First time battling Nexus Hounds

[Ehrblast]

I'm at cl30 in dl31, and this is the first time dealing with Nexus Hounds. At first I though I got "knocked" into a teleport trap, then realised I was being fired at by them.
And theyre hunting in packs.
I have no resistance to nexus. Im a Hi-Elf Ranger, relying it seems in equal parts melee, ranged and some magic. I just dont seem to know how I can defeat them.
Is this an instance where I should just leave, and roam elswhere? What tactics should I employ?

[Angrist]

If you have rNexus they harmless.
If there is no - need to avoid them. Because if you're not lucky, your two random stats will be swapped after they breathe on you. That happens nor often, but happens. Or you can appear in a room with nasty monsters.
If you still want to fight them: quaff a potion of speed; dig a zig-zag corridor; and kill one.

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[MattB]

Hover in the corridor outside the room they're in, then rest until one appears in line of sight and take a pot shot at them with a bow. Tedious, not good for the turncount (if you care about that), but effective. But really though, there is no need to fight them unless they are blocking the way to stairs or particularly enticing loot. They give decent experience, yes, but no drops. Best just to m2f your way around them.

[Ehrblast]

Thanks Angrist.
I was just going to add to my post:
Played a few more minutes, and saw it was a loosing battle. They'd nexus me, and i saw that they would also appear not far from where they sent me. managed to defeat one, but it got ridiculous.
Guess I'm waiting for rNexus till then. I guess this'll appear in the form of some wield-able thing? Out of curiousity, there wouldnt be a spell that counteracts it, is there?

To MattB: yeh, I was kinda trying that, trying to stay out of LoS, and using Ice Ball from a ring I had, then spells while recharging. The experience lured me, but atm it looks impossible.
About potshots, would they replenish HP too quickly for that to be pheasable? I was using Phase Door, but they were at least twice as fast, and hit me when I landed.

[MattB]

If you have rNexus they harmless.
If there is no - need to avoid them. Because if you're not lucky, your two random stats will be swapped after they breathe on you. That happens nor often, but happens. Or you can appear in a room with nasty monsters.
If you still want to fight them: quaff a potion of speed; dig a zig-zag corridor; and kill one.

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####@#####
#####Z####
####Z#####
#####.####
#Z
#ZZZZZZZ
#
##########

But they probably won't follow you, unless you hollow out a sufficiently large room on the other side of your zigzag. You can hockeystick them (see below) but that is even more tedious.

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Hounds want to follow you into a room so if you wait around the corner in a room, as above, they should run straight onto your main gauche.
You can see them, but they cannot see you. They should wander straight into your trap.

[MattB]

I guess this'll appear in the form of some wield-able thing?

It is most commonly found on boots of stability (which always have rNexus).

Out of curiousity, there wouldnt be a spell that counteracts it, is there?

Sadly not.

[debo]

Just quit, hounds are the worst

[Angrist]

Some artifacts have rNexus. And Amulet of Trickery. But Amulet of Trickery is hard to find on dL31.

[Ehrblast]

Oh cool ideas. I read and have employed [a bit], of digging a zigzag and letting enemies come to you. And i see what you mean about a large room. In smaller areas, they didnt seem to follow, but waited until I made a move into LoS to nexus me.
I'll try this, and follow up.
Yeh I been waiting for Boots of Stability. My Boots of Free Action so far have not helped, as paralysis hasnt been attempted on me [dont think].

Just quit, hounds are the worst

lol. Thats how Im feeling right now. But if I can get them...

[MattB]

About potshots, would they replenish HP too quickly for that to be pheasable? I was using Phase Door, but they were at least twice as fast, and hit me when I landed.

Depends how much damage you're doing with your bow! They vibrate around a lot so they come into view fairly often. the problem is, so do you. But at least it's usually one at a time.

Phase is lethal around hounds as the chance of you landing in a room is much higher than in a corridor, and that will be the room where the hounds hang out. As previously mentioned, they will stay in a room (unless you're in trouble, in which case they flood into your corridor to finish you off...)

[MattB]

Oh cool ideas. I read and have employed [a bit], of digging a zigzag and letting enemies come to you. And i see what you mean about a large room. In smaller areas, they didnt seem to follow, but waited until I made a move into LoS to nexus me.
I'll try this, and follow up.

Have...er...fun.

[Ehrblast]

they will stay in a room (unless you're in trouble, in which case they flood into your corridor to finish you off...)

They smell the blood, so to speak? True, they trickled out one at a time into the corridor. Ill make a zigzag nearby their room.
My bow was decent until a disenchantment. Right now its a Long Bow (x3) [+3, +2], and I got some Arrows (1d4) (+7, +6). Combined with some stat boosts, maybe I can make something of it.

[Angrist]

Check back often content of Black market. There's quite often items with rNexus.
Very soon, you will find much more worst hounds. It is better not to fight with hounds. Some hounds can easily kill even level 50 character.

[Ehrblast]

Yeh, this isn't getting anywhere. These are the toughest enemy, aside from other hounds, that I've come up against. And itll only getting worse.
Ill keep checking Black Market. I read somewhere the stores restock every 10,000 turns or so? I got time, so no need to rush this.

[Derakon]

Every 10000 game turns (every 1000 normal-speed turns) the stores will cycle their inventory slightly, although usually there isn't all that much turnover.

But really, you're best off just detecting and avoiding them. You'll get powerful enough to kill them soon enough, and it's a lot more fun than townscumming for a source of Resist Nexus.