🚀 go-pugleaf

	Another way is to start up a game as a wizard, try the wands immediately
to see if one is a wand of wishing. If not, quit immediately (don't waste your
time). If so - go on to retrieve the amulet.

-- 

					eric
					...!seismo!umcp-cs!aplvax!osiris!eric

Since someone gave away my strategy for using ghosts to win, I'll give away an 
even better strategy, if somewhat time-consuming.  Play wizard until you get
a wand of wishing.  (Zap your wands immediately, quit if no wand of wishing.)
When you get one, wish for : +6 plate mail, 3 scrolls of genocide, and 3 more
scrolls of genocide.  Genocide c's, k's, D's, N's, R's, and x's .  Of course,
this strategy is about as much fun as playing Adventure2.  Credit goes to Brian
Sturgill, University of Kentucky for this method of trivializing Hack.

(I am broadcasting this spoiler in the hope that the author will correct it in
future versions, restoring some challenge to the game.)

Paul Hightower
University of Kentucky

> 	Another way is to start up a game as a wizard, try the wands immediately
> to see if one is a wand of wishing. If not, quit immediately (don't waste your
> time). If so - go on to retrieve the amulet.
> 
> 					eric
> 					...!seismo!umcp-cs!aplvax!osiris!eric

I have not and never will use the wizard option.  This is just plain
cheating.  Nor have I ever used a wand of wishing.  The only one I
ever found was unusable, because I had installed the set of mods somebody
posted.  Those mods were by and large nice cleanups of the presentation,
but they *BROKE* the ability to type spaces into any long command, like
for invoking a wand of wishing.  Needless to say, I was slightly upset.
After regressing back out of those mods, I haven't found a wand of wishing
since.
-- 
		Rick Richardson, PC Research, Inc.

	{genrad|ihnp4|ima}!wjh12!talcott!sesame!{rick|pcrat!rick}
		{cbosgd|harvard}!talcott!sesame!{rick|pcrat!rick}
			rick%sesame@harvard.ARPA 

In article <1168@ukma.UUCP> plh@ukma.UUCP (Paul L. Hightower) writes:
>Since someone gave away my strategy for using ghosts to win, I'll give away an 
>even better strategy, if somewhat time-consuming.  Play wizard until you get
>a wand of wishing.  (Zap your wands immediately, quit if no wand of wishing.)
>When you get one, wish for : +6 plate mail, 3 scrolls of genocide, and 3 more
>scrolls of genocide.  Genocide c's, k's, D's, N's, R's, and x's .  Of course,
>this strategy is about as much fun as playing Adventure2.  Credit goes to Brian
>Sturgill, University of Kentucky for this method of trivializing Hack.

True, almost anyone can win if they play as Wizard enough.  You want a
challenge?  Try to win as Speliologist.  Better yet, try to get all six
characters into the top 10. (Sheesh -- gimme a break!)

Btw, has anyone who has the 1.01 patches installed figured out how to
reliably get into the targeted teleport traps.  I know how to find them,
but getting into them seems to be a random event...

-- 

						Byron C. Howes
				      ...!{decvax,akgua}!mcnc!ecsvax!bch

> Since someone gave away my strategy for using ghosts to win, I'll give away an 
> even better strategy, if somewhat time-consuming.  Play wizard until you get
> a wand of wishing.  (Zap your wands immediately, quit if no wand of wishing.)
> When you get one, wish for : +6 plate mail, 3 scrolls of genocide, and 3 more
> scrolls of genocide.  Genocide c's, k's, D's, N's, R's, and x's .  Of course,
> this strategy is about as much fun as playing Adventure2.  Credit goes to Brian
> Sturgill, University of Kentucky for this method of trivializing Hack.
> 
> (I am broadcasting this spoiler in the hope that the author will correct it in
> future versions, restoring some challenge to the game.)
> 
> Paul Hightower
> University of Kentucky

*** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR MESSAGE ***
 
 
   That strategy will undoubtably win the game for you.
However, it will comprise a very boring game, as you said,
and you also will get a very low score.  In a game I just
played, I got a wand of wishing right off and got +6 plate,
+3 crysknife, and 3 potions of gain level.  When I saw scrolls
of genocide, I took care of annoying monsters that weren't worth      
much, such as R's, x's, and c's.  N's are too much fun, and
n's, D's, U's, etc. are worth too much exp. to be genocided.
The game wasn't a big challenge, but at least it was fun.
The real challenge will be to win as a Tourist or a Fighter.
 
Hack hint of the day: Search the close proximity of the m 
                      for the prize (no need for obj. detect)
Bonus hack hint: N's give random teleport too.

> wish for : +6 plate mail ...

After looking at the code, I think the fact that you can wish for +6
plate mail (actually, even +7) is a bug.  Everything other than armor is
limited to +3, or +2 if your "luck" rating is bad.

The code in question reads as follows:

	if(spe > 3 && spe > otmp->spe)
		spe = 0;
	else if(let == WAND_SYM)
		spe = otmp->spe;

I'm assuming that the test "spe > otmp->spe" is intended mostly for wands,
so that you aren't penalized for asking for a wand with N charges if it was
going to give you M >= N charges anyway.  Unfortunately, the "spe" field for
armor has the armor class bonus (10 - armor class, which is 7 for plate
mail) already added in, so a wish for +7 armor sneaks through this code.

Would the author of hack be willing to comment on this?

	--Tim

> > 	Another way is to start up a game as a wizard, try the wands immediately
> > to see if one is a wand of wishing. If not, quit immediately (don't waste your
> > time). If so - go on to retrieve the amulet.
> > 
> > 					eric
> > 					...!seismo!umcp-cs!aplvax!osiris!eric
> 
> I have not and never will use the wizard option.  This is just plain
> cheating.  Nor have I ever used a wand of wishing.  The only one I
> ever found was unusable, because I had installed the set of mods somebody
> posted.  Those mods were by and large nice cleanups of the presentation,
> but they *BROKE* the ability to type spaces into any long command, like
> for invoking a wand of wishing.  Needless to say, I was slightly upset.
> After regressing back out of those mods, I haven't found a wand of wishing
> since.
> -- 
> 		Rick Richardson, PC Research, Inc.
> 
> 	{genrad|ihnp4|ima}!wjh12!talcott!sesame!{rick|pcrat!rick}
> 		{cbosgd|harvard}!talcott!sesame!{rick|pcrat!rick}
> 			rick%sesame@harvard.ARPA 

*** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR MESSAGE ***


This is definitely not cheating it just takes the challenge
out of the game.  Anything possible without changing the actual
code is legal and not cheating.

In article <1168@ukma.UUCP> plh@ukma.UUCP (Paul L. Hightower) writes:
>...  Play wizard until you get a wand of wishing.  (Zap your wands
> immediately, quit if no wand of wishing.)
> When you get one, wish for: +6 plate mail, 3 scrolls of genocide, and 3 more
> scrolls of genocide.  Genocide c's, k's, D's, N's, R's, and x's .  Of course,
> this strategy is about as much fun as playing Adventure2.
> Credit goes to Brian Sturgill for this method of trivializing Hack.
> (I am broadcasting this spoiler in the hope that the author will correct it
> in future versions, restoring some challenge to the game.)

Several people have suggested by news or mail that hack is too easy.
In a few weeks I'll distribute version 1.0.2 with the following significant
changes:
- the endgame has become much more difficult by the additions of swamps full
  of giant eels that will strangle or drown you, and the Wizard of Yendor
  (a high level magic user) that will come after you when you take his amulet.
- wands of wishing have become much more difficult to come by; just starting
  a game as wizard will certainly not suffice to earn three wishes.
- starting as a speleologist you also have a pick-axe and can dig holes in
  walls and in the floor (yes, you fall into the next level).
We do not yet have much experience with these changes, but I am sure that
a hundred letters will tell me what is wrong with them.

> > 	Another way is to start up a game as a wizard, try the wands 
> > immediately to see if one is a wand of wishing. If not, quit immediately
> > (don't waste your time). If so - go on to retrieve the amulet.
> 
> I have not and never will use the wizard option.  This is just plain
> cheating.

The original poster was referring to playing as the Wizard character, not to
using the wizard (-w) option.

	--Tim

In article <130@Navajo.ARPA> mann@Navajo.ARPA writes:
>
>After looking at the code, I think the fact that you can wish for +7
>plate mail is a bug.  Everything other than armor is
>limited to +3, or +2 if your "luck" rating is bad.
>
> ... discussion of a piece of source code ...
>
>Would the author of hack be willing to comment on this?
>	--Tim

I completely agree, and thank you for pointing this out.