accidentally come within range of an evoker, as souls-focused players typically aren't very sturdy against attacks. Weapons enchanted with Soul Siphon are also useful here, for when your opponent hasn't summoned any new minions in a while.
Companion-focused players
Using companions in Minecraft Dungeons is fun, but one of the trickier builds to use in a fight. Battling an evoker is no different, as companions aren't smart enough to avoid an evoker's pincer attack, and it's still a little too difficult to buff and heal companions and pets in battle.
This depends more on your combination of companions than anything. Players that rely more on llamas than anything will likely be okay, always being buffed with ranged support no matter what approach you take. Players that use wolves or iron golems might struggle a little bit more, which is why enchantments like Radiant Shot on your bow (preferably a bow that allows you to direct your companions, like the Hunting Bow) are a huge help.
If you're a melee-focused player that uses companions, things open up a bit more for you. Enchantments like Radiance and artifacts like Iron Hide Amulet actually buff your companions as well as you, so as long as your pets stick close to you, you can usually keep them healthy while they work on your opponent's health.
What are some tips for every boss fight in Minecraft Dungeons?
Every boss is different, and every player approaches these bosses in a unique way. However, there are always tips and tricks that work in any fight in Minecraft Dungeons, regardless of how you play. Here's a list of all the essential tips for every boss fight, which should aid you in winning even on Apocalypse Difficulty.
- Choose your playstyle, and build your loadout around that. Minecraft Dungeons gives you a constant revolving door of new loot to try out, meaning you should be able to narrow down the direction you want to go in. Different gear compliments each other (like dual-wielding weapons with fast armor, or a bow with armor that increases arrow drops), so you can customize a perfect set for how you want to play. To get ahead of the curve, read up on our lists of weapons and armor.
- Artifacts are essential for any player. No matter how you decide to play, artifacts are the special sauce that exponentially increases your capability in Minecraft Dungeons. There's a good variety to experiment with, from artifacts that are clearly aimed at certain players, to more niche ones that players will find creative uses for. It's always a good idea to keep at least one of each artifact so you can test new combinations as you go, but you can also read our comprehensive list of artifacts.
- Unique gear takes things to the next level. Where things truly get interesting in the later game is using unique weapons and armor to augment your loadout. These unique weapons possess attributes and characteristics that set them apart from the standard gear they're related to, giving you an extra ability on top of what you can add with artifacts and enchantments. Uniques can truly narrow down what you're going with, whether it's the ultimate battle mage, or a super-nippy rogue that heals as they shred their opponents. Here's a list of all the unique gear to get you started.
- Not all weapons are created equal, and enchantments are the difference. Finally, enchantments on your gear are the final push that takes you from "capable" to "everything is exploding and I heal five times a second." You get enchantment points as you level up, so you should always be spending these points to make your gear even better. These enchantments are pseudo-random, as well, so even two identical pieces of gear can have completely different enchantments. Make sure to check these constantly, as a weapon with different enchantments or an extra slot can overhaul your entire loadout in one fell swoop. Here's a list of all the enchantments to get you started.
- Keep moving, and use the "Dash / Dodge" button wisely. It's important to keep moving in Minecraft Dungeons, to prevent enemies from surrounding or pinning you down. It also helps to avoid some of the more devastating attacks, especially from big bosses. Dungeons also gives you a dash that lets you roll out of trouble once every few seconds, which can be crucial in a fight. Use this button wisely, as you can't spam it and you'll have a temporary period of slow down immediately afterwards.
- Don't hesitate to retreat, if necessary. Minecraft Dungeons is not particularly liberal with their health potions, forcing you to wait a not-insignificant amount of time between health top-ups. If you're in a tough fight, there's nothing wrong with backing up to wait for your next health potion to come in, or to allow your artifacts to cooldown for another use. To this end, the dash button can help you evade immediate danger and give you a chance to retreat.
On to the next fight
The evoker is the first boss you'll come to face in Minecraft Dungeons, but it certainly won't be the last. A total of four mini-bosses and four main bosses means you'll need to stay on your toes and constantly evaluate the tactics of your opponents. Mini-bosses can pop up at any time, too, even in the middle of a tough fight, so mastering different ways to fight them is a big part of surviving until the next fight. It, ah, evokes a sense of determination, doesn't it?
Not your average Minecraft
Minecraft Dungeons
$20 at Best Buy (Xbox One) $30 at Best Buy (Xbox One Hero Edition) $20 at Best Buy (Windows)
Minecraft grows up and and reaches out.
Minecraft Dungeons is the next saga in Minecraft's story, and it looks like Mojang and Microsoft are hitting another one out of the park. Minecraft Dungeons combines the familiar world we all grew up on with an injection of Diablo, a whole lot of fun. Available on every platform you're on, for a ridiculously tempting price, what's not to love?
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