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 that sleep in their graves for years on end, only to rise and stalk the living. Slain foes heal these monstrous beings as they feast on the macabre energies released.
  
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.}}
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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.
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Like other undead, ghouls are naturally immune to poisons, negative energy and torment; have little warmth left to be affected by cold; and are not susceptible to mutations.}}
  
 
==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 are [[undead]] and have the following innate traits:
*Ghouls are vulnerable to [[Dispel Undead]] and holy damage, including [[Holy wrath]] brand.
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**Ghouls have [[Cold resistance|Cold Resistance 1]], [[Life Protection 3]], and immunity to [[poison]] and [[Torment]]. Ghouls will lose [[stat]]s instead of [[mutate|mutating]].
*Ghouls cannot go [[berserk]], willingly or unwillingly.
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**Ghouls [[unbreathing|do not need to breathe]] and are resistant to [[asphyxiation]] damage and certain types of [[cloud]]s.
*Ghouls cannot worship the "good gods," [[The Shining One]], [[Elyvilon]], or [[Zin]]. Nor can Ghouls worship [[Fedhas]]. 
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**Ghouls are vulnerable to [[Dispel Undead Range]] and holy damage, including the [[holy wrath]] brand.
*Ghouls cannot be polymorphed or change form, but they ''can'' be petrified.  
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**Ghouls cannot go [[berserk]], willingly or unwillingly.
*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 worship the "[[good gods]]," [[The Shining One]], [[Elyvilon]], or [[Zin]].
*[[Claws|Claws 1]]: Ghouls have claws on their hands and receive a bonus to [[unarmed combat]] damage.
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**Ghouls cannot be polymorphed or change form, but they ''can'' be petrified.
*[[Carnivorous|Carnivorous 3]]: Ghouls can eat [[chunk]]s at any time, but cannot eat anything but meat.
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**Ghouls cannot memorize any self-transformation spells ([[Beastly Appendage]], [[Blade Hands]], [[Dragon Form]], [[Storm Form]], [[Ice Form]], [[Spider Form]], [[Statue Form]], [[Necromutation]]), nor can they memorize spells that only affect the living ([[Borgnjor's Revivification]], [[Death's Door]], and [[Sublimation of Blood]]).
*[[Saprovore 3]]: Ghouls can eat rotten or contaminated meat without any problems.
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*[[Claws|Claws 1]]: Ghouls have claws on their hands and receive a bonus to [[unarmed combat]] damage, if they are not wearing [[gloves]].
*[[Bad mutations#Slow Healing|Slow Healing 1]]: Ghouls heal more slowly than usual.
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*[[Bad mutations#Inhibited Regeneration|Inhibited Regeneration]]: Ghouls do not heal when monsters are visible.
*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.
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*Ghouls can regain [[HP]] by killing [[Natural|living]] or [[plants|plant]] enemies. Each killed enemy gives a 50% chance to restore <code>1d[[XL]]</code> HP<ref>{{source ref|0.28.0|mon-death.cc|1941}}</ref>.
*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==
 
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:
 
 
 
{| 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.
 
 
 
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.
 
  
 
==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.
*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 very poor dexterity and intelligence, though this can eventually be offset by the chosen stat ups that one receives every three levels.  
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Ghouls are a fairly durable undead species that can enjoy the full effect of potions and have decent aptitudes. Ghouls naturally tend to have very poor dexterity and intelligence, though this can eventually be offset by the chosen stat bonuses that one receives every six levels.
  
 
{{species_aptitudes|Ghoul}}
 
{{species_aptitudes|Ghoul}}
  
 
==Strategy==
 
==Strategy==
The most obvious way to play a Ghoul is to hack everything to death with your claws. Their claws give a +2 bonus to damage, which helps in the early game when bare-handed combat is otherwise weak. 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.
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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, so a weapon-wielding Ghoul is perfectly viable.
 
 
Ghouls can also make for competent casters. They start with low Intelligence, which one should seek to offset by choosing Intelligence every three levels, by starting with one of the spell casting backgrounds (which have more Intelligence), or both. However, their aptitudes for magic skills are fairly good.
 
 
 
As far as gods go, [[Makhleb]] is a popular choice for Ghouls. Aside from the usual benefits, Ghouls benefit from HP-for-kills with reductions in the time they must spend resting, which lessens the problem of rotting. Another good option is [[Kikubaaqudgha]]: This option gives Ghouls an easy way to branch into [[Necromancy]], and they can use his receive corpses ability 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 his Heroism ability 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]], [[Vehumet]] (if planning to make use of [[conjuration]]s), and so on, are likewise strong for Ghouls.
 
 
 
==Appetite and Corpses==
 
  
Ghouls' relationship to satiation and corpses is one of the most involved in the game ([[Vampire]]s being the only serious competition here), and thus deserves some further clarification.  
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Ghouls can also make for moderately competent spellcasters. 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 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 complements their innate HP-for-kills, allowing them to restore health even faster. [[Kikubaaqudgha]] gives Ghouls an easy way to branch into [[Necromancy]]. Unarmed fighters should, as usual, consider [[Okawaru]], as Heroism is even more powerful for Unarmed Combat than it is for other weapon skills.
  
Even though you can eat meat at any time, you should handle chunks differently than [[Troll]]s and [[Kobold]]s do. As a Ghoul, you should use [[chunk]]s when you want to recover from injuries quickly ''after'' combat (when enemies are out of sight), when you have accumulated too much rot and need to restore it now, and whenever you have actually become ''hungry''. Outside of those circumstances, 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. From the top of "Hungry" to the top of "Satiated" (which is as full as Ghouls can get) requires less than five chunks. In general, try to carry as many chunks as you reasonably can (e.g., do not risk getting [[burdened]] status), at least until you are comfortable with how the Ghoul's hunger mechanics work.  
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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 go [[berserk]], so do not benefit nearly as much as most other species from worshiping [[Trog]].
  
Some gods give piety or have other effects upon corpse sacrifices; you should not hesitate to sacrifice corpses any time you have a decent number of chunks on hand.
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==History==
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*Prior to [[0.28]], ghouls couldn't heal by killing plant monsters.
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*Prior to [[0.26]], ghouls [[rot]]ted over time. Also, they could heal by eating [[chunk]]s instead of by killing enemies.
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*Prior to [[0.24]], ghouls couldn't worship [[Fedhas Madash]].
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*Prior to [[0.20]], ghouls had Slow Regeneration 1 instead of [[Inhibited Regeneration]] and could slowly regenerate health even when monsters were visible.
  
==No Ghosts==
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==References==
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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<references />
  
[[Category:Species]]
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{{species}}

Revision as of 12:34, 28 July 2022

Version 0.28: 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 that sleep in their graves for years on end, only to rise and stalk the living. Slain foes heal these monstrous beings as they feast on the macabre energies released.

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.

Like other undead, ghouls are naturally immune to poisons, negative energy and torment; have little warmth left to be affected by cold; and are not susceptible to mutations.

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.

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.

Difficulty of Play

SimpleIntermediateAdvanced

Ghouls are a fairly durable undead species that can enjoy the full effect of potions and have decent aptitudes. Ghouls naturally tend to have very poor dexterity and intelligence, though this can eventually be offset by the chosen stat bonuses that one receives every six 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, so a weapon-wielding Ghoul is perfectly viable.

Ghouls can also make for moderately competent spellcasters. 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 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 complements their innate HP-for-kills, allowing them to restore health even faster. Kikubaaqudgha gives Ghouls an easy way to branch into Necromancy. 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 go berserk, so do not benefit nearly as much as most other species from worshiping Trog.

History

  • Prior to 0.28, ghouls couldn't heal by killing plant monsters.
  • Prior to 0.26, ghouls rotted over time. Also, they could heal by eating chunks instead of by killing enemies.
  • Prior to 0.24, ghouls couldn't worship Fedhas Madash.
  • Prior to 0.20, ghouls had Slow Regeneration 1 instead of Inhibited Regeneration and could slowly regenerate health even when monsters were visible.

References

Species
Simple Hill OrcMinotaurMerfolkGargoyleDraconianTrollDeep ElfArmataurGnoll
Intermediate HumanKoboldDemonspawnDjinniSprigganGhoulTenguOniBarachi
Advanced Vine StalkerVampireDemigodFormicidNagaOctopodeFelidMummy