Killed By Eating a Rotten Newt - Alucard's NetHack experience!

[TheCountAlucard]

So I've been playing NetHack since I obtained it the other day. I've got to say, it's rather fun. So far, I've had over thirty character deaths - I know because one of my more recent demises informed me that I did not make the top thirty this time.

I've had the most fun playing NetHack as an elven wizard. The starting gear is nice, but sadly, does not include any food. The most frustrating deaths I've had are not being slain by the succubus who claims to have a headache, or swarmed by liches after reading a cursed scroll of genocide, but rather from starvation or worse, food poisoning from a hastily-eaten corpse to ward off starvation.

Believe it or not, the most fun I'd had playing was dying at the hands of the shopkeeper, who almost always utterly annihilated me over some accident on my part. My cloak of magic resistance would cause lots of collateral damage from the shopkeeper zapping me with some wand or another and bouncing off to destroy the other products in his shop.

[TheLogman]

Yeah, I have yet to make it past the Mines (The second tile change of the game). Very difficult game. I have no clue how anyone plays it. I always get stuck, or killed, or swarmed, diseased. My first few deaths were from kicking a wall one too many times, because the game decided that I should have to find secret doors to get to the second level.

Or I will get tired and swarmed, or starve, or yeah, food poisoning. Often.

[Bucky]

Advance warning: A lot of the fun in Nethack comes from discovering these tricks for yourself. By clicking on the spoilers below, you deprive yourself of a small but significant portion of the Nethack experience.

Hmm, I almost never die from hunger even when playing a wizard. There are a number of useful tricks to avoid starving. The most general of these is the #pray command but there are some more specific tricks, such as using the Stone to Flesh spell to generate meat, and obtaining poison resistance to eat otherwise harmful corpses.

However, it's even more important to keep your food stock in mind while exploring, maximizing ground explored per calorie burned when you don't have any food. Also, sometimes you'll want to take a jaunt into a food-rich side-dungeon such as the Gnomish Mines specifically for the purpose of finding food.

And completely off-topic, does killing a shopkeeper at level 1 (first kill of the game) count as a CMoA?

[TheCountAlucard]

Hmm, I almost never die from hunger even when playing a wizard. There are a number of useful tricks to avoid starving. The most general of these is the #pray command but there are some more specific tricks, such as using the Stone to Flesh spell to generate meat, and obtaining poison resistance to eat otherwise harmful corpses.

I didn't know the first one could be used to stave off hunger! :smallconfused: Hmm, well, I've tried the second and third tricks, but I can't always get flesh to stone or poison resistance before I end up starving... :smallfrown: One tactic that's somewhat hit-or-miss that I've tried to get food is casting create monster until one of them is something edible.

[Bucky]

before I end up starving... :smallfrown: One tactic that's somewhat hit-or-miss that I've tried to get food is casting create monster until one of them is something edible.

In general, it's not worth it unless you're using a wand or a bag of tricks because (warning:major spoiler) casting spells causes hunger.

[TheCountAlucard]

Also, from my experience, it seems advisable to wait a few levels before kicking any sinks. Even if you manage to kill the black pudding, eating it may kill you. Don't even get me started on the succubus. Also, it seems that no matter whether it's blessed, cursed, or otherwise, I can never seem to use scrolls of earth or punishment to my benefit. I always end up dead or with a ball and chain shackled to my leg.

[pendell]

As said previously, I have ascended one of every race and class on nethack. My exploits have been posted on rec.games.roguelike.nethack.

Another hint, for you Alucard, which is not spoilered at all:

Hunger is always a much bigger problem on the earlier levels than on the later ones. Not only is food much more plentiful on the lower levels, the monsters are bigger and provide
more nutrition. Of course, 'bigger monsters' causes other problems....

Have you managed to get down to the oracle level yet?

The Mines is actually a secondary branch. There are two staircases on the level, one that leads to the mines and one that continues down through the main branch. You don't need to enter the mines immediately (although you will later ..). Recommend bypass the mines, go down to the Oracle level. Go past the oracle level to the next level down. On this level there will be a second stairway up. This leads to an optional branch called 'sokoban'. It always has lots of food which will tide you over for a long time.

Spoilered hint on prayer


Prayer works best IF:
1) It's been >800 turns since you last prayed
2) You have no other problems than hunger (otherwise it may restore your hit points or what not instead)
3) You are 'weak' from hunger. NOT merely hungry. 'Weak'.

This will maximize the chances of 'your stomach feels content' result from prayer.


If you want to be spoiled rotten, I recommend going to www.steelypips.org, go down to the 'yet another nethack site' section, and read, read, read the files. Everything you could possibly want to know about the game and so much more. I am thoroughly spoiled, and found it didn't ruin my enjoyment in the slightest. Just the opposite, in fact.

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[Bucky]

Recommend bypass the mines, go down to the Oracle level. Go past the oracle level to the next level down. On this level there will be a second stairway up. This leads to an optional branch called 'sokoban'. It always has lots of food which will tide you over for a long time.


Actually, I usually go down the mines on the first pass as far as the town ~~~~~~~, then backtrack to the main dungeon and continue down the main path.


. Also, it seems that no matter whether it's blessed, cursed, or otherwise, I can never seem to use spoiler removed to my benefit. I always end up spoiler removed.

Once you have enough hit points, you will survive reading a scroll of earth. And sometimes you want to have a pile of boulders lying around, for example if you are hungry but know Stone to Flesh. Also, chained balls may be a drag, but they do have their uses.