Daimon



'"Slave to a broken order... dare you look upon the truth?" '
 * -Daimon's Awakened Form

Daimon is the final boss in Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen. He is located in the deepest level of the Bitterblack Isle dungeon.

The Daimon is an Arisen from an age long past, who refused the choice given to him by the Dragon. In return, the Dragon transformed him into this foul creature gone mad with despair at the loss of his pawn lover.

It is believed this evil entity was born out of the past Arisen's hatred towards the destiny imposed to him. This monster nurtured from these ill thoughts for centuries, feeding itself from its host as well as the unfortunate Arisens who met their doom in this dungeon. The only thing he needed to be free was someone powerful enough to separate him from Daimon, allowing it to become an independent being. It is the reason why Bitterblack island is still covered in an ominous shroud and the stench of death continues to loom all over the place.

Its true strength is unknown.

Given the amount of corrupted thoughts it has consumed, it could be depicted as the embodiment of mankind's chaos; human's desire to end the infinite cycle.

Description
Despite its size and bulk, Daimon is a powerful and agile fighter with potent spell casting and brute force. He will use tactics to lure the party into disarray, which makes him a tough opponent. He is resilient to physical and magical attacks; his head is his weakest spot. Halfway through battle, Daimon will begin to alter his rhythm, casting deadly combinations of magic that may deal serious damage to the Arisen and Pawns. He performs his special move more than once during battle which can drastically change the course of the battle.

Daimon's First Form
When first approached, The Fallen City carries an eerie quietness within its inner limits. As the Arisen travels through it, there's little danger of enemy attack. At the end of the City is a large door, behind which Daimon waits. Once the door is opened, Arisens are prohibited from leaving and cannot use a Liftstone to exit. Daimon must be defeated in order to leave or choose to return to the player's last checkpoint save. Once Daimon is defeated, many significant changes are made throughout Bitterblack Isle, including enemy spawn locations and loot from chests.

''Note: Entering Daimon's chamber and then exiting after the initial story-line defeat will cause enemies to spawn in the City, including Corrupted Pawns and Strigoi. Bloodred Crystals and Strigoi Barb crafting components can be found here.''

Daimon's Awakened/Second Form
Entering the Sanctum after unlocking the whole of Bitterblack Isle, the voice of Daimon appears to be more ominous. As the battle continues for a second time, it appears as though the fight is identical to that of the first encounter, or so it would seem... Once Daimon's hit points are depleted instead of a victory, a second form is created within Daimon. Daimon's second form shows up after resonating with the Arisen's heart. A head sprouts and takes form out of Daimon's main body. Its new head resembles that of The Dragon but deformation has given it an eerily human shape. Barroch defines it as something grievous and dark which bears a stink worse than the dragon itself. In this Awakened Form, the battle becomes more profound. He is very resilient to and uses various magical attacks of greater potency. The difficulty of Daimon's second form can abated as the Arisen and Pawns become higher leveled with powerful skills and are better equipped.

Enemy Drops (Upon Defeat of Daimon)

 * Daimon's Claw
 * Daimon's Horn
 * Vile Wakestone
 * Bitterblack Gear Lv.3
 * Bitterblack Novelty Lv.3 (Semi-rare)
 * Bitterblack Weapon Lv.3 (Rare)
 * Bitterblack Armor Lv.3 (Very rare) (But almost always dropped when killed on first encounter) Verify

Treasure Chest Room (Upon Defeat of Daimon)
Chest #1
 * Bitterblack Weapon Lv.2
 * Bitterblack Armor Lv.2 (Rare)
 * Bitterblack Weapon Lv.3 (2nd encounter with Daimon and absurdly rarely on 1st (don't waste your time using Godsbane))

Chest #2
 * Moonbeam Gem

Chest #3
 * Bitterblack Novelty Lv.3
 * Bitterblack Armor Lv.3 (2nd encounter with Daimon)

Chest #4
 * Bitterblack Armor Lv.3 (possible on first encounter with Daimon)
 * Bitterblack Gear Lv.3 (possible on first encounter with Daimon)
 * Bitterblack Novelty Lv.3 (2nd encounter with Daimon)


 * Note: Aside from Chest #2, all of the chests can contain Rift Crystals instead of what's listed above.

Tactics

 * Daimon can be "farmed" indefinitely without the use of a bed or a resting bench, but you cannot place a Portcrystal near the entrance of the fight. The Rotwood Depository entrance from Bitterblack Isle is the shortest way to Daimon, assuming you have already beaten Daimon's second form once already.
 * At the start of the fight, a Goldforged Rusted Bow or Rusted Longbow is VERY effective against the first Daimon form to slow him down (Torpor) and poison him. You can then switch to another bow or climb him easily. The higher the enhancement of the bow, the greater the chance of inflicting Torpor and Poison.
 * Daimon's second form, however can be poisoned but NOT slowed down (Torpor) by a Rusted weapon.
 * Thousand Kisses or Dire Gouge (Assassin) with the Adhesion, Arm-Strength, Opportunism, Clout, Vehemence augments, and Gloves of Might are the fastest way to kill the Daimon's first and second forms if you climb onto his back (BEHIND the chest face) and slash away. From this position, if he tries to burn/shrug you off, you can time your jumps to avoid the attack and quickly re-grab his back. You can also knock him out of his Abyssal Vortex attack from this position and kill him in SECONDS if you are powerful enough.
 * Remember to have Stamina curatives like Staminal Drench, Ambrosial Meat, Mushroom Potage, or Giant Fish on hand in case your stamina runs low while you are on the Daimon's back. Liquid Vim is also very useful, and is a common drop from The Everfall (post-Dragon).
 * Use the Proficiency, Endurance and Potential augments if you have a low stamina character build.


 * A number of curatives can be found throughout the battlefield. A Wakestone and a Godly Analeptic can be found near the throne in case the situation demands it.


 * Death Grab is always made with his right hand and can be dodged by running towards his left arm. While not very damaging, avoiding it can help to conserve restoratives. In Hard mode, this grab can be quite lethal like his other attacks.
 * Daimon's hand will glow blue before he charges. Players can pay attention to this in order to avoid this attack easily.


 * The shots generated by Hate Cannon can be avoided by hiding behind the various pillars (not guaranteed), the rubble of them if they've been destroyed, by standing behind the rubble Daimon uses as a throne, or by standing directly beneath Daimon. Be forewarned that he can damage players upon landing.
 * Daimon's signature ability, the Rift Vortex, will continuously draw the Arisen and their party towards it. Getting caught in the vortex will cause either death for the Arisen or send pawns back to the Rift. Luckily this attack can easily be interrupted by staggering him via focusing ranged attacks to the head. Attacking him will cause him to curl up into the air and float close to the ground. Continue attacking during this state will stun him for about 20 seconds and take increased damage during this time.
 * Specifically, the Rift Vortex attack seems to be triggered by specific amounts of Health loss and not just losing a lot in a short amount of time. It generally triggers twice - first around when he has lost 3 dots (bars) of Health, and the second when he has 2 dots (3 bars) of Health left. If he is cut down to 3 dots of Health during the "stagger" period from being staggered during the first Vortex, then it triggers randomly.
 * The Awakened Form version, the Abyssal Vortex, is incredibility deadly and usually spells defeat for pawns. It has a very large area of effect and is highly recommended to bring Stamina curatives in order to keep up with the effect.


 * Players can interrupt the Rift Vortex prematurely by striking the head.
 * Ranged Vocations, such as Striders and Assassins, can use a well placed Fracture Dart or Terrible Bend to end Daimon's Rift Vortex, respectively.
 * Melee Vocations can climb and cling on to the head when the Rift Vortex starts. Attacking will interrupt the attack, if enough damage is done.
 * Daimon is capable of casting Bolide and then perform the Dive Bomb attack at a target. This can cause targets to be launched into the air and then be continuously struck by the meteors.


 * Daimon is also capable of using an explosive version of Immolation for a brief moment so as to blast away any players climbing it. Shield-welding Vocations can avoid this by jumping straight into the air just before his arms are completely folded and holding the "Block" button. Once the Arisen "bounces" from blocking the impact, simply tap the "Grab" button to reattach to him.


 * Daimon's Awakened Form is capable of rapidly casting a series of three Grand Comestions which can easily juggle, stagger players and/or apply the Burning debilitation.


 * Bow-wielding Vocations can quickly defeat Daimon by getting a large number of Blast Arrows, Conqueror's Periapts and use Five/Tenfold Flurry.


 * Mages and Sorcerers can find a bit of refuge on Daimon's "throne" or the broken pillar (the one which is broken at the start of the fight and won't disappear). Some physical attacks and attacks requiring a "clear line of fire" will be rendered ineffective at times allowing for slightly safer casting. The Miasma spell is handy for this situation.
 * Sorcerers can use Focused Bolt along with the Ferocity Augment to deal massive damage when buffed with Demon's Periapts.
 * Holy Affinity will also help tremendously.


 * Magick Archers, stacking Demon's Periapts and spamming Six/Ninefold Bolt is also an extremely effective method to stagger him.


 * Mystic Knights can utilize the Magick/Great Cannon skill and deals considerable damage against his second form.
 * Daimon is susceptible to Lowered Defense, Torpor (first form only), and Poison, and Tarred in oil. Appears to be resistant to Silence and Blindness.
 * Group stat boosters (such as Salomet's Secrets and Tagilus's Miracles) if used instead of Periapts, will multiply the entire party's attack and magick stats. Pawn damage will be increased accordingly in addition to the Arisen's, making the entire party more effective. These boosters also stack up to a maximum of 4x.

Quotes

First Form Awakened Form Unique pawn quotes during Awakened Form
 * "I have raged, and wrought destruction."
 * "Naught shall remain."
 * "No paths lead hence."
 * "Repent the folly of ascribing meaning to the void."
 * "Fall, molder, and begone."
 * "Be cast into nothingness."
 * "With my every breath I cursed the eternal chain and all who would perpetuate it."
 * "But more than this, I have waited..."
 * "Waited for one with a will to outmatch my own, that they may break the bonds that hold me here."
 * "In hate's demise...freedom..."
 * "Slave to a broken order...dare you look upon the truth?"
 * "I have seen the scattering of countless myriad souls...they gather and flow to become as the river of time, expanding to fill the firmament."
 * "What a base and trifling creature is man....yet at once he is the master of this empyreal flow, grand as all the heavens."
 * "I bid you, hone your spirit. Refine it. I shall await you in the crucible of souls."
 * "A nightmare...tis a nightmare made real."
 * "Tis overwhelming...tis overwhelming!"
 * "Tis not the same creature...I sense the dragon!"