Difference between revisions of "Mega-Zig"

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In 0.16, a new and more difficult mega-ziggurat was added.  After completing floor 27 of a ziggurat, the next ziggurat will be harder, packed with more monsters. After completing floor 27 of that second one, the next will be even harder.  And so on until the 13th ziggurat completed, at which point the difficulty maxes out.
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{{advice}}
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After completing floor 27 of a [[Ziggurat]], the next ziggurat will be harder and packed with more monsters. By maybe the 4th or 5th ziggurat, most levels will be entirely stuffed with a monster on every square, with the difficulty eventually capping out at 13 floors. These ultra-hard Ziggurats are dubbed '''Mega-Zigs'''.  
  
By maybe the 4th or 5th ziggurat, most levels will be entirely packed with a monster on every square.
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==Character Creation==
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For some of the most difficult areas that ''Dungeon Crawl'' can offer, and with the massive number of floors you'll be doing, it's expected that some very specific character builds are required to complete them.  
  
The mega-zig requires a fairly particular character to succeed.
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===God: Gozag===
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[[Gozag]] is the strongest god for megazigging. For one, your gold aura will practically always be at maximum effectiveness due to how much gold you will create. Also, with that much gold, you can constantly petition for potion effects. Having effectively permanent [[Haste]], [[potion of brilliance|Brilliance]], [[invisibility]], as well as on demand MP, is incredibly strong - and they work in [[Death Form]], too.
  
==Makhleb==
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While Gozag is extremely strong, [[Makhleb]], [[Vehumet]], and [[Uskayaw]] still remain fair choices for doing multiple (if not dozens of) zigs. Makhleb and Vehumet provide very strong [[HP]] and [[MP]] regen, respectively, while Uskayaw's Solo Time and Pain Bond will constantly activate and crush foes in the ultra-hectic dance floors of a ziggurat.
You should use [[Makhleb]] for healing on kills. You'll be taking huge amounts of damage and Makhleb is the only way to stay alive.  As an example of how strong Makhleb is, if you are not in lichform, it's not uncommon to get tormented for half your hp and heal it all back the next turn with a well placed firestorm.  Other gods such as Vehumet might be okay for the first few mega-zigs, but Mak is really the only good choice.
 
  
==Race==
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The [[good god]]s are some of the worst choices for mega-zigs, since they prevent you from using [[Death Form]]. They may be fine for doing 1-2 zigs, but after that, it's recommended to switch.
You have more freedom when choosing a race.  Nagas are good because of their high HP and AC, and because their poison resistance and See Invisible give you more freedom when choosing equipment.  Demonspawn can be good if they get good mutations, especially nightstalker, robust, or augmentation.  Ghouls have torment immunity plus potions, but you'll probably have to use [[Jiyva]] to get more int before switching to [[Makhleb]]. You could try other races.  I'd recommend against low HP races like Deep Elves.  Deep Elves have high aptitudes, but that doesn't matter in the long run after all skills are maxed out.
 
  
==Background==
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===Race: Demonspawn===
It's best to use a spellcasting background such as [[Wizard]] or [[Fire Elementalist]].  You will need to rely mostly on level 9 spells in a mega-zig.
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[[Demonspawn]], thanks to their [[Demonspawn mutations|exclusive mutations]], are generally the best race to start megazigging with. [[Powered by Death]] provides ''extremely'' powerful HP regen. [[Mana Shield]] converts that regen to MP, in addition to providing [[guardian spirit]]. [[Robust]] is a great standalone 3rd-tier mutation, though other mutations can work as well. '''Note that Demonspawn with a perfect mutation set are ''NOT'' necessary to complete mega-zigs, other races can do well too.''' Playing Demonspawn with a perfect mutation set is not necessary if you are aiming to complete 10-27 ziggurats. But, chances are, these mutations will make things easier if your goal is 100+ ziggurats.
  
==Spells==
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Unlike god choice, you have a lot more freedom in choosing a mega-zigging race:
[[Tornado]], [[Fire Storm]], [[Glaciate]], and [[Necromutation]] are the essentials.  Hit them with Tornado, and while you're waiting to recast it, hit them with Firestorm or Glaciate. [[Haste]] is a close runner-up. [[Darkness]] is very useful for cutting down on smiting/hellfire attacks.  [[Sublimation of Blood]] is a great way to get more mp when you aren't forced to be in lichform. [[Disjunction]] can help keep you from getting hit too much by enemies with chaos attacks, to reduce the risk of paralysis/berserk.  The rest are optional - you might want [[Borgnjor's Revivification]], [[Deflect Missiles]], [[Phase Shift]], [[Stoneskin]], [[Shatter]], etc.  Here's an example spell list:
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*[[Oni]] have the highest HP in the game, and have better [[willpower]] than Demonspawn.
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*[[Human]]s have exploration regen, which allows them to quickly recover MP by just moving forward.
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*[[Ghoul]]s have torment immunity while being able to use potions. However, they can't use [[potions of mutation]] to get a strong mutation set.
  
<nowiki>a - Necromutation        Trmt/Necr      ########..  1%          8    None
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Low HP races like Deep Elves and Spriggans are ill advised - high aptitudes or fast speed don't matter once you're a blaster who has maxed out all your skills.
b - Haste                Chrm          ########    0%          6    None
 
c - Swiftness            Chrm/Air      ########    0%          2    None
 
d - Controlled Blink      Tloc          N/A          1%          7    None
 
e - Darkness              Hex            ########..  1%          7    None
 
f - Disjunction          Tloc          ########..  1%          8    None
 
g - Apportation          Tloc          ########..  0%          1    None
 
h - Tornado              Air            ########..  1%          9    ##.....
 
i - Fire Storm            Conj/Fire      ########..  1%          9    ##.....
 
j - Borgnjor's Revivific  Necr          ########..  1%          8    None
 
k - Sublimation of Blood  Necr          ########..  0%          2    None
 
o - Regeneration          Chrm/Necr      ########..  0%          3    None
 
p - Glaciate              Conj/Ice      ########..  1%          9    ##.....</nowiki>
 
  
==Armour==
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===Background===
Wear a shield. [[Shield of the Gong]] is nice.  Have as much AC as you can have, without hurting your spell success rates.  40 AC is enough.  When possible, wear equipment that increases your int.  You want to have 40-50 int.  That's more than the minimum you need to cast your level 9 spells, but you'll spend a lot of time with your int drained as much as 10 points, so it helps to have extra.  Also, armour that increases your MR is handy, since paralysis in a megazig is sometimes a death sentence.
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It's best to use a spellcasting background. You will need to rely mostly on level 8-9 spells in a mega-zig. While background largely does not matter in the endgame, spell casting backgrounds start with more [[Intelligence]] -- with [[Conjurer]] starting with the most. [[Stat zero]] may be a reasonable concern with Conjurer, so you may want to use another magic start instead.
  
==Getting MP==
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===[[Alternate items|Alternate Items]]===
A [[Staff of Energy]] and a [[Crystal ball of energy]] (CBOE), and plenty of evocations to use them, are the essentials. You can ditch the staff of energy and switch to the [[Staff of Wucad Mu]] after you find it.  It's good to still use the CBOE when possible because it doesn't drain your int as much.
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Which item you get in a set mostly doesn't matter. The most relevant item is the [[wand of quicksilver]], which can let you end Silence from both player ghosts and pan lords (no effect on silent spectres). Arguably the [[tin of tremorstones]] is better than the [[condenser vane]].
  
On levels without too many enemies that cast torment, you can drop out of lichform and use [[Sublimation of Blood]], which has the advantage of not draining your int. Don't worry about losing HP, as you'll gain it all back with Makhleb.  Don't try it on mummy levels.
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===Spells & Form===
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In (rough) order: [[Ignition]], [[Polar Vortex]], [[Shatter]], and [[Chain Lightning]], are the essentials. Ignition is an MP efficient spell that explodes in a 3*3 area ''per monster''. Polar Vortex is another MP efficient spell that spirals around you, clearing up anything left alive, or letting you run past monsters. You'll want Shatter against Dis monsters, and Chain Lightning against flying, fire resistant/immune monsters.
  
==Jewelry==
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[[Fire Storm]] can be useful if you don't have Chain Lightning castable yet.
Wear jewelry that increases your int.  When you're using lichform, you need clarity at all times to avoid confusion when channeling with CBOE or Staff of Wucad Mu.  You should also have sustain abilities for channeling and mummies.
 
  
==Preparing for Silence==
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[[Disjunction]] helps you avoid [[chaos]] monsters in melee. [[Passage of Golubria]] can be used for transport. [[Discord]] could be used to deal with low will enemies, namely [[demonspawn warmonger]]s. Most single/limited target spells, such as [[BVC]], [[Irradiate]], and [[LCS]] are practically useless, so forget them. (Chain Lightning is great to kill isolated targets.)
Silence is a very major threat and you need the tools to handle it. Pack a [[Disc of Storms]] as your first line of attack against enemies that lack rElec. [[Staff of Dispater]] deals great damage while silenced, but can't be used if enemies are too close (do not hit yourself with it!) and also doesn't work on some enemies. Bring a one handed axe - preferably a broad axe.  Antimagic is good, distortion is good, and chopping is good (for those times when you don't want to deal with the consequences of antimagic/distortion).  Javelins of penetration are very handy to take out silent spectres that are behind hordes of enemies.
 
  
It's good to have evocable blink - either from your armor or your jewelry.
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[[Death Form]] (lichform) is practically required to do more than a few zigs; it provides permanent immunity to [[torment]].
  
You'll get more scrolls of fog than you need, but [[Cloak of the Thief]] is nice to wear, because it lets you fog while you're silenced. It's for an emergency situation, like your lichform running out while silenced with enemies that cast torment in los.
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===Armour and Jewelry===
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Have as much AC as you can have, without hurting your spell success rates.  40 AC is enough.  When possible, wear equipment that increases your [[spellpower]].  You want to have 40-50 Int. That's more than the minimum you need to cast your level 9 spells, but you'll spend a lot of time with your Int drained as much as 10 points, so it helps to have extra.  
  
==Descending Stairs==
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Past the first zig or two, an [[mayhem|orb of mayhem]] is generally the best item in the shield slot, despite its lack of SH. Having ~50% of the monsters attack each other is a better defense than a tower shield which only blocks 4 attacks. Importantly, a frenzied monster cannot use [[Silence]], a big threat by the time you mega-zig. Characters doing their first few zigs may prefer a shield, to make up for a lack of stats; the [[shield of the Gong]] is nice, a randart +10 [[tower shield]] is better.
Always cast Necromutation before descending stairs. If the next floor is Crypt-themed and you're silenced on entry with tormentors/curse toes/curse skulls/shadow fiends nearby, you'll be glad you did.
 
  
It's also helpful to cast Darkness before descending stairs.
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Wear jewellery that bolsters your resistances and/or stats. You want to cover every resistance, including 4 pips of [[willpower]]. The amount of loot (thus, artefacts) over many zigs means that you will eventually find amazing gear in every slot. The [[amulet of Vitality]] can be useful if you don't need anything in the amulet slot.
  
If necessary, make sure to uncurse your essential weapons before descending, because you can't uncurse them while silenced.  This would include at least staff of energy/wucad mu, staff of dispater, and your melee weapon.
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===Weapons===
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Hitting things with a weapon is never preferable, even when silenced. Silver [[javelin]]s are the preferred tool to stop [[silent spectre]]s and annoying pan lords. Nevertheless, you can carry strongest axe you can find (typically [[Arga]] or a great randart). If you aren't whacking things anyway, you can hold various stat sticks: [[randart]] elemental staves, or the [[Elemental Staff]], depending on the character.
  
Make sure you have enough charges on your wands, especially wand of hasting, because you can't recharge them while silenced.
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You will also want '''two''' weapons with [[distortion]] - not for attacking, but for escaping to the Abyss if needed. You need two of them, since the fastest way to self-banish is to switch between distortion weapons.
  
==Tactics in Silent Levels==
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===Getting MP===
For the first couple mega-zigs, silent levels might not be too dangerous.  You might not be silenced on entry.  Enemies might be asleep, allowing you to pick them off at your leisure with staff of dispater.  However, stay in lichform at all times, because there are enemies can cast torment.
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[[Gozag]] and [[Vehumet]] provide MP regeneration in the form of potions and kills, respectively.
  
Eventually, though, you're going to run into a crypt level where you are silenced on entry and the screen is packed with enemies.  Your priority here should be to kill enough silent spectres to get a patch where silence doesn't reach, so that you can recast lichform (and also blast away with spells).  The thing to fear is your lichform running out while you are still silenced. If you have killed all silent spectres in LOS and you are still silenced, you need to go on the attack, either using evocable blink or just walking forward, until you find more spectres to kill. Use javelins of penetration.  After killing them you can retreat back to the area that's no longer silenced.
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Demonspawn's [[Mana Shield]] converts HP regen to MP, in addition to providing some natural MP regen. Combine this with the massive regen provided by [[Powered by Death]], and presto, MP by the boatload. The [[Powered by Pain]] mutation also gives them MP when they get hit (an inevitability).
  
Staying hasted (with a wand of hasting) is a good idea because it helps you accomplish more before lichform expires.
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Alternatively, you can use the [[Crystal ball of Wucad Mu]] in order to sustain MP for longer. However, this prevents you from using mayhem, so you probably shouldn't use it past the first few Zigs.
  
Only hit things with an axe if disc of storms is not working on them and they really need to die (e.g. curse toes). You can waste a lot of time hitting things with axes while your lichform runs out.
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===Sample Runs===
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*Ludicrosity's 172-zig DsIE (0.26, ongoing at time of writing): [https://pastebin.com/raw/JibKGtPJ]
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*Sergey's Meteoran run (0.29): [https://crawl.xtahua.com/crawl/morgue/Sergey/morgue-Sergey-20220828-135537.txt]
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*Ge0ff's 27-zig DsCj (0.28): [https://crawl.xtahua.com/crawl/morgue/Ge0ff/morgue-Ge0ff-20220215-105326.txt]
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*gimp' Ogre run (0.27): [https://cbro.berotato.org/morgue/gimp/morgue-gimp-20210807-132625.txt]
  
==Tactics in Chaos Levels==
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==Silence==
A chaos level can be identified by the presence of many pandemonium lords. It will also have apocalypse crabs and killer klowns. The priority here is to avoid getting hit by chaos attacks, and avoid standing in clouds of chaos, because these clouds can paralyze or berserk you, leaving you temporarily helpless.  So, use Disjunction liberally to keep enemies away. Disjunction both prevents getting hit by killer klowns and gives you a free space to walk into in case your square gets hit with a cloud of chaos.  Check every turn to make sure you aren't standing in a cloud of chaos.  Glaciate will make your own clouds, giving you safe spaces to stand and blocking clouds of chaos.
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Silence is a very major threat and you need the tools to handle it. You have two essentials: [[silver]] [[javelin]]s, and evocable [[blink]]. Javelins (requiring plenty of Throwing skill) allow you to take out [[silent spectre]]s that are behind hordes of enemies. Evocable blink will help you quickly move out from your position and find silent spectres to kill, as well as letting you move at all while surrounded.
  
It might be nice to wear stasis in a chaos level.  However, you'll probably have to drop out of lichform to do so, unless you have an alternate source of clarity.  Beware that some of the panlords cast torment.
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A [[wand of quicksilver]] will end the Silence spell, though the bolt has to ''hit'' the enemy, and it doesn't work on spectres. A [[condenser vane]] / [[tin of tremorstones]] is also very nice to use.
  
Sometimes a panlord will cast silence, but this isn't anywhere near as bad as crypt silence and you can probably take him out.
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A broad axe is not really required, but it can be nice to have if you don't mind spending a lot of turns doing it. [[Distortion]] is good, though [[Arga]] (or some +10 broad axe of speed) is stronger. Unfortunately, [[holy wrath]] is unusable in Death Form.
  
==Tactics in Pan Levels==
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==Tactics in Troublesome Levels==
A pandemonium level can be identified by the presence of demonspawn, with plenty of fiends and other pandemonium denizensThe main danger here is that demonspawn warmongers will sap your magic, leaving your attack capacity greatly diminished. To prevent this, identify and kill warmongers ASAP.  Also note that [[Sap Magic]] requires an open line of fire, so you're temporarily ok as long as other enemies are in the way.
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For the first couple zigs, levels might not be too dangerous. You might not be silenced on entryEnemies might be asleep, allowing you to pick them off at your leisure with javelins. Eventually, though, you're going to run into a Crypt level where you are silenced on entry and the screen is packed with enemies.  
  
If you do get sapped, you'll only be able to cast a few spells before the -Wiz becomes excessive. Save it for the most important stuff, like recasting tornado and necromutation, and maybe darkness. You can use disc of storms in between tornado/necromut.  Your goal is to survive until the Sap wears off.  Fog can help, and so can retreating to a safer area, if possible.
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Assuming you're a Gozag worshipper: by the time you reach max-level zigs, you should buff up on every floor. Get Haste, Invisibility, and Brilliance. If the next floor is Crypt-themed and you're silenced on entry with, you'll be glad you did.
  
If all else fails, you can drop out of lichform and quaff cancellation, which will remove the Sap and -Wiz. However, given the number of enemies that cast torment in Pan levels, this might be a mistake. Also, you get hardly any potions of cancellation in zigs so this tactic can't be used too many times.
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===Tartarus & Vestibule Levels===
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Tartarus levels are one of the most dangerous. They are scary due to the number of silent spectres, along with plenty of torment and other negative energy threats. Once you hit maximum difficulty, moving on to the next floor is preferable; you can simply get loot on later floors.
  
==Ghost Moths==
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If possible, kill enough silent spectres to get a patch where silence doesn't reach, so that you can start using spells, regain Gozag's gold aura, and benefit from mayhem. If you stay silenced for too long, you'll just run out of HP. If you've killed all silent spectres in LOS and you are still silenced, you need to go on the attack. Use javelins. Staying hasted is a good idea because it helps you accomplish more. Only hit things with an axe if they are right next to you and they really need to die; you can waste a lot of time hitting things with axes.
Turn invisible, or just spam disc of storms.
 
  
==Holy Zig==
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Vestibule levels have silent spectres, but with a larger variety of monsters. (More advice needed)
A holy zig level is full of smiting, and darkness doesn't work due to the halos. Just power through it while hasted (and not in lichform).  It's worth a mention because the sheer amount of smiting can actually compete with Makhleb's healing.  Fog might be necessary if you make it to a high megazig.
 
  
==Mummies==
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===Chaos Levels===
Annoying!  As long as you stay in lichform, they aren't going to kill you directly, but you are going to lose a lot of statsMake sure you have sustain abilitiesAfter you've cleared a bunch of them, you might want to just teleport to the other end of the level and exit, because the more of them you kill the more statdrain you will suffer. Potions of restore abilities are actually in somewhat short supply in zigs.  Also, stay hasted because they will slow you.
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A chaos level can be identified by the presence of many pandemonium lordsIt will also have [[apocalypse crab]]s and [[Killer Klown]]sThe priority here is to avoid getting hit by chaos attacks, and avoid standing in clouds of chaos, since they can paralyse or petrify you. Continue to use offensive spells, [[Ignition]] and [[Polar Vortex]], as usual. [[Disjunction]] will also sweep enemies away from you.
  
==Fire Levels==
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Sometimes a panlord will cast Silence, and you'll need to take them out with javelins, or use a wand of quicksilver.
Fire levels packed with orbs of fire can sometimes be a challenge if you don't yet have rF+++.  If you're depending on the elemental staff for your fire resistance, you may have to stay out of lichform so you can use sublimation of blood instead of staff of energy/CBOE, and just deal with whatever mutations you get.  Even if you have 300 hp, you can die pretty fast if you lack fire resistance.
 
  
==Finding Mega-Zigs==
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===Pan Levels===
Wear a ring of teleportation and constantly teleport around in Pandemonium to cover more ground, and if you find a portal to another Pandemonium level, immediately take it (because you cover more ground that way). Or, use magic mapping if you have any.  You can recognize zig portals on the map because they're always surrounded by a rectangular or diamond-shaped border.
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A pandemonium level can be identified by the presence of demonspawn, with plenty of fiends and other pandemonium denizens. The main danger here is that [[warmonger|demonspawn warmongers]] will sap your magic, leaving your attack capacity greatly diminished. To prevent this:
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*Identify and kill warmongers ASAP. Note that Sap Magic requires an open line of fire, so if a warmonger's in the back lines, it can't hurt you.
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*Be invisible, since warmongers can't see invisible.  
  
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If you do get sapped, you'll only be able to cast only once before you get the -Cast status. Save it for the most important stuff, like recasting Polar Vortex. Your goal is to survive until the Sap wears off. Fog can help, and so can retreating to a safer area, if possible.
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===Ghost Levels===
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Floors are sometimes dedicated to [[player ghost]]s, which are like bulkier pandemonium lords, though are normal speed and most likely not chaotic. This includes the Silence spell.
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===Mummies===
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Annoying!  As long as you stay in Death Form, they aren't going to kill you directly, but you are going to lose a lot of stats. After you've cleared a bunch of them, you might want to just teleport to the other end of the level and exit, because the more of them you kill the more statdrain you will suffer. Also, stay hasted because they will slow you.
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===Holy Zig===
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A holy zig level is full of [[Smiting]]; the sheer amount of it can be threatening, even with Makhleb. You'll want to power through it with [[Ignition]] while hasted. Exiting Death Form takes too long, so just go on the offensive.
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[[Seraph]]s are immune to fire and resistant to electricity, but as they use [[Injury Bond]], they can be hurt by Ignition or Chain Lightning when allies are nearby. (Note: this hasn't been tested on a Mega-Zig scale.) They aren't resistant to Polar Vortex, so you can also use that.
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===Fire Levels===
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Fire levels, packed with orbs of fire, can be annoying even with rF+++. Orbs of fire are immune or heavily resistant to all the good AOE spells. Your best bet is to stay near a wall, read scrolls of fog to limit the number of orbs of fire that can attack you, and use [[Chain Lightning]] on anything that comes close to you.
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===Ghost Moths===
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Be invisible, or just brute force the floor with Ignition and javelins.
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==History==
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Various options were once deemed essential for Ziggurats were removed, but some new ones were added in return. This covers the history of zig-clearing strategies. For history on zig mechanics themselves, see the main [[Ziggurat]] page.
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*In general, various inventory and quality of life changes have simplified the Ziggurat experience. For example, you no longer need to carry [[scrolls of identify]] or [[scrolls of remove curse]] as of [[0.27]], nor [[food]] as of [[0.26]].
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*In [[0.31]], [[Necromutation]] was converted into [[Death Form]]; the latter cannot run out and can't be [[dispel]]led. Since you need 5 turns to exit Death Form, [[Death's Door]] is now useless. The [[dreamshard necklace]] was nerfed and became useless for mega-ziggers. [[Meteoran]], the best non-Demonspawn race for clearing zigs, was removed. Randart staves can boost multiple schools. A [[Vestibule]] monster set (inc. all 4 Hells) was introduced, which adds another set with [[silent spectre]]s. Also, [[Seraph]]im were added to holy floors.
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*In [[0.30]], [[randart]] [[staves]] and [[orb]]s were introduced. [[Staff of Wucad Mu]] became an [[Crystal ball of Wucad Mu|orb]] and now has entirely different mechanics. [[Scroll of fog]] now appears in 100% of games again, though [[tin of tremorstones]] and [[condenser vane]] became [[alternate items|mutually exclusive]]. Evocable blink costs 0 MP.
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*In [[0.29]], the [[alternate items]] mechanic was introduced, making the scroll of fog no longer in 100% of games, but introducing the [[wand of quicksilver]] to end opposing Silence spells. [[Ozocubu's Refrigeration]] nerfed when monsters are adjacent to each other. The [[Abyss]] gives XP again, but you always enter it at the deepest floor you've been on (or deeper). [[Scroll of holy word]] removed. [[Meteoran]] introduced, one of the strongest ziggurat species.
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*In [[0.28]], Gozag's gold aura was simplified and capped at 30%. The Abyss no longer gives you experience, meaning it is more difficult to create a (mega)-zig worthy character. Staff of Wucad Mu was made 1.5x as strong (again), and the lifesaving [[dreamshard necklace]] was introduced. [[Sap Magic]] was changed from -Wiz to -Cast. [[Orb]]s of [[mayhem]] added, which is arguably the best item in the shield slot.
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*In [[0.27]], [[Absolute Zero]] was removed, and the MP-efficient [[Tornado]] became the cold themed [[Polar Vortex]]. [[Chain Lightning]] became the most efficient spell for killing stray monsters. Wucad Mu was made 1.5x as strong, while [[Makhleb]]'s healing was halved.
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*In [[0.26]], [[Controlled Blink]] was removed, leaving the [[scroll of blinking]] for escapes. Evocable MP channeling via [[staff of energy]] was removed; Wucad Mu's channeling was replaced with a passive [[MP]] refund. [[Nightstalker]], of some noteworthiness, was also moved from [[demonspawn]] to [[kobold]]s.
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*In [[0.25]], [[Absolute Zero]] was introduced; a great spell to kill troublesome single foes. But [[Glaciate]] removed, a good AOE spell for fire-themed floors. The [[crystal ball of energy]], for slotless MP channeling, was removed. [[potion of brilliance|Brilliance]] now halves MP costs, a much stronger effect for Zig divers.
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*Prior to [[0.24]], [[javelin]]s had to have the penetration brand, instead of getting it intrinsically. The [[silver]], [[steel]], and [[penetration]] brands all merged into silver javelins.
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*In [[0.20]], the [[Disc of Storms]] was removed; which was very useful when silenced. However, [[Ignition]] was introduced, the perfect crowd control spell that could surpass even [[Fire Storm]].
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*In [[0.19]], [[wand]]s of healing, hasting, and teleportation were removed; strong ways of getting those three abilities (especially when silenced). The [[Haste]] spell was removed, meaning perma-haste was left to Gozag. [[Sustain abilities]] was also removed, and most stat drain effects were halved to compensate.
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*In [[0.18]], finishing a ziggurat gives you a [[figurine of a ziggurat]] to start the next floor (as opposed to randomly finding portals in the [[Pandemonium]]). This also means that you can only "fail" one ziggurat, as the next failure closes the area for good.
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*In [[0.16]], ziggurat difficulty, thus mega-zigs, were introduced. Gozag was also introduced, though was noticeably weaker until a buff in the next version.
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*Prior to [[0.11]], you could use [[Projected Noise]] at the bottom of the map, then walk around the top end (or vice-versa).
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For a guide based on [[0.16]], see [http://crawl.chaosforge.org/index.php?title=Mega-Zig&oldid=39047 this] revision.
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[[Category:Portals]]
 
[[Category:Portals]]
 
[[Category:Strategy]]
 
[[Category:Strategy]]

Latest revision as of 09:59, 19 July 2024

Version 0.31: 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!

After completing floor 27 of a Ziggurat, the next ziggurat will be harder and packed with more monsters. By maybe the 4th or 5th ziggurat, most levels will be entirely stuffed with a monster on every square, with the difficulty eventually capping out at 13 floors. These ultra-hard Ziggurats are dubbed Mega-Zigs.

Character Creation

For some of the most difficult areas that Dungeon Crawl can offer, and with the massive number of floors you'll be doing, it's expected that some very specific character builds are required to complete them.

God: Gozag

Gozag is the strongest god for megazigging. For one, your gold aura will practically always be at maximum effectiveness due to how much gold you will create. Also, with that much gold, you can constantly petition for potion effects. Having effectively permanent Haste, Brilliance, invisibility, as well as on demand MP, is incredibly strong - and they work in Death Form, too.

While Gozag is extremely strong, Makhleb, Vehumet, and Uskayaw still remain fair choices for doing multiple (if not dozens of) zigs. Makhleb and Vehumet provide very strong HP and MP regen, respectively, while Uskayaw's Solo Time and Pain Bond will constantly activate and crush foes in the ultra-hectic dance floors of a ziggurat.

The good gods are some of the worst choices for mega-zigs, since they prevent you from using Death Form. They may be fine for doing 1-2 zigs, but after that, it's recommended to switch.

Race: Demonspawn

Demonspawn, thanks to their exclusive mutations, are generally the best race to start megazigging with. Powered by Death provides extremely powerful HP regen. Mana Shield converts that regen to MP, in addition to providing guardian spirit. Robust is a great standalone 3rd-tier mutation, though other mutations can work as well. Note that Demonspawn with a perfect mutation set are NOT necessary to complete mega-zigs, other races can do well too. Playing Demonspawn with a perfect mutation set is not necessary if you are aiming to complete 10-27 ziggurats. But, chances are, these mutations will make things easier if your goal is 100+ ziggurats.

Unlike god choice, you have a lot more freedom in choosing a mega-zigging race:

  • Oni have the highest HP in the game, and have better willpower than Demonspawn.
  • Humans have exploration regen, which allows them to quickly recover MP by just moving forward.
  • Ghouls have torment immunity while being able to use potions. However, they can't use potions of mutation to get a strong mutation set.

Low HP races like Deep Elves and Spriggans are ill advised - high aptitudes or fast speed don't matter once you're a blaster who has maxed out all your skills.

Background

It's best to use a spellcasting background. You will need to rely mostly on level 8-9 spells in a mega-zig. While background largely does not matter in the endgame, spell casting backgrounds start with more Intelligence -- with Conjurer starting with the most. Stat zero may be a reasonable concern with Conjurer, so you may want to use another magic start instead.

Alternate Items

Which item you get in a set mostly doesn't matter. The most relevant item is the wand of quicksilver, which can let you end Silence from both player ghosts and pan lords (no effect on silent spectres). Arguably the tin of tremorstones is better than the condenser vane.

Spells & Form

In (rough) order: Ignition, Polar Vortex, Shatter, and Chain Lightning, are the essentials. Ignition is an MP efficient spell that explodes in a 3*3 area per monster. Polar Vortex is another MP efficient spell that spirals around you, clearing up anything left alive, or letting you run past monsters. You'll want Shatter against Dis monsters, and Chain Lightning against flying, fire resistant/immune monsters.

Fire Storm can be useful if you don't have Chain Lightning castable yet.

Disjunction helps you avoid chaos monsters in melee. Passage of Golubria can be used for transport. Discord could be used to deal with low will enemies, namely demonspawn warmongers. Most single/limited target spells, such as BVC, Irradiate, and LCS are practically useless, so forget them. (Chain Lightning is great to kill isolated targets.)

Death Form (lichform) is practically required to do more than a few zigs; it provides permanent immunity to torment.

Armour and Jewelry

Have as much AC as you can have, without hurting your spell success rates. 40 AC is enough. When possible, wear equipment that increases your spellpower. You want to have 40-50 Int. That's more than the minimum you need to cast your level 9 spells, but you'll spend a lot of time with your Int drained as much as 10 points, so it helps to have extra.

Past the first zig or two, an orb of mayhem is generally the best item in the shield slot, despite its lack of SH. Having ~50% of the monsters attack each other is a better defense than a tower shield which only blocks 4 attacks. Importantly, a frenzied monster cannot use Silence, a big threat by the time you mega-zig. Characters doing their first few zigs may prefer a shield, to make up for a lack of stats; the shield of the Gong is nice, a randart +10 tower shield is better.

Wear jewellery that bolsters your resistances and/or stats. You want to cover every resistance, including 4 pips of willpower. The amount of loot (thus, artefacts) over many zigs means that you will eventually find amazing gear in every slot. The amulet of Vitality can be useful if you don't need anything in the amulet slot.

Weapons

Hitting things with a weapon is never preferable, even when silenced. Silver javelins are the preferred tool to stop silent spectres and annoying pan lords. Nevertheless, you can carry strongest axe you can find (typically Arga or a great randart). If you aren't whacking things anyway, you can hold various stat sticks: randart elemental staves, or the Elemental Staff, depending on the character.

You will also want two weapons with distortion - not for attacking, but for escaping to the Abyss if needed. You need two of them, since the fastest way to self-banish is to switch between distortion weapons.

Getting MP

Gozag and Vehumet provide MP regeneration in the form of potions and kills, respectively.

Demonspawn's Mana Shield converts HP regen to MP, in addition to providing some natural MP regen. Combine this with the massive regen provided by Powered by Death, and presto, MP by the boatload. The Powered by Pain mutation also gives them MP when they get hit (an inevitability).

Alternatively, you can use the Crystal ball of Wucad Mu in order to sustain MP for longer. However, this prevents you from using mayhem, so you probably shouldn't use it past the first few Zigs.

Sample Runs

  • Ludicrosity's 172-zig DsIE (0.26, ongoing at time of writing): [1]
  • Sergey's Meteoran run (0.29): [2]
  • Ge0ff's 27-zig DsCj (0.28): [3]
  • gimp' Ogre run (0.27): [4]

Silence

Silence is a very major threat and you need the tools to handle it. You have two essentials: silver javelins, and evocable blink. Javelins (requiring plenty of Throwing skill) allow you to take out silent spectres that are behind hordes of enemies. Evocable blink will help you quickly move out from your position and find silent spectres to kill, as well as letting you move at all while surrounded.

A wand of quicksilver will end the Silence spell, though the bolt has to hit the enemy, and it doesn't work on spectres. A condenser vane / tin of tremorstones is also very nice to use.

A broad axe is not really required, but it can be nice to have if you don't mind spending a lot of turns doing it. Distortion is good, though Arga (or some +10 broad axe of speed) is stronger. Unfortunately, holy wrath is unusable in Death Form.

Tactics in Troublesome Levels

For the first couple zigs, levels might not be too dangerous. You might not be silenced on entry. Enemies might be asleep, allowing you to pick them off at your leisure with javelins. Eventually, though, you're going to run into a Crypt level where you are silenced on entry and the screen is packed with enemies.

Assuming you're a Gozag worshipper: by the time you reach max-level zigs, you should buff up on every floor. Get Haste, Invisibility, and Brilliance. If the next floor is Crypt-themed and you're silenced on entry with, you'll be glad you did.

Tartarus & Vestibule Levels

Tartarus levels are one of the most dangerous. They are scary due to the number of silent spectres, along with plenty of torment and other negative energy threats. Once you hit maximum difficulty, moving on to the next floor is preferable; you can simply get loot on later floors.

If possible, kill enough silent spectres to get a patch where silence doesn't reach, so that you can start using spells, regain Gozag's gold aura, and benefit from mayhem. If you stay silenced for too long, you'll just run out of HP. If you've killed all silent spectres in LOS and you are still silenced, you need to go on the attack. Use javelins. Staying hasted is a good idea because it helps you accomplish more. Only hit things with an axe if they are right next to you and they really need to die; you can waste a lot of time hitting things with axes.

Vestibule levels have silent spectres, but with a larger variety of monsters. (More advice needed)

Chaos Levels

A chaos level can be identified by the presence of many pandemonium lords. It will also have apocalypse crabs and Killer Klowns. The priority here is to avoid getting hit by chaos attacks, and avoid standing in clouds of chaos, since they can paralyse or petrify you. Continue to use offensive spells, Ignition and Polar Vortex, as usual. Disjunction will also sweep enemies away from you.

Sometimes a panlord will cast Silence, and you'll need to take them out with javelins, or use a wand of quicksilver.

Pan Levels

A pandemonium level can be identified by the presence of demonspawn, with plenty of fiends and other pandemonium denizens. The main danger here is that demonspawn warmongers will sap your magic, leaving your attack capacity greatly diminished. To prevent this:

  • Identify and kill warmongers ASAP. Note that Sap Magic requires an open line of fire, so if a warmonger's in the back lines, it can't hurt you.
  • Be invisible, since warmongers can't see invisible.

If you do get sapped, you'll only be able to cast only once before you get the -Cast status. Save it for the most important stuff, like recasting Polar Vortex. Your goal is to survive until the Sap wears off. Fog can help, and so can retreating to a safer area, if possible.

Ghost Levels

Floors are sometimes dedicated to player ghosts, which are like bulkier pandemonium lords, though are normal speed and most likely not chaotic. This includes the Silence spell.

Mummies

Annoying! As long as you stay in Death Form, they aren't going to kill you directly, but you are going to lose a lot of stats. After you've cleared a bunch of them, you might want to just teleport to the other end of the level and exit, because the more of them you kill the more statdrain you will suffer. Also, stay hasted because they will slow you.

Holy Zig

A holy zig level is full of Smiting; the sheer amount of it can be threatening, even with Makhleb. You'll want to power through it with Ignition while hasted. Exiting Death Form takes too long, so just go on the offensive.

Seraphs are immune to fire and resistant to electricity, but as they use Injury Bond, they can be hurt by Ignition or Chain Lightning when allies are nearby. (Note: this hasn't been tested on a Mega-Zig scale.) They aren't resistant to Polar Vortex, so you can also use that.

Fire Levels

Fire levels, packed with orbs of fire, can be annoying even with rF+++. Orbs of fire are immune or heavily resistant to all the good AOE spells. Your best bet is to stay near a wall, read scrolls of fog to limit the number of orbs of fire that can attack you, and use Chain Lightning on anything that comes close to you.

Ghost Moths

Be invisible, or just brute force the floor with Ignition and javelins.

History

Various options were once deemed essential for Ziggurats were removed, but some new ones were added in return. This covers the history of zig-clearing strategies. For history on zig mechanics themselves, see the main Ziggurat page.

  • In general, various inventory and quality of life changes have simplified the Ziggurat experience. For example, you no longer need to carry scrolls of identify or scrolls of remove curse as of 0.27, nor food as of 0.26.
  • In 0.31, Necromutation was converted into Death Form; the latter cannot run out and can't be dispelled. Since you need 5 turns to exit Death Form, Death's Door is now useless. The dreamshard necklace was nerfed and became useless for mega-ziggers. Meteoran, the best non-Demonspawn race for clearing zigs, was removed. Randart staves can boost multiple schools. A Vestibule monster set (inc. all 4 Hells) was introduced, which adds another set with silent spectres. Also, Seraphim were added to holy floors.
  • In 0.30, randart staves and orbs were introduced. Staff of Wucad Mu became an orb and now has entirely different mechanics. Scroll of fog now appears in 100% of games again, though tin of tremorstones and condenser vane became mutually exclusive. Evocable blink costs 0 MP.
  • In 0.29, the alternate items mechanic was introduced, making the scroll of fog no longer in 100% of games, but introducing the wand of quicksilver to end opposing Silence spells. Ozocubu's Refrigeration nerfed when monsters are adjacent to each other. The Abyss gives XP again, but you always enter it at the deepest floor you've been on (or deeper). Scroll of holy word removed. Meteoran introduced, one of the strongest ziggurat species.
  • In 0.28, Gozag's gold aura was simplified and capped at 30%. The Abyss no longer gives you experience, meaning it is more difficult to create a (mega)-zig worthy character. Staff of Wucad Mu was made 1.5x as strong (again), and the lifesaving dreamshard necklace was introduced. Sap Magic was changed from -Wiz to -Cast. Orbs of mayhem added, which is arguably the best item in the shield slot.
  • In 0.27, Absolute Zero was removed, and the MP-efficient Tornado became the cold themed Polar Vortex. Chain Lightning became the most efficient spell for killing stray monsters. Wucad Mu was made 1.5x as strong, while Makhleb's healing was halved.
  • In 0.26, Controlled Blink was removed, leaving the scroll of blinking for escapes. Evocable MP channeling via staff of energy was removed; Wucad Mu's channeling was replaced with a passive MP refund. Nightstalker, of some noteworthiness, was also moved from demonspawn to kobolds.
  • In 0.25, Absolute Zero was introduced; a great spell to kill troublesome single foes. But Glaciate removed, a good AOE spell for fire-themed floors. The crystal ball of energy, for slotless MP channeling, was removed. Brilliance now halves MP costs, a much stronger effect for Zig divers.
  • Prior to 0.24, javelins had to have the penetration brand, instead of getting it intrinsically. The silver, steel, and penetration brands all merged into silver javelins.
  • In 0.20, the Disc of Storms was removed; which was very useful when silenced. However, Ignition was introduced, the perfect crowd control spell that could surpass even Fire Storm.
  • In 0.19, wands of healing, hasting, and teleportation were removed; strong ways of getting those three abilities (especially when silenced). The Haste spell was removed, meaning perma-haste was left to Gozag. Sustain abilities was also removed, and most stat drain effects were halved to compensate.
  • In 0.18, finishing a ziggurat gives you a figurine of a ziggurat to start the next floor (as opposed to randomly finding portals in the Pandemonium). This also means that you can only "fail" one ziggurat, as the next failure closes the area for good.
  • In 0.16, ziggurat difficulty, thus mega-zigs, were introduced. Gozag was also introduced, though was noticeably weaker until a buff in the next version.
  • Prior to 0.11, you could use Projected Noise at the bottom of the map, then walk around the top end (or vice-versa).

For a guide based on 0.16, see this revision.

Temporary Portals
Early Game OssuarySewers
Mid Game BaileyGauntletIce caveVolcano
Late Game Desolation of SaltWizard LaboratoryZiggurat (Mega-Zig)
Peaceful BazaarTreasure trove