I used to hate Undying Mind. My new favorite thing is radiant skin + dark drinker (sword), which makes quick work of the majors on the stairs and during the boss fight. Stormtrance works pretty well too. Fun fact: if you have taken on the stairs, rush to the top and kill the three wizards, this will clear the strike up to the minotaurs. In the case of the nightfall, the minotaurs are sleeping and you can walk by. This basically means you only really need to fight your way through the first area and then the boss. The Shadow Thief has now slid to my least favorite slot.