Nethack (new version) Tips and Hints

[Urban Ranger]

zangband is a newer version of angband. There is also adom, which stands for "ancient domain of mystery." The best one though I think is omega, but it's not being maintained

[Wazell]

There's a new version of Nethack? Oh thanks, there goes my work and studyings

Anyway, do not play NH with Falcon's Eye. It won't make games any better, only add some unnecessary eye candy and you can't see the whole level at once. What's wrong with pure ASCII?

[MariOne]

Originally posted by War of Art Probably the "OverCats" (s******) have got a copy for DL.

No need for such underhand search.
As opensource, you get it for free from the official site

http://www.zangband.org/

for the Z(elazny) more complex version.
BTW, I think the latest release is horrible, go for a more stable one.

To go for one of the several Angband variants, there's the http://www.thangorodrim.net/ site.

[Skanky Burns]

I died in level 4 from eating a rotten gaint bat corpse.

[Jamski]

Well, you won't do that again

-Jam

[Skanky Burns]

No. I started another game as a samurai and died before finding the first set of stairs.




The good part of being so inept is that it is so easy for me to improve.

[Jamski]

Tell me about it. The best plan seems to be to play safe untill you can identify potions, weapons etc, and to always attack with the bow/other ranged weapon if you can. I still can't get deeper than the 9th level, though, so I'm missing something.

Practice needed I think.

-Jam

[quantum_mechani]

Speaking of Nethack- has anyone else noticed you can't #enhance skills if they happen to be on the second page? Maybe I am doing something wrong, but I can't even look at the second page of skills if I have a skill to #enhance on that page.

[Tuberski]

This game is really tough, I quit playing about a year ago, I think I will try this new version.

ACK!

[Richard Bruns]

If you are too cautious you will end up too weak. Trying on lots of armor is especially important. For example, a lot of dwarves have really good items, like +2 helmets or +1 iron boots, that really boost your armor class and make you live longer in the early game. Spellcasters can use helmets without any penalty IIRC. If it ends up cursed, you can pray to get rid of it. Assuming you don´t pray for otehr things, you can usually pray safely whenever you pick up a cursed item. And of course, yo ucan use an alter or your pet to tell if it is cursed in teh first place, thus avoiding even this minor problem.

My main complaint about Nethack is that shops are absolutely useless, since they don´t identify the stuff for you. You just have a pile of random junk to pick up and pay for, with no clue what the potions or scrolls do unless you have already identified them. That´s just stupid. This game needs to start you in a town, where you can buy useful stuff, and you should know what the shops are selling.

[MariOne]

Originally posted by Richard Bruns
My main complaint about Nethack is that shops are absolutely useless, since they don´t identify the stuff for you. You just have a pile of random junk to pick up and pay for, with no clue what the potions or scrolls do unless you have already identified them. That´s just stupid.


This game needs to start you in a town, where you can buy useful stuff, and you should know what the shops are selling.

See???!

Being the items on sale just objects on the floor, you don't know what you get just as when you pick an object in any other room. I hardly call this a "shop", that's rather a "bargain cave"....
Not only this, but to SEE what's there you have to *walk* over objects, or to *look* for them (and the "look" function itself is much more cumbersome in NetHack than in Angband), rathern than *read a damn simple LIST of products*!

Your last comment can easily be summarised in one word: ANGBAND.

[Skanky Burns]

How do you use an alter to tell if an item is cursed?

[Wazell]

Drop all items you haven't identified on it. Cursed items will give a black flash, and when you pick them up, their b/u/c status is revealed on inventory.

[Tuberski]

Originally posted by Wazell
Drop all items you haven't identified on it. Cursed items will give a black flash, and when you pick them up, their b/u/c status is revealed on inventory.

Does that work on altars of different alignment?

ACK!

[Wazell]

Originally posted by Tuberski
Does that work on altars of different alignment?

Yes, in NH dropping things to get their status works in every altar.

Unlike some other games, try it in ADOM for example and get some angry gods of opposite alignment.