Weekend Challenge

[StMicah]

This weekend the wife and kid are out of town visiting family and I'm done teaching for the semester.

I wanted to try something difficult and see if I can accomplish a win. A fragile character playing a mage ironman style. I've won before with a gnome mage on regular conditions, but I've never played a hobbit mage. Is there any advantage to the hobbit as mage beyond the quicker lvl gain and hlife? Or should I stick to the gnome? Thoughts?

Also, is there another interesting challenge I might take on for the weekend? I like to play randarts. I could be persuaded into a no artifact game, but someone has to make an interesting case for that!

[Thraalbee]

Stealth and hold life are both valuable in ironman. Also some extra skill with sling is useful in the hard beginning. So yes, hobbit is good but still not as easy as e.g. high elf. I recently won ironman as Dunadan mage, an odd combo perhaps, but not bad. Add randarts for less predicability and you have a reasonable challenge
(edit. my current challenge is ironman hobbit ranger, lots of fun)

[StMicah]

Thraalbeast, thanks for the suggestion about the hobbit ranger. I was playing them a lot a while back, but never ironman or randarts. That might be worth a try, especially if I'm having a rough go with hobbit mages.

[wobbly]

Another good thing with hobbit mages (& rangers for that matter) is you'll have a ridiculously good save. You can expect to crack 100% for the late game.

[Estie]

Hobbit mages were arguably better than gnome mages, because you could dive earlier due to stealth bonus. The introduction of stealth rings has mitigated this advantage, but I still think they are about even.

[StMicah]

Update:
Saturday saw two deaths, both late dlvl 30s. The first @ died on a long hallway from something (you know the drill) and the second @ died after teleporting away from some heinous stuff into a waked mystic who hit me once.

Both times RNGod was toying with me no randarts at all, though on the last one I found a speed ring. I was at dlvl 36 and had only found a few treasure rods and just a lighting bolt rod; hadn't found the fourth mage book either. I'm switching tactics to standarts because a no-artifact game is, unfortunately, beyond me.

Third go—let's hope I get a bit further.

Edit: Apparently I have repented: just at dlvl 7 and already have found 2 slay weapons, forasgil, and a sling of extra might (dlvl 1)

[StMicah]

Holy Crap! Reginald III is having a day.

The RNGod has been awesome these last four dlvls (32-36). Narivagil, himring, holhenneth, the glaive of pain, gurthang! Not to mention an amulet of the magi and an intell+5 and const+5 rings.

I haven't found many stat potions—definitely no intelligence—yet and dear ole Reggie is nearly at 0% fail.

Still planning to move slow to find more stat potions.

Does anyone have any thoughts about which of the extra weapons I should drop. I was keeping Orcrist for dark resistance but now that I can't be blinded I figured that could go. Nimthanc I just found, but it seems useless next to Narivagil. I plan to leave the glaive.

I'm taking a needed break—don't want to do anything stupid now.

[StMicah]

But he did not have a good day this morning...

Reggie got pinned down by an enchantress and her dragon hoard on dlvl 45. He had about 140 hit points because the RNGod decided he could have cool equipment but not stat potions.

Oh well. I learned a bit.

[Bogatyr]

Holy Crap! Reginald III is having a day.

The RNGod has been awesome these last four dlvls (32-36). Narivagil, himring, holhenneth, the glaive of pain, gurthang! Not to mention an amulet of the magi and an intell+5 and const+5 rings.

I haven't found many stat potions—definitely no intelligence—yet and dear ole Reggie is nearly at 0% fail.

Still planning to move slow to find more stat potions.

Does anyone have any thoughts about which of the extra weapons I should drop. I was keeping Orcrist for dark resistance but now that I can't be blinded I figured that could go. Nimthanc I just found, but it seems useless next to Narivagil. I plan to leave the glaive.

I'm taking a needed break—don't want to do anything stupid now.

I'd keep the glaive at home perhaps for a trophy. Nice weapon!
Yeah, once/if my mages find Narivagil (which I always thought sounded like a "feminine freshness" product), my mages usually just wield that, unless I have other great INT boosts.

[Nick]

Narivagil (which I always thought sounded like a "feminine freshness" product)

I will never look at that item the same way again