Hit points and game balance
I noticed that characters seem to gain more hitpoints per level than discussed in this old article: http://www.adom.de/jade/12249801.php3
For each new level you will gain
+1 hitpoint. This might seem little at first (and it is) but it will prevent an evergrowing power spiral in which monsters and the character become tougher and tougher, deal out more and more damage and so on (with all the known balance problems in ADOM). Instead you will have a very gradual scale.
This does not seem to be the case in JADE 0.1.2. I seem to get around 100 HP already at pretty low levels. Did TB change his mind?
I like the idea of level influencing HP very little (though +1 per level might be a bit too little). It makes the game more realistic and makes the player depend more on items. I'd also modify the formula presented on the page to add twice the toughness stat - Toughness should be the most important HP factor, and it makes PCs more survivable.
For Thomas Biskup: How is player HP currently calculated in JADE?
You hit Andor Drakon, the ElDeR cHaOs GoD, and severely wound him.
The greater balor summons some help!
The ratling duelist disarms you. You drop your blessed Trident of the Red Rooster (+36, 6d12+18) [+12, +12]. It flies to the west.
Andor Drakon, the ElDeR cHaOs GoD, picks up the blessed Trident of the Red Rooster (+36, 6d12+18) [+12, +12].
Andor Drakon, the ElDeR cHaOs GoD, wields the blessed Trident of the Red Rooster (+36, 6d12+18) [+12, +12].