DDNe^Makh Advice Please

[MainiacJoe]

I've been running DDNe lately in 0.19 because I figure it will be easier to win that while /HW still exists. I am always going with Makh.

I've run into this interplay. By using Vampiric Draining, I am able to avoid needing to use my wand for healing very much. I can get this online fairly quickly by training Necromancy; however, against a tough foe like a orc warrior I can easily run out of mana, and then I'm stuck with little back-up plan because I've not been training a weapon or Fighting/Dodging. A little bit of Spellcasting gives me enough mana for an extra casting of VampDrain, but that also takes away from melee skills. Training just enough Necromancy to cast VamDrain at 10% leaves it with poor spellpower, and it's not worth it vs Pain's damage/MP efficiency.

So, what ought I be doing? Just Pain and Skeleton, and train melee, then get VampDrain later? Go all in on Necromancy? Should I train Fighting/Dodging or weapon first, when I do train melee? It feels like a powerful combo, and that it will get even moreso once Makhleb's healing kicks in--but I'm having trouble figuring out how to get to Lair.

[VeryAngryFelid]

Here is my DDNe of Chei.

  Code:

Skill      XL: |  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 |
---------------+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+-----
Spellcasting   |  2        3     4     5  6     7  8           9 10                            16 | 16.0
Necromancy     |        5        6  7  8  9 10 11    12    13    14                            22 | 22.3
Fighting       |        1     2  3     4  5  6  7  8  9    10    11 12 13 14 16    17    18 19 20 | 20.1
Armour         |                 1  2  4  5  6  7  8  9    10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17          18    | 18.8
Dodging        |                    3  4  5  6  7  9       10 11 12    14 15 16 17             18 | 18.4
Axes           |                          1  5  8 10 12 15 16 17 19 20 21             22 24 26    | 26.0
Invocations    |                                1  4  6     7  9 10          12 13    14          | 14.0
Charms         |                                         2  3           4                         |  4.0
Air Magic      |                                         2              3                         |  3.5
Translocations |                                            3  5                                  |  5.0
Summonings     |                                                                          3       |  3.6
Earth Magic    |                                                                          5       |  5.2
Transmutations |                                                                          3  4 20 | 20.1
Hexes          |                                                                             2    |  2.0
Stealth        |                                                                                  |  2.4

 Cast: Pain              |    60 |   131 |    83 |    40 |    30 |    15 |       |       |       ||   359
       Animate Skeleton  |     1 |       |       |    37 |    40 |    31 |    57 |    24 |    61 ||   251
       Vampiric Draining |    16 |    40 |   135 |   340 |   470 |   441 |    49 |       |    41 ||  1532
       Animate Dead      |       |       |     2 |    30 |    79 |    74 |    51 |    11 |    45 ||   292
       Control Undead    |       |       |     2 |       |     2 |       |     4 |     1 |     5 ||    14
       Repel Missiles    |       |       |       |       |     5 |    15 |    10 |     1 |    24 ||    55
       Blink             |       |       |       |       |       |     1 |     1 |       |     3 ||     5
       Passwall          |       |       |       |       |       |     2 |       |       |    15 ||    17
       Apportation       |       |       |       |       |       |     3 |       |       |     2 ||     5
       Dispel Undead     |       |       |       |       |       |       |     8 |    35 |   215 ||   258
       Corpse Rot        |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |     3 ||     3
       Necromutation     |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |   122 ||   122

[VeryAngryFelid]

  Code:

Armor: Robe              |     2 |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       ||     2
       Leather armour    |    10 |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       ||    10
       Ring mail         |       |    44 |    61 |       |       |       |       |       |       ||   105
       Scale mail        |       |       |    27 |       |       |       |       |       |       ||    27
       Chain mail        |       |       |   134 |    55 |   171 |   350 |       |       |       ||   710
       Plate armour      |       |       |       |   407 |   367 |       |       |       |       ||   774
       Crystal plate arm |       |       |       |       |       |   232 |   709 |   412 |  2191 ||  3544


[Sprucery]

Somehow I think Chei and Makh play a little differently here...?

[MainiacJoe]

I do not feel ready to tackle Chei. It feels less intimidating nowadays than before, but my goal here is to win DD, which I've also been intimidated by in the past. I've gathered that Makh is rather good for DD.

[bel]

With Makhleb you can just play normally, since it provides heal on kills. If you just want to win DD, play a DDFi of Makhleb in heavy armour and use your MP to charge your heal wounds wand for the much less common cases where you need HP.

[VeryAngryFelid]

Somehow I think Chei and Makh play a little differently here...?

Not early game (I joined Chei at XL 6). That dump shows how I was training Necromancy/Spellcasting and which spells I was using.

[MainiacJoe]

Looking at the dump with an eye to early game, I see that I've been overusing VampDrain and underusing Pain. I see that I have been thinking, "I'm not at 100% health, I must drain everyone!" when in fact, many foes can't hurt me much or at all, and for those that do, damage/MP i.e. Pain is what I ought to do with them.

[tasonir]

Pretty sure DD don't take the 1 damage from casting pain, so yeah that's your early offense. Use it a lot, and get enough necromancy to have decent spell power on vamp draining, then switch into melee. I'd think you probably want around level 8 or so necromancy, but been a little while since I used vamp draining so adjust as you see fit. And assuming I'm right about level 8, after you get decent melee power, you'd of course go back and get a few more levels of necromancy when appropriate, etc.