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Thread: Alright, this is it!

  1. #1
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    Default Alright, this is it!

    It's been almost 10 years since the first time a friend told me about ADOM and I tried it for the first time. Naturally, I sucked, and soon lost interest. Since that time, every year or two on a sudden hunch I dig it out again, try it a few times (or a few dozen, or hundred...) and then lose interest again. I wouldn't consider myself a newbie anymore, I've read the guidebook and a lot of other stuff, my best character was a GE Wizard lvl 32 that got down to CoC Level 40 before being killed on a kind of freak hit by a monster I didn't really expect it from (yeah, maybe I got a little careless after sailing smoothly through level after level...), and now I'm back again at square one after losing a couple dozen more characters the last days.

    But this time, I won't give up again! I see so many victory posts here, I've come so far, I just know there has to be a way for me to beat this game! I don't even aim for challenges or Ultra endings (my deepest respect for those who do, though, you guys are really hardcore...), everything I want is to be able to finally say "I did it!"

    So is there anything you'd recommend? Pretty much every character I ever got far with were elven wizards, but the lack of hit points always got back at me somewhere along the way. Should I aim for something different? I usually start out in the first levels of the ID, fighting low level monsters and hoping for nice spellbooks while trying to get Treasure Hunter ASAP, because more loot means more books, and for a wizard more books mean more power. Are there better ways to go at this? What would you recommend someone like me, hoping the finally beat the game?

  2. #2
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    Wizards are a popular recommendation, actually, since they become so powerful and the way you play them is very viable! If you want something that can kill everything and is maybe not quite as squishy, go for an orcish barbarian.

    If you're not doing so already, definitely go for morgia roots. They can get you to 25 Toughness in any case, and quite a bit higher if you know how! That should help a lot with survival.
    ADOM Guides - whatever you wanted to know about playing a certain class, but have been afraid to ask!

    Check out my youtube channel to see my ADOM videos, including a completed playthrough of the game. I try to give instructions, so if you want to see some place you haven't been before and get some hints on how to deal with it, this might help! There's also some other games featured there that you might find interesting.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Delta View Post
    ...were elven wizards... the lack of hit points...something different?
    ...Treasure Hunter ASAP ....loot means more books, and for a wizard more books mean more power...
    i cutted a bit . In black are your problems, in italic passable stuff...

    Fire dwarven wizard aim at mithril skin instead of TH. Looot wise aim at basics spear+shield+metal cap+some other bonus stuff instead. Tou are not dying because lack of power [i guess].

    After you scratch something like 20DV/8PV [coward mode ccounts], start searching for herbs. That is check PC1-4 [ignoring dog and Pc5], visit first level above assassin guild. If no luck descend in CoC towrdas dwarftown and do quick isolation of big room [any way you like].
    Do lots and lots of boring herb picking.

    Next task is simply skip all unnneeded things:
    Pc5-6, unremarkable dungeon, druid dungeon [unless no frost bolt for ToEF], library, blue dragon caves, any greater vaults you met and so on... All this is not necessary for win and pose high enough risk at certain stages.
    So far rolled 15 casters with RoDS and shamelessly killed them within 200 turns. For eternium glory!
    (after 15 I stopped counting...)

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Delta View Post
    So is there anything you'd recommend? Pretty much every character I ever got far with were elven wizards, but the lack of hit points always got back at me somewhere along the way. Should I aim for something different? I usually start out in the first levels of the ID, fighting low level monsters and hoping for nice spellbooks while trying to get Treasure Hunter ASAP, because more loot means more books, and for a wizard more books mean more power. Are there better ways to go at this? What would you recommend someone like me, hoping the finally beat the game?
    Elven wizards aren't necessarily the best choice. Their Learning and Mana are good, sure, but starting with 6-8 To will make the beginning a real pain. Try a dwarf, drakeling or gnome instead. As long as you end up with >15 Learning (>18 is really ideal, but that will probably mean a lot of drakeling rolls...), you can probably make it work. All of these races have somewhat higher toughness. Drakelings get acid spit as a desperation move if you run out of PP, plus get some great skills.

    As far as treasure hunter goes, well, all I will say is this: treasure hunter only starts to make an appreciate difference after you've killed ~500-1000 monsters (statistically speaking). Other talents (PV or speed line in particular) will make a difference much earlier in the game.

    On a side note, archers (high elf/hurthling are probably best, though even human isn't bad), beastfighters (dark elf, orc, or hurthling), barbarians (orc, dark elf, maybe troll) are all also pretty easy choices too. Archers have many of the same advantages as wizards--ranged attack, massive damage--as long as you can keep enough ammo. Hurthlings are particularly nice in this respect, since they're pretty wicked with thrown rocks right off the bat. Beastfighters are absolute killing machines, and are much less reliant on finding good gear than other classes. Barbarians play very similar to beastfighters, except use weapons.

    In my opinion, the most important things that lead to victory are:
    -Survive the early game. Get healing if you need it, get some PV. Avoid the SMC unless you know what you're doing. Get long stride or some speed talents so that you can run away if you need to.
    -Find some herbs. Morgia root will buff your toughness to 25+ with enough time. For a weak race like an elf, that can double or even triple your health.
    -Use disruption. Most monsters can't fight in darkness. Many monsters can't see invisible. Almost all monsters can be stunned. Almost all monsters can be blinded with thrown potions. Almost all monsters can be paralysed. Almost all monsters can be confused. Monsters that are blind, stunned, confused, paralysed, or standing in darkness they can't see in will not fight effectly or use many special abilities--if at all.
    Hoping to win with every class, doomed. Archer, Barbarian, Bard, Beastfighter, Druid, Elementalist, Farmer, Fighter, Monk, and ULE Priest down.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by Delta View Post
    So is there anything you'd recommend?
    In my experience, ADOM 1.1.1 is significantly more difficult because of the way to-hit is calculated. A wizard is a good choice. My recent first win with 1.1.1 was a GEW, no surprise. Learn your herb growth lines well or keep a reference handy. Play enough games to get morgia, mareilon, stomafillia and stomacemptia herbs in the PC and scum the living bejeezus out of them. Use starvation to get your Wi near 50, at least Wi 48 for ball spells. Dx to 50+ is easier. This is highly scummy but you'll win.

    It was actually quite an ordeal if you get into the roleplaying. Holding yourself at starvation level for day after day of game time crouched over a pile of hundreds of herbs - you can't risk carrying them because your St gets so low, you have to eat them from the dungeon floor. Quite a mental picture.

    edit: Actually, I only got Wi to 45 using starvation and it required cursed morgia. Even a single non-cursed morgia raises Wi (probably via satiation) above the stat-trainable level when you're starving with an intrinsic Wi of 44. This means do not have Herbalism at 100 - you won't get any cursed herbs. Soon enough afterwards you'll get the Sword of Nonnak, the Water Orb, potions, etc that will take you over the 48 barrier and well beyond.
    Last edited by Andy Williams; 07-23-2009 at 05:27 PM.
    ADOM Guidebook: http://adomgb.info/

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Andy Williams View Post
    Use starvation to get your Wi and To near 50, at least Wi 48 for ball spells.
    Toughness does not go down via starvation. Could be so nive and keep disinformation withing your rumorbook?
    So far rolled 15 casters with RoDS and shamelessly killed them within 200 turns. For eternium glory!
    (after 15 I stopped counting...)

  7. #7
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    This is almost funny. First character I roll up after this post I decided to go for a gnome, seemed to be the less frail version of elves to me and still pretty suited for a wizard and still have a long lifespan (call me biased, but after losing half a dozen close to invincible Troll melee fighters to aging effects I tend toward races who don't age as fast), started out with Spellbooks of Lightning Bolt and Light, not my favourites but what can you do.

    Things went pretty nice from there, though. Starting equipment was really great otherwise (robe with nice PV, great gnomish boots), the first weapon that's dropped is a (+2, 1d8+3) spear and I got a nice shield at that afterwards, Le, Wi and Ma are all pretty nice, Toughness 13 makes for a lot more hit points than my elven wizards and most standard monsters I can take on in melee quite fine, two rings of damage I found soon help a lot, too.

    First Spellbooks I found were SoA and Knock, yay for carrying around tons of stuff and not getting killed by stupid door traps! Got a ton of potions and scrolls too, and to top it off the first blink dog I found was nice enough to leave a corpse for me, I think if I can avoid getting into too much trouble until I find some herbs (no luck in PC), an altar to get my piety up and some more Spellbooks I think this might have some real potential here.

    RNG seems to like me a lot more suddenly, maybe I should've postet here sooner

  8. #8
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    Don't listen to those that say that Treasure Hunter sucks. It rocks from the very beginning, and even more with a wizard. It means double number of books from monsters, almost double chance for early grabs at all the useful spells like Invisibility, SoA, Teleport, Burning Hands, Magic Missile, ball spells, etc. With TH, I usually have most of them by the time I get to Pyramid/Griffyard/TotHK and all of them when I get to the ToEF. It also means more holy waters, more chances to get decent higher metal weapon/armour early on, etc.

    I agree with the recommendation of choosing a tougher race, though. I also used to play gray elven wizards and they were nice when they survived, but drakelings with a bit of rerolling are better. If you manage to get a drakeling with Le at least 16, it will be easy to make him survive early on (remember to make good use of the acid spit that comes with the race), and it will be "good enough" for magic. You don't have to bolt everything to death, use easy enemies in dungeons of the likes of DD, VD, ID or early CoC to train your spear+shield and bow to a decent level and only bolt troublesome foes so you can get on with a modest amount of castings. Once you manage to get Le to 18 or so, in my experience it's easy to pump it higher up by reading spellbooks.

    Once you have a good set of spells, decent Le, decent To (or even excellent To, if you use starvation scumming, but I don't) and have cleared the Tower, just cruise the dungeons permanently stocked with bookcasted SoA, farsight and invisibility, be careful, bolt difficult enemies from afar (or missile them and use slaying ammo if applicable) and teleport if you see trouble coming your way. I think with this you should be able win. I haven't, at the moment, but it's because I'm careless and I always do stupid things like magic missiling myself to death in a corridor around D:39 or stuff like that. But I'm sure that's a good path to victory.

  9. #9
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    This is getting nicer by the minute Arena spawned on D:3 and I found a stable herb pattern on D:4. Saves me the trouble of pacifying the big room (which I've never yet quite managed, anyway)

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Al-Khwarizmi View Post
    Don't listen to those that say that Treasure Hunter sucks.
    Treasure hunter sucks.
    Of course it's unfair - that's the whole point.

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