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[umiman]

Guh...

I think this was my nineteenth character. My Orc Barbarian was doing pretty well... for me anyway. We managed to reach the 6 area with the oracle, my kitten and I. Even managed to kill a unicorn and get its horn, had bronze plate mail, and looks like I had it made.

Then I had some problems with nymphs, water, wood, and mountain. Took awhile to kill them, but had a laugh when one of the nymphs stole one of my wands and used it on herself, polymorphing (and thus, identifying my wand for me) into a paper golem. Sweet! Now I had a wand of polymorphing!

Then my kitten and I started looking for the hidden exit when a garter snake ambushed. Killed it with a swift swipe of a now rusted axe and... hang on a second. Chameleon corpse? Err... *eats*

Oh! Oh nooooo!!! My body is changing! Bursting... out... of... armour... gurgle...

I turned into an ochre jelly! What the hell?! Where's that wand of polymorphing! I can't turn into anything worse than this! Okay, got the wand, how do I use it!? Er? [z]? Choose direction? HOW DO YOU ZAP YOURSELF!? *zzzzaaap* Argh! I polymorphed my kitten into a clay golem! *zzzaaaap* Grargh! I polymorphed my armour and weapons into food!

What is that? An ape is coming! Bloody hell... *zzzaaap* WHAT THE HELL!? Frost giant!?!!! *zzaaap* e-e-eh? Polymorphing is not permanent? I'm back to normal! Wooho... Frost giant!!! Run!!! If... only... I... can... make... it... to... my... equipment... YES! OHSHI- I polymorphed my stuff into food! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO..... *beaten to death by frost giant*

[umiman]

HAHAHAHAHHAHA!!!

Ascension after 3 days of playing. This was my first character to ever make it past the oracle too. Wooooo~

[Sylverone]

Nice, umiman! I must admit I haven't played Nethack really since my last post here, but I've played a new roguelike that I've enjoyed for the last few days. It's called "Powder" for those who haven't heard of it.

It's a nice graphical-tiled roguelike originally made for the gameboy, but now available for PC and Nintendo DS as well.

Good Points:
1. THE INTERFACE! - the game can be played with keyboard commands, but because it was designed for the 10-button gameboy, it has a very streamlined and useable interface. NONE of the other roguelikes I've played so far (Nethack, Angband, ADOM) had a really user friendly interface. Powder would be ideal for introducing a friend to rouguelikes.

2. Graphical tiles - are the default setting, although there is a rather whimsical text-based tileset as well.

that's all I can think of to say for the moment. I might post some stories from in-game later. I also plan to play my other roguelikes as well, but Powder has me spoiled for the moment, with it's nice interface and graphical goodness.

[Cthulhu]

This Necromancy isn't too severe, it's only like a month.  I just had the worst experience I have ever had in Nethack.  I'm not very good, and the farthest I"ve gotten is DLevel7 or so.  I finally had a character I thought might ascend, a samurai.  He had everything going for him.  He was only level 7, but he had +2 Excalibur, +1 Splint Mail, two rings of regeneration, poison resistance, an amulet of resist poison, and a ring of slow digestion.  Since Samurai start with no food, I jumped for joy when I got that ring.  I accidentally wielded it(There shouldn't be so many different ways to equip an item...), and before I put it on, went and got a drink.  I came back and FORGOT TO FIX IT.  I starved to death while wielding a ring of slow digestion.  I died a little inside.


EDIT: Another good one.  This is when I first felt the wrath of the RNG.  I was a Wizard(Named Gargamel, with my cat named Azrael, of course).  On the first floor, at level 2, I found a magic lamp, and got a free wish.  I wished for Magicbane, and thus sealed my fate.  Fifteen minutes later, I was a werejackal, a cannibal, and I had killed Azrael while confused.  When I went to kill one of my jackal comrades to eat him(I was starving) I turned into a jackal, and then starved to death.  Next time, I'll wish for a ring of slow digestion.

[MaxVance]

A ring of slow digestion is a silly wish, especially for spellcasters. If you need food, wish instead for a horn of plenty.

Edit:

Yes, the game is very cruel to the player. At least you can count on one thing, which is true in DF, Nethack, and Angband (which I've also recently started playing): Losing is fun!

Not quite. In NetHack, losing is fun for the guy who finds your corpse.

[Keiseth]

I usually find my corpse with my next adventurer and get killed by myself's ghost. Am I having fun yet? Is this losing, or winning?

[Fualkner]

Well, my second game as an Archaeologist, I break into a random room full of gold. First level.

I'm never going to play any other type of character.

Ha ha, just ate a rotten yellow jelly, now everything changes per move. According to the log, I've killed Barney the Dinosaur, a wererat, and a baby black dragon.

[Keiseth]

Archaeologists are seen as a challenge class by some, but I love them- my best character was one. In either NetHack or SlashEM, I forget which, you can use the whip in an Indiana Jones-esque way by 'a'pplying it, too. Picking up things off the ground while levitating, etc.

Heheh, hallucinations are awesome.

[Fualkner]

Is there any way to check your experience? Any other useful buttons like that? I hate new rougelikes because I always have to learn a brand new interface. Also, is there a way to get your dog to follow you more effectively? He won't go down the stairs for me.

[Cthulhu]

I don't know about interface, but yeah, rougelikes are irritating.  I wish they'd just stick with one shade.

On topic, the graphical version has a stat-bar at the bottom.  I'm using the RLtiles tileset, because the default one is awful.  It's not finished though, and several of the tiles were still bad looking.  I've become addicted to finding bad tiles, copying a similar tile from the good tileset, and modifying it.  I just went in Wizard-mode as a Valkyrie to see if I could beat

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Lord Surtur

legitimately(As legitimately as wizard mode can be), used wishes'n'such to get level 16 with appropriate equipment.  He's really easy.

[umiman]

Cthulu: It's quite easy to ascend with a wizard. Most people do it with wizards too as they start out weak but eventually become the most powerful class. In fact, once they get their quest artifact (I forget the name), they become unstoppable death dealers of doom. It's the opposite of Samurai and Valkyries, who start out strong but become mediocre later.

Also, why did you wish for Magicbane? It's so easy to get and it isn't particularly useful. Just sacrifice things. Should've wished for something better man, like DSM or spellbook of finger of death. And a ring of slow digestion is NOT a good thing to wish for. There's guaranteed one at the first level of Sokoban. You can just run there and grab it, then run out.

Heh, it's funny though

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I didn't actually use my wand of wishing for my ascension character since I had every single buff and the best possible equipment for my wizard through sheer luck, some polypiling, and other related stuff (+5 Corinthaum, +7 Silver DSM, +5 gloves of dexterity, etc) as well as practically every single ring, wand, amulet and spellbook in the game. What happened was when I reached the final level of the underworld, I completely forgot to bring candles for the ritual. Guess what the wish was for?

I'm so happy that I actually enjoy ASCII instead of graphics. No complaints about crappy tiles from me.

Anyway, Fualkner: Your pet won't change d-level until you do, if that's what you were asking. And if you are invisible, they find it really hard to follow you around for obvious reasons. If you have a leash or a magic whistle, you can solve all these problems.

[Dwarmin]

I play arcs too-but i cant win this game no matter how hard i try. Last game, i died because i was stuck with a cursed tin opener It was fun scooping enemies to death though.

then there was the time i polymorphed a Mumak that was about to kill me into....a black dragon 

Or when i first started, I put all the cool armor i had just bought on...negative cursed armor, cursed stumble boots, and fumbling gloves all in one. My weapons was already cursed..

[Cthulhu]

Yeah, I knew about it, but I had forgotten it was a sacrifice gift.  I learned that a few seconds afterward.  I didn't know you got the ring of slow digestion in Sokoban, either. 


Right now I have a level 7 or something Barbarian with decent equipment (Although the axe is rusty) and a bunch of intrinsics.  I'm hoping I can get this one at least to level 10.  I'm slowly getting better, but my main problem is I'm edgy and I rush things.  Like the aforementioned samurai, I tend to forget things, and otherwise screw up because I'm rushing.

Also, normally I'd agree with you on tiles, but Nethack is so arcane I decided I needed a visual aid.  I probably don't need it anymore, but this tileset looks so nice, and when I figured out how to use the dungeon crawl tileset to make custom characters, I went into this weird teenage-girlish accessorizing fit.  My barbarian and wizard both look incredible.

Phew, I'm cured of my rushing.  It went away when I almost lost my character to YASD.  I got food poisoning, ran around for like three turns feeling like I was going to throw up(I have an overpowering fear of losing or wasting things, and the thought of losing my best character so far terrified me, even though I'll probably lose him anyway.  It's not as bad when it's quick, but knowing it would take a few rounds was pure hell).  I suddenly remembered the power of FAITH.  I prayed, and was cured.  Now I'm completely paranoid of losing this guy.  Yes, I know I'm an idiot.  I need to get used to losing guys, but this is actually a good thing.  Since I'm afraid, I'll think before I act.  I already used ranged combat against a monster I was unsure about, when before I would've charged in guns blazing.

Also, Dwarmin, if you have a problem with curses, there's a somewhat tricksy way you can tell whether or not an item is cursed.  Don't read it if you don't want to be tricksy.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Pets will only reluctantly stand on cursed items, unless there is also food on the square.

[MaxVance]

I think the best way to play is over telnet on nethack.alt.org. NAO's server is linked to a bot in an IRC channel (#nethack at Freenode), where the bot announces deaths and the occasional ascension. There's nothing like hearing about someone dying to a pack of soldier ants only to find the poor sap's bones on the next floor.

[Cthulhu]

Oh snap.  I just found a wand of polymorph, and I now have a tame cockatrice, which fills me with a combination of smug satisfaction and overwhelming terror.  I'm worried it's somehow going to turn me to stone.

EDIT: I couldn't take the paranoia, and I polymorphed it into an Umber Hulk.

EDITEDIT: Owlbear, not Umber Hulk, oops.  I wish it was an Umber Hulk.

EDITEDITEDIT:  Wand of Wishing, Level 12 Barbarian, I already have a gray DSM, for what should I wish?