CIP: Jack the TrMo of Nemelex

[Jay117]

  Code:

Jack the Grappler (Troll Monk)                      Turns: 9988, Time: 00:47:28

HP  85/85        AC  6     Str 22      XL: 9   Next: 98%
MP  10/10        EV 12     Int  9      God: Nemelex Xobeh [****..]
Gold 461         SH  0     Dex 12      Spells:  0 memorised,  8 levels left

Res.Fire  : . . .   See Invis. : .     - Unarmed
Res.Cold  : . . .   Warding    : .   a - +0 robe
Life Prot.: . . .   Conserve   : .   (shield restricted)
Res.Poison: +       Res.Corr.  : .   c - +1 wizard hat
Res.Elec. : .       Clarity    : .   (no cloak)
Sust.Abil.: + .     Spirit.Shd : .   (gloves unavailable)
Res.Mut.  : .       Stasis     : .   (boots unavailable)
Res.Rott. : .       Ctrl.Telep.: .   (no amulet)
Gourmand  : +       Levitation : .   T - ring of sustain abilities
                    Ctrl.Flight: .   k - ring of invisibility

@: slightly resistant to hostile enchantments, unstealthy
A: unfitting armour, claws 3, hooves 1, berserk 1, fast metabolism 3, gourmand,
poison resistance, regeneration 2, saprovore 2, tough skin 2, AC +1, Str +1
a: Draw One, Peek at Two, Triple Draw, Deal Four, Renounce Religion, Evoke
Invisibility


You are on level 10 of the Dungeon.
You worship Nemelex Xobeh.
Nemelex Xobeh is extremely pleased with you.
You are completely stuffed.

You have visited 3 branches of the dungeon, and seen 12 of its levels.

You have collected 461 gold pieces.

Inventory:

Hand weapons
 f - an orcish dagger
 B - a spear
Missiles
 d - 56 darts (quivered)
 j - 33 poisoned needles
 D - 51 stones
 E - 6 javelins
 S - 12 darts of frost
Armour
 a - a +0 robe (worn)
 c - a +1 wizard hat (worn)
Magical devices
 e - a wand of frost {zapped: 4}
 u - a wand of confusion {zapped: 7}
 x - a wand of random effects {zapped: 8}
 y - a wand of digging {zapped: 1}
 G - a wand of paralysis {zapped: 6}
 J - a wand of enslavement (6)
Comestibles
 b - 4 meat rations
 i - a beef jerky
 n - 2 chunks of orc flesh
 z - 4 apples
 F - a pear
 U - 5 bread rations
Scrolls
 g - 2 scrolls of teleportation
 h - a scroll labeled SCHI VADACUI
 q - a scroll of identify
 r - a scroll of enchant armour
 v - 2 scrolls of blinking
 w - a scroll of enchant weapon II
 A - a scroll of fear
 H - a scroll of fog
 Q - 5 scrolls of remove curse
Jewellery
 k - a ring of invisibility (left claw)
 p - an uncursed ring of protection from cold
 I - an uncursed ring of teleportation
 T - a ring of sustain abilities (right claw)
Potions
 K - 2 potions of restore abilities
Miscellaneous
 l - a bottled efreet
 m - an ornate deck of summonings {drawn: 5} {god gift}
 s - a box of beasts
 t - a legendary deck of escape {drawn: 5} {god gift}


   Skills:
 + Level 6.1 Fighting
 + Level 6.0 Dodging
 - Level 1.1 Stealth
 * Level 10.1 Unarmed Combat
 + Level 5.1 Evocations


You have 8 spell levels left.
You don't know any spells.

Dungeon Overview and Level Annotations

Branches:
Dungeon (10/27)            Temple (1/1) D:5             Orc (1/4) D:7
  Lair: D:8-13     

Shops:
D:8: (

Annotations
Orc:1 Maurice


Innate Abilities, Weirdness & Mutations

You are too large for most types of armour.
You have claws for hands.
Your metabolism is lightning-fast.
You like to eat raw meat.
You heal very quickly.
You can eat rotten meat.
You are covered in fur (AC +1).
You have very tough skin (AC +2).
You have large cloven feet.
You tend to lose your temper in combat.
Your system is resistant to poisons.
Your muscles are strong (Str +1).

Wow! I recently became interested in Troll Monks of Nemelex. So far, I like the idea, but this run I'm a little short on cards, even though I sacrifice almost everything I come across, which confuses me. Anyway: dem mutations. Loving the pRes, and the cloven feet. I'm worried about the berserking. That would prevent me from using cards, right? But it did save my life against Sigmund, so...
Also, as you can see, I've been making heavy use of the many wands I've found. It works well with my high Evo for Nemelex.
So guys: What do you think?

[wizzzargh]

I recently won a Troll Fighter of Nemelex, and I felt like my shield was extremely useful(not as useful as the +11 GDA Randart I bought on top of the Orcish Mines, but still worth some Shield skill points), so if you can find a shield, I'd strap it on to your ugly troll-arm immediately so you can at least pretend you have defenses. Large Rocks are also good to lug around, even if you have 0 throwing- any method of softening up enemies at a range means they'll have fewer chances to tear your blubbery troll-flesh.

You'll get more decks than you ever wanted once your piety reaches 6 stars, trust me. In the mean time just chop stuff up with your claws, and don't worry about conserving decks- you get more piety as you use them, which means you get more decks, and so on. running through an entire deck will encourage Nemelex to give you a new one, and decks are much more renewable than Blink Scrolls. That said, decks are RANDOM- don't draw blithely from decks if things look tough- that's the time to use a "standard" escape item. Drawing Famine or Damnation from an Escape Deck can be pretty spooky, and NEVER use Destruction at close range. Just... don't.

Generally, I'd say a berserk troll is scarier than most things in the dungeon, especially if you are careful about where ad what you fight. I'd save any Cure Mutation for a mutation that's really crippling, like Teleportitis, though you are right in that you will not be able to play card games while berserk.

[Psieye]

Which categories of sacrifices are you making?

[Jay117]

  Code:

Jack the Grappler (level 10, 0/98 HPs)
             Began as a Troll Monk on Dec 12, 2012.
             Was a High Priest of Nemelex Xobeh.
             Slain by an unseen horror (3 damage)
             ... on Level 12 of the Dungeon.
             The game lasted 01:36:04 (14781 turns).

Jack the Grappler (Troll Monk)                     Turns: 14781, Time: 01:36:06

HP   0/98        AC  6     Str 22      XL: 10   Next: 94%
MP   0/15        EV 13     Int  9      God: Nemelex Xobeh [*****.]
Gold 680         SH  0     Dex 12      Spells:  0 memorised,  9 levels left

Res.Fire  : . . .   See Invis. : .     - Unarmed
Res.Cold  : . . .   Warding    : .   a - +0 robe
Life Prot.: . . .   Conserve   : .   (shield restricted)
Res.Poison: +       Res.Corr.  : .   c - +1 wizard hat
Res.Elec. : .       Clarity    : .   (no cloak)
Sust.Abil.: + .     Spirit.Shd : +   (gloves unavailable)
Res.Mut.  : .       Stasis     : .   (boots unavailable)
Res.Rott. : .       Ctrl.Telep.: .   m - amulet of guardian spirit
Gourmand  : +       Levitation : .   T - ring of sustain abilities
                    Ctrl.Flight: .   k - ring of invisibility

@: very slightly contaminated, somewhat resistant to hostile enchantments,
unstealthy
A: unfitting armour, claws 3, hooves 1, berserk 1, fast metabolism 3, gourmand,
poison resistance, regeneration 2, saprovore 2, tough skin 2, AC +1, Str +1
a: Draw One, Peek at Two, Triple Draw, Deal Four, Stack Five, Renounce Religion,
Evoke Invisibility


You were on level 12 of the Dungeon.
You worshipped Nemelex Xobeh.
Nemelex Xobeh was exalted by your worship.
You were very full.

You visited 3 branches of the dungeon, and saw 14 of its levels.

You collected 680 gold pieces.

Inventory:

Hand weapons
 A - the +1,+4 spear of Vulluwu {holy, Hunger MR SInv}
   (You took it off a centaur on level 11 of the Dungeon)   
   
   It has been blessed by the Shining One to cause great damage to the undead
   and demons.
   
   It increases your resistance to enchantments.
   It enhances your eyesight.
   It speeds your metabolism.
Missiles
 d - 50 darts
 j - 39 poisoned needles
 D - 51 stones
 E - 6 javelins (quivered)
 S - 12 darts of frost
Armour
 a - a +0 robe (worn)
 c - a +1 wizard hat (worn)
Magical devices
 e - a wand of frost (4)
 f - a wand of random effects (6)
 r - a wand of paralysis (8)
 u - a wand of confusion (19)
 x - a wand of random effects (2)
 y - a wand of digging (15)
 G - a wand of paralysis (4)
 J - a wand of enslavement (0)
 M - a wand of paralysis (8)
Comestibles
 b - 5 meat rations
 i - a beef jerky
 n - 3 lemons
 z - 6 apples
 F - a pear
 U - 5 bread rations
Scrolls
 s - a scroll of identify
 v - a scroll of blinking
 w - a scroll of enchant weapon II
 L - a scroll of fear
 Q - 6 scrolls of remove curse
Jewellery
 k - a ring of invisibility (left claw)
 l - an uncursed ring of fire
 m - an amulet of guardian spirit (around neck)
 p - an uncursed ring of protection from cold
 q - an uncursed ring of fire
 I - an uncursed ring of teleportation
 T - a ring of sustain abilities (right claw)
Potions
 K - 2 potions of restore abilities
Books
 C - the Compendium of Lightness
   (You found it on level 11 of the Dungeon)   
   
   Spells                             Type                      Level
   Repel Missiles                     Charms/Air                   2
   Swiftness                          Charms/Air                   2
   Flight                             Charms/Air                   3
   Static Discharge                   Conjuration/Air              3
   Conjure Ball Lightning             Conjuration/Air              7
Miscellaneous
 g - a legendary deck of destruction {drawn: 11} {god gift}
 h - a plain deck of dungeons {drawn: 5} {god gift}
 o - an ornate deck of summonings {drawn: 4} {god gift}
 t - a plain deck of destruction {god gift}
 B - a lantern of shadows
 H - an ornate deck of destruction {drawn: 4} {god gift}


   Skills:
 + Level 8.0 Fighting
 + Level 7.9 Dodging
 - Level 1.1 Stealth
 * Level 12.9 Unarmed Combat
 + Level 7.5 Evocations


Innate Abilities, Weirdness & Mutations

You are too large for most types of armour.
You have claws for hands.
Your metabolism is lightning-fast.
You like to eat raw meat.
You heal very quickly.
You can eat rotten meat.
You are covered in fur (AC +1).
You have very tough skin (AC +2).
You have large cloven feet.
You tend to lose your temper in combat.
Your system is resistant to poisons.
Your muscles are strong (Str +1).


Message History

It hits the yellow wasp. It hits the yellow wasp!
The yellow wasp dies!
The yellow wasp's corpse disappears in a puff of smoke!
You swap places.
It hits you!
* * * LOW HITPOINT WARNING * * *
Your brown very ugly thing tentacle-slaps it!
It hits you.
* * * LOW HITPOINT WARNING * * *
There is an open door here.
It hits you but does no damage.
It hits you.
* * * LOW HITPOINT WARNING * * *
It hits you but does no damage. It hits you!
* * * LOW HITPOINT WARNING * * *
It hits you.
* * * LOW HITPOINT WARNING * * *
It hits you.
You die...
Your body glows with a rainbow of weird colours and disappears.

Crap. Died to an unseen horror. I'm not sure what I could have done differently. I couldn't see it, and I wasn't in a position to fire off random destruction cards, as we weren't in a corridor... I was out of potions, and "saving" wands. There were no escape routes nearby, either, and even if I had run to a different floor, it would have followed me. Where did I go wrong?!
Edit: Also, not sure what I lost the health to!

[Turgon]

Trolls usually have weak defense (AC, EV) until dragon armour shows up, so unseen horrors aren't welcome at all. I've got some trouble with them too.

Looking at your skills: fighting and dodging are less important, I'd concentrate on the primary "weapon" skill. As unarmed combat is a special case - it starts weak but is strong at maximum - I'd put most XP into UC.

[Jay117]

As far as skills are concerned: I seem to be going about training them all wrong. Am I just supposed to get my killing skill to MAX before I even consider turning on my other skills?

[Turgon]

As far as skills are concerned: I seem to be going about training them all wrong.

The more you play the more experience you'll get concerning skills.

Am I just supposed to get my killing skill to MAX before I even consider turning on my other skills?

It's not that extreme. Some secondary skills are useful too, e.g. you don't want to enter Zot without T&D. Remember that low skill levels are cheap in terms of XP, so getting invoc from 0 to 1 is easy but will improve Oka's heroism ability significantly.

But killing things is often the best way to survive. So when you play a DEFE, concentrate on Conj/Fire. When you play a fighter char, concentrate on your primary weapon skill.

[Lasty]

Unseen horrors are like bats in that they only sometimes end a turn next to you unless you move in the right pattern. As such, they rarely follow when you go up stairs, and if they do, they probably won't follow when you go back down. They're very easy to shake with stairs.

[BlackSheep]

A - the +1,+4 spear of Vulluwu {holy, Hunger MR SInv}

(emphasis added)
Why didn't you wield that to see what was going on?

[rebthor]

A - the +1,+4 spear of Vulluwu {holy, Hunger MR SInv}

(emphasis added)
Why didn't you wield that to see what was going on?

Hunger on a Troll would have killed him?

I was thinking that he could have read the scroll of fear too. Unseen horrors have low MR.

Also possible was to spam o - an ornate deck of summonings to get some guys in between you and the unseen horror. If you had gotten a pentagram card, it would even have fought it for you.

Edit: he also had an uncursed ring of teleportation which he could have used to port out while his wasp was getting squished.

[Jay117]

Yikes. I guess you're right, guys. Man, do I have some learning to do.

[crate]

There are very many ways to deal with unseen horrors but figuring them out will probably take experience; if you're dying to them as something other than an octopode probably you are handling them incorrectly. My first recommendation would be that you learn how they move so you know where the unseen horror is (to within 1 space, at least) without sinv or being in a corridor.

[njvack]

They really do move exactly like bats, right?

The Herd can summon dogs, which sense invisible, and Crusade might have enslaved it?

[crate]

You can kill an unseen horror with summons just fine as long as you can manage to get it between yourself an a friendly summon. Then tell your summon to follow you: it will try to do so, and walk into the horror along the way, which attacks it.

[rebthor]

That's a great protip!

Edit: And OP, don't feel too bad I'm sure everyone here has died with things in their inventory that would have saved them if one had just thought ahead. I know that I have.