Difference between revisions of "Ghoul"

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{{flavour|They are horrible undead creatures, slowly rotting away. Although Ghouls can sleep in their graves for years on end, when they rise to walk among the living, they must eat flesh to survive. Raw flesh is preferred, especially rotting or tainted meat, and Ghouls gain resilience from consuming it.
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{{flavour|Ghouls are horrible undead creatures, slowly rotting away. Although Ghouls can sleep in their graves for years on end, when they rise to walk among the living, they must eat flesh to survive. Raw flesh is preferred, and Ghouls heal and reverse the effects of their eternal rotting by consuming it, but they can never become truly full.
  
 
They aren't very good at doing most things, although they make decent unarmed fighters with their claws and, due to their contact with the grave, can use ice, earth and death magic without too many difficulties.}}
 
They aren't very good at doing most things, although they make decent unarmed fighters with their claws and, due to their contact with the grave, can use ice, earth and death magic without too many difficulties.}}
  
 
==Innate Abilities==
 
==Innate Abilities==
*Ghouls have the following innate resistances and immunities: [[Cold resistance|Cold Resistance 1]], [[Life Protection 3]], [[Poison Resistance]], [[Rot Resistance]], and immunity to [[Torment]]. Ghouls will [[rot]] instead of [[mutate]].  
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*Ghouls have the following innate resistances and immunities: [[Cold resistance|Cold Resistance 1]], [[Life Protection 3]], [[Rot Resistance]], and immunity to [[poison]] and [[Torment]]. Ghouls will [[rot]] instead of [[mutate]].
 
*Ghouls are vulnerable to [[Dispel Undead]] and holy damage, including [[Holy wrath]] brand.
 
*Ghouls are vulnerable to [[Dispel Undead]] and holy damage, including [[Holy wrath]] brand.
 
*Ghouls cannot go [[berserk]], willingly or unwillingly.
 
*Ghouls cannot go [[berserk]], willingly or unwillingly.
*Ghouls cannot worship the "good gods," [[The Shining One]], [[Elyvilon]], or [[Zin]]. Nor can Ghouls worship [[Fedhas]]. 
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*Ghouls cannot worship the "good gods," [[The Shining One]], [[Elyvilon]], or [[Zin]].
*Ghouls cannot be polymorphed or change form, but they ''can'' be petrified.  
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*Ghouls cannot be polymorphed or change form, but they ''can'' be petrified.
*Ghouls cannot use or memorize the following spells: [[Dragon Form]], [[Ice Form]], [[Spider Form]], [[Statue Form]], [[Stoneskin]], [[Beastly Appendage]], [[Blade Hands]], [[Necromutation]], [[Death's Door]], [[Borgnjor's Revivification]], [[Cure Poison]].
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*Ghouls cannot use or memorize the following spells: [[Dragon Form]], [[Hydra Form]], [[Ice Form]], [[Spider Form]], [[Statue Form]], [[Beastly Appendage]], [[Blade Hands]], [[Necromutation]], [[Death's Door]], [[Borgnjor's Revivification]], and [[Sublimation of Blood]].
 
*[[Claws|Claws 1]]: Ghouls have claws on their hands and receive a bonus to [[unarmed combat]] damage.
 
*[[Claws|Claws 1]]: Ghouls have claws on their hands and receive a bonus to [[unarmed combat]] damage.
 
*[[Carnivorous|Carnivorous 3]]: Ghouls can eat [[chunk]]s at any time, but cannot eat anything but meat.
 
*[[Carnivorous|Carnivorous 3]]: Ghouls can eat [[chunk]]s at any time, but cannot eat anything but meat.
*[[Saprovore 3]]: Ghouls can eat rotten or contaminated meat without any problems.
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*[[Bad mutations#Inhibited Regeneration|Inhibited Regeneration]]: Ghouls do not heal when monsters are visible.
*[[Bad mutations#Slow Healing|Slow Healing 1]]: Ghouls heal more slowly than usual.
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*Ghouls [[rot]] randomly and continuously, but more quickly when hungry or starving. Happily, they can heal [[rot]] and [[HP]] loss by eating chunks.
*Ghouls [[rot]] randomly and continuously, but more quickly when hungry or starving. Happily, they can heal [[rot]] and [[HP]] loss by eating rotten or contaminated meat.
 
 
*Ghouls can eat any amount of meat without ever becoming "full" or "engorged". However, they can only ''retain'' up to 6999 points of nutrition, as compared to the usual 12000.
 
*Ghouls can eat any amount of meat without ever becoming "full" or "engorged". However, they can only ''retain'' up to 6999 points of nutrition, as compared to the usual 12000.
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*Ghouls do not leave [[Player ghost]]s.
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Ghouls have a base [[Strength]] of 11, [[Intelligence]] of 3 and [[Dexterity]] of 4 (before Background modifiers). They have -1 to their base [[magic points]].
  
 
==Preferred Backgrounds==
 
==Preferred Backgrounds==
*'''Warriors:''' [[Fighter]], [[Gladiator]], [[Monk]]
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*'''Warriors:''' [[Gladiator]], [[Monk]]
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*'''Warrior-Mages:''' [[Warper]]
 
*'''Mages:''' [[Necromancer]], [[Ice Elementalist]], [[Earth Elementalist]]
 
*'''Mages:''' [[Necromancer]], [[Ice Elementalist]], [[Earth Elementalist]]
  
Due to their undead nature, ghouls are prohibited from becoming [[Priest]]s or [[Healer]]s. They are also prohibited from becoming [[Transmuter]]s.
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Ghouls are prohibited from becoming [[Transmuter]]s.
  
 
==Nutrition==
 
==Nutrition==
Like other undead, ghoul nutrition is a special case. Along with its nutritional value, eating chunks of meat can heal HP, and rot damage. Regardless of the kind of chunk involved, the amount healed is 1d5 - 1 + 1d(1+XP level). However, the likelihood of these restorative effects occurring varies between chunk types:
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Like other undead, ghoul nutrition is a special case. Ghouls can eat all chunks, even those that are inedible to all other races. Along with its nutritional value, eating chunks of meat can heal HP and rot damage. Regardless of the kind of chunk involved, the amount healed is 1d5 - 1 + 1d(1+XP level).
 
 
{| class="prettytable" style="border:none; margin:0; padding:0; text-align: center"
 
! Chunk Type || Heal HP || Heal Rot
 
|-
 
| '''Clean''' || 80% || 75%
 
|-
 
| '''Contaminated''' || 86% || 75%
 
|-
 
| '''Rotten''' || 100% || 75%
 
|}
 
  
 
It's worth noting that while you will never be told you're too full to eat more, you ''cannot'' accumulate a "life-time supply" of nutrition by devouring everything you come across, as a ghoul's satiation never increases beyond 7/12 of the maximum amount other species can hold. Even if you could, you'd still need to regularly eat meat to heal rotting.
 
It's worth noting that while you will never be told you're too full to eat more, you ''cannot'' accumulate a "life-time supply" of nutrition by devouring everything you come across, as a ghoul's satiation never increases beyond 7/12 of the maximum amount other species can hold. Even if you could, you'd still need to regularly eat meat to heal rotting.
  
In addition to chunks, Ghouls can also eat [[meat ration]]s, [[beef jerky]], [[sausage]]s, [[cheese]], [[pizza]], [[honeycomb]]s, [[royal jelly]], and [[ambrosia]]. These foods have no healing or restorative effects, but by raising a ghoul's overall satiation level they slow the onset of rot. Royal jelly and ambrosia will also still provide their unique benefits.
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In addition to chunks, Ghouls can also eat [[ration]]s; while they have no healing or restorative effects, they help slow the onset of rot by keeping the ghoul from going hungry.
  
 
==Level Bonuses==
 
==Level Bonuses==
 
*+1 [[strength]] every 5th level.
 
*+1 [[strength]] every 5th level.
 
*10% more [[HP]] than average.
 
*10% more [[HP]] than average.
*10% less [[MP]] than average.
 
 
*+3 magic resistance per level.
 
*+3 magic resistance per level.
  
 
==Starting Skills and Equipment==
 
==Starting Skills and Equipment==
Ghouls start with the skills and equipment listed for their background, with the following exceptions:
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Ghouls start with the skills and equipment listed for their background, but they never start with food of any kind.
*Ghouls never start with food of any kind.
 
*If their background does not start with [[Unarmed Combat]] skill ''and'' offers a choice of weapon, Ghouls have the extra option of "claws" (which also gives them some starting skill in [[unarmed combat]]).
 
  
 
==Difficulty of Play==
 
==Difficulty of Play==
{{Moderate}}
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{{Easy}}
  
Ghouls have a unique—and rather fiddly—relationship to food. However, if one is willing to deal with that, then in Ghouls one finds a fairly durable undead species that, unlike [[Mummies]], can quaff potions and has decent aptitudes. Ghouls naturally tend to have poor dexterity and intelligence, though this can be offset somewhat by the chosen stat up one receives every three levels.  
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Ghouls have a unique—and rather fiddly—relationship to food. However, if one is willing to put up with that, in Ghouls one finds a fairly durable undead species that can enjoy the full effect of potions and has decent aptitudes. Ghouls naturally tend to have very poor dexterity and intelligence, though this can eventually be offset by the chosen stat ups that one receives every three levels.  
  
 
{{species_aptitudes|Ghoul}}
 
{{species_aptitudes|Ghoul}}
  
==Tips & Tricks==
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==Strategy==
The most obvious way to play a Ghoul is to hack everything to death with your claws.  They have a good aptitude for Unarmed Combat (+1), and the claws give a +2 bonus to damage, which helps greatly in the early game.  While ordinarily combining heavy armour and unarmed combat is counterproductive (EV penalty slows unarmed combat), Ghouls may want to consider it: they have very high Strength and very low Dexterity, meaning they won't get as much out of light armour but can wear heavy armours with less penalty than other races. A light armoured Ghoul is still quite viable, but will have considerably less EV than most other light armour characters. Additionally, Ghouls' weapon aptitudes are reasonable (-1), and a weapon-wielding Ghoul, while less than ideal, is quite doable.
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The most obvious way to play a Ghoul is to use your claws, which give Ghouls a +2 bonus to [[unarmed combat]] damage that is helpful in the early game, when bare-handed combat struggles to keep apace of weapons. This play style is further supported by a good aptitude in unarmed combat. However, Ghouls' weapon aptitudes are reasonable, and a weapon-wielding Ghoul is perfectly viable.
  
Ghouls also make surprisingly competent casters. They start with low Intelligence, but their aptitudes for magic skills are actually fairly good: most of their spell skills are reasonable at -1, and they have considerable talent in [[Ice Magic|Ice]] and [[Earth Magic]], and are good with [[Necromancy]] and [[Poison Magic]]Their ability to eat any and all chunks (including mutagenic and rot-inducing ones) means that spell hunger is far less of a concern for them than most races, which somewhat offsets their low Int.  Their claws and aptitude for Unarmed considerably help in early game survival, and their high Strength gives them better carry capacity than other casters. However, their Int is sufficiently low that, in order to make a Ghoul caster, it is a good idea to start with a spellcasting background and devote most or all of your skill points to Int, at least if you want to cast higher-level spells.
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Ghouls can also make for competent casters. Their aptitudes for it are not as bad as they first appear: they are good at Ice and Earth Magic, and generally passable at most other things.  They are, however, held back by their low intelligence: those who want to make a serious Ghoul caster will want to pick a spellcasting background and devote their stat increases to nothing but IntHowever, their ability to eat any and all corpses makes hunger costs less of an issue (partially offsetting the low Int), while their good HP and unarmed abilities give them better resilience than most casters.
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As far as gods go, [[Makhleb]] is a popular choice for Ghouls. Aside from the usual benefits, Ghouls enjoy Makhleb's HP-for-kills because this translates into less time they must spend resting, and thus helps limit the extent of their rotting. [[Kikubaaqudgha]] gives Ghouls an easy way to branch into [[Necromancy]], and they can use Receive Corpses not only for necromantic purposes, but also to heal and restore rot (including in normally corpseless or corpse-light branches). Unarmed fighters should, as usual, consider [[Okawaru]], as Heroism is even more powerful for Unarmed Combat than it is for other weapon skills.  
  
While not as constrained as Vampires or Deep Dwarves in god choice, Ghouls will find that some gods make their game considerably easier than others.  [[Makhleb]] is a very popular choice for them, as his HP-for-kills helps offset their slow healing.  Since this reduces the time they must spend resting, it also lessens the problem of rotting.  Another good option is [[Kikubaaqudgha]]: they can use his receive corpses ability to heal and restore rot in normally corpseless branches.  His [[torment]] protection is redundant for Ghouls, but they can use his Necromancy spells and torment invocation to great effect.  Unarmed fighters might consider [[Okawaru]] - even though his weapon gifts will be useless, his Heroism ability is considerably more powerful for them.  Casters can make good use of [[Sif Muna]] or [[Vehumet]] to help offset Ghouls' naturally low MP.
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Any of the other typically strong gods, such as [[Nemelex]], [[Ashenzari]], [[Ru]], and so on, are likewise strong for Ghouls. Do note, however, that Ghouls cannot [[berserk]], and thus do not benefit nearly as much as most other species from worship of [[Trog]].
  
 
==Appetite and Corpses==
 
==Appetite and Corpses==
Even though you can eat meat at any time, don't eat chunks immediately, as [[Troll]]s and [[Kobold]]s do. Instead, save them until you're injured, rotted, or actually ''hungry''. Unless it's an emergency, hold off on eating chunks until they're rotten, when they will be most nourishing for you, and more likely to heal your rot.  Also remember that while the game will let you eat all the meat you want, you don't actually ''accumulate'' nutrition beyond Satiated -- excess food is "wasted" (aside from healing).  From the top of "Hungry" to the top of "Satiated" (your max) is less than five chunks, and you don't get any notice when you max out your food counter!  Also, plan ahead -- for example, stock up on to-be-rotted chunks when facing an unexplored area, or when your current rotted chunks will vanish soon.
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Ghouls' relationship to satiation and corpses is one of the most involved in the game, and thus deserves some further clarification.
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Even though you can eat meat at any time, Ghouls should handle chunks differently than [[Troll]]s and [[Kobold]]s do. As a Ghoul, you should eat [[chunk]]s when you want to recover from injuries quickly, when you have accumulated too much rot and need to restore it now, and whenever you have actually become ''hungry''. Also remember that while the game will let you eat all the meat you want, you don't actually ''accumulate'' nutrition beyond Satiated. Going from the top of "Hungry" to the top of "Satiated" (which is as full as Ghouls can get) requires less than five chunks.  
  
It should be noted that Makhleb and several other gods also accept blood sacrifices. This is not necessarily a huge issue for Ghouls, despite their penchant for devouring every corpse in sight. Your [[piety]] may not progress quite as efficiently as species who have little use for raw meat (and can afford to sacrifice corpses left and right), but most areas of the Dungeon should provide enough corpses to satisfy both needs.
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Until you are comfortable with how the Ghoul's hunger mechanics work, you should simply try to keep a good number of chunks on hand as often as you can, although you should not hesitate to use corpses for purposes other than eating, when appropriate (e.g., to make a good zombie via [[Necromancy]]).
  
==No Ghosts==
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==History==
Like other undead, Ghouls do not leave ghosts. This comes in handy when you've accumulated a lot of ghost levels, and would like to clear some out -- a few Ghoul characters can try to take them out, without adding to the problem.  Their unnatural resistances are handy against those [[Venom Mage]] and suchlike ghosts, too.
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*Prior to [[0.24]], ghouls couldn't worship [[Fedhas]].
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*Prior to [[0.20]], ghouls had Slow Regeneration 1 innate mutation instead of [[Inhibited Regeneration]] and could slowly regenerate health even when monsters were visible.
  
[[Category:Species]]
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{{species}}

Revision as of 11:58, 25 February 2020

Version 0.24: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.
This page is about the player species. For the monster, see Ghoul (monster).
Ghouls are horrible undead creatures, slowly rotting away. Although Ghouls can sleep in their graves for years on end, when they rise to walk among the living, they must eat flesh to survive. Raw flesh is preferred, and Ghouls heal and reverse the effects of their eternal rotting by consuming it, but they can never become truly full.

They aren't very good at doing most things, although they make decent unarmed fighters with their claws and, due to their contact with the grave, can use ice, earth and death magic without too many difficulties.

Innate Abilities

Ghouls have a base Strength of 11, Intelligence of 3 and Dexterity of 4 (before Background modifiers). They have -1 to their base magic points.

Preferred Backgrounds

Ghouls are prohibited from becoming Transmuters.

Nutrition

Like other undead, ghoul nutrition is a special case. Ghouls can eat all chunks, even those that are inedible to all other races. Along with its nutritional value, eating chunks of meat can heal HP and rot damage. Regardless of the kind of chunk involved, the amount healed is 1d5 - 1 + 1d(1+XP level).

It's worth noting that while you will never be told you're too full to eat more, you cannot accumulate a "life-time supply" of nutrition by devouring everything you come across, as a ghoul's satiation never increases beyond 7/12 of the maximum amount other species can hold. Even if you could, you'd still need to regularly eat meat to heal rotting.

In addition to chunks, Ghouls can also eat rations; while they have no healing or restorative effects, they help slow the onset of rot by keeping the ghoul from going hungry.

Level Bonuses

  • +1 strength every 5th level.
  • 10% more HP than average.
  • +3 magic resistance per level.

Starting Skills and Equipment

Ghouls start with the skills and equipment listed for their background, but they never start with food of any kind.

Difficulty of Play

SimpleIntermediateAdvanced

Ghouls have a unique—and rather fiddly—relationship to food. However, if one is willing to put up with that, in Ghouls one finds a fairly durable undead species that can enjoy the full effect of potions and has decent aptitudes. Ghouls naturally tend to have very poor dexterity and intelligence, though this can eventually be offset by the chosen stat ups that one receives every three levels.

Skill aptitudes

The higher the value, the better the aptitude.

Skill Aptitude Skill Aptitude Skill Aptitude
Attack Miscellaneous Magic
Fighting 1 Armour -1 Spellcasting -2
Dodging -1
Maces & Flails -1 Shields -1 Conjurations -2
Axes -1 Stealth 2 Hexes -2
Polearms -1 Summonings -1
Staves -1 Invocations 1 Necromancy 0
Unarmed Combat 1 Evocations -1 Translocations -1
Throwing -1 Shapeshifting N/A Alchemy -1
Fire Magic -2
Short Blades -1 Ice Magic 1
Long Blades -1 Air Magic -2
Ranged Weapons -1 Experience 0 Earth Magic 1

Strategy

The most obvious way to play a Ghoul is to use your claws, which give Ghouls a +2 bonus to unarmed combat damage that is helpful in the early game, when bare-handed combat struggles to keep apace of weapons. This play style is further supported by a good aptitude in unarmed combat. However, Ghouls' weapon aptitudes are reasonable, and a weapon-wielding Ghoul is perfectly viable.

Ghouls can also make for competent casters. Their aptitudes for it are not as bad as they first appear: they are good at Ice and Earth Magic, and generally passable at most other things. They are, however, held back by their low intelligence: those who want to make a serious Ghoul caster will want to pick a spellcasting background and devote their stat increases to nothing but Int. However, their ability to eat any and all corpses makes hunger costs less of an issue (partially offsetting the low Int), while their good HP and unarmed abilities give them better resilience than most casters.

As far as gods go, Makhleb is a popular choice for Ghouls. Aside from the usual benefits, Ghouls enjoy Makhleb's HP-for-kills because this translates into less time they must spend resting, and thus helps limit the extent of their rotting. Kikubaaqudgha gives Ghouls an easy way to branch into Necromancy, and they can use Receive Corpses not only for necromantic purposes, but also to heal and restore rot (including in normally corpseless or corpse-light branches). Unarmed fighters should, as usual, consider Okawaru, as Heroism is even more powerful for Unarmed Combat than it is for other weapon skills.

Any of the other typically strong gods, such as Nemelex, Ashenzari, Ru, and so on, are likewise strong for Ghouls. Do note, however, that Ghouls cannot berserk, and thus do not benefit nearly as much as most other species from worship of Trog.

Appetite and Corpses

Ghouls' relationship to satiation and corpses is one of the most involved in the game, and thus deserves some further clarification.

Even though you can eat meat at any time, Ghouls should handle chunks differently than Trolls and Kobolds do. As a Ghoul, you should eat chunks when you want to recover from injuries quickly, when you have accumulated too much rot and need to restore it now, and whenever you have actually become hungry. Also remember that while the game will let you eat all the meat you want, you don't actually accumulate nutrition beyond Satiated. Going from the top of "Hungry" to the top of "Satiated" (which is as full as Ghouls can get) requires less than five chunks.

Until you are comfortable with how the Ghoul's hunger mechanics work, you should simply try to keep a good number of chunks on hand as often as you can, although you should not hesitate to use corpses for purposes other than eating, when appropriate (e.g., to make a good zombie via Necromancy).

History

  • Prior to 0.24, ghouls couldn't worship Fedhas.
  • Prior to 0.20, ghouls had Slow Regeneration 1 innate mutation instead of Inhibited Regeneration and could slowly regenerate health even when monsters were visible.
Species
Simple Hill OrcMinotaurMerfolkGargoyleDraconianTrollDeep ElfArmataurGnoll
Intermediate HumanKoboldDemonspawnDjinniSprigganGhoulTenguOniBarachi
Advanced Vine StalkerVampireDemigodFormicidNagaOctopodeFelidMummy