THE IRON HOLD is a Custom Zombies Map made in Black Ops III for the 5th NoahJ456 Mapping Contest. The theme of this contest was 'RAGE' so we put our focus into making the gameplay extremely difficult while also keeping it possible to beat. IN OTHER WORDS: This is going to be VERY hard, you are going to die a LOT, you might not be good enough to even beat the 1st encounter, THIS IS GOOD. Get better, learn the game, we did NOT want just anyone to beat this. You HAVE to be good to beat this legitimately, good luck.

We only had 1 month to make it from scratch, so naturally, there are a lot of issues with the map at launch that we unfortunately have to deal with. We took inspiration from Raids in Destiny and decided to make our very own version of one. We hope you enjoy the map, we know it's not going to be for everyone, but we had fun making it none-the-less.

https://psteamcommunity.yuanyoumao.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3496473479

LOADOUT:

VERY IMPORTANT: Bring any explosive you find and KEEP THEM. Spartan or Howitzer are great options. These will give you the highest dps possible for the bosses.

DO THE VENOM-X EXOTIC WEAPON QUEST. This makes the final boss significantly easier, it is the single best weapon for Boss DPS & ad-clear.

For your secondary, any LMG, AR, SMG, and full-auto Shotguns are good, they are mainly used for ad-clearing and margwas.

To follow this encounter easier, you can use this Encounter Map to see all relevant information.



HOW IT WORKS: You must deposit all 20 resonance into the podium before the wipe timer at the top of the screen counts down to 0.

ACQUIRING RESONANCE: Standing on a plate for 60 Seconds will activate the plates Buff Aura. This buff lasts for 10 seconds as seen on the bottom left-hand side of your screen (Cerulean Sight). Standing back on the plate will recharge your buff to max. Blue Zombies will spawn in the area that can only be killed while you have Cerulean Sight. Once killed, they will drop a resonance that you can pick up. The amount of resonance you carry can be seen on the bottom left of your screen called 'Azure Plasma Resonance'. You may only carry up to 5 at a time. Once 5 Blue Zombies are killed. the plates buff will be dissipated and you must move to a different plate.

DEPOSITING RESONANCE: Once you've acquired any number of resonance, you can bring them to the podium located by the tunnel blocked by a barrier shield. You must hold down interact while they deposit, do not let go of the button. For every 5 Resonance deposited, your wipe timer will be increased based on the number of players in your game.

FULL RUNDOWN: To begin this encounter, you need to stand on 1 of 4 'plates' around the area. There is 1 plate right where you spawn, 1 on the left roof after doing the parkour on the wooden towers, 1 on the right roof after climbing on top of the boxes, and the last one is near the 3rd one after jumping outside of the fence on the tree.



You may complete the plates in any order you desire, but we recommend starting with the one on the Left Roof as the parkour can run down your wipe timer if you do it in the middle of the encounter.

Once all of the Resonance are deposited, a loot chest will spawn and the barrier will lower, allowing you to enter the tunnel.

FEATURED ENEMIES: Zombies, Parasites, and Raz Towers (The floating yellow portals, you can shoot them in the center to kill them)

PREREQUISITE: All players must walk up to the Aetherial Orb located in the tunnel and interact with it. Upon use, all players will receive advanced movement. (Double jump, no wallrunning)

HOW IT WORKS: You must kill the Boss before the wipe timer at the top of the screen counts down to 0.

GETTING TO DAMAGE PHASE: The 'Disruptor' Weapon will periodically spawn in the arena. Pick up the weapon, and shoot the Boss' Shield with it to break it. Damage phase will last 20 seconds. After the first damage phase, each additional phase will require you to complete a puzzle to spawn the weapon back in.

SYMBOL PUZZLE: 3 large symbols will spawn in the middle of the arena. Each symbol corresponds to a specific Margwa element. You must kill the margwas in order from bottom to top. The symbol cheat sheet can be viewed below. (Light is just the regular margwa). If you kill the wrong margwa (out of order) you will instantly wipe all players and will restart the encounter.



FULL RUNDOWN: To begin this encounter, all players just simply need to walk into the room, and you will be locked in, then the Boss will spawn.

Use the Disruptor weapon to break the Boss' Shield and enter damage phase. Deal as much damage as you can until his shield spawns back in. Complete the Margwa/Symbol puzzle to spawn the Disruptor back in. Repeat this sequence until the Boss is dead.

Once killed, a loot chest will spawn and the fan will stop spinning, allowing you to enter the tunnel behind it.

BOSS ATTACKS:

• Summon: Summons Zombies (Amount varies by number of players in the game)
  
• Cone: Shoots a cone of electricity at you once you get too close.
  
• 360: Will pull players in close, launching you toward the Boss, then will release a pulse of energy damaging players nearby. (If no players get pulled in, he will not release the energy explosion)
  
• Carian: Summons 5 fireballs over his head that will launch towards his target at rapid fire speeds.
  
• Clone: The boss will spin around, then return with 4 other versions of himself (5 Total including the Boss). You must find the right one to shoot to complete this attack. The REAL boss is blue, the CLONES are cyan. If you shoot a clone, you will instantly wipe and will restart the encounter. You must complete this within 15 seconds as seen by the debuff on the bottom left of your screen.

FEATURED ENEMIES: Zombies and Elemental Margwas

WARNING: There is currently a bug with this encounter when you start it for the very first time. When the barrier locks you in, Zombies will not spawn, just down yourself with a grenade (or by any means) to respawn and it will be fixed permanently.

HOW IT WORKS: There are 3 total floors, each floor has a barrier to destroy with the Disruptor. Reach the end of the 3rd floor to complete the encounter.

ACQUIRING THE DISRUPTOR: Spawning the weapon is directly tied to killing margwas. Margwas spawn after killing enough Zombies & Raz Towers. Once enough Zombies & Raz are killed, a margwa will spawn automatically. Kill 3 Margwas to spawn the weapon. This works exactly the same as floor 2.

DESTROYING A BARRIER: Simply shoot the blue barrier with the Disruptor to break the shield and move to the next floor.

FULL RUNDOWN: To begin this encounter, all players need to enter the room and it will start automatically. (same as Encounter 2)

Get enough Zombie & Raz Tower kills to spawn a Margwa and kill it. Repeat this until you've killed 3 Margwas to spawn the Disruptor weapon to use on the blue barrier shield. Repeat all of this for the second floor.

The 3rd floor is a bit different. Red walls will be moving toward you and will kill you instantly when touched. Find the gap in the walls to avoid taking damage. Reach the weapon that is already spawned near the end and break the boss' shield before you die. While doing this, the boss will continuously push you back, keeping you away from him, dodge this attack by hiding behind walls before he pushes you.

FEATURED ENEMIES: Zombies, Raz Towers, and Elemental Margwas

HOW IT WORKS: You must kill the Boss while making sure you cleanse yourself from the Looming Dread Debuff.

LOOMING DREAD: You have a permanent debuff that will kill you in 15 seconds if you do not move quickly. This debuff timer can be seen on the bottom left of your screen. Around the whole arena are multiple cleanse stations for you to reset your debuff timer back to 15 seconds. You must be quick on your feet at all times to avoid getting wiped.

GETTING TO DAMAGE PHASE: The 'Disruptor' Weapon will periodically spawn in the arena. Pick up the weapon, and shoot the one of the shields around the 3 crystals with it to break it. This will spawn an apothicon symbol above it which you will need to remember and use for the symbol puzzle. Completing the puzzle will activate the crystal. You must do this for all 3 crystals for damage phase to start.

SYMBOL PUZZLE: Once you take note of the symbol above the crystal, enter the elevator (blue aura that spawned in front of the throne). This will take you to space that will have 3 Apothicon Gods looking over you. All 3 of the gods will have a symbol above them, you must shoot the god that has the matching symbol to the crystal. If done correctly, when you are taken back to the arena, the crystal will activate, playing a very signifying sound. If you shoot the wrong god, all players will instantly wipe and you restart the encounter. The symbols are split into 3 different groups, groups are selected at random every time a crystal is shot. You can preview the symbols on the cheat sheet below.



FULL RUNDOWN: To begin this encounter, all players just simply need to walk into the room, and you will be locked in, then the Boss will spawn.

Use the Disruptor weapon to break the shields around the crystals to start the puzzle. Complete the puzzle on all 3 crystals to start the damage phase. Deal as much damage as you can until he becomes immune again. Repeat this sequence until the Boss enters his Final Stand phase.

In Final Stand, he will sit back down on his throne, recharge his health slightly, and then a wipe timer will start for 20 seconds. You must fully kill him within this 20 seconds or your entire raid team dies and you will restart the encounter. If you do enough damage in time, he will completely die and sit idle on his throne in defeat.

Wait for the quotes to finish, and the screen will fade to black, and you have successfully completed the full raid. (Ending will change in the future)

BOSS ATTACKS:

• Summon: Summons Zombies (Amount varies by number of players in the game)
  
• Pull: Pulls all players to the boss, launching them from wherever they are standing.
  
• Bombs: Will throw 5 bombs at his target, exploding immediately on impact. These will slow you and damage you.
  
• Walls: He will pull all players to the entrance of the arena, and then fly back to his throne. He will then summon red walls behind him, and push them to the front of the room. Find the gaps in the walls to avoid being killed instantly.
  
• Storm: Summons lightning across the entire arena. Avoid these by staying away from the storm clouds on the ground before lightning strikes.
  
• Light of the Sun: He will curl up into a ball, and then turn into a miniature sun. This will tick damage you every 0.5 seconds if you are not behind cover from anywhere in the arena. Once he is done, he will release the sun energy, damaging players nearby.

FEATURED ENEMIES: Zombies

Around the map are several hidden chests containing valuable loot. Make sure to keep your eyes open for hidden compartments, otherwise you'll miss out on improving your loadout!

VENOM-X: Find and shoot all 4 Cryptids throughout the Raid.

• The first one is right at the spawn of Encounter 1. Just turn around, and look outside of the map
  

• The second one can be found after completing Encounter 2 and after the electricity parkour room. It will be hiding underneath the bridge you cross before entering the tunnel.
  

• The third one is found during Encounter 3. Enter the second floor and immediately look up and to the right to find it near the ceiling.
  

• The final one can be found after Encounter 3 and going up the elevator after the spiral room. Once you reach the top, look back down the elevator shaft and you will see it on the stairs.
  

After shooting the final one, the Venom-X Exotic Weapon will spawn as a loot drop in the doorway at the top of the elevator shaft.

NOAHJ456 PHOTO: Interact with the photo for an exclusive weapon drop.

• The photo can be found in Encounter 1. (Encounter does NOT need to be active). Climb up to the right of the deposit podium, then jump up onto the boxes against the wall. You will find it on the floor by the PHD Flopper perk machine.
  
  

FIGGLEBOTTOM PHOTO: Interact with the photo to toggle cartoon mode.

• The photo can be found in Encounter 1. (Encounter does NOT need to be active). Complete the parkour of the left side of the map, and you will find it on an AC unit next to the encounter plate.