Talk:DNetHack artifacts

I have to point out there is an unfortunate flaw (I think it's a flaw, maybe it's intended to work that way) in the current artifact armors.

I really like the way normal armors were rebalanced so you are encouraged to actually try a different late-game or ascension set than a GDSM/SDSM. Both mithril-coats and plate mails in dNet rock, each in a specific way that makes them competitive with DSM.

However, and there is where I see the flaw in design, there are the artifact dragon scale mails. They simply have no competitor - their effects are very strong and they are a huge boon for any character of the right alignment. But as dNet allows you to wish for them, I find them to be the new GDSM/SDSM. If there were no artifact DSM, I'd think about what armor to go for in the end-game, especially now that MR/reflection can be taken from other sources. But with artifact DSM, the first wish goes to one of them and I won't take them of for the rest of the game no matter what. They have both great defensive and offensive capabilities, so no normal armor can really compare.

Anyway, I think this should be addressed, especially as with the many weapon artifacts and broadened ascension kit in dNet, it seems the goal is to make more choices viable. I'd never suggest to nerf the armors, they are very nice the way they are. Instead, one of the following might work:

• make the armors unwishable and only possible to obtain as a crowning gift; that would make sense as they are a powerful artifact of the given alignment, so receiving them as a possible gift while crowned the champion of an alignment makes sense; note that they must be only possible, not guaranteed gift, or nothing really changes,

• make them unwishable with a chance to appear in the Castle's armory, where they will still impact the late game, but the player has to earn them by getting all the way down tot he Castle; still no guarantees,

• make all artifacts unwishable by non-wands means (a bit like UnNetHack, but there no magical items are wishable without a wand of wishing), so that you need to find a wand of wishing with low enough artifact count to be able to wish for any artifact; that would both limit the availability of the armors and result in hard decisions, as there are so many delicious artifacts in dNet; because that is a nerf to getting artifacts, I would also suggets increasing the chances of artifacts generating in the dungeon.

I personally like the third idea, even though it's the most drastic. It makes you live with what you can get, with a rare chance to cheat fate if you get to a /wish soon enough. With more random artifacts, you'd also get to use them more, as with not guaranteed wished-for artifacts, you might actually stick with a non-standard randomly generated artifact instead of wishing for the one you like the best / always use.

TL,DR: Platinum and Chromatic Dragon Scale Mails are OP! :D

--Red kangaroo (talk) 09:11, 17 March 2016 (UTC)

YANI -- Artifact Neutral DSM

• Ancient Dragon Scales
• neutral gray dragon scales
  • Can be converted to Chromatic Dragon Scale Mail or Chromatic Dragon Scale Shield via the usual methods
  • Grants MR because of base item
• +6 AC (scales grant AC of mail)
• Grants wisdom boost
  • +1 per enchantment point
• Boosts spellcasting as robe
• Half physical damage
• Half again as heavy as normal dragon scale (making it 225 units vs the normal 150)
• Can only be picked up by chaotic characters with at least a 20 alignment record (eligible for quest) and enough experience to no long be considered a beginner.
  • Will sometimes blast cross-aligned characters when they are hit in combat (1/10 chance per hit)

Catullus (talk) 23:35, 7 March 2016 (UTC)

Studied Debuff

What is the "studied debuff"? Can anyone clarify? Thanks Wikid (talk) 19:05, 2 October 2016 (UTC)