Blackmire 4 - Kivik Lir's Temple

Difficulty:  Survivable at the minimum, but requires at least half a fellowship
Level Restriction:  60-79, 80-99, 100+
Timer:  28 Days
Can be Solo'd?  No
Rewards:  Ancient Armored Leggings and your choice of jewelry or Fellowship Magic School Spell

The fourth installment in the Blackmire series is probably the longest, but it's certainly entertaining.

Step 1 - Preparation.  The fastest and easiest way to get to this dungeon is to use the Portal Device from the Blackmire 1 quest, the Kivik Lir portal.  That means you should gather at a mansion with the portal hooked - ours is located to the right on the patio.  If you can't use a Kivik Lir portal (because the quest is public or people don't have access to one), you can tie the Swamp Temple portal in the East Dires, just to the East of the Kivik Lir drop.  Once everyone has arrived, buff up - you will be fighting Burun Ruuk and Guruk, so you'll want to use a frost weapon, bane physicals and acid, and protect against everything.  When your group is buffed up, head to the WSW to the temple, located at 38.1S, 47.4W.  There are too many Burun guarding the structure, so you should have the team wipe out the opposition.  When everything is dead, jump down and use the Vine to enter the dungeon.  The drop is hot, but the Burun aren't terribly high level.

Step 2 - Blackened Blood.  From the drop, there are 4 paths - one in each direction.  Your job in this section is to assemble a glyph and the two pieces you want are located to the west and east.  Pick up a Fragment of Solidified Blood and Charred Wood and combine them to make the Glyph of Blackened Blood.  The respawn rate on the fragments is pretty quick, but if you're in a large group, you will still have a bit of a wait in front of you.  I'd suggest telling everyone to pick up one piece and then run to the other side.  Once everyone has the combined Glyph, form a line and have everyone give the glyph to the Guardian one at a time.  Don't bother talking to the Guardian - he will portal you even if you don't greet him first and if someone happens to greet him twice by accident, they will earn a quick trip to their lifestone.  When you turn in the glyph, you will be teleported into the next section.  It's very short and only serves to split you up into your separate teams.  The 100+ guardian is to the right, the mid-level guardian in the center, and the low level guardian to the left.  Use the guardian and enter the third dungeon.

Step 3 - Haven of Kivik Lir.  This dungeon is filled with Guruk and Ruuks - watch out for vulns and imperils.  From the drop, turn around and head out the path, turning immediately right.  You will make your way down a ramp - turn left immediately and then hug the left wall.  You will go down two more ramps into a large room.  Fight your way through and you will come to a ramp leading upwards.  This ramp leads into a large open room that is very dangerous.  Mages should imperil/vuln everything above you before entering the room.  Anyone who has a poor connection should wait until the room is clear before heading up the ramp.  Kill the spawns in the room and find the exits along the E and W walls.  Also find the two levers in the north part of the room.  Pick either east or west and hit both the levers, opening the doors in the halls.  Run back to the doors and get past them - if you don't make it, that's ok, as there are buttons just past the door.  You will now need to make your way through a small section of dagger traps.  Watch the timing of the spells and go slowly through this region.  Once you make it through the dagger traps, you will find yourself in a room above the room you just cleared.  There are 4 eyes and a portal device here.  Everyone needs to use all 4 eyes to be able to use the device.  They debuff you, but if you are fast, nothing will spawn and you can enter the portal device without a fight.

Step 4 - Trials of Kivik Lir.  Like the other Blackmire quests, it's time to pass the trials.  This time, the trials are a riddle, combat, and jumping.  Your first job is to have the leader of each fellowship use the Guardian in front of you.  If you or anyone else uses it a second time, you will all be ejected and have to do step 3 again.  Get 2 or 3 volunteers to help you out - you will do Step 4c and your other helpers will do Steps 4a and 4b.

Step 4a - Greater Arena of Kivik Lir.  Take a friend or two with you and head to the left from the drop point and greet the Guardian of the Arena twice.  It will teleport you into the Arena.  Here you will need to assemble an Emblem of Victory, crafted from a trophy from each of the three monsters inside - Ruuk Shamans, Guruk Titans, and Guruk Behemoths.  Kill until you have one of each and then combine the three.  This section can be quite dangerous, as the Ruuk war and vuln hard and the Guruk can beat the tar out of anyone who doesn't have substantial armor and melee defense.  When you have your completed emblem, use the statue at the drop point to return to the Trials.  Hang on to the emblem for now.

Step 4b - Bones and Urns.  Head down the East hallway this time and find the Eye of the Watcher (turn left at the dead end).  Greet it and it will ask you a riddle about bones and urns and give you a satchel.  The riddle is a trick question!  Head back and go straight through the first intersection to find a room full of bones.  Pick up one bone and add it to the satchel.  Again, hang on to the satchel for the moment.

Step 4c - Eye of the Heights.  Another jumping test, but this time, only one person needs to do it.  Head north out onto the ledge.  There are a lot of false images here, so doublecheck with the map.  Stand on the left edge and aim just to the right of the opening in the wall ahead of you.  Do a full power jump and you will land on an invisible platform.  Walk around into the wall just to the left and go through the small room.  The next jump is across toward the eye, but be careful to avoid the candles and the platform to the right.  Stand as far to the left of the opening as you can and try to aim for the middle of the section NE of you.  Use the eye here and make your way back.  Move to the edge of the platform and aim toward the opening to the SE.  Make a 1/4 power shift jump and you will  land on the L shaped platform in front of you.  Run along the platform and tap jump through the opening into another small room.  Pass through and make a full power jump back to the first ledge, avoiding the overhanging platform to the left.  You will also notice that by using the Eye, you've set a 15-minute timer off.  Once you are back at the guardian, have your friends give the Emblem to the Guardian of the Arena and the bones to the Eye of the Watcher.  Have the person who originally talked to the center Guardian talk again and you will be teleported into the next section.

If you fall in the Heights, head to the north and find the lever in the NW corner, which will open the door in the center of the north wall.  Take a right and follow the path up, ignoring all the turns.  You will come to a lever, which opens the door just ahead - make your way through the door and turn right.  You will be just above the jump room, so you can try again.

Step 5 - Triumph over the Trials.  This section is quick, but it's time for a rebuff.  You're almost to the boss, so buff your frost weapon, bane physicals and acid, and protect everything.  If you have a Burun-Slaying Weapon or Regal Weapon, this is an excellent time for it.  When everyone is done buffing, each person needs to use all 4 eyes in this small room and then hit the portal device.  Make sure no one moves from the drop, or you will prematurely irritate the boss and people will die.  When you arrive, dispel the debuffs you've taken.

Step 6 - Gallery of Kivik Lir.  Once everyone is inside and ready to go, it's time to fight Plocagruuk.  Plocagruuk is a Ruuk Burun guarded by a lot of high level Ruuks and Guruks.  Fortunately, you don't need to fight all of those guys.  When you are ready to fight, have your mages shoot off a flood of Frost Walls or Tusker Fists toward the far end of the room.  Aside from leveling most of the Burun screaming toward you, you will do substantial damage to the Barrier at the far end of the room.  The barrier won't take long to fall.  When it does, all the Burun except Plocagruuk will die.  Now have everyone run north and pass the spawn point of the Barrier.  Then focus your attacks on Plocagruuk.  He isn't particularly dangerous with all his friends gone, so you shouldn't have any trouble taking him out.  He does have some nasty tricks though, such as a spell that reduce your health by half and one that reduces all of your skills by half for a short time.  Watch your health if you take the half health spell.  Once he dies, go up the ramp revealed by destroying the barrier and use the Guardian there to be teleported into the rewards room.

Step 7 - Rewards.  As usual, there are two rewards per trip - Ancient Armor and another item.  This time, the Ancient Armor is leggings.  The other rewards are:

Manacle of Biting Pain (Bracelet):  -15 health, Web of Resistance, Vision Beyond the Grave (+3 Willpower, stackable with cantrips), Arcane 200+ to activate

Tears of Jvikti Kheval (Necklace):  Gift of the Fiazhat - increases maximum mana by 15, Eyes Beyond the Mist - increases creature magic by 3

Also, there are 5 Fellowship Spells:

Conjurant Chant - Creature Magic

Artificant Chant - Item Magic

Conveyic Chant - Mana Conversion

Hieromantic Chant - War Magic

Vitaeic Chant - Life Magic

If you did this quest with more than one fellowship, only the fellowship that killed Plocagruuk will be able to get the rewards.  Fortunately, you can easily solve this problem by checking to see which fellow did get the kill.  Have that fellowship line up and get both of their rewards first.  Once each person has their armor and bonus prize, have them drop out.  Meanwhile, the fellowship that didn't get the kill should disband.  Recruit the other fellowship as space becomes available and they will now be able to get their rewards.

One final note - the Sarcophagus of the High Matriarch has a nasty habit of casting two very crippling spells on you - one stops your regen rate entirely and the other reduces your natural armor by 200 points.  Both spells last 1 hour and cannot be dispelled.  The best solution to getting rid of this spell is to go PKL and have someone kill you.  You won't get vitae or lose items, but you will lose all the spells affecting you, positive and negative!