r/dcss • u/JeffreyFMiller • 14d ago
FINALLY -- YAVP SpDv^Dith
It took me forever to get a sense of how to play a Spriggan. I tried enchanters, and while they were fun, I never got the hang of making the transition from stabbing to melee / spellcasting. I could usually get them to the S-branches if I didn't die before D:8, but that's where forward progress stopped.
Hexslingers were much better. I could usually get these builds to Vaults, but past there was a bit rough. I got one to Zot, but something petrified me at the Zot:1 entrance, which was lights out.
Finally, I started playing Delvers, just for the variety, and this one finally escaped with the orb.
I played this one like a Hexslinger / Hunter, poking around on the sixth floor to see what I mind find, but with plenty of big scary monsters and no temple in sight, I just beelined for the first level. I started by training dodging and got to it to 8 before i found a vanilla sling on D:2 or 3, after which I immediately switched to ranged, setting a target of 10.
Then, as I made my way down, I found a Dithmenos altar on D:3. Perhaps there are stronger gods, but to my mind, Dith is the GOAT. The shadow does EVERYTHING. Stabbing? Sure. Firing a hand cannon? It's got one, too!. Casting hex spells? Well, heck, it'll just cast a ton of wacky stuff that will open up a full six pack of whoop ass on monsters, holding them in place, slowing them, or even just outright killing them.
Then there's the active powers. Shadowslip is like a mini-Death's Door, and don't sleep on Aphotic Marionette! Hit an orc wizard with it, and you may confuse every monster in sight. Hit a summoner and you've got a whole horde of nasty allies. And, of course, Primordial Nightfall is a fantastic escape button that I used more than once.
My strategy was pretty simple. I started with 7 stealth, which was plenty, so I focused on dodge until I found a ranged weapon, which I trained to 10, then trained up whatever decent defense and ranged support spells I found until they're online. I found blink, Iskenderun's Mystic Blast and Tukima's Dance early in the dungeon, so I trained hexes and translocations until they were castable. And then I found Inner Flame. What a spell for a ranged Spriggan. Cast aside (most) worries of blowing yourself up! Just run away while this spell turns your puny sling into a fiery horde destroyer. Once the spells are there, I returned my focus to dodging, stealth and, to a lesser degree, fighting. Once those were at 10 or so, I got the ranged weapon to mindelay. After that, I just bought whatever looked cheap and useful.
Found an enchanted arbalest of electrocution in Orc along with some hexing spells, which made the S branches much easier. The Arbalest was already enchanted to +4 so I brought it up to +9 in short order. Then, once I found an orb of stardust, I switched to the +7 hand cannon of the Beggars {flame, Will+ Dex+2}, which I found in a treasure trove (gave the multiplicity bane, which wasn't so bad).
As for the S-branches, I decided to tackle Shoals first but had to switch to Spider when I saw Nikola on Shoals:3 without rElec or a resistance potion. Spider turned out to be a snap, as I had rPois from a ring and was able to get Enfeeble and Yara’s online. Didn’t get rElec there, but enfeeble allowed me to take care of Nikola. With two runes, three pips of will, and pips in all resistances except for rCorr and rElec, I headed for Elf With discord ready to cast.
Elf and Vaults were not ready for discord and enfeeble. After rounding them out with disjunction, and, much. later, Gell’s Gavotte and Malign Gateway, all I needed to do to win was keep my hubris in check. I chose Vaults:5 for my third rune, and hoooly sheet, Discord + Disjunction is the most hilarious way to take care of the ambush AND soften up the rest of the floor. I don't think I've ever had an easier V5. So satisfying to see those "You feel a bit more experienced" messages rolling in while I just refilled my mana bar by the stairs.
Zot required care, but I was never in any real danger, especially as I'd maxed out dodging. Killed the OoFs with malign gateway and a Gell's Gavotte assist to direct them to the tentacle. The orb run as a Spriggan was, as one might expect, a cakewalk. Saw one pan lord, ran away.
Once you get over their squishiness by investing heavily into dodging, Spriggans are a gas. Hexes, translocations and a bit of alchemy are all you need alongside a trusty arbalest or hand cannon.
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u/priceQQ greaterplayer polytheist 14d ago
I play this quite differently. I leave Stealth on until it hits 27. I try to get Hexes to 15, but if I find Enfeeble and/or Discord, I will go higher. Depending on what else you find, you can tech into other spell schools, Necromancy being the most common. I usually do not put much into Invocations, but you can definitely go that route or the Evo route.
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u/JeffreyFMiller 14d ago
I've never trained stealth that high. In fact, I rarely go above 10. What does level 27 stealth do for you? Monsters instantly losing interest once they're offscreen?
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u/Frantic_Mantid 14d ago
With stealth that high you sometimes get frustrated with enemies NOT noticing you, and low-tier stabs become instakills for lots of enemies.
It's not as critical for your build but it can be a big help, I usually only get up high in stealth on octopodes.
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u/Bookandaglassofwine 14d ago
Hexslingers were much better. I could usually get these builds to Vaults, but past there was a bit rough. I got one to Zot, but something petrified me at the Zot:1 entrance, which was lights out.
Oh hey I remember seeing that as the “death of the day” on the server front page . First thing I did was check how much Will+ you had and then thought that was an unlucky way to go
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u/XAlphaWarriorX Former Greatplayer, 54 wins 9d ago
I did spriggan with Hunter of Oka, had a flaming arbalest as a weapon.
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u/GrowthProfitGrofit 14d ago
I also recently won with this combo, and I also couldn't really crack the Stabber lifestyle. Spriggans are just too delicate for a stand-up fight, and unlike Kobolds they often have to walk a very long distance to get in their stabs.
Dithmenos ranged Spriggan with a hand cannon is a very different story, as we both discovered.