Marisa's Disk Jockey guide

Version 0.18: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

This article contains advice from other players, which may be subjective, outdated, inaccurate or ill-advised. Take advice as you see fit, and read at your own risk!

The "Disc Jockey" character build guide (0.18)

NOTE: This is not a normal species or background guide. It covers a specific character build.

Greetings, crawlers! This is Marisa Kirisame and today we'll be covering a DJ character build, which, as you probably already guessed, is designed to harness the tremendous power of the disk of storms. Let's start!

The core build

This core build is the very minimum that is required to turn your character into a DJ. It includes:

1) a disk of storms - a powerful misc. evokable item that randomly casts multiple Shocks, Lightning Bolts and Orbs of Electricity all around you at zero cost for immense damage output, especially with multizapping. However, Lightning Bolts and Shocks can be reflected onto you, and Orbs of Electricity can (and will) blow up in your face - and that's why players generally don't bother with it. It takes 10 auts to evoke a disk of storms, with the failure rate being (30-Evocations)^3 percents, for 9% at max skill level. It also generates a lot of rain clouds all around you at high Evocations.

2) a level of rElec - this would reduce the self-damage by 2/3 - and that's a lot.

3) a Necromancy spell Death's Door - it gives you a rather high amount of turns of absolute invulnerability in exchange for reducing your HP to slightly above zero (and inability to recast it for a few turns). Obviously, there's no downside in using it when you're already low on HP after successful disc spinnin' - or when you know that your current HP is not enough for you to survive the next turn.

4) a Charms spell Haste that makes evoking the disc take less time - down to ~7 auts. This is a lot, expecially when you need to maximize that Death's Door.

Choosing a god

At the early game, take Kiku with a prospect of a free Necronomicon (which contains Death's Door). Kiku would help you with training Necromancy and his wrath is rather easy since he provides the tools to deal with it himself (Dispel and Control Undead). You can also take Pakellas after that for a chance of a disc of storms gift, but this is unrecommended because his wrath is far worse for a professional evoker your character will become.

So, what's the final god choice? When it comes to HP restoration, it always comes down to Makhleb and TSO. However, TSO, along with the rest of the good gods, prohibits Necromancy (and thus Death's Door), so Makhleb becomes the optimal choice (also restoring more HP per kill and without enemy holiness restriction). Okawaru is out of question since Finesse does not reduce the evocation delay, and your teammates will be zapped to death. The rest of the gods are not appealing enough.

Choosing Species

Now, from reading the core build, we understand that a good DJ should survive continuous electric storms, must be able to cast Death's Door and Haste oneself. This leaves Mummies, Ghouls, and Vampires out of the question, and Formicids would find themselves with significantly less damage output because they cannot Haste themselves (not to mention the lack of escape routes if the floor is not clear when your Death's Door is wearing off). Other species are fine, although we're looking for better aptitudes in Evocations, Necromancy and Charms.

So, what would be the best choice for a DJ? After a long analysis, I've come to a decision that this would be a Deep Dwarf, and the main reason for this was the damage shaving ability. The self-damage from the disk comes from multiple spells and multizaps, and every time it would be reduced. Not to mention the enemies trying to take a bite of you at the same time. A Deep Dwarf also has 20% more HP and wonderful Evocations and Necromancy aptitudes (and Earth Magic, but we'll mention this later). It would be a bit hard to recover after a Death's Door though.

Another powerful choice would be a Vine Stalker for further regeneration boost with items and spells. They have less base HP but a proper-working innate Spirit Shield makes up for this. Trolls have both extra HP and increased regeneration rate, but the hunger clock would be ticking very quickly, and their aptitudes are abysmal. Demonspawn have Powered by Death if they're lucky enough (and you'll be getting a lot of corpses around you), but then there are no other outstanding options. Draconians are good all around, Demigods have good stats, etc. So:

1) Deep Dwarves

2) Vine Stalkers

3) Trolls

4) Draconian, Demonspawn, Demigods etc.

Choosing a background

Generally, two of the backgrounds are fine for your development as any of the above races and especially Deep Dwarves, the first being, of course, the Necromancer - for starting right off the bat.

However, on a closer inspection, the Wizard background is a bit better due to the early game powerhouses that Mephitic Cloud, Conjure Flame, Repel Missiles and Blink are. The Necromancy spells that you would want to (and must to, in the case of the Deep Dwarf) learn are going to be provided by Kiku in his early gifts anyway - and making it to his altar is easy-breezy with The Book of Minor Magic in the pack, along with superior starting INT.

Items of interest

Common items

- Scrolls of immolation

Read this when completely surrounded just before casting Death's Door for the additional fire mayhem. Helps when some of the beefier monsters in the crowd have rElec++ or higher, but not Fire immunity. For the Inner Flame spell, don't bother learning it - it's single target.

- wand of polymorph, +14 plutonium sword

Most players wouldn't want to risk polymorphing stronger opponents due to possible Hit Dice increase, but for you that is not a problem as long as the monster has it's annoying rElec+++ or rElec++ removed. MP Powered Wands bad mutation increases the wand of polymorph power for the cost of 3/6/9 MP per evoke. Plutonium sword ignores magic resistance completely with it's Transmutations miscasts.

- crystal ball of energy

Since you would be maxing out your Evocations anyway, this top-notch ponos-->vagoo item is worth getting.

- an amulet of harm

Worth wearing right before or after you cast Death's Door if you don't mind the drain afterwards.

- a ring of teleportation

With teleportitis mechanic changed in the recent patches so that it teleports you next to monsters, you might want to wear this to close the distance to your enemies time to time.

Spells

- Summon Butterflies

Not only the butterflies surrounding you keep the melee threat away, they also make Orbs of Electrocution explode right in your face. This is a good thing if you're in a wide open area and the enemies aren't plentiful enough and the orbs would miss them otherwise.

- Dragon Form

Extra HP definitely won't hurt; all of your equipment but jewels meld in though.

- Silence

Does not stop you from evoking the disc at all.

Unrandarts

- +3 warlock's mirror

This unrandart allows you to deflect Shock and Lightning Bolt, including the ones bouncing back onto you, which will reduce the self-damage you take, not to mention monster spells, hexes and attacks. Please note, however, that Lightning Bolts and Shocks that are deflected will not pass through you and will go back in the direction they came from - the warlock's mirror changes the trajectory of your zaps.

- +7 Kryia's mail coat

This unrandart allows you to regain more health artifically. Unfortunately, it does not work on Deep Dwarves where it would be due.

- +3 robe of vines

This unrandart further boosts your regeneration rate. Useless for Deep Dwarves, but perfect item for Vine Stalkers and possibly Trolls.

- Maxwell's etheric cage

This unrandart provides both rElec and MP regeneration, although the increased contamination from constant Haste is a bit restricting.

Walkthrough

TBD (and partially merged with items section). I need to organize this somehow. Add formatting, pictures for items, some theorycrafting on positioning.

So what's the point?

You're wrecking everything but rElec+++ by continiously pressing two keys (even Cerebov goes down very quickly, lesser stuff with around 100 HP are down with one evocation). Macro it for more fun. rElec+ enemies take 3 times less damage, rElec++ take 5 times less damage - but it's still significant. Make sure to stay close to the wall to concentrate damage (effects targeting the walled half of the screen bounce onto another half, same damage is focused on lesser area). Avoid any metal walls. Because you're with Makhleb, the more enemies are around, the better the situation is for you - being surrounded is not a problem anymore. Therefore it should be perfect for Zigs except for rElec floors, so you'll need to hybrid yourself into powerful elemental conjurations.

Haven't tried Zigs yet. I'll try this at online Crawl soon for some fun as Deep Dwarf Wizard.