Scarab talisman

Version 0.33: This article is up to date for the latest stable release of Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup.

A small golden cameo of a beetle. Transforms the user into a sun scarab, a fiery insect that carries around a mote of searing heat and light outside itself, like a tiny sun. This solar ember burns adjacent enemies whenever the scarab attacks, and can be healed by swapping with it. In addition, the scarab's own mandibles can reduce enemies' fire resistance and Fire spells are easier for the user to cast.

A scarab talisman is a talisman that changes you into a scarab beetle rolling around a miniature sun.

Useful Info

When eVoked, a scarab talisman turns you into Scarab Form, which lasts until you end the form. Entering or exiting a form takes 5 turns.

Scarab Form has the following effects:

Offensive traits

• Unarmed Combat: 3 base damage (no bonus)
• Your melee attacks have a 50% chance to apply rF- if they pass AC.

Solar ember

• While in this form, the player will have a * solar ember that follows alongside them. It uses similar leashing behavior to phalanx beetles, but additionally will not move while already adjacent to the player (so that its positioning remains predictable while the player fights.)
• Every 2nd melee attack triggers the solar ember to unleash a blast of fire against all enemies adjacent to it (and damage itself by 7-10 HP).
  • The damage is 2d14-2d24, scaling with Shapeshifting skill.
• Swapping places with the ember heals it for 75% of its max HP.
• If the ember is destroyed, it will automatically respawn 20-32 turns later.

Defensive traits

• Fire resistance 2 (rF++)
• Poison vulnerability (rPois-)
• Innate AC: +5-9 AC, scaling with Shapeshifting skill

Restrictions

• Melded Gear: All weapons and armor
• Suppressed mutations: Anatomy, blood, bones

Other

• Scarab Form is Small-sized. This gives a significant benefit to EV for species who are Medium or larger, scaling more to one's Dexterity and Dodging skill.
• Fire Magic wizardry: A wizardy bonus to all your Fire Magic spells (equivalent of two rings of wizardry).

Scarab Form has a minimum Shapeshifting skill of 8, below which you get an HP penalty. Maximum skill is 14.

Strategy

Scarab Form is the glass cannon of Tier-2 talismans, with high EV and high damage output in exchange for the AC of one's melded armour. Not only does the flare do immense damage for its investment levels, but in the early to mid Dungeon and Lair, there are very few monsters with fire resistance, so rF- melee attacks will let solar ember flares outcompete most other mage background spells (like Flame Wave). Positioning for the flare and monsters alike to keep the ember safe without also leaving yourself open is crucial- against multiple monsters, try to find slightly open chokepoints the ember and you together can then fill up.

• 

  Two-space-wide chokepoints particularly help with monsters focusing on the player first.

Scarab Form	Gargoyle

History

• Scarab talismans were added in 0.33.