Difference between revisions of "Wyrmbane"

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("Best weapon" is kind of a subjective term, though Wyrmbane's definitely up there.)
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==Desirability==
 
==Desirability==
'''Wyrmbane''' is one of the best weapons in the game, given that it provides a high amount of damage with excellent speed (5 min delay), along with four useful intrinsics which help your survivability immensely. Characters who are lucky enough to find it should definitely consider switching.
+
Extremely high. In almost all cases, a fully empowered '''"Wyrmbane"''' is the most powerful weapon in the game, given that it provides a high amount of irresistible damage coupled with excellent speed (5 min delay), along with four useful intrinsics which help your survivability immensely. Be aware that the [[dragonslaying]] brand has little to do with its excellent performance; "Wyrmbane" works  just fine against any opponent you may encounter in ''Crawl'', particularly with [[haste]] and other [[slaying]] bonuses, or while [[berserk]]. Characters who are lucky enough to find this weapon should definitely consider switching to [[polearms]].
  
In terms of raw damage it will outperform a [[demon trident]] of freezing fairly well (though some may still prefer the weapon of freezing for its slowing effect on [[list of draconians|draconians]]), and it isn't too far behind a branded [[bardiche]] while requiring considerably less skill investment to start using; it also allows you to use a shield.
+
Its base enchantment level of +8 does not keep it from being an extremely effective weapon, but in order to make the best use of Wyrmbane, one must first kill many dragons with it. This is an easier task than it may seem, however. Getting Wyrmbane up to +12 can be accomplished by hunting [[fire dragon|fire]] and [[ice dragon]]s, which can be found throughout [[the Depths]] easily enough. [[Storm dragon]]s, [[shadow dragon]]s, [[gold dragon]]s, and [[bone dragon]]s will take you further, but are less commonly encountered. You can either dip into [[the Realm of Zot]] to hunt there (the [[list of draconians|draconians]] can also help you get a bit closer to maxed out), or into [[the Crypt]], where [[skeleton (monster)|skeleton]] dragons of very high HD tend to occur. The [[iron dragon]]s of [[Dis]] are also viable targets, but exploring [[Hell]] is significantly more dangerous than the other options.
 
 
Of course, in order to make the best use of Wyrmbane, one must first kill many dragons with it, which may be easier said than done. Getting Wyrmbane up to +12 isn't that hard, as you only need to kill [[fire dragon|fire]] or [[ice dragon]]s to get that far, and reaching +14 from fighting [[storm dragon]]s isn't too much more difficult if you have [[electricity resistance]]. Past there, though, you'll have to start killing things like [[shadow dragon]]s, [[golden dragon]]s, or [[bone dragon]]s, which may put up a decent fight.
 
 
 
[[The Crypt]] and the [[Hell]]s tend to send plentiful [[skeleton]] and [[zombie]] dragons at you, including some of the highest HD ones. These undead foes are much easier to slay than their living brethren, and count as dragons for the purpose of improving Wyrmbane.
 
 
 
If your Wyrmbane is not already +18 by the time you arrive in the [[Realm of Zot]], you will be able to max it out quickly by fighting the [[list of draconians|draconian packs]] and golden dragons there.
 
  
 
==History==
 
==History==

Revision as of 18:10, 20 March 2015

Version 0.16: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.
An enchanted lance deadly to all dragonkind. It grows more powerful every time it inflicts a killing blow on a strong dragon. The more powerful it grows, the harder it will be to find a worthy opponent.

Wyrmbane.png the +8 lance "Wyrmbane"

+8 lance (8 damage, +4 accuracy, 110% speed)

Dragon slaying brand
+5 AC
rF+
rPois
Allows berserk
Enchantment level rises when you kill dragons

Enchantment Mechanics

If a dragon slaying-vulnerable target is killed by the base damage of this weapon, it will gain +1 enchantment up to the HD of the dragon killed.

Examples:

  • If you kill a fire dragon (HD 12) with the basic +8 Wyrmbane, it will become +9
  • If you then use Wyrmbane to kill a swamp dragon (HD 9), Wyrmbane's enchantment will not change (the dragon was too weak to boost the enchantment).

The maximum enchantment Wyrmbane can gain this way is +18, though there are draconic monsters with higher HD. Even if you manage to kill something like the Serpent of Hell (HD 20) or Tiamat (HD 22) with Wyrmbane, its enchantment won't increase past +18.

Desirability

Extremely high. In almost all cases, a fully empowered "Wyrmbane" is the most powerful weapon in the game, given that it provides a high amount of irresistible damage coupled with excellent speed (5 min delay), along with four useful intrinsics which help your survivability immensely. Be aware that the dragonslaying brand has little to do with its excellent performance; "Wyrmbane" works just fine against any opponent you may encounter in Crawl, particularly with haste and other slaying bonuses, or while berserk. Characters who are lucky enough to find this weapon should definitely consider switching to polearms.

Its base enchantment level of +8 does not keep it from being an extremely effective weapon, but in order to make the best use of Wyrmbane, one must first kill many dragons with it. This is an easier task than it may seem, however. Getting Wyrmbane up to +12 can be accomplished by hunting fire and ice dragons, which can be found throughout the Depths easily enough. Storm dragons, shadow dragons, gold dragons, and bone dragons will take you further, but are less commonly encountered. You can either dip into the Realm of Zot to hunt there (the draconians can also help you get a bit closer to maxed out), or into the Crypt, where skeleton dragons of very high HD tend to occur. The iron dragons of Dis are also viable targets, but exploring Hell is significantly more dangerous than the other options.

History

Prior to 0.15, Wyrmbane had a +9,+6 enchantment bonus.