Summoning a Boss
Summoning a boss takes three things: essence to forge a key, the level to be allowed, and a trip to the altar. This page walks the whole chain — from the hunt to the portal.
Earning essence
Boss essence drops from hunting: shades and wraiths in Forgotten Polis and Ancient Roads, and from caravan crews. Tougher hunts carry essence for tougher bosses, so what you fight decides which key you can forge:
| Boss | Essence | Hunt tiers |
|---|---|---|
| Lamia | Lamia's Tear | T1–T2 |
| Echidna | Echidna's Coil | T3–T4 |
| Thanatos | Thanatos' Idol | T5–T6 |
| Hephaestus | Hephaestus' Sigil | T7–T8 |
Climbing a tier means better essence, not a bigger pile — higher tiers drop fewer but stronger essences, so swarm-farming the low tiers can't flood you with keys. For the full breakdown of which hunts drop what, see Hunt Tiers & Boss Essence.
Forging a key
Collect 64 of one essence and it auto-forges into that boss's key on the spot — you'll hear an anvil ring. One key, one summon. There's no separate crafting step; the moment a stack hits 64 it consolidates into the key.
Keys read as Epic, not Mythic. They drop often enough from boss farming that a full Mythic banner oversold them.
The Boss Shop
Don't want to farm a key? Open /boss and buy one with Hunter Points (earned by hunting — spend them in the /hunter perk shop too):
| Key | Hunter Points |
|---|---|
| Lamia's Tear | 5,000 |
| Echidna's Coil | 7,500 |
| Thanatos' Idol | 10,000 |
| Hephaestus' Sigil | 20,000 |
Level gates
Holding a key isn't enough — each boss has a player-progression gate (prestige × 100 + level). The old Hunter-rank requirement is gone:
| Boss | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Lamia | Open to all |
| Echidna | Level 60+ |
| Thanatos | Level 100+ or any prestige |
| Hephaestus | Prestige II + Level 102 |
Gate details also live on the Bosses Overview.
Summoning at the altar
- Open
/bossand click a boss — this teleports you to its altar in the Boss Hub from anywhere. - Right-click the altar to open the summon GUI.
- Place the matching key in the slot — exactly one is consumed.
- Click Summon. A portal opens for 60 seconds, visible only to you and your party.
Once every party member is inside, the boss spawns 5 seconds later — otherwise it spawns when the portal closes.
Safety nets
Your key is refunded if the summon can't start (for example, all arenas are occupied) or if you close the altar GUI before summoning. The one case with no refund: if the portal opens and nobody enters, the summon is cancelled.
Kill rewards
Every boss kill pays the summoner a Hunter Point bonus:
| Boss | Hunter Points |
|---|---|
| Lamia | 500 |
| Echidna | 1,500 |
| Thanatos | 4,000 |
| Hephaestus | 10,000 |
For what the boss itself drops on death, see Boss Loot & Drop Announcements. A share of essence sales and boss activity also feeds the Community Fund.
Version history
v2.0.0
- Boss keys now drop as an Epic instead of a Mythic — they come often enough from boss farming that the Mythic banner oversold them.
- Shades and wraiths drop ~50% more boss essence across all tiers, and higher tiers now give fewer but stronger essences so swarm-farming can't flood keys.
- Fixed Echidna and Lamia awarding swapped Hunter Points — Echidna now correctly gives 1,500 and Lamia 500.
- The Hunter-rank summon gate is replaced by a player-level gate (see Bosses Overview).