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[Leafsnail]

I think they might be the actual weakest race in the game.

e: actually mummies are probably weaker, but they're still pretty bad.

[freeformschooler]

Some more subtle beginner advice that helped me clear those first few levels more consistently: at least in the latest version, item distributions are PREDICTABLE. Before you drink a potion or read a scroll, have a good idea of what you have ID'd and what you don't.

Example #1: there are three primary scroll types that ask for an item. These are: Identify (wasted if you don't have any un-ID'd stuff), Enchant Armor (also uncurses armor, so if you've read an ID already and get asked for an item, tend toward armor), and Recharging (less likely to appear starting out as the other two, mostly because wands don't become common until midgame). Memorize these three.

Example #2: distribution of potions is uneven. If you haven't ID'd a Curing potion on D:2, and you have one Orange potion and three Fizzy Blue potions, the Fizzy Blue potions are almost definitely Curing. Remembering this can save you from an unfortunate speedy Adder closing in with its poison fangs.

Example #3: As you ID progressively more potions, the likelihood of the next one being Mutation approaches one. If you drink a Mutation potion, the RNG will give you ill-fitting armor without fail, and the only Cure Mutation potion in the entire game will be on Zot:5. Drink-IDing is dangerous for exactly this reason.

Thanks! You are right, overconfidence and greed are my two worst enemies. But I found out some things by dying so much, like that you cant kill hydras with troll claws and that 0 int isnt that good for living - my most successful MiBe had only 4 int , he couldnt read a scroll to save his life.

Yeah, Hydras are the only awful part of Lair (other than occasional Death Yak hordes on the bottom). If you see one as MiBe without Flaming, summon Happy Trog Friends and run for the stairs while it's distracted.

[debvon]

What is good combo race/class/god for easy Majicks? I was thinking about SpEn of Kiku.
Also should I train some magic if I am MiFi? Obviously not if I am Trogging around, but if I go Oka for example. And when is good time for it?

My go-to combination for easy mode magic is Deep Elf Fire Elementalist of Vehumet. It's basically a walking flamethrower, and conjure flame gives you breathing room when you bite off more than you can chew (it also allows you to set up some fun inner-flame explosions). Everyone has their own preference though.
Unless you specifically plan to play a hybrid character learning to cast spells as a fighter will just gimp you. Hybrids are powerful but, in my experience, hard to pull off. Okawaru is acceptable for hybrid characters, it allows them to focus on honing their magic while still being viable in physical combat. I'm terrible in the hybrid department, hopefully someone else can chime in on that. All I know is that if you plan to cast spells, you'll want lots and lots of intelligence.

[Mr Space Cat]

I think they might be the actual weakest race in the game.

e: actually mummies are probably weaker, but they're still pretty bad.

Relevant, some dude has already gotten a 15-runer with a formicid fighter.

Formicids' ability to wield a huge twohander and a large shield together seems like they could be pretty good at tanking. For example, a +9+9 holy executioner's axe and a large shield combined with TSO's divine shield ability sounds rather useful for extended adventures in hell and pandemonium. Well, except for that hellfire and torment.

Permastasis stops you from getting haste, I assume, as well as most of those translocation spells. Dunno if it impacts stuff like Oka's Finesse or Chei's Step from Time. If so, Chei would be pretty bad for formicids, even if they naturally can't get haste. Step from Time is a pretty big escape tool.

If formicids can use Step from Time though, it might be interesting. No teleporting or blinking to support the slowness, but you already can't use haste or tele/blink anyway.

[Leafsnail]

The extra shield is nice, but I don't think it remotely makes up for their weaknesses (no haste, no blinking, no teleporting, bad HP).  They're not unwinnable, but they are very difficult.

Stasis stops Finesse.  It doesn't stop Step from Time, but Chei is a very bad god and not being able to blink makes him even worse.

[tompliss]

Formicids are hard for a beginner, yeah. They got the -% HP most caster races have, without the bonus durability Gargoyles have (only small part of it, in fact)...
But yeah, they're fun to play, with the whole 2handed + shield thing...

I was playing a Formicid fighter of Chei on the CLAN server (before it went down yesterday), and they're clearly very special : you move slower than everybody, and can't TP out, but you can rely on Chei's abilitiesand the Formicid's Shafting ability. Also, They have a very good stealth aptitude and chei's boost to stats let you get stealthy even with some armor... so mine is doing good with the Moon Troll Armor, being really tanky yet very stealthy, and hitting hard with an executionner's axe in melee and large rocks when ranged

[debvon]

Clearly you are a greater formicid than I, sir. I wiggle my antennae in your general direction.

[tompliss]

Well, I still have problems with my formicid, but they may be related to the fact that the new "end dungeon" branch (the Depths) are really hard, especially as a low Ac/low HP character ...
but now, the my formicid, I'm handling elf:3 one enemy after the other, digging traps to get them out of their vault (because they hit so hard when they think about their spells/arrows).

PS : character dump, not that you should really follow any thing I did with this one
http://crawl.lantea.net/crawl/morgue/TomPliss/TomPliss.txt

[TripJack]

i guess i kind of understand the rationale to the rune lock whatsit, but what exactly is this Depths business going to add to the game?

[tompliss]

It is removing the boring part the deep dungeon was, to most players. D:17-27 had mostly the same monsters all along, without something that made it different from the early dungeon except replacing ogre with giants, and gnolls with trolls... :/
Now, it's more fun, and clearly in a DF way !

[Leafsnail]

Yeah generally whenever I arrived D:17 or so I'd enter this weird semi-conscious state and snap out of it an hour later on D:27.

[tompliss]

Same for me.
Even more as my only character who made it to D:17 where classic melee fighters (Gargoyles, a Deep Dwarf, and a Lava Orc), who "forced" me to play with 2 fingers, one on Tab, the other on 'o'... :/

Now, it's really fun, trying to avoid getting all the floor on me (playing with LRD doesn't help much)...

[goblolo]

http://crawl.lantea.net/crawl/morgue/TomPliss/TomPliss.txt

why the battleaxe has ur name on it?

[tompliss]

Some Randart (artifact that are randomly generated) can have player or ghosts' names.
And I like this one

It's quite rare, though (twice in nearly a year playing the game)...

[vogonpoet]

Yeah I have won 5 times, been playing for like, 3 years, and never had a randart with my name on it I don't think :jealous:.