POWDER Gameplay

Overview

This page is to discuss frequent POWDER gameplay questions. Feel free to add new categories or improve the answers within categories. We might want to separate spoiler/non-spoiler issues at some point - for now assume everything to be possible spoiler.

Deities

There are many gods that will be the main audience during the adventure. Each has its own likes and dislikes and will likely smite you if you anger them. Likes may include a "dress code", specific to each deity and reflective of the class they represent.

God Points

Picking "Pray" on the verb list (or pressing "_" using keyboard commands) shows a list of the gods, set up like this: God: n???? (n????) Like this: "No one God: 0 (0)" What are these numbers? Described in a newsgroup post. These numbers change depending on your actions. In a nutshell, the number on the right states the "quantity" of any action the god might do (e.g., heal you a little or a lot) and the number on the left states the chances of that god of taking action. If it is positive, the higher the more often he will intervene in your favor. If it is negative, the opposite is true.

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no one god

Description

• Class: Adventurer
• Stat gain: +5/+5

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Klaskov

Description

• Class: Fighter
• Stat gain: +15/+0

Dress Code Dressing like a fighter requires heavy POWDER/Armor and accelerates your regeneration:

• Iron Helm
• Tower Shield
• Plate Mail
• Iron Shoes

Dress Code Message:

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Belweir

Description

• Class: Wizard
• Stat gain: +0/+15

Dress Code Dressing like a wizard not only makes you look silly and please Belweir, it also accelerates your Mana regeneration.

• Floppy Hat
• Plain Robe
• 2 Rings
• Pointed Slippers

Dress Code Message:

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Quizar

Description

• Class: Rogue
• Stat gain: +10/+5

Dress Code Dressing as a Ranger requires:

• Leather Cap
• Bow or Torch
• (Studded) Leather Tunic
• Hiking Boots

Dress Code Message:

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Tlosh

Description

• Class: Necromancer
• Stat gain: +5/+10

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H'ruth

Description

• Class: Barbarian
• Stat gain: +20/+0

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Pax

Description

• Class: Cleric
• Stat gain: +10/+10

Dress Code Since Powder 079 it should be possible to dress as a Cleric. It might involve a book and amulet, but nothing is confirmed.

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><0|V| (a.k.a. "Xom")

Description

• Class: Cultist
• Stat gain: Based on faction with Xom.

What is he asking for?

...wants you to stop breaking things.

• Act like a follower of Pax. Don't attack unless attacked first, don't throw potions, and don't break boulders.

...yearns for metal crashing on metal.

• Act like a follower of Klaskov.

...thirsts for BLOOD!

• Act like a follower of H'ruth. Don't use magic! (Xom gets mad.) Head straight into battle and smack things around.

...wishes for death and decay.

• Act like a follower of Tlosh.(?)

...hides his desires from you.

• Various. Tricky Xom doesn't want you to know what he wants. But use the pray function (_) often to check what is pleasing/displeasing him.

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Feared Monsters

Specific monsters that cause the most grief and ideas about what to do about them.

Cockatrices

How do you avoid being turned into an object d'art?

• Kill it from range - For this, you will need either to be fast, or preferably, to be able to jump, so you can keep your distance, and either spells, wands or a stack of thrown weapons large enough to kill it. You can also slow the cockatrice as an alternative to making yourself fast.

• Amulet of Unchanging - This stops you from being petrified, but may be difficult to find. Note that you must be wearing it when you would be petrified. Wearing the amulet when hit by the cockatrice, but taking it off before the stoning process attempts to complete the transformation will lead to a tragically unnecessary demise.

• Acid Potion - Drink the potion while hardening to remove the effect. You cannot drink potions if you are full--if you are next to a wall, throw the potion at it and the splash damage will stop the stoning. Casting Acid Splash on yourself also works in the same manner.

• Polymorph - Polymorphing yourself cures you, and you won't keep on hardening after changing back into yourself. Polymorphing into something with unchanging can prevent hardening. Polymorphing the cockatrice may, at least temporarily, turn it to something easier to deal with (or it may not - I don't recommend using this, except as a last resort). Also, killing a polymorphed creature returns it to its original state, so you have to deal with it without killing it, or you are back to where you started.

• Stone to flesh spell - Obvious, but effective.

• Retreat - Leaving non-aggressive creatures alive on later levels where cockatrices appear can help you to escape a cockatrice. Travel down a narrow corridor, and switch places with a friendly mouse, shitomi (which generally appear on levels that cockatrices do), or another non-aggressive creature.

• Get something else to fight it - While difficult to orchestrate, getting a cockatrice between you and a red/blue/white dragon is a nice distraction for it. Just make sure you kill it before it kills the dragon!

Green Dragons

How do you avoid a quick death by poison?

• Kill it from range - Green dragons are the only dragons without a breath weapon. See the entry on cockatrices.

• Poison Resistance - Even with poison resistance, the dragon's poison will deal about 30 points of damage, but that is not enough to kill most characters.

• Spells - Cure Poison will solve the problem, and Slow Poison can give you time so you can find a solution.

• Polymorph - If you polymorph yourself, you will not suffer from the poison in your new form, but will have to deal with it once you change back to your original form. Also consider polymorphing the green dragon if you are about to be poisoned, and have no way to deal with it.

Water Elementals

Sure, you have slain the dreaded water elemental, Hero. But you still can't breathe!

• Breathless - There are some artifacts that grant you this intrinsic. If you don't need oxygen, choking isn't a problem, is it?

• Macho Priest - At least one player reports having survived by having a lot of hit points and the Heal spell.

Ghosts

My +3 warhammer isn't doing anything. And now I'm surrounded....

• Silver - Like liches, ghosts don't like silver. Wield a silver spear or sword or even a silver ring or circlet.

• Non-physical damage - Magical damage from spells and wands also can damage ghosts. Fire/torches can as well.

Identifying Items

Many items can be identified relatively safely, without the use of an Identify scroll or spell.

Potions

The following potions may be identified by the following experimental dipping.

• Greek fire - Dipping a long sword will cause it to catch fire. This only works for regular long swords, not silver ones. Dipping will also turn clubs into torches and arrows into flaming arrows. May work on other wooden items such as crooks or wooden shields (unconfirmed). Lava will also ignite long swords.
• Acid - Will destroy most any item dipped in. One way to remove cursed items that you'd rather destroy than wear.
• Mana - Dipping wands or books will recharge them.
• Poison - Will coat your item with slime. If you are going to poison a weapon with the intent to wield it, make sure it is equipped before dipping. Otherwise you will be poisoned upon equipping. You may also poison the meat of anything killed with it.
• Cure - Dipping a poisoned item will remove the poison.
• Holy or Cursed Water - Will change status of an item if not already the same as the water.

Wands

Use wands under under the following circumstances to identify.

Targeting an empty area

• Fire
• Ice
• Digging
• Create monster
• Trapping

Targeting an item

• Polymorph - Great way to turn throwaway books into useful ones, same for scrolls, wands, etc.
• Teleport - Item will be relocated elsewhere.

Targeting a creature or self

• Invisibility
• Speed
• Slow - Interestingly, this does not turn a neutral creature hostile.
• Polymorph - I'd recommend testing this on an item first.
• Teleport
• Fire
• Ice
• Digging

If no effect seen on creature or item

• Wand of nothing

Intrinsics

There are many state changes you can go through. This is an incomplete list, focusing on harmful intrinsics and their respective remedies.

• Poisoned - Varies from mild to deadly. Cured with Cure potion, deity intervention, or the Cure Poison spell. Will also fade eventually.
• Aflame - Will fade eventually. Quenched by throwing bottle of water against an adjacent wall or creature.
• Hardening - Cured with Acid potion, polymorphing self, or deity intervention. Prevented from completion by Unchanging.
• Blind - Fades eventually. Allows telepathy to function. Cannot read scrolls or books while blind.
• Strangled - Equip water breathing item. Will fade eventually.
• Bleeding - Remove item causing effect, dip in holy water if item is cursed.
• Amnesic - Will fade quickly once soul sucker is killed.
• Confused - Fades quickly.
• Slow - Will fade eventually. Zapping self with wand of speed does not help.
• Buried - Teleport or dig yourself out.
• Deaf - Fades eventually.
• Sensitive to Silver - Permanent intrinsic. Achieved by eating liches, daemons, ice daemons, Baezl'bub.
• Sensitive to Gold - Fades quickly. Caused by Gold Beetles.
• Missing a Finger - A certain ring type will remove your other ring finger. A nasty trick, but you can use it to remove other cursed rings, so once it is uncursed, you may wish to keep it.

Eating Corpses

Some creatures may leave corpses behind once they are killed. Eating keeps hunger away and helps to slowly recharge the character's life points. Being full brings added regeneration, while hunger stops normal healing. Eating these corpses in some cases causes additional special side-effects. Eating more than one corpse may be necessary in some cases to gain the added effect.

Insulated
Note on gaining: You feel insulated.
Note on losing: You feel electrified.

• Grid Bug
• Blue Dragon

Vulnerability to Cold/Fire Resistance
Note on gaining vulnerability to cold: You begin to fear cold.
Note on gaining fire resistance: You feel like roasting marshmallows.
Note on losing fire resistance: You feel feverish.
Note on losing vulnerability to cold: You no longer fear cold.

• Fire Snake
• Fire Beetle
• Imp
• Red Dragon

Cold Resistance/Vulnerability to Fire
Note on gaining vulnerability to fire: You being to fear fire.
Note on gaining cold resistance: You feel like ice skating.
Note on losing cold resistance: You feel a shiver.
Note on losing vulnerability to fire: You no longer fear fire.

• Ice Snake
• White Dragon

Acid Resistance
Note on gaining: You feel basic.
Note on losing: You feel acidic.

• Slugs
• Gelatinous Cubes?

Quickening
Note on gaining: You quicken.
Note on losing: You are less quick.

• Bats (all types)

Telepathy
Note on gaining: You sense the chattering of voices.
Note on losing:

• Floating Eye

Poisoned
Note on gaining: You are poisoned.
Note on losing:

• Green Snake
• Scorpion
• Green Dragon

Regeneration
Note on gaining: Your bruises fade quickly.
Note on losing: Your bruises return.

• Troll

Mana Boost

• Kobold Mage

Polymorph

• Chameleon

Hardening

• Cockatrice

Sensitivity to Silver

• Daemon
• Ice Deamon
• Lich
• Baezl'bub

No Change

• Mouse/Rats
• Cave Spider
• Kiwi

Inedible

• Gold beetle

Information About Items

Wearable Items

• Hats
• Necklaces
• Weapons
• Shields
• Armor
• Rings
• Boots

Magic Items

• Potions
• Spellbooks
• Wands

Special Items

• Artifacts and Other Items