Ancient lich

Version 0.15: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

ancient lich L
HP	83-132
HD	27
XP	7854
Speed	10
AC	20
EV	10
Will	Immune
Attack1	20 (touch: drain experience)
Resistances	rF+, rC++, rElec, rPois+++, rN+++, rTorm, rRot+++, rDrown, rWater
Vulnerabilities	Holy, Holy wrath
Habitat	Land
Intelligence	High
Uses	Open doors
Holiness	Undead
Size	Medium
Type	lich, lich
Flags	Evil See invisible Speaks

A lich who, having existed for countless centuries, has grown almost unimaginably powerful through the study of dark magic.

Useful Info

Ancient liches are extremely powerful undead casters with a wide array of resistances and access to several deadly attack spells. They can deal ridiculous amounts of damage at medium range (player death in one or two hits is not unheard of) and can summon devastatingly powerful greater demons. If you are not confident in your skills, escape is strongly advised. Ancient liches can be found rarely in the Abyss, the Crypt, the Tomb, and the Realm of Zot, and are a common sight in the orb chamber of Zot:5.

Spells

Spell set
Slot1	random	none
Slot2	random	none
Slot3	random	none
Slot4	random	none
Slot5	random	none
Slot6	random	none

Tips & Tricks

First and foremost, understand that ancient liches are some of the most powerful casters in the game. When dealing with them, don't worry too much about conserving resources; if burning a consumable or two will greatly ease the battle, do so. A character with Haste and Deflect Missiles, for example, will have a much easier time than a character relying on their skills alone. Berserking is chancey, as ancient liches often generate in places where you don't want to be attracting a lot of attention, but the boost to HP and damage can make a huge difference.

As liches resist most elemental damage, combat casters should rely on pure Conjurations and Earth Magic (although Lee's Rapid Deconstruction, sadly, cannot target them, and their AC is high enough to minimize its shrapnel damage). Necromancy specialists can deal brutal amounts of damage with Dispel Undead, though even that will take several castings to get the job done. Nearly all Hexes are useless against their infinite magic resistance, so don't bother, even if you have a scroll of vulnerability lying around.

Melee fighters should wield holy wrath- or antimagic-branded weapons if they are available, and should lure them around corners or use scrolls of blinking to get into melee range as quickly as possible; wasting turns rushing into the fray will result in you getting pounded by brutal attack spells or having various top-tier demons summoned to the fight. Once you get close to the lich, casting Silence or reading a scroll of silence will disable the vast majority of their abilities. Their melee attacks might not be insignificant, but they're a good deal safer than most of their attack spells.

Throwing nets are very useful against ancient liches. Hitting one at the edge of your line of sight with one guarantees it won't be able to follow you for several turns, allowing a fairly safe escape. Hitting one in melee range will make it vulnerable to stabbing attempts, allowing Short Blades specialists to make very short work of them.

Of course, since it's unlikely that you'll be able to take them out without taking a single hit, being able to survive their spells is advisable:

• Two ranks of fire and cold resistance should largely negate their Bolt spells, while high AC/EV/SH and Repel Missiles/Deflect Missiles will help out across the board and especially against their Earth Magic.
• Negative energy resistance will cut their Bolts of Draining down significantly, as well as the danger of their melee attacks.
• A large HP pool (200+) is very helpful for surviving those lucky Iron Shots and Lehudib's Crystal Spears, so characters with less than that should be cautious about those possibilities.
• Don't underestimate the power of their Orbs of Destruction. Outrunning them simply doesn't work; use blinking, human shields, or anything else necessary to avoid letting them hit you, especially if the lich managed to cast it at medium or long range.
• Having significant amounts of magic resistance will help prevent you from becoming slowed, paralysed, confused, or banished (though the last one really isn't too threatening by this stage in the game).
• Finally, be very concerned if they manage to summon a tier-1 demon to the battlefield, as torment and hellfire can tear through most characters with frightening speed. If you have Aura of Abjuration, cast it before the fight. If not, consider how quickly you can kill the caster, as all of its summons will vanish upon its death. If you don't think you can manage it quickly, strongly consider the viability of your escape options.

As with wizards and other casters with multiple spell sets, you can observe what a lich is casting to decipher its entire spell list. For example, a lich that casts Iron Shot or Bolt of Fire also knows Summon Greater Demon.

History

In 0.16, ancient liches will have randomized spell sets.