Any tips for a newbie?

[robbiodobbio]

What happens if I use *destruction* against him? Does it just kill his summoned monsters? Does it damage him?

Do wands of annihilation work on him?

What's the lowest I can let my HP fall to?

[Pete Mack]

A. Don't. He is not killed, simply removed from the level. To kill him you would have to start from scratch after returning to the level or waiting for him to regenerate.
B. Yes
C M's mana storm can do up to 600 hp, though it usually does less. Usually I just heal if I am 300HP less than MAX, because that is as much as the potion can do.

[A Magical Lamp]

Yeah backing up the suggestion to heal immediately against Morgoth, if you give him half a chance he'll put you in very uncomfortable positions. Just going to borrow the newbie-tips thread to ask my own question too - I just had a mage get one-hit-killed by a resisted nexus breath for over 200 damage, I thought the damage cap on that was something like 400 so resisted should've been 133 damage. What happened?

[Pete Mack]

Higher resists work at only 6/(6+1d6) reduction factor, so a resisted nexus breath can do up to 342 damage. I believe light and dark resist are somewhat better.

[robbiodobbio]

Just found Bard's longbow but it's not as good as my Sling of Buckland, what's the best launcher on the game?

[Derakon]

Just found Bard's longbow but it's not as good as my Sling of Buckland, what's the best launcher on the game?

Depends on what you need; the launchers actually do a pretty good job of being sidegrades of each other. Cubragol is probably the best "stat stick" launcher. Belthrondig and Bard are great for rangers (and Belthrondig is also a good stat stick for people who hate disenchantment). Umbar is pretty impressive if you're going crossbows and don't mind the aggravation.

But for raw damage as a non-ranger, Sling of Buckland with +2 shots is really hard to beat.

[Pete Mack]

For pure damage, sling of Buckland (x4) <+2>, or good Haradrim with Holy Might ammo. Nothing else is close, unless you are playing a Ranger, where Bard or an x5 Lothlorien bow are even better.

[robbiodobbio]

Done it! Final battle was epic and very very close, judged consumables to perfection: killed him with 1 charge of a rod of healing left, it couldn't have been closer. Thanks to everyone for the tips, finally beat the game for the first time nearly 20 years after first playing it.

[robbiodobbio]

Thinking about having a go at Ironman, I know about the forced descent option and no recalls but what are the other rules? Any suggestions on race/class for Ironman?

[Derakon]

Done it! Final battle was epic and very very close, judged consumables to perfection: killed him with 1 charge of a rod of healing left, it couldn't have been closer. Thanks to everyone for the tips, finally beat the game for the first time nearly 20 years after first playing it.

Congrats! Good job.

Regarding ironman, there's a variety of different "ironman" options you can turn on. "Classic" ironman is just forced-descent and no-recall, but you can also disable artifact generation or disable stores if you like. Disabling stores and also turning off the "starting kit" option means sending a level-1 character into the dungeon stark naked, so watch out!

Good races/classes for ironman are pretty much whatever you're most comfortable with. There's usually plentiful food, so even warriors who never get Satisfy Hunger shouldn't be in danger of starvation outside of the early game. With 100 dungeon levels to choose from, you shouldn't have problems assembling enough gear and consumables as long as you don't skip too many levels.

[robbiodobbio]

how does forced descent work? Do you only have a fixed time on each level? Or is it just that there aren't any up stairs?

[Estie]

Congrats on a job well done. Forced descent simply means that you can never enter a level higher than your lowest; upstairs are generated, but wont work (you get an error message when trying to use them); scrolls of tele level always take you down, etc. Unless you also have no recall set for full ironman, you can (and probably should) leave a level via town portal, then recall; it will take you to the next lower one.

[robbiodobbio]

Ok, I'm thinking of going for the no recalls version. What should I spend my initial cash on?

[Ingwe Ingweron]

Ok, I'm thinking of going for the no recalls version. What should I spend my initial cash on?

If doing No Recall Ironman, with or without forced descent, but especially if you are also doing forced descent, I would turn Selling back on and or turn off Start with Useful Gear. This way you can sell that recall scroll for cash and buy more of what you need.

I don't see the town purchase requirements any differently than a regular excursion, you'll want lot's of ?Phase Door and CLW. Maybe a launcher and ammo, if available. An extra copy of the first magic book or prayer book, if applicable. (I never buy more than the first , relying on the dungeon to provide). Then descend and hope for the best. Squelch the money, as it will do you no good. You'll still collect cash if you happen to walk over its location, but you won't be distracted with it on-screen.

Congrats on your win. And props for jumping right into Ironman right away. I'm impressed!

[robbiodobbio]

Any race/class recommendations?