this post was submitted on 12 Jan 2025
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My highest score: five-challenge ascension! (lemmy.world)
submitted 5 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) by buo to c/pixeldungeon
8 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

I completed a 4-chal ascension a while back, and I thought I was done with challenges, but recently I got the itch to complete a five-chal run. I just wanted to prove that I could ascend with more than half of the challenges active.

It took me 25 or 30 tries, but I finally did it! (I like to play random seeds and let fate decide what equipment I get). I also had to find a combination of challenges that was feasible for me; for example, combining Pharma and Barren Land is brutal. Respect to those who can win with those challenges active!

One funny thing is that I ended up with a lot of food (that's the sniper at the foot of the stairs leading up out of the dungeon):

It turns out I could have eaten a lot more food! (I also had five potions of cleansing, believe it or not.) I spent almost the entire game with 20-40% health. Other equipment notes:

  • I spent most of the game with a +2 Sickle I got from the ghost. This seed has very few upgraded weapons.
  • I got a lousy wand of prismatic light +1 from the wizard, which was used along with a +0 wand of corrosion to upgrade the wand of disintegration to +3. I didn't find any more wands.
  • I found the chains early on, but they were cursed. I was unable to equip them until the early jail levels. Still, a lifesaver for sure.
  • The armor is Scale +1, reforged and with three SoU.
  • The RoH was found at +0 in the sewers, upgraded with the game's last three SoU.
  • The RoSS was found at +1 somewhere in the jail.
  • The shuriken has a troll upgrade plus reforge, and the remaining two SoU.
  • (Edited to add that I played without any ankhs, given the discussion on ankhs in the comments.)

The sniper is awesome, and I don't know if I could complete five challenges with other classes. Dispatching a scorpion in one round, without spending any charges or energy or anything, is amazing.

I'm pretty sure I won't do six or more challenges, as the game gets so hard it's no longer much fun. But I'm happy to have gotten good enough at this game to do five challenges!

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[–] Drawtolife 4 points 5 days ago (2 children)

Good job!

I bet you could have made it with barren land and into darkness active. Hunter has mind vision talents available to combat limited vision and into darkness is nothing more than managing the use of the torches. The trinket Eye of Newt +3 granting you 5 tiles of mind vision helps a lot.

Just a while ago i learned that you can throw the waterskin into a healing well to fill it so you can bless your ankhs even with barren land turned on.

[–] MrRedstoner 3 points 4 days ago (1 children)

You can bless the Ankh by throwing it in the well, either way blessing your Ankhs in a high chal run is a waste of its healing potential (can be used safely on boss floors outside boss battles)

[–] Drawtolife 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Well that removes an extra step then!

I often bless one of the ankhs if i find an extra healing and my waterskin is full for a piece of mind. Yes its often necessary to heal with unblessed ankhs in boss rooms.

I once had a full waterskin, blessed anhk and an extra anhk on a 9 chal ascension.

[–] buo 2 points 5 days ago

Thanks! It's interesting to think this could have been a seven challenge run 😅

My four-challenge runs have actually been with barren land. The problem for me is when it's combined with other challenges -- it becomes too difficult. If I ever try a six-chal run, I think I would add barren land to the mix.

Regarding into darkness: I've tried several times and I've never made it past the crabs. But, as always with SPD, it's a matter of finessing your technique to the point where you can overcome the challenges.

[–] chonglibloodsport 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I think you’re actually not far off from the 9 challenge meta strat for sniper. Generally with that strategy you turn your first upgrade into an enchant scroll and use it on your bow, then you put all the rest of your upgrades into a throwing weapon and augment bow for speed. The last piece of the puzzle is one or more tools to create distance: wand of regrowth, chains, hourglass, ring of haste, armour of flow, anything with knockback, etc.

[–] buo 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Interesting; I hadn't thought about using a scroll of enchantment. Is it better than converting the scroll to two stones of enchantment? You then have two shots at getting a good one.

[–] chonglibloodsport 2 points 4 days ago (1 children)

A scroll of enchantment gives you a choice of 3 different enchantments: 1 common, 1 uncommon, and 1 random. A stone of enchantment just gives you 1 random enchantment.

So it’s a tradeoff. If you want to get a rare enchantment you have better odds if you use both stones on a single item, stopping if the first one is rare. But if you don’t care about the rarity and just want a good enchantment then having a choice of 3 is better.

[–] buo 1 points 4 days ago

That's what I thought -- thanks!