Is Iljyb getting jacked?

[XuaXua]

In trunk (vs 0.7) he keeps spawning with pretty much nothing, or if nothing maybe a wand if he's lucky.

Otherwise barehanded, with nothing. Not much of a challenge.

I just had him spawn, in trunk, with a wand of DIGGING. Now that's just sad.

[jackalKnight]

I wouldn't mind him getting powerful wands occasionally, but I hate it when I hit an early unique with polymorph. A wonderful way of getting a nasty mutation before you have an adequate coping strategy. Frost, fire, etc. are slightly less nasty.

[galehar]

Ijyb has HD: 3 and uniques with HD<5 don't get the most powerful wands. I added paralysis and draining a while back to the list of high tier wands so he doesn't get them anymore. Being hit with draining after 2 turns in red sonja wasn't very funny. Draining is downgraded to polymorph other by the way
I'll special case him so that he can get high tier wands in normal game.

[KoboldLord]

I'll special case him so that he can get high tier wands in normal game.

No, really, I'm okay with him not spawning with the high-tier wands. At that point in the game the good wands can deal more damage than the player character has hit points, and they aren't all that balanced in the hands of the player, either.

[TwilightPhoenix]

Yeah, keep him with low powered wands. This wasn't Iljyb, but let me tell you about the time a Goblin found a Wand of Disintegration and then met my XL2 character...

[Sometimes]

Iljyb is barely noticeable at present, could he just be guaranteed a decent weapon? Nothing crazy, but bit of branding would make him something to keep an eye on.

[mikee]

Iljyb is barely noticeable at present, could he just be guaranteed a decent weapon? Nothing crazy, but bit of branding would make him something to keep an eye on.

I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to disagree. Ijyb is the most dangerous unique in the game. You tend to notice him a lot more after he breaks a few of your streaks.

[Stormfox]

Ijyb may not spawn with a guaranteed good weapon, but it's one of the Immutable Laws that he will find the best floor weapon on the level before you do and equip it.

And if you want an early unique with annoying habits and a guaranteed good weapon, there's always Grinder...Ijyb is the Jessica to Grinder's Sigmund.

[roguelikedev]

... Ijyb is the Jessica to Grinder's Sigmund.

Grinder is a sack of fat without a wand, whereas Jessica can spawn on D2 and cast harder than an orc wizard if she feels like it. Did I miss something?

[MrMisterMonkey]

grinder has pain punches instead of a pain weapon now

[roguelikedev]

Damn... I should have used that thing when I had the chance. Didn't that guy show up on the same patch as death knights were removed? That was kind of a kick in the teeth.

[sigfried von murdock]

Ijyb is not really much of a threat, but he can be a bit of a nuisance if you are cornered (rare though). Give him darts and that will change - or Javelins, since that would somehow be more funny.

[XuaXua]

I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to disagree. Ijyb is the most dangerous unique in the game. You tend to notice him a lot more after he breaks a few of your streaks.

Maybe in 0.7, but in trunk lately he's been nothing but a wimp. He appears, generally unarmed (I'm getting unarmed orcs on late dungeon and vault levels too, lately. Throw them all a crappy sword!), and just soaks some damage before being dispatched.

[galehar]

Do you guys play nothing but FeBe or something? Ijyb is more of a threat than Sigmund or Grinder, unless you're one of those players who attacks every unique as soon as you see them.

Ijyb's depth is 2-7 so it really depends where you meet him.

[FlyingPants]

unless you're one of those players who attacks every unique as soon as you see them.

Got me! Only a coward skips a level just because there is a unique!

[KoboldLord]

Do you guys play nothing but FeBe or something? Ijyb is more of a threat than Sigmund or Grinder, unless you're one of those players who attacks every unique as soon as you see them.

I'm not sure which Ijyb you're running into. The one I usually find has normal speed and a melee weapon, which is a combination that means he's only slightly more dangerous than any other random monster. Unless he also starts with an out-of-depth wand, but that applies to every random goblin generated. Sigmund and Grinder have crippling ranged status effects.

[FlyingPants]

Latest trunk, ljyb just spawned with a wand of disintegration... on D3

was a nice character too, +2/+2 axe of electrocution on D1...

[sigfried von murdock]

I am a bit puzzled since both in 7. and Trunk I have never been blasted away by him. I see him just about every game, and I have played quite a few lately.

The wand of disintegration seems a bit ridiculous for D,2 But I fail to see how he could be any more deadly than a pre cloaked Sigmund.

[galehar]

Latest trunk, ljyb just spawned with a wand of disintegration... on D3

was a nice character too, +2/+2 axe of electrocution on D1...

I did warn, didn't I? Sometimes, Ijyb spawns early with a wand. Now, some of those times, the wand will be a powerful one. It can already happen with Sigmund who has the same depth, but with him, you're expecting it.

[jejorda2]

Ijyb has killed me twice lately with single hits from +6 and +9 clubs. I've learned I should probably pick up his club if I don't have something better by then.

[Stormfox]

With the anecdotal evidence, I still stand by "Ijyb is the Jessica to Grinder's Sigmund".

Grinder, you know what you're getting into: pain(ful) melee attacks, some spells that can make your day very bad, and an annoying habit that can make him a lot harder to deal with for some character builds. (Grinder's blinking, Sigmund's invisibility.)

Ijyb can be all over the map. Sometimes you kill him in three hits and you wonder what all the fuss is about. Sometimes he OHKO's you and you wonder where the hell it came from. At least from personal experience with Jessica, she's either a total wimp (even with her blinking and haste) or she steamrollers me, nothing in between.

[XuaXua]

Ijyb has killed me twice lately with single hits from +6 and +9 clubs. I've learned I should probably pick up his club if I don't have something better by then.

He has yet to arrive armed for me. Unarmed with a Wand of Digging, twice.

I am seeing way too many weapons on the floors and unarmed orcs and kobolds avoiding them to just outright attack me. Only once, recently, did an orc pick up a glowing green staff and go after me, otherwise they are too busy wanting to attack me with their bare hands than arm themselves.

Also WAAAAY too many spellcasters pushing their way through melee fighters to the front lines.