Gate closer: Albert, mist elven merchant

[sweetnothing]

My last game in r23. I'm very proud that won with this r/c combination, it's one of hardest. I believe that I've learned a lot from it.
Log file: 2644 (I don't know why I called her Albert, maybe there was some eclipse of my mind.)

Afterthoughts. Mist elves are very challenging race in the early game, quite challenging in the middle game and mist elven merchants are definitely not face-rollers in the late game. I was amazed that they can die early on from goblin thrown stone attack if it crits.

My route to victory was: VD, PC, CoC and all usual stuff, ToTHK, Darkforge (no wish, but nice intrinsics), Small Cave, 1st Ice Queen quest (giants vault), let Khelavalster die, fixing toughness in the graveyard, ToEF, dive to CoC. I know from my previous failed attempt that ACW can deal ~130 HP in one attack, so a lot of time was spent to get that HP. A quarterstaff of hunting from IQD was the solution.

On the positive side, once a mist elf has lamps of clay, cat's ring should be easy.
Spellcasting is hard for merchants, and books are rare even if you specialize in them. So only two spells were extensively used: book-casted Invisibility and learned Magic Missiles to speed up Mana temple and D: 50. By the way, D: 50 was quite interesting because I came to the central room with a lit torch and aggravated all balors including Fisty. Ooops! Thanks to my tame greater earth elemental, this mistake cost me nothing.

Commentary on the game log

Neck : blessed ankh [3s]
The best necklace for a mist elf.

Body : uncursed blue dragon scale mail (-1, -4) [-1, +10] [200s]
It is from Darkforge. Used it all the time even when better eternium armor was found later.

Right Ring : uncursed ring of elemental mastery [+0, +1] [1s]
For cold immunity. Shock immunity was covered by the armor, fire immunity was intrinsic. I believe that I had acid immunity too, no idea where it gone.

Left Ring : uncursed ring of the master cat [+0, +5] {Dx+16} (+16 spd)
Woow I like it

Gauntlets : uncursed gloves of dexterity [+2, +2] {Dx+2} [6s]
Elemental gauntlets could not be used most of the game and later there were no need in them since I had all immunities. So I spent some scrolls of defense/protection to enchant these ones. Later I found [+0, +0] {Dx+4}, but no scrolls left :(

Boots : uncursed boots of sneakiness [+4, +5] {Dx+4} [20s]
No 7lb for the whole game :(

Missile Weapon: uncursed light crossbow of accuracy (+10, +7) [70s]
Smithed it from (+10, +0). Will definitely do it again, it was not too long.

Missiles : uncursed obsidian quarrel "Thunderstroke" (+8, 20d4+8) [2s]
Found in the vault ~D: 45

blessed gloves of carrying [+0, +2] [6s]
Combo with Big Punch.

uncursed cloak of invisibility (-1, +0) [+1, +0] [30s]
Used after D: 40 when burned my spellbook of Invisibility in an unsuccessfull attempt to learn the spell.

uncursed sword of Nonnak (+2, 4d3+2) [+2, +2] {Wi+5} [80s]
blessed rune-covered long sword "Trusted One" (+1, 5d3) [+7, +7] [60s]
Worthless. The second one is a crowning gift.

uncursed emerald dagger "Serpent's Bite" (+3, 3d4+3) [+3, +1] [13s]
blessed rustproof phase dagger (+7, 1d4+6) [5s]
Found quite late which is unfortunate.

uncursed rune-covered halberd "Wyrmlance" (+15, 4d8+10) [-2, +0] [50s]
uncursed eternium two-handed sword (+18, 6d5+19) [-1, +0] [50s]
uncursed shining long spear "Soaker" (+9, 3d7) [+3, +0] [100s]
blessed rune-covered trident (+6, 3d12+6) [+4, +4] {Dx+12} [80s]
My two-handers. Wyrmlance was good at stubbing unaware dragons, the sword was surprisingly generally good, Soaker sucks, got the trident on D: 50 oh well.

bundle of 13 uncursed eternium drakish scurgari (+9, 2d8+9) [65s]
They are good too, I approve.

blessed ring of the High Kings [+2, +3] [1s]
Used a lot until realized that I'm in fact immune.

uncursed ring of djinni summoning [1s]
Too late, too late.

uncursed wand of destruction (1 charge) [3s]
Unused

potions of boost toughness
Had to use in Mana temple, though mage's attacks did not connect (thanks 100 Alertness).

Weapon skills
Daggers & knives 10 +10 +6 +3 excellent 286
Serpent's Bite and phase dagger

Maces & flails 12 +12 +8 +4 Mastery 229
Big Punch

Swords 9 +7 +5 +3 excellent 653
Pole arms 8 +8 +4 +8 excellent 209
Probably before Big Punch

Twohanded weapons 10 +10 +14 +4 excellent 1602
Two-handed eternium sword

Staves 7 +7 +2 +11 skilled 302
Quarterstaff of hunting

Skills
Courage ................... 13 (mediocre) [+3d4]
From a scroll of education, I think.

Dodge ..................... 59 (good) [+1d3]
My fault, should have invested in it earlier.

Healing ...................100 (superb) [+1d3]
Worthless for a mist elf.

First aid .................100 (superb) [+1d3]
Top skill for early game.

Spells.

Darkness : 1177, 4pp (Effectivity: +1)
At least she can learn darkness well.

Magic Missile : 898, 7pp (Effectivity: +5)
I have feeling that knowledge of this spell decreased too fast.

...

Her toughness score was modified by +23 during her career.
Man, it was hard.

Artifacts

the small black shield "Lust for Glory"
the ring of immunity
No idea how I missed these two. The ring of immunity would be better than my ring of elemental mastery.

She had the following talents: Careful, Good Book Caster, Good Shot, Hardy,
Immune to Pain, Iron Skin, Keen Shot, Long Stride, Potent Aura, Quick, Quick
Shot, Sixth Sense, Strong Aura, Tough Skin, Very Quick.
Important here: Sixth Sense, Immune to Pain, Quick Shot + speed lineup.

Ancient Domains Of Mystery
Version 1.2.0
Windows Prerelease 23

Bye bye!!!

[Scooter Fox]

Right, elemental gauntlets are iron, aren't they? Still, with Ring of the High Kings available before real elemental threats, I guess acquiring resistances isn't much of a challenge in itself.

So, how did you raise that Toughness so much? I suppose you didn't dare to go for Minotaur Maze, so did you grind for potions of toughness instead? I assume you had it somewhere between 30-35, so it couldn't be only herbs/corpses.

EDIT: And how were greater vaults in FGJC and CoC?

[sweetnothing]

I don't remember exactly how many potions of To potential I found before ToEF, no more than 2 for sure. It was still not enough anyway.

Luckily I found a quarterstaff of hunting in FGJC. From previous games I know that eating undead corpses raises To potential, so I got some corpses from the graveyard below Khelavaster and ate morgia roots then. In the time before roots take effect I was exploring CoC below the graveyard.

Just before ToEF I also drank all my PoGA (4-5 at that moment). If it would not be enough for ToEF, I would use potions of boost toughness and the knife of endurance. Though I would rather not do it since it could went bad (long fight?).

Vaults were both giant vaults. I did not track properly artifacts from the first vault, I first thought that there was only gold. But the more I think about it, Wyrmlance and Soaker should have been from there.

The second vault gave me gold + Thunderstroke.

Probably next time I should use mapping + item detection for vaults, just to be sure.

[Scooter Fox]

Hmmm, I remember fire and ice giants scoring crits on me every now and then whenever I encounter a giant greater vault and it would take up to 150 HP after deducing PV. Wasn't that a problem? Did you use missiles? You'd need a lot of them though, considering giants in vaults run around with 500-650 HP IIRC.

[sweetnothing]

Mist elves take half of physical damage ;)
So not 150 HP, but 75. Some of them hit hard indeed (jarls, lords) but these are minority. If I noticed that someone took 1/3 of my HP I used missiles of giant slaying. Most of the vault was done in melee, with Big Punch. Also do not forget that I had both Alertness and Dodge + high dexterity. They miss you all the time.

Regarding 500-650 HP IDK, no stethoscope this time ;) My guess is that you went to the vault at a higher level. AFAIK monster level (and thus HP) depends on PC level.

[sweetnothing]

Forgot to say, I was also invisible on top of all that.

[grobblewobble]

My last game in r23. I'm very proud that won with this r/c combination, it's one of hardest. I believe that I've learned a lot from it.
Log file: 2644 (I don't know why I called her Albert, maybe there was some eclipse of my mind.)

Yes, nice job! Also bonus points for the name, she was obviously trying to disguise herself as a man because.. err.. reasons.

[sweetnothing]

Initially she (actually not she, but her previous incarnation) had a different name, but I was not pleased with that name. Oh that pain of naming...