Post your Rogue Tips!

Discussion about Rogue Touch for the iPhone and iPod Touch
MikeB
Posts: 13
Joined: Fri Apr 03, 2009 2:10 pm

Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by MikeB »

This game is eating up so much of my spare time. I am again hooked on the simple yet superlative dungeon crawl that is Rogue.

1 - Fight slimes in the corridor. That gives them less opportunities to split (ie only one at a time). Fighting a slime in an open area is sure to get out of hand very quickly.
2 - Paralysis and Confusion potions are excellent getaway weapons. They are especially handy when an Aquator shows up.
3 - When you see an Aquator, take off your armor. They can't hurt you, so let them hit you all they want when you are in the boxer shorts.
4 - Don't attack a nymph or leprechaun in melee unless you have no choice. Missle weapons are best to take them out -- and it behooves you to do so because they always drop an item. And if a Nymph closes in, you'd better equip anything you don't want to lose.
5 - Secret codes are neat to get equipped quickly, but you aren't gonna be posted on the leaderboard. And even if you do, its not your character that's posted up there. I'd only use them as training tools or to vent your frustration from your last death by smashing low level critters.
6 - Be alert on all fronts. Often, I've been killed from another angle while obsessing about another problem (i.e., low food, cursed armor). I think this is one of the more insidious characteristics of this game.
7 - Armor will always ID itself when you equip it. Just remember you run the risk of finding cursed armor, which wil require a Remove Curse.
8 - Economize your movements when possible. If you pop into a room and its empty with no exits, and its in the corner of the map, there's really no need to explore it further.
9 - A polymorph wand becomes more and more useful as you get lower: turning a dragon to a kestrel when you have 10hp is a lifesaver. On the higher levels, not so much... not fun to be a Guild Apprentice suddenly facing a Jabberwock.
10 - You can't outrun griffins unless you are hasted. If you have no getaway devices (qv 2) the fight is gonna be to the death.
11 - Don't eat until you start to faint. Being "weak" doesn't drop your strength score, and you wanna stretch out every particle of food that you can, no matter your reserves.
12 - Do not underestimate the value of stealth. It will let you take out a LOT of creatures at range.
13 - At low levels, the Ice Monsters are good as gold. They raise your experience rather quickly. Never turn down a fight with one.
14 - Beware fighting Ogres and Yetis. They can take off 20 hitpoints a hit, regardless of your armor (at least it seems).
15 - Save your Identify Scrolls for rings. Potions are readily identified by drinking them (even the worst negative ones are a nuisance rather than a threat). You can identify armors by wearing them. By the time you get to the really nifty weapons, your mace is probably enchanted so much it's far superior. Scrolls, likewise, are easy to just identify by reading new ones.
16 - The strategy of going down stairs as soon as you find them is not a good one, in my opinion. That gets you in over your head far too quickly. Unless you have a real lucky streak with item finds, you probably won't live past level 18.
17 - Two rings of Slow Digestion will pretty much make you impervious to hunger. Just remember that you are denying yourself any other benefit rings can impart.
18 - If you have a maintain armor ring, and you find elven chainmail, drop the ring. You don't need it any more.
19 - If a swarm of monsters appear, lead them to a corridor. Always make sure you can only get hit once per turn.
20 - Every so often, push your luck. You may drop that ogre in the next hit when you are down to 5hp. Better than having him squash you while you run away.
User avatar
preuve
Posts: 25
Joined: Fri Mar 13, 2009 9:20 am

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by preuve »

You can identify all types of weapons by throwing them and hitting a monster. I'm not sure if there's a chance the weapon will disappear. Yes, you can even throw that short bow and mace at the ice monster. It won't do much damage but you'll find out the nature of the weapon.

I try and drink all potions early to try and identify what the potion is. If you have a good memory, you can guess the chances of whether the unidentified potion is a good one. The same goes with scrolls.
User avatar
Nighthawk
Posts: 172
Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2009 12:48 am
Location: Philadelphia, PA

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by Nighthawk »

I'll add 'em as I think of them:

1. Try to build one set of super armor, preferably starting with Plate, Banded, or Splint Mail. Elfin mail will also do in a pinch, considering it's anti-rusting properties. When reading a scroll you've never seen before, take off your current "working" armor, put on the good set, then read away. Hope for a scroll of Protect Armor - if you get one, you've no need for any other armor. If you don't, don't forget to switch back to your "working" armor!

2. I typically start my "dive" for the Amulet around Floor 20-23, depending on how good my armor/weapon/food supply/max strength are (the weaker you are, the earlier you start). While this means you may miss out on some goodies, keep your eye on the real prize!

3. When ascending, there won't be any items to find (occasionally a creature may be carrying something good). When you find the staircase, ASCEND!

4. If you've just reached a new XP level (and got a crappy Max HP bump) and happen to come upon a Wraith, feel free to let it hit you and remove 1 (and only 1!) level of experience (and the crappy Max HP bump). The number of experience points lost should be very little, and when you kill the Wraith, you'll level up again. While you won't get any net experience points for the encounter, you'll likely still increase your max HP!

5. If you need to confuse a monster, do it in a room, not a corridor. Since confusion makes a monster move or attack randomly, having fewer legal movement options means that the monster has a much higher chance of attacking you anyway!
Last edited by Nighthawk on Fri Apr 17, 2009 10:47 pm, edited 2 times in total.
User avatar
Jim2wheels
Posts: 104
Joined: Sat Apr 04, 2009 7:03 am
Location: London UK

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by Jim2wheels »

I never read scrolls unless i have an item i want identifying. Nothing worse than wasting a scroll of identity - way too precious! Likewise i never drink potions unless my strength or health are below max so as not to waste a health/strength potion.
DanJS
Posts: 6
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2009 9:27 am

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by DanJS »

MikeB wrote:4 - Don't attack a nymph or leprechaun in melee unless you have no choice. Missle weapons are best to take them out -- and it behooves you to do so because they always drop an item. And if a Nymph closes in, you'd better equip anything you don't want to lose.
I found a war hammer and fell into a habit of tossing it at a baddie and then closing for melee. Worked pretty well until I threw it at a leprechaun and *poof* he disappeared with it! :evil:

So I guess I should have read your tip more carefully...hammers are not technically 'missile' weapons :lol:

-dan
Streborphx
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Mar 31, 2009 4:45 pm

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by Streborphx »

DanJS wrote:
MikeB wrote:4 - Don't attack a nymph or leprechaun in melee unless you have no choice. Missle weapons are best to take them out -- and it behooves you to do so because they always drop an item. And if a Nymph closes in, you'd better equip anything you don't want to lose.
I found a war hammer and fell into a habit of tossing it at a baddie and then closing for melee. Worked pretty well until I threw it at a leprechaun and *poof* he disappeared with it! :evil:

So I guess I should have read your tip more carefully...hammers are not technically 'missile' weapons :lol:

-dan
Actually, If you would have killed the little bugger he would have dropped your hammer. It's only if they poof away that you loose the item. Same goes for Nymphs.

If you are hungry or about to become hungry when you change levels if there is food on the level you will get the message "Something smells good". So in a pinch you can level dive to look for food. If you don't get the message there's no food on that level.

if you read a scroll of enchant (either armor or weapon) it WILL remove the curse on a cursed item. So don't be afraid to use em in a pinch if you cant seem to find a remove curse scroll.

If you find yourself having to run, check the map and try and find a path that will let you circle through rooms. As long as you don't run into any other baddies you can circle around until you're back to full health. Don't forget some monsters also regen health (trolls...) so you may have to fight him from scratch if you do this. Also, if you find yourself in this situation rings of regen are a life saver they give you back 1 HP for every move. I only wear them in a pinch though because the food consumption is twice normal.

Rings of Searching are a god send! I can't tell you how many times I've almost chucked my iphone after getting a "You sense Powerful magic on this level" only to fall through a trap door before I can find it. The food consumption is increased but it's worth it IMO just to avoid the trap doors and dart traps.

I'll post more as I think of them. Good Luck!
User avatar
NightOwl40
Posts: 160
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2009 7:44 pm
Location: USA
Contact:

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by NightOwl40 »

I really should print out this topic........I forgot about the section on griffins yesterday and had a very promising run come to a screeching halt :oops: At least the griffin was well fed...................... :roll:
User avatar
Nighthawk
Posts: 172
Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2009 12:48 am
Location: Philadelphia, PA

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by Nighthawk »

Streborphx wrote:<snip!> Also, if you find yourself in this situation rings of regen are a life saver they give you back 1 HP for every move. I only wear them in a pinch though because the food consumption is twice normal. <snip!>
Is it just me, or do rings of Regen seem to override the natural HP regen? In other words...

As you progress in level, your character gets higher and higher "bonuses" to their HP regeneration. At a certain point, gaining 1HP per turn is worse than the innate ability of the character (1d6 every 3 turns, for example, should average out to 3.5 HP per 3 turns).

BUT... while I haven't gotten one or used it very often, rings of Regen seem to override that bonus... So every 3 turns, I should get 1d6 of health back PLUS the 3HP from the ring, but IIRC I only got the 3HP from the ring. Anyone seeing something similar and/or does anyone remember if that is how it's supposed to work?
DPCyric
Posts: 27
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2009 10:39 am

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by DPCyric »

I actually use scrolls to identify my potions and generally ignore rings (because of the extra food consumption) unless I have extra scrolls. I feel that saving those important potions for the right moment is better then having rings, my last dive with Neo had me stuck with a strength of 10 most of the run due to poison and it was before I started using my scrolls to identify pots and I wish I would have identified and saved a potion of restore strength early on.
User avatar
jhawk
Posts: 176
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2009 4:01 pm

Re: Post your Rogue Tips!

Post by jhawk »

I was wearing 2 regen rings at one point and I wasn't counting but it filled back up fast.
Post Reply