ToME: the Tales of Maj'Eyal

So I'm a poor level 13 alchemist trying to finish the last step in the Into the darkness quest which is to explore Daikara. I got there and face a few snow giants, not big deal. Then a rare necromancer shows up, and spawns 4 more skeletons, but they are ALL level 25, and within a couple of turns I end up dead despite using all the cooldowns used to escape/head/shield! Isn't this a level 7-16 dungeon?! Why are there level 25 mobs in here? Not one but SIX of them!

Sometimes out of depth enemies pop up in lower level dungeons. They can be a curse, especially when the one that pops up gets the drop on you.

Daikara is afaik not a lvl 7 - 16 dungeon.
It is by many seen as one of the most dangerous tier 2 dungeons and i would really recommend to do old forest, the maze and sandworm lair previous to it. Maybe even lake nur, if you know how to handle the boss.

Nevertheless it is possible to meet very high level enemies, even in tier 1 dungeons.
To avoid dying to this:
- check rares/bosses level before starting a fight and just run sometimes
- never open vaults without knowing whats in them below level 20 (vaults can spawn enemies with minimum level of 30+)
- be cautious with summoners and even more with nercomancers, which can add up levels for their minions (+4 levels isnt bad when you are level 20, but its suicidal when you are lvl 8 )

You really shouldn't be in Daikara at lvl 13.

First do all the Tier 1 dungeons than Old forest -> Maze - Sandworm Tunnels -> Daikara. You should be atleast lvl 15.. ATLEAST!