Gregglind at 17:07, 8 December 2017

2017-12-08T17:07:18Z

Gregglind: Scratchpad thoughts about HEALERS as a class, and about LIMITED WISH / ROOM OF REQUIREMENT / TOOL SHED.

2017-12-08T16:50:51Z

Scratchpad thoughts about HEALERS as a class, and about LIMITED WISH / ROOM OF REQUIREMENT / TOOL SHED.

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== Some possibly useful ideas, from a newish player.==

=== Player Background ===

# Never ascended, or anything close to it!
# I play mostly neutral gnome female healers, and aim for pacifist / protection
# I like being scared that the run might not work out.
# I don't like feeling 'unfair' losses.

=== Life as a healer. ===

==== start scumming ====

# I start-scum. Without 5 power, I can't cast healing. Staying at level 1 until Minetown means I probably need to heal me or the pet sometime.
# I don't start scum about the potions. BUC and count seems fair. My usual potion strategy is to hope that on the first two or three levels I find an altar, and if not, quaff them all for MaxHP gains.

==== Shepherd or Tamer, not Healer ====

Based on https://nethackwiki.com/wiki/User:Jonadab/ClassOverhaul, I want the Healer to be renamed to Tamer or Shepherd, and go even further toward "personal pacifism / guide pets through the dungeon".

==== Healer I could use in the early game ====

# Anything to help with pets: leashes, whistles, or TRIPE! Plant-only starting food means I don't have treats. Losing my pet for any reason (rock trap, teleport) means I have no easy way of making new ones, even if I see a kitten or puppy.

# More sources of level drain. Make it a harder / more interesting choice about *how* to do protection racket. Should I level up to 2/3 so I have Meatball, then try to drain? This risks making monsters much harder when I encounter new levels.

==== Pet Telepathy - A new Shepherd powers? ====

# Pet telepathy? In particular, when my pet gets teleported, my game is probably over. This telepathy could be limited to knowing "same level, level below, level above" for example. Drawbacks to using this could be hunger, confusion, for a finite number of turns, or other things.

== Limited Wish / Tool Shed / Room of Requirement ==

Several ideas for "Make wishes more balanced"

=== Limited wish ===

# Scroll / book / Catalog? (A battered and thumb-eared catalog)
# Can do a mundane item or weapon, never cursed, possibly blessed or rustproof
# Can be the prize in the Room of Requirement below.

=== Room of Requirement / Tool Shed ===

* A closet.
* when first entered by a player, generates a tool / weapon / consumable / corpse / small magic item that is 'useful' for the player. Will never be cursed, but might be blessed.
* These closets are a special room type, and appear early (DL 2-4). It should be a mostly small reward for diving a little into the dungeon. Could be deeper if we want to encourage faster diving.
* (This is the hardest part!). Ideal algorithms would look at user resistances, if they have a pet, etc, and try to do something useful. If there is an aligned altar seen so far, it could even be a sacrifice corpse. The gift should suggest a course of action / new subgoal for the player. A leash, pet food, lock pick, new weak figurine, whatever it is.
* as a small, lockable, closed door room, this is a safe place to "do housekeeping", resting, stash.
* If it's a scroll or something, it is identified (free id!).
* a small sign that the RNG actually wants you to be successful!
* Safer than a shop for establishing apport.
* If we want to teach people about search, it could be behind a hidden door, or give a signal like "You feel like there is something good behind that wall"

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-== Some possibly useful ideas, from a newish player.==
+== Player Background ==
 #  Never ascended, or anything close to it!
 #  I play mostly neutral gnome female healers, and aim for pacifist / protection
 #  I like being scared that the run might not work out.
 #  I don't like feeling 'unfair' losses.
 === Life as a healer. ===
-==== start scumming ====
+==== start scumming for healers ====
-#  I start-scum.  Without 5 power, I can't cast healing.  Staying at level 1 until Minetown means I probably need to heal me or the pet sometime.
+#  I start-scum.  Without 5 power, I can't cast healing.  Staying at level 1 until Minetown means I probably need to heal me or the pet sometime.  Plus, casting spells if fun!
 #  I don't start scum about the potions.  BUC and count seems fair.  My usual potion strategy is to hope that on the first two or three levels I find an altar, and if not, quaff them all for MaxHP gains.
@@ Line 21: / Line 25: @@
 Based on https://nethackwiki.com/wiki/User:Jonadab/ClassOverhaul, I want the Healer to be renamed to Tamer or Shepherd, and go even further toward "personal pacifism / guide pets through the dungeon".
-==== Healer I could use in the early game ====
+# 5+ power always.  Scumming to cast healing seems silly.
-#  Anything to help with pets:  leashes, whistles, or TRIPE! Plant-only starting food means I don't have treats.  Losing my pet for any reason (rock trap, teleport) means I have no easy way of making new ones, even if I see a kitten or puppy.
+#  Anything to help with pets:  leashes, whistles, or TRIPE! Plant-only starting food means I don't have treats.  Losing my pet for any reason (rock trap, teleport) without treats or taming means I have no easy way of making new ones, even if I see a kitten or puppy (which are rare at level 1!).
-# More sources of level drain.  Make it a harder / more interesting choice about *how* to do protection racket.  Should I level up to 2/3 so I have Meatball, then try to drain?  This risks making monsters much harder when I encounter new levels.
+# More sources of level drain.  Make it a harder / more interesting choice about *how* to do protection racket, not WHETHER to do it.  Should I level up to 2/3 so I have Meatball, then try to drain?  This risks making monsters much harder when I encounter new levels.
 ==== Pet Telepathy - A new Shepherd powers? ====
 #  Pet telepathy?  In particular, when my pet gets teleported, my game is probably over.  This telepathy could be limited to knowing "same level, level below, level above" for example.  Drawbacks to using this could be hunger, confusion, for a finite number of turns, or other things.

User:Gregglind - Revision history

Gregglind at 17:07, 8 December 2017

Gregglind: Scratchpad thoughts about HEALERS as a class, and about LIMITED WISH / ROOM OF REQUIREMENT / TOOL SHED.