Fingers crossed it works out for them. I'm just trying to implement the best version of Nethack ever. The real Dev Team invented Nethack and all it's lore and complexity. I want to see what they imagine next. For my hobby project I assessed that it was much faster and better to start from scratch. After all it's only ~180K of spaghetti state machine code to rewrite! No sweat! I do have to be pragmatic and work on a priority queue where the major mechanics take precedence over the finer details. Nethack has SO many major mechanics to consider but I will eventually get to the nuances that make for a really immersive experience. And new ideas will come along the way. By the way, I can talk about this topic forever. You might want to stop encouraging me at some stage!
I came across a somewhat similar situation the other day. My level 3 female orc monk suddenly turned into a level 3 female orc WARRIOR monk (with a speed of 34!). The log didn't explain to me why this happened but as this was one of my first runs using a seed (thanks for adding this function!) I was able to replicate the event using the same seed. It occurs when I pick up a black gem. I am able to drop the gem so I assume it isn't cursed. Is this a bug? Or a Nethack phenomenon I've missed before?
@funambulist, I think you might have stepped on a polymorph trap. Where the black gem was located? I'll investigate the polymorph to the same race strangeness.
The black gem was located on level 3 of the dungeon... at the end of one of those labyrinthine areas composed of 'windy passages' and behind a locked door. Together with a gnome mummy. The funny thing is I didn't see any report of a polymorph trap in the log file or see the trap on the floor after it had sprung. I saved a diagnostics report for you if that is of any help. I can send it to you in a few hours if you like.
I can post that here: 19560322 (And note that is without a petit appears to make a difference but I could be wrong about that...) Curious what you find!
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. Well this is embarrassing. You have grown up from an orc to an orc warrior through experience. Just like your kitten becomes a housecat and then a large cat. Gosh. Programming Nethack is a bit like playing Nethack. Excuse me while I have a moment...
Just checked again and I was mistaken... the black gem and the gnome mummy at the end of the labyrinthine area are on level 2 not 3. In the SE corner. I just killed the gnome and picked up the black gem but—this time—with no adverse effect... Can still send you the diagnostic file if you want... and some screen shots from the other day. Let me know. Edit: just saw your response above. Edit 2: I just tried again with the same seed and a pet and went directly to the gnome mummy and black stone... killed mummy and picked up stone, again with no adverse effect... Decided to keep playing and BOOM, when I levelled up to level 3 I become a warrior (but still with a level 2 kitten).
I can consistently replicate the slowdown with the Barbarian, and it occurs when he advances to experience level 3. It appears that it's not lag, but his actual move rate is lowered.
Somehow I don't think Apple is going to grant me another expedited upgrade... I'll sort out an upgrade in the beta channel as soon as possible. Apologies to everyone else and hope you'll be patient with me.
Well, you're certainly on your way to one of the most playable! I'd originally assumed you were working off the original code base and just enabling/exposing bits as you got them working with your iOS-specific controllers and views. If you're actually doing a full reimplementation, not just a straight port of the internals, I fully understand why trying to model all the interactions wouldn't be a priority (and why it'd be *hella* hard). I guess my one comment is that "Nethack ruleset" means different things to different people, but if you take out the intricacies it becomes a different roguelike (and ruleset) than Nethack. Maybe what you mean is more like "Nethack-inspired Roguelike." How you're describing it now may set some expectations similar to mine with people who have played Nethack a lot.
That's a fair point. I have been saying 'Pathos is based upon the ruleset from Nethack'. What I am doing is more like a second edition improvement of the ruleset. And like any second edition you get rid of the bad rules, refine the good rules and try not to mess up what made the first edition great. I'm not sure how best to communicate this concept so I appreciate the comments. I did try to work off the original code, but I just couldn't get any traction after a lot of time and effort. After that, I decided to rewrite to capture the essence of Nethack without the legacy awkwardness to play. When I say 'Pathos' I am talking about my custom game engine. 'Nethack' is the codex which is just a data file that is executed by the game engine. It is conceivable an alternative or original codex file could be developed in the future. It's kind of a declarative language for Nethack-style roguelikes.
That's pretty awesome. Reminds me of the history around Inform, the interactive fiction OOP language. That one sparked a bit of a resurgence in text adventures, so that was cool. I look forward to seeing what else you do with the engine!
Oh, my, isn't this wonderful!! What a beautiful and super-playable game! Roguelikes are in my top-3 list of favorite gaming genres (gamebooks and puzzlers being the others), so I check them all out. This is so well done! This week I had to do way too much flying. I hate flying and am terrified of take-offs and landings especially. I usually leave bruises on my husband's arm from clutching him as hard as I can. This time, on two separate flights, he had to tell me that we were about to lift off because I was so into the game I didn't process all the noise and movement of the plane. And then, when I did notice what was going on, I was all "yeah, yeah, whatever," because my Valkyrie was kicking butt and I had to keep on playing! So, kudos--not only have you made a really fun game, you've made a game that is more calming than Xanax! This is a genuinely lovely game.
Thanks @Valentia, I'm really glad you like my game and appreciate the kind words. For those of you on my beta channel I've just released something new and interesting: You can now toggle between real-time and turn-based using a button in the top right of the screen. The real-time mode is fast to play and death will be swift if you are not paying attention. The good news is I have built some decent smarts into the auto-attack in this mode. You won't just sit there like a lame duck as monsters beat on you. I've also reduced the nutrition drain when idle to keep it fair as well. Even if a real-time sounds too hard you may still want to use it to quickly clear a zoo room (so you don't have to click to attack every time) but keep an eye on your life points! I've add two new items: ring of beserking and potion of rage. Beserking causes random rage. Rage tints the screen red and you will automatically attack anything next to you, whether it be friend or foe. Your strength bonus is doubled when in this rage. So brute rage is twice as effective and weakling rage is twice as ineffective. If you would like to join the beta chanell please feel free to send me an email [email protected].
@callanh, can you shed a bit of light on how 'dungeon seeds' work? I'm currently in the midst of two runs (one using the monk the other the knight) using my favourite seed number—have those dungeons been entirely generated from the start? What happens if I change the seed (or turn the function off entirely) and start a new dungeon in another role (such as the healer)? I hope my question is clear. I could (and probably should) experiment but I'd rather not loose my current progress. Thanks!
The dungeon seed only applies to the generation of the dungeon when you start a game. In Pathos, the entire 25 level dungeon is created at the beginning. You can use the same seed to play different characters on the exact same dungeon. You can change the dungeon seed while you have a save file, and it won't be affected. When I update Pathos, the generation algorithm can change and the dungeon seed may created a different dungeon.
Thanks for the explanation (and the constant stream of updates in the beta channel)! However it's confusing that the splash screen which appears when opening a dungeon previously created with seed ABC (and saved) will display a later seed number (e.g. CBA) used to create a different dungeon for another hero. Edited to add a query: Shouldn't orcs (i.e. orc monks) be able to eat orc meat without being penalised as cannibals ('gaining the talent' of 'Aggravate Monster'?)
Ah I can see how the dungeon seed message is confusing. Thanks @funambulist, I will remove the dungeon seed message when loading a game. Good point on the Orc's talent for cannibalism, I'll definitely implement it!
Actually — if possible — I think it would be useful to show the *correct* seed message (i.e. the one originally used) when loading a saved game... a reminder that a seed was used and which seed.
