[1.5.x] Mex's Start Rebalance

[Mex]

You can find the addon here: https://te4.org/games/addons/tome/mex-startrebalance.

This addon completely removes drowning and start scumming (for the most part) from the game and offers a rebalancing alternative. I would like this, or a modified version of this, to be added to the main game. This thread is therefore also for discussion about what this is rebalancing. The changes are:

Added Dispersion (Last Hope), Track (Derth), Burrow (Shatur) and short staff (Angolwen) to shops,
Added the old man, in Last Hope next to the merchant, who will give you a random artifact (the same as a boss drop in Last Hope) in return for your sanity,

Insane players now:
- start at level 5 instead of 2,
- start with 500 gold instead of 250,
- are able to ask for 2 random tier 3 artifacts from the old man,

Madness players now:
- start at level 8 instead of 3,
- start with 750 gold instead of 500,
- are able to ask for 2 random tier 5 artifacts from the old man,

v2 - rebalanced artifacts granted by old man
v3 - added dispersion (last hope), track (derth), burrow (shatur) and short staff (angolwen) to shops
v4 - added steamsaw/guns to old man
planned v5 - remove all artifact generation from shops, figure out how to add phy/men wilds

[ster]

welp there goes any chance of the embark idea getting in

[Sheila]

Getting 1 tier 5 randart for free?
Grats on making a cheat addon meks
0/10 would never use

[ster]

well to be fair a t5 works for madness, which is all mex cares about

[Mex]

There isn't really that much difference between tier 4s and tier 5s but if it would really make you happier it can be dropped to a tier 4.

The reason its 1 tier 5 is because on insane you can get 2 tier 4 randarts with scumming.

[ster]

e: wait these are merchant randarts right. 1 t3 of those max since wtf mex

[Mex]

Did a few rolls and had forgotten that they were so op.

Will nerf them down - the idea is to get them to being similar to what you would get from drowning a last hope boss.

[Micbran]

God bless you Mex. 1.6 drowning will have a good replacement now.

[Mex]

v2 - rebalanced the old man randart power/egos, now equivalent to what would usually drop from a boss on the relevant difficulties, insane players get 2 tier 3s, madness get 2 tier 5s

v3 [planned] - to change shops to generate less items but at least one of each ego, but no artifacts should generate from shops

[ster]

You're doing God's work.

[Mex]

v3 - added dispersion (last hope), track (derth), burrow (shatur) and short staff (angolwen) to shops

planned v4 - remove all artifact generation from shops, figure out how to add phy/men wilds

I'm not too bothered with the changes in v4, other than this I'm happy with the rebalance changes made so far.

[jdisk]

May I suggest a (T3) Torque of Mindblast. That would be useful even below insane.

[Mex]

Not adding mindblast - melee was buffed and you shouldn't really need it with the randarts.

v4 - added steamsaw/guns to old man

[Effigy]

Psychoportation torque is another item I frequently look for when starting. On a character with no built-in teleports, I'll often reroll until I can get one from Zigur.

[posetcay]

It was about time the drowning thing got a logical replacement, bless you Mex!