The Crimson Masquerade

**The Crimson Masquerade** is a 7-day bonus boss Campaign. Most of the 20 Missions have three stages, though some have two.

## Campaign Properties

The theme of Crimson Masquerade is Refreshing Brew spam. A few of the enemies will often use a modified Refreshing Brew skill that affects one enemy. Starting at Mission 3, some enemies will be tinted red and have increased stats and starting at Mission 8, some will have special skills.

Enemies with special skills:

* Evil Acolyte: Ray of Enfeeblement, single-target Refreshing Brew
* Ghoul: Fearsome Visage
* Vile Priest: Confuse, Healing Circle
* Covenant Guardian: Inspiration
* Undead Warlord: Shield Tactics
* Necromancer: Inflict Wounds that deals line damage
* Corrupted Inquisitor: Energy Drain (Necromancer Soul Skill), Avenge, single-target Refreshing Brew
* Vile Assassin: AoE Curse
* Vampire Thrall: Shadow Slash, Vampiric Touch (replaces its original skill set)
* Dark Fanatic: Vicious Strike (replaces Slash)
* Covenant Assassin: Regen every action, Vicious Strike (replaces Twin Strike)
* Vampire: Demon Shout, Vital Strike
* Lesser Lich: Disenchant (removes buffs from one party member), Fireball, Warcry
* Covenant Witch: Fireball, Hex, AoE Frost Bolt, single-target Refreshing Brew
* Shikar, Vampire Lord: Fear, AoE Demonfire, AoE Curse, regen every action (passive), Mass Dispel (soul)
* Ghoul (Mission 20): AoE Howl, Warcry, Bloodbath, regenerates health whenever damaged (passive), resets cooldowns of all active skills whenever damaged (passive)
* Covenant Guardian (Mission 20): Threaten, Warrior's Challenge, AoE Taunt, Overload, Block, Righteous Call
* Evil Acolyte (Mission 20): Spirit Rage, Haste, Crushing Fist
* Lesser Lich (Mission 20): Brood of Zaluss, Overload, Cloud of Weakness, Endless Pain, Wave of Death
* Necromancer (Mission 20): Healing Circle, Brood of Zaluss, Ball of Darkness, Acid Bolt
* Shikar, Vampire Lord (Mission 20): Curse, Fear, Demonfire, Overload, Summon Demon, Smite, immune to stuns (passive), Mass Dispel (soul)

## Strategy

### Mission 20 for players below 55 (by LordofKaon, adapted by The Mochinator):

**Barbarian**

**Spellsword -- Witch**

**Cleric**

 Spellsword
 Witch
 Cleric

**Enemy targeting order, from first to last:** Lesser Lich, Evil Acolyte, Necromancer, Dragon Minion, Covenant Guardian, Ghoul, Shikar

Only the most well-equipped heroes can beat this Mission without Tier 2 gear. All heroes must have 7 stars, and most gear pieces must be enchanted to a decently high level. The run may also require good RNG with respect to crits and dodges. If you have everything you need but still can't beat the stage, you may have to keep trying until you get a lucky run.

Witch needs an immediate Immune potion after the first two hits in order to survive the Crushing Fists while Warding Spirits builds up. (If one of the first two hits kills her, reset immediately.) Revive and Soul potions are also recommended; save them for the final Stage.

Use Barbarian's soul skill to debuff the defense of enemies, and then whittle them down to nothing with the rest of your attacks. Witch's Vile Brew is vital for self-healing and can deal bonus damage, so use it frequently. Always dispel attack bonuses right before Crushing Fists is used; dispelling taunts is also very important. Resurrect whenever needed. When it comes to attacking the Ghouls, make absolutely certain that you use Baleful Glare or Vile Brew *immediately after* you attack it with a normal skill. This allows you to get two attacks (and the debuff or heal) for the price of only one Ghoul skill cycle.

### First Mission 20 strategy for level 55s (by Midge):

**Druid**

**Spellsword -- Barbarian**

**Cleric**

 Spellsword
 Barbarian
 Cleric

Druid's soul skill should be used for additional and more controllable healing, but be careful about Shikar's Mass Dispel in the final Stage. Use the same enemy targeting order as above. Note that the Ghouls' passives are not triggered by Mass Dispel.

### Mission 20 for well-geared level 55s (by LordofKaon):

**Spellsword**

**Warmaster -- Barbarian**

**Druid**

 Warmaster
 Barbarian
 Druid

Use all 4 soul skills whenever possible, but prioritize Rapid Regeneration and Shield Tactics. Use the same enemy targeting order as above. Be cautious with Barbarian's Weapon Throw, as you want to make sure it doesn't hit any of the Ghouls unless they are the only enemies left on the field. Leave the middle Dragon Minion alive and take out the flanking Dragon Minions so that you have a target to redirect Weapon Throw to without hitting the Ghouls.

### Alternate level 55 strategy (by Beatific):

**Spellsword**

**Pirate -- Barbarian**

**Cleric**

 Pirate
 Barbarian
 Cleric

Once again, take advantage of Barbarian's defense debuff and then attack each enemy one at a time. Pirate surprisingly helps a lot by dealing ranged true damage via his soul skill and active skill, as well as providing a bit of extra resistances. Use the same enemy targeting order as above. Revive whenever necessary, and Dispel frequently. It's recommended that you focus Cleric's heals on the backline (especially herself) and simply revive Barbarian instead of using heals on her.

### Mission 19 for high level 40s and early level 50s:

**Druid**

**Mystic -- Blackguard**

**Cleric**

 Mystic
 Blackguard
 Cleric

**Target the red Covenant Witches first**. Use Doom to increase the damage they take and then kill them off with Entangle, Soul Rend, and Tendril of Shadow. Activate Rapid Regen if your heroes are half health or below, and Resurrect if anyone dies. On later levels, it's recommended that you bring a revive potion in case your Cleric dies as well as a soul potion in case your soul energy is being drained too much by Resurrects and Rapid Regens. However, they are not required.

This team should work on every stage up to and including 19 Extreme.

### The forever strategy (by Valkrysseurs) on Mission 18 (might work for 17 too) for mid level 40 players:

**Druid**

**Warmaster -- Paladin**

**Cleric**

On Mission 18, you can use Cleric/Druid backline with a Warmaster/Paladin frontline.

Must have: Shield of Valor/Commanding Aura/Heavy Bash/Call to arms/Battle Fury on Warmaster; Block/Holy Shield/Avenge on Paladin

Focus mainly on enemies with Refreshing Brew then the ones with Disenchant. The Paladin might kill some enemies with Avenge, but Warmaster will one-shot most of the enemies. Just spam Warmaster's Shield Tactics and use Rapid Regeneration once right before Fireball or as soon as your heroes start to be too low in health.

The strategy is more efficient with Warmaster alone frontline if he is able to withstand the damage (mine was only 6\* but worked fine on extreme).