Halls of Mist is here!

[Mikko Lehtinen]

This game is fun and devilishly hard, and really makes me miss my quiver, and the newer interface from recent versions of Angband (more intuitive picking up / stacking / targetting / etc).

One thing that's been driving me batty is having the dungeon level displayed right next to that big XP bar. It's so counterintuitive that it took me several games to even realize what the bar was for. I'd love to see the DL display moved to the other corner of the screen.

Could you tell a bit more about how you experience difficulty? Is is hard all the time, or from a certain dungeon level? What character class?

Targeting could be improved but I'm not adding quiver. Not having quiver allows me make different types of arrows much better in different circumstances without making archery too powerful.

Ok, I'll move the xp bar. You're not the first one complaining about it. I never see the bar in Linux for some reason.

Edit: I really should play the new Angband to learn about enchantment to interface and gameplay. Can v4 be considered a fully functional game yet with any character class?

[Starhawk]

Could you tell a bit more about how you experience difficulty? Is is hard all the time, or from a certain dungeon level? What character class?

Targeting could be improved but I'm not adding quiver. Not having quiver allows me make different types of arrows much better in different circumstances without making archery too powerful.

Ok, I'll move the xp bar. You're not the first one complaining about it. I never see the bar in Linux for some reason.

Well, the first time I played, I got stabbed to death in town. Har!

I tried a couple of rogues and was just getting destroyed in melee -- whatever bonus they get for attacking sleeping monsters doesn't seem to be enough. I switched to warriors and found I could make it to CL 10 without too much trouble. Right now I'm finding that there is a HUGE jump in melee difficulty when dropping to DL 5. I had a decent character (150ish hp?) die in the first room of DL 5 -- it seems like the brassclaw orc I met there was hugely stronger than the ones I'd faced previously on DL3/4, and the Mage I met blasted away all my hp with just a few spells. I took two wounds against him, couldn't escape from his spells (using a table for cover didn't help enough) and couldn't catch him due to blink. He weakened me enough that the next monster I blundered into finished me off in melee with but a yawn.

I haven't made a spellcaster or ranger yet, but so far my ranged attacks have been distressingly weak, my melee attacks are nothing special and my defenses are frighteningly poor. My hp vanish at a massive rate and heals are hard to come by. Escaping is more problematic, since taking a staircase to get away from a roomful of orcs or Brodda the Easterling means the Thin White Duke gets that much closer to making you lose.

(Also, I can't help but envision that I'm fighting Bowie's Jareth character from Labyrinth...)

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Mages are surprisingly powerful at least early on.

I think I'll play write an actual play report about my next game, with details about the tactics I use. I rolled up a Lizardman Ranger earlier today but had to stop playing before entering dungeon.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

A word about troublesome early humanoids.

Brassclaw Orcs have a nasty second attack with their claws that causes bleeding. It's not very accurate, and having a good AC helps a lot.

Kobold and orc legionnaires throw darts and javelins. They cause lots of damage but you can doddge with a successful Jumping check.

[Starhawk]

possible bug: i can't initiate an attack against a monster in a wall, like a poltergeist, and your docs are clear on that -- but my 'freebie' secondary attack was able to hit the poltergeist while it was still in the wall.

[Nick]

Edit: I really should play the new Angband to learn about enchantment to interface and gameplay. Can v4 be considered a fully functional game yet with any character class?

Mostly, but if you're only concerned with interface then V3.4 is at least as good. Or FA, of course...

[Magnate]

Edit: I really should play the new Angband to learn about enchantment to interface and gameplay. Can v4 be considered a fully functional game yet with any character class?

It's fully functional in that it doesn't crash and you can kill Morgoth. It's just much less balanced than V because it's had a ton of major changes which haven't had much play or refinement. But that shouldn't stop you enjoying it or learning stuff. If you do play it, any thoughts will of course be most appreciated.

[buzzkill]

I decided to participate in "The Halls of Mist Campaign" or whatever you called it, I couldn't find your post. Since it roughly, as described, mimics the way I already play, it's a perfect fit. I'll start a new thread when I decide to post. Already some excitement on DL2.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Mostly, but if you're only concerned with interface then V3.4 is at least as good. Or FA, of course...

In terms of interface, where does NPP stack? I've a feeling it's up there with v4, V3.4 and FA.

I'd like to play them all. Apart from interface ideas, I'm hunting for interesting monsters.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

I decided to participate in "The Halls of Mist Campaign" or whatever you called it, I couldn't find your post. Since it roughly, as described, mimics the way I already play, it's a perfect fit. I'll start a new thread when I decide to post. Already some excitement on DL2.

The thread is getting unwieldy. Campaign ideas here: #1 #2 #3.

Are you interested in roleplaying/diaries, limiting the number of dungeon levels per day, or the competitive aspect against other players, or all of these?

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Pav, could you add Halls of Mist as a possibility for screenshots? HoM's html screenshots are identical to EyAngband's.

[Starhawk]

either in the docs or in this thread, you've mentioned that diving early is a good way to get to repeat lower levels later.

how do you repeat a level? every downward staircase I've seen only offers me the choices of <l>ower <d>ive or <p>lunge.

also, re: my earlier comments about game difficulty: the very beginning game is much, much harder than I remember Angband being. it levels out a lot after about CL 12. i managed to get a rogue this far and i'm having lots of fun. the ambush effects seem to be getting better and more useful with level.

i just wish there were a way to remove these two wounds i've been carrying since DL3....

[HallucinationMushroom]

If you take the staircase from town you will have the option of choosing an easier path. I've yet to do so, so I cannot tell you from experience how it actually works.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Yes, when returning to the dungeon from town, you may pick 'same' to return to the same level, or 'easier' to return to that level -1. You may not return to a level that is shallower than your Min Depth.

Rogue adds 0.5 to ambush chance each level. It's all in the combat help file. Combat buffs like Heroism help a lot.

Lots of Rogue's effectiveness comes from the ability to sell expensive items. There's often something cool to buy in the Black Market.

You may heal wounds by quaffing from a certain fountain or performing a certain ritual (in a priest's dungeon book).

Thanks for your difficulty perceptions!

[Satyr]

Having lot's of fun with Halls of Mist, so a big thank you for this game! Just a quick bug report: After trying to get a circle of live from my blinding powder to restore some stats and receiving a nexus circle for the fifth or sixth time, I had a look at the source code and noticed that the relevant "case" lines in "inven_drop()" miss a "break" statement, so you always get the second possible circle type.

Now back to my Rattikin Ranger...