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Easy mode. Which wasn't so easy.
I spent 10s of games trying a stabber. I got one going once, but he was one of my first characters and I died to some stupidity that was lost to the mists of time. He found a +4 deathblade, without knowing what a great find that was. He was fun. he made me wish I save scummed, just to have a chance to play him again.
That was when I was doing the Smithing affinity high elf, with the 0/2/2/2 starting stats. I don't get smithing, it takes save scumming to understand, or at least forum scumming. So that wasn't helpful.
The 0/2/2/2 starts with the stabber goal never worked for me. So at some point I just devolved to the simplest basher character, who should be able to win (how could they not be able?) and should be strongest in start-game.
Eventually I learned the goodness of Con so I started with the high elf with Will affinity and 0/1/3/2 (if memory serves).
Starting with that guy lowered my starting dex from 5 to 3, and raised my starting Con to 6. Now we're talking. Dex ain't that important in late game, while con certainly is. And you can never replace starting Con as easily as you can replace starting Dex.
Starting skills were 3 melee and 3 evasion. Then save 500 exp to get 7 perception and lore master. Just because easy race start allows for that and damn is it fun and simplifying to have everything identified. Hard races mean NOT investing in that early-game and instead investing in melee/evasion that you would have had otherwise through stats.
First several hundred feet are always chancy with the teeming hordes of orcs (archers are the worst) but at some point you throw enough games at it to get past that part.
I don't think there was any big find that made the difficulty curve flatten suddenly. Just gradual progression. Ability progression was sprinting -> power -> follow through -> opportunist, then a bunch of other stuff that wasn't as important. Eventually I took Exchange Places with hoarded experience, as I often find I need. It's the most "easy mode" skill in the game probably, but I don't like to take it before I need it.
I ended up with 22 melee, 15 evasion, 12 will, 10 perception, and 11 song. I had strength and con from melee and will trees. I had artifact armor that gave 1 con and the artifact amulet too. With con potion i had about 150 hp. I had all the armor bonus abilities too and ended up with about 8-27 protection, if memory serves. I found Glamdring which is +2 melee and +2 evasion with slay of orc, troll, dragon, and rauk. That may have been my best find.
It became easy mode. I was surprised I was unable to kill Morgoth. Maybe I could have, but you know I just wanted to win. I took sharpness song so the silmaril wasn't hard to pry out. I ran out with it. The top level was pretty fun. Made me feel powerful with all the puds to wade through. Nice level design there.
Thanks for the great well thought out game, half and scatha. It's a very impressive effort.
I spent 10s of games trying a stabber. I got one going once, but he was one of my first characters and I died to some stupidity that was lost to the mists of time. He found a +4 deathblade, without knowing what a great find that was. He was fun. he made me wish I save scummed, just to have a chance to play him again.
That was when I was doing the Smithing affinity high elf, with the 0/2/2/2 starting stats. I don't get smithing, it takes save scumming to understand, or at least forum scumming. So that wasn't helpful.
The 0/2/2/2 starts with the stabber goal never worked for me. So at some point I just devolved to the simplest basher character, who should be able to win (how could they not be able?) and should be strongest in start-game.
Eventually I learned the goodness of Con so I started with the high elf with Will affinity and 0/1/3/2 (if memory serves).
Starting with that guy lowered my starting dex from 5 to 3, and raised my starting Con to 6. Now we're talking. Dex ain't that important in late game, while con certainly is. And you can never replace starting Con as easily as you can replace starting Dex.
Starting skills were 3 melee and 3 evasion. Then save 500 exp to get 7 perception and lore master. Just because easy race start allows for that and damn is it fun and simplifying to have everything identified. Hard races mean NOT investing in that early-game and instead investing in melee/evasion that you would have had otherwise through stats.
First several hundred feet are always chancy with the teeming hordes of orcs (archers are the worst) but at some point you throw enough games at it to get past that part.
I don't think there was any big find that made the difficulty curve flatten suddenly. Just gradual progression. Ability progression was sprinting -> power -> follow through -> opportunist, then a bunch of other stuff that wasn't as important. Eventually I took Exchange Places with hoarded experience, as I often find I need. It's the most "easy mode" skill in the game probably, but I don't like to take it before I need it.
I ended up with 22 melee, 15 evasion, 12 will, 10 perception, and 11 song. I had strength and con from melee and will trees. I had artifact armor that gave 1 con and the artifact amulet too. With con potion i had about 150 hp. I had all the armor bonus abilities too and ended up with about 8-27 protection, if memory serves. I found Glamdring which is +2 melee and +2 evasion with slay of orc, troll, dragon, and rauk. That may have been my best find.
It became easy mode. I was surprised I was unable to kill Morgoth. Maybe I could have, but you know I just wanted to win. I took sharpness song so the silmaril wasn't hard to pry out. I ran out with it. The top level was pretty fun. Made me feel powerful with all the puds to wade through. Nice level design there.
Thanks for the great well thought out game, half and scatha. It's a very impressive effort.
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