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The Exemplar is an enormous Cultist creature that you’ll need to defeat if you want to complete more advanced expeditions inDarkest Dungeon 2.Fighting this boss often turns into a race against time, as it can single out Heroes and bring them to Death’s Door with a few swings, or consume its allies to recover its own health.
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Like most of the bosses in DD2, the Exemplar will easily dispatch an unprepared party. If you know what to expect, though, and plan accordingly, even this otherworldy abomination will hold no terror for you.
Exemplar Overview
You’ll never be surprised by the Exemplar; it always attacks at theend of the final Region before the Mountainin a tier-three (Obsession) run. That means you’ll have plenty of time to get ready, just as you would for a Lair boss.
The Exemplar is a huge enemy,taking up three spaces in the enemy lineup.The fourth space starts occupied by an Altar, but will be filled with other Cultist enemies as the fight progresses. The Exemplar’s large size means you’ll almost always be able to hit it with attacks, regardless of its current position.
The Exemplar’s companion behaves like any other enemy of its type - Altars heal and buff, Evangelists attack, Cherubim apply debuffs, and so on.
Like other Cultist bosses, the Exemplar and its companion willslowly build up Worship tokensover the course of the fight, cashing them in for powerful effects. While it’s preparing, the Exemplar willsingle out a Hero using its Prelude attack, dealing damage and applying a Combo token to the target. Try to protect the targeted Hero before the Exemplar follows up with The Fall, a powerful attack that can easily deal upwards of twenty damage!
After using The Fall, the Exemplar will attempt tokill its companion using Pillar of Sacrifice.This provides the Exemplar withsix stacks of Regen, in addition to any it’s gained from its companion’s Worship. That’s more than enough to heal even a grievously-wounded Exemplar back to full if you let it!
When the Exemplar has two Worship tokens and its companion is dead, it will useExultation, dealing moderate damage to all Heroes and summoning a new Cultist to start the cycle over again.
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Exemplar Boss Fight Strategy
The best way to handle the Exemplar is tokill its companionbefore it has a chance to activate Pillar of Sacrifice. Try pulling the companion to the front so that you may target it withpowerful melee attacks, or use Skills like the Flagellant’sAcid Rainto hit it from the back while also applying damage-over-time effects to the Exemplar.
If the Exemplar doesn’t have a target for Pillar of Sacrifice, it will instead useRapturous Beautyto attack and debuff two Heroes. Taking damage this way might not be ideal, but it’s better than letting the boss recover the HP you’ve worked so hard to remove!
During your run,visit the Hoarder whenever you may.He often sells theShred Of Decency, a Combat Item that removes Worship tokens from Cultists. Stockpile and equip them right before the fight todelay the Exemplar from resurrecting its companion.
If your party includes a dedicated tank, have them use Taunt or Guarded tokens toprotect the Hero targeted by Prelude.Otherwise, you’ll have to use Block and Dodge to weather the storm as best you can.
Like most bosses, the Exemplar is easiest to defeat if you caninflict heavy stacks of Blight, Burn, and Bleed.The boss takes several turns each round, so the extra damage from those effects will provide greater and more reliable damage than even the most dedicated offense Hero. At best, you’ll be able to speed up the fight; at worst, you cannegate most or all of the Exemplar’s Regen.
