Aratra serves as the fifth major boss in The First Berserker: Khazan and represents one of the final hurdles players must overcome before gaining access to the Blacksmith, allowing for the creation of exclusive items. This massive spider-like foe is encountered in the Skoffa Cave region, where players must first contend with various zombie enemies and venomous spiders. Before reaching Aratra, players will navigate through a literal lake of poison, which sets the stage for her lethal poison and venom attacks. Fortunately, Aratra presents some notable weaknesses.
Generally speaking, Aratra is not as daunting as earlier bosses like Volbaino, provided you’ve honed your skills and weapon selection effectively. In my experience, the Spear proved to be an excellent choice for this encounter, particularly with a focus on Endurance and Stamina regeneration. The optimal strategy is to maneuver behind Aratra whenever possible to target her vulnerable abdomen for significant damage.
Where to Locate Aratra in The First Berserker: Khazan
Find Aratra at the Bottom of Scoffa Cave
Scoffa Cave is one of the more treacherous sections of the game, containing various pitfalls that are easy to fall into if you’re not careful. Players will also encounter numerous slow-moving zombies on the upper levels who can overwhelm you if you’re not cautious about rushing past them to move quickly.
As you descend deeper into Scoffa Cave, you’ll eventually arrive at the Poisoned Depths, which accurately reflects its name. This area consists of a toxic pool with limited safe spots where Khazan can stand while battling the various spiders present. If you manage to survive the onslaught without succumbing to the poison, you’ll finally reach the Bottom of the Cave Nexus point, where Aratra awaits behind a fog wall.
Defeating Aratra
Target Aratra’s Abdomen from Behind for Maximum Damage
Aratra has a variety of attacks that can be dodged if you know what to anticipate. Among her primary moves are leg attacks that come in different forms. The one to watch for is the attack that follows immediately after her scream. This particular move can be tough to counter due to its unpredictable pattern, culminating in a significant leap attack that you’ll need to evade.
Regardless of the leg attack she uses, the goal is to dodge around to outmaneuver her and target her back. Aratra’s sizeable abdomen is an easy target with many openings. Be aware that she can trap you in webs or leap at you, so avoid those as well.
While Aratra has multiple attacks followed by short cooldowns, there’s ample opportunity to circle around her and deal heavy damage. She may leap away from you when you get behind her at times, after which she starts launching balls of venom that cause severe buildup each time they strike you, so steer clear of those if possible. Upon reducing her health to about 75%, she will climb the wall, signaling the start of her second phase.
“As Aratra’s health diminishes, she will retreat into the cave and regenerate her lost limbs.”
At this point, you can start to break pieces off her and restrict her movements. As her health goes down, she will pull back into the cave to heal and regrow her lost parts. She’ll keep doing this until the battle ends, so my advice is to keep focusing on her abdomen as much as you can while watching for her follow-up pounce attacks. If you’re struggling with the poison damage during this fight, make sure to utilize any poison-resisting items in your inventory, like Poison Resistance Elixirs.
Rewards for Defeating Aratra
You’re One Step Closer to Crafting at the Blacksmith
Upon defeating Aratra, both you and Elemaine will free Qazumaka from his webbed prison. Qazumaka will then be waiting at the Crevice, offering the Blacksmith’s Heirloom bonus mission, which grants full access to the Blacksmith in The First Berserker: Khazan. This reward is without a doubt the highlight of defeating Aratra, but there are additional loot rewards as well. Among the spoils from Aratra are two random pieces from the Devourer of Darkness set and possibly the Man-Eating Spider Leg, which allows you to craft any item from that set at the newly accessible Blacksmith.
Additionally, you’ll receive 93,500 Lacrima, some gold, and two Transmutation Mists. Given that you’re likely now more familiar with your character build and the game mechanics, taking down Aratra should be a considerably easier task compared to the earlier bosses in The First Berserker: Khazan. Moreover, Aratra tends to offer more openings for attack due to her slower recovery after some of her more powerful moves.
