Standard strategy

The standard strategy, for want of a better name, is the general method of ascending. In fact, there is no such thing as the standard strategy; all players have their own styles. The following is common though:

1. Explore the early dungeon levels until you have poison resistance.
   1. If you find sokoban before a source of poison resistance, do it.
2. Backtrack and enter the Gnomish Mines, descending until Minetown.
   1. If no altars in the main dungeon, start a stash at the minetown temple.
   2. If you haven't done sokoban yet, go and do that.
3. Descend to Mines' End and get the luckstone.
4. Explore the upper dungeon, collecting consumables until you have reflection and magic resistance.
   1. While you continue to lack either of these, do the quest, castle, or Fort Ludios in an order conducive to getting them.
5. Alchemise, enchant, donate and level up your HP/AC to something like 150/-15 (adequate), or 200/-20 (safe), and mass-identify any unknown items.
6. Descend through Gehennom, get the Candelabrum and mark the vibrating square.
7. Clear out Rodney's tower up to his chamber.
8. Return to your stash for final alchemy, enchantment, level gains, erodeproofing, blessing, identifying, charging, wishing, and genociding.
9. Kill Rodney, race to the Sanctum and ascend as fast as possible.

The details will vary depending on the circumstances of your game (most players make many more return trips to their stashes than noted above), but this is the overall shape of many an ascension.