Frequently Asked Questions - Revision history

Hordes at 19:03, 25 December 2025

2025-12-25T19:03:55Z

Mystic Sailboat: /* As a new player, which species and background should I play? */ Hill Orc is gone

2024-09-28T12:16:19Z

‎As a new player, which species and background should I play?: Hill Orc is gone

Mystic Sailboat: /* Which branch should I visit next? */ Grammatical fix

2024-09-28T12:14:28Z

‎Which branch should I visit next?: Grammatical fix

Patrick2011b: update Tavern link

2024-05-08T00:51:39Z

update Tavern link

Patrick2011b: /* What do the different text colours on items mean? */ update

2024-05-08T00:50:28Z

‎What do the different text colours on items mean?: update

Hordes: /* Which starting weapon should I pick? */

2024-03-15T18:03:59Z

‎Which starting weapon should I pick?

Hordes: /* Which starting weapon should I pick? */

2024-03-15T18:03:35Z

‎Which starting weapon should I pick?

Hordes: /* What do the different text colours on items mean? */ fix link

2024-01-16T18:01:00Z

‎What do the different text colours on items mean?: fix link

Hordes: +misc evokers

2024-01-16T17:59:53Z

+misc evokers

Hordes: /* What do the different monster colours mean? */

2024-01-16T17:53:45Z

‎What do the different monster colours mean?

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-{{version031}}
+{{version033}}
 This page lists a series of questions that players frequently ask. Crawl also has its own official frequently asked questions, which can be found in-game through the command '''?Q''', which are also worth reading as a new player.
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 *[[Long Blades]] scale with [[dexterity]] instead of [[strength]], and their damage is similar to Maces & Flails.
-If you had to pick one? Axes, at least for Hill Orc and Minotaur.
+If you had to pick one? Axes, at least for Mountain Dwarf and Minotaur.
 == How do you get a character dump? ==
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 *Monsters that have unusual items, such as [[wand]]s or [[throwing net]]s, have a purple highlight instead.
-Difficulty values like trivial and easy are calculated automatically by the game; they may or may not be accurate to how dangerous a monster ''actually'' is. For example, a [[moth of wrath]] might be considered "trivial", but the moth's ability to [[berserk]] nearby creatures is not trivial. Regardless, if you see a monster with a red or purple highlight, you should probably pause and assess the situation.
+Note that the aforementioned threat values are calculated automatically by the game; they may or may not be accurate to how dangerous a monster ''actually'' is. For example, a [[moth of wrath]] might be considered "trivial", but the moth's ability to [[berserk]] nearby creatures is not trivial. Regardless, if you see a monster with a red or purple highlight, you should probably pause and assess the situation.
 == Which branch should I visit next? ==
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 == Which stat should I choose to increase? ==
-Every six [[experience level]]s, you get a choice to increase one of the [[stat]]s -- [[Strength]], [[Intelligence]], or [[Dexterity]] -- by two points ([[Demigod]]s get four points every three XL). Which stat you wish to raise depends entirely on your situation.
+Every six [[experience level]]s, you get a choice to increase one of the [[stat]]s -- [[Strength]], [[Intelligence]], or [[Dexterity]] -- by two points ([[Demigod]]s get four points every three XL). Which stat you wish to raise depends on your situation.
-If one or more of your stats is extremely low -- below about 5 -- you may want to raise it. It'll reduce the chances of getting that [[stat zero|stat to zero]], which causes a few severely debilitating effects.
+*Strength is traditionally good on heavily armoured melee characters. Casters that are wearing heavier armour (e.g., [[scale mail]] or [[fire dragon scales]]) may also want strength for the decreased failure rate.
 {{Guides}}
 [[Category:Strategy Guides]]

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 == As a new player, which species and background should I play? ==
-The [[Background and race combinations for beginners|most commonly suggested species]] and backgrounds are any combination of [[Minotaur]], [[Hill Orc]], and [[Gargoyle]] with [[Fighter]], [[Gladiator]], or [[Berserker]]. These combos provide a more gentle introduction to the game, focusing mostly on weapon-based combat and largely ignoring [[spell]]s or intense [[skill]] management.
+The [[Background and race combinations for beginners|most commonly suggested species]] and backgrounds are any combination of [[Minotaur]], [[Mountain Dwarf]], and [[Gargoyle]] with [[Fighter]], [[Gladiator]], or [[Berserker]]. These combos provide a more gentle introduction to the game, focusing mostly on weapon-based combat and largely ignoring [[spell]]s or intense [[skill]] management.
 If you instead want to play with [[ranged weapons]], a [[Minotaur]] or [[Spriggan]] [[Hunter]] may be appropriate. If you'd rather play as a spellcaster, a [[Gargoyle]] [[Earth Elementalist]] or [[Draconian]] [[Conjurer]] would be a good starting point. While [[Deep Elves]] have the best magic aptitudes, their low [[HP]] and poor defensive aptitudes make them less forgiving to play.

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 The above list applies to a standard, 3-[[rune]] game. If you want to go for more runes, potentially up to the maximum of 15 runes, you will have to do:
-*Firstly, it is recommended to complete the other two third rune branches out of [[Vaults]]:5, [[Slime Pits]], and the [[Abyss]], as well as [[Zot]] 1-4.
+*The other two third rune branches out of [[Vaults]]:5, [[Slime Pits]], and the [[Abyss]], as well as [[Zot]] 1-4.
 *The first "extended" branch you complete should be the [[Pandemonium]], which contains five runes. While the other runes are possible, Pan tends to be the easiest of the bunch.
 *Then, you can get your final five runes in generally any order you wish, from:

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 *Head to #crawl on libera.chat, where there will be people around to help you out;
 *Join one of Crawl's many Discord servers, in particular the [https://discord.gg/9pmFGKx roguelikes Discord]'s channel dedicated to Dungeon Crawl;
-*Post information about your game on the [https://crawl.develz.org/tavern/ Tavern forum], or on the [https://www.reddit.com/r/dcss/ DCSS reddit]
+*Post information about your game on the [https://tavern.dcss.io/ Tavern forum], or on the [https://www.reddit.com/r/dcss/ DCSS reddit]
 In all four of these places it will be helpful to others if you post screenshots and/or a character dump, so that other players can offer specific advice about your game and answer specific questions. If you're playing offline, you'll find your character dump in the <code>morgue</code> directory of your Crawl folder. If you're playing online, you can press '''#''' while in-game, which will print a link to your character dump in the chat window.

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 Colours can be changed using the [[rcfile]] option <code>menu_colour</code>. These are the defaults:
 *Light green items are the items you currently have equipped.
-*Green items are known to have a [[brand]].
+*Green items are either magical staves or weapons/armour with an enchantment and/or ego.
-*Items in blue are unidentified. Light grey items are of a known type.
+*Items in blue are unidentified.
 *Items in light red are (almost) outright harmful, or items cursed by [[Ashenzari]]. Items in red are hated by your god.
 *Dark grey items are useless in your current state.
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 *Cyan items are particularly good and rare ([[scroll of acquirement|scrolls of acquirement]] and [[potion of experience|potions of experience]]).
 *Items listed in white are randomly generated [[artefact]]s. These artefacts have special, randomized properties.
-*Items listed in light cyan are unique, one-of-a-kind items. They include [[evocable|miscellaneous evocables]] and special "[[unrand]]" [[artefact]]s
+*Items listed in light cyan are unique, one-of-a-kind items. They include [[evocable|miscellaneous evocables]] and special "[[unrand]]" [[artefact]]s.
 For more information, see the [[item]] article.

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 == Which starting weapon should I pick? ==
-Firstly, you should take a look at your aptitudes. Displayed on the selection screen itself, you can also see your species' aptitudes by pressing '''%''' when selecting species/background. Positive aptitudes are better than average, while negative aptitudes are worse. Aptitudes do matter, but not as much as you may think. Small aptitude differences can be ignored, but ''large'' differences (e.g. [[Merfolk]]'s [[Polearm]]s/[[Long Blades]]) do matter.
+Firstly, you should take a look at your aptitudes. Displayed on the selection screen itself, you can also see your species' aptitudes by pressing '''%''' when selecting species/background. Positive aptitudes are better than average, while negative aptitudes are worse. Aptitudes do matter, but not as much as you may think. Small aptitude differences can be ignored, but ''large'' differences (e.g. [[Merfolk]]'s [[Polearm]]s/[[Long Blades]] apts are much higher than the others) do matter.
 *[[Axes]] have the very useful [[cleave]] property, allowing you to hit every enemy adjacent to you.
 *[[Maces & Flails]] don't have any special gimmick, but have better damage and don't cut [[hydra]] heads.

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 *Cyan items are particularly good and rare ([[scroll of acquirement|scrolls of acquirement]] and [[potion of experience|potions of experience]]).
 *Items listed in white are randomly generated [[artefact]]s. These artefacts have special, randomized properties.
-*Items listed in light cyan are "[[unrand]]" [[artefact]]s - unique items with predetermined (often one-of-a-kind) properties.
+*Items listed in light cyan are unique, one-of-a-kind items. They include [[miscellaenous evocable]]s and special [[unrand]] [[artefact]]s
 For more information, see the [[item]] article.
 == What do the different monster colours mean? ==
-A monster may be highlighted in certain colours, depending on their threat level. By default:
+A monster may be highlighted in certain colours, depending on their threat level relative to your level. By default:
 *"Trivial", "easy", and "tough" monsters have no highlight.
 *"Lethal" monsters have a red highlight.
 *Monsters that have unusual items, such as [[wand]]s or [[throwing net]]s, have a purple highlight instead.
-Difficulty values like trivial and easy are calculated automatically by the game; they may or may not be accurate to how dangerous a monster ''actually'' is. Regardless, if you see a monster with a red or purple highlight, you should probably pause and assess the situation.
+Difficulty values like trivial and easy are calculated automatically by the game; they may or may not be accurate to how dangerous a monster ''actually'' is. For example, a [[moth of wrath]] might be considered "trivial", but the moth's ability to [[berserk]] nearby creatures is not trivial. Regardless, if you see a monster with a red or purple highlight, you should probably pause and assess the situation.
 == Which branch should I visit next? ==