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Stood up and Befriended, the Nagas of Crawl (a lil NSFW)

7hm

Scholar
Joined
Oct 29, 2010
Messages
644
Malakal said:
7hm said:
Don't burn skill points on crappy weapons. It's tough to do, but stick to one weapon grouping regardless of how good the randarts you find are.

And leave Nikola alone. He'll destroy you.

Early skill levels cost peanuts in xp so having at least level 6 in all weapons is very much viable. In case of some insane artifacts mainly.

Every skill you gain increases the cost of skills later, because the xp cost is based on total # of skill levels that you have. So while it only costs say 10xp to get a skill early, if it was a throw away skill you're going to have to spend a significant amount of xp later in the game to increase a skill that actually matters.

Edit: And that sucks yeesh. :(

You'll get it one of these days.

I'd suggest not to worry too much about jellies. They're not worth chasing. Just leave the floor if you're that worried about the items.

(There are so many items in the game it's usually not worth hunting down every one, let alone worrying about stuff you haven't found.)
 

Yeesh

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7hm said:
Every skill you gain increases the cost of skills later, because the xp cost is based on total # of skill levels that you have. So while it only costs say 10xp to get a skill early, if it was a throw away skill you're going to have to spend a significant amount of xp later in the game to increase a skill that actually matters.

Yes, I was surprised to read something to this effect over at https://crawl.develz.org/tavern/. I've never been able to find a "spoiler" on skill experience, and that's a damned shame because it's such a vitally important part of the game. Is there such a spoiler? But anyway I've definitely noticed that raising a skill from 2 to 3 when you're fifteenth level takes much, much more XP than when you're second level.

7hm said:
I'd suggest not to worry too much about jellies. They're not worth chasing. Just leave the floor if you're that worried about the items.

(There are so many items in the game it's usually not worth hunting down every one, let alone worrying about stuff you haven't found.)

BUT THEY MAKE ME RAGE SO MUCH :x
 

Zomg

Arbiter
Joined
Oct 21, 2005
Messages
6,984
I don't know the cost inflation formula, but yeah it's big.

Another pertinent skill spoiler I picked up somewhere was that the pre-inflated cost per skill level has a big jump around level 15, it's like a 2-3x difference over level 14(instead of something around 1.2x difference in earlier levels). This is the reason your skills kinda get stuck in the high teens in the midgame before you get into super rich late game XP like Vault:8 or Slime. You can only get into the low 20s at that point with stuff that you have really good aptitudes for.

And the cost to go from level 0 to level 1 is much more than the cost to go from 1 to 2, which is why it takes fuck forever to get fighting 1 with a deep elf banging on a tree.
 

Yeesh

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wk1xna.jpg


(I never get tired of that picture)
 

Yeesh

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I still don't know some very basic stuff about how skills work. Primarily:

Leaving aptitudes and inflation aside, do different schools cost different base amounts? I know different actions can cause a greater or lesser amount of advancement in a skill (obviously it takes fewer invokes to level that up than it does swings to level up fighting), so leaving that aside too, are just the base XP costs comparable? Does the base XP cost of raising Fighting to 10 equal the base XP cost of raising Traps or Poison Magic or Evocation to 10?

Anyway let's get this show on the road. Hopefully we won't have any more viable canditates to slow us down like that last guy. "Oooo, look at me! If played right I could have actually ascended!" Go fuck yourself, snakey. You're dead and no one cares.

So without further delay,

ym3P1.jpg

Hraak VII is going to go all the way. His plan: KICK ASS! (Hippy's deleted the real screenshot. Fucking hippies!!!)


IbTIQ.png

That's right, little gobbo. Feel the power of HRAAK (VII). Hraak VII memorizes Freezing Aura. He's going to play this thing by the book.


UB9ui.png

Poison spittle coats the dungeon. A gecko succumbs, and behold you now the mastery of HRAAK (VII). I decide to choose Str for a change. Why? Because I want to kick ass.


JFBlt.png

Of course, since Hraak VII isn't an archer, arrows are all over the fucking place. Screw you, Crawl.


u1fxl.png

Hraak VII continues to collect ranged ammunition for no reason. A hobgoblin tastes Hraak's frozen steel and succumbs to a deadly axe-fucking. A level 4 naga is Hraak VII now. His Str increases again. Aww yeah.


uWr4y.png

Hraak VII decides to try his hand at berserking.


PhSum.png

That's what I like to see. Like a black widow.


gKMh7.png

In rapid succession, Hraak VII finds a Young Poisoner's Handbook, a glowing robe, and a Staff of Power. Will all this make him question his warrior ways?


Bbsl0.png

Hraak VII is so totally not going in there. Fuck that Yiuf asshole.


GEZry.png

One thing that was notable about Saigo I's pointless existence is that he did not run into too many uniques. Jessica is here to remind Hraak VII that Crawl wants you to die. The naga backs around the corner, absorbing a Pain spell and waiting for his chance.


b2qae.png

So far, so good. Hraak VII chops up her corpse and eats it because he's a fucking SNAKE MONSTER let's not forget.


k2s3S.png

Hackin' em up, old Hraak VII achieves level 5. Good for you! I bet you're going to be the naga who finally gets that orb!


iWvuD.png

Hraak VII finds the temple quite early on, surrounded by a forest of hippy plants. Now he has to make a choice. Having found a quite awesome +2 Robe of Resistance (rC and rF), Hraak VII can't help thinking that would make a pretty fine Cheibriados ghetto artifact. With Che's bonuses, he'd be 2/3 protected from cold and fire, and that ain't too shabby.


UV6bP.png

The layout is wiggity whack, but all the obvious choices are represented. Who who who?
 

Malakal

Arcane
Glory to Ukraine
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Robe of resistance right away? Fucking nice, this armor will last you the whole game.

But I would go with Okawaru instead of Chie. Might, haste, and item gifts cant hurt while being slooooooooooooow does.
 

Yeesh

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I'm really hesitant about Okawaru because I've already found awesome armor and because as a crusader this guy already has access to berserk and because I was hoping to cast some spells. BUT then I remember that my intincts are terrible, so it's a good thing when I'm hesitant. That means Okawaru is the right choice. Let's move out.


lNMBY.png

Then suddenly Hraak VII gets killed by a sky beast, rendering moot the contemplation above. I'm not saying I understand what happened because I don't. But good riddance; that's one less naga in the world.

Code:
407 Hraak VII the Vexing (level 5, -4/43 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Crusader on Mar 9, 2011.
             Was an Initiate of Okawaru.
             Slain by a sky beast (7 damage)
             ... on Level 4 of the Dungeon on Mar 10, 2011.
             The game lasted 00:37:45 (3254 turns).

Lesson learned: Naga really suck.
 

Yeesh

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I believe Hraak VIII will be the last of the mighty naga crusaders... because he's going to ASCEND!


KPQG5.png

But then he dies to a hobgoblin really early. This does not serve to change my opinion on naga.


Code:
20 Hraak VIII the Magician (level 1, -1/15 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Crusader on Mar 10, 2011.
             Slain by a hobgoblin
             ... wielding a +0,+0 club
              (2 damage)
             ... on Level 1 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:00:57 (133 turns).

I mean, really. What do you say about that? I need a new plan.
 

Yeesh

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bWDru.png

Brug I is the first in an experimental series of Naga berserkers.


U1Bhe.png

yeL1D.png

Spitting and hacking, hacking and spitting. Level 3 then level 4. Presumably, level 2 was in there as well, but we have no proof of that. What heights you shall scale, Brug I. What heights indeed.


qjC4A.png

Please don't make Brug I angry. You wouldn't like him when he's angry...


BqMlm.png

Centaur barding. Ain't that a bitch?


KId4m.png

Ah, my old arch nemesis. Hmm, with no ranged attack (Grinder's even immune to spittle), this might be a time to slink away.


X8Csr.png

A humble phantom would easily have been enough to kill Brug I, but the latter got very lucky with his berserk and prevailed. Welcome to level 5, Brug I. You're totally not going to die!


Rnwdf.png

Another frantic melee sees Yeesh pounding the arrow keys hard, but luck is with Brug I who achieves level 6. Way to go. I choose Str, because fuck yeah that's why.


pc0Dt.png

In the Temple, there's nothing for Brug I to do except contemplate how different his life would have been if he'd never met Trog. Taking an opportunity to ID some things, he discovers he's got amor of poison resistance, and a ring of wizardry. Nice finds for someone who isn't a naga berserker. The ring is cursed, which I hadn't seen on one of those before.


1UkCP.png

Saigo V shouldn't be much of a threat if he wasn't generated with a bow and arrows.


7QrWO.png

Without even berserking, Brug I dispatches Saigo V's ghost. That's how crappy naga are, even your ghosts are complete wusses. Brug I achieves level 7 somehow; he's flying quite high for someone using such a shitty weapon.

Soon thereafter, Brug dispatches a jelly (filthy creatures) and finds a Staff of Power to go with his ring of Wizardry. Sigh.


LT26u.png

Really? Level 8 already? I don't even understand what's going on here.


1XMkb.png

Yes, worshipping Trog I can expect to find every staff before I get to the Lair. (It's a staff of Fire)


Cls1h.png

Shit's about to get REAL!


OEdUK.png

Shit's about to get REAL REAL!


T0CtA.png

An iguana? Is that really necessary?


rPPVK.png

An attempt to sneak up to this ogre fails.


Ipro9.png

Brug I dies, primarily because I didn't give a shit. He didn't find a single item of value in 5 dungeon levels, and frankly I was just tired of the game being so fuck-you-y. RIP, you sucked.

Code:
1219 Brug I the Chopper (level 8, -11/68 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Berserker on Mar 10, 2011.
             Was a Priest of Trog.
             Mangled by an ogre
             ... wielding a +0,+0 giant club
              (18 damage)
             ... on Level 5 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:54:34 (5992 turns).

Lessons learned: Actually, Brug I was a little trooper and he did a good job. I just killed him through bitterness. So the lesson is if you hate naga and want them to die, you're probably going to have trouble ascending with one. Get enthusiastic about your team, Yeesh!

GO NAGA!!!
 

7hm

Scholar
Joined
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Messages
644
The RNG always works out in the end. What you didn't know what that on d:6 there was an executioner axe of speed and an enchanted GDA.
 

Yeesh

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ZhJTW.png

Brug II is another naga berserker, which is great! Because I love naga and I love berserkers.


j7qkj.png

Ummm...


rFZEX.png

Ok. Level 2. But christ, what was the deal with that 1 HP part?


Zr9f1.png

Mid-berserk, Brug II hits third level. I choose Str. Note he found a buckler, which is very exciting.


Rr8Sf.png

Hmmmm... berserk?


jE42U.png

Fine, bring it you little fuck.


M5BH6.png

Yes, Brug II has to berserk to kill an unarmed goblin. In the process, Brug achieves fourth level. Kudos! I love naga!


1qW1K.png

This is the least naga-friendly layout I've ever seen. Fuck you, Crawl.


IGQ23.png

So not one, but two orc posses were awaiting Brug II as he went down the stairs. He only saw the first, and by the time the second arrived, it was too late. I declare Brug II blameless in his own death, despite his being a filthy naga. :salute: I could have handled those stairs better.

Code:
183 Brug II the Chopper (level 5, -2/69 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Berserker on Mar 11, 2011.
             Was a Believer of Trog.
             Slain by an orc
             ... wielding a +0,+0 orcish flail
              (6 damage)
             ... on Level 3 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:13:09 (2511 turns).

Lessons learned: I got nothing. Get equipment before you try to fight? Something like that?
 

Ashery

Prophet
Joined
May 24, 2008
Messages
1,337
You should try some Naga Warpers soon. They lack the firepower of the other classes, but who needs the best firepower when you can escape at a moment's notice? Just train fighting, translocations, and your weapon of choice as much as possible early on (Turn dodging, armor, throwing, and spellcasting off (SC can come back on for brief periods, but getting hunger costs down isn't a priority)) and victory dance with apporation whenever possible.

Now if only Okie would gift me some barding.
 

Yeesh

Magister
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I've hit upon the idea of only screenshotting the ones who actually make it anywhere, because none of them are making it anywhere. I don't think this game is for me.

Code:
549 Brug III the Chopper (level 6, -5/78 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Berserker on Mar 11, 2011.
             Was a Priest of Trog.
             Slain by an orc priest (6 damage)
             ... on Level 4 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:16:59 (4066 turns).

Code:
20 Brug IV the Chopper (level 1, -5/17 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Berserker on Mar 11, 2011.
             Was a Follower of Trog.
             Slain by a hobgoblin
             ... wielding a -1,+0 orcish club
              (7 damage)
             ... on Level 1 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:00:29 (28 turns).

Code:
580 Brug V the Chopper (level 6, -4/52 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Berserker on Mar 11, 2011.
             Was a Priest of Trog.
             Slain by a killer bee zombie (7 damage)
             ... on Level 5 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:23:00 (4564 turns).

Code:
94 Molly the Sneak (level 2, -2/18 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Air Elementalist on Mar 11, 2011.
             Slain by a goblin
             ... wielding a +0,+0 club
              (3 damage)
             ... on Level 2 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:04:12 (1158 turns).

Code:
290 Melinda the Insei (level 4, -2/33 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Transmuter on Mar 11, 2011.
             Slain by a snake (5 damage)
             ... on Level 3 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:09:32 (2577 turns).

Code:
324 Marianne the Shooter (level 5, -2/42 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Hunter on Mar 11, 2011.
             Slain by an orc wizard
             ... wielding a +2,+0 orcish dagger
              (5 damage)
             ... on Level 3 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:19:27 (3076 turns).

Code:
537 Marlena the Sneak (level 6, -2/44 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Earth Elementalist on Mar 11, 2011.
             Was an Initiate of Cheibriados.
             Slain by an ufetubus (3 damage)
             ... summoned by Eustachio
             ... on Level 4 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:27:34 (4242 turns).
This last lady naga actually encountered Sigmund and Edmund on the same level, and smartly backed away from each, only to be pounced on by Eustachio ALSO on the same level, guarding the Temple which was ALSO on the same level. I'm not sure what a naga can do against an early summoner other than die.



Ashery said:
You should try some Naga Warpers soon. They lack the firepower of the other classes, but who needs the best firepower when you can escape at a moment's notice? Just train fighting, translocations, and your weapon of choice as much as possible early on (Turn dodging, armor, throwing, and spellcasting off (SC can come back on for brief periods, but getting hunger costs down isn't a priority)) and victory dance with apporation whenever possible.

Now if only Okie would gift me some barding.

But how do you kill anything? A lack of offensive power is my number one concern already. But then, I'll give it a try. 100 naga aren't going to get themselves killed if I just sit around twiddling my thumbs.
 

Yeesh

Magister
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So what have we learned so far? That Yeesh sucks ass at Crawl. But we knew that already.

What have we learned about naga? Well I just googled it and learned that the plural is actually nagas. Oops, sorry about that.

What else have we learned about nagaS?
1) They can't run away.
2) They suck.
3) Spit poison misses 40% of the time at least.
4) Cheibriados is a really, really good fit for them, despite the whole no-boots deal.
5) You have to play them carefully (see #2).
6) Having no one good weapon skill really makes you crappy.
7) Having your only good magic skill be Poison really isn't going to last you too far into the game.
8) The armor-not-fitting-well-but-compensate-by-natural-AC deal works out a lot better for casters than for melee types. But keep in mind they get a -2 aptitude for dodging too.
9) Will all those 0 aptitudes, they don't want to specialize. BUT THEY NEED TO ANYWAY.

Specifically to the goal of not dying a horrible, early death, I think ranged attacks go very well with a naga. Other characters have options for moving around, but a naga pretty much has to engage any threat it stumbles across unless you want to go through consumable at a vast rate. What's nice about Cheibriados is that he provides both some smashing power in the form of Slouch, and an escape hatch in the form of Step From Time. But damnit, the latter is cripplingly expensive. On the other hand, the truly life-saving abilities tend to be. On the other, other hand, it's not necessarily going to save your life; just give you some breathing room.

Also, Cheibriados's massive stat boosts really make for a fine hybrid character, and I've seen it written elsewhere that not casting with Che means you're wasting a +10 to your Int. Can't argue with that. But even as a hybrid, a naga must pick a few skills and stick to them. I think Fighting and a melee weapon skill are necessary for anyone because of Fighting's HP boost, and if you're going to raise that you might as well make it effective by getting good at a weapon. I also think that a single missile skill is a great investment because it's just one skill to raise but it really adds some capability. But magic-wise, I'm not sure what to do. Spellcasting is necessary, but what else? There are an awful lot to choose from. Translocation would be very helpful for making escapes, and could open up a whole new universe of mobility. But attack power would be nice too; an investment in Poison scares me because of its lack of utility in the end game, but it's worth noting I've never even reached that part (other than the Hall of Blades, where Poison sure won't help).

Of course, you get to start with one spell book, and the rest is the luck of the draw. I don't know if it's wise to turn away from skilling up a less optimal school if it can help you and you've got spells for it.

I don't know anything, really.

Having thought about it a bit, I'm intrigued to try these Warpers out. To start with the mobility spells and find some attack spells is much more likely than to start with some attack spells and find the mobility spells. On the other hand, there is the issue of killing things, with which the early attack spells really help. But if it takes a few senseless deaths (or a few dozen) to get things sorted out, that's fine. It's not like we're going to run out of naga. Nagas.

So let's get to the Warper sisters!


2e5ozcz.jpg

Nicole is hoping that first time's the charm. Wow! Warpers start out with a lot of goodies. I hope that's not an indication that they have trouble survivin'...


yvixu.png

Level 2. Nicole celebrates by memorizing Blink.


dE45v.png

A hobgoblin (the strength of whom never ceases to surprise me) smashes Nicole mostly to death, and a kobold finishes the job. I could have escaped so many ways, but I just don't burn consumables against level 1 monsters. Oh right she could have Blinked too, but my point stands. If you can't handle something the weakest monsters in the game, then go ahead and die. And so Nicole did.

Code:
103 Nicole the Grasshopper (level 2, -1/20 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Warper on Mar 11, 2011.
             Slain by a kobold
             ... wielding a +0,+0 dagger
              (3 damage)
             ... on Level 1 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:06:35 (477 turns).

Lessons learned: There's more where she came from.
 
Joined
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Messages
1,128
Come on, bro, its fuckin dumb. You have 2 potions of healing and just kill yourself? What for? To start another char?
 

Yeesh

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Black Bart Charley said:
Come on, bro, its fuckin dumb. You have 2 potions of healing and just kill yourself? What for? To start another char?

I didn't know that's what they were, everything gets ID'd when you die. You'll notice I was also carrying two (equally un-ID'd) potions of paralysis. Although admittedly, self-paralysis would have made for a cooler death.
 
Joined
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Messages
1,128
Ah right, sorry.
But you still doing something wrong, sometimes. You get 4 levels of stealth with a naga. You can comfortably survive the first dungeons. Grind the easy creatures. After that its the RNG Gods will. Although admittedly that below is my second attempt. I too couldnt resist the urge to kill a kobold.

pULrG.png


You also might try to save as png8 and not lossless png24. Every of your pics is 500 kb.
 

Yeesh

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opqxz6.jpg

This is Nina. Except it probably isn't because I think I forgot to screenshot the start again.


RFFFH.png

Level 2 already? They grow up so fast.


QFw85.png

Screw that hippy shit.


WfjqK.png

A lucky hit on a snake, and Nina advances to her third level. I'll be choosing Int, because I've read you should always choose Int if you're planning on casting spells at all. They should rebalance the stats!


vjnkU.png

Wow that hurt. Good time to activate Blink. (Nina survives for now.)


WjMEA.png

Well this is going to be fun. Let's try out that electro-whip.


firhC.png

Man it's lucky these gnolls are unarmed. Dex increases without my permission.


fItmk.png

Regulatin' with the old whip of electricity, Nina is a dynamo of a dominatrix. And this orc loves it to death. Hello level 5!


M5KKo.png

Lost a point of Int because excuse the hell out of me for living. And here's a book. What will it be? (A book of Chemistry. Now we're cooking. Nina immediately memorizes Fullsome Distillution and stops letting those orange corpses go to waste.)


Y1Ifk.png

Sorry snake, Nina has evolved well past you. And now she's level 6, while you're dead as a door nail. Where did that expression even come from, I mean of all the inanimate objects out there? Guess I could google it, but I'm a lazy man. A very, very lazy man. I choose Int.


8JblM.png

HATE YOU SO MUCH (what happens next is that Nina backs away and tries to position herself so she can come at the jelly from such an angle that it won't have food to heal itself with. That's playing SMARTER. But then an orc shows up and shouts, and...)


xyUH2.png

Yup, killed by the jelly. It took Nina's HP down quite quickly. Anyway I just seriously lose my mind when they're around. I mean I've tried to explain but it probably doesn't make sense to anybody. They're my least favorite things in the whole fucking world of Crawl, and I really wish they weren't in the game. This probably says something about me.

Code:
588 Nina the Cudgeler (level 6, 0/48 HPs)
             Began as a Naga Warper on Mar 11, 2011.
             Slain by a jelly (4 damage)
             ... on Level 5 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 00:41:15 (4156 turns).

That's a real shame, Nina had some amazing luck in finding that book with transmuter spells. But I don't feel all that responsible. Despite Nina's supposed stealth, that fucking orc shouted the same turn he came into view, and then it was a twosome. What are you supposed to do against jellies other than throw stones at them? Isn't that what the game demands that you do? It usually works.

No actually it was completely my fault, I could have blinked away. But I just can't leave a jelly alone. God I just hate them so fucking much.

Lessons learned: I'm getting too old for this shit.
 

Yeesh

Magister
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Black Bart Charley said:
Ah right, sorry.
But you still doing something wrong, sometimes. You get 4 levels of stealth with a naga. You can comfortably survive the first dungeons. Grind the easy creatures. After that its the RNG Gods will. Although admittedly that below is my second attempt. I too couldnt resist the urge to kill a kobold.

You also might try to save as png8 and not lossless png24. Every of your pics is 500 kb.

I know, nobody has this much trouble with Crawl but me. One day I'll learn how to control my stupid bloodlust, or not. I'm using FRAPS for the screenshots, and then letting imgur resize them to 1280 X 1024 because I think much more than that is just too wide for screenshots. I am using .png in FRAPS, but there's no option to further customize it. I could batch process with Irfanview, but man that seems a lot of work when you're lazy.
 

7hm

Scholar
Joined
Oct 29, 2010
Messages
644
Yeesh said:
That's a real shame, Nina had some amazing luck in finding that book with transmuter spells. But I don't feel all that responsible. Despite Nina's supposed stealth, that fucking orc shouted the same turn he came into view, and then it was a twosome. What are you supposed to do against jellies other than throw stones at them? Isn't that what the game demands that you do? It usually works.

No actually it was completely my fault, I could have blinked away. But I just can't leave a jelly alone. God I just hate them so fucking much.

Lessons learned: I'm getting too old for this shit.

You're supposed to run away from them.
 

desocupado

Magister
Joined
Nov 17, 2008
Messages
1,802
I usually have a backup melee weapon just to deal with them. But then again, Merfolk Crusaders don't suck in melee.

The jellies are slow, but I don't know if the nagas can outrun them.
 

Ashery

Prophet
Joined
May 24, 2008
Messages
1,337
Your technique with the warper is a bit fucked as well.

At the very least, you shouldn't have died with all five dispersal darts remaining. With that type of engagement and a wide open room layout, you should've been able to take'em down fairly easily with some uncontrolled blinking. Focus the orc first while remaining out of harms way of the jelly and then turn your attention to the jelly using your spit (It won't do full damage, but it's not a dart that the jelly can feed on after use) and high mulch ammo (Stones, as you noted, also work as jellies don't absorb'em). Mix in an odd dispersal dart (100% mulch rate) when it's in melee range if you're at risk in melee (By at risk I do NOT mean right before you're about to die). Alternatively, use shitty wands (Magic dart and random effects being the two big ones here) to take'em down from range. Polymorph other is also an option. Or, in this situation, you could've used your water potions for some decent damage. Or, instead of focusing the orc, you could've split damage between the two: Spitting at the orc while throwing stones at the jelly. There are many ways that fight could've been handled.

The only issue you need to be aware of re:uncontrolled blinking is that you shouldn't do it near unexplored areas. When using uncontrolled blink in an area similar to that of the jelly fight, every once in a while you'll go up to the very edge of the unexplored territory and be greeted by a handful of orc priests. Despite the risks, however, when you properly control the general area in which you're blinking, you'll be able to take down any non-poison immune melee creature easily.

I'd be curious to see your skill setups as I'm getting the feeling that's another area that's fucking you over.

Here's my NaWr after clearing out Lair:

+ Level 8 Fighting
+ Level 15 Polearms
- Level 3 Throwing
+ Level 4 Armour
+ Level 5 Dodging
+ Level 10 Stealth
- Level 2 Stabbing
+ Level 4 Shields
+ Level 2 Traps & Doors
+ Level 5 Spellcasting
+ Level 1 Charms
+ Level 12 Translocations
+ Level 4 Invocations
+ Level 3 Evocations

Note that armor and dodging were only turned back on fairly recently (I turned them off somewhere around 2-3) as I felt it was time to bump up my defense a bit. I'll likely turn them back off in another couple levels, though. Looking back over this skill set, I should also be turning off polearms as I've already got capped speed for my eventual demon trident. I really need to start victory dancing charms and air a bit as well to be prepared for repel/deflect missiles (And, for a short time at least, swiftness; will be switching to Chei from Okie once I get a decent barding). I'll also likely wind up with a few levels in necromancy due to my love for regeneration (Currently wearing troll hide armor and a ring of regeneration).
 

Yeesh

Magister
Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
2,876
Location
your future if you're not careful...
Yeah, jellies are a little slow, but naga are slower still. Plus jellies will eat everything in the dungeon and then I'll never find any loot again. Also I HATE THEM SO MUCH!!! So, I admit I have a problem where jelly are concerned. It hasn't been causing so many deaths until now, but I'm going to work on it.

Now steam is a great idea I didn't think of, but in my defense Nina was only casting Evaporate at Fair, and Fair sucks.

Skillwise, here take a look. They're all so ridiculously low that I don't have any idea what I could have done with them. And the one I should have been working on wasn't even there yet: Transmutations. I need to focus, but I never know on what.

Code:
   Skills:
 + Level 2 Fighting
 + Level 4 Maces & Flails
 - Level 2 Throwing
 - Level 1 Armour
 + Level 2 Dodging
 + Level 2 Stealth
 + Level 2 Spellcasting
 + Level 4 Translocations
 

Yeesh

Magister
Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
2,876
Location
your future if you're not careful...
Tup94.png

Alright, let's try getting in the zone. This is Nancy, whom I will try to keep alive even if she pisses me off.


spgXR.png

Moving right along...


NlHMx.png

No matter what kind of naga you play, there's always a lot of spitting. For her third level, Nancy receives gets the gift of Int.


ZwZF5.png

A "megabat" (how stupid is that name?) is the little push Nancy needs to achieve her fourth level. She's totally still alive, and I'm going to work on keeping her that way. Keep your head in the game, Yeesh. Dex bumps up by one. Nancy takes a moment to memorize Blink and Teleport Other, though the latter would be for emergencies only at a food cost of Honeycomb.

Nancy's adventure was interupted by an anonymous internet sexcapade. The girl was young, only somewhat cute, pretty lousy at cocksucking, showed up late, and when it was time for her to go she sprang, "Do you have an alarm clock?" on me, as if I'd invited her to stay the night. Which I most certainly did not. I fucking hate that, but I'm too much of a wuss to kick someone out in the middle of the night. Oh how it rankled to feel so much naga time wasting away.

But now I'm back in the saddle. Here are Nancy's skills. What should I turn off?

Code:
  Skills:
 + Level 1 Fighting
 + Level 3 Axes
 - Level 2 Throwing
 - Level 1 Armour
 + Level 2 Dodging
 + Level 2 Stealth
 + Level 2 Spellcasting
 + Level 4 Translocations
 

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