Hodir
#1
Several of us have been through the combat logs, and have determined that there is little wrong with our strategy. Execution, however, is the key on this fight, and there are several areas on which we need to focus.

1. Main Tank has to stay alive. Some healing assignments will be adjusted. I am not sure how everyone heals, but I do know that in almost all the other raids that I have participated in, the healers used a click-casting addon for healing. The reason that I think it may be an issue is that this fight requires movement and quick healing. With an addon, it is fairly easy to move with your left hand on the keyboard and cast heals on raid frames with your right. All I ask is that you think about how the Hodir fight has been going for your healing, and if an addon might help. I recommend Healbot Continued as it is easier to configure than Grid/Clique.
2. Players need to avoid more than one stack of biting cold. You have to be near a cozy fire, or move about every other tick. Players need to avoid falling ice. Players need to avoid Flash Freeze. These are all execution-related, and will come with practice.
3. Everyone needs to be getting one of the NPC buffs, but don't waste too much time on running around. If you can't find a fire. get in starlight. It is very important to break them out of the ice.
4. Melee need to watch being in front of Hodir as they might cause a Parry-Haste hit on the tank. Melee should make best effort to be behind tank.

Here is a modified strategy:
1. DPS wear one piece of Frost Resist. Engage as before busting mages our first. As soon as first mage is out of ice block, send a couple of ranged DPS to start applying the singe debuff. I think we will only mark mages so they are easier to find.
2. Survive first Frozen Blows. Tank should try and position him near a column of light. Players with storm cloud move to melee. It might be useful to drag him to one side of the room which might concentrate the cozy fires and starlight. Players find cozy fires or starlight.
3. Burn phase: All buffs should be in place and we should have about 30 s to DPS him. This would be a good time for bloodlust. Use trinkets and cooldowns.
4. Frozen blows. Get to the snow mounds. Ranged DPS busts out NPCs. Melee helps if not too far away.
5. Rinse and Repeat.

-Jaba
Have Mana Tide, Will Travel
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#2
Also be sure that everyone continues attacking while Hodir is casting flash freeze. That is 9 seconds out of every minute, and it's only an 8 minute fight. For melee there is usually a circle near him.

I'm also considering a rotation for warrior special abilities during frozen blows, but I haven't worked it out yet. He'll do frozen blows roughly 6-7 times during the fight with a 20 second duration. Assuming the tank doesn't have bad luck and die instantly, we should be able to rotate shield wall, last stand, a trinket, and enraged regeneration.
Kosath Whitehorn
"The Tribe is my weapon.  I am their shield."
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#3
Some advice from our experience learning the Hodir fight:

Jumping in place works just as well as moving, for removing the stacking debuff.

Melee DPS really shine in this fight. Sustained ranged DPS is difficult because they get more disrupted by the movement required. One thing we did while learning was to ask the ranged to wear 2 pieces of FR and melee to go "naked", so to speak. This helps healers, too, because AoE healers can use their abilities on the melee and expect the tank will get spillover healing. AoE abilities are less effective on ranged because they're often spread out.

Don't ignore the lightning buff. People who are crackling with lightning improve the DPS of everyone around them. They should run into the melee group while they have it, even if they're ranged!

Paladin are very useful for dispelling the rooting debuff, even if they're retribution/protection.

Frozen blows is the hardest part of the fight, but its usually the second half of it that causes the most trouble. Healers need to have a plan for their spell rotations, to get through this. For example, as a holy priest I do the following:
1. Between frozen blows, when healing is light, I make sure to use flash heal or binding heal enough times to build up 3 stacks of serendipity.
2. When frozen blows hits, I immediately hit circle of healing on the lowest health group, usually melee or healers.
3. Using the three stacks of serendipity, I cast prayer of healing on the next worst group (very fast cast time)
4. Move, shake off the frostbite. About 6 seconds have passed.
5. Take care of the tank, by now he's probably low on health (this is a good time to build up serendipity again, too). If its bad and the raid is still in need of healing, use a survivability cooldown like Guardian Spirit on the tank to keep him going until you can get back to him.
6. Repeat, as CoH's cooldown is back up now. About 10 seconds have passed.

Discipline priests can alternate between casting PWS for their haste buff and prayer of healing with a similar rotation. Druids can do similar things with wild growth.

Healing through frozen blows is hectic, but if you look at your classes abilities and plan a sequence of abilities to get you through that 20 seconds, you'll be better prepared to handle the random problems that come up during it. Save emergency cooldowns for the second half of that 20 seconds. Remember that most abilities will be usable multiple times during this fight, so don't be afraid to use them!
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#4
Here's what I have learned on Zlinka so far, as melee DPS:

Stand in a column of light...

The columns provide an enormous haste buff. Get that buff if you can!

* Run from column to column as Hodir moves.
* Watch your threat! The columns can easily spike your threat above the tank's. Use whatever threat-dumping abilities you have.

... but stay behind Hodir

Hodir gets a haste buff himself when he is parried, something that only happens when he's being attacked from the front. You have 180 degrees behind Hodir to work with. Stay behind him, even if there's a column of light in front of him.

DPS at all times you aren't in immediate danger

You can DPS almost the entire fight on this one. Move from side to side to avoid icicles (cued by white target circles before they fall). Leave melee range only to avoid an icicle. DPS while he's casting flash freeze. Just make sure you reach a pile of snow in time to avoid being frozen -- a pile usually drops within melee range. DPS him from atop of the pile of snow.

Don't get frozen!

Being frozen costs the raid a lot of healing and DPS -- both your DPS, and that required to free you. Don't get frozen! Get on a snow pile when he's about to cast flash freeze. If there is no snow pile in melee range, run to one. Staying out of the ice block is more important than DPSing those few seconds.

Free frozen NPCs near you

Focus on the boss, but if there's a frozen NPC near you, free it. The NPCs provide valuable buffs, healing, and DPS and we need them... but we also need your DPS on the boss.

Keep moving the entire fight

Movement removes a debuff and keeps it from stacking on you. Even tiny movements and jumping count.

Rogue-specific tips

* Feint whenever Frozen Blows comes up. Feint reduces AoE damage by 50%, so this will ease the lives of the healers.
* If your feet get frozen, Cloak of Shadows will free you.

Storm Power rocks

* The Storm Power buff is enormously helpful -- 135% to crit damage. It is cast on a player and it affects everyone nearby. So, if a ranged player gets the buff, they should run into the melee group so as many players get the buff as possible. If a melee player gets it, you're already in the melee group, so you don't need to move. So we don't have any control over the Storm Power buff. But, Starlight + Storm Power = massive DPS, so getting both is highly desirable.
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