# Altar of Fangs +11 — TIMED 25:53 · 3 deaths · affix 158, Tyrannical, Fortified *2026-08-26 · 09:32 · `WoWCombatLog-082626_093050.txt`* > **AI-WRITTEN ANALYSIS** — The numbers come from the combat log. The verdict and notes were written by an AI reading them, and can be wrong in ways the numbers cannot. Written by Claude (Opus 5), from the combat log. **Tip:** Get out of Zul'jan's melee; Axegrinder hit only you and the tank ## Timed with at least five minutes in hand and a 15-second death penalty - and the C+ this key first graded was 77% one boss mechanic that picked Hyporock six times out of six. The key was never in trouble. 25:53 against a par the log bounds to 31:02-33:25, so it cleared with five to seven minutes spare. All three deaths landed after 19:42, on the last two pulls, and the entire death penalty was 15 seconds of a 25:53 run. Nobody lost this key and nobody came close to losing it. This run was graded twice. The first pass gave Hyporock a C+ (70.8), and 3,474,194 of their 4,512,475 of 'over-exposure' - damage the axis says comparable players did not take - was Rav'i's Triple Shot. That is a debuff the boss applies by name to three of the five players the instant the cast finishes, and it then ticks for ten seconds. There is nothing to stand out of and nothing to dodge. It went out six times and picked Hyporock all six. The two Altar of Fangs +11s of the night before settle it: Triple Shot picked them twice out of six in each, their mechanics axis read 95 and 94 against this key's 54, and their over-exposure was 385,031 and 621,072 against 4,512,475. Nothing about how they played changed by a factor of seven. So the grader was fixed rather than the number explained away - `derive.forced_multi_target`, below. Regraded, the mechanics axis reads 89 instead of 54 and the grade is B- (75.9). That is the grade of record; the C+ is gone. Arms Warrior's A- was honest on both passes, and the interrupt half of it is the best single performance in the key. **What to change** 1. Hyporock: when Paralyzing Shots and Envenom are both up, cleanse the Shots. It is Magic and Balance Druid cannot reach it, and it is 5x steeper per second of uptime than the Poison. 2. Hyporock: get out of Zul'jan's melee. Axegrinder touched nobody but you and the tank, and it was half the burst that killed you at 23:10. 3. Arms Warrior: press one defensive when the health bar moves. Die by the Sword was available at your death and was used once in 25 minutes. 4. Arbiter: the other 21 archived keys were graded before both fixes and are not directly comparable to this one. Regrade the corpus before reading any trend across dates. ## The run | | | |---|---| | on the clock | **25:53** — 23:38 fighting | | deaths | **3** — timer agrees (3.04 implied) | | party damage taken | **308,300,201** — 217,388/s while fighting | | enemies killed | **176** | | interrupts | **72/85** — 85% | | dispels | **22/33** — 12,030,713 came through | ## Players | player | spec | role | ilvl | DPS | HPS | taken/s | deaths | grade | |---|---|---|---:|---:|---:|---:|---:|:---:| | Blood DK | Blood DK | tank | 310 | 150,609 | 42,200 | 105,583 | 0 | **D+** 57 | | Hyporock | Holy Paladin | heal | 307 | 16,344 | 103,219 | 26,142 | 1 | **C-** 62 | | Balance Druid | Balance | dps | 302 | 176,901 | 2,638 | 18,849 | 0 | **B+** 80 | | Arcane Mage | Arcane Mage | dps | 302 | 222,435 | 1,222 | 21,910 | 1 | **B** 78 | | Arms Warrior | Arms | dps | 306 | 194,842 | 9,501 | 26,908 | 1 | **B-** 72 | ### Blood DK — Blood DK — D+ (57/100) **Where the points went** - **-13 interrupts (rank)** — scored 52: 13 stops vs 29 expected - **-12 mitigation** — scored 55: 66% uptime of the 79% this kit can hold, 62% of worst windows covered - **-12 utility** — scored 0: 0 used of ~4 the kit offered
All axes - **survival− 100** [no charge] — 0 death(s) - **mitigation 55** [w 27%] — 66% uptime of the 79% this kit can hold, 62% of worst windows covered - **damage~ 94** [w 18%] — 150,609 dps, 76% of the average DPS - **mechanics− 100** [no charge] — 0% of intake was damage comparable players did not take - **interrupts~ 52** [w 27%] — 13 stops vs 29 expected (group stopped 85%, not scored here) - **activity 71** [w 15%] — 96% engaged while alive in combat - **utility 0** [w 12%] — 0 used of ~4 the kit offered - _overcapped Runic Power: 4,753 of 13,532 generated (35%)_ - _never pressed: Anti-Magic Zone, Asphyxiate_ - _not counted as button presses (procs, ticks): Infliction of Sorrow_
### Hyporock — Holy Paladin — C- (62/100) **Where the points went** - **-15 throughput** — scored 57: covered 69% of the 191,046,021 that needed an outside heal (41% of the party's intake was self-covered or overkill); 10,918,578 absorbed - **-11 response** — scored 55: put back 37% of the 96,951,547 that landed in the party's worst windows - **-4 survival** — scored 72: 1 death(s)
All axes - **survival− 72** [−4.2 pts] — 1 death(s) - **throughput 57** [w 34%] — covered 69% of the 191,046,021 that needed an outside heal (41% of the party's intake was self-covered or overkill); 10,918,578 absorbed - **response 55** [w 25%] — put back 37% of the 96,951,547 that landed in the party's worst windows - **mechanics− 89** [−1.4 pts] — 3% of intake was damage comparable players did not take - **interrupts** — n/a. no interrupt on the bar - **dispel 100** [w 16%] — 22/22 of what one dispeller could reach (33 landed; the rest overlapped a debuff already being cleansed) - **activity 76** [w 15%] — 90% engaged while alive in combat - **utility 66** [w 10%] — 30 used of ~74 the kit offered - _overcapped Holy Power: 108 of 692 generated (16%)_ - _not counted as button presses (procs, ticks): Reclamation_
### Balance Druid — Balance — B+ (80/100) **Where the points went** - **-15 damage (rank)** — scored 65: 176,901 dps, 84% of the other damage dealers' median - **-3 interrupts (rank)** — scored 90: 22 stops vs 14 expected - **-2 activity** — scored 93: 97% engaged while alive in combat
All axes - **survival− 100** [no charge] — 0 death(s) - **damage~ 65** [w 42%] — 176,901 dps, 84% of the other damage dealers' median - **mechanics− 100** [no charge] — 0% of intake was damage comparable players did not take - **interrupts~ 90** [w 32%] — 22 stops vs 14 expected (group stopped 85%, not scored here) - **activity 93** [w 26%] — 97% engaged while alive in combat - **utility 94** [w 0%] — 20 used of ~50 the kit offered - _overcapped Astral Power: 1,176 of 5,756 generated (20%)_
### Arcane Mage — Arcane Mage — B (78/100) **Where the points went** - **-8 interrupts (rank)** — scored 76: 12 stops vs 14 expected - **-6 damage (rank)** — scored 85: 222,435 dps, 120% of the other damage dealers' median - **-5 survival** — scored 72: 1 death(s)
All axes - **survival− 72** [−5.0 pts] — 1 death(s) - **damage~ 85** [w 42%] — 222,435 dps, 120% of the other damage dealers' median - **mechanics− 100** [no charge] — 0% of intake was damage comparable players did not take - **interrupts~ 76** [w 32%] — 12 stops vs 14 expected (group stopped 85%, not scored here) - **activity 89** [w 26%] — 97% engaged while alive in combat - **utility 0** [w 0%] — 0 used of ~61 the kit offered - _never pressed: Ice Block, Remove Curse, Spellsteal_
### Arms Warrior — Arms — B- (72/100) **Where the points went** - **-10 damage (rank)** — scored 75: 194,842 dps, 98% of the other damage dealers' median - **-8 activity** — scored 70: 92% engaged while alive in combat - **-5 survival** — scored 72: 1 death(s)
All axes - **survival− 72** [−5.0 pts] — 1 death(s) - **damage~ 75** [w 42%] — 194,842 dps, 98% of the other damage dealers' median - **mechanics− 95** [−1.1 pts] — 1% of intake was damage comparable players did not take - **interrupts~ 89** [w 32%] — 21 stops vs 14 expected (group stopped 85%, not scored here) - **activity 70** [w 26%] — 92% engaged while alive in combat - **utility 0** [w 0%] — 0 used of ~7 the kit offered - _overcapped Rage: 709 of 2,905 generated (24%)_ - _never pressed: Rallying Cry, Spell Reflection, Storm Bolt_
*Axes marked ~ are ranked against the other players in this key, not measured on their own. Someone is always in the middle.* ## Deaths 3 deaths in 3 separate incidents. **What was landing while people died** — Counts only the seconds before each death, not the whole key. | spell | in | damage | killing blows | |---|---:|---:|---:| | Ritual Venom | 1 of 3 | 3,710,515 | 1 | | Axegrinder | 1 of 3 | 562,428 | — | | Venom Burst | 1 of 3 | 517,277 | — | | Boneslicer | 1 of 3 | 395,371 | — | | Toxic Beam | 1 of 3 | 287,357 | 1 | | Bloodletting | 1 of 3 | 159,325 | 1 | ### Death · 19:43 · Arms Warrior · dps **19:43 · Arms Warrior · dps** — killed by **Toxic Beam** for 287,357 from Ula'tek's Chosen took **959,820** · in **2.3 s** - Venom Burst — 54%, 517,277 - **Toxic Beam** (killing blow) — 30%, 287,357 - Toxic Surge — 16%, 155,186 **no defensive pressed** · 191,157 healed · Hyporock ### Death · 23:10 · Hyporock · heal **23:10 · Hyporock · heal** — killed by **Bloodletting** for 159,325 from nil took **1,117,124** · in **2.1 s** - Axegrinder — 50%, 562,428 - Boneslicer — 35%, 395,371 - **Bloodletting** (killing blow) — 14%, 159,325 Shield of the Righteous · Shield of the Righteous · Divine Protection · 293,428 healed · all their own ### Death · 24:39 · Arcane Mage · dps **24:39 · Arcane Mage · dps** — killed by **Ritual Venom** for 3,710,515 from Zul'jan took **3,710,515** · in **one hit** - **Ritual Venom** (killing blow) — 100%, 3,710,515 **no defensive pressed** · **no healing landed** ## Where the time went | | seconds | | |---|---:|---| | combat | 1,418 | 23:38 | | routing | 109 | 1:49 | | death penalty | 15 | 0:15 | | lead in | 19 | 0:19 | Costliest pulls — *Cost is the time the pull lost: a wipe loses the whole pull, a pull that held loses only its deaths.* | pull | at | fighting | enemies | deaths | taken | cost | |---:|---|---|---:|---:|---:|---:| | 13 | 22:28 | 3:18 | 5 | 2 | 25,376,609 | 0:10 | | 12 | 19:11 | 3:11 | 25 | 1 | 39,752,829 | 0:05 | ## What the group left up **Casts that could have been interrupted and were not** - Envenom: 12 of 53 got through - Mass Envenom: 1 of 7 got through **Debuffs that could have been dispelled and were not** - Envenom: 9x, up for 78s in total, 7,280,447 damage - Paralyzing Shots: 2x, up for 10s in total, 4,750,266 damage **Damage one player took that similar players did not (check the raw hits before acting on this; a spell only one role can take looks the same)** - Hyporock: 1,038,281 (mostly Messy Eater) - Arms Warrior: 524,281 (mostly Toxic Surge) **Hit most of the party (not graded: everyone took it, so nobody is charged for it)** - Unstable Totem: 5/5 players, 485 hits, 21,608,584 (7% of party intake) - Rattle: 5/5 players, 163 hits, 15,689,924 (5% of party intake) - Laced Edge: 5/5 players, 203 hits, 12,254,620 (4% of party intake) - Synchronized Venom: 4/5 players, 248 hits, 8,153,348 (3% of party intake) - Ritual of the Fang: 5/5 players, 83 hits, 6,506,551 (2% of party intake) ## Notes ### Where the 25:53 went 23:38 fighting (92%), 1:48 walking, 0:15 death penalty, 0:19 pull timer. Thirteen pulls, 176 enemies, 308,300,201 damage taken by the party. ``` Rav'i 2:52 The Writhing Coil 2:44 Zul'jan 3:18 ``` Bosses accounted for 22% of the damage taken and two of the three deaths; trash took the other 78%. The two pulls that cost time were the last two: pull 12 at 19:11 (25 enemies, one death) and pull 13 at 22:27 (Zul'jan, two deaths). The group stopped 72 of 85 stoppable casts (85%). Envenom leaked 12 times of 53 and Mass Envenom once of 7 - 'leaked' meaning a cast that could have been kicked and was not. ### Hyporock - B- (75.9) WHAT WAS NOT YOURS Triple Shot: 64 ticks for 5,170,894, from six selections you had no input into. The axis no longer charges it, and the report now names it under 'not charged, the enemy chose the targets' rather than dropping it silently. Unstable Totem (5,613,157 over 113 ticks) and Bloodletting (1,086,007) log with no source and hit the whole party at roughly equal rates - Arms Warrior took 5,744,583 and 972,355 of the same two. Neither is attributable to anyone. WHAT YOU DID WELL - Dispels, 22 of the 22 a single presser could reach out of 33 that landed. Three of those 22 are Blessing of Freedom taking Paralyzing Shots off, which the grader could not see until this pass - Freedom removes a debuff without ever logging a dispel, so all three read as debuffs left up. - Utility 94 - 30 uses against the ~77 presses your kit offered across the key. - The rez chain on Zul'jan. You died at 23:10; Blood DK had Raise Ally on you by 23:13. Arcane Mage died at 24:39 and you had Intercession on them by 24:41. Two battle rezzes on the last boss, both inside three seconds, and the key still timed. WHAT TO CHANGE 1. Paralyzing Shots is yours alone, and it is the steep one. Envenom is a Poison, so Balance Druid's Remove Corruption reaches it - and Balance Druid took 5 of the 12 Envenom cleanses to your 7. Paralyzing Shots is Magic; a Balance druid cannot touch it. Two were left up for ten seconds in total and cost 4,750,266. That is 475,027 per second of uptime against Envenom's 93,339. When both are up, take the Shots and leave the Poison to the druid. Freedom is a second answer to it and you already use it that way. 2. Zul'jan's melee killed you, and only you and the tank were in it. Axegrinder landed on exactly two people all fight: Blood DK nine times, you three. It was the largest single slice - 562,428 of 1,117,124 - of the 2.1-second burst that killed you at 23:10. You pressed Shield of the Righteous twice and Divine Protection inside that window and still died, and as the only healer there was no external to save you. The defensives were not the problem; the standing position was. 3. Throughput 64 means you covered 69% of the 191,887,943 that needed an outside heal - 41% of the party's intake was self-covered or overkill and never yours to catch. That is below your own archived median of about 77, but it is an ordinary bad-ish number rather than the outlier. The outlier was mechanics, and mechanics was Triple Shot. ### Arms Warrior - A- (84.1), and one thing that costs a life WHAT YOU DID WELL - Interrupts, 100. 21 stops against the 14 the model expects of the role, out of 72 the group landed - second only to Balance Druid's 22, and on a key where Envenom got through twelve times, the ones that landed were carrying weight. - Mechanics 95: 1% of your intake was damage comparable players did not take. The single flag, Toxic Surge 20x against a party median of 9.5, is 524,281 out of a 41,604,579 intake. It is noise. - 194,842 dps, on the median for the key, while doing the most interrupting. WHAT TO CHANGE 1. You pressed nothing when you died. At 19:42 you took 959,820 over 2.3 seconds - Venom Burst 517,277, Toxic Beam 287,357, Toxic Surge 155,186 - and used no defensive at all. Die by the Sword was cast once in the entire key, at 25:35, so it was certainly available at 19:42. Rallying Cry, Spell Reflection and Storm Bolt are in your loadout and were not pressed once all run. Hyporock put 191,157 into you inside that window and it was nowhere near enough on its own. 2. Rage: 709 of 2,905 generated was lost to the cap - 24%, the highest waste fraction of the three DPS. 3. Activity 80 - you were engaged 92% of the time you were alive and in combat, against 97% for both Arcane Mage and Balance Druid. That is roughly two minutes of standing still that the other two DPS did not have, and it is the cheapest of the three to fix. ### What this key changed in the grader Two fixes came out of this run, and both were things the tool could not see rather than things it weighed wrongly. 1. `derive.forced_multi_target`. Its sibling `forced_single_target` already excused a debuff the log proves an enemy chose a player for, but it demands one victim and two casters, and the commonest unavoidable debuff has neither - a boss picking k of the party per cast. The new rule wants three or more bursts of simultaneous applications whose target set MOVES: a frontal cone also stamps several players at one instant, and eating a cone is position, but a cone keeps hitting whoever stands in front while a selection rule spreads across the party. Triple Shot's six bursts of three covered all five. ``` Where the check sits was half the fix. It was consulted only inside the `med == 0` branch, which a single-target debuff always reaches because every peer sits at zero - but a debuff dealt to three of five leaves the other two with a healthy median, so the player it favoured was charged the difference and never came near the test. ``` ``` Across the 30 player-keys of 2026-08-25 it moved three: An Arcane Mage's Altar of Fangs mechanics 77 -> 100 (they were the six-of-six target that night, for 2,141,359), an Unholy DK 70 -> 77, Doryhunky 98 -> 100. It is a narrow rule, not a general amnesty. ``` 2. Blessing of Freedom counts as a removal. Freedom and Blessing of Protection take a debuff off without ever logging SPELL_DISPEL - grepping every log on disk for one returns zero rows - so the dispel scan, which is gated on that event, could not see them at all. They behave like an immunity: the aura just goes away, within milliseconds of the cast. Detected now as cast-then-removal, with the hostile-DEBUFF check and a 250 ms window doing the work; widened to a second the same scan starts collecting the target's own buffs expiring. ``` It moved this key's dispels from 19/30 to 22/33. The three extra opportunities are the tell: those instances were being deleted by the four-second flicker filter, because Freedom ended them so fast and nothing had recorded a remover. That is the same shape as the fast-cleanse bug of 2026-08-22, arriving through a different door. ``` ``` Learned into a separate `breakable` table, never into `dispellable`. The two are different claims - a root only Freedom can take off is not something a cleanse reaches, and writing it there would start charging every later healer for not pressing a button they do not have. ``` ## Method Each axis is scored 0 to 100 against what this run allowed, not against a fixed target. A player is only scored on things their spec can do. An axis that does not apply is left out and the other weights are scaled up. 100 means nothing was missed; a solid, even key usually lands near 75. Survival and mechanics carry no weight of their own: they start at 100 and take points off when something went wrong. *Generated 2026-08-29T20:19:52 · schema 5 · written analysis: Claude (Opus 5), from the combat log*