Favourite variants? Hated ones?

Daven_26d1 · July 3, 2007, 17:57

Okay, I've been playing vanilla for about 2 or 3 years now, but I've only started dabbling with variants in the last few months. In the opinion of the humble forum users here, which variants do people think deserve special attention, and which are a waste of compile time? Which are stupid easy or crazy hard?

I found Z suffered from the "nethack school of every kind of silly monster" and this kind of put me off, but I'd heartily recommend ToME for the approach therein to monster/dungeon flavour, and the volume of similar depth dungeons to add to replay.

As far as difficulty goes, when I first played Steamband, I loved it because it was difficult-seeming, but once I'd spent a week learning how to play I managed to get two wins over the next fortnight; (not with mecha/automata either) contrast this to my one win *ever* in vanilla and you should take my point.

Anyone else got anything to share? Apart from the fact that Animeband is dire?

camlost · July 3, 2007, 20:19

The variants I typically recommend are:

Sangband
Oangband
NPPAngband
Quickband
Unangband
Steamband
Heng/Entroband

The first three are reasonably close to Vanilla, Quick is just really short and fun, and the last three are off the beaten path, and offer quite a bit of replay (ok, guessing on Un).

AR_chie · July 4, 2007, 09:32

zangband (v 2.5.5 and 2.7.2) - gosh how many hours I spent on it...
posband - hard to play in deep dlev, but playing as a monster is much of fun

I played also gsnband, oangband, nethack and offcourse v

pav · July 5, 2007, 00:21

Ey is the ultimate affair for me. It was perfect.

ajps · July 5, 2007, 01:44

Steamband all the way for me. Sure, it still needs polishing up in places but it's the most absorbing and atmospheric variant I've played. In fact, the only one I'd played in years before Vanilla development started up again. Just about everything in it has been thought through and fitted nicely into the game world, so despite its wide-ranging brief it doesn't feel thrown together like many variants that make big changes (old Z, say).

And it's got Wound Points. Which I seem to pay more attention to than the standard hitpoint system, and so die less often.

Pedro · July 5, 2007, 07:17

My two favorite variants by far are NPP and Sangband. I also loved some features of Ey and weep every now and then thinking it's not being worked on any more, but I don't lose hope that they will keep being implemented in other variants.

CJNyfalt · July 5, 2007, 08:48

The only variants I have played deep enough to really recommend are:
Oangband
Steamband
Eyangband

Ofcourse there are others I also like, but don't really want to recommend until I have taken time to get deep enough in them, like Sangband, ToME, NPP,FA and sCth.

I dislike:
Zangband and especially Kamband.

and plain Angband is bland to me.

andrewdoull · July 5, 2007, 11:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pedro

My two favorite variants by far are NPP and Sangband. I also loved some features of Ey and weep every now and then thinking it's not being worked on any more, but I don't lose hope that they will keep being implemented in other variants.

What features do you think need to be ported to other variants?

takkaria · July 5, 2007, 11:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by andrewdoull

What features do you think need to be ported to other variants?

In my variant, I intend to port the combat system, for one. I can't think of any other features that haven't been used in other variants anymore, though (apart from the consistent theme). Perhaps the rebalancing of gold would be a good idea (with the "3 for 1" items).

Daven_26d1 · July 5, 2007, 14:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by ajps

And it's got Wound Points. Which I seem to pay more attention to than the standard hitpoint system, and so die less often.

Yeah, the wound system is one of the things that got me really interested; !CLW actually useful!? I just found that most classes get broken after about lvl 20, and suddenly the game loses that danger aspect. My last naturist had a base of 700-800 SP and I had so much regen that I couldn't make them deplete below max until I got my speed up to around +35 or so! I just play goblins now - they don't generally live past about lvl 10.

A lot of people like Steam, huh? It definitely has a lot to recommend it, the detail in the setting for one. Its a shame its been dead for a while.

July 3, 2007, 17:57	#1
Daven_26d1 Adept Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: North of England. Posts: 211	Favourite variants? Hated ones? Okay, I've been playing vanilla for about 2 or 3 years now, but I've only started dabbling with variants in the last few months. In the opinion of the humble forum users here, which variants do people think deserve special attention, and which are a waste of compile time? Which are stupid easy or crazy hard? I found Z suffered from the "nethack school of every kind of silly monster" and this kind of put me off, but I'd heartily recommend ToME for the approach therein to monster/dungeon flavour, and the volume of similar depth dungeons to add to replay. As far as difficulty goes, when I first played Steamband, I loved it because it was difficult-seeming, but once I'd spent a week learning how to play I managed to get two wins over the next fortnight; (not with mecha/automata either) contrast this to my one win ever in vanilla and you should take my point. Anyone else got anything to share? Apart from the fact that Animeband is dire?

July 5, 2007, 00:21	#4
pav Administrator Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Prague, Czech republic Age: 40 Posts: 785	Ey is the ultimate affair for me. It was perfect. __________________ See the elves and everything! http://angband.oook.cz

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July 3, 2007, 20:19	#2
camlost Sangband 1.x Maintainer Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 522	The variants I typically recommend are: Sangband Oangband NPPAngband Quickband Unangband Steamband Heng/Entroband The first three are reasonably close to Vanilla, Quick is just really short and fun, and the last three are off the beaten path, and offer quite a bit of replay (ok, guessing on Un).

July 4, 2007, 09:32	#3
AR_chie Apprentice Join Date: May 2007 Location: Reda, Poland Posts: 71	zangband (v 2.5.5 and 2.7.2) - gosh how many hours I spent on it... posband - hard to play in deep dlev, but playing as a monster is much of fun I played also gsnband, oangband, nethack and offcourse v

July 5, 2007, 01:44	#5
ajps Apprentice Join Date: May 2007 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 50	Steamband all the way for me. Sure, it still needs polishing up in places but it's the most absorbing and atmospheric variant I've played. In fact, the only one I'd played in years before Vanilla development started up again. Just about everything in it has been thought through and fitted nicely into the game world, so despite its wide-ranging brief it doesn't feel thrown together like many variants that make big changes (old Z, say). And it's got Wound Points. Which I seem to pay more attention to than the standard hitpoint system, and so die less often.

July 5, 2007, 07:17	#6
Pedro Rookie Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 2	My two favorite variants by far are NPP and Sangband. I also loved some features of Ey and weep every now and then thinking it's not being worked on any more, but I don't lose hope that they will keep being implemented in other variants.

July 5, 2007, 08:48	#7
CJNyfalt Swordsman Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 289	The only variants I have played deep enough to really recommend are: Oangband Steamband Eyangband Ofcourse there are others I also like, but don't really want to recommend until I have taken time to get deep enough in them, like Sangband, ToME, NPP,FA and sCth. I dislike: Zangband and especially Kamband. and plain Angband is bland to me.

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