Another fairly long, rambling post. Just on my initial thoughts on the new version of DoomRL (0.9.9.3). In no particular order.....
The fact that boots are now less common and armour shards more common makes the game a little easier. Keeping your armour up used to be a major inconvenience, but now I find that I can rely on a bulk-modded red armour far more easily. I'm not sure if it's a good thing or bad. Maybe armour shards will become other power-up types over time.....
New power-up wise I've only gotten the Tracking Map. God-dammit this thing is powerful. So much better than INT(2) or anything else really. You know the whole layout, and exactly where everything is. It kind of makes the level a "gimme", you can fight your way through with perfect knowledge and tactics to suit or just scoot to the exit (again with perfect knowledge of what you'll face). So good it's stupid. Better than an invulnerability in my opinion.
The new tactical rocket launcher rocks. It is now better than the missile launcher in virtually every way. OK, except accuracy. But seriously, five rockets, quite nice accuracy and 0.8sec multi-reload? With no downsides at all. I juggler'ed my way with a TRL and a ML through the game quite easily. It might not be guaranteed like the ML, but it sure is nice. It's worthwhile a WK level just to dump your bulk mods into this. It's a game winner.
It might just be a difficulty level thing, but I'm having difficulty getting the Shambler lever to spawn in the armoury. There could just be new requirements. I tend to kill a skull as my last enemy (new AI makes them back off sometimes) so it could be this too. The level name turns blue, but no shambler lever. I'll work it out at some time.......
The new ammochain kicks just as much arse as the old one did. Sure you don't get a "free" juggler/WK combo, but it gives you a heap of options. DoomRL is a very random game (roguelike as it is) and therefore you might end up with something stupidly good early in your run. Dumping the first couple of levels into Reloader still gives you the option for MAc, MFa or MAD. Whatever your play-style, you don't lose anything, and you can let the game develop a little before you decide which master trait you want (if any). Really, reloader is now the player build equivalent of juggler. You don't lose anything and you can juggle your build depending on what the game throws at you (or sometimes even to you). Plus you can reload your weapons a little quicker while you're deciding. And take shottyman for a mutli-weapon build. It's not juggler, but now you can MAc with pride because it's now balanced. "Hail of plasma death" kind of balanced. With some buckshot to boot.
Crate rooms. I'm still undecided on whether these make the game easier or harder. Or pretty much just the same. They're a godsend when you're playing as a melee build, and situational in every other build. Sometimes you want a shooting gallery, sometimes you don't. The crate rooms themselves are a good thing though, just depends really.
Rivers are cool. They make the early game a little easier and much like crate rooms are a bit situational in the later game. I'm of the opinion that these make the game a little easier overall, just because they open up shooting lanes.
Strangely enough I've found the new skull and daemon AI to make the game a little easier. Mainly because sometimes they seem to want to back off or hide sometimes rather than the "charge-kill" AI we had previously. When they back off it just means another round of buckshot or two for their troubles. Daemons don't seem to lava-suicide as often, but overall they're actually a little easier to kill now.
Other than the TRL I haven't checked many other assembly tweaks. But overall, assemblies make the game a touch easier for all builds. With a couple a guaranteed assemblies and a good chance to make any weapon into "a good thing", it is a bit easier than 0.9.9.1 where it was a real limiting factor to not have WK levels. Now you sort of don't need them as much, and can still mod up some great stuff.
This is my initial thoughts on the game. What have other people found out so far, especially concerning the nature of the meta-game and difficulty of DoomRL? I mean, it's not as though N! is all of a sudden easy or anything.....
Opinions?
