methods to prevent careless deaths?

[Nick]

To Nick - I agree that !speed is great (I hoard them), but I don't know any variants in which they're a stock item in stores (most have them as unusual stock or in the BM). Sometimes though !speed can be dangerous, because it tempts you to finish the fight when you should really escape ("ooh I can whack-and-back now, I don't need to run"). At least, that's killed me a few times.

You sometimes get stacks of !Speed in the Black Market in O - when that happens, it's worth spending your entire bank balance on them. I find their main use is when confused - quaff !Speed then !CCW until you can teleport. Still usually doesn't work against Hummerhorns...

[Conker]

I think careless deaths are always going to be around in some incarnation. I just had the worst one ever - my nicely kitted out warrior, +6 speed, about 600HP, tried to disarm a trap. Failed, and the trap summoned a bunch of Time Hounds. Who killed me before I even had a chance to move. Talk about unlucky. I suppose that's a lesson to never try to disarm a trap manually once disarm trap rods are easily available.
________
Harley-Davidson FLHRCI

[tigen]

I think careless deaths are always going to be around in some incarnation. I just had the worst one ever - my nicely kitted out warrior, +6 speed, about 600HP, tried to disarm a trap. Failed, and the trap summoned a bunch of Time Hounds. Who killed me before I even had a chance to move. Talk about unlucky. I suppose that's a lesson to never try to disarm a trap manually once disarm trap rods are easily available.

It's part of the roguelike experience I generally die from pointless greed, trying to kill that thing that is too dangerous, skimping on supplies, trying to avoid using supplies (surely it will die in the next hit, why waste the potion?)

If you want to see how to play carefully, watch the borg. Runs away constantly, stair scums, avoids every sign of risk, and would rather try to dig a tunnel through granite with his bare hands than step next to a floating eye.

Actually the borg's ability to be successful is kinda sad. I would prefer if the game design was such that formulaic risk-avoidance tactics didn't work. For example the stair scumming stuff and even perhaps the existence of instant teleport level. If the game had chokepoints where you were forced to confront significant danger then the borg could not run away, and we humans would have the advantage again

I guess Sangband's scoring system captures this to some extent. A borg probably can't get a good score since it would pump up its skills too much before taking any risks.

[Bandobras]

For example the stair scumming stuff and even perhaps the existence of instant teleport level.

UnAngband plug : no instant teleport level there (it takes 2 turns IIRC) and soon no stair-scumming (semi-persistent levels). If you have any further ideas, let us know.

[Madoka]

It's part of the roguelike experience I generally die from pointless greed, trying to kill that thing that is too dangerous, skimping on supplies, trying to avoid using supplies (surely it will die in the next hit, why waste the potion?)

That is pretty much why I die most of the time as well. Also, my greed will make me take less down for more slots for loot. Until I realize I should have brought that extra item. Like when I get surrounded by some summoned monsters, and I get beat to death. This is usually when I realize I should have brought that Scroll of Teleport that's sitting useless at Home.

[tigen]

UnAngband plug : no instant teleport level there (it takes 2 turns IIRC) and soon no stair-scumming (semi-persistent levels). If you have any further ideas, let us know.

That's a step I guess. Still, a borg could run back out of the dungeon, or run upstairs and down a different stair.

I am wondering if there are ways to propel a player foward in the game for reasons other than the boredom of the player. The game basically rewards this boring risk-avoidance playstyle. The reward for taking risks is advancing faster (and being less bored), but you aren't better off in the end than the boring guy. (I suppose the endgame is always interesting, but I never get there so I wouldn't know).

The game is capable of creating tactically interesting situations, but only if it's a challenge relative to your level, and you don't always just run away. But in Angband you almost always have that escape once you have learned to stock the requisite items. So really why ever risk death? "Run away early and often!" teaches Angband, if you don't want to lose that hard-earned character.

Yet players never want to die feeling like their death was out of their hands.

Sangband's scoring as I mentioned solves it in a way; you get less score for defeating the uniques if you are more powerful, and they are "uniques" so by the end your playstyle affects your score. This doesn't really translate to other Angbands though where you don't control your advancement.

I'm not saying this to be mean to the Borg, but expressly designing the game to be harder for the Borg might make for a better game. Stair scumming is one. Scumming in general... farming stuff at *no risk* to (eventually) get useful items is another. I don't have any quick answers here.

[pav]

And yet, good players can play aggresively and beat the game in three days of real time. It's not like the game forces you to play overcautionosly. Just the majority of us, ie. poor players, have no other choice.

[Berserker]

I am wondering if there are ways to propel a player foward in the game for reasons other than the boredom of the player.

ADOM, www.adom.de, has a system like this. The world is being corrupted, so you need to hurry and beat the game or you start mutating, sometimes for better, often for worse.