Forum:Have a good strategy for descension?

< Forum:Watercooler

I've been playing for around a month now and I can make it easily a few levels under Minetown, and have made it once to the top of Sokoban, and have been at most 12 levels down. It seems I'm not at all progressing in my skills.

What do you do when you descend? What paths do you take? Do you go to Minetown then up and then back down the Dungeons of Doom? or do you skip the Gnomish Mines altogether? How do you descend?

Well, what role are you playing, for one. Nethack is a game of power curves--you get stronger, that's one curve, and the dungeon get's stronger, that's another curve. It sounds like you're getting bitten at a point when the dungeon keeps getting stronger but you don't. If you're playing a Valkyrie, you should probably be dipping for Excalibur when you hit the Oracle level--that's one way to move up on your power curve. Minetown should move you a long way down the road on identifying things (in shops and with the altar), and, in 1/3 of your games, gives you a place to make holy water and do sacrifices. Just as a thought, you might read the "strategy" section of the article on the Gnomish Mines--I wonder if you're not pushing for Mine's end too early. I also wonder if you're neglecting the power of Elbereth, because you've started to get a bit cocky after you reach Minetown--that first troll with a polearm can be a real shock. The "Standard Strategy" article might be helpful, and there's an old classic on the net called "Maniac's Ascension Guide," some of which may be questionable, but it helped me ascend the first time. Mention some more specific problems and we can possibly give more tailored advice. Good luck!--Ckbryant 03:12, 11 May 2009 (UTC)