Pets - am I the only person who hates them?
Jason Rogers
well........ That is unless I can get a baby dragon by poly....
Felix The (petless) Barbarian
dpws.nsw.gov.au
It seems that pets are a necessary part of getting a fair way through
Nethack (I've never ascended... I've gotten as far as the caste gates, but
never been able to open them) - and I ALWAYS lose my pet on the first
level - they eat your food, they kill creatures and take experience away
from you, they get in the way, if you want them to follow you you have to
wait around for them etc etc... should I be keeping my pet? Is it absolutely
necessary...
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DeborahRG
>Hi all,
>
>It seems that pets are a necessary part of getting a fair way through
>Nethack (I've never ascended... I've gotten as far as the caste gates, but
>never been able to open them) - and I ALWAYS lose my pet on the first
>level - they eat your food, they kill creatures and take experience away
>from you, they get in the way, if you want them to follow you you have to
>wait around for them etc etc... should I be keeping my pet? Is it absolutely
>necessary...
>
>
Pets are not necessary to ascend, but they can be very helpful, especially on
earlier levels. It can be very tough to keep them alive, and to keep them with
you before you have a leash or magic whistle.
Of course, you can always tame new pets as you progress. So, I try not to get
too attached to my initial pets, especially if food is scarce.
I like to polymorph my pets into big fighting machines. An adult dragon who is
fast and invisible, a tame Archon, etc. can take on shopkeepers and priests for
you, and you do not pay the penalty for killing a
peaceful monster.
Alignment also makes a difference. Pets can be a pain when you are wielding
Stormy.
Be kind to your pets, and they will be kind to you!
Deborah
dpws.nsw.gov.au
house and escape forever, but in Nethack they seem annoying, always running
under your feet, picking up the gold and carrying it around, eating that
oh-so rare food, killing those monsters and taking away XP points... plus
when they stand in the way of you and a baddie when you have a wand of fire
(for example) well I get annoyed...
I know however they dont walk on cursed objects and you can train them to
steal and they can all around be handy, but I thought maybe I was the only
person to ditch my pet on the first level and this was why I had always
failed to ascend...
DeborahRG wrote in message <19990618012519...@ng-xa1.aol.com>...
----------------------------------------------------------
Martin Read
>In real life I am quite fond of cats and dogs and I never lock them in the
>house and escape forever, but in Nethack they seem annoying, always running
>under your feet, picking up the gold and carrying it around, eating that
>oh-so rare food, killing those monsters and taking away XP points... plus
>when they stand in the way of you and a baddie when you have a wand of fire
>(for example) well I get annoyed...
>
>I know however they dont walk on cursed objects and you can train them to
>steal and they can all around be handy, but I thought maybe I was the only
>person to ditch my pet on the first level and this was why I had always
>failed to ascend...
Failure to use your pet effectively will impair your chances of
ascending AHRTW, as these classes are not very effective in combat
(I'd probably say the order was WARTH - Tourists can use anything
they find, but Healers usually have much better HP, since they have
higher starting HP, start with more !oEH, and tend to have higher Con).
EKP are borderline cases - indeed, the Knight may *benefit* from gaining
levels slower, as Knights get crap Con but are combat-oriented (although
a high-level, suitably-equipped Knight is *scarily* good at magic...).
BCSV don't generally need their pets, although they can be handy for
committing burglary without getting caught :-)
M.
--
\_V_/ | Martin Read, 16 Willow Crescent, Durrington, Worthing BN13 2SU
\ / | "Two nations under one crown/Divided more and more
V | In our own sweet green and pleasant land/In 1984"
------/ -- "1984", by the New Model Army
David Damerell
>It seems that pets are a necessary part of getting a fair way through
>Nethack (I've never ascended... I've gotten as far as the caste gates, but
>never been able to open them)
Blow them open with a wand of striking and fly across. Go round the moat
and in the back door.
Pets are not necessary, just useful.
>- and I ALWAYS lose my pet on the first level - they eat your food,
Not so much, with caution; and you can pray for food.
>they kill creatures and take experience away from you,
This is not necessarily bad. What if you are paralysed or something?
Even when you're not, experience is not always desireable. The toughness
of monsters you meet is based partially on your experience level; a
character without a high Con will find they gain so few hitpoints per
level that each experience level actually makes the game harder; sooner or
later a bunch of rothes or giant ants will whip the snot out of you. With
a medium-Con character, you want to delay XP levels so you can exercise
your Con and gain more HP per level (this applies much less in Slashem,
where your con changing retroactively adjusts your HP from previous
levels) - having your pet kill things is ideal.
>they get in the way, if you want them to follow you you have to
>wait around for them etc etc... should I be keeping my pet? Is it absolutely
>necessary...
Necessary, no. But it can and will save you in tough fights or
paralysis-type situations; it won't normally step on a cursed item (unless
there is food on it); and it will clear out shops for you.
--
David/Kirsty Damerell. dame...@chiark.greenend.org.uk
CUWoCS President. http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~damerell/ Hail Eris!
|___| "Life is short and love is always over in the morning." |___|
| | | Temple of Love - The Sisters of Mercy. | | |
gnohm...@my-deja.com
subjects!
1. Unless you're a P, your pet has enormous value for telling you about
cursed items. This is so big, I can't imagine doing well without a pet -- how
can you get your first set of armor?
2. No matter what character class you play, your pet's ability to steal from
shops is worth a lot. Getting a free pair of speed boots on dlvl 2 is as good
as getting a wish...
3. Your pet whimpers when traps are nearby, and if you only step on squares
where you've seen your pet standing, you won't fall through a trapdoor. This
is big, trying to get to Minetown at the start of the game.
4. The Mines often have a polymorph trap somewhere. If you bring a pet Balrog
to Minetown, you will be able to buy protection.
5. Once in a long while, you'll be paralyzed or asleep and your pet will kill
the newt that's munching on you.
6. In ordinary fights on dlvl 1, it can make a big difference if your pet is
helping. The two of you together will do much better fighting that grid bug
than either of you could do alone.
7. In a narrow corridor, you can displace your pet so it stands between you
and that nymph (or rust monster). Think about it.
8. How do you get the stuff that peaceful monster is carrying if you don't
have a pet?
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.
David Grabiner
> 1. Unless you're a P, your pet has enormous value for telling you about
> cursed items. This is so big, I can't imagine doing well without a pet -- how
> can you get your first set of armor?
A healer can also find out about items, using the stethoscope; a dwarf
with AC 4 is probably wearing a +0 mithril coat.
> 4. The Mines often have a polymorph trap somewhere. If you bring a pet Balrog
> to Minetown, you will be able to buy protection.
Just having a pet will get you the gold for protection; you should be
able to rob all the shops.
> 8. How do you get the stuff that peaceful monster is carrying if you don't
> have a pet?
Or the peaceful monster's corpse? As long as you haven't hasted your
pet, you can stand next to a monster and let your pey kill it, and then
you will get the next move and a chance at the corpse. This is good for
lawful characters trying to eat tengus, for example.
--
David Grabiner, grab...@math.lsa.umich.edu
http://www.math.lsa.umich.edu/~grabiner
Shop at the Mobius Strip Mall: Always on the same side of the street!
Klein Glassworks, Torus Coffee and Donuts, Projective Airlines, etc.
Christopher Moeller
@dpws.nsw.gov.au wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> It seems that pets are a necessary part of getting a fair way through
> Nethack (I've never ascended... I've gotten as far as the caste gates, but
> never been able to open them) - and I ALWAYS lose my pet on the first
> level - they eat your food, they kill creatures and take experience away
> from you, they get in the way, if you want them to follow you you have to
> wait around for them etc etc... should I be keeping my pet? Is it absolutely
> necessary...
>
I used to sequester all of my pets in the first room I found with closeable
doors, just to keep from being annoyed. Much later I experienced true
pet-love in the form of a 24 lvl, invis., sped, Jabberwocky with 200 HP. She
was great, *much* more powerful than me (a 19th lvl S, with Stuff). For
instance,
balrogs, quest nemeses, and mature dragons slain before either I or they
could move (she had, I think, around 6 attacks). But of course, not
unbeatable...
She was swallowed whole (burp...).
In another game I freed Schrodinger's Cat, and poly'd it eventually into a
never-hungered Master Lich. This creature eventually maxed out in level/HP's.
It got stuck once or twice trying to kill blue jellies (I had to help him kill
it...),
and _seemed_ unbeatable. But alas, surrounded by 5 old dragons and a bunch
of other meanies, finally fell asunder (sigh). I missed him so, I even tried
resurrection
(WoUT), but he came back as a nude, lev 1, human.
Anyway, I've rattled on again... Basically, I think pets can be fun, and past
level 14,
the exp. they steal seems pretty inconsequential.
.:Christus:.
DtCS
DeborahRG wrote:
>Alignment also makes a difference. Pets can be a pain when you are wielding
>Stormy.
'Shade' is good pet when you are wielding Stormy. :]
Irina Rempt
> 4. The Mines often have a polymorph trap somewhere. If you bring a pet Balrog
> to Minetown, you will be able to buy protection.
If you bring a pet balrog to Minetown, you will *not* be able to buy
protection unless you can keep it out of the temple.
Raisse the Thaumaturge
--
ir...@rempt.xs4all.nl -- Ascended: VPWATHVP -- Raisse the Thaumaturge
http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt/irina/index.html (English)
http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt/irina/backpage.html (Nederlands)
gnohm...@my-deja.com
ir...@rempt.xs4all.nl wrote:
> gnohm...@my-deja.com wrote:
>
> > 4. The Mines often have a polymorph trap somewhere. If you bring a pet Balrog
> > to Minetown, you will be able to buy protection.
>
> If you bring a pet balrog to Minetown, you will *not* be able to buy
> protection unless you can keep it out of the temple.
If I remember the last time I had a red ampersand, one should be able to shut
the Balrog in a closet when going to the temple.
Otherwise, do what I do when it's a pet Master Lich: leave it on an adjacent
level.
Of course, pets killing things you don't want killed can always be a problem.
There was a classic story here about somebody who wanted to go through a zoo
with stealth, killing sleeping monsters one by one; but his darned pets woke
them all up, and he couldn't cope! (This is nethack: no reward without risk.)
Snelling, Peter (EXCHANGE:CAR:CF39)
>
> In another game I freed Schrodinger's Cat, and poly'd it eventually into a
> never-hungered Master Lich. This creature eventually maxed out in level/HP's.
> It got stuck once or twice trying to kill blue jellies (I had to help him kill
> it...),
> and _seemed_ unbeatable.
I had a pet Master Lich in my current game. My wizard
started with a wand of polymorph, and I changed some
pets while polypiling. It killed six shopkeepers for me,
but its teleport ability made it too tough to control.
For example, he killed a co-aligned unicorn I was trying
to throw gems at. I wanted to donate to the minetown
priest, so I had to briefly leave him on another level
while I did. Then I brought him back and he got me a
refund.
So he worked great, but I was worried he might kill more
things I didn't want him to, or become wild on me. So I
left him in the mines -- I don't think I'll have any
reason to go back.
I'm continuing on with a pet baby aligator and a pet
yellow(?) mold. The mold follows me with a magic whistle --
perhaps I'll eventually turn him into something useful,
but I kind of like having a spare pet that never gets
into any trouble.
--
Peter Snelling, P.Eng. (snel...@nortelnetworks.com)
Nortel Networks, Ottawa, Canada
Standard Disclaimer: My views only, not my employer's
gnohm...@my-deja.com
"Snelling, Peter (EXCHANGE:CAR:CF39)" <snel...@nortelnetworks.com> wrote:
> [pet master lich]
Master Lich becomes worse than useless in Gehennom. Lich touches monster.
Monster is covered with frost. Frost doesn't seem to bother the monster. Lich
touches monster (multiple attacks per turn). You feel deathly ill. The
monster is covered with frost. The frost doesn't seem to bother the monster.
Oh, dear, did I miss any important messages when I hit escape?
There is no alignment penalty for genociding your pet. I usually part with a
pet master Lich on the castle level, or perhaps I'll whistle him over to meet
Medusa a turn or two sooner.
Master Lich is irritating at all times. Try to run across the map. Pet
teleports in front and gets in the way. You must displace. Hope you're not
wielding Stormbringer.
Howvere, a pet master lich is awfully strong, and until Gehennom it kills
most of the things you want it to kill. A great lifesaver when you're
paralyzed, since it's always teleporting next to you!
DeborahRG
>In real life I am quite fond of cats and dogs and I never lock them in the
>house and escape forever, but in Nethack they seem annoying, always running
>under your feet, picking up the gold and carrying it around, eating that
>oh-so rare food, killing those monsters and taking away XP points... plus
>when they stand in the way of you and a baddie when you have a wand of fire
>(for example) well I get annoyed...
>
>I know however they dont walk on cursed objects and you can train them to
>steal and they can all around be handy, but I thought maybe I was the only
>person to ditch my pet on the first level and this was why I had always
>failed to ascend...
>
>
You certainly are *not* the only one who ditches a pet on the first level. I
have often ditched a pet early when the costs of keeping them around outweighed
the potential gains. I try not to get too atttached early on, and consider my
pets somewhat like cannon-fodder--my first line of defense to stand between me
and certain monsters. I never thought you were referring to real pets! :-)
Deborah
DeborahRG
>There was a classic story here about somebody who wanted to go through a zoo
>with stealth, killing sleeping monsters one by one; but his darned pets woke
>them all up, and he couldn't cope! (This is nethack: no reward without risk.)
>
A common NH newsgroup post.... I remember explaining to a few fellow posters
that stealth would keep the zoos asleep, but he or she needed to lock up that
bumbling pet in another room first.
It's also tough sometimes to keep that big, hungry pet dragon away when you
want to ask a lovely nurse for a dance!
Deborah
Ralf Engels
>
> In article <7kfeb9$kf$1...@essle.valdyas.org>,
> ir...@rempt.xs4all.nl wrote:
> > gnohm...@my-deja.com wrote:
> >
> > > 4. The Mines often have a polymorph trap somewhere. If you bring a pet Balrog
> > > to Minetown, you will be able to buy protection.
> >
> > If you bring a pet balrog to Minetown, you will *not* be able to buy
> > protection unless you can keep it out of the temple.
>
First: they help getting the status of an item (cursed or not)
Second: they can steal you many usefull things (not a tripe ration
though, you
have to buy this.)
Third: Help killing lechpauns and nymphs
fourth: step on traps so you don't step on them
fifth: polymorph them in something usefull like a dragon.
The funniest was a pet chameleon. It constantly turned in other monsters
even
umber hulks.
Ralf Engels
Gabriele Neukam
<ralf....@informatik.uni-ulm.de> wrote:
>The funniest was a pet chameleon. It constantly turned in other monsters
>even
>umber hulks.
Mine got annoying when I suddenly had three of them. I had tamed it
when it was a dog, but maybe it had been divided when I didn't take
notice (I was blinded/telepathic at that time), the only thing I can
tell is suddenly it was three. It is a bit hard keeping three pet
chameleons along; and after not too long a time, two of them were
killed.
The third survived a bit longer, then turned into a Yellow Light and
oozed underneath a locked door in minetown. You know, what a locked
door in minetown is harbouring, and what a Yellow Light does, when it
encounters that...
Irina Rempt
> Second: they can steal you many usefull things (not a tripe ration
> though, you have to buy this.)
Or just pick it up and drop it - the pet will know it's been in your
inventory and will get more tame just as if you'd thrown it. When I'm
in a shop I routinely pick up and drop any tripe rations and eggs
before letting my cat in.
Remco Gerlich
> Or just pick it up and drop it - the pet will know it's been in your
> inventory and will get more tame just as if you'd thrown it. When I'm
> in a shop I routinely pick up and drop any tripe rations and eggs
> before letting my cat in.
In real life, it would work best to reward it after doing something
good. Maybe giving a dog some food immediately after it drops
something right next to you would be good...
--
Remco Gerlich, scar...@pino.selwerd.cx
Official #angband Zangul. Obedient to The One RNG and its evil world.
DeborahRG
>
>The funniest was a pet chameleon. It constantly turned in other monsters
>even
>umber hulks.
>
>
I never had a pet chameleon, but if you feed the corpse of one to another pet,
it will change form, and it seems like that change is permanent. I transformed
a pet into a dragon that way once on the Rogue quest, and it did not change
back. Also once my pet white dragon ate something and turned black--my guess
is it was a chameleon corpse too. There were no traps in the vicinity, or
monsters will polymorph wands.
Deborah
David Richerby
DeborahRG <debo...@aol.com> wrote:
> Also once my pet white dragon ate something and turned black--my guess
> is it was a chameleon corpse too. There were no traps in the vicinity,
> or monsters will polymorph wands.
Thankfully, monsters only ever use wands of polymorph on themselves so
it most likely was a chameleon corpse.
Dave.
--
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http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~davidr/ int C;main(/*\*/){printf("""""\
++C%s\n"+2,1//*/__STDC__/*/1+-1
?"++":"");return(C,C++?C:C++);}