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[JustKillJill]

So as it turns out, here's a quick, slightly-luck based method for beating the Angel of Death. Works best as a Marine, albeit I first pulled this off playing Technician. Remember to get a 100% kill rate up to this point, in order to obtain Azrael's Scythe (play on HMP or higher difficulty!).

Begin thus;


1.) Obtain and SAVE as many phase devices as possible--especially the homing variant, up until Deimos.


2.) At Special Stage 7, the Spider's Lair, defeat all monsters and acquire the Nuclear Plasma Rifle (or obtain a Thermonuclear bomb or similar Nuclear item)


3.) At the stage preceding the Unholy Cathedral, do not take any God Mode power-up that appears. Protect said power-ups from explosions at all costs.

4.) Once the floor is clear, grab as many God-Modes as practical, and either run to the Red Stairs if they are close, or begin using phase devices until you get close enough to do so.

5.) Assuming you have ten moves worth of god-mode left when you enter Unholy Cathedral (Marine, again, extends power-up duration), immediately set off a nuke and use the wait command. This will kill everything on the level, including AoD (except you, if you're still in god mode), assuredly winning you Azrael's Scythe.


I've found that god-mode consistently appears on the level before UC appears. Could it be coincidence that they hand you a nuclear weapon on the bonus level just preceding this stage?

[Napsterbater]

Remember to get a 100% kill rate up to this point, in order to obtain Azrael's Scythe

Eh. I prefer the Spear, simply because of the +4 armor you get with Angelic Armor. Plus the special attack doesn't hurt your HP.

[Tormuse]

In my experience, Invulnerability doesn't usually appear on the level with the UC entrance.  I think you've just been getting lucky.

I think a much more reliable way to take out the AoD is to get Berserker trait.  The Chainsaw makes short work of him while you're berserk.  :)

[LuckyDee]

I think a much more reliable way to take out the AoD is to get Berserker trait.  The Chainsaw makes short work of him while you're berserk.  :)

Hear, hear. I did the UC just once, and it totally failed to impress me for precisely this reason.

[Klear]

Please somebody get rid of the spoiler in the 3rd sentence of the OP. I had no idea how to get Azrael's Scythe before and I was hoping I'll figure it out myself =(

Also, nuking a level isn't excactly new.

[AlterAsc]

Eh. I prefer the Spear, simply because of the +4 armor you get with Angelic Armor. Plus the special attack doesn't hurt your HP.

I never checked it, but i always thought AS gives you +4 bonus too.
Though anyway i saw AA 4 times, and wore it about once, so does not really matter much for me.

[Creepy]

If you've been playing a melee game and are able to reach the UC, Berserk and whatever master trait you're rolling with (or even Berserk alone, it be powerful) is usually enough to carry you through it. A Marine with Vampire would probably leave the level with more health than he had when he entered, even.

[Ander Hammer]

It's already well-known that nukes clear a level and invulnerability globes prevent you from dying.

Nevertheless, I think this topic brings up something important. Might it be time to suggest that special levels ('>') can't be nuked?

[Klear]

Nevertheless, I think this topic brings up something important. Might it be time to suggest that special levels ('>') can't be nuked?

Oh god please no. I love to nuke the mortuary. I believe the panalty that the level isn't considered completed for badge purposed plus the destruction of all rewards (except those that spawn afterwards) is enough.

[Game Hunter]

Might it be time to suggest that special levels ('>') can't be nuked?

I was actually going to go with the "other" option and have affects turn off when you go to the next floor. This has pretty huge effects on the game, so I don't know if would apply to every floor: maybe just boss levels and a couple others.

The "easier" solution to UC's special case (we could include Mort as well) is to just make it so that the reward doesn't linger if you nuke the level. Really, I'm kind of surprised uniques survive nuclear explosions anyway, even if they're durable enough for lava.

[Napsterbater]

I never checked it, but i always thought AS gives you +4 bonus too.
Though anyway i saw AA 4 times, and wore it about once, so does not really matter much for me.

When I was playing AoOC, I went into the UC every time. Got lots of Scythes and lots of Spears. Scythe def does not give +4 protection with AA, and 9d9 isn't a crazy amount of damage over 8d8. Both slaughters things at close range. The Scythe's alt-fire just isn't useful enough to be worth the 5HP hit, but the Spear's is *very* useful for when you get surrounded. I consider the Scythe a penalty rather than a bonus.

[raekuul]

I was actually going to go with the "other" option and have affects turn off when you go to the next floor. This has pretty huge effects on the game, so I don't know if would apply to every floor: maybe just boss levels and a couple others.

I dunno... on the one hand, requiring the Lava Pits for a Full Win doesn't sound like it would hurt anyone at this point... on the other hand, no more Pure Luck Full Wins.

The "easier" solution to UC's special case (we could include Mort as well) is to just make it so that the reward doesn't linger if you nuke the level. Really, I'm kind of surprised uniques survive nuclear explosions anyway, even if they're durable enough for lava.

Artifacts have always been totally indestructible, to the best of my knowledge. For whatever reason, though, I don't remember the Armor or the Spear/Scythe appearing after a nuke.

[JustKillJill]

Eh. I prefer the Spear, simply because of the +4 armor you get with Angelic Armor. Plus the special attack doesn't hurt your HP.

Ah, color me a newb. I hadn't known Longinus's Spear dropped in UC as well. Guess I have a new 'present' to look forward to.

If you've been playing a melee game and are able to reach the UC, Berserk and whatever master trait you're rolling with (or even Berserk alone, it be powerful) is usually enough to carry you through it. A Marine with Vampire would probably leave the level with more health than he had when he entered, even.

That hinges on a pretty big "if". What if I just want a big stick to swing with Juggler when shit gets in my face, while I use Trigger Happy with a Burst Plasma Rifle F1, or Sharpshooter with the GCB to instamelt anything I run into? What if I'm not 'playing' a melee build? The Angel is pretty damn sturdy (340 on HMP, 50 more hp than the Cyberdemon) without Berserker, and Chainsaw only clocks an average 14 damage per hit out of Berserk.

Although yeah, I guess nuking makes for a needless workaround for a Marine specializing in melee. Cool--I'll keep that in mind.

[Creepy]

That hinges on a pretty big "if".

Compared to being lucky enough to find a nuke and an invulnerability orb right by the UC? Because those aren't common occurances at all. "Pray for those powerups" isn't really any less of an 'if' than "spend three levels picking up the melee traits I'll need to do the melee level and prepare properly"

[raekuul]

What if I just want a big stick to swing with Juggler when shit gets in my face?

To the best of my knowledge, the Angel of Death does not have a lava immunity (though I haven't entered the Unholy Cathedral since the last version update), so you can still cheese him that way. nevermind, that information is outdated. No wonder I kept getting massacred by the Big Red A when I made it to the Unholy Cathedral.

[Tormuse]

Back in version 0.9.9.1, The AoD actually didn't have lava immunity which made it really easy to kill him.  (It was how I got my first Diamond, Longinus Diamond)  All you had to do was lure him outside, then run back inside the Cathedral and close the door.  Then hold your finger on the wait button until he died from randomly wandering into the lava.

It was really funny to picture it, this huge, hulking Demon, stomping around in impotent fury, locked out of his own cathedral.  :D

"GRR!  Let me back in!  You open this door right now!  OW!  I stepped in the lava again!"

[JustKillJill]

Compared to being lucky enough to find a nuke and an invulnerability orb right by the UC? Because those aren't common occurances at all. "Pray for those powerups" isn't really any less of an 'if' than "spend three levels picking up the melee traits I'll need to do the melee level and prepare properly"

Lucky? Nuclear Plasma Rifle spawns every time you finish the Spider's Lair. Just overcharge it if you don't collect a thermonuclear bomb. And power-up spawns aren't that rare. Maybe not common enough that it'll happen every time, but hey.

Three levels worth of melee skills for a non-melee build in order to clear a single special stage doesn't strike me as an efficient use of resources. If you're playing toward that build, sure...

It's already well-known that nukes clear a level and invulnerability globes prevent you from dying.

Nevertheless, I think this topic brings up something important. Might it be time to suggest that special levels ('>') can't be nuked?

UC kind of bugs me for that fact--it forces a non-melee build to go melee for 100% completion. So why 'not' nuke it? For that matter--why penalize further, a method of beating a level that would kill you under ordinary circumstances anyway?

What's the point of having Nukes in the game, again?

[Klear]

Three levels worth of melee skills for a non-melee build in order to clear a single special stage doesn't strike me as an efficient use of resources. If you're playing toward that build, sure...

Berserker is actually very useful in any build, even if you don't plan to do any melee.

[JustKillJill]

Berserker is actually very useful in any build, even if you don't plan to do any melee.

I almost always play Technician, and tend to build toward either Scavenger or Sharpshooter, depending on whether the GCB drops or not. I typically end up equipped with 2 ranks whizkid by Hell's Armory, if it hasn't dropped by then--at which point I build a burst plasma rifle and try to get firestorm on it, which allows me to vaporize barons/mancubi/revenants fairly quickly, without blowing up too many barrels and item drops.

I usually opt for Hellrunner/Dodgemaster over Brute/Berserk for tactical benefits--especially dealing with the Wall, Phobos Anomaly, and the Deimos Arena's Cyber Demon.

The only time I melee is if I obtain the Butcher's Knife for free Blademaster, or when I get surprised by demons and lost souls while I have juggler. I'm a very tactical (if not the most experienced) player. I'd use berserk if it didn't 'encourage' me taking damage for an already risky form of combat, but since I don't pick a lot of buff perks... well... (throatslit) x_X

[2DeviationsOut]

Meh, if you've got a good movespeed or a Ballistic Vest or a Ballistic Shield, or even a Duelist's Armor, then the UC is crazy easy. The Lost Souls aren't a threat at all if you can fight them one at a time in a doorway, and the demons are the same. If you can, pop a zerk from a Hatred Skull, and go to town on the AoD. I've gotten to the point where I can reliably beat the UC without Brute on N!, and often Damageless. It's all about the movespeed/firespeed.

[Tormuse]

Well, you can play any way you like, but personally, if I'm trying for the Conqueror badge, I either make sure to pick up Berserker trait along the way, or be prepared for a drawn out, tedious dance with the AoD, because I can't count on getting a lucky Invulnerability any more than I can count on a lucky Hatred Skull, or Ballistic Vest, or even Phase Devices.  UC is late enough in the game that it's easy to hit character level 10 before it, by which time you can have a Master trait plus three levels to get Berserker.  That's a strategy I can count on.  Hoping I get a lucky drop is not.

[Sihoiba]

The Scythe's alt-fire just isn't useful enough to be worth the 5HP hit, but the Spear's is *very* useful for when you get surrounded. I consider the Scythe a penalty rather than a bonus.

However it is hilarious when used on a complex full of former humans special level.