Black Road
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The Black Road challenge is the hardest challenge in Median XL and consists of five trials, ranging from easy to very difficult. Obtain the favors of the demonlord Kabraxas by overcoming his tests of faith and he will impart some of his dark knowledge unto you.
You can do the five trials in any order, but you need to do all of them if you want the reward. Make sure you have your class charm, which you can obtain from the Kurast 3000 BA uberlevel.
See Kurast 3000 BA for more information.
1. Trial of Fear
Overcome your fear of demons by tackling the Butcher in Terror difficulty. Go to The Hole Level 2 and summon him, then kill him. Cube your class charm within 30 seconds after a successful kill.
See the Butcher for more information.
[Class Charm] -> returns [Class Charm] with note of completion (Fear)
2. Trial of Greed
Material wealth is a sign of demonic corruption. To pass this trial, keep 666,666 gold or more on your character (not your stash), then use the recipe to complete the trial.
[Class Charm] -> returns [Class Charm] with note of completion (Greed)
3. Trial of Contrition
Kabraxas is almost impressed with your combat prowess against demons. But how about other humans? To complete this Trial, summon and kill Shaman King Koth on Terror difficulty. Cube the charm within 30 seconds after a successful kill.
See King Koth for more information.
[Class Charm] -> returns [Class Charm] with note of completion (Contrition)
4. Trial of Knowledge
Obtain untold wisdom by collecting the positronic brains of the five Robot Bosses in Fauztinville in Terror difficulty. Kill the Robot Bosses and collect their Brains.
See Fauztinville for more information.
[Class Charm] + Alpha/Beta/Gamma/Delta/Epsilon Brain -> returns [Class Charm] with note of completion (Knowledge)
Fauztinville is a huge level, and the Robot Bosses are fairly well hidden. You may need to explore the whole level. One of the bosses requires a teleportation ability to access; if you cannot teleport, use an item with charges of a teleportation skill, like the runeword Pax Mystica or the ubercharm Moon of the Spider. A second boss is at the end of a hidden passage, but can be accessed through teleportation as well.
5. Trial of Blood
Kabraxas' element is Fire. Sway the Amazon Islands to your cause by eliminating the priestesses of the amazon gods of Ice and Lightning. But do it quickly. Kabraxas has no time to waste on bumbling humans like you.
Your targets are Skovos and Lycander, both found in the Tran Athulua uberlevel. Kill them on Terror difficulty. The challenge is that after you kill either one, you have only 30 seconds to kill the other and then cube your class charm. The timer starts ticking down after your first kill. To complete this trial, lead the two priestesses to the same area and kill them quickly, one after the other.
See Tran Athulua for more information.
[Class Charm] -> returns [Class Charm] with note of completion (Blood)
There is a third Priestess on the level, Philios, Priestess of Hefaetrus. Make sure you kill the correct Priestesses.
Black Road Completion
After successfully completing all five Challenges, buy four Sacrifical Hearts (sold by magic item vendors) and cube them with your class charm. This will add a number of bonuses and unlock the Level Challenge Skill in your skill tree.
[Class Charm] + Sacrifical Heart x4 -> returns [Class Charm] with added bonuses
This upgrade recipe adds the following bonuses to your class charm:
| Class | Ingredient | Bonuses |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon | Sacred Sunstone | +150 to Life +150 to Mana Unlocks your Black Road Challenge skill |
| Assassin | Shadow Vortex | +150 to Life +150 to Mana Unlocks your Black Road Challenge skill |
| Barbarian | Worldstone Orb | +150 to Life +150 to Mana Unlocks your Black Road Challenge skill |
| Druid | Caoi Dulra Fruit | +150 to Life +150 to Mana Unlocks your Black Road Challenge skill |
| Necromancer | Soulstone Shard | +150 to Life +150 to Mana Unlocks your Black Road Challenge skill |
| Paladin | Eye of Divinity | +150 to Life +150 to Mana Unlocks your Black Road Challenge skill |
| Sorceress | Nexus Crystal | +150 to Life +150 to Mana Unlocks your Black Road Challenge skill |
Your free bonus skill
This skill can be found at the bottom right of your third skill tab. When you complete the Black Road Challenge, upgrade your class charm and keep it into your inventory. This allows you to put skill points into the skill.
| Name | Icon | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Many of the amazon deities represent an aspect of war. The deity's spirits, summoned by an amazon high priestess or warrior queen, protect her in battle by striking down her enemies, seemingly out of nowhere. Effect: periodically emits spike novas that deal weapon damage | ||
| There are two schools in psychic training. The most common school promotes balance of mind and peace of thoughts. This is a creation of the other school: a primal scream that overwhelms weaker minds with pain and confusion. Effect: short ranged shockwave that forces enemies to flee | ||
| A warrior who has his eyes on the throne of his tribe is sent to the summit of Mount Sescheron to await the next thunderstorm. If he survives, he may have learned something valuable about the forces of nature. Effect: adds stun to melee attacks and periodically emits stun novas | ||
| Aside from their healing effect on humans and other animals, the juice of the Glor-An-Fhaidha's fruits can be applied to armour, making it as hard as the bark of a thousand year tree. Passive effect: consuming a Goodberry also increases defense | ||
| The deathspeaker establishes an aura powered by the emanations of a demon's wicked thoughts, conjuring torture equipment and striking the demon with the punishments it desires most to inflict upon humanity. Effect: when activated, periodically shoots deadly spiked balls at enemies | ||
| A life of worship teaches the warrior of Zakarum the futility of evil. The denizens of hell are but vermin to an emissary of the Light. Passive effect: reduces damage taken and speeds up healing apples | ||
| The witch's voice coalesces into a wall of force and slams into the enemy ranks. The shockwave does not harm flesh or bones, but the shellshocked enemies may well be so confused they forget how to fight. Effect: wave of force that knocks back enemies and lowers damage |