Octopode

Version 0.30: 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 Octopode (monster).

These land-capable relatives of common octopuses can move about as fast as humans and yet retain the ability to swim underwater, although their dual adaptation is not as good as that of the shapechanging merfolk. Octopodes have eight tentacle-shaped legs, and need four of them to move. While a tentacle lacks fingers, two tentacles are a rough equivalent of a human's arm where item manipulation is concerned - including wielding two-handed weapons with four. They can use no armour other than loose hats, but can handle shields just fine. Another peculiarity they have is the ability to wear eight rings, one on each tentacle. Their natural camouflage makes them excel at stealth, and they have good knowledge of poisons as well. They are also able to use their tentacles to constrict enemies - potentially several at a time!

Innate Abilities

• Octopodes cannot use any type of armour other than shields and hats, nor can they cast Animate Armour.
• Octopodes can wear up to eight rings at the same time.
• Gelatinous Body 1: Octopodes have +1 AC.
• Camouflage 1: Octopodes have +40 Stealth.
• Tentacles: Octopodes have eight tentacles, which grant a few auxiliary attacks.
  • Constrict: Octopodes may constrict enemies in combat (see below for details).
  • Tentacle Squeeze: Octopodes have an auxiliary squeeze attack (damage = 12).
  • Tentacle Slap: Octopodes replace their offhand punch with a tentacle slap. Tentacle slaps are mostly identical to offhand punches, but can be done when wielding a two-handed weapon or shield.
• Nimble Swimmer: Octopodes are amphibious. While in water, they can swim with no penalties, with a +50 stealth boost. (Unlike merfolk, they don't get any bonuses to evasion or movement speed.) They are also resistant to Engulf and drowning damage.

Octopodes have a base Strength of 7, Intelligence of 10 and Dexterity of 7 (before Background modifiers).

Constriction

Whenever you make a melee attack, you automatically attempt to constrict an enemy.

• You must have a free tentacle to constrict with, each constriction takes one. Octopodes start with 8, but lose 2 per hand occupied (2 per one-handed weapon/shield, 4 if two-handed weapon).
• The enemy must be the same size as you (medium) or smaller.

Constriction greatly reduces enemy EV and causes passive damage over time. Once it's successful, you'll continue as long as you remain on your current tile, even when waiting/casting spells. If you attack a new target, you constrict if you have a free tentacle. It ends if you move or if the enemy escapes. In general, enemies won't intentionally escape constriction; batty enemies will, and properties like trample and the Blink spell can move you/them.

Attempting to constrict 8 enemies at once is generally considered unwise.

Preferred Backgrounds

• Warriors: Brigand
• Warrior-mages: Transmuter
• Mages: Hedge Wizard, Conjurer, Fire Elementalist, Ice Elementalist, Earth Elementalist, Venom Mage

Level Bonuses

• +1 to a random stat every 5th level.
• 10% less HP than average.
• Average MP.
• +3 willpower per level.

Starting Skills and Equipment

Octopodes receive the skills and equipment listed for their background, save for the following restrictions:

• Octopodes receive no body armour. Any helmets are replaced with hats.
• Any skill points in Armour are placed in Dodging instead.

Difficulty of Play

Octopodes are a difficult race to play. The prospect of wearing eight amazing rings is appealing... but getting there is another matter. As a species with reduced health and almost no armour, Octopodes are very frail; combat can turn bad at the drop of a hat. Without the speed of a Spriggan or aptitudes of a Deep Elf, they are just plain difficult. You can eventually compensate - shields, high level Transmutations, and rings can boister your defense - but these all take time to develop.

Otherwise, they are a versatile species, with average-or-better aptitudes across the board. Don't think melee is unfeasible: Octopodes can constrict, which is quite the powerful perk. For the first few floors, they are one of the better species, purely because of constriction. Even mage starts can find melee a decent backup. (However, this doesn't mean melee isn't difficult. Past D:3 or so, ranged enemies like orc priests and centaurs show up, making melee hard but doable.)

Skill aptitudes

The higher the value, the better the aptitude.

Skill	Aptitude	Skill	Aptitude	Skill	Aptitude
Attack		Miscellaneous		Magic
Fighting	0	Armour	N/A	Spellcasting	-1
		Dodging	0
Maces & Flails	0	Shields	0	Conjurations	0
Axes	0	Stealth	4	Hexes	0
Polearms	0			Summonings	0
Staves	0	Invocations	1	Necromancy	0
Unarmed Combat	0	Evocations	1	Translocations	0
Throwing	0	Shapeshifting	-1	Alchemy	1
				Fire Magic	0
Short Blades	0			Ice Magic	0
Long Blades	0			Air Magic	0
Ranged Weapons	0	Experience	0	Earth Magic	0

Strategy

Skill breadth vs depth

Octopodes have roughly the same aptitudes as Human, so they lend well to a broad use of skills. Since they can't wear armour, spells are rarely encumbered. Melee constriction, meanwhile, is a useful tool to have. This is evident in the early game, where your survival strategy may adapt itself on what useful item you get. For example, a mage start may find a dagger of venom, and clear enemies using that (and constriction). As you progress through the game, you may find yourself split between many different skills.

Item usage

Almost any source of AC should be considered. Rings of protection are usually the main source, but weapons of protection are worth a little more than normal.

Given that shields are one of only two types of armour an Octopode can use, many players will want to wear a shield, regardless of starting background.

Melee combat

Armed with an octet of squeezing tentacles, Octopodes morphology allows them to excel at melee. With sufficient defense, most often achieved in the mid & late game, tackling multiple foes at once becomes a much more viable (read: less suicidal) option. It's important to note that you cannot constrict targets that are large or insubstantial.

Transmutations

By playing with Transmutations, you can get around many of the limitations of playing an Octopode - namely, your nonexistent base defenses. The Transmuter start is a good demonstration. Spider Form provides a great EV boost, even raising AC for hatless folk. Ice Form is a more robust form, with damage and AC to match. Octopodes sport a great advantage over other Transmuters; most regular armour is melded, but fortunately, all eight of your rings retain their effects. However, most -Form spells still have a cost - they meld shields and prevent constriction.

Statue Form should be your end goal, giving you AC on par with well-armoured characters, while maintaining your unencumbered EV, constriction, and hat/shield slot. Cheibriados can assist with casting and fighting in the already sluggish Statue Form, though surviving long with Chei while being frail and without armour is a bit dubious. If you want to go further, both Storm Form and Dragon Form have their own uses, too.

Trivia

The octopode may have been loosely based upon the pacific northwest tree octopus (Octopus paxarbolis).

History

• Prior to 0.16, assuming Ice, Dragon, Tree, and Fungus forms would disable 6 of your 8 ring slots.
• For a brief time in 0.11-trunk, Octopodes' squeeze was octupled - it dealt 96 base damage instead of 12.
• Octopodes were introduced in 0.10.