merfolk crusader advice please

[joey]

My merfolk crusader is lvl 22 under okawaru and I am wondering if I should switch to shining one. im going for my first 3 rune win. I have not done crypt but i cleared shoals and swamp.

[slowcar]

a character dump would help for the details.

but in general: no. surviving okas wrath is not too hard, but you don't really need TSO for a 3 rune win, his perks work best against demons and undeads, i.e. the hells, pandemonium and tomb.

go for your first win, by all means, and leave other options open for later.
first you'll have zot to survive, which is a feat in itself, especially if you have never faced an orb of fire before.

[joey]

thanks for the responses. I uploaded my characters dump file so if anyone has some input please let me know asap.

I plan on tackling the crypt or trying vault 8 next, but before i go to the crypt i wanted to know if i should change to TSO. I will stick with Okawaru for this game since I am only going for 3 runes.

Again any suggestions on my character would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[Zuboki]

To start, turn on fighting. More hp is always a good idea.

Wyrmbane will be nice against dragons and draconians in Zot, but you'll kill everything else faster if you stick to that demon trident of electrocution. Use all the enchant weapon 2 and 3 scrolls on it. Save your enchant weapon 1 scrolls- at this point they're strictly not necessary with 27 polearms skill. Drop all of your other weapons.

I notice you don't have any ranged combat skills. If you're not using the sling, and you're not going to, there's no sense in carrying it around. The javelins are very good, and 14 of them should serve you for purposes of crowd control and ranged combat. Just turn off your throwing skill before it gets too high so Oka doesn't shower you with dart gifts. If you do decide to use the javelins, use any spare enchant weapon 1 scrolls on them. If you get them to +6 or so, they'll probably last you the entire game.

Another ranged combat solution would be spells. Your skills are kind of all over the place there, though. I'd suggest focusing on Ice and Air, and learning Freezing Cloud or Throw Icicle. Again, it may be easier just to use those javelins.

Use care with Summon Small Mammals, if you even cast it. Oka hates ally deaths. Otherwise, use a scroll of amnesia to free up those spell levels (along with Flame Brand, Freezing Aura, and Call Canine Familiar).

[joey]

as a lvl 25 mfcr now should i be using a +5 +1 demon trident of draining or a +3 + 0 demon trident of elec or a demon trident of venom

[slowcar]

electrocution is the strongest of the brands. enchant it up, as Zuboki said.
the first plus is almost meaningless, the second is more important.

[pratamawirya]

Many people won't use draining weapons, because... you know, losing xp sucks.

[joey]

Ok I cleared Vault 8 and Crypt 5 and all the way down to dungeon 27. I started enchanting my demon sword of elec. It is +3 but I have 4 or 5 more scrolls I will use on it. Here is my latest character dump. Am I ready to head down to Zot or should I be looking for better gear or something? Torment has been a pain in the ass so rather than just wearing a ring of life protection I was hoping to find a randart with life protection...

Any suggestions on what my next move should be? When I get home from work tonight I was planning on heading to Zot to finish the game but I dont want to rush it and die after all this work if I am not ready. Thanks for the help everyone.

[joey]

Also I have a +1 clock of magic resistance. Should I wear that instead of the one I have on now?

[slowcar]

wear this: the amulet "Emaneid" {rMut Str+3 SInv}
orbs of fire mutate you, and it may kill a promising character.
rF+ is the most important, but more would not be too shabby. if you have a rN+ ring or something it would be very helpful when facing shadow dragons.

i would also suggest that you train summoning a bit (lots of XP in zot) to get shadow creatures castable. it is one of the strongest spells in zot as the monster sets are very strong there. melee-ing orbs of fire is not fun (check them out in the arena mode, they have earned their reputation)

[Zuboki]

I'd also suggest the Shield of Resistance- even though it is just a shield and not a large shield, it's rF+ and rC+ are useful.

Use all of your enchant weapon scrolls, either on your javelins (1's only) or your electric trident (2's and 3's). There is no sense saving them up at this point.

Your experience pool is massive. This is 38k of untapped potential. Turn on some more skills to help dwindle it down. I'd suggest shields, but that's just me.

I see you didn't take any of my spell suggestions. Shadow Creatures is a great spell for Zot summoners, but be wary of Okawaru. His Piety can drop fast if you let a lot of summons die. Use ctrl and f to find a book with the spell, if it's been discovered.

You might want abjuration, too, or you risk getting overwhelmed with summons. You have it in the book of summonings.

You'll meet quite a few packs of draconians in Zot, clustered into narrow passageways. Remember your javelins of penetration here! They can do great damage (more with enchant weapon 1's) to an entire line of enemies.

[joey]

Ok thank you for the advice everyone. And I didnt bother getting rid of any spells because I have still have room for more. I am going to follow your suggestions and see how this goes.

I will post if I win or lose. And any more suggestions you may have let me know. Thanks again.

[joey]

Well I just finally beat the game for the first time. I was hoping for a bit more of an ending or something though, lol. Thanks for all the help everyone.

[slowcar]

congratulations!