FAAngband

[dhegler]

Couple questions...

Why would my Dwarf Mage see branded and ego items as {good}, yet my other characters seemed to pseudo-ID those as {excellent}?

Any tips for a starting character? I have had some fun playing this so far, but I eventually end up dying, maybe because I am too used to vanilla, which seems less dangerous...

How does the pricing work in shops? It seemed like the weapon shop paid me less for arrows than the general store. Maybe I was wrong, but it seemed counter-intuitive with both shops in the same city.

What is the order of the first few dungeons to clear? And, what protections should I have first? FA, etc?

I do like the game, just trying to fine-tune my play style from vanilla, which does not seem to work very well so far...

[HallucinationMushroom]

Any race that starts in tame wilderness is a good choice to learn the game, in my opinion. During the character creation, it should give you an idea of danger by color, or description, or both. As you get a feel for the game, or dislike the tame wilderness races, moderate risk starting places aren't really so tough. A dl10-15 start point is quickly negated by a few good kills and returning to town. The large hometown starting races could ease equipment-shopping pains. Try to move your home to one of these (H) when you come across one if you start in an outpost town.

Longbeards are great for learning as they have pretty good numbers, rblind, and the easiest wilderness. On the downside, they have a long trek to the first and easiest dungeon, Amod Rudh. The only dungeon you have to do is Angband, but you can score 2 more proficiencies by ending two of the dungeon guardians, and no more. I would rank Nargothrond as next on the list. Tol-in-Gauroth and Nan Dungortheb I have skipped for years now, but are both brutal in their own ways.

[LostTemplar]

Nan Dungortheb

Is the best, unlight cloak is fun, especially in non-artifact games. Also if you have ESP + free forest move (elven or flying) and powerfull melee, it is the safest hunting grounds ever. Nothing ranged can hit you.

[Nick]

Why would my Dwarf Mage see branded and ego items as {good}, yet my other characters seemed to pseudo-ID those as {excellent}?

Full casters get weak pseudo-id, so anything with a drawback of any sort is {dubious}, and anything better than average is {good}. Warriors and half-casters get strong pseudo-id, which rates {good} ego items as {excellent}, and {dubious} ego items as {perilous}.

Note that items with drawbacks may still be worth using.

Any tips for a starting character? I have had some fun playing this so far, but I eventually end up dying, maybe because I am too used to vanilla, which seems less dangerous...

Wilderness can have good rewards, but it's easy to get surrounded. Have a plan for where you're heading - the local area map on the second 'M' screen should help, and is scrollable. Check your race and class specialties - 'O' to view them - and take advantage of them eg dwarves like rubble and mountains, elves like trees and forests).

How does the pricing work in shops? It seemed like the weapon shop paid me less for arrows than the general store. Maybe I was wrong, but it seemed counter-intuitive with both shops in the same city.

It will depend on the shopkeeper's race (and what they think of yours) and personality.

What is the order of the first few dungeons to clear? And, what protections should I have first? FA, etc?

Dungeons in order of deepest depth (and challenge of guardian) are Amon Rudh, Nargothrond, Nan Dungortheb (not technically a dungeon), Tol-In-Gaurhoth, Angband. You get an extra specialty for the first two dungeon guardians killed, hence HM's strategy

Lack of FA starts becoming a problem somewhere about level 20. Anything else you will probably notice becoming a problem before it kills you. Probably

[Myrkabah]

What does the "Evil" classification on the Assassin class do? I've tried poking around for an answer, and have found nothing in particular.

[Nick]

What does the "Evil" classification on the Assassin class do? I've tried poking around for an answer, and have found nothing in particular.

Pretty much nothing. They get hit harder by holy orb damage (which currently no monsters cast) and by a randart dispel evil effect. So not really a consideration when choosing a character class.