Difficulty spike?

[Geist]

Did this for the first time in the late, late evening alongside two of my FC mates (hello there Kori, Rugiada!).
Most of the people in our group were new to the trial, anyway, and we were a pretty uneven mix of iLvls - with the majority being barely above the minimum, if I'm recalling it correctly.

We wiped a couple times while learning the pacing and developing a strategy that would fit our group. On the third attempt we got it right: the healers were key in both keeping up with the flow of damage and pumping some nice extra dps, which came in handy during add phase (our tanks managed to gather them for a LB, cutting down on the time required to burn them).

It's obviously going to be harder for barely-geared entrants, and you need to learn the pace to be effective, but it's a great, intense battle as it should be. If I may offer a piece of simple advice, the previous step in the MSQ does drop ilvl 215 gear, as does Hullbreaker, so there are ways to "buckle up" (at least in terms of better armor and accessories) before undertaking this trial, besides the known avenues of raids, crafted gear or Lore pieces.

There's a reason these are "The Final Steps of Faith", after all: it isn't going to be easy.