Difference between revisions of "Ghoul"

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(Difficulty of Play)
(Strategy)
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==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, and 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.  
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Ghouls can also make for competent casters. They start with low Intelligence, which one may wish to offset by choosing Intelligence every three levels, or 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.  
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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. 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.
 
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.

Revision as of 04:38, 4 February 2014

Version 0.13: 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).
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.

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

Preferred Backgrounds

Due to their undead nature, ghouls are prohibited from becoming Priests or Healers. They are also prohibited from becoming Transmuters.

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:

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 rations, beef jerky, sausages, cheese, pizza, honeycombs, 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

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

Starting Skills and Equipment

Ghouls start with the skills and equipment listed for their background, with the following exceptions:

  • 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

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 with decent aptitudes that can enjoy the full effect of potions. 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. They start with low Intelligence, which one may wish to offset by choosing Intelligence every three levels, or 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 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. 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 conjurations), 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 (Vampires being the only serious competition here), and thus deserves some further clarification.

Even though you can eat meat at any time, you should handle chunks differently than Trolls and Kobolds do. As a Ghoul, you should use chunks 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.

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 avoid getting too close to your carrying capacity, and you should not hesitate to use corpses for other purposes when appropriate (e.g., to make a good zombie via Necromancy). 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.