Welcome to the XBLAFans Dungeon Defenders Insane Challenge Guide. We would like to thank RhinoStarr, ThC x LeThaL and the multitude of people who filled the fourth spot for their tireless work, without them this guide would not have happened. The original guide was targeted at the easy – hard difficulties, the reasoning for a completely separate guide for the hardest difficulty challenges is that Dungeon Defenders is really broken into two parts. Early game and end game, insane is of course end game.
It has completely new drops, new formations of waves, MUCH harder enemies and requires the most intense team work imaginable. If you want to go the whole nine yards and complete all insane challenges, be prepared to sink in many hours and start to form a regular team.
You will need very specific character set ups, turret placements and equipment to pass many of these levels. Not to say you might get lucky with some of them, it won’t happen with them all though. The guide will work under the assumption that you know the levels and emplacements mentioned, as well as a fluent understanding of characters and items. If you don’t then we suggest you continue to level your characters and gather equipment.
If you are on the cusp of being able to begin your insane adventure but still need to polish some characters, then take a look at our Insane Preparation Tips page, it will show you where to grind for the fastest exp and the best loot.
Recommended group – One Level 70 Squire/Monk, Three Level 70 Huntresses.
Reward for completing on Insane – Squire – The Pinioner
Defense Units – 110
This is arguable the hardest challenge, you need a team of very powerful Huntresses(30,000+ DPS) and someone with a Squire and Monk to be able to do this. You will face upwards of 30+ enemies who have over 250,000 health during the challenge and it is stressful to say the least.
The Squire will need his skills nearly entirely leaning towards towers, they will need as much of everything as they can possible get to be effective. His job will be to maintain the emplacements once they are down and to take care of the Ogres that will appear. It is recommended he has a high elemental damaging weapon as the only enemies he will need to attack are Ogres. There will be times in the later waves where two Ogres spawn at once, the Squire should concentrate on one whilst a Huntress keeps the second busy and away from the crystals.
The Huntresses will need to be killing as much as possible as quickly as possible. As soon as Super Wyverns start spawning it will need to be all hands on deck to take them down, these can cause serious damage if left unchecked. They look like the other Wyverns but have MUCH more health, almost as much as some of the earlier wave Ogres.
The bottom crystal that sits by itself will be the main attraction and will need at least one person attending it at any given time. There should be at least one person watching the roof side as well as this will get as much traffic as the bottom spawns. If you see a crystal being damaged drop what you are doing and find the enemy doing it, things can take a turn for the worst in a snap of the fingers.
There is a lot of luck involved in this but it is very possible with a good team and some practice.
Recommended group – One Level 70 Squire, One Level 70 Monk, Two Level 70 Huntresses.
Reward for completing on Insane – Apprentice – Chanticleer’s Chandlier
Defense Units – 100
This challenge is pretty fun and not really difficult, it will have you and your team scrambling to get into place. The basic strategy for this is to keep the enemies as far away from the chicken as possible. For the large part you can but the challenge in this will come from Dark Elf Warriors and keep everything repaired.
Your team will face A LOT of enemies in this challenge but it isn’t as crazy as some of the other challenges. At all times each player should be on the look out for the message that they are about to become the chicken and if they receive it they should run straight to the hiding spot.
The hiding spot is just below the bottom crystal on a ledge. This is the most secluded spot on the level and will keep nearly all enemies far away from the chicken. The main dangers will come from Wyverns that get through and Dark Elf Warriors lunging in.
For the people who aren’t currently the chicken they should take one of three spots; the top side, the left side or the right side. It will be up to them to keep everything repaired and to kill as much as they can. Being a Monk on this challenge is very helpful as he can concentrate on killing yet still use his Tower Boost Ability to heal emplacements.
Recommended group – One Level 70 Squire/Monk, Two Level 70 Huntresses.
Reward for completing on Insane – Squire – The Quiesence
Defense Units – 130
This challenge is a difficult one if your team isn’t working together perfectly. To begin with one Huntress will need to be on top of the crystal as it floats around, protecting it from any stray enemies or Wyverns which might make it past the defenses.We recommend the bodyguard Huntress has a fairly high shots per second weapon that does at least 15,000 – 20,000 DPS.
The main thing to remember is that everyone should be repairing everything in sight, as a single breach in the wrong place at the wrong time can be fatal. Wyverns will be a problem as even the most powerful Harpoon Turrets can sometimes let a Wyvern slip past. This is really what the bodyguard Huntress should be on the look out for.
There will be Ogres that spawn, everyone except the Huntress protecting the crystal should divert their attention to them instantly. The bottom of the map is really the part which is most susceptible to being broken through mainly because of Dark Elf Mages, these guys should be killed as soon as they are spotted. In reality as long as your team can keep up repairs and push back enemies if they get through this should be possible with a bit of luck.
Recommended group – One Level 70 Squire, One Level 70 Huntress.
Reward for completing on Insane – Monk – Magina’s Last Glaive
Defense Units – 165
If you attempt this unprepared this challenge is very difficult, but if you approach this the right way this very doable. We do not recommend you try this with more than two people because the increase in enemy count is very much so over the top, not to mention reduced respawns.
Not only is there quite a lot of enemies, as the waves progress you will face increasing more powerful enemies which do MUCH more damage than normal, move incredibly fast and have up to five times more health normal. For instance the Ogres on the last wave with two players move as fast as a sprinting Kobald and have over a million health.
The set up you will need to use is very specific so we recommend you have these items before attempting this. The Huntress will need a Genie pet with at least 200 mana regeneration per hit. She will need to remain invisible the entire time, or at least most of the time to be successful. Her role will be to pick off as many enemies as she possibly can whilst remaining away from the battle.
As such she will need a fairly high DPS weapon, we recommend at least 30,000 DPS. The only enemies which can see through a Huntresses invisibility are Dark Elf Warriors, they are also the most damaging enemies next to Ogres and Bosses. As such her attention should always turn to any Dark Elf Warriors she spots. There is fortunately a spot where she can sit and still see the bulk of enemies yet will be in cover away from most Dark Elf Warriors. This is located near the center of the map between a wall and a pillar.
The Squire must have at least 5,500 health and have his skill points almost solely invested in Hero stats and Blood Rage. He will also need a fairly powerful Fairy pet to use, as this is the key to him being able to tank massive amounts of damage. His weapon really can’t be substituted for anything other than decent ‘The Heretic’ from Wizardry either, it has the highest base damage possible for a sword. His job will be to follow a path leading from the middle platform to the bottom left side and back, this will mean that nearly all enemies that he doesn’t kill will run past the Huntress at some point. He should divert his attention to any Ogres that appear and use his Blood Rage ability as much as he can.
Having any towers is completely optional how ever if you do, try and place them on the middle platform as this is the most trafficked place by enemies, they will be destroyed fairly frequently and as the between wave time is only 15 seconds towers aren’t really high on the agenda to place. You should certainly not risk lives by placing them mid wave. By any measure Proximity Traps, Inferno Traps and Slice N Dice Blockades would most likely be your best bet.
Recommended group – One Level 70 Squire/Monk, Two Level 70 Huntresses.
Reward for completing on Insane – Huntress – Crystal Tracker
Defense Units – 90
Once again as with all the Insane challenges the premise is simple. Protect the crystal, but this time it will warp to one of six locations randomly. Now as with Unlikely Allies, your best bet is to kill the enemies as quickly as possible, this to ensure you are completely protected as you can’t predict where the crystal will go. This is done by blocking off their spawns with Slice N Dice and Auras.
The basic rule with this one is not to leave the crystal unprotected by players at any point. The reasoning behind using Slice N Dice instead of Bouncer Blockades is because Bouncers have a habit of propelling enemies past them and not doing their intended job, they also take damage much more quickly in comparison. When the sixth wave comes you will encounter an Ogre, he should become the main priority as soon as he appears. It is important to note that there is no Wyverns to annoy you on this challenge.
Once the areas around their spawns and the paths leading to the crystal are effectively blocked, the main problem will then come from Archers. They have a tendency of sitting below the crystal on the side spawns and shooting it. This can be blocked by sitting a Spiked Blockade on top of the ridge. The Monk’s Ensnare and Electric Auras should be placed in the bottom Left and Right warp locations, this area is the most flat and open area and needs to dealt with the quickest.
You can place things where the crystal will warp to, just not while it is there. It should be noted that even if you follow this guide, there is a chance the crystal will be destroyed. There is a certain degree of luck in the locations and timing that the crystal warps to.
Reward for completing on Insane – Monk – Ogre Party Hat.
Defense Units – 90
As surprising as it may be this seemingly mammoth task is best done solo, the reason for this is every person in the game acts a multiplier of sorts for the amount of Ogres you will face per wave. For instance during the very first wave solo you will face a single ogre, if there were three more people you would be facing four Ogres.
There are five entrances through which your large adversaries will come through, which means at maximum you will face five enemies at a time. You should always take care of the top side Ogre first then the back two and finally the two on the sides. You won’t need any fortifications at the top side if you kill him first.
As for the sides if you place a Slice N Dice Blockade underneath each plank bridge the Ogres will try and cross the bridges only to be mesmerized by the Slice N Dice Blockades despite not being able to hit them. As for the two bottom Ogres they can be postponed by placing several Spike Blockades in front of each other leading from each spawn, as you won’t be using much Mana these can be replaced as needed.
Recommended group – One Level 70 Squire/Monk, Three Level 70 Huntresses.
Reward for completing on Insane – Apprentice – Shambalas Lay
Defense Units – 150
This at first may seem a little daunting but really this is a very simple challenge, find the required number of gold mana that is dropped by golden enemies whom have more health than usual. To start you should know that there is no Wyverns during this challenge, which undoubtedly simplifies things immensely.
You will how ever encounter constantly spawning Ogres, as well as everything else. Since the goal is to kill the golden enemies which randomly spawn and collect their gold mana you should try and concentrate on killing enemies as fast as possible.
This is achieved by building defenses offensively, and having them as close to enemy spawn points as possible without blocking enemies in so that they can’t be damaged. It should be noted the Ogres have their own spawn point at the bottom of the map and as soon as they spawn they should become the players center of attention. It is possible to have a golden Ogre appear, they will have a ton more health than usual but they do drop two golden mana at a time.
As you progress the challenge doesn’t come from dealing with the ever spawning enemies but keeping everything repaired, which is why this is best done with four players. Overall how ever this challenge isn’t too tough and you should be able to pass this with flying colors.
Reward for completing on Insane – Huntress – Kobold Douser
Defense Units – 0
This level is very challenging, it involves hundreds of Kobolds running towards you ready to explode. Don’t waste your time with anything other than Huntresses on this level. The Apprentice can substitute but he fails to keep up with the firing rate a Huntress can do, which can let Kobolds through.
Whilst it is possible to do this with other weapons nothing beats the Crystal Tracker for this level, as long as it does over a thousand damage per hit and has at least six shots per second. You have no DUs to use on this level so it comes down to holding your ground and making sure you don’t let a single Kobold through, they can and will kill you in one hit or cause serious damage to the crystal.
There are four basic lanes of enemies, so one person watches a lane each. Two people sit at the back watching either side of the staircase whilst the other two sit out the front shooting at enemies coming from the sides. The enemies will increase drastically as the waves progress but they remain the same damage and health throughout. Basically your team needs to hold out as long as possible letting little to no enemies through, the crystals won’t take more than three hits and it obviously won’t heal between waves.
Do not for any reason leave your post for a second, you generally won’t need mana so try to move around as little as possible and keep a constant stream of bullets on your assigned lane. Remember one Kobold can kill you in a single explosion and one death can mean game over.
Recommended group – One Level 70 Huntress, One Level 70 Squire.
Reward for completing on Insane – Huntress – Blasticus
Defense Units – 0
This is a tough challenge but very fun, at least at first. You’re going to need an intelligent Huntress with either a powerful Crystal Tracker or Blasticus, not much else can substitute this. You are also going to need a Squire with a weapon that can do BIG damage on the last crystal.
Some things to remember are; crystals aren’t resistant to element damage so therefore because the Squire is only needed for the last crystal its recommended that he carries a large DPS elemental weapon. Its not actually range that is limited, just projectile air time. Which means if you have a weapon with at least 2 500 Projectile Speed, you can hit anything at any distance including crystals. The traps range is limited to how big the visible radius is on the ground. Once you reach the third crystal it largely falls down to the Squire to be able to finish the level, as he has the most health and coupled with his Blood Rage Ability he can take care of the crystal in a few hits.
The Huntress must use her Piercing Shot ability constantly to be effective, this is where the major blows come from. The first crystal should provide no challenge at all and needs no explanation. As for the second crystal if you go to the right side approach, the stairs just before the Bowling Ball turret stairs can be tricky. One hint is that if you sit just outside the enemy turret radius on the stairs you can jump and Piercing Shot them.
Once past that jump on the torch to the left side of the stairs to knock out the Bowling Ball Turrets and bypass the Ensnare Aura, when your in it shouldn’t be a problem to knock out the crystal.
The next enemy encounter which may provide some resistance is the stairs just before the last crystal, however there is a trick to taking out all enemies and turrets without taking damage for the Huntress. If the Huntress sits in the little corner between the wall and the stairs she can jump and Piercing Shot through the floor, this can reach everything on top of the stairs.
Let this be said, this last part is where you probably fail. Its basically a ledge filled with death, and you have little time to formulate a strategy. So we did it for you! This part is largely open to interpretation as to how you complete it, because it involves a fair amount of luck and there is no real fool proof strategy.
The first way to do this is openly push through destroying everything you can reach before dying, not great but has been known to work. The second way is to stick to the left side ledge and sacrificing one player to take the Ethereal Spike Trap out of business for a few seconds, allowing a second player to jump almost straight to the crystal. This will generally work as long as nothing goes wrong.
The third and quickest way, if practiced can be achieved every single time. It basically involves jumping from the first torch fire on the left to the right side Harpoon Turret, from there you can jump straight over the Bowling Ball Turrets on to the top of the Slice N Dice turrets and finally to the crystal. The main thing to watch out for is the Ensnare Aura and jumping into enemies, other wise this is the most fool proof method found.
A full run through of the level including each third crystal strategy can be found in this video for your viewing pleasure.
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Welcome to the XBLAFans Dungeon Defenders Insane Challenge Guide. We would like to thank RhinoStarr, ThC x LeThaL and the multitude of people who filled the fourth spot for their tireless work, without them this guide would not have happened. The original guide was targeted at the easy – hard difficulties, the reasoning for a completely separate guide for the hardest difficulty challenges is that Dungeon Defenders is really broken into two parts. Early game and end game, insane is of course end game.
