Aargxl the Octopode Wizard
For Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup 0.12.2
Foremost: Sorry for the simple English, it means that I am from another country, so feel free to correct anything.
This is an RPG diary - the character itself writes this down, let's say with one of the eight tentacles.
The Beginning
If you ask, why I am using this book, named Artificial Historical Intelligence (AHIn), calm your mind and think... I will write history, that is. Blargh! My species has almost vanished with time, and while we never had a realm as great as most talking beings, our influence was as strong as our culture is old. At current times, most of my type vanished. As my great great grandmother told me, the Gnome Zot forged the perhaps strongest magical artefact we know of. As he already passed away, many adventurers venture into his realm, dying or coming back empty-handed even more than they were before. They simply seek for power, that is what makes them crawl out of the former "castle" of Zot as miserable as they do. But I am different: I seek not the power for some reason, as the Orb will not be mine, but held by our females for bringing up strong and numerous new generations. Strong enough, to adapt to the new, more and more technological, environment and achieve the greatness our civilisation hat in ancient times.
Dungeon 1
As I enter the sunken castle of Zot through some mountanious caverns leading underground, I suddenly feel safe. There is no sunshine in here for drying me out. As the entrance is half underwater, it seems that I just arrived on low tide and that this part of the mountain is flooded sometimes. I inspect the water for habitants, and there are none. Then I open the door in front of me, knowing that I can take refuge in the water at any time. Another room with an Entrance, three more doors andfifteen poisoned Needles. I pick them up, perhaps they will be useful later. Everything else I have with me are my Wizard Hat, my book of minor magic and a ration of bread. As I left my home I gave all my magical rings to my family, so they can protect themselves without me.
I take the southern door, and directly behind it another door, after which I turn right and find a scroll with the insignia NASONA KHELEX. I continue following the narrow path north as a way to the left catches my eye, where a mere bat is taking a nap. I presume they have good sensing abilities, so I do not move closer. Instead I prepare to snipe it with my magic darts. After the first one it wakes up, after the second one it reaches me, and I decide it is time to try to constrict it for an easy prey. As I planned, the bat could not free itself, and so I slice its dead body into pieces for the raw meat. Despite it tasting and smelling like crap, my species is used to eat raw meat for we never had much desires for good taste.
Behind me is now a door which leads me back to the second room through another little flooded entrance-room. To complete it and be near to the water, I open the last, northern door in this second room. Again a small room with another door and nothing more... As I explore the surrounding pathway I start to map the area in my memory: The big room with three dors is simply some kind of main entrance, flanked by the watered smaller rooms to the east and west surrounded by mentioned narrow path, which inf act gives the entrance-complex the form of a big egg.
Now there are three possibilities to go on: There are two tunnels leading on, one each to the east and west of the egg, and there is a big room to the southeast, possibly connected to the eastern tunnel. Tactical genius as I am I take the big room for exploring first, since it covers potential best exploration with the fastest way back to the water. As I enter it, I find a shaft in the ground and note that for later exploring. Furthermore the room contains only an elven dagger, which I take for my property. Probably from some poor adventurer before me. As I open the northern door, I find the eastern tunnel I mentioned before connected to the room. But in the middle of this tunnel it has an arm leading further east, with a ball python blocking the way while asleep. I position myself in a distance near to the water and begin to snipe it. Easy prey. I follow the (short) tunnel. It takes a curve and at its end there is a scavenging rat. Sniping it consumes my ability to cast spells, as I miscast this easy spell once and get contaminated. I must have become pretty rusty at my old age for doing so. But it is no problem, as I just rest here until I recovered again. My Chunk of Bat flesh is rotting, so I throw it away and slice myself a new piece of meat from the rat corpse. As I do that a pile of gold catches my eye - but only one step closer to it reveals another bat and a sleeping kobold. Since the bat noticed me I lure it backwards to kill one after another. It did not follow me, so I sniped from the best distance I could get, and while I went on again the kobold was awake. I tried to snipe him as well, but as I got out of training I had another miscast and in the end strangled the stinking doglike creature to death with my tentacles. I took a little rest and inspected the corpses: The Kobold flesh stinks abnormally, so I only take the bat-meat with me. And the gold, of course. Pretty much, I had only twenty pieces before, now I have thirty four. Also, near the corpse of the kobold there is another shaft. Since I am not sure where it will lead me and if there is a way back, I decide to leave it to be. Not far from it I find a sleeping giant cockroach. As I tried to snipe it, I miscasted again, withdrew and recovered. I decided to focus on training especially my conjurations, since it seems that I fail at least every fifth try. Anyway, I completely miscasted all my magical energy and just killed it in melee combat with my elven dagger and felt some increasing in my abilities direclty after it (Level 2). I took a rest, since I should take no risks, my species could depend on me. The flesh smelled bad, so I left it, while my consumable chunks all had rotted away.
As in exchange for that I found more gold (five pieces) and a brown potion, though the potion was guarded by another kobold. And now there is a staircase leading down. Since I need to get a feeling to this dungeon, at first I'll explore this floor furtheron.
Next I found a sleeping hobgoblin, almost as dirty as the kobolds before. I sniped it and recovered afterwards. Note that I do not intend to waste too much time on this journal, so I will only write down essential Information and completely new things for the understanding.
I found a scroll labeled HEX VENIEPP, a dart throwing kobold, a kobold with a dagger, a giant gecko (edible flesh), another bat, 21 pieces of gold, leather armor (cannot wear this stuff), a goblin, 20 stones (didn't need them), a giant newt (edible), 17 steel darts, a kobold, a hobgoblin with a club, a goblin with an orcish dagger, a sling (left behind) and a worm (edible meat, got two chunks out of one worm). After clearing this floor I felt myself getting a little bit stronger (Level 3, Str.+, Conjurations 2, 19 HP, 9 MP). I had now some last resort throwing device with the 17 steel darts and memorised the spells mephitic cloud and conjure flame from my spellbook. Two Shafts and three staircases leading to the next floor. I took one of the staircases for a safe escape route back.
Dungeon 2
Good choice, I found a bread ration and a bubbling yellow potion near the stairs. Though I don't need the bread now and I am not sure if I'll need the potion anyway, it did seem fair enough to have it just in case.
Despite the already known types of creatures in here I found out, that there are jackals roaming around. They never seem to go alone, so I need to stay more alert if I see one. Their flesh seems bad.
As I walked through some underground trees, I almost stumbled over a cloaked gnoll wielding some kind of suspicious staff. I noticed him on a distance though, since he seemed to be crazy and screamed his name "Crazy Yluf" into my direction. I walked back a little to get a free line of sight on him for my magic. While he seemed pretty tough, I tried my mephitic clouds to irritate him, but after some severe miscasts in this a wall of fod surrounded me and made enough noise to lure another creature to us, an ooze. I was able to run the stairs back up with only the ooze following me an defeated it with my last effort. Then I took a good rest, knowing that this crazy gnoll was waiting for me to go the stairs back down with his stick of wood from his crazy shoutings. I survived, but then I was very hungry and that guy seemed dangerous in his craziness, so I took another stair in hope of meat and a good possibility to get at the gnoll from a good position. Also, in panic I drank my two potions, but they were of no use: A potion which degenerated my body (Str 5 instead of 7) and one that tasted like the ones for curing strange mutations if I remember correctly. But in the end they were more problem than help. I'd surely have already died if it wasn't for one last success of my mephitic cloud on Yluf. It worked out with the food - the other stairway was guarded by a bat and two giant newts.
When I came back, Yluf was away, only a single rat searching for food. I killed it and got all my 17 thrown steel darts back. I found him searching for me somwhere completely different, but this time he was alone and my mephitic cloud worked out at the first try, so he was easy prey even more confused than before he just ran in directions all the time.
I switched his staff with my elven dagger since it seemed to be somewhat magical in his effect, and later found out that it just does random effects on the one it hits. Better than a dagger for me. His cloak didn't fit me and I left it lying around with his false beard. Near him I found a curved silver wand. I tried it in the direction of a wall and it turned out to be a wand of fireball. Great, I forgot how to use this spell generations ago.
I found some sultanas and edible creatures; quokkas and adders. Both easy prey.
After exploring this floor fully, I had found two different silvery potions, three unidentified scrolls (in total), and five poisoned darts added to my belongings. My strengh partly recovered (6 out of 7 str.).
Dungeon 3
I came into this area hungry, but I found living supply in form of adders directly near the stairs. Also, not far from it there was a sleeping woman in a magician's robe. Since I cannot risk my life for charity, I did not wake her up. Instead I shot a mephitic cloud at her, waking up confused and probably poisoned, before I shot her to the other realm with some magic darts. Despite a simple robe I found only a wand on her, afar from her name "Jessica".
Perhaps she could have been helpfu, but in Zots place it seems like everybody is behaving like in an all vs. all deathmatch, so it was better to take no risks.
Also, I suggest she was after the orb too, so in the end we would have to fight about it anyway.
First i tested the wand in the direction of a wall, and nothing happened. I identified it on myself as a wand of confusion, while concentrating and waitiing for the effect to fly away. It should come in handy with enemies who do not react to my mephitic cloud.
Near to her body I found a stash of valuables, "guarded" only by a sleeping giant newt: A scroll, two more poisoned needles, some gold, two murky inky potions, and - ultimately- my first new ring. The small garnet ring did not show any direct use when I put it on, but it also did not seem to stick to my tentcle.
Near some orc party I found a third one of those murky inky potions, and while I rested, my muscles seemed to completely regenerate. Also, I found out that the ring made my metabolism act calm and recource-saving. I will call it ring of sustenance from now on.
From a killed kobold I got a blowgun, to use my poisoned needles, if needed. Near it I found a meat ration, one scroll looking the same as I already got one, and one I do not know either.
Then I stumbled across a man wearing a scythe and a robe. Somehow he seemed familiar to me. Loking dangerous but sleeping I decided to take him out immediately the way I did with the woman Jessica, so he would not be able to run into me while awake or even ambush me. I let him wake up confused like the woman before and threw some fireballs from my wand at him. Three to bee exact. When I wanted to inspect his dead body, I found out that the explosions attracted some more enemies. To my gratitude it was only a rat, a worm and a hobgoblin, and I saved my magic capacities by using the wand. His embroidered robe did not fit me, but I took his scythe with me.
I found an upgoing escape hatch afterwards and wondered, if he could lead me into areas of the second level, which I could not reach before. It wasn't like that. Stepping downstairs again from the nearest stairs, I landet between a party of orcs and a sturdy looking goblin. Since I did not have my mind restored fully, I decided to lure the single goblin to the stairs through a magic dart and it worked out, because he was nearest to me. I lured him further back into the second level. I confused him with my latest wand, then shot him with around ten magic darts, and it did not seem to harm him much, crawling around. I found my wand of fireballs to be run out, so I engaged him in melee with Ylufs staff. With fortune on my side it two-hitted him, with the first hit knocking him unconscious. His remains had nothing useful but the information of his name, Ijyb. Seemed to be a rather famous goblin, if something like that exists. I rested until I felt strong enough to take on the orc tribe, getting hungry and having my fresh meat rot away. No matter, it seems that carrying the ring there is more than enough food for me.
The orcs waited for me, throwing spears and darts, but it seems it was only half of a party. Thee orcs, no priests or wizards with them, so no problem. Arond the next corner I found two more single orcs and started to get cautious. Perhaps a big tribe, just spreaded a little bit, gaining territory? False alarm, they were probably ambushing the big sleeping worm for food, so it was probably only a small, marginal group sent out for food. Also, there was a goblin corpse nearby, perhaps he was out for the worm too.
After a while I got to know a species of giant mites. Seems they are as well venomous, as susceptible to poison themselves. Not a big threat. I watch this last little encounter as a helpful piece of knowledge for the future. The level was cleared and I fetl as if I could memorize one or two new spells, but I rather didn't. Who knew at which time I found a new spellbook, and I felt as if the three I used were enough for now. By the last exploring I also found a glowng jade ring; putting it on explained to me, that he granted my body faster regeneration abilities. Combined with the other one it would help me regenerate fast while needed and still not using a lot of energy.
Dungeon 4
Going through the first stairway available, I landed in between an orc party, supposedly waiting there to ambush adventurers like me. Fast as I was, I got back to level 3 again, taking two of them with me and massacring them with magic darts. These grew pretty strong already and it seemed, that I just needed to get warm with magic again.
After regenerating, I just went back down to look if the other two orcs were still there, waiting if their comradres came back with booty. Alarmed as they were, but also panicked, they stood directly n front of me coming back down, and if I hadn't grown back to my old strngh this fast, their weapons and bodies would surely have overthrown me. A risk I estimated as almost none, since i blasted them all three with only six shots, while evading their attacks easily.
In my search to still my hunger, I found a goliath beetle next. As I read once, this one was susceptible to poison and slow, so I poisoned it with my blowgun while keeping it on a distance, afterwards finding out, that I could not eat it. A sleeping quokka than released me from my needs.
After eating, it came the ghost of another octopode around the corner. Since it flew and directly started shooting magic darts at me, I concluded it was eventuelly a big threat. I confused it with the wand and shot it to death myself first, along with a giant newt. The thing left no items at all, as it seemed to be a ghost of some kind... It reminded me of myself, but fortunately only a ghost and not nearly as determinded as me. Were there other octopodes like me, haunting this place now? Or was there some kind of magic trap here, abstracting something of invaders and combining it to beings like that one, almost like a trap? I do not know this, but I acted fast and hit hard, before it could grow a real danger.
Even more frightening was some kind of spore bomb I found only a little later. I shot at it, and it exploded, leaving behind a big area of fungus-infected ground and mutating living beings? I almost ran out of ranged attack possibilities while destroying it, and I am thankful that I had the blowgun with me. While exploding, it attracted some other creatures, who got at me while I was resting. Luckily I woke up bitten by a rat first, otherwise I would not have noticed the orc skeleton roaming into my direction early enough. So there must be necromancers here too. After the ground was spore-free again, I pickd up a long sword of freezing, which I do not need normally, but if I have to fight against many cold blooded animals, it should come in handy. Near it was a godly altar. I recognized it from a distance, the ugly and always different looking faces of Xom, the god of chaos. I had a short talk to him while praying, just to explain to him, that my mission has no space to amuse him, while I was fighting for my tribe. Even though he laughed at me, I came to believe that he did aknowledge my opinion. Some gods feel offended if you decline them after talking to them, but as we octopodes know them all, I also knew that Xom likes to communicate from time to time and supposed, that he'd be more offended if I simply ignored his altar, than by myself not wanting to be his toy. Eventually I am anyway, just that the gods have some kinds of arrangements, so if I do not subscribe to one of them, they have to leave me my own will. This is based by an ancient contract for balancing out the power of the gods between each other. Anyway, I cannot afford the risk to play his game, while my species is about to fade away.
Food will not be my problem; I found an amulet of the gourmand, as they are common for every talking species which lives in an area where food comes very situational. Nomads for example use them while they travel through rich landscapes. Together with my ring I think it is almost impossible for me, to get hungry. So I just have to be very cautios and patient not to get into too much trouble. Time is on my side now.
I revoke those words partly. I almost didn't get away when I ran into a monstrous kobold called Pikel by his human slaves. While he himself perhaps would easily be tricked, his slaves also had strong bodies and could withstand a serious beating. I could only hold them on a distance because I had some narrow passages near me, in which I withdrew while closing the entrance with conjured flames. It was difficult confusing these enemies, so I had to blow and throw anything at them that I had, killing Pikel himself at last with one last hit by Ylufs staff. One little failure and I would have vanished forever, no matter how much food supplies I had. Since the slaves in fact were superior to Pikel himself in bodily aspects, I suppose he used a magid wand for keeping them under his influence. He had a dangerous whip of electrocution with him, which I took for my belongings afterwards. If he had hit me with it before I hit him with Ylufs staff, my quest could have been over as well. After the fight, I felt almost like starving, so my next goal would be to get some food before I had to eat some of the durable food, which seems to be rather rare in this dungeon.
I wasn't lucky, since the only creatures I found weren't edible. I ate a choko first, as I know they are heavy to carry compared to their saturation value. Still hungry, I searched on around the gnoll fort I found.
Instead of food, I found tons of roaming and sleeping jackals behind the gnoll fortress, but at least a good weapon: "Killer Klown's Peril" was engraved to it, and it seemed to be designed especially for slaying orcs. This did not help me, since I like to keep a distance, but it also made me feel more dextrous and strengthened my magic resistance.
Dungeon 5
I went here first to get satiated before I took on the gnoll fort.
I found another choko, and despite of that nothing nutritional. The area was full of kobolds and had metal walls. But I found a glowing blowgun which was not cursed, so I replaced it with my old one.
Finally I found an adder. Seemingly s single one in the whole dungeon, but I could rip its flesh off. I still felt hungry and decided, to check out even the next level for some food, even if only adjacent to the stairs. I found crimson imps and a giant eyeball in my search for the first time. The one blinks often, but seems to be no threat to a magid dart throwing magician, while the eyeball could magically paralyze me. Luckily, he was alone while doint so and did not pose much offensive threats on his own. If these are with melee fighters, I need to be careful.
Finally I found enough food in the sixth floor and went back to the gnoll fortress in Level 4.
(Gnoll fortress)
Before I went inside, I checked my multiple unidentified scrolls for finding out how to prepare best. The ones I had the most of (three) were my identifying scrolls, and I identified 4 potions of curing with them first. I went on using them and with the second one found out, that the Killer Klown's Peril was strongly enchanted (+6,+8), and my new blowgun made more damage too (+2). With my last scroll I identified two scrolls of agility. Together with the already identified Potion of speed they will make some difference. I presume using the blowgun while opening the door and poison-lure out gnolls in hopefully small numbers. I will run for the deep water at the eastern walls outside the fort and wait for their death, poisoning them and shooting magic darts. It worked out well and took some time. I cleared the whole fortress because they all were stupid enough to follow me into the deep water. After finishing, I returned to level 5 and headed for the fortress there. Infront of the door stood one magician who I found out to be called grinder. He probably would have been stronger than me, if he wouldn't have stood directly in fron ot the fortress moat. So I just stood in a safe distance and endured his paralysing and other spells, while bombarding him with magic darts. Perhaps he thought I'd drown if he paralyzed me in the deep water, otherwise he surely would have noticed that offensive ranged spellcasting would have put me in far more danger. After killing him I smashed the body of an orc zombie and found another scroll of identify lying around. I identified a potion of confusion and threw it away, getting rid of the baggage and risk of drinking it while hectic and in danger.
Opening the fortress door, I found out, that it was a
(Goblin fortress)
and started the same as I did with the gnolls, just that I did it much more aggressive. Since Goblins are rather weak compared to gnolls, often I just sniped them on their way to me, instead of running back to the water. The only worthwile enemies were some gnolls and big kobolds. This also indicates, that it was no "goblin" fortress, but a mixed one. I did not find valuables I needed despite a little buckler which perhaps will come in handy at some time, and the rest of this levels maze I already cleared on my earlier search for food. Anyway, they hat pets in the fortress; bats and other stuff, so inf act I went out of the fortress feeling really full.
Dungeon 6
(Continues as I continue the crawl : )
