Just beyond their warbase, Valus Ta'aurc, Fleet Commander of the Cabal Siege Dancers, hides in an Imperial Land Tank. Fight through his guard and stop this terror before he destroys all of Freehold.
― In-game description
Cerberus Vae III is a strike in Destiny. It takes place in Meridian Bay, Mars.
Objectives[]
- Access the defense net
- Find Valus Ta'aurc
- Kill Ta'aurc's guard
- Destroy the Goliath
- Get to the land tank
- Kill Valus Ta'aurc
Transcript[]
{Loading Screen}
- COMMANDER ZAVALA: Whether we wanted it or not, we've stepped into a war with the Cabal on Mars. So let's get to taking out their command, one by one. Valus Ta'aurc. From what I can gather, he commands the Siege Dancers from an Imperial Land Tank just outside of Rubicon. He's well protected, but with the right team, we can punch through those defenses, take this beast out, and break their grip on Freehold.
{Gameplay}
- GHOST: Let's find access to their system. See if we can track down Valus Ta'aurc.
The fireteam heads to a nearby building and sends the Ghost to scan a terminal.
- GHOST: I've established a link. We can track him and his guard.
The door to the Iron Line opens, and the fireteam continues through.
- GHOST: Be on the lookout for his lieutenants. They're just as dangerous.
The fireteam continues to Trenchworks, encountering Cabal along the way.
- GHOST: Good news: all of his lieutenants are here. We could take down all of his guard.
The fireteam kills three of Valus Ta'aurc's lieutenants.
- GHOST: I'm picking up another one of his lieutenants heading this way.
A Harvester flies down a short distance away and drops a Goliath tank.
- GHOST: He's in a tank!
The fireteam destroys the Goliath, killing the last lieutenant.
- GHOST: Alright, let's go get Ta'aurc!
The fireteam travels through the Valley of the Kings and into the Cerberus Vae III. They clear out the Cabal in the final room. Valus Ta'aurc enters with Cabal support. The fireteam kills him.
- GHOST: We got him. I'll let Commander Zavala know there's one less problem on Mars.
- ZAVALA: Valus Ta'aurc has finally been defeated and the Cabal command dealt a great blow. But in the Darkness rising, more fleets will come and new leaders will rise. We must be prepared to face them all.
Tactics[]
- Ta'aurc is invulnerable until the doors fully close behind him.
- The lower floor of the right side has the most cover.
- The fight changes as Ta'aurc loses health. At 75% of his total health, he will move down the center aisle of the fight location from one end of the area to the other and additional enemies will begin to spawn. At 50%, he will move back to his original spot and even more enemies will spawn. At 25%, he will begin to move all around the room and use his missiles much more frequently, and even more enemies will spawn.
- Save heavy ammunition until Ta'aurc reaches 25% health. The fight gets much more difficult at that point, so you'll want to make sure you get it over with as quickly as possible.
- Getting Ta'aurc to pursue a player underneath the side catwalks will negate his missiles, since they will hit the underside of the catwalk immediately after being fired.
- There are "chandeliers" on top of the map. By using the side pillars of the map and an increased height perk, you can jump up on top of them.
- At the end of the room where Valus Ta'aurc appears, on the left side, there is a gap between the wall and the ramp that allows players to jump down under the ramp behind some crates. Players can shoot out and will be mostly invulnerable to enemy fire.
- At the end of the room where Valus Ta'aurc appears, on the right side by the ramp there is a space on the lower level. If the player goes once Ta-aurc is at 25% health, he will walk to the ramp and start ground slamming repeatedly. Due to him being higher than the player, the ground slam will miss, but he keeps doing it, allowing the player to finish him without taking damage.
Strike Hoard Loot[]
Trivia[]
- In April 2015, Ta'aurc's health was decreased by 33%, and the number of Majors that spawn in the Ta'aurc fight was reduced.[1]
- The intro to the strike (specifically, the phrase "Whether we wanted it or not, we've stepped into a war with the Cabal on Mars.) has since become a meme within the Destiny community, with references from both fans and Bungie employees alike.