Rogues are super fun to play! Invisibility on demand is so powerful.
When not upgraded, armor blocks between 0 and X, but blocking increases with upgrades as +1/+tier. In addition, evasion means a hit can be avoided entirely.
One thing I'd add to all the good advice here: positioning is crucial. You should avoid facing more than one mob at a time. Use doors to your advantage: when a mob enters a door square, you will surprise it and get a guaranteed hit. Use hallways to force mobs to get to you one at a time. Be careful when you're in an open, large room, since a ranged mob can kill you very quickly.
Awesome, thanks! I was missing the possibility of getting +2 for the wand and +1 for the staff from the troll.
Luckily, there was a hallway (behind the mage in the picture) that allowed me to take the mobs one at a time. I was also able to position them so that the evil eyes in the back targeted multiple enemies.
BTW, the loot in that room was 300 gp :-)
How do you get the staff to +21? The most I can figure out is +18: get a wand of lightning +3, upgrade it to +18, and imbue it in the staff.
It took a good bit of time to clear this level...
This was level 21 -- I'm glad to report that the mage made it all the way to the amulet.
Because it takes a long time... but it's not a bad idea, I've done that in other runs.
Tale of a sorry end to a good run
I was having a great run with a mage. Found a leather armor +2, whip of shocking +2, a couple of rings and a good selection of wands, some even upgraded.
I was dominating level 13 in the caves. There, I found a treasure room with the pool and the piranhas. I readily gulped down my only invisibility potion and went for the treasure, hoping for a scale armor. I had saved 2 or 3 scrolls of upgrade and a couple of arcane styli waiting for the right armor to appear.
As I was making my way to the treasure chest, a gnoll brute and a gnoll shaman both entered the room. Trying to avoid them, I took too long to get back. Through bad luck and miscalculation, the potion ran out one step from the door, which was blocked by the brute.
So, I found myself facing three giant piranhas and two gnolls. I didn't have a teleport spell, and my stones of blink were useless as I was surrounded. I tried everything I could think of, and downed 11 (!) potions of healing and shielding, but I was taking too much damage. In the end, the mage succumbed to his wounds and the game was over.
I exited the game in frustration and swore not to try again in at least a week (not for the first time).
Five minutes later, to my horror, I realized I forgot that I had a seed of fadeleaf that might have saved me :-(
Yes, just food drops, potions of healing and dew. This particular seed has an ample supply of food as well. In general, I used to struggle with food management, but lately I've improved this aspect of the game and seldom run out of food. Some ideas:
- Make sure to move diagonally when possible to save one turn.
- Convert all mistery meats to edible meat.
- Get the small rations from the shops.
- Imbue the blandfruit with a seed of icecap or firebloom. Besides serving as a thrown weapon, they leave some food behind. It lasts for a long time!
- Try not to go back and forth through a level -- minimize the amount of turns you spend moving.
- The potions of honeyed healing (healing potion + shattered honeypot) also provide a bit of satiety.
Not a bad idea, but a bit against the tradition of Rogue-likes, which tend to be punishing. On one hand, the game can be really frustrating (it took me 60 tries before winning, and I still lose in very frustrating ways). On the other hand, maybe the game is just not for everyone?
My most powerful huntress build so far
The scale armor was augmented for evasion; not even the scorpions could hit me. I waltzed through the demon halls without worries.
I also had a RoW +1 and a robber's armband, and at some point had more than 10,000 gold. I had never had more than 3,000 before. Overall, I collected almost 21,000 gold; all my previous wins hovered around 14,000.
There are three (!) stones of enchantment, not even in hidden rooms. And five experience potions!
Ascended with a score of 242,000, my best yet.
Seed: BSC-DPD-VGR
Yes, that was the case. I was surprised because it had never happened before that the stairs were behind a secret door.l
No way down?
I can't find the way down! Am I going blind? Can the stairs be behind a secret door? I don't have any mapping spells or clairvoyance stones. Level 7, seed KXK-ZML-VGR. The room at the bottom of the map is closed.
Update: backtracked to a store and sold some stuff to get a spell of magic mapping. There were two secret doors on the west room woth the two columns. This is the first time this happens!
I couldn't find a hammer in level two using that seed (but level one has the sandals of nature!). However, I did find a stone gauntlet in the sewers a few games back. It is indeed possible to find tier-5 weapons in the early levels.
Thanks -- in this case, I died early enough that the game was not ranked.
Recovering seed of a run after it ends
Say I was having a great run, when (as usual) made a mistake and ended up dead. I'd like to try again, but didn't save the seed. Is there a way to recover it?
Thanks for the reply. I would have bet it was aiming two or three tiles behind me (in 2.4.0) compared to directly at me (in 2.3.2), but it's likely me doing something different.
I think @GWLexx meant that you mentioned having a "great seed", but didn't share it :-)
Has the DM-300 boss been buffed? I just fought it in 2.4.0. I remember being able to evade the toxic gas quite easily, but this time it was almost impossible not to get surrounded by it for at least two or three turns. This made the fight considerably more difficult.
I just found another one of these traps. Now, I noticed it, but I had only one item that might save me: a potion of honeyed healing. Fortunately, it did the trick!
Thanks for all the tips. Looking back, I think the problem is that I tend to move too fast, especially in long corridors (which is where I've found the traps). By the time I realize I've stepped on a trap, I've already taken a step. I don't know if I can consistently move slower, but I'll try.
Is the pitfall trap too OP?
I've played almost 100 runs, and two of them have been ended by a pitfall trap. On one hand, its existence helps keep SPD a punishing, unforgiving game in the Rogue-like tradition, but on the other, instant death is always frustrating. What are others' opinions?
I tried this with a wand of lightning. I got the staff to +12 before a succubus killed my mage. The wand's limited to ranged targets, and my scale armor +2 only made the demons laugh.
I hate looking for gold in the caves
It's by far the part of the game I like the least... there's always a couple of gold nuggets I can't seem to find. It's boring, and also frustrating to see my food supply dwindle.
Ascended!
First time! It's not too difficult, but just as the rest of the game, one mistake can mean game over (I was down to 4 HP at some point). I decided to try with the rogue first, since I think it's the easiest hero to play with, and the most powerful.
Won once with each hero
I've managed to win once with each hero!
From my limited experience, I'd say the rogue was the easiest to win with. Still, a lot depends on getting the right equipment, and not making any mistakes.
Interestingly, I've only played once with the rogue and the warrior, and a handful of times with the mage and duelist. Most of my games have been with the huntress, which remains my favorite hero.
How to use seeds for offense effectively?
I'm a beginner, with 33 games under my belt, playing almost exclusively with the huntress so far. I've made it down to dungeon level 14.
I've never had much success using seeds for offense, and I think that is limiting my progress. Whenever I throw a seed in front of an enemy, they just sidestep it -- even in a narrow corridor, somehow they don't seem to trigger the seed's effect. What am I missing?