Originally Posted by
auricbond
Where things only have one use (like bridge building) I think keeping it in the game is the better choice as then you have the recourse of thinking of new ways to justify its existence (although I think one use is good enough, it's just that two or more is even better). Why is that better than removing it? Because it makes the game richer.
You know what? I completely agree. Adding more content in to better justify a current action is far preferable to removing it for redundancy when the game is so detailed and beautiful already.
It'd be a bit of a shame to lose the problem-solving aspects of these two little pieces of content. They're esoteric and obtuse, sure, but they're also hinted at by the Minstrel and through cookie messages, and they're charming little additions to ADOM.
I agree with Al-Khwarizmi that a turn timer on the beeswax just won't work around the Banshee. The use of the clean 'E'ars command is both well-foreshadowed by that point, and will come naturally to someone who has already intentionally plugged their ears.
Deafness is also useful at other times, especially when it's optional. Concentrated study seems to really be a big thing for older players.
The wipe 'F'ace command is a little less directly useful but even so, being blind for ~20 turns at random in a dungeon is a major setback. I'd suggest instead to keep the command and implement a ~20 turn duration for mud blindness. That way, if a player
really can't work out what to do, they still get their eyesight back eventually, but at an ongoing -1 to Ap until they wash. If that's implemented then I also suggest Swimming should clean the mud off and increase Ap in the same way.
For wiping your 'F'ace, maybe we
should implement a few additional uses.
How about a monster type added or altered so that it spits globs of mud or slime - not damaging, but they blind the PC unless they take a turn to wipe it back off? Slimes would work, for one.
How about an additional random trap that splurts mud or slime or similar all over the player?
Or altering the existing Acid floor trap so that occasionally "it even gets in your eyes!" and needs to be wiped back out to restore sight?
ixi's idea about the corruption would work as well.
Basically, give it a couple - just a couple - more infrequent uses and it suddenly becomes a helpful part of the game.