Aion 2 · Guides
Aion 2 Nightmare guide: tickets, boss unlocks and rewards
NCSOFT / AION 2 official Steam screenshots
TL;DR
- Nightmare is solo boss content that opens at level 45. Each fight costs one ticket. Grobs and TheWhelps both say you get two tickets a day and can hold up to 14.
- Every boss has 10 levels. Clearing level 10 of a boss unlocks the next boss in its tier.
- Wins pay Phantasmal Fragments. A first clear of each level pays the most. Repeat clears pay less.
- Spend fragments in the Nightmare shop. Madsin's main target is the Colossus: Zikel's Apparition for your Pantheon.
- Let tickets pile up. Grobs and TheWhelps both wait until they hold 14, then spend them on the highest levels they can clear.
What Nightmare is
Nightmare is a series of one-on-one boss fights. There is no party and nobody to carry you, so your gear and how well you play your class decide how far you get. Anders likes it as a place to practise without holding up a group.
Creator tip
NC described this as a sort of training ground. You learn your class, drill your rotation, master dodges, and I agree, it's the best place to practice your class without holding up a party.
You need level 45 before Nightmare opens. Grobs points out that your tickets only start to recharge from that point. That is one reason creators push their main to 45 on the first day. Tickets are per character, so each alt at 45 builds its own supply.
Tickets
Each fight uses one ticket. Grobs and TheWhelps describe the same recharge:
| Tickets | Count |
|---|---|
| At the start | 2 |
| Recharge | 2 a day |
| Most you can hold | 14, a week of tickets |
The game data also lists Nightmare Dungeon Challenge Tickets that add one attempt, and an Instant Clear Ticket: Nightmare (Bound). In the item's own words, it gives additional rewards after a Nightmare clear based on how many you hold, and it uses up attempts as well as tickets. TheWhelps says subscribers can buy these.
How bosses unlock
The game data records 21 Nightmare bosses in three tiers. Every boss has challenge levels 1 to 10, and each level has a recommended battle power. Clearing level 10 of a boss opens the next boss in the chain.
| Tier | Opening bosses | Middle bosses | Final boss |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gatekeeper Pinopi, Furious Feruk, Fafnir's Poison Blood, Wraith Giselle | Fortress Guardian Notun, Mutated Gerod | Zikel's Apparition |
| 2 | Mutated Ulgorn, Soulreaper Rathman, Sharp Aulak, Sealed Sura | Enraged Reda, Warden Santras | Kaisinel's Illusion |
| 3 | Sanctum Guardian Gauss, Ritualist Aulisa, Root Mythical Bird Aultross, Oathbreaker Gartua | Incarnated Warding Feather, Modified Bargott | Tyrant Tassin |
Each middle boss is linked to level 10 of two opening bosses. For example, Fortress Guardian Notun opens from Gatekeeper Pinopi and Furious Feruk. The final boss is linked to level 10 of both middle bosses.
The next tier opens sooner than you might expect. Clearing level 1 of a final boss is enough. Zikel's Apparition level 1 opens all four tier 2 opening bosses, and Kaisinel's Illusion level 1 opens tier 3.
Recommended battle power rises steadily:
| Boss | Level 1 | Level 10 |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 opening bosses | 1,000 | 1,600 |
| Zikel's Apparition | 2,400 | 3,000 |
| Tyrant Tassin, the last boss in the data | 4,000 | 4,200 |
TheWhelps and Madsin both treat Zikel's Apparition as the Season 1 goal. Anders says the Season 1 final boss has only one level, but the data gives Zikel's Apparition the same 10 levels as every other boss.
You do not have to climb every level
TheWhelps says the game lets you jump straight to a boss's level 10. If you can win there, one ticket moves you on.
Creator tip
Now, you don't have to climb from one. You can just consume one ticket, clear level 10, and go to the next one.
You still give up the first-clear rewards of the levels you skip. Whether that matters depends on how many tickets you have and how fast you want the next boss.
Rewards
Every win pays Phantasmal Fragments. The first clear of each level pays a bonus; repeat clears pay less, depending on how well you clear. Three examples from the data:
| Boss and level | First clear | Repeat clear |
|---|---|---|
| Gatekeeper Pinopi, level 1 | 500 | 100 to 250 |
| Zikel's Apparition, level 1 | 1,500 | 300 to 740 |
| Tyrant Tassin, level 10 | 3,200 | 640 to 1,590 |
Across all bosses, first clears pay from 500 to 3,200. Each boss's page lists all ten levels side by side.
TheWhelps calls Nightmare a season goal, not a weekly chore. Once you have cleared everything you can, there is less reason to fight the same levels again.
Creator tip
So, yeah, this is more like a season content rather than a weekly.
What to buy in the Nightmare shop
The Nightmare shop sells growth items, wings, skins and Pantheon decorations for Phantasmal Fragments.
Nightmare shop highlights
Colossus: Zikel's Apparition (Bound)Madsin's first purchase
Daevanion Crystal (Bound)One Daevanion Point each
Stigma Shard (Bound)One Stigma Shard Point each
Nightmare Wings (Bound)Owned effect adds Boss Attack and Boss Defense
Amplify Stone Fragment (Unique) (Bound)Converts into an Amplify Stone through Substance Morph
Statue: Gatekeeper Pinopi (Bound)One of six tier 1 boss statues
The Colossus and the statues go in your Pantheon, and placing one there grants its effect. Madsin rates the Colossus highly.
Creator tip
The main one that is important is the final boss colossus. This is going to be big gains for your characters statwise and you will be using it until well into season 2.
After the Colossus, Madsin spends fragments on Stigma Shards, since they raise your Stigma skill levels. Anders points early players at Daevanion Crystals instead. Each one gives a Daevanion Point for your boards. Both are sound uses. Pick the one your character is shorter on.
When to spend tickets
Grobs and TheWhelps give the same advice:
- Do not spend tickets the moment you get them. Let them stack while your gear improves.
- Spend them on the highest levels you can beat. Higher levels pay more, and your first week of gear gains can move you several levels up.
- Do not wait past 14. Once the stack is full, the daily recharge is lost, so Grobs spends two a day from then on and keeps testing himself against harder bosses.
Creator tip
Then for nightmare dungeons, you actually want to wait to the last day before you do it because you don't have to kill them on every level. If you are strong enough, you can challenge them in week one on level 10, and that, of course, would give you a better reward.
Next steps
- Transcendence guide: the five-player dungeon for Arcana.
- Ludra raid guide: the 10-player Sanctuary raid.
- Daily and weekly checklist: where Nightmare fits in your week.
- All Nightmare bosses: every boss and level with its rewards.
Explore the encyclopedia
Sources
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