Common experiences

[oh_brother]

One of the interesting things I found when reading these boards is the amount of similar experiences we all had (not that surprising since we are playing the same game). For instance I was going to start a topic asking if anyone else used to live for a while in the screamer room on level 4, piling up screamer slices, casing fireballs, punching and chopping doors and occasionally hunting for worms, from reading the posts I see it is very common (my friend and I thought we were very smart when we figured this out).

Also accidentally falling down a pit and seeing lots of dragon steaks around, wondering what happened...

How about

(i) discovering the zo spell before you found the scroll, and thinking it was a fireball.

(ii) Using the CSB picture editor to, em, "re-design" Syra's outfit.

(iii) Finding the scroll saying "new life for old bones" and thinking it was spell but not sure how to work it.

(iv) After a brain wave putting the bones on the altar and being shocked to see the lightning and your character back (well, everyone has done this!).

(v) Bringing the bones you found on one of the later levels back to an altar of vi, and being disappointed that no-one appeared.

(vi) When you defeated Chaos for the first time being confused by the fireballs that hit him, thinking that some other creature was near by and firing at you (until he changed form).

(vii) Thinking Screamers were funny trees, not realising for some time they were actually eating you.

These are just some of my experiences, some of them must be universal...if you share some of them or have any other experiences I would love to hear them (e.g. did you use the rats room as a training ground instead of the screamers?)

[Jan]

I share most of your experiences, except the "(ii) Using the CSB picture editor to, em, "re-design" Syra's outfit." - heh, you seem to mention Syra quite a lot. How did you re-design her outfit? Could you send us the picture?

I use the rat room for gaining experiences a lot now, but not back in the days when I was a newbie in DM.

And do you use the scorpion regenerating section for training? And the spider one?

[Gambit37]

I think my only common experience from that list is the Screamer training room, I wasn't really fazed or confused by anything else in the dungeon (he says big headidly!)

Two experience that we've all shared though, I'm sure, are when (1) you crane your head around the monitor trying to see around a corner in the dungeon, and (2) leaping back in your seat to avoid an incoming missile!

[oh_brother]

Ha ha...the pictures are long lost (but probably still on some old floppy disk with my saved games in my Mum's house). Very easy to do though, right-click was the fill option in the paint program, so you just chose an "appropriate" colour and change her green dress into that....some (well, two) finishing touches and...viola! Ha, ha, I never even told my brothers or friends I did that, but I am sure I cannot be the only one!!?

I never thought about the rat or spider rooms for training. Rats were vicious I remember, and spiders...IIRC they don't give you any food?

Gambit: craning head to try to look around corners, of course! And then someone making fun of you though they did it themselves.

[Jan]

and spiders...IIRC they don't give you any food?

No, they really don't give any food. But this is not the only reason why I don't use them for training... in other words, I wouldn't use them for training even if there was some food left of them.

[oh_brother]

I wouldn't use them for training even if there was some food left of them

Too tough? Or tired of being poisoned? Or simply extreme arachnophobia?

[Jan]

Too tough? Or tired of being poisoned? Or simply extreme arachnophobia?

All three things together. And they are pretty fast. And there is no place to hide there. Yuck. And the scorpions are the same.

[linflas]

(ii) and (v), but i redesigned Chani (i prefer brunettes ). btw, i redesigned many characters and created new ones, but i lost the floppy disk with the savegames

[beowuuf]

Spiders at least will run, and scorpions can get bored, but they are both tough. Rats though are just relentless!

Gotta agree with the leaning around corners, etc. So stupid, so natural!

How about panicking and throwing an item you had at the critter? Bonus points if it was something like a screamer which seemed natural and satisfying to have disintegrate into a pile of bits!

[Gambit37]

Sometimes I'd throw my clothes if I'd run out of ammo. It's amazing the damage a canary-yellow bra can do!

[beowuuf]

Pointy

[Trantor]

Who would ever do naughty pictures of Syra or Chani?! Petal is a different story, though.

I only trained at the Screamer room. Back then, I didn't know that you get more experience further down, and I was too scared of the rats anyway. And I think everybody tried to lean to look around corners.

[Ameena]

Hmm, no, I don't think I did any of those points. I'm not sure whether I did the lean-round-corners thing back then (I was about six or something), but I know I definitely do it these days - I remember in my EQ days (a few years back) sort of leaning forward to try and see over the top of a hill (multiple times). Oh, and sort of holding my breath and trying not to make any unnecessary noise when sneaking through scary places (do this a lot in the Thief games).

[Jan]

Sometimes I'd throw my clothes if I'd run out of ammo.

Yeah, me too! Sometimes I throw "everything but a kitchen sink" on a creature, everything I have at reach. I once threw a key on some creature and the key got stuck in it and the creature ran away and I had to follow him for ages and search the whole level for him to kill him and recover my key back.

[oh_brother]

Ah yes, throwing a random object at a monster in panic, and then hunting all over to try and find him again. Not very bright, but I have done it. Next time I play I must train myself not to view keys/coins/gems as weapons. Only stones, darts, arrows and possibly bras.

[andilist]

Hello everyone,

now - after 20 years - that I know that the amount of experience points depends on the level of the dungeon my champions climbed down to level with the rats.

Kind regards,

Andi

[Ameena]

Ooh something I forgot to mention - I've done the "Arrrgh shit I'm being attacked CHUCK EVERYTHING CHUCK EVERYTHING!!!" thing - last time I played CSB (a couple of years ago now, I think, using RTC) I was right near the end, just round the corner from the Ful Ya Pit. I'd been sorting out my inventory and dumping some stuff on the floor 'cause I think someone had hit the yellow (and I refuse to continue if that happens =- everyone must be in the grey or I start leaving stuff behind!). Anyway, I stepped through the fake wall right next to that and OOH SHIT it was Lord Chaos, so I stepped back again but the bastard followed me. Of course it's Lord Chaos, isn't it, so he can gank me with one bloody spell. So I just grabbed one of the Ful Bombs from my pile o' crap and chucked it...and he died! Boom! Poof! Deaded .
I was sort of shocked, surprised, and very relieved all at the same time.

[andilist]

(iii) Finding the scroll saying "new life for old bones" and thinking it was spell but not sure how to work it.

(iv) After a brain wave putting the bones on the altar and being shocked to see the lightning and your character back (well, everyone has done this!).

Hello oh_brother,

I played the game for months day in day out and never had an idea what the altars are made for. Now I know!

Kind regards,

Andi

[Jan]

So I just grabbed one of the Ful Bombs from my pile o' crap and chucked it...and he died! Boom! Poof! Deaded.

Interesting. I didn't know it was possible. I thought he had something like 10.000 health or so.

[Trantor]

It isn't usually possible. Not only does Elsie have about 10000 hp, he is also immune to damage. Ameena encountered a bug in that particular version of RTC that has since been fixed.

[oh_brother]

I played the game for months day in day out and never had an idea what the altars are made for. Now I know!

So you finished the game without using any altar of rebirth! I suppose that is an achievement in itself!

[Trantor]

Hm, I'm not sure I ever used an Altar of Rebirth... probably not after my very first time playing. When one of my characters dies, I usually just kill myself and reload the game, it's just too tedious to pick up all that stuff again.

[Ameena]

Yeah, same here. I do remember possibly the first time I finished DM (certainly one occasion that I finished it anyway, back in the olden days when I was about six or whatever), my second char in line was Azizi and she was dead when I finished it.

[ian_scho]

I played the game for months day in day out and never had an idea what the altars are made for. Now I know!

Brilliant!
I'm sure something like this has happened to us all...

[Narjhan]

My buddies used to play on a hacked version of DM. Which killed our whole party midway through the 2nd level.
Of course the first times we didnt really know what happened. Thought it was some in game thing we did wrong. So we ended up not eating any screamers part for several weeks because one of us came with the idea that the screamers would somehow ressurect in our bags and wipe everyone. I admit that 12 years old geeks are very impressionable

[beowuuf]

And thanks to the power of things like CSBwin and DSB, this could well be made possible!

[Octopuss]

Sometimes I'd throw my clothes if I'd run out of ammo. It's amazing the damage a canary-yellow bra can do!

ROFL!!! This almost made me cry

For instance I was going to start a topic asking if anyone else used to live for a while in the screamer room on level 4, piling up screamer slices, casing fireballs, punching and chopping doors and occasionally hunting for worms, from reading the posts I see it is very common (my friend and I thought we were very smart when we figured this out).

Right. Time for coming out
I admit I must have some issues. Been playing this save for over two years now and then. Some guys here already know me.

Chani and Gothmog are equally insane, from mage perspective Gotta love 300+ mana.

[beowuuf]

I think I had a party on the amiga with archmaster wizards x 2, ON maser priests, LO/UM master fighters, and something pitiful for ninja (like expert)

[Octopuss]

Maybe I wasn't clear enough - this is on Screamer level. I have only completed the next one and nothing further down the dungeon

[Ameena]

Rofl that must be a hell of a lot of Screamers, jeez, lol...