Zot:5
The Orb chamber is one of the hardest places you'll have to trudge through, on par with some of the worst Ziggurat floors. It prevents teleport-control and has indestructible walls, a layout that makes monsters likely to come at you, and a mix of the following top-tier monsters:
- Ancient lich: a very powerful spellcaster that can banish you or summon Tier-1 and -2 Demons or cast Lehudib's Crystal Spear et al.
- Orb of fire: very fast, constantly lobbing powerful fireballs, mutates you, high HP and resistances, hits hard, travels in a pack.
- Electric golem: extremely fast, blinks, electric attacks
- Orb Guardian: tough, very fast, a lot of them.
- Killer Klown: blinks, has a very random Chaos-type melee brand.
- All kinds of dragons and draconians.
Charging in is almost certain suicide. To succeed, consider your build and plan your approach around that. The rest of the page provides helpful information and outlines common strategies.
Orb Chamber Map
############################################################################## # hall_of_Zot_5 NAME: hall_of_Zot PLACE: Zot:5 ORIENT: north LFLAGS: no_tele_control MARKER: Z = lua:item_pickup_change_flags { \ level_flags="!no_tele_control", item="Orb of Zot" \ } LFLOORCOL: magenta LROCKCOL: lightmagenta LFLOORTILE: floor_tomb LROCKTILE: wall_zot_magenta #traps SUBST: C = c:1000 = KFEAT: 1 = any trap / w:20 floor KMONS: 1 = patrolling Orb Guardian KFEAT: 8 = any trap / w:20 floor SHUFFLE: ABab / ^^FF / ^^FF / ^^FF SHUFFLE: Aa / Bb KFEAT: A = any trap / w:30 floor KFEAT: B = any trap / w:10 floor SUBST: a=F, b=6 F SUBST: ^ = ^ .:10 SUBST: ! = ^ .:40 SUBST: . = .:500 ^ #monsters MONS: patrolling Orb Guardian, Killer Klown, electric golem, orb of fire MONS: ancient lich, orange crystal statue / silver statue / ice statue SUBST: 8=8., 8=8., 5=5. SHUFFLE: 234 SUBST: ? = .:8 ? SUBST: ? : KLM SUBST: K = 4:30 5 8 9 SUBST: L = 4 5:30 8 9 SUBST: M = 4 5 8:30 9 MAP xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxXXXX.............XXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxXXXX.............XXXXxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxXX...................XXXxxxxxxxxxxxxxXXX...................XXxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxXX..........3...........XXxxxxxxxxxxxXX...........3..........XXxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxX..8.....................XXXXXXXXXXXXX.....................8..Xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxX.......?..?.....8.8.....XXX...1...XXX.....8.8.....?..?.......Xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxXX.8...........?.........XX..1...1..XX.........?...........8.XXxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxXX......................X1...!!!...1X......................XXxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxXX.....4....2....8.8......1.!Z!.1......8.8....2....4.....XXxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxXX....?...?.....?...?...X1...!!!...1X...?...?.....?....?...XXxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxXX.......?....?..........XX..1...1..XX..........?....2.......XXxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxX.....8..........8.8.....XXX...1...XXX.....8.8..........8.....Xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxX...8....................cXXXXXXXXXXXc....................8...Xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxXX.....8.8.8..8.........ccccccccccccccc........8...8.8.8.....XXxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxXX...............8...ccccccccccccccccccc...8............8..XXxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxXX........8..8...ccccccccccccccccccccccccc...8..8........XXxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxXXa111acCCCCCCCcccccccccccccccccccccccccccCCCCCCCcb111bXXxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxcc...............AA1.ccccccccccccccccc.1BB...............ccxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxcc...8.8..8.8.....cc1...ccccccccccccc...1cc.......8..8.8.8.ccxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxcc.8...8......8.8...ccc...ccccccccccc...ccc...8.8.8..8.......ccxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxc.8..8....8.8........ccc...............ccc.....8....8..8.8....cxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxc..8..8.8....8.8.8.5.cxcc.............ccxc.5.8.8.8....8.8...8.cxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxc..8.....8.8.......8.cxxc.............cxxc8........8.....8.8..cxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxc.8...8......8.8.....cxxcc.1...1...1.ccxxc......8.......8.....cxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxc8..8...8.8.8.8...8.8cxxxc...........cxxxc8.8..8..8.8.8...8.8.cxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxc.....8.........8....cxxcc...........ccxxc....8.8.............cxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxcc...5..8..8.8....8.ccxxc.............cxxcc8.....8....8..5.8.ccxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxcc8......8....8.8.ccxxcc.............ccxxcc.8.8....8....8..ccxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxcc..............ccxxxc...............cxxxcc..............ccxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxccccccccccccccccxxxxcccccccc@ccccccccxxxxccccccccccccccccxxxxxxxxxxx ENDMAP
Please note that this Layout is outdated. While the general buildup still is the same, the chamber with the Orb can now have other (similar) layouts.
Legend:
- X - Permanent rock walls that cannot be affected in any way
- x - Diggable rock walls
- c - Shatterable stone walls
- C - Shatterable stone walls with a 1/1001 chance of being a secret door
- A, B, a, b - Traps or statues
- . - Floor with a 1/51 chance of being a trap
- 1 - Orb Guardian, also 1/3 chance of a trap
- 2/3/4 - Random monsters (Killer Klowns, electric golems, or orbs of fire)
- 5 - 1/2 chance of an ancient lich
- 8 - 1/4 chance of a random hard monster, 1/3 chance of a trap
- ? - 1/2 chance of anything that can generate in Zot, weighted toward the above listed monsters
Preparations
The following items, abilities, and intrinsics are recommended for surviving the Orb chamber. They are ordered in terms of importance. A more experienced player can clear the chamber with fewer, while a player who just reached Zot:5 for the first time will probably want to have as many of them as possible.
- Max experience level (27)
- High HP (Fighting skill), MP (Spellcasting skill), AC, EV, SH, Piety, etc....
- Max fire resistance for orbs of fire
- Electricity resistance for electric golems
- Max life protection and cold resistance for ancient liches
- An amulet of resist mutation for orbs of fire
- High movement speed to outrun things. At least one (but preferably more) of the following is advised: boots of running, berserk rage, potions of speed, Haste, Swiftness
- High magic resistance for ancient liches ("extremely" resistant or better, to avoid Banishment)
- See invisible for ancient liches
- Blink as a possible escape alternative.
- Optional: Apportation at max spell power. Only if you plan to yoink the Orb instead of clearing the chamber. (Note: High failure rate, risky!)
Preliminaries
- Clear Zot:1-4.
- Optionally, use a scroll of magic mapping once you reach Zot:5 to locate the chamber.
- Clear everything outside the chamber first. This is like the upper levels of Zot.
- Use magic mapping again from right outside the chamber if your first scroll did not fully map it.
Monster Strategies
- Ancient liches are your top priority. They can summon monsters with torment (fiends, mummies) and smite. Any powerful area of effect spells (such as Fire Storm) will damage the ancient liches and their summons at the same time; Dispel Undead works wonders too. Focus on the ancient liches, and when they are dead, use Mass Abjuration to clean up any remaining summons.
- Orbs of fire are next on the list. (However, if you're seeing Ancient Liches and Orbs of the fire at the same time, you'd better start retreating.) They deal incredible damage and may mutate you if you don't resist mutations. There's no safe way to deal with them, since they chew through summons fast and resist almost everything.
- Whenever you come across a melee monster (Killer Klown, Orb Guardian, etc.), grab its attention and retreat towards a safe place to kill it. Keep in mind that dragons and electric golems will shoot their breath/special attacks at you, so you may have to hide behind a corner to force it follow you.
- Speaking of Orb Guardians, they are fast and strong, but they can be confused. If you're swarmed by a bunch it's often a great idea to have them bashing one another instead of you.
- Moths of wrath may berserk monsters or you. Try not to be there when this happens to a pack of Orb Guardians.
Strategies
WARNING: the strategies below call for specific abilities and tactics, and may not apply to your character!
Clear the Chamber Gradually
The most straightforward strategy is to simply walk into the chamber, wake up as few monsters as possible, then retreat and kill them one by one. Repeat.
Lure Monsters Out
By careful use of noise (shouting and spells are the most reliable means of generating this), you may be able to wake up a few monsters, get them chasing you, and run away. Note that due to the chamber layout and the patrolling Orb Guardians, this may be hard to do without getting swamped.
Go In With an Army
If you can, summon as many creatures as possible. You can then hang back as they fight the enemies. This may be accomplished in many ways:
- Divine companions: Angels and Daevas of The Shining One, Trog's Brothers in Arms, Makhleb's Greater demons, Beogh's orcish companions, etc.
- Evoked companions: Bottled efreets, elementals, etc.
- Summonings spells: Shadow Creatures is relatively low level, but very powerful (albeit short-lived) in Zot.
- The Demonic Guardian demonspawn mutation gives you demonic guardians when tension is high. Zot:5 qualifies.
- Grab as many weapons as you can, then use Tukima's Dance.
- Undead companions: Animate killed monsters and use Twisted Resurrection on earlier floors to gather abominations.
- Why compromise? Summon Dragon: There is no substitute.
It's worth noting that in Zot, almost any permanent servant will be annhilated quickly, especially when the orbs of fire start tossing around fireballs. Hordes of minions can certainly take down any given local, but you'll be going through a lot of minions! Since these "permanent" servants are comparatively short-lived, this makes summons and divine companions that much more attractive, especially as they depend less on limited resources like corpses.
Blast Your Way Through
A Conjurations specialist with a reliable means of recharging MP (potions of magic, Sif Muna's channeling, etc.) can often simply blast his way through with high-end spells like Lehudib's Crystal Spear, Fire Storm, or Ice Storm. Mind the noise and don't attract more monsters than your MP can handle.
Lugonu's Corruption
Worshiping Lugonu can make the Orb chamber trivial. If you corrupt the level at the entrance of the left or right side of the chamber (at "AA" or "BB" on the map), you will likely break through a path to the Orb room and in the meantime create walls and demons blocking the path of monsters. Once you get in sight of the Orb, quickly grab it and then banish yourself to the Abyss. Heal up in the Abyss and then depart: you'll land in Zot:5 outside the chamber.
Shatter/Lee's Rapid Deconstruction
If you don't worship Lugonu, but can cast Shatter or Lee's Rapid Deconstruction, you may use them to dig through the shatterable stone walls. Note, however, that this is much slower and will make a lot of noise, enough to instantly awaken almost every monster on the level. As a bonus, however, both spells deal great damage to low-AC'ed electric golems. Once you clear a path to the Orb, grab it quickly and teleport away as described above. Zin's Sanctuary ability is a nice addition.
Stealth/Stabbing
Walk into the orb chamber and try to stab any sleeping monsters (Orb Guardians, ancient liches, orbs of fire, etc.). Be sure to have a way to escape, preferably Haste, and make sure you are extremely stealthy if you want to try this approach. If an orb guardian wakes up, lure it outside the chamber and fight it to avoid waking up any other monsters. When you're in sight of the orb, grab it and teleport away.
Teleport with Safety System
If you worship Nemelex Xobeh, you can randomly teleport around and entomb yourself with a Tomb card in case of failure. If you land near enemies, blink away before entombing. If you worship Zin, you may use Sanctuary for a similar effect.
Alternatively, you can cast Death's Door and then randomly teleport, using the invulnerability to survive unlucky destinations. Note that this is very risky and it is advisable to dig out the rest of the level to increase the chances of teleporting out before Death's Door runs out. If you also worship Nemelex, combine this with using a Tomb card to save yourself in case of bad luck.
Run and Teleport
The fastest and riskiest approach involves simply teleporting on Zot:5 until you land near the Orb, grabbing it, and teleporting repeatedly until you find an up staircase. Be hasted for as much of this as possible, using a scroll of vulnerability when you can to purge glow. Expect to take some damage as you flee. It's somewhat suicidal, but possible. On second thought, do not do this.
Requirements:
- Fast movement speed: Boots of running, Haste (rather than Swiftness, because the latter sacrifices Stealth).
- Very stealthy (Flight, Invisibility, Darkness, Lantern of shadows can help)
- Several potions of healing and a wand of healing with scrolls of recharging
- Fire resistance (rElec is also recommended)
- Apportation (high failure rate, but can save you some very critical turns)
- The ability to teleport several times in a row (two teleport wands and a few scrolls of recharging will suffice)
- 5 scrolls of magic mapping
- Several scrolls of fog and/or Summon Butterflies to avoid combat