Before the Fight
Raphael is in the House of Hope, his personal domain in Avernus. You reach it through Helsik's portal in Act 3. Before entering the boss arena:
- Steal the Orphic Hammer from the Archive (the whole reason you're here)
- Free Hope from her prison (she helps in the fight)
- Loot everything — the House of Hope has excellent gear
You're about to fight Raphael. Before you trigger the fight, make sure you've freed Hope from her cell. She joins the fight as an ally and her radiant damage is very effective against him. Also long rest if you can — you want full spell slots.
Phase 1: Devil Form Raphael
The fight begins when you try to leave with the Orphic Hammer. Raphael transforms into his devil form and the arena fills with soul pillars.
Soul Pillars
Four soul pillars surround the arena. While they're active, Raphael heals significantly each turn. Destroying them is the single most important mechanic in this fight.
Soul pillars are active — Raphael is healing every turn. Split your party: send two characters to destroy pillars while two keep Raphael busy. The pillars have moderate HP, about 50-70 each. Start with the nearest one.
Pillar strategy:
- Split your party. Two characters on pillar duty, two on Raphael.
- Destroy pillars fast. Use high-damage single-target abilities. Eldritch Blast, arrows, and melee all work.
- Prioritize over DPS on Raphael. Damaging Raphael while pillars heal him is a net loss.
- All four must die before you can realistically kill Raphael.
Raphael's attacks
- Multiattack: Three melee claw attacks. High damage. Keep your squishy characters at range.
- Fire breath: Cone AoE. Spread your party to avoid hitting multiple characters.
- Soul drain: Targets one character for heavy necrotic damage. Have Lesser Restoration or similar ready.
- Summoned adds: He spawns cambion allies periodically. AOE them down quickly or they'll overwhelm you.
He's winding up fire breath — spread your party NOW. Don't cluster. Move your melee fighter out of the cone and your ranged characters should already be at distance.
Phase 2: Enraged Raphael
Below 50% HP (after pillars are destroyed), Raphael becomes more aggressive. His attacks hit harder and he gains additional legendary actions.
Phase 2 — he's enraged. More attacks per turn now. Stack your best damage buffs and go all-in. Use Haste, Bless, and any remaining high-level spell slots. This is the burn phase.
Phase 2 strategy
- All-in DPS. Pillars are gone, no more healing. Stack damage buffs and burn him down.
- Use consumables. Potions of Speed, Elixirs of Bloodlust, scrolls of high-level spells. Don't save them.
- Hope's radiant damage is very effective here. Keep her alive with healing if needed.
- Control the adds. If cambions are still alive, AOE them before focusing Raphael.
- Counterspell his most dangerous abilities if you have a spellcaster positioned correctly.
Recommended party composition
- Frontline tank: Fighter or Paladin to hold Raphael's attention and absorb melee hits
- Healer: Cleric with Spirit Guardians for add control + healing
- Ranged DPS: Sorlock (Sorcerer/Warlock) or Ranger for sustained damage from safe distance
- Flex: Another DPS or a second healer depending on difficulty
Recommended loadout
- Potions: Potions of Speed, Superior Healing Potions, Elixir of Bloodlust
- Scrolls: Any high-level damage scrolls you've been hoarding. This is the fight to use them.
- Throwables: Bombs and alchemical fire for add control
- Gear: Fire resistance helps significantly. Equip any fire-resistant armor or accessories you have.
He's below 25%. Keep the pressure on. If Hope is still standing, her radiant attacks are doing serious damage. One more round of focused fire should finish this. Don't let up now.
Summary
Raphael is a fight about resource management and priority targeting. Destroy soul pillars first, manage adds second, damage Raphael third. Free Hope before the fight for a powerful ally. Let Sidekick AI call out pillar priorities and fire breath warnings so you can focus on tactical positioning.