b31 On death, they still strike back

[Tom]

Hello.

Around lvl 18-20 I try to ambush ambushing parties for ingredients.
At that lvl I usually manage them so this is a habit I have.

But there is danger.
Especially if one of them hurt me, and I have lost life.
When I sneak up on the next guy and stab him, prefereably with Flurry, he dies alright.
But he may still hit me for a value compared to half of my max hitpints which atm is around 750.

Why do they hit back when they are dead?
As a melee character it is strange one needs to be fully healed not to risk dying when killing an opponent.

Tom

[greycat]

You probably hit someone who had retaliatory damage -- a Wyrmic's Icy Skin, or spiked armor, or a shield that does lightning damage when hit, etc. This tears rogues apart. You'll need to be careful. Carefuller.

[Grey]

This is why things like shields and high resistances are very valuable. Always prioritise defence above offence.

[Tom]

You probably hit someone who had retaliatory damage -- a Wyrmic's Icy Skin, or spiked armor, or a shield that does lightning damage when hit, etc. This tears rogues apart. You'll need to be careful. Carefuller.

Tears rogues apart??
I barely survived, so this is a good description.
I did *hit* hit* hit* hit* hit* with various effects, but it seemed they all returned back to me.

What exactly should I look after when I stab one of theese dudes?

Always prioritise defence above offence.

That is not my best thing in ToME.

Tom

[Final Master]

Look for, if you are being dealt damage after you attack. :p

[Frumple]

Also things like displacement/dispersion shield, damage shunt... that sort of thing. There's some stuff that'll go off when you hit it hard enough for some impressively massive damage, so be careful about that.

It's getting to be a good idea for any class to carry around a few ruination staves, just to deal with sustains

[Aquillion]

Popping a good shield rune before attacking (which is a good idea anyway) can help.

In general, you should never take adventurer parties lightly, since they can have such a wide variety of unpredictable and powerful capabilities. The only class that's really reliable at handling them is alchemists, since your golem can hopefully draw their nastiest effects and keep them out of range, and you can hit almost the entire field at once, killing some before they even get into view. Even then, it only takes one unlucky hit with the wrong debuff to kill you.

[lukep]

Also Riposte and the similar Brawler talent. That absolutely murdered my dualwielding Cursed with Frenzy and a chance of Bleeding Edge (hooray 10 hits)