I want you to play NetHack

Other games come and go. Year after year I find myself in the same scenario: I'm putting the last few nails in the coffin of some newfangled game and pondering my next dive into the Mazes of Menace. This year, I want you to come along! If you are unfamiliar with NetHack, the following page is a better pitch than I could come up with:

thegreatestgameyouwilleverplay.com

I've been playing this god game for well over a decade and I've gotten pretty darn good at it. It is tough to get into, but I will help you. I guarantee you with absolute certainty that it is worth the effort.

Recommended steps for getting started:

• Download putty.exe - This is a client that will allow you to connect to a NetHack server via telnet
• Run putty.exe and fill in as follows:
  
  • Host Name: nethack.alt.org
  • Port: 23
  • Connection Type: Telnet
  • Saved Sessions: NetHack
  [*]Click Save[*]Double click on your newly-saved NetHack session in the large pane (this is the only step on subsequent runs)

http://www.necronopticous.com/upload/nethackputty.gif

This will get you connected to the nethack.alt.org server, which is, in my opinion, the best place to play.

There is a website for the server @ http://nethack.alt.org where you can view games history, statistics, and all kinds of other cool stuff.

Here is my current player info: http://alt.org/nethack/plr.php?player=Necronopticous

Welcome to the Dungeons of Doom!

This is a great game, but I stopped playing because I am absolutely terrible at it. I think the furthest I ever got was like level 17, and that was a fluke. I haven't touched it in several years, and would likely have a pretty steep learning curve if I started again. Maybe I will pick it up again, though. I'm definitely bound to get hours more gameplay out of it than almost anything else I can think of, at least if I have the patience to get good enough to win.

Everyone is terrible at NetHack.

Getting as deep as level 17 is pretty phenomenal, actually. I tend to find that most players will hit a wall around Delphi/Minetown without help or deeply rethinking their approach. The interesting thing about NetHack is that you improve and get further because you learn more about what is possible in the game, and there are always new things to learn.

You should give it another shot. Play on nethack.alt.org to keep a full record of all of your games and post your account name in here. I have made lots of tweaks to my config file over the years that make the game a little friendlier to use. You can view it here:

http://alt.org/nethack/userdata/N/Ne...ticous.nh343rc

Feel free to rip any/all of it to your own config file if you like.

Go for it! There is really nothing quite like ascending your first champion in NetHack.

Cajoled.

http://vignettegrimoire.com/_lynx/nethackLIL.png

http://alt.org/nethack/plr.php?player=odinspherical

Look at that. Day 1 and already playing for conducts.

Pro tip: Don't go up the entry stairs until you have the real Amulet of Yendor!

Where are the rest of you chumps at? I know there is a healthy group of Dwarf Fortress players around here. Time to suit up!

I saw that you've been playing a little, Lynx. How's it going over there? Watch out for those bats, foxes, and, erm...cram rations! ;D

http://alt.org/nethack/player-all.ph...=odinspherical

I will play this at some point. Someone bump this thread in about 7 hours to remind me.

Here are a few basic tips to help you get started:

• Choose a good class. Wizards, Tourists, Healers, and Archeologists are fun to play, but are highly dependent on a deep knowledge of the game and a meticulous strategy. Knights and Monks are powerful and have some nice starting perks, but have many quirks and limitations that require constant attention and will likely hold a new player back. Samurai, Valkyries, and Barbarians are nice starting classes that are likely to give you the most bang for your buck if you are new to NetHack. They are powerful and resilient from the very beginning of the game, and only get better as you explore and progress. The first character I ever ascended was a Healer, following a strange combination of high risk metastrategies, which took me years of playing and planning. Much of that time could have probably been shaven off if I'd stuck with a more powerful, less situational character. If in doubt, choose Dwarven Valkyrie.
• Travel light. Don't allow yourself to become Burdened or worse. When you are weighed down, nearly every aspect of your character's output is penalized in some way. Don't bother with heavy objects that you don't need, and consider making a stash with things that aren't immediately useful for you. You can always come back for them later.
• Try everything and take notes. Eat every corpse you come upon. Read every scroll and quaff every potion that you find. Try on all of the strange gear and clothing that you stumble upon. Kick sinks. Quaff fountains. Kick a locked door down an #force a locked chest open. Wipe your face off. Switch to your alternate weapon slot and equip another weapon and type #twoweapon. #pray to your god. #rub that lamp you found. Drop all of your belongings on an altar. [a]pply all of those tools that you're lugging around. Try to #engrave messages on the floor with your wands. A lot of these things will likely get you killed, but you'll learn something almost every time, and knowledge is the most powerful tool you have in this game.
• nethackwiki.com

I want to play more Starcraft II. =<

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Necronopticous

I saw that you've been playing a little, Lynx. How's it going over there? Watch out for those bats, foxes, and, erm...cram rations! ;D

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I was most pleased with the cram ration death. Kicking the stairs? Not so much.

Edit:
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net...34154030_n.jpg

I was so stoked when I saw the room from the hall, and then disappointment set in when the shopkeep clarified it was his store.

I don't think I'm hardcore enough for this game. There's something about moving an @ sign around a black space that doesn't feel fulfilling.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Del Murder

I don't think I'm hardcore enough for this game. There's something about moving an @ sign around a black space that doesn't feel fulfilling.

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Try the tiles version, the ASCII is replaced with graphics. Still simple, but not with images instead of symbols.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Genius Lynx

I was so stoked when I saw the room from the hall, and then disappointment set in when the shopkeep clarified it was his store.

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You should still be stoked! All of those potions will be yours eventually. Like everything else in NetHack, there are many, many ways to deal with/benefit from shops/shopkeepers.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Del Murder

I don't think I'm hardcore enough for this game. There's something about moving an @ sign around a black space that doesn't feel fulfilling.

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That's an extremely common first reaction and I promise you will get over that feeling quickly but you basically just have to believe until that point. The thing about NetHack is that it has a steep learning curve and it slowly reveals its depth to you as you play which makes for a rather difficult entry. The more you play the more you will forget about the ASCII. Eventually you will be able to assess your situation at a glance, and you'll be comfortable navigating the menus. You'll have all of your commonly used items #adjusted to the same hotkeys as your previous games, and you'll be able to blow through things that took a lot of thought and painstaking key presses before. Don't think about it as being "hardcore." I think anyone can enjoy and excel in NetHack, it is just a matter of climbing that first hill. It is worth it. It will give you an experience that no other game can. It's kind of like learning to snowboard.

I kept falling on my ass when I learned to snowboard.

Yeah, exactly. Everybody has a horrible first day or two, but once you adjust to the basics without having to consciously think about it, it gets extremely fun.