r/dcss • u/DelayedLightning • 9d ago

training and level-ups

what should i be focusing on as a new/bad (die in the first 5 levels every time) player, and how do I do it?

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u/GamerKilroy Aux Attacks Enjoyer 9d ago

First of all, death is normal. Do not expect to win quickly.

Second, what do you want to do? The amount of XP you can get is limited (in a normal game) so what you have available and what you want will mostly dictate your training.

I think Fighting is always a decent train, as extra HP never hurt any class or race.

Other than that, your main weapon skill / spell school is very important. Also it's better to focus instead of becoming a generalist - Particularly when it comes to spells. Having a single strong spell of a school is much better than 12 mediocre spells from 6 schools.

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u/GamerKilroy Aux Attacks Enjoyer 9d ago

Additional note: Focus on preserving HP and deciding when to fight and when to RUN.

You don't have to fight everything. In fact, you'll most likely NOT want to fight everything.

Learn what kills you, learn what's a threat to your safety and act accordingly. You won't win stat-wise in this game, unless you're extremely lucky. You gotta get smart and learn the enemies themselves.

Use consumables, ALL OF THEM. You can't and shouldn't save consumables at any time, if you die with a full backpack you are not gonna get them back. Blind read if you need, blind quaff, whatever, but always prioritize one thing: STAY ALIVE.

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u/DelayedLightning 9d ago

thanks, i have been reading "use your consumables!" everywhere but rarely do i even get far enough to ID so i didn't know whether to blind read/drink or not

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u/GamerKilroy Aux Attacks Enjoyer 9d ago

Better to drink a Potion of Mutation than dying.

Reading a Unid item can save you in many ways!

Fog/Poison may provide you chance to escape or get to a better position - Blinking and Teleport are of course very strong.

For potions, the obvious Heal Wounds in very powerful early game, and Curing heals too and is very common!

Haste/Might/Berserk might also push you over the edge needed to win the fight.

Reading/Drinking an unid item will identify it. If i don't have at least some utility stuff identified by Dungeon:5, i will usually start blind reading/quaffing aggressively