Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.rpg (
More info?)
On Sat, 29 Jan 2005 20:30:39 +0000 (UTC), rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca (Ross
Ridge) wrote:
>rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca (Ross Ridge) wrote:
>>I like Angband better. Having a monster than can automatically kill
>>any player with no defence is not a good design decision in a game that
>>doesn't let you reload after you die.
>
>Raymond Martineau <bk039@ncf.ca> wrote:
>>Insta-killing is possible in Angband
>
>Insta-killing is "possible" in any game. The problem is when it's
>impossible to defend against. You can't possibly have enough hit points
>or resistance or anything else that would let a Moria player survive an
>Ancient Multi-Hued Dragon (AMHD) breathing on you.
>
>>For example, the Great Wyrm of Many Colours can inflict 500 damage in an
>>instant breath attack.
>
>That's nothing. You can defend against this by having more than 500
>HP and/or the appropriate resistances.
Actually, the 500 is after factoring in the resistances. A player around
that depth who doesn't have the most basic of resistances is already dead.
From recent experimentation, summoned monsters (from other monsters) seem
to have a chance of making an attack before you can even make your first
step. Thus, there's always a chance that the single high-level dragon's
summoned monsters can nail you within one round, even if it's unlikely.
>> but there are a few cases where you don't have the time to escape
>>(e.g. the Great Wyrm next to a DracoLich, both of which can breathe at
>>the same time, annihilating your character.)
>
>I've never encountered such a case. On the other hand getting one-shotted
>by an AMHD you never saw is not an uncommon occurance in Moria for any
>player that manages gets low enough in the dungeon. Once you get to
>the levels where they appear surviving becomes more dependent on luck
>than skill. This is bad game design.
It's actually possible. There's always a small chance that you enter a
dungeon next to a monster pit - specifically next to the door (just as what
happened in a recent test run that I was doing). When it opens, almost
every monster in the pit gets a free breath attack or otherwise dangerous
ranged attack. (Of course, it was a Demon pit, meaning that I flee before
being slaughtered.)
IIRC, Moria was designed to be unwinnable. When the author discovered that
one player managed to win the game without cheating, he quietly closed the
loop-hole used and created a new monster in tribute to the victory. It's a
good design, since it meets the requirements perfectly.