Itemization question

[nordetsa]

My DECJ has 3 artefact rings to choose from:

1.

  Code:

Str +2 Dex +1 Int +3

2.

  Code:

+Inv Dex +4 Int +2

3.

  Code:

cTele Str +3 Dex +2 Int+2

And then there's the ring of Shaloin (+8EV) in the shop, but I don't have money to buy that yet.

Which two rings should I choose? I really want to keep the third ring because it gives me boosts to all three stats as well as cTele. But that extra +2 Str on the first ring could certainly help.

Or are the attributes less important then the evokable invisibility? I'm always suffering form lack of str when playing mage.

[MIC132]

I'm questioning the usefulness of invisibility on a Conjurer, but I'm not really a good or experienced player. I'd go with first and third, swapping if I need invi.

[rebthor]

You can always swap in rings, but I think you're highly overvaluing the invisibility portion of the invis ring. It will require a significant investment into evocations to be reliably evoked. Then you will also need a significant investment in stealth (and possibly stabbing) to get use out of that invisibility.

Anyhow, stack the int with the first ring and the invis ring (for the Dex boost, not for the invis). Swap in the cTele when you need cTele.

Edit: one more thing. This is really better with a dump of your current character, because if all your spells are hungerless, 0% fail and at the power cap, then the above doesn't really apply.

It can also make a difference if you're following Ash and planning on cursing, in which case, I'd probably curse the cTele ring and wear that, because that's more likely to save your life longterm.

[nordetsa]

  Code:

Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup version 0.12-a0-2028-g804e35b (tiles) character file.

Northest the Destroyer (Deep Elf Conjurer)         Turns: 29363, Time: 02:50:06

HP  73/73        AC  9     Str 13      XL: 14   Next: 69%
MP  36/36        EV 13     Int 29      God: Vehumet [******]
Gold 1375        SH  0     Dex 19      Spells: 10 memorised,  4 levels left

Res.Fire  : + . .   See Invis. : .   i - elf short sword (venom)
Res.Cold  : + . .   Warding    : .   m - +2 robe {rC+ rF+}
Life Prot.: . . .   Conserve   : .   (no shield)
Res.Poison: .       Res.Corr.  : .   A - +0 helmet
Res.Elec. : .       Clarity    : .   q - +0 elf cloak
Sust.Abil.: . .     Spirit.Shd : .   H - +1 pair of elf gauntlets
Res.Mut.  : +       Stasis     : .   n - +0 pair of boots
Res.Rott. : .       Ctrl.Telep.: +   v - amulet of resist mutation
Saprovore : . . .   Flight     : .   P - ring of Pnakizab {cTele Str+3 Dex+2 Int+2}
                                     j - ring of Broken Luck {Str+2 Dex+1 Int+3}

@: somewhat resistant to hostile enchantments, very stealthy
A: Int +1, Dex +1
a: Renounce Religion


You are on level 4 of the Orcish Mines.
You worship Vehumet.
Vehumet is exalted by your worship.
You are not hungry.

You have visited 5 branches of the dungeon, and seen 28 of its levels.
You have also visited: Labyrinth and Bailey.

You have collected 2101 gold pieces.
You have spent 746 gold pieces at shops.

Inventory:

Hand weapons
 i - an uncursed elven short sword of venom (weapon)
 w - a glowing dagger (quivered)
Armour
 m - a +2 robe of resistance (worn)
 n - a +0 pair of boots (worn)
 q - a +0 elven cloak (worn)
 A - a +0 helmet (worn)
 H - a +1 pair of elven gauntlets (worn)
Magical devices
 c - a wand of frost {zapped: 6}
 d - a wand of digging {zapped: 10}
 f - a wand of enslavement {zapped: 2}
 k - a wand of teleportation {zapped: 2}
 K - a wand of confusion {zapped: 2}
Comestibles
 b - 3 bread rations
 s - a meat ration
 G - 3 honeycombs
Scrolls
 a - 4 scrolls of remove curse
 y - a scroll of recharging
 D - a scroll of magic mapping
Jewellery
 g - an uncursed ring of see invisible
 j - the ring of Broken Luck (left hand) {Str+2 Dex+1 Int+3}
   (You bought it in a shop on level 4 of the Orcish Mines)   
   
   [ring of intelligence]
   It affects your intelligence (+3).
   It affects your strength (+2).
   It affects your dexterity (+1).
 l - an uncursed amulet of warding
 r - the ring of Zumo {+Inv Dex+4 Int+2}
   (You found it in a labyrinth)   
   
   [ring of invisibility]
   It affects your intelligence (+2).
   It affects your dexterity (+4).
 u - an uncursed gilded ring {tried}
 v - an amulet of resist mutation (around neck)
 I - a +5,+5 ring of slaying
 J - an uncursed glass ring {tried}
 M - an uncursed ring of flight
 P - the ring of Pnakizab (right hand) {cTele Str+3 Dex+2 Int+2}
   (You found it on level 5 of the Lair of Beasts)   
   
   [ring of teleport control]
   It affects your strength (+3).
   It affects your intelligence (+2).
   It affects your dexterity (+2).
Potions
 e - a potion of resistance
 o - 3 potions of speed
 t - 4 potions of restore abilities
 x - a potion of heal wounds
 z - 3 potions of brilliance
 B - 2 potions of curing
 F - 2 potions of might
 N - 2 potions of agility
 T - a potion of magic
Books
 h - a book of Minor Magic   
   
   Spells                             Type                      Level
   *Magic Dart                        Conjuration                  1
   *Blink                             Translocation                2
   Call Imp                           Summoning                    2
   *Repel Missiles                    Charms/Air                   2
   Slow                               Hexes                        2
   *Conjure Flame                     Conjuration/Fire             3
   *Mephitic Cloud                    Conjuration/Poison/Air       3


   Skills:
 * Level 4.0 Fighting
 - Level 2.4 Dodging
 - Level 5.5 Stealth
 - Level 6.2 Traps
 - Level 12.0 Spellcasting
 - Level 17.5 Conjurations
 - Level 2.0 Hexes
 - Level 11.0 Charms
 - Level 3.4 Translocations
 - Level 17.4 Fire Magic
 - Level 6.3 Evocations


You have 4 spell levels left.
You know the following spells:

 Your Spells              Type           Power        Failure   Level  Hunger
a - Magic Dart            Conj           #####        0%          1    None
b - Dazzling Spray        Conj/Hex       #######..    1%          3    None
c - Iskenderun's Arcane   Conj/Chrm      ########.    1%          4    None
d - Conjure Flame         Conj/Fire      ########.    0%          3    None
e - Iskenderun's Mystic   Conj           ########.    1%          4    None
f - Mephitic Cloud        Conj/Pois/Air  #######..    1%          3    None
g - Fireball              Conj/Fire      ########..   1%          5    #......
h - Haste                 Chrm           #######..    6%          6    #####..
i - Blink                 Tloc           N/A          1%          2    None
j - Repel Missiles        Chrm/Air       ######....   1%          2    None


Dungeon Overview and Level Annotations

Branches:
Dungeon (14/27)            Temple (1/1) D:5             Orc (4/4) D:11
    Elf (1/3) Orc:3          Lair (8/8) D:11         Shoals (0/5) Lair:6
 Spider (0/5) Lair:6        Slime (0/6) Lair:6     

Here's the current character dump. Anyway, isn't more Int always a good thing (maybe not so in the very late game)? It lowers spell hunger, which for me is important because I tend to train conjuration or elemental branch to get the maximum dmg.

[crate]

Well the best ring in your inventory is unquestionably

  Code:

I - a +5,+5 ring of slaying

[nordetsa]

Well the best ring in your inventory is unquestionably

  Code:

I - a +5,+5 ring of slaying

But why would I ever wear that as a conjurer?

[crate]

Because hitting things with a weapon is good.

[nordetsa]

Because hitting things with a weapon is good.

Unless you're a deep elf mage who gets his health dropped in half if getting hit by a orc warrior.

Sometimes I wish slaying be applied to magic spells as well.

[dassem]

Well, it seems to me that 3 is just great. It has the Str you wanted, an ok Int boost and CTele to let you semi-controlled blink away from sticky situations. What more do you really need?

I'd also take 1 for the extra Int boost, maybe swapping to the slaying if you want to bash something for a change, and I'd consider the +8 EV. That's a difficult question to be sure about - maybe one of the counsellors will help? Probably the +5 Int will up your killing power enough that the EV is less important.

Personally I like +Int (and rings/staves of Fire) even into the late game since they'll increase the odds of one-shotting things with ever-more-powerful Firestorms...

[crate]

My decj did a ton of melee. Seriously it's good. If instead of overtraining fire/conj you trained melee skill and dodging you'd be good enough to melee lots of stuff.

[hxy]

I'd pick rings #1 & #3
It's perfectly fine to play a pure spellcaster, especially in the early part of the game where XP is not that easy to come by.

[kenmtraveller]

I'm surprised at the Slaying recommendation. I get the most success (I play DEFE most successfully) when I beeline for firestorm, ignoring melee except for a little Fighting for HP. After that I focus on defenses, and branching out into magical paths. Melee's a very low priority for me, since I don't like to stand next to monsters.

[KoboldLord]

The slaying ring is an excellent ring. An arbitrary deep elf caster might not be a good melee combatant, but with +5/+5 slaying it will quickly become one. It isn't like it will be a waste to pick up a few levels of staff skill and whack less-threatening targets with a quarterstaff; elemental staves are good melee weapons that simultaneously make you better at elemental casting, and you're bound to find one to upgrade to eventually.

Furthermore, none of the artefact rings mentioned are actually anything special. CTele is nice, and int bonuses are nice, but none of these things scream out, "Hey, this is such an excellent item I just found that I want to re-plan my skill development to take advantage of it!" The ring of slaying, on the other hand, is at least potentially game-changing.

Once your spellcaster has 5th and 6th level attack spells down, picking up melee is going to be a whole lot cheaper than making your way all the way up to 9th-level spells. It's also very good for dealing with a lot of monsters; many of them switch to artificially dumb AI if you close to melee range.