Beginner Questions

So I've been playing Nethack and Elona before, but I never finished them and lost interest.
But a week or so this game got recommended to me at the Dwarf Fortress forum and it's been great fun that far.

Well but I have some questions, so that I can finally advance beyond GC 1.
I'm using the LIVAN version by the way.

About danger level:
So basically I should stay with the crappiest equipment I can find (like AV 1-2) and keep some good and heavily enchanted equipment for boss fights, do I understand it right?

What about weapons?
Do the different types have different danger levels?
Like a two handed sword and an axe.

Is it worth geting proficient in a wider range of weapons or should I stick with one?

What about statboosting consumables.
Using them right away will raise my danger level, so is it worth it?
Or should I stash them away until I have some equipment?

About Searching:
Do you have a 100% chance when searching, or is it RNG dependent if you find anything?
Because I've got blown up by mines several times now and I can't seem to find any levitation items.
Fire resistance too would be an option, but I'm not sure how much I would need to survive a blast.

In Nethack first priority was getting you Ascension Kit together (basically a bunch of item essential for beating the game, if you are unfamiliar with Nethack).
Is there something like this in IVAN/LIVAN or can you beat the game with any combination

I would appreciate any further advice and general tipps you could offer (but I strictly refuse doing anything heavily OOC like removing all my equipment before entering a new dungeon level.)
If some other questions occur to me, I'll write them down here too.

Welcome

You're thinking way too hard about the danger level. You should absolutely enchant your gear and weapons, and wear them at all times. In fact I bet the reason you're getting blown to pieces by mines is that your equipment isn't strong enough. A normal mine shouldn't kill you if you have decent gear and decent stats (strength, endurance, etc). Ideally you should have a cloak of fire protection enchanted +5, that should save you from nearly any blast.

Stick with one type. Spears and halberds are both "polearms" so training with one will make you proficient in the other as well. I think that's the only non-obvious grouping though.
Most of them I use immediately, but it might be more worth it to stash them away until you have a wand of cloning and can duplicate them.

You can beat the game however you like... theoretically you could beat it wielding nothing but a pair of broken glass shards...

No, that strategy will get you killed when you run into magic mushrooms, as well as when your stats are high enough to result in kamikaze dwarves saying hello. Armors of great health are only a bad idea because they raise the bar far higher than they are actually worth; if you find a stat-raising helmet there's no reason not to keep it on. If you are still paranoid, though, know this: most of the monsters in a level are generated when you walk in, so if you're feeling nervous because you have an octiron quarterstaff of wondrous smells, Saal'thul, arcanite chain mail, an amulet of ESP and/or other assorted bs-luck items you *can* just drop them on the stairs down, go downstairs and come back up for the loot and thus take away the risk. Monsters occasionally spawn in to levels if you're on them long enough, which means you can't stop magical mushies from suddenly ruining the place, but as far as I can tell 'bosses' like Sherry won't.


I'm fairly certain that material type and artifact/non-artifact status make for different danger levels rather than the different types having anything to do with it. I'm also fairly certain that whatever effect weapons have on danger levels is paltry compared to the benefits of having better ones.


One or two types. There are no characteristics that are important for the basic weapons beyond that of damage, accuracy, and strength (there is no blunt/slice/pierce damage game-mechanics-wise, there is only damage), which means that if you can enchant a whip enough to give it the damage of a basic mace there's really no reason to use the basic mace.


I always use them right away because I loathe raising them the normal way, as well as because a) I'm going to raise them in the normal course of the game regardless of whether I try to grind for them or not and b) the guaranteed encounters will kill me if I don't have good enough stats. The holy banana of Oily Orpiv is probably the only stat-booster I would ever wait on using, and that only because it doubles as a wand of fireballs.


RNG dependent. There is a ring of searching that boosts your chance of finding stuff and even *that* doesn't give you a 100% chance of finding mines before you step on them. It's pretty much agreed that if you really want protection from mine oneshots you need either a cloak of fire resistance (has to be at least +1 or it is no good), two rings of fire resistance, higher END, or a belt of levitation. Note the first three solutions will only save your life from the initial blast, and will not stop it from occurring nor stop your wands/mines/holy bananas from blowing up and possibly finishing the job. A belt of levitation will grant complete protection from active mines and bear traps as long as you're wearing it and it isn't broken. Searching rings can still help if you're missing any of the other, better solutions; it's just that there occasionally are times when you search 10 times with one on and still wind up asploded.


There is really no particular set of items that you cannot do without. There are certainly things that you can do to make your life considerably harder (use no scrolls of change material) or considerably easier (use artificial limbs with the aid of either gods or scrolls of change material), but there really isn't anything I can think of that by itself would make the game nearly impossible to win upon removal.


Well, there goes that suggestion. Fortunately I don't really believe it's necessary to do stuff like that (again, it's only if you're terribly paranoid that it might be worthwhile).

Further advice? Don't worry so much, dying is a big part of the charm of this game. If you're desperate to win, there are exploits of varying severity you can make use of (but mentioning that you made use of them in order to win will probably get you booed at). Gods are an important part of the game; knowing who does what and how often to pray can be the difference between living and dying. Speaking of which, Valpurus and Mortifer require a lot more attention than the other gods, and give appropriately awesome gifts once you've done enough for them (or disproportionately terrible punishments if you pray before you have). Also, if you intend to beseech gods regularly you had better not pick them too far apart on the alignment scale, otherwise you are likely to catch them in rather uncharitable states of mind. Also also, while books are pretty good for intelligence training reading them willy-nilly will totally screw up your god relations. Intelligence training is important because of scrolls of change/harden material; if you have enough, you can choose better materials for your armor and weaponry, and so enhance your chances of winning considerably. And so on, and so forth..

That's nice - welcome to the forums!


Nonsense. Like Capristo and BDR noted, that would be just taking the danger level hyperbolically.

As far as I can see, the danger level is mostly about Your hitpoints. When they get in the, let's say, high twenties, crazy stuff will spawn.

But on the other hand, that's no reason to keen endurance low... I think a good endurance rating for GC would be about 15, maybe even less than that.


I don't really know, but I suppose that besides the condition whether is it an artifact or not, the material of the weapon may matter. But never compromise with a weaker one, Your weapon better be the best possible (and the one You're proficient with, too), at all times!


I think it's fine to stick with one, because if You happen o find a great weapon of an unfamiliar group in mid-game, training the proper skill to e.g. 13 will be a matter of minutes.


I think cloning (unless we are talking about carrots) is really worth it. It's like a long-term investment. Eating one or two, or just mirroring them twice before eating, is a decent power-up, but then again - I personally advise natural training.


BDR covered this aspect real pro, I don't think there is anything more to say.

Really any combination. Some day it will be just banana peels.

The belt of levitation is generally considered a Iife-saver, I'd say a ring of polymorph control is useful, especially if You're new to IVAN, prone to unfortunate polymorphing...


Since I'd consider running around with banana peels in hand a book example of something heavily OOC, I think I'll stay quiet.

Cheers

Thank you for your answers.
Another unlucky game but I made it further than before.

After exploring a good share of GC1 i found a fountain and decided to drink it dry, since I was being lucky with wells this game, which unfortunately resulted in me getting sucked down to GC7, where I tried to fight my way back to the top.
At GC6 I finally discovered what kamikaze dwarfs look like.
Unfortunately this one was standing right next to me.
I got severely injured by the initial blast, but would have probably survived due to my two fire resistance rings, but unfotunately a lightning wand exploded (normally I would have had it in a chest, but mine still was at GC1).

Don't drink from fountains, if you're not ready to face the consequences.
That's what I've learned this game.

=D Oh boy, and you sure have a lot to learn... Oh to be new to IVAN again.

DISCLAIMER: All of the above has been said with positive attitude only. Reading, seeing or getting offended by it is solely on readers responsibility.

Don't drink from fountains in Gloomy Caves
I think drinking them in the underwater tunnel is fine

Here we see a wild "Unda Mortalis" or "Fountain" basking in its natural habitat. Although it takes the appearance of a man made water feature, it is actually a living organism which is connected to several other "fountains" through a series of "hyphae". In this sense it is more a kind of carnivorous fungus, but is not classed as such.
Normally this species is not dangerous to humans, as they generally tend to walk past, or observe them from a distance. However, there have been incidents where an unsuspecting human has provoked the fountain, leading to it to respond in an aggressive manner.
Since the Unda Mortalis possesses no sense of sight, smell, or hearing, the only way it can sense it is being threatened is by the offending creature to touch the fountain's marbly exterior, or by "tasting" the aggressor should they come into contact with the fountain's "water". Since the fountain's true power lies only in its "water", it only responds to attack upon said water being contacted. Despite this, the fountain can be quite patient and composed in the hopes that the aggressor will simply walk away. However, once its patience has worn down, it will strike quickly and with no prior warning.
This can be in a variety of ways. The most common of which (and perhaps the most confusing) is to suddenly absorb the offending creature and to propel it through the fountain's hyphae, resulting in the creature either being expelled out of another fountain or being thrown out of a wall that the hyphae is protruding out of. Less likely to happen is the fountain absorbing the aggressor and storing it in a sort of gelatinous globule called the "sarlac", where they are brainwashed by small viral bacteria that naturally occur in the area. After this process, the brainwashees are at the full command of the Unda Mortalis, and may be produced from one of the "fountain flowers" to combat any offenders. HOWEVER, sometimes the process of the bacteria brainwashing the creatures can be defective, and as such they end up obeying the commands of the offender instead.
Another, more subtle way the fountain responds to attack is by changing the properties of its "water". Although it is able to induce this process voluntarily, it is unable to fully control the change, and the result the "water" has on that which drinks it can vary from a highly negative effect (such as permanently slowing down an organism's muscular function), to an extremely positive one (permanently accelerating the organism's muscular function).
The last, and possibly most rare occurance, is that of the fountain taking a liking to that which quenches its thirst from its "waters". When this unbelievably unlikely event occurs, a small "spirit" (which is really a manifestation of the will of the Unda Mortalis) will appear to the creature and grant them one wish.
However, one must be careful not to drink too much from a fountain, as it is unlikely to remember you are the same object that it took a liking to, and will resort to its usual defences. Also, it is possible to kill this fine creature by removing all the "water" from its bowl (or "petals" if you'd like), and one must take care not to drink it to death.
Finally, the previous belongings of a past victim of the Unda Mortalis can occasionly be found in its bowl. These are usually rings of all sorts, as the fountain cannot digest them and must regurgitate them to avoid clogging its system.
None know quite how the fountain eats. But it has been said that not all that is absorbed by it sees the outside world again, whether through brainwashed eyes or otherwise...

Any advice on pets?
Which one to get and how to handle it.

A wolf, blink dog, or even just your initial puppy. Feed it ommel bone things. If the object is big enough, you may get the message "X the (puppy/blink dog/wolf) looks extremely ferocious! You shudder."
Note that to feed your canine ommel bone, drop the object on the ground and let them walk over it. DON'T throw it to them (unless it's a ommel bone bone).

Angels tend to make great pets, but you have to make a god pretty pleased with you to get one. You can buy a slave in Attnam at the general store for 50 gold who is able to wear stuff same as you, and there is also an elite guard who can always be found in a rather conspicuously empty spot within the cathedral who has rings of invisibility and infravision + a full set of mithril armor equipped, which is just as awesome as you might imagine it to be (requires a scroll of taming, obviously, but you can buy that from the bookstore).

Cruentus just granted me "The ancient Katana named Muramasa", which probably is an LIVAN exclusive item since I can't find anything about it on the wiki.

Every now and then I get the message "Your Murmasa's life-draining energies swallow x".
Is this a live draining effect, a instadeath-procc or something completely different?
Can't say if it is one of the first two since I've been fighting some weak enemys lately.

And is there anything interesting within the cathedral catacombs?
Or ist it just vodka and enemies to train stats/skill up?
And I've found a empty grave at the end of it.
Is there maybe a random chance for something to be generated in it?

As I recall the cathedral catacombs were an incomplete additional level the original devs started building for 0.60, but never finished. In stock CVS IVAN, IIRC there is no way out of them.

As for Muramasa, I have no personal experience with it, but that sounds similar to the proc that Neerc se-Ulb has, which does drain life. (It's pretty amazing when you wield two of the things.)

There really should be an option to turn off attacking when walking into neutrals or friendlies.
My most promising characters died due to angy guards.


Do you know if its a IVAN or LIVAN weapon?
Because someone should add and wiki entry if its the former.

You won't automatically attack a friendly or neutral character just by walking into them. A confirmation message appears asking if you wish to attack the subject, and pressing any key apart from "Y" will simply cancel the action. The only time guards will attack is when you steal or break something they're responsible for, or attack either them or an ally of theirs.

Also, as discussed elsewhere, putting any item into the coffin in the catacombs will give a random bonus to your alignment with the gods.

I know.
But it's still to easy to attack someone by accident.


Ok thak you, I'll try that.

Another Question:
I found Saal'Thul.
I'd like to use it but my danger level will probably kill me.
Will the evade bonus for being invisible balance combat out?
Or should i just keep it as an emergency item?

I strongly recommend Saal'Thul, besides the fact that it is a good, accurate weapon, invisibility is good, and gives good protection against kamikaze dwarves (essential when poor on eyesight!).

And really, don't worry about the danger level, Mindmaker, proper equipment is a must.

Technically, you can't be hit while invisible - if you use the right tactics and your enemy does not have ESP or Infravision.
We all know that in IVAN you must attempt to walk onto the same tile as an enemy in order to attack it. This also works in reverse with the enemies, and since you are invisible, they simply try to walk in the direction of where the attack came from (unless they have ESP or infravision, in which case invisibility has no bonuses). As such, you can attack once, then move upwards - your enemy will move to your previous position as they are trying to attack what they can't see. You can then launch another attack and move to, say, the left etc.
However this can have problems when the monster moves faster when you do, as they will get one or two hits in before you move.

Running will help with outmaneuvering enemies that move as fast or slightly faster than you, though you can only do it for a limited time before becoming exhausted.

What would it take to become a champion of Valpurus?
I have 3 Holy Books of Valpurus and an Altar of Valpurus in UT to my diposition.

It would take sacrificing an ommelload of stuff at that altar, reading these and a dozen books over and over, I'm afraid...

...But then again it would turn in some decent items and the possibility of attaining the best ending.

And how do I recognize that I have become his champion?
Is this when he sends you an angel?

Edit: Nevermind just figured it out.

Being a champion rases new questions.

What's the prayer timeout of Valpurus?
Because if I stick to the normal one, he tries to smite me.
Also the prayer timer from LIVAN never gets set for him.
Do I have meet certain conditions befor I can pray again, like sacrificing more stuff?

If you anger him, you'll lose favour and have to sacrifice more stuff. The preyer intervall for Valpurus and Mortifer is much longer that for the other gods, don't remember how much exactly.

Any reason to pray to him besides of the high Priest ending?
Some of the weapons if found that far are better than the ones you get from him.