ToME: the Tales of Maj'Eyal

I was derping around in the vicinity of Last Hope when I got a random encounter leading deep into a crypt full of crazy cultists and lots of annoying wizards. I happened to be level 25 at the time I got it. I got down four floors by sheer dint. It isn't fun when a bunch of annoying wizards all try to hit you with their magic spells, and even less fun when they start hitting you with blood grasps, dark portals, and random diseases that apparently rival Ebola for effectiveness. Barring a shielding rune for me and the same on my golem, I'd be toast any number of times, and welp, that would have been the end of the road for this character. I'm actually worried about what the hell else is down there, and I think I might be OOD since some of these guys were dropping stralite equipment, which I've seen twice before in total. At least tell me I'll get something decent for my trouble at the end of this encounter, I'm willing to throw away one life for it if it does give out something good.

Oh and by the way? it's really fun when you get surrounded by a half dozen people with reinforcements on the way from very close by as soon as you get off the stairs. The only decent loot I got off these jerks so far indeed was a purple amulet that was a good swap for Feathersteel. If there had been more than three wizards in that encounter, I doubt I would have survived once my shield rune ran out.

Dark Crypt has no loot limitations, so randomly you can get some really good loot(or maybe it caps at Stralite? Dunno. Still good.).

It is a very, very dangerous area; I kinda wish you could walk out in case of an F1 heavy ambush. It's mostly bragging rights, though, the loot is not worth the danger. So if you're finding it too much, I'd just leave.

(Though, to spoil something, completing the dungeon the correct way is one of the few ways you can alter the ending epilogue message. It is very much about bragging rights, if anything.)

Does this have anything to do with this one victim which was on the bottom floor guarded by some really hard cultists? I just about managed to beat them, managed to petrify two of them and bust them to bits with a staff bolt or two. If there really isn't anything else that's left, all I have to do is find the exit from here on, yes?

And what the heck were they up to trying to summon a demon?

Yeah, that's the goal, to stop the summoning.

As to why? I dunno. Maybe you just interrupted the poor Demon's birthday party celebration.

Those demons party hard.

I succeeded the mission, though it cost me a great deal of hair pulling about getting the hostage out safe. I got a very nice unique robe with hilariously good stats out of it which I imbued, making it better.