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[mwanafalsafa]

So I've just started messing around with adventurer mode. I've made a 'hero' level adventurer and I basically just die every time I try and kill a quest monster.

Is there some way to tell how difficult a quest will be before reaching the thing itself? How are you guys having success in adventurer mode if all the monsters are super-difficult right from the start?

Or am I doing something wrong here?

Thanks!

[RayesKotrora]

You probably haven't allocated your skills and attributes in a very effective way. Can you give us an overview of how you make your characters?

[Maynot]

Define difficult.

Generally a Demigod level starting character can take down most bandit camps.  It is much easier if you train up your sneak to legendary status and perforate them while they pick their nose.

"Bandit leader pulls iron longsword out and releases it."

[vettkinn]

1. Sneak in bandit camp.
2. Steal stuff then leave.
3. Sell stuff, buy ranged weapon and ammo.
4. Return to bandit camp with new weapon.
5.
6. Headshots.

[Darthania]

See, I really don't want to do that. I managed, on my first try in adventurer mode, (as a Hero) to anihilate a bandit camp recieving solely a bruise to the kidney and left arm. I would try the sneak method but surely it removes the whole point of the game if that's the only way to "win"?

[shlorf]

Unless you're a peasant you can get at least one companion at a fortress (look at their description and go for the incredibly muscular guys). That should be enough to absorb the damage from the first bandit camp. Every completed quests increases your reputation to allow one more companion (up to a max of 19). Once you have a few companions, bandit camps will be easy except for the leader sometimes. Also try training your skills on the local wildlife. You can try to get a quest for a named animal at the beginning (these are rare so you might have to ask many people first).
Night creatures are tough if you just started out. Consider leaving these quests until you have some companions/equipment/skills.

[Interesting]

Currently there is no design regarding what the players should be doing or how they should be doing the few features implemented: quests/reputation/recruits.

You are free to do what you want. If you are going to be effective or not, thats up to you. You want to win? You want to survive? You want to be the almighty hero that defeats everything? Despite starting as a lowly peasant, with poor equipment and limited skills? Even if you start as a demigod, your current power is just a small fraction what you can achieve.

You, as the player, have to think:
What are the actions I can do?
What are the ways at my disposal to improve my power?
How do I acquire/generate value?
What are the best tactics to employ against the multitude of different enemies?
What are the best ways to compare and choose companions?
When to run? When to fight?

The game offers you freedom of ignorance to play and figure out the answers to those questions on your own. Knowing the answers, is experience, is winning the game, is gaming the system.
Can you keep yourself immersed? How do you entertain yourself? Do you roleplay, do you imagine yourself in the role of your character, living his adventure, taking choices, deciding actions?
You are not on rails. There is no balance, wich is just an ilusion. You can just slip down the waterfall of randomness and die many times, losing your adventurers all the time, if thats your thing. Or do you want to challenge fate, control your destiny with an iron fist, investing in one character, training him, making him stronger. Maybe roleplaying someone that has a strong will to live, or someone who understands the dangers of the world, someone who want to be as prepared as possible, someone who does its best to improve.

Then you figure out simple things like getting rocks from the ground and throwing them is one of the actions the game allows you to do since character creation 99% of the time within your first day, that if repeated (i.e. trained) will lead your character to improve his physical valencies, such as strenght, agility, toughness, spatial sense, kinesthetic sense, and so on... Its the equivalent of doing exercises without weights, using your own body, like push ups, military push ups, running, jumping, lunges, etc... Its like your character is training all around. The game doesnt allow you to do a thousand different exercises that would ultimatelly make you the stronger, faster, most explosive, most coordinate, agile, flexible, with best reflexes... because those physical valencies are what it takes to be "that guy" that will have solid chances of wipping everybody's asses, demons, forgotten beasts, night creatures, you name it. But not even a demigod starting character is good enough for that, if that is your thing.

Quests difficulty are relative to your character progression in power, his companions power, both equipment, skills and stats wise, and your own intelect, into deciding how to use what you have or if what you have is not enough yet and so on.

The quests are regional problems that affect many people wich were incapable of solving them. You alone, or with your companions can try and solve it. But realistically you are just another adventurer and thats how the game treats you at first. The game does not garantee your victory, it does not scale itself to you. It does not spoonfed you, it does not take you by hand. You are insignificant to the world, its up to you to make a name for youself. Not even the quest givers think you can do it and they are right for most of the adventurers created, because those characters power are way below the necessary for those heroic quests difficulty, even if your character is a "demigod", if you want to survive without permanent injuries or with a good chance of doing well, any starting character is not enough.

Basically, if you want to relativize the game difficulty (A), you have to train (B). If you want A, you are forced to do B. You a free to not do B, but you are not garanteed to get A.

as I said if you want to make the game your bitch, you should start asking yourself those questions I mentioned above... finding those answers... giving in to the grindy way to play, because you are insignificant weak being bound to die and start again very repetitivelly. You see, whatever you do, it will lead to repetition, dieing and making new characters repeatedly, or repeatedly training a character just so you dont die repeatedly. Make your choice.


Ive tried different methods and approaches: make many different adventurers and just let fate take care of them and see how far do they go without "THE INSIGHT". Ive had some fun that way, but for my taste, its not epic enough, its not unique and heroic enough. Without "THE INSIGHT" those adventurers have no connection with me, they are just worthless nobodies, throwing dices with their destinies.

Then I tried my current approach. Basically I start from the premise that the character had "THE INSIGHT", wich is in general a wise/conscious/critic view of his surroundings, he sees the world, the history, its inhabitants and all the fantasy thing and realizes he is just a meal for anything that moves, but he decides to do something about it. He start getting cautious, he starts thinking, he starting preparing, he gets a survivalist/paranoid mood that might die soon, but he is conscious that sleeping in a hamlet, surrounded by people is safer, that he needs better equipment, because he wood spear is about to break, that he needs to improve everything and he is willing to do so.

In resume, despite starting as a peasant, by having that "insight", he started to act smart regarding his current position towards others... He is aware of the basic mechanics of the world.
So, in the abscense of a proper representation of that character aspect, Im free to fill it (roleplay) as I see fit and that "atitude: act/think/speak" and view of things I impregnate onto my characters. They end up being highly suscessfull.

[parlor_tricks]

Heh heh, part (first bit) would go well as a start/overview for a guide to Adventure mode.

All DF guides should have a note though at the end saying that DF will kick you in the face, with or without a guide.

[mwanafalsafa]

Thanks for the helpful replies...

I've started a few 'demigod' level characters today and they've all ended up dying one way or another, even with 2 military-companions I picked up at the local fortress.

I'm starting to get the hang of this, though.

I have a few questions...

My companions will blink from a lighter shade of their color to a darker shade... what does this mean?

In my last game I came across a river but despite having the swimming skill I couldn't enter the river... is there some special command to cross rivers? I ended up getting pulled into the river by a carp and killed it but then found that I couldn't get out of the river... how can I get out of the river??

On top of that, after about a minute of swimming back and forth the river instantly froze over and killed me... could this be a glitch or did I happen to be in the river at the moment autumn changed to winter or something???

Thanks for the help!

[shlorf]

To move out and into rivers use alt+direction key. It will give you options to move diagonally (there are also direct keybinds for up and down diagonally i think). As you experienced going into the water where you don't know if the region is freezing in the winter is pretty dangerous (working as intended).

[minno]

On top of that, after about a minute of swimming back and forth the river instantly froze over and killed me... could this be a glitch or did I happen to be in the river at the moment autumn changed to winter or something???

You can check the temperature by pressing shift-P.  If it says "freezing", then the water should already be frozen, and if it says "cold", it's likely that it soon will be.  In northern climates, it often freezes at night and thaws during the day for most of the year, so you should probably avoid swimming at sunset.

[Slade Beds]

Things that will kill you if you're a new adventurer (and other times, too):

- Night creatures: The problem here is that they're bigger than you, can knock you down easily (which greatly reduces your speed) and carry sharp weapons like knives and cleavers. Knives are incredibly good piercing weapons. I think they have the smallest "edge" of anything you can get stabbed with, meaning in the hands of something huge and lumbering they'll easily poke holes in you. The trick for night creatures is to take companions with you, and then choose your targets wisely while your companions blindly hack away. Helps if you have an ok weapon and armor. I'm not sure why but some night creatures seem extremely vulnerable to being chopped in half at the waist even when struck by things like battle axes.

- Archers: not quite so dangerous if you're good with a shield and can dodge, but arrows and bolts will generally go right through you causing severe damage or death. They can break bones, which means you pass out from the pain, and whoever's around usually starts stabbing or beating you at that point.

- Bandit leaders: not always a problem, but remember that hammers, maces, and to some extent spears can penetrate armor. In most cases your armor is low-quality iron and bronze you've purchased and scavenged from various places and will, eventually, be pierced by these guys who don't immediately take hits when you attack them due to their skills. Once in a while you'll get a bandit leader who knows what he's doing, or has a really awesome weapon: I had an adventurer die to an elf with a masterwork bronze spear who destroyed both my hands and my spine, even though I was in full bronze armor (minus a mail shirt). This was during a fairly drawn-out battle in which I only managed to land a couple blows. Oh, and in my worlds some of the bandits tend to be dwarves with steel weapons.

Solutions:

Run: if you're heavily outmatched, get out of there. This is when sneak becomes incredibly useful instead of a game-breaking thing where you can stand a couple squares from somebody and throw rocks at them until they die.

Rest: If you're injured, sleep and see if it heals. Stuff like motor nerve damage will never heal, but sometimes serious cuts to your hands where you can't grasp a weapon will heal if you run away and sleep for a while.

Fight dirty: Whatever you're fighting, it's much less threatening once you've hacked off one of its feet. Severing two limbs is almost always fatal damage, if you're fighting crowds. If you break somebody's bones with the pommel of your sword, eventually they'll pass out. If you take the high ground and wait for enemies to come to you, sometimes they'll dodge right off the cliff when you attack. This is never fatal, but they'll be stunned for a few rounds letting you get in some free hits.

[nenjin]

For someone new to adventure mode, your goals can seem pretty nebulous, because they are. Basically they are:

-Survive.
-Max out your skills.
-Acquire the "best" quality of weapons and armor.
-Increase your adventuring fame so you can take up to 10 companions or so with you.
-Quest enough you get asked to kill a legendary beast.
-Play under whatever constraints you think are fun (I'm an Elven Marital Artist!)
-See as much of the world as you can.
-Search for WTF crazy things created by world gen, like adamantium pillars that reach into the sky.
-Try and find a way into the Underground (not recommended.)
-Revisit old sites left behind from Fortress mode.

That's currently all Adventure Mode offers you. At some point there will be more to do, like protecting caravan routes and trading materials between cities (that's coming up next), building a home or fortress (much later), interacting with villages and cities in more meaningful ways (stealing, getting arrested, becoming a political figure, ect....), you'll need to actual eat and drink just for basic survival....

So you can kinda see how Adventure mode is intended to be. Right now you're only playing with the guts of the adventure mode experience, with some cool night creatures added on top of it.

[mwanafalsafa]

Thanks for all the advice...

I've since started a had killed a few adventurers but I've been on a couple good rolls of killing bandits and creatures before dying...

As far as running from things... I've tried running from bogeymen and they never seem to go away... after running for a while I gave up and tried to fight them... after killing a couple they went away... so I guess I can handle that... but what if I encounter something I know I can't kill?

The exact procedure is run until I've got some distance on it and start sneaking? Will creatures continue to chase me forever if I don't kill them or start sneaking?

Also, I've tried to sneak with companions and it says that I can't because someone can see me... so doesn't this make sneaking useless unless I travel alone??

Thanks again!

[charcharmunro]

Sneaking can only be done when no hostile creature can see you, enemies have quite a high range of vision, so just go behind trees and such.