Man i missed a lot of discussion. I guess I should chime in with my thoughts.
Forced descent: I've been of the opinion for a while that this should be what angband is balanced around. As in, a player should be able to reach the bottom with enough gear to kill Morgoth by playing each level once. This is actually how I've been tweaking the drop rates, using MC simulations to figure out what the probabilities are. As for whether it's default or not, I don't care too much. You do need a design goal for balance though, and this seems as good as any.
Short dungeon: I've been toying with this for a while (conceptually). I think Angband is too long, but it's short circuitable by just skipping levels 60-95. Obviously you can't do that in forced descent. However, angband does have a marathon type feel to it, and I"m not sure that's a bad thing. It's just something that I don't really have the time to finish.
Dangerous fights: Isn't this already the case? Any late game fight with two big breathers is an immediate "escape or die" situation. The problem is that Angband has both situations that require escape and unlimited escapes. I'm not sure a higher danger fraction will improve the situation.
Crippling traps: The most interesting types of crippling are the ones that require the player to actively do something to remove it. Maybe there's a monster to kill, or a shrine somewhere on the level to reach, or something. Just returning to town...seems a bit boring.
Ironman difficulty/town recovery: The difference between forced descent and ironman currently is inventory and consumable purchasing. You are making town a recovery source, so i'm guessing that without that, you need to be very careful to avoid the crippling traps? I dunno if I like this, I must think about it more.
Object usefulness: even amulets of adornment?
Game balance: Well that's always the challenge, isn't it.
I have some thoughts on endgame difficulty to. I don't think adding additional late-game non-uniques is the way to go. But that will need to wait for tomorrow.
Forced descent: I've been of the opinion for a while that this should be what angband is balanced around. As in, a player should be able to reach the bottom with enough gear to kill Morgoth by playing each level once. This is actually how I've been tweaking the drop rates, using MC simulations to figure out what the probabilities are. As for whether it's default or not, I don't care too much. You do need a design goal for balance though, and this seems as good as any.
Short dungeon: I've been toying with this for a while (conceptually). I think Angband is too long, but it's short circuitable by just skipping levels 60-95. Obviously you can't do that in forced descent. However, angband does have a marathon type feel to it, and I"m not sure that's a bad thing. It's just something that I don't really have the time to finish.
Dangerous fights: Isn't this already the case? Any late game fight with two big breathers is an immediate "escape or die" situation. The problem is that Angband has both situations that require escape and unlimited escapes. I'm not sure a higher danger fraction will improve the situation.
Crippling traps: The most interesting types of crippling are the ones that require the player to actively do something to remove it. Maybe there's a monster to kill, or a shrine somewhere on the level to reach, or something. Just returning to town...seems a bit boring.
Ironman difficulty/town recovery: The difference between forced descent and ironman currently is inventory and consumable purchasing. You are making town a recovery source, so i'm guessing that without that, you need to be very careful to avoid the crippling traps? I dunno if I like this, I must think about it more.
Object usefulness: even amulets of adornment?
Game balance: Well that's always the challenge, isn't it.
I have some thoughts on endgame difficulty to. I don't think adding additional late-game non-uniques is the way to go. But that will need to wait for tomorrow.
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