Hydra Slayer (now at 16.1), NotEye (now at 8.1)

[kipar]

I'm in a situation now facing a 14-headed golden hydra, armed with a golden bisector, a silver scythe, a chaos dagger and a fire buckler. The scythe gets cancelled out ( -7 + 7 = 0), the bisector gets x2 (and I wonder what that would mean in this case, whether the hydra results in having 14 or 21 heads), but the dagger has +0. Should I rune-cancel him, or can I take the damage for 6 turns and finish him with the scythe?
This has been a lucky character, I wouldn't want to lose him just yet.

Don't forget about scrolls of Transformation (they shift element of current weapon).

[cephalopoid]

There, I cancelled and killed the 14-headed beast now.

So the Scroll of Transmutation changes the color? And Reforging changes a random aspect, which could really be anything?

What happens if I use Scroll of the Big Stick on a bisector, btw? Will it divide by 3, 4, 5...?

[Z]

Yes, the scroll of Transmutation changes the color (as the description says, I think it is clear; it also says something about what the new color will be). About reforging, it is not random, but you'll need to do some experimenting to know the rules (an important thing is that it splits the weapon into two new weapons, rather than changing a random aspect; also, the scroll says what will the new weapon be, and you can cancel using it up it if you would not like the result).

Yes, using Big Stick on a bisector works as you say.

[cephalopoid]

Code: [Select]

Hydra Slayer v8.0 character log for Human Cephalopoid (cephalopoid)
You are dead...

Items found and used:
  Rune of Stunning (6/7)
  Rune of Decapitation (3/4)
  Rune of Cancellation (8/15)
  Rune of Growth (4/10)
  Rune of Conflict (2/5)
  Rune of Fungification (1/4)
  Rune of Fungal Necromancy (1/4)
  Scroll of Transmutation (0/6)
  Scroll of the Big Stick (8/12)
  Scroll of Reforging (0/4)
  Potion of Power Swipe (0/8)
  Potion of Weapon Charge (0/1)
  Potion of Extreme Speed (1/4)
  Potion of Knowledge (0/10)
  Potion of Power Juice (4/4)
  Potion of Mushroom Spores (1/11)
  Potion of Ambidexterity (0/8)
  1 items have not been picked up
Items used on the last level:
  Scroll of the Big Stick (1)

Various stats:
  712 total wounds (-1 of 129 HP left)
  6541 total turns (hydra movements)
  14529 total seconds of real time
  10 levels solved
  2 times saved a game
  1 vampire hydras have been killed
  2 ettins were killed

Various head stats:
  9 heads regrown by vampire hydras while attacking
  38 total heads awakened after stunning
  4 total beasts awakened after stunning (part or total)
  5 enemy heads grown by Rune of Growth
  204 heads stunned by Rune of Stunning

Records:
  12 max hydra one-shotted

Attack types used:
  normal blade: max 12, 450 uses, 1229 enemy heads, 78 kills, 202 mushroom heads, 111 destroyed, 260 heads regrown, 100 stunned heads cut
  obsidian blade: max 1, 108 uses, 86 enemy heads, 12 kills, 22 mushroom heads, 10 destroyed, 46 stunned heads cut
  blunt weapon: max 9, 7 uses, 63 enemy heads
  divisor: max 10, 32 uses, 766 enemy heads, 1 mushroom heads, 90 heads regrown, 27 stunned heads cut
  missile: max 4, 13 uses, 41 enemy heads, 8 kills, 11 mushroom heads, 7 destroyed, 5 heads regrown
    12 total hydras hit by your missiles
    1 missile attacks hit mushrooms before hydras
    3 missile attacks hit mushrooms after hydras
    1 missile attacks mixed total and partial destruction
  shield: max 5, 22 uses, 71 enemy heads
    290 total damage prevented by having a shield of big size
    11 total damage prevented by having a shield of matching color
  zombie: max 8, 0 uses, 65 enemy heads, 39 heads regrown
    120 total mushroom heads converted to zombie heads
  non-zombie hydras: max 8, 0 uses, 240 enemy heads, 4 kills, 115 heads regrown
  bare hands: 28 uses, 11 destroyed

Weapons at the end:
  obsidian dagger (-1, from Level 8)
    108 uses, 86 enemy heads, 12 kills, 22 mushroom heads, 10 destroyed, 46 stunned heads cut
  flaming triple sword (-12, from Level 10)
    11 uses, 132 enemy heads, 2 kills, 6 heads regrown
  chaos katana (-11, from Level 9)
    11 uses, 121 enemy heads, 2 kills, 34 heads regrown
  Acid Decimator (/10, from Level 9)
    5 uses, 477 enemy heads, 33 heads regrown
  ancient spiked shield (P5, ancient knuckle from Level 9)
    3 uses, 8 enemy heads
  sapphire 2-staff of fortune (S14, from Level 11)

On the ground:
  poison triple sword (-12, from Level 11)
  storm scythe (-7, from Level 8)
    9 uses, 63 enemy heads, 4 kills, 7 heads regrown, 7 stunned heads cut

Weapon history:
  (L1) flaming machette (-2, from Level 1)
    4 uses, 8 enemy heads, 4 kills
  (L1) frozen machette (-2, brought from home)
    4 uses, 8 enemy heads, 3 kills, 1 heads regrown
  (L2) flaming dagger (-1, brought from home)
    33 uses, 8 enemy heads, 6 kills, 25 mushroom heads, 25 destroyed
  (L2) acid sabre (-3, from Level 1)
    3 uses, 9 enemy heads, 2 kills, 1 heads regrown
  (L3) chaos shuriken (M4, from Level 2)
    13 uses, 41 enemy heads, 8 kills, 11 mushroom heads, 7 destroyed, 5 heads regrown
  (L3) flaming shortsword (-4, from Level 2)
    6 uses, 24 enemy heads, 3 kills, 4 heads regrown
  (L3) chaos sabre (-3, from Level 3)
    2 uses, 6 enemy heads, 1 kills
  (L4) acid longsword (-5, from Level 3)
    16 uses, 80 enemy heads, 5 kills, 25 heads regrown
  (L5) poison dagger (-1, from Level 2)
    71 uses, 23 enemy heads, 6 kills, 48 mushroom heads, 35 destroyed, 24 heads regrown, 4 stunned heads cut
  (L6) acid broadsword (-6, from Level 4)
    23 uses, 138 enemy heads, 7 kills, 18 heads regrown, 19 stunned heads cut
  (L6) ash dagger (-1, from Level 5)
    38 uses, 24 enemy heads, 6 kills, 14 mushroom heads, 8 destroyed, 31 heads regrown, 8 stunned heads cut
  (L7) poison scythe (-7, poison broadsword from Level 5)
    33 uses, 207 enemy heads, 9 kills, 48 heads regrown, 14 stunned heads cut
  (L7) skeletal small shield (P4, skeletal buckler from Level 3)
    16 uses, 48 enemy heads
  (L7) amethyst maul (S9, from Level 5)
    7 uses, 63 enemy heads
  (L7) poison shortsword (-4, from Level 7)
    1 uses, 4 enemy heads, 1 kills
  (L8) storm two-handed sword (-10, storm bastard sword from Level 7)
    16 uses, 159 enemy heads, 7 kills, 10 heads regrown, 5 stunned heads cut
  (L8) bone double sword (-8, from Level 7)
    11 uses, 88 enemy heads, 2 kills, 18 heads regrown, 24 stunned heads cut
  (L8) silver dagger (-1, from Level 6)
    149 uses, 34 enemy heads, 4 kills, 115 mushroom heads, 43 destroyed, 26 heads regrown, 19 stunned heads cut
  (L9) Ash Bisector (/2, from Level 6)
    21 uses, 169 enemy heads, 1 mushroom heads, 46 heads regrown, 9 stunned heads cut
  (L9) chaos two-handed sword (-10, from Level 8)
    6 uses, 60 enemy heads, 1 kills, 7 heads regrown
  (L9) golden spiked shield (P5, from Level 7)
    3 uses, 15 enemy heads
  (L9) acid katana (-11, from Level 6)
    3 uses, 33 enemy heads, 3 kills
  (L9) Silver Trisector (/3, from Level 9)
    6 uses, 120 enemy heads, 11 heads regrown, 18 stunned heads cut

Last messages:
  The 148-headed ice hydra attacks you! 148 hd = 29*5 + 3 => 32 => 6 wnd
  You attack the 148-headed ice hydra! 148 - 12
  The 136-headed ice hydra attacks you! 136 hd = 27*5 + 1 => 28 => 6 wnd
  You attack the 136-headed ice hydra! 136 - 12
  The 124-headed ice hydra attacks you! 124 hd = 24*5 + 4 => 28 => 6 wnd
  You attack the 124-headed ice hydra! 124 - 12
  The 112-headed ice hydra attacks you! 112 hd = 22*5 + 2 => 24 => 6 wnd
  You attack the 112-headed ice hydra! 112 - 12
  The 100-headed ice hydra attacks you! 100 hd = 20*5 => 20 => 6 wnd
  You are dead and cannot move!
I got quite far this time. Once I had made a 120-headed hydra using fungal necromancy after having fungified another. Unfortunately it got attacked by three hydras and it got torn into pieces soon. Two levels down I got careless and died. Either I was lucky or I'm getting the hang of it.

[sbluen]

This is a very interesting game, and I have several things to say about it.

First, I'd prefer for shooting and moving to be independent for several reasons. I don't want to accidentally shoot a hydra or even worse, mushrooms, while retreating. Also, it is annoying to have to change weapons in order to carry a shuriken.

My solution would be to add a fire button, even though they are overused.

Also, if you're a naga and you try to go fight using a dagger and nothing in your other hand, you get a confusing message. I can't figure out how to kill hydras with one head as a naga at all in fact.

[Z]

This is a very interesting game, and I have several things to say about it.

First, I'd prefer for shooting and moving to be independent for several reasons. I don't want to accidentally shoot a hydra or even worse, mushrooms, while retreating. Also, it is annoying to have to change weapons in order to carry a shuriken.

My solution would be to add a fire button, even though they are overused.

Well, in the current system, you have to remember to alway press e.g. "1" immediately after picking up the shuriken, to switch to a normal weapon. I like how it manages to allow throwing missiles without requiring an extra key. But yeah, I could make an optional fire key, to work in the usual way.

Also, if you're a naga and you try to go fight using a dagger and nothing in your other hand, you get a confusing message. I can't figure out how to kill hydras with one head as a naga at all in fact.

It should work like this: you select a set of weapons to use - dark gray numbers denote weapons which are not selected, and yellow numbers denote selected ones. Press a key assigned to a non-selected weapon to add it to the set, and pres a key assigned to an already selected weapon to select only it. So, on the Level 1, you should probably press "1" twice to select only the dagger to kill a 1-headed hydra, "2" twice to select only the machette to kill a 2-headed hydra, and e.g. "112" to select both weapons at once to kill a 3-headed hydra. Does this work for you? There is no need to drop a weapon. The confusing message probably wanted to say that you have selected an empty weapon slot for your attack. (The same interface works is used for other races after drinking the Potion of Ambidexterity.)

Thanks for your comments!

[cephalopoid]

I made it!

Code: [Select]

Hydra Slayer v8.0 character log for Human Cephalopoid (cephalopoid)
You have won and escaped after killing the Ancient Hydra!

Items found and used:
  Rune of Stunning (9/11)
  Rune of Decapitation (5/13)
  Rune of Cancellation (6/15)
  Rune of Growth (0/18)
  Rune of Conflict (2/6)
  Rune of Fungification (2/6)
  Rune of Fungal Necromancy (2/2)
  Scroll of Transmutation (3/14)
  Scroll of the Big Stick (28/29)
  Scroll of Reforging (2/8)
  Potion of Power Swipe (0/8)
  Potion of Weapon Charge (0/4)
  Potion of Extreme Speed (8/10)
  Potion of Knowledge (4/14)
  Potion of Power Juice (6/6)
  Potion of Mushroom Spores (9/13)
  Potion of Ambidexterity (0/6)
  Potion of Life (2/2)
  1 items have not been picked up
Items used on the ancient hydra level:
  Rune of Stunning (1)
  Scroll of Transmutation (1)
  Scroll of the Big Stick (3)
  Potion of Extreme Speed (3)
  Potion of Knowledge (1)
  Potion of Mushroom Spores (1)

Costs of winning the small game:
  750 wounds
  4724$ of inventory items used up
  256 mutation score
    (when slaying each hydra, you get +1 for each extra arm)
  22 items used against the boss
     (including permanent effects of BS/L/PJ obtained on previous levels)
  28 wounds from the ancient hydra attacks

Various stats:
  2733 total wounds (153 of 786 HP left)
  20827 total turns (hydra movements)
  34036 total seconds of real time
  20 levels solved
  2 times saved a game
  5 vampire hydras have been killed
    2 unhonorable attacks against mighty vampires
  3 ettins were killed
    9 wounds from ettin attacks

Various head stats:
  114 heads regrown by vampire hydras while attacking
  5182 total heads awakened after stunning
  6 total beasts awakened after stunning (part or total)
  105900 heads stunned by Rune of Stunning

Records:
  13 max hydra one-shotted
  2 max runes active at once

Attack types used:
  normal blade: max 13, to win 13, 505 uses, 1837 enemy heads, 92 kills, 275 mushroom heads, 127 destroyed, 363 heads regrown, 92 stunned heads cut
  obsidian blade: max 13, to win 1, 7005 uses, 1742 enemy heads, 83 kills, 6461 mushroom heads, 907 destroyed, 341 stunned heads cut
  blunt weapon: max 7, to win 7, 15 uses, 90 enemy heads
  divisor: max 11, to win 11, 158 uses, 110022 enemy heads, 28 mushroom heads, 750 heads regrown, 99982 stunned heads cut
  eradicator: max 2, to win 2, 25 uses, 1360 enemy heads, 42 mushroom heads, 55 heads regrown, 222 stunned heads cut
  missile: max 5, to win 5, 24 uses, 94 enemy heads, 9 kills, 11 mushroom heads, 7 destroyed, 32 heads regrown
    24 total hydras hit by your missiles
    4 missile attacks hit mushrooms before hydras
    3 missile attacks hit mushrooms after hydras
  shield: max 5, to win 5, 72 uses, 342 enemy heads
    1093 total damage prevented by having a shield of big size
    35 total damage prevented by having a shield of matching color
  zombie: max 9, to win 8, 0 uses, 265 enemy heads, 10 kills, 74 heads regrown, 25 stunned heads cut
    306 total mushroom heads converted to zombie heads
  non-zombie hydras: max 8, to win 7, 0 uses, 229 enemy heads, 3 kills, 82 heads regrown
  bare hands: 5 uses, 3 destroyed
  pickaxe: max 3, 4 uses, 10 enemy heads

Weapons at the end:
  obsidian dagger (-1, from Level 8)
    6858 uses, 445 enemy heads, 75 kills, 6413 mushroom heads, 904 destroyed, 282 stunned heads cut
  Chaos Eradicator (R2, from Level 12)
    25 uses, 1360 enemy heads, 42 mushroom heads, 55 heads regrown, 222 stunned heads cut
  obsidian claymore (-13, obtained by reforging, from Level 13)
    147 uses, 1297 enemy heads, 8 kills, 48 mushroom heads, 3 destroyed, 59 stunned heads cut
  Bone Trisector (/3, from Level 12)
    72 uses, 4088 enemy heads, 415 heads regrown, 6 stunned heads cut
  Ash UnDecimator (/11, Ash Decimator from Level 10)
    35 uses, 102508 enemy heads, 9 mushroom heads, 138 heads regrown, 99971 stunned heads cut
  ancient spiked shield (P5, ancient knuckle from Level 9)
    62 uses, 310 enemy heads
  sapphire hammer of death (S23, from Level 19)
  Frozen Bisector (/2, from Level 18)
    4 uses, 1185 enemy heads, 4 mushroom heads, 36 heads regrown

On the ground:
  acid claymore (-13, from Level 20)
  Storm Double Bisector (/4, from Level 20)
  amethyst great mace (S10, from Level 20)

Weapon history:
  (L1) bone machette (-2, brought from home)
    5 uses, 10 enemy heads, 5 kills
  (L2) ash machette (-2, from Level 2)
    4 uses, 8 enemy heads, 3 kills, 1 heads regrown
  (L2) frozen machette (-2, from Level 1)
    2 uses, 4 enemy heads
  (L2) storm dagger (-1, brought from home)
    28 uses, 6 enemy heads, 6 kills, 22 mushroom heads, 22 destroyed
  (L2) chaos sabre (-3, from Level 1)
    5 uses, 15 enemy heads, 4 kills, 2 heads regrown
  (L3) silver shortsword (-4, from Level 2)
    6 uses, 24 enemy heads, 4 kills, 2 heads regrown
  (L4) bone longsword (-5, from Level 3)
    8 uses, 40 enemy heads, 3 kills, 11 heads regrown
  (L5) acid broadsword (-6, from Level 4)
    14 uses, 84 enemy heads, 5 kills, 10 heads regrown
  (L5) poison scythe (-7, flaming scythe from Level 5)
    6 uses, 42 enemy heads, 2 kills, 14 heads regrown
  (L5) chaos sabre (-3, from Level 5)
    1 uses, 3 mushroom heads, 1 destroyed
  (L5) Silver Bisector (/2, from Level 5)
    1 uses, 1 mushroom heads
  (L6) flaming pentagram (M5, flaming shuriken from Level 2)
    24 uses, 94 enemy heads, 9 kills, 11 mushroom heads, 7 destroyed, 32 heads regrown
  (L6) amethyst morningstar (S7, amethyst warhammer from Level 5)
    13 uses, 86 enemy heads
  (L6) poison shortsword (-4, from Level 6)
    2 uses, 8 enemy heads
  (L7) bone double sword (-8, from Level 6)
    8 uses, 64 enemy heads, 2 kills, 3 heads regrown
  (L8) acid bastard sword (-9, brought from home)
    12 uses, 108 enemy heads, 2 kills, 23 heads regrown
  (L8) silver dagger (-1, from Level 2)
    232 uses, 38 enemy heads, 9 kills, 194 mushroom heads, 100 destroyed, 6 heads regrown, 21 stunned heads cut
  (L8) ruby club (S2, from Level 8)
    1 uses, 2 enemy heads
  (L9) silver double sword (-8, from Level 9)
    1 uses, 8 enemy heads, 1 kills
  (L9) were-spiked shield (P5, golden spiked shield from Level 6)
    4 uses, 20 enemy heads
  (L9) chaos bastard sword (-9, from Level 7)
    20 uses, 180 enemy heads, 4 kills, 26 heads regrown
  (L9) storm two-handed sword (-10, from Level 8)
    15 uses, 150 enemy heads, 3 kills, 23 heads regrown
  (L10) frozen triple sword (-12, from Level 10)
    4 uses, 48 enemy heads, 1 kills
  (L12) ash double sword (-8, ash shortsword from Level 4)
    70 uses, 348 enemy heads, 25 kills, 20 mushroom heads, 2 destroyed, 79 heads regrown, 65 stunned heads cut
  (L13) Acid Trisector (/3, from Level 9)
    24 uses, 1220 enemy heads, 4 mushroom heads, 102 heads regrown
  (L14) silver claymore (-13, poison katana from Level 9)
    52 uses, 628 enemy heads, 13 kills, 158 heads regrown, 6 stunned heads cut
  (L16) flaming broadsword (-6, from Level 14)
    10 uses, 24 enemy heads, 36 mushroom heads, 2 destroyed, 5 heads regrown
  (L18) ice buckler (P2, from Level 15)
    6 uses, 12 enemy heads
  (L18) amethyst mattock (W3, amethyst pick axe from Level 17)
    4 uses, 10 enemy heads
  (L20) Silver Bisector (/2, from Level 17)
    22 uses, 1021 enemy heads, 10 mushroom heads, 59 heads regrown, 5 stunned heads cut
  (L20) amethyst club (S2, amethyst quarterstaff from Level 19)
    1 uses, 2 enemy heads

Last messages:
  The 2940-headed vampire hydra attacks you! 2940 hd = 588*5 => 588 => 11 wnd
  You cut through the mushroom!
  The 2801-headed were-hydra attacks you! 2801 hd = 560*5 + 1 => 561 => 11 wnd
  The 1114-headed storm hydra attacks you! 1114 hd = 222*5 + 4 => 226 => 9 wnd
  The 2369-headed acid hydra attacks you! 2369 hd = 473*5 + 4 => 477 => 10 wnd
  The 2951-headed vampire hydra attacks you! 2951 hd = 590*5 + 1 => 591 => 11 wnd
  The 1114-headed storm hydra attacks you! 1114 hd = 222*5 + 4 => 226 => 9 wnd
  The 225-headed ice hydra attacks you! 225 hd = 45*5 => 45 => 7 wnd
  The 2962-headed vampire hydra attacks you! 2962 hd = 592*5 + 2 => 594 => 11 wnd
  You drink the Potion of Extreme Speed!


[Z]

Congratulations!

Of course, more challenge is still waiting below level 21

[sbluen]

It should work like this: you select a set of weapons to use - dark gray numbers denote weapons which are not selected, and yellow numbers denote selected ones. Press a key assigned to a non-selected weapon to add it to the set, and pres a key assigned to an already selected weapon to select only it. So, on the Level 1, you should probably press "1" twice to select only the dagger to kill a 1-headed hydra, "2" twice to select only the machette to kill a 2-headed hydra, and e.g. "112" to select both weapons at once to kill a 3-headed hydra. Does this work for you? There is no need to drop a weapon. The confusing message probably wanted to say that you have selected an empty weapon slot for your attack. (The same interface works is used for other races after drinking the Potion of Ambidexterity.)

That is completely correct. It is often an interesting experience to try to figure out how the game works, but in this case, I'd prefer to have better instructions for at least some of the events and attributes.

[Z]

I suppose that if you experiment with Potions of Ambidexterity when you have lots of arms already, this system should not be difficult to understand. I think I have expected the player who plays Naga has previously played as a Human (as recommended) enough and has done these experiments already. I think I will add a short line which says how to select weapon sets.

[cephalopoid]

Code: [Select]

Hydra Slayer v8.0 character log for Elf Cephalopoid (cephalopoid)
You have been killed after defeating the Ancient Hydra...

Items found and used:
  Rune of Stunning (1/6)
  Rune of Decapitation (2/8)
  Rune of Cancellation (5/13)
  Rune of Growth (0/7)
  Rune of Conflict (0/9)
  Rune of Fungal Necromancy (0/2)
  Scroll of Transmutation (1/18)
  Scroll of the Big Stick (0/23)
  Scroll of Reforging (0/1)
  Potion of Power Swipe (0/4)
  Potion of Weapon Charge (0/3)
  Potion of Extreme Speed (1/9)
  Potion of Knowledge (0/10)
  Potion of Power Juice (5/5)
  Potion of Mushroom Spores (0/5)
  Potion of Ambidexterity (0/5)
  Potion of Life (1/2)
  2 items have not been picked up
Items used on the ancient hydra level:
  Rune of Stunning (1)
  Potion of Extreme Speed (1)

Costs of winning the small game:
  792 wounds
  4133$ of inventory items used up
  259 mutation score
    (when slaying each hydra, you get +1 for each extra arm)
  6 items used against the boss
     (including permanent effects of BS/L/PJ obtained on previous levels)
  116 wounds from the ancient hydra attacks

Various stats:
  1718 total wounds (-4 of 312 HP left)
  7680 total turns (hydra movements)
  9533 total seconds of real time
  15 levels solved
  3 vampire hydras have been killed
  2 ettins were killed

Various head stats:
  111 heads regrown by vampire hydras while attacking
  59 total heads awakened after stunning
  11 total beasts awakened after stunning (part or total)
  986 heads stunned by Rune of Stunning

Records:
  12 max hydra one-shotted
  2 max beasts killed at once with a Power Swipe

Attack types used:
  normal blade: max 12, to win 12, 450 uses, 2561 enemy heads, 128 kills, 681 mushroom heads, 228 destroyed, 412 heads regrown, 249 stunned heads cut
  obsidian blade: max 1, to win 1, 147 uses, 134 enemy heads, 20 kills, 13 mushroom heads, 13 destroyed, 12 heads regrown, 42 stunned heads cut
  blunt weapon: max 12, to win 12, 29 uses, 287 enemy heads
  divisor: max 10, to win 10, 65 uses, 103926 enemy heads, 49 mushroom heads, 263 heads regrown, 976 stunned heads cut
  eradicator: max 2, 14 uses, 916 enemy heads, 14 mushroom heads, 94 heads regrown, 4 stunned heads cut
  shield: max 3, to win 3, 35 uses, 95 enemy heads
    508 total damage prevented by having a shield of big size
    43 total damage prevented by having a shield of matching color
  bare hands: 164 uses, 36 destroyed

Weapons at the end:
  obsidian dagger (-1, from Level 10)
    147 uses, 134 enemy heads, 20 kills, 13 mushroom heads, 13 destroyed, 12 heads regrown, 42 stunned heads cut
  acid spiked buckler (P3, from Level 8)
    25 uses, 75 enemy heads
  Storm Eradicator (R2, from Level 12)
    14 uses, 916 enemy heads, 14 mushroom heads, 94 heads regrown, 4 stunned heads cut
  ash bastard sword (-9, from Level 7)
    103 uses, 669 enemy heads, 28 kills, 258 mushroom heads, 52 destroyed, 139 heads regrown, 24 stunned heads cut
  Bone Decimator (/10, from Level 9)
    55 uses, 103122 enemy heads, 27 mushroom heads, 206 heads regrown, 976 stunned heads cut
  acid triple sword (-12, storm triple sword brought from home)
    66 uses, 660 enemy heads, 8 kills, 132 mushroom heads, 25 destroyed, 52 heads regrown, 70 stunned heads cut
  Frozen Trisector (/3, from Level 13)
    9 uses, 782 enemy heads, 22 mushroom heads, 51 heads regrown

On the ground:
  Storm Trisector (/3, from Level 15)
  Poison Null Sector (/0, from Level 15)

Weapon history:
  (L2) ash sabre (-3, from Level 1)
    4 uses, 5 enemy heads, 1 kills, 7 mushroom heads, 7 destroyed
  (L3) golden machette (-2, brought from home)
    21 uses, 25 enemy heads, 13 kills, 17 mushroom heads, 16 destroyed
  (L4) poison sabre (-3, from Level 3)
    10 uses, 18 enemy heads, 2 kills, 12 mushroom heads, 8 destroyed, 4 heads regrown
  (L4) ash shortsword (-4, from Level 2)
    23 uses, 57 enemy heads, 9 kills, 35 mushroom heads, 23 destroyed, 4 heads regrown
  (L5) bone longsword (-5, from Level 3)
    10 uses, 48 enemy heads, 6 kills, 2 mushroom heads, 1 destroyed, 5 heads regrown
  (L6) flaming scythe (-7, from Level 5)
    21 uses, 122 enemy heads, 9 kills, 25 mushroom heads, 10 destroyed, 23 heads regrown
  (L6) white buckler (P2, from Level 4)
    10 uses, 20 enemy heads
  (L7) ash broadsword (-6, from Level 4)
    23 uses, 97 enemy heads, 10 kills, 41 mushroom heads, 20 destroyed, 16 heads regrown
  (L7) poison bastard sword (-9, from Level 7)
    10 uses, 84 enemy heads, 3 kills, 6 mushroom heads, 3 destroyed, 17 heads regrown
  (L7) acid dagger (-1, brought from home)
    52 uses, 22 enemy heads, 12 kills, 30 mushroom heads, 30 destroyed, 8 stunned heads cut
  (L9) chaos dagger (-1, from Level 9)
    7 uses, 7 enemy heads, 1 kills, 4 heads regrown, 6 stunned heads cut
  (L9) frozen double sword (-8, from Level 6)
    27 uses, 193 enemy heads, 4 kills, 23 mushroom heads, 10 destroyed, 27 heads regrown, 41 stunned heads cut
  (L9) poison two-handed sword (-10, from Level 8)
    24 uses, 186 enemy heads, 5 kills, 54 mushroom heads, 13 destroyed, 59 heads regrown, 6 stunned heads cut
  (L9) ruby maul (S9, from Level 8)
    12 uses, 108 enemy heads
  (L9) Frozen Trisector (/3, from Level 9)
    1 uses, 22 enemy heads, 6 heads regrown
  (L10) bone dagger (-1, from Level 7)
    15 uses, 11 enemy heads, 6 kills, 4 mushroom heads, 4 destroyed, 3 stunned heads cut
  (L10) amethyst morningstar (S7, from Level 9)
    5 uses, 35 enemy heads
  (L10) chaos katana (-11, from Level 9)
    16 uses, 171 enemy heads, 4 kills, 5 mushroom heads, 1 destroyed, 14 heads regrown, 43 stunned heads cut
  (L11) acid triple sword (-12, from Level 11)
    7 uses, 76 enemy heads, 3 kills, 8 mushroom heads, 1 destroyed, 10 heads regrown
  (L11) bone triple sword (-12, from Level 10)
    11 uses, 110 enemy heads, 4 kills, 22 mushroom heads, 4 destroyed, 38 heads regrown, 48 stunned heads cut
  (L12) amethyst triple staff (S12, brought from home)
    12 uses, 144 enemy heads

Last messages:
  Switched to (1) obsidian dagger.
  The 67-headed acid hydra attacks you! 67 hd = 22*3 + 1 => 23 => 6-1 wnd
  You attack the 67-headed acid hydra! 67 - 1
  The 66-headed acid hydra attacks you! 66 hd = 22*3 => 22 => 6-1 wnd
  Switched to (6) acid triple sword.
  Switched to (7) Frozen Trisector.
  You are dead and cannot move!
  You are dead and cannot move!
  You are dead and cannot move!
  You are dead and cannot move!

Forgot to watch my hp. A pity, because I had another life potion. I liked preparing small hydrakills with mushrooms, but not being able to use the dagger on mushrooms felt kind of like the elf was retarded. You can't ever execute a power swipe equiping just a dagger, that's the problem. Cheers!

[Z]

I liked preparing small hydrakills with mushrooms, but not being able to use the dagger on mushrooms felt kind of like the elf was retarded. You can't ever execute a power swipe equiping just a dagger, that's the problem. Cheers!

OK, I'll fix that in the next version (so Elves will be able to attack mushrooms to partially destroy them). Thanks! I think Elves are less interesting than other races, so I have not tested them thoroughly. Maybe I'll try to add another twist to them in the next version.

[Z]

OK, new version (8.1) in out! It fixes the problems mentioned by sbluen, improves the scoreboard (so now you can see the woundcount/mutation score/treasure ranking for the characters who have won the full game, and also filter by race),  and improves the Elves (I still have not tested the full game with them, but they now start with a unique bow weapon).

[Ancient]

Well I had a go with a Naga. Pretty interesting creatures. As expected first three levels went without taking a scratch. Even a 21-headed vampire came my way and was beheaded in an instant.

Later things became much more interesting. Nagas really have to fear being surrounded after stair climb. Their inability to use weapon charges without a speedup is fine too. Sadly ambidexterity and charges don't combine.

Mid game Naga seem weaker than humans. They need Extreme Speed to just catch up with hydras and rarely can escape sieges unscathed. Humans easily maneuver themselves into situations where only one beast can bite them.

Overall I played in very suboptimal way. For most part did not remember divisors go first. After killing AH became reckless and went on rampage trying to make best use of ambidextrous attacks even when consumable use would be better. Nagas are very fun but require more care. Also, I found potions of knowledge useless.

Alien hydras were big surprise and then a great letdown. Why do the need to be cancellation resistant when they are canceled from the very start?

A great moment was when in open cavern there were many hydras around and not much place to flee. I used a growth rune on mushroom to hack through quickly and fight beasts in resulting nook.

Full dump: http://pastie.org/1473752

About weaponry I have not seen yet:
 - Decomposer is very powerful. Having it use charges caps the goodness so it is okay balanced guess.
 - Dancing blades are almost too good. At the end there was an obsidian one to be found.
 - Pick axe is fine thing but I regarded it just as a tool and dropped it. I did not think about using Big Sticks on it until few levels deeper. Smashing mushrooms in single turn can be very beneficial though.
 - Giant spiked club: Ngghh!! Nngghh!! So heavy ... left it there.

Someday I should try to play very carefully and without haste; saving every time I feel bored. Who knows how far I would reach. Next: a troll. They seem very cool.

[Z]

Also, I found potions of knowledge useless.

That's true, potions of Knowledge and Runes of Growth do not work reasonably for Nagas. So far I have been too lazy to implement a Naga version of the knowledge algorithm.

Alien hydras were big surprise and then a great letdown. Why do the need to be cancellation resistant when they are canceled from the very start?

That should be very different if your strategy was based on obsidian weapons (alien hydras get x2 against obsidian).

A great moment was when in open cavern there were many hydras around and not much place to flee. I used a growth rune on mushroom to hack through quickly and fight beasts in resulting nook.

Another solution in this case is to use a rune of decapitation on the mushroom.

- Pick axe is fine thing but I regarded it just as a tool and dropped it. I did not think about using Big Sticks on it until few levels deeper. Smashing mushrooms in single turn can be very beneficial though.

I suppose you are right, there are usually better uses of a weapon slot than to carry a pick axe (even a BS-ed one). You could still have some fun with it, though.

Someday I should try to play very carefully and without haste; saving every time I feel bored. Who knows how far I would reach.

I think it is more important to plan your set of weapons and shields well, rather than to play carefully. How many attacks did you usually need to defeat a Hydra? The sentence about legendary Nagas in their description is not a big exaggeration.

Thanks for comments!