After reading through a number of guides...

Old MUME discussions.

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Sarai
Posts: 21
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2008 8:39 am

After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Sarai »

...I decided to create a half-elven mage character. The only problem is that it's been a long time since I've played MUME, so I'm not entirely sure of what's changed and how (something about "scout changes" and whatnot, apparently). I'm wondering exactly what one should practice as a newbie mage and how one should go about leveling. The first order of business: my stats.

STR: 8
INT: 18
WIS: 18
DEX: 10
CON: 11
WIL: 12
PER: 18

I used Jahara's stat creator, so I know that I have over 100% in all mage skills. And, like I said, I read through some guides, so I'm figuring that my first practices will be as follows:

3x parry
1x dodge
4x wilderness
3x awareness
2x swim

Is this at all correct? Following that, I plan to save my practices for burning hands, detect invisibility, lightning bolt, fireball, control weather, call lightning, armor, shield, store, shroud, block door, teleport, quake, and BOB...are these good choices? Are there any that I should lose/add? And what other skills should I add after those?

As a final question--apologies!--I plan at some point to create either a BN mage or an orc shaman. I realize that these aren't good characters for newbies, which is why I'm starting off as a "puke" race. However, are there any tips (again, I've read a number of guides) that anyone would like to give on playing these things?

Thanks for your help!
Wobbler
Posts: 393
Joined: Mon Feb 25, 2008 10:02 pm

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Wobbler »

I would most definitely drop per by 3-4 points to improve wil, con and str.
Politicians are wise and benevolent and will gladly sacrifice themselves for the common good. Anyone who implies that there might exist dishonest politicians is obviously a terrorist who should be locked up indefinitely without a trial.
Timodeus
Arata
Posts: 301
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 9:20 am
Location: Germany

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Timodeus »

You want more str or you'll constantly be out of moves, especially when you carry more than nothing.
Wobbler
Posts: 393
Joined: Mon Feb 25, 2008 10:02 pm

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Wobbler »

Oh, and awareness below 95% does not seem to do anything at all; at 95+ it gives night vision, which you as a caster can get much cheaper by practicing the spell.
Politicians are wise and benevolent and will gladly sacrifice themselves for the common good. Anyone who implies that there might exist dishonest politicians is obviously a terrorist who should be locked up indefinitely without a trial.
crackle
Posts: 11
Joined: Tue Mar 11, 2008 7:48 pm
Location: Maryland, USA

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by crackle »

First off, I would say go elf or man instead of half elf. Statwise, the latter are for clerics, because of the +1 wis (and that would be the only reason for choosing one, since to me playing a half elf for rp reasons makes no sense in a Tolkien world).

Choosing stats
  • Str, dex, con: Opinions vary, but 12, 12, 12 will be reasonable for casters. Some choose higher str that that for wearing armour or for combo warriors. Some choose higher dex for better flee. Some choose higher con for better survivability in a caster-caster fight. Some go as low as 10, 10, 10, and max their mentals.
  • Wil: Should be higher (14 to 16ish).
  • Per: Should be lower (12 to 15ish). This will give you 101+ track if you've maxed int (see next item).
  • Int: Should always be max for a non-combo mage.
  • Wis: Anywhere from 15 to 18. I'd do 16 or 17.
You can get an idea of the relative importance of stats for pracs by asking a guildmaster 'help <spellname>'. For example, asking a mage gm 'help lightning bolt' results in:

Code: Select all

More powerful than shocking grasp, but less powerful than colour spray, this spell can be cast quite rapidly in battle, compared to the more powerful offensive spells. It takes a brilliant mind to master this skill; deep insight and good eyesight are important too.
The last sentence means that the stats that matter for pracs, from most to least important, are int, wis, then per.

Oh and btw, Jahara's stat creator (or any other on the web) give only estimates for prac percents. It's typically off by about 5 percent points, sometimes more, sometimes less.

Choosing pracs

Even with the changes to scouts, I'd say bows are the best way to level a mage for the first 10 levels or so. This is true whether solo or in a group. In a group, shooting a bashed opponent does much more damage (= more experience for you). Solo, sneak + shoot + flee also does a lot of damage. It's just that with the recent changes, you'll have to wait a bit between flees. Use whatever arrows you can find (they'll break a lot), but use a longbow over a shortbow, even if you don't have the min strength for it.

So practice mainly scout and ranger skills at first, no spells. I'd say missile 50+, sneak maxed. If you're always going to group, forget sneak. Even the pracs in missile aren't strictly necessary for using a bow. Decay them both after level 10 or so. Once you get into the mid-teens, spells will be more effective. But don't bother with bob until higher levels.

As for other skills:
  • Wilderness: None needed for leveling. Many don't even use it later on. After all, you'll have bob.
  • Swim: 1 prac.
  • Climb: 1 prac.
  • Ride: Above 50%. No more than that is really needed.
  • Bandage: 1 prac. Or above 50% if you get annoyed by failing bandages.
  • Search: 1 prac if you plan on learning new areas.
  • Awareness: None.
  • Dodge: 1 prac maybe at first. Decay later when you get shield spell.
  • Parry: 1 prac maybe. Remember, you're not a buffer.
For higher levels and bns/shamans, go with charm/raise dead. See other guides for that, especially the boards and guides at the Black Shadow Clan website http://bsc.mandor.se/

Hope that helps.
Wobbler
Posts: 393
Joined: Mon Feb 25, 2008 10:02 pm

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Wobbler »

Swim: 90+
Climb: 50+
Ride: 100
Wilderness: 50-100
Endurance: ~10 pracs
Parry, dodge: 2-3 pracs each
Missile: ~5-6 pracs
Politicians are wise and benevolent and will gladly sacrifice themselves for the common good. Anyone who implies that there might exist dishonest politicians is obviously a terrorist who should be locked up indefinitely without a trial.
Peapend
Posts: 31
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 10:09 pm
Location: California

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Peapend »

Like everyone said get more strength.



I would strongly advise against getting endurance or missile except for the first levels.(maybe maybe a few practices in missile if you were going to be a cleric, but even then i would just as soon skip it because it may feel faster from 1-10 to xp as a thief but especially on the puke side where you have so many resources are at your disposal its just a waste of time waiting for decay etc.)Getting lvls 1-10 is very short, and with my experience as a caster those out of class practices will NEVER be worth it. Even if out of practice practices don't drop your % much, they decrease your damage exponentially from spells and you will backfire 2-3 times more then you would without them. Also it will hurt your secondary spells even more (bob, cure serious maybe sanctuary at 45 +). All of that for the benefit of 10 to 20 ob more ob with a bow or 3 or 4 more hps with endurance.


Then again none of that matters at 1-10 i realize but just something to keep in mind that it is entirly possible just to skip those practices.



A few tips for xp because lowbie xp on a caster is terrible:


-Use merecenarys if there is no player buff
-Get charm usuable or quake as soon as possible (lvl 15 orso)
-At higher levels try to get a good buff and sleep xp for a change of pace on what you do solo
-Try to xp in places where its fully safe to go somehwere and just sleep
-Tactics like cast fleeing work just like hit fleeing does on a warrior in xp
-Don't take risks in xp before level 21 because you will die, inevitable.
Sarai
Posts: 21
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2008 8:39 am

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Sarai »

Alrighty, thanks for the information.

My theoretical stats are then:

STR: 12
INT: 19
WIS: 16
DEX: 13
CON: 12
WIL: 14
PER: 14

I have one stat point leftover. Any suggestions? I know I can lower PER by one and raise CON by one to end up with 0...should I do that?
Razoor
Posts: 77
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 10:20 am

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Razoor »

Dont, under any circumstances, go with nothing below max int/wis, you'll regret it.

Str:10 Int:19 Wis:18 Dex:10 Con:12 Wil:14 Per:14.

train improve con
train neglect per

Those stats are pretty good, at least for a PK char. If you're only gonna XP, then I would personally
lower con/dex and get a bit more wil. But those stats will work well for both playstyles.
Elmir
Posts: 38
Joined: Fri Feb 29, 2008 5:52 pm
Location: Stockholm

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Elmir »

Actually, 9 strength isn't that bad! You just can't wear chain or metals.

I rather like the spiffy look of a mage who wears tattered cloth, fine grey and a circlet. Walking around lookin' snappy in his brand new smooth shoes, wielding a gem-inlaid staff that shines with a bright light and calls forth his mighty horse using nothing but a low-pitched whistle!

Way cooler than some fancy pants chain user.



And I'm with Razoor on this one.
Irileyh
Posts: 9
Joined: Wed Mar 19, 2008 9:08 pm
Contact:

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Irileyh »

lol i always thought that too, elmir
10% skill, 100% awesome.
Foul Pukes : Bir Glare Syd Wave Squints, and a few extra.
Noble Scum : Boddah Loch Gâl Mathers Irileyh, and a few more extra.
Timodeus
Arata
Posts: 301
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 9:20 am
Location: Germany

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Timodeus »

@sarai
As you can see there are several opionions on what is "good" and "necessary". Do not get too confused. I just wait for Azazello who is going to say "Pracs are much more important than stats" and automatically assumes we are talking about level 60+ chars. :twisted:
Sarai
Posts: 21
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2008 8:39 am

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Sarai »

Again, thanks for the help, everyone. On a semi-related note, can anyone help me with this script? I'm trying to take the POWttY direction script by Jahara and make the text show up as yellow. However, I keep getting errors about parenthesis (and I even got an error about parenthesis when something moved down prior to messing with the file).

#action >+leavee &1 leaves east&2={#print (""+$colour_high_yellow+"("$1 leaves >>> E A S T >>>$2"))}
#action >+leavew &1 leaves west&2={#print (""+$colour_high_yellow+"("$1 leaves <<< W E S T <<<$2"))}
#action >+leaven &1 leaves north&2={#print (""+$colour_high_yellow+"("$1 leaves ^^^ N O R T H ^^^$2"))}
#action >+leaves &1 leaves south&2={#print (""+$colour_high_yellow+ ("$1 leaves VVV S O U T H VVV$2"))}
#action >+leaveu &1 leaves up&2={#print (""+$colour_high_yellow+"("$1 leaves /// U P ///$2"))}
#action >+leaved &1 leaves down&2={#print (""+$colour_high_yellow+"("$1 leaves \\\ D O W N \\\$2"))}
Azazello
Posts: 119
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 12:09 pm

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Azazello »

Lately i'am even pondering that a mage should not get max int and max wis, as when you hit level 100 you can't get below the mage spells cap even if you multiclass like a monkey. ,-)

stats do matter! ,-)
Caerroil
Bug Hunter
Posts: 214
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 12:25 pm
Location: Sweden

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Caerroil »

This will colour the entire line of someone leaving with high/bold yellow:
#action >+leavee &1 leaves east&2={#print (attr "bold yellow" +"$1 leaves >>> E A S T >>>$2" + noattr)}

This will only colour the direction someone leaves with high/bold yellow:
#action >+leavee &1 leaves east&2={#print ("$1 leaves " + attr "bold yellow" + ">>> E A S T >>>" + noattr + "$2")}

I suggest you use the second version, it will preserve the colour you use for enemies in a better way while the first version could end up looking "funny". (Also if you do want to use those variables with colour codes replace the 'attr "bold yellow"' strings with '$colour_high_yellow' and the 'noattr' with '$colour_off' (or whatever it is called). The end result will be the same whatever method you use.)
Sarai
Posts: 21
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2008 8:39 am

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Sarai »

Thanks, Caerroil--the second one is just what I was looking for!

EDIT: Actually, I lied. It's not working at all now, not even showing the normal gray color. And the XP script I downloaded isn't working. I've been saving them in Notepad...is this the wrong format for these types of files?
Timodeus
Arata
Posts: 301
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 9:20 am
Location: Germany

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Timodeus »

Check if you have a linebreak in the script that should not be there.

Apart from that: For colouring in Powwow/powtty I found a combination of #action and #mark to be more simple.
Thus, you first use a action that replaces whatever your want to replce (e.g. "leaves east" with LEAVES EAST) and then set a #mark that colours "LEAVES &" big, fat, underlined eye-torturing red.
Zigûrun
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Mar 08, 2008 1:50 pm

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Zigûrun »

The +attr feature is definitely broken in the ER Powtty release along with bunch of other stuff.
So you are going to have to use the variable version you had, but perhaps your client just lacked the definition for them?
Here's something you can try:

#action >+leavee &1 leaves east&2={#print ("$1 leaves "+$colour_high_white+"EAST"+$colour_attribute_ansioff+"$2")}

and variables for it:

#($colour_attribute_ansioff = "\033[0m")
#($colour_high_white = "\033[1m\033[37m")

And good luck with your char... You're going to need it if you keep listening to other people!
Sarai
Posts: 21
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2008 8:39 am

Re: After reading through a number of guides...

Post by Sarai »

Got it! For future reference, it looks like:

#action >+leavee &1 leaves east&2={#print ("$1 leaves "+$colour_high_yellow+">>> EAST >>>"+$colour_attribute_ansioff+"$2")}
#action >+leavew &1 leaves west&2={#print ("$1 leaves "+$colour_high_yellow+"<<< WEST <<<"+$colour_attribute_ansioff+"$2")}
#action >+leaven &1 leaves north&2={#print ("$1 leaves "+$colour_high_yellow+"^^^ NORTH ^^^"+$colour_attribute_ansioff+"$2")}
#action >+leaves &1 leaves south&2={#print ("$1 leaves "+$colour_high_yellow+"VVV SOUTH VVV"+$colour_attribute_ansioff+"$2")}
#action >+leaveu &1 leaves up&2={#print ("$1 leaves "+$colour_high_yellow+"/// UP ///"+$colour_attribute_ansioff+"$2")}
#action >+leaved &1 leaves down&2={#print ("$1 leaves "+$colour_high_yellow+"\\\ DOWN \\\"+$colour_attribute_ansioff+"$2")}
#($colour_attribute_ansioff = "\033[0m")
#($colour_high_yellow = "\033[1m\033[33m")
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