artifact question

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

My samurai has Excalibur from dipping into a fountain. After slaying an
owlbear he discovered Frost Brand!

Which artifact is superior? Frost Brand or Excalibur?

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Haakon Studebaker wrote:

> My samurai has Excalibur from dipping into a fountain. After slaying an
> owlbear he discovered Frost Brand!
>
> Which artifact is superior? Frost Brand or Excalibur?

Frost Brand does a little more damage against non-cold resistant monsters,
especially at higher enchantment levels. I'd actually lean towards
Excalibur, though, for its automatic searching. If you don't already have
cold resistance, you might want to switch to FB if approached by, say,
winter wolves.

--
Benjamin Lewis

Although the moon is smaller than the earth, it is farther away.

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Panu Lahtinen <pnuu@iki.fi> wrote in
news:slrnd7niv2.7co.pnuu@vipunen.hut.fi:

> Is this really true in vanilla nethack? I've always thought that foo
> brand _doesn't_ confer foo resistance.

Yes it is, when my samurai died while wielding Frost Brand it stated he was
cold resistant and he never got cold resistance from eating an appropriate
corpse.

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Panu Lahtinen wrote:

> In article <yy7o8y2snnhq.fsf@css.css.sfu.ca>, Benjamin Lewis wrote:
>> Haakon Studebaker wrote:
>
>> Excalibur, though, for its automatic searching. If you don't already
>> have cold resistance, you might want to switch to FB if approached by,
>> say, winter wolves.
>
> Is this really true in vanilla nethack? I've always thought that foo
> brand _doesn't_ confer foo resistance.

Yes, it's true. Of course, with regards to the strategy of wielding Frost
Brand for winter wolf combat, you have to keep in mind that besides giving
you cold resistance it will only behave like a regular long sword, so it
may not be the best idea, depending on circumstances. On the other hand,
an approaching freezing sphere would be a good reason to switch to FB.

--
Benjamin Lewis

Although the moon is smaller than the earth, it is farther away.

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Douglas Berry <penguin_boy@mindOBVIOUSspring.com> wrote:
>On Fri, 06 May 2005 14:03:03 -0500, Haakon Studebaker
><heptapod@gmail.com> drained his beer, leaned back in the
>rec.games.roguelike.nethack beanbag and drunkenly proclaimed the
>following

I do feel that four lines is a little excessive for an attribution

>>Which artifact is superior? Frost Brand or Excalibur?
>
>Frost Brand.. very few things in the Dungeons are cold resistant.

Indeed. However, the potions they carry aren't cold-resistant, either,
and many of the things that *are* cold resistant are also extremely
nasty.

Excalibur is Good Enough. If you've got space, carry both, of course.
--
Martin Read - my opinions are my own. share them if you wish.
My roguelike games page (including my BSD-licenced roguelike) can be found at:
http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/ [...] likes.html
bounce. bounce. bounce. bounce bounce bounce bounce.

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Keith Davies <keith.davies@kjdavies.org> wrote in
news:slrnd7o3vj.844.keith.davies@kjdavies.org:

> Could've been chance, though. I know you can get poison resistance
> while wearing a = or " of Poison Resistance ("You feel even healthier!" )

I must nitpick. "You feel especially healthy."

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Haakon Studebaker <heptapod@gmail.com> wrote:
> Keith Davies <keith.davies@kjdavies.org> wrote in
> news:slrnd7o3vj.844.keith.davies@kjdavies.org:
>
>> Could've been chance, though. I know you can get poison resistance
>> while wearing a = or " of Poison Resistance ("You feel even healthier!" )
>
> I must nitpick. "You feel especially healthy."

Mmmm... nits.


Keith
--
Keith Davies "Trying to sway him from his current kook-
keith.davies@kjdavies.org rant with facts is like trying to create
keith.davies@gmail.com a vacuum in a room by pushing the air
http://www.kjdavies.org/ out with your hands." -- Matt Frisch

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Haakon Studebaker wrote:
> My samurai has Excalibur from dipping into a fountain. After slaying an
> owlbear he discovered Frost Brand!
>
> Which artifact is superior? Frost Brand or Excalibur?

Observations with my current game (this is a very late game)...

Have +7 Excalibur and +7 Frostbrand. Frostbrand hits significantly
better. Even the level drainers have little time for an effective
level drain attack.

The potion destroying effect of Frostbrand seems quite _positive_
to me, since the creatures often have healing potions which they
can't use on an effective freeze attack; especially full healing
is annoying since it would quite double the necessary effort to
kill the creature.

Janis

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Janis Papanagnou wrote:
> Haakon Studebaker wrote:
>
>> My samurai has Excalibur from dipping into a fountain. After slaying
>> an owlbear he discovered Frost Brand!
>>
>> Which artifact is superior? Frost Brand or Excalibur?
>
>
> Observations with my current game (this is a very late game)...
>
> Have +7 Excalibur and +7 Frostbrand. Frostbrand hits significantly
> better. Even the level drainers have little time for an effective
> level drain attack.
>
> The potion destroying effect of Frostbrand seems quite _positive_
> to me, since the creatures often have healing potions which they
> can't use on an effective freeze attack; especially full healing
> is annoying since it would quite double the necessary effort to
> kill the creature.
>
> Janis

All healing potions act like full healing on monsters. So it doesn't
really matter.

--
____ (__)
/ \ (oo) -Shadow
|Moo. > \/
\____/

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Janis Papanagnou wrote:
> Shadow wrote:
>
>> Janis Papanagnou wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> The potion destroying effect of Frostbrand seems quite _positive_
>>> to me, since the creatures often have healing potions which they
>>> can't use on an effective freeze attack; especially full healing
>>> is annoying since it would quite double the necessary effort to
>>> kill the creature.
>>
>>
>> All healing potions act like full healing on monsters. So it doesn't
>> really matter.
>
>
> You are wrong.
>
> Apply a stethoscope and you'll see. Or have a look at the source code.
>
> Janis

Whoops, sorry, I was thinking of thrown healing potions...

/me makes a mental note to check in wizmode before posting false
information, for somewhere around the seventh time.

--
____ (__)
/ \ (oo) -Shadow
|Moo. > \/
\____/

Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.nethack (More info?)

Kevin Wayne <killedbyafoo@yahoo.com> writes:
> [Discussion of whether healing potions act like full healing on
> monsters. They don't.]
>
> On 5/20/05 11:08 PM, Shadow wrote:
> > Whoops, sorry, I was thinking of thrown healing potions...
> >
>
> Do you have any reason to believe that it's true of thrown potions? I
> don't know the answer, but I don't see why it would be.

However, it's true (for all *healing and *ability potions). From
potionhit():

case POT_HEALING:
case POT_EXTRA_HEALING:
case POT_FULL_HEALING:
if (mon->data == &mons[PM_PESTILENCE]) goto do_illness;
/*FALLTHRU*/
case POT_RESTORE_ABILITY:
case POT_GAIN_ABILITY:
do_healing:
angermon = FALSE;
if(mon->mhp < mon->mhpmax) {
mon->mhp = mon->mhpmax;
if (canseemon(mon))
pline("%s looks sound and hale again.", Monnam(mon));
}
break;


As to the why of it, "simplicity" is probably the answer.

--
: Dylan O'Donnell http://www.spod-central.org/~psmith/ :
: "Zabadak, karakakora kakarakak, / Zabadak, shai shai skagalak." :
: -- Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich, "Zabadak" :