Starting tips for a unexperienced Nethacker?

[Guest]

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

I've played a few roguelikes before, Adom and Tome among my favorites.
Doom roguelike among the more obscure. So i'm certainly not new to
roguelikes in general, though Nethack plays quite differently than
anything else out there.

Any starting, relatively spoil free tips out there?

Still can't figure out how to name my pet, only thing i see in the help
files is for naming your equipment.

Like, is it generally a good idea to drink from Fountains, tips of that
nature.

Too much spoilers ruin the fun

 

[Guest]

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

Quoting myself, as I forgot to ask one more simple question!

"I've played a few roguelikes before, Adom and Tome among my favorites.
Doom roguelike among the more obscure. So i'm certainly not new to
roguelikes in general, though Nethack plays quite differently than
anything else out there.

Any starting, relatively spoil free tips out there?

Still can't figure out how to name my pet, only thing i see in the help
files is for naming your equipment.

Like, is it generally a good idea to drink from Fountains, tips of that
nature.

Too much spoilers ruin the fun "

And the addendum. How do I "Rest"? Other than holding down the period
key, which is infinitely dangerous. Is there a rest untill disturbed
command?

 

[Guest]

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

I actually figured the repeat command out on my own

I was just hoping there was an easier way to do it. Oh well, works
well enough on its own.

One more question from this player. Can you switch places with
friendly monsters, or squeeze past them? I entered the mines with a
valkyrie and wanted to slay a few gnomes because they wouldnt get out
of my way. But I was a good little girl (Gamewise, Im a man of course)
and let them be.

 

[Guest]

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

Maxwell Armada babbled on for HOURS on 06 Jul 2005:

> Still can't figure out how to name my pet, only thing i see in the help
> files is for naming your equipment.

To name your pet, use "C", then move the cursor to the pet and press "."
Then you can enter in the name you want.



> Like, is it generally a good idea to drink from Fountains, tips of that
> nature.

This is a debated concept. Some say yes due to certain positive results.
Others say no due to a somewhat larger list of negative effects. Best
thing to do if you wish to remain unspoiled is to experiment and settle on
a decision based from your own experience.




> Too much spoilers ruin the fun

Agreed. I wish I could pay to have my real-life memory of the spoilers
wiped and start all over again as a newbie.

 

[Guest]

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

On Wed, 6 Jul 2005, Maxwell Armada wrote:

> I've played a few roguelikes before, Adom and Tome among my favorites.
> Doom roguelike among the more obscure. So i'm certainly not new to
> roguelikes in general, though Nethack plays quite differently than
> anything else out there.
>
> Any starting, relatively spoil free tips out there?
>
> Still can't figure out how to name my pet, only thing i see in the help
> files is for naming your equipment.

Press "C", move the cursor to your pet and press "."

>
> Like, is it generally a good idea to drink from Fountains, tips of that
> nature.

It can be but it can be bad. Is that the only tip? A lot of things in
nethack make sense if you think about them, a lot. A lot of them you can
find out on your own... but you sometimes die in the process.

>
> Too much spoilers ruin the fun
>
>

Agreed. Anything else you want to know, feel free to ask, and specify the
amount of spoilage you want. Looks like you want "as little as possible"
and you might need to remind everyone often -- some of us know almost all
the little details. I don't, but I know far more than anyone has a right
to.

 

[Guest]

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

Maxwell Armada babbled on for HOURS on 06 Jul 2005:

> Quoting myself, as I forgot to ask one more simple question!
>
> "I've played a few roguelikes before, Adom and Tome among my favorites.
> Doom roguelike among the more obscure. So i'm certainly not new to
> roguelikes in general, though Nethack plays quite differently than
> anything else out there.
>
> Any starting, relatively spoil free tips out there?
>
> Still can't figure out how to name my pet, only thing i see in the help
> files is for naming your equipment.
>
> Like, is it generally a good idea to drink from Fountains, tips of that
> nature.
>
> Too much spoilers ruin the fun "
>
> And the addendum. How do I "Rest"? Other than holding down the period
> key, which is infinitely dangerous. Is there a rest untill disturbed
> command?
>
>

You can use the "n" command if you like. Press "n50." and you will rest
for 50 turns, or until disturbed, whichever comes first. But disturbed is
relative...you can be disturbed by a creature, or a rumbly tummy.

 

[Guest]

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

On Wed, 6 Jul 2005, Maxwell Armada wrote:

>
> And the addendum. How do I "Rest"? Other than holding down the period
> key, which is infinitely dangerous. Is there a rest untill disturbed
> command?
>

Type "n" and a number, then "." Like "n10." rests, but if a monster shows
up, you stop waiting.

 

[Guest]

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

Maxwell Armada wrote:
> And the addendum. How do I "Rest"? Other than holding down the period
> key, which is infinitely dangerous. Is there a rest untill disturbed
> command?
>
If you are using the number pad option, press "n", followed by how long
you want to rest, then press ".". If not, omit the "n". You will stop if
anything interesting happens (eg, a monster walks into the room). This
command is also used to do other things multiple times.

 

[Guest]

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

Maxwell Armada wrote:

> One more question from this player. Can you switch places with
> friendly monsters, or squeeze past them? I entered the mines with a
> valkyrie and wanted to slay a few gnomes because they wouldnt get out
> of my way. But I was a good little girl (Gamewise, Im a man of course)
> and let them be.
>

Wow, I'm answering a question. You can hit 'm' and then move on them.
It will say something like 'Pardon me, dwarf.' and hopefully s/he will move.

 

[Guest]

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

Maxwell Armada wrote:
<snip>
> Like, is it generally a good idea to drink from Fountains, tips of that
> nature.

Without being spoilish too much, IMO you should leave the fountains for
later, but you will never know unless you try if you are avoiding being
spoiled.

So, what I'm saying is...if you don't wanna be spoiled too much, you
might wanna experiment (and be ready to die horribly).

-K

 

[Guest]

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

BandC wrote:
> Maxwell Armada wrote:
>
> > One more question from this player. Can you switch places with
> > friendly monsters, or squeeze past them? I entered the mines with a
> > valkyrie and wanted to slay a few gnomes because they wouldnt get out
> > of my way. But I was a good little girl (Gamewise, Im a man of course)
> > and let them be.
>
> Wow, I'm answering a question. You can hit 'm' and then move on them.
> It will say something like 'Pardon me, dwarf.' and hopefully s/he will move.

That "hopefully" part matters. Monsters move and this trick
will awaken a sleeping monster, but if there's a closed door
many monsters don't know how to open one. If there's a locked
door none will. If it is a dead end that you simply must get
too, forget it. Depending on how important it is to get past,
sometimes peacefull monsters need to die. Just to check to
see if they left you any items in their will of course ;^)

There's an alignment penalty for killing peacefulls. There's
a smaller alignment boost for killing hostiles. The ratio
of hostiles to peacefulls is high enough that you can kill
almost every monster and your alignment continues to grow.
Not killing peacefulls is a style matter after a few levels.

 

[Guest]

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

Maxwell Armada wrote:
>
> I've played a few roguelikes before, Adom and Tome among my favorites.
> Doom roguelike among the more obscure. So i'm certainly not new to
> roguelikes in general, though Nethack plays quite differently than
> anything else out there.

Even though there are dozens of games descended from
Nethack to various degrees, nethack remains different.

> Any starting, relatively spoil free tips out there?

Nethack comes with a Guidebook as a text file. Read it
carefully. This newgroup gets a regular posting of the
FAQ and of the beginners guide. Look in the google
archives for the most recent posting or wait until
they are posted again. Read those carefully.

> Like, is it generally a good idea to drink from Fountains, tips of that
> nature.

One feature of Nethack - There are many options and
often many right answers in a situation. This one is
such a judgement. Fountains carry enough risk that an
early character could decide to avoid them. But they
also carry small chances of bonuses. A person who
is willing to cycle through plenty of early characters
to get each mid-game character will see this differently
than a person who views all characters as ascendable.
And that attitude often boils down to skill so it is
subject to change as your skills grow.

> Too much spoilers ruin the fun

That's a matter of opinion and of personal test, so
disagreeing with you doesn't make either of us wrong.
I think spoilers and even source diving enhance the
fun. You feel otherwise. There is strength in
diversity!

 

[Guest]

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

Quoting BandC <onefunus@yahoo.com>:
>Maxwell Armada wrote:
>>One more question from this player. Can you switch places with
>>friendly monsters, or squeeze past them?
>Wow, I'm answering a question. You can hit 'm' and then move on them.
>It will say something like 'Pardon me, dwarf.' and hopefully s/he will move.

I can't see any indication that this makes the monster more likely to
move.
--
David Damerell <damerell@chiark.greenend.org.uk> Kill the tomato!
Today is Second Thursday, Presuary.

 

[Guest]

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

"Maxwell Armada" <Maxwell.Armada@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1120702425.896225.35480@g49g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> I've played a few roguelikes before, Adom and Tome among my favorites.
> Doom roguelike among the more obscure. So i'm certainly not new to
> roguelikes in general, though Nethack plays quite differently than
> anything else out there.
>
> Any starting, relatively spoil free tips out there?
>
> Still can't figure out how to name my pet, only thing i see in the help
> files is for naming your equipment.
>
> Like, is it generally a good idea to drink from Fountains, tips of that
> nature.
>
> Too much spoilers ruin the fun
>
I'll say it since no one else did. Be prepared to die ALOT!! I mean it.
Try to keep your pet close, it can be very useful.

 

[Guest]

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

BandC wrote:

> Wow, I'm answering a question. You can hit 'm' and then move on
> them. It will say something like 'Pardon me, dwarf.' and hopefully
> s/he will move.

I don't believe this helps at all.

--
Boudewijn.

"Would those who believe in telekinesis please raise my hand?"
- Maarten Pieters, in NRC Handelsblad.

 

[Guest]

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

Adam Lawson wrote:

> Type "n" and a number, then "." Like "n10." rests, but if a monster
> shows up, you stop waiting.

Note that it is generally considered better to type "n10s". You will
still rest, but you'll search around you for traps and secret doors
while you're doing so, which is usually an added benefit.

The only reason I can think of *not* to use "s" instead of "." is when
you are standing next to a statue that might be a creature in hiding, or
when you're standing next to a wall and *don't* want to discover secret
doors, because you're resting to heal.

Note, also, that you won't stop resting when you're hit points are at
their maximum, as you would in, for example, moria or angband.

--
Boudewijn.

"Would those who believe in telekinesis please raise my hand?"
- Maarten Pieters, in NRC Handelsblad.

 

[Guest]

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

Maxwell Armada wrote:

> Any starting, relatively spoil free tips out there?

There is a document called "The Absolute Beginner's Guide to NetHack
3.4.1", by Mikko Saari: http://www.melankolia.net/nethack/index.en.html

--
Boudewijn.

"Would those who believe in telekinesis please raise my hand?"
- Maarten Pieters, in NRC Handelsblad.

 

[Guest]

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

Boudewijn Waijers wrote:
> BandC wrote:
>
>
>>Wow, I'm answering a question. You can hit 'm' and then move on
>>them. It will say something like 'Pardon me, dwarf.' and hopefully
>>s/he will move.
>
>
> I don't believe this helps at all.
>

Oh well, I thought I answered question. I was under the expression
this suggests them to move and I've seen them move but maybe it was just
wishful thinking.

 

[Guest]

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

Doug Freyburger wrote:

> Monsters move and this trick will awaken a sleeping monster,
> but if there's a closed door many monsters don't know how to
> open one. If there's a locked door none will.

A giant will.

> There's an alignment penalty for killing peacefulls. There's
> a smaller alignment boost for killing hostiles. The ratio
> of hostiles to peacefulls is high enough that you can kill
> almost every monster and your alignment continues to grow.
> Not killing peacefulls is a style matter after a few levels.

A pet can very useful in this regard: don't leave home without one!

--
Boudewijn.

"Would those who believe in telekinesis please raise my hand?"
- Maarten Pieters, in NRC Handelsblad.

 

[Guest]

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

In article <damjkm$sh$1@news1.zwoll1.ov.home.nl>, Boudewijn Waijers wrote:
> Doug Freyburger wrote:

>> Monsters move and this trick will awaken a sleeping monster,
>> but if there's a closed door many monsters don't know how to
>> open one. If there's a locked door none will.

> A giant will.

And the Riders.

--
Panu
"You haven't really been anywhere until you've got back home",
Twoflower in "The Light Fantastic"

 

[Guest]

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

Panu Lahtinen wrote:

> In article <damjkm$sh$1@news1.zwoll1.ov.home.nl>, Boudewijn Waijers
> wrote:
>> Doug Freyburger wrote:
>
>>> Monsters move and this trick will awaken a sleeping monster,
>>> but if there's a closed door many monsters don't know how to
>>> open one. If there's a locked door none will.
>
>> A giant will.
>
> And the Riders.

My late lamented Samurai (died of brainlessness; wishless, she didn't have
a proper helmet) carried a figurine of an ochre jelly for the express
purpose of blocking a door on the Planes if she got that far.

Raisse, killed by a master mind flayer

--
irina@valdyas.org LegoHack: http://www.valdyas.org/irina/nethack/
Status of Raisse (piously neutral): Level 8 HP 63(67) AC -3, fast.