How to kill Andariel - Guide to defeating Andariel in Diablo II
Introduction
The demon witch, Andariel, is the major boss monster whom your character must fight in order to progress to Act Two of the Diablo II PC game. She is far and away the toughest opponent your character will face in Act One of the game, and you will need to be at the top of your game in order to defeat her.
However, if you’re having trouble defeating Andariel, then this guide should help fix you up and make your job a little easier. Although there is more than one way to kill her, the methods I describe below have stood me in good stead whenever I’ve came to fight Andariel in Diablo II sessions. Bear in mind, however, that this guide is for defeating Andariel in the traditional Diablo II game. It is not applicable to the Uber Andariel boss monster (Lilith) in the Pandemonium event.
Andariel Overview
Andariel, as previously noted, is the boss monster of Act One and she must be defeated in order to progress in the game. She is known as the ‘Maiden of Anguish’ and is one of the four Lesser Evils. She can be found on level four of the Catacombs, in the third room, and she stands considerably taller than the character.
Andariel’s attacks are poison based, and she also has the ability to spew forth toxic green poison clouds. She can also attack with her scorpion-style stingers, which deal large amounts of damage as well as inflicting poison damage.
As you might expect from a poison-based monster, Andariel is highly resistant to poison attacks, so you won’t have much success with poison-based weapons. You can still damage her with poison-based weapons and spells but their effect will be greatly reduced. She is, however, susceptible to fire-based attacks, so if you have fire-based spells or weapons, now would be a good time to use them especially if you’re planning melee combat. Andariel has some cold resistance, but while damage from this type is reduced, the effects of slowing her down can still prove useful, especially if adopting a ranged attack strategy to defeat her.
Andariel does not regenerate hitpoints, so she retains any damage you deal against her.
Game Tactics for Killing Andariel
Many players will likely find that if they try to take Andariel on in close combat, they will spend a good deal of time dead. The key to defeating her is not to get too close, whereby she can poison and weaken you very quickly; also ensure you have a quick getaway route should you need to retreat and heal, or upgrade your equipment.
Game Tactics for Killing Andariel (Cont.)
There are three chambers within Andariel’s lair. The first room is relatively straightforward, and you’ll face a small wave of monsters here. However, before you advance to the second chamber, go back up to the previous level and cast a Town Portal near to the entrance to the lair – this will act as your getaway point. Andariel won’t follow you up so it’s better to cast the Town Portal here, rather than in the room you just cleared, if you need to escape. Remember, if you do have to use the Town Portal to escape, always cast another one to replace it when you do return to the lair.
Moving into the second chamber, you’ll find a horde of monsters to kill and a large blood lake in the middle of the floor. There is a set of double doors in the top wall of this room – don’t open them until you’ve cleared out this second chamber, as Andariel waits on the other side. Once the area is cleared it’s a good idea to revisit the town before going any further, use the town portal and visit the Rogue camp.
Return To The Rogue Encampment
Once you are back at the Rogue encampment, do the following:
• Talk to Akara, who will heal you. Also buy healing potions and poison antidotes – as many as you can carry, but certainlyenough to fill your belt with a mix of healing potions and antidotes.
• Talk to Kashya and hire a mercenary. If available, hire a fire-based one. While they are too weak to go up against Andariel, they will provide a distraction to buy you valuable time. They may even manage a hit or two in return before they die.
• Talk to Charsi and Gheed and consider purchasing fire-based weapons and items which increase your poision resistance or lower poison damage. Also, if you don’t have a missile weapon, get one. Cold-based arrows can prove useful in slowing Andariel down, although their damage will be reduced.
Back In The Catacombs
Once done, return to the catacombs and replace your town portal. Go back to the room with the blood lake and equip your missile weapon. Open the doors, take a deep breath and plunge on through. Andariel sits on a throne at the far end of the room, and won’t attack you immediately, so slowly inch your way up the room, taking out any minions with your missile attacks. Once you get too close to Andariel, she will scream and charge at you – as soon as she screams, rush back to the blood lake and take up position on the far side, opposite the door. If you are quick enough, you’ll be able to fire off 2-3 shots before she reaches the lake; cold-based arrows or spells can slow her down, so use them if you can. Your mercenary will face a quick demise, but she will buy you a couple of seconds to use a healing potion, cast auras or ready spells.
Once your mercenary is dead, Andariel will pursue you. Use the blood lake to your advantage and keep it between her and your character. Use the image of a clock-face on the blood lake and try to keep 2 points between you, wherever possible. Doing this should allow you to get off another shot or two before having to move again. If she gets too close, try to restore the 2-point distance by running around the lake before attacking again. Alternatively, you can switch weapons and try to take her down in melee combat.
If you do go the melee route, make use of your healing potions and poison antidotes to stay in the fight. Remember, Andariel’s poison attacks deal damage over time so you’ll have to be quick with both healing and poison antidotes if you want to survive. If, or when, you begin to run low, break from combat and rush back to town. Once back in town, heal, restock potions and hire another mercenary – and repeat until Andariel finally dies.
Killing Andariel
When you finally kill Andariel, she will explode in a pillar of flame and after a brief earthquake sequence, a portal will appear which will transport you back to the Rogue encampment. First, loot Andariel’s corpse and the surrounding area, if you haven’t done so already; then head back to the Rogue encampment. Once there, talk to everyone in town – if only for thanks, as there is no reward – and finally talk to Warriv, who will transport you onto Act II – the desert city of Lut Golein.
This post is part of the series: Diablo III Beginners Guide
Some introductory guides on getting started in Diablo II.