Part 54: Totes, HOPr - Two

Hill Orc Priest: The Part 2ening.



Moments later, we're joined by two more grunts. The more weak orcs the better right now. They'll die quick, but more chances of one surviving until Orc Warrior.



And following them? An Extremely Dangerous Minotaur fighter. Normally this is something that we would be unable to take.



But, we have friends! Our friends will drop enough attacks that he falls fairly swiftly, and with him focusing attacks onto ourselves our Orcs have little chance of death.

He gives us 36% exp to next level and puts fighting at 5, which will help.



More books. As much as it is a good book, Hill Orc Priests generally won't be able to cast anything until late-late game.



Our next dungeon level is a wide open area. Contrary to most roles, open areas are the best thing for you as a HoPR. It allows your Orcs to use their ranged attacks (they will pick up bows and slings) until they get close, and lets you swarm them after that. Similarly, hallways greatly diminish the effectiveness of your Orc horde.



Their ranged attacks are very handy, by the way. From what I can tell, the damage Orcs deal with ranged attacks isn't explicitly based on the weapon they have, but their hit die. I've seen Orc Warlords throw stones that 2 shot hill giants.

The experience from the kill also allowed the Orc to grow into a new form!

Let's talk Orc Warriors.

16-40 HP
4 HD.

A gigantic upgrade from your basic orc. Not only does their damage improve, but so does their survivability by almost a factor of 5. Right now, an Orc Warrior can overpower anything at this dungeon level, and has even a good chance at soloing an Ogre. We don't need to worry about his life anymore, since he will hold his own, and he will provide a good source of reliable backup damage.



We turn the corner into more Orcs. Always welcome.

You'll note that often times Orcs who join you don't come with a weapon. For a lot of the game you'll have to equip your orcs with top of the line gear to keep them competitive. It sounds like a drawback, but not in practice. You all know how you can collect dozens of useless randarts and equipment that is good, but not as good as what you have. Orcs allow you to put them to use.



Alright, maybe not quite solo, but he did take it from half in one swing. That'll do.



We pick up a ring of wizardry on the next floor. It will at least make Blink Semi-castable. 61% failure rate with 0% Translocations. Might as well get an early start on that skill.



Not too long after, we reach piety ****. This allows us to cast Recall for Orcish Followers only, costing a small amount of hunger and 2 MP. This is the most vital ability, beyond the ability to GAIN Orcs, to have. Not only does it make it much easier to transport Orcs from level to level, but it also allows you to get in close then recall all your guys on top of the enemy, usually killing them in a flurry of blows on the turn you do it. Using recall properly is vital to succeeding.



Soon after, we find a General Store with some very nice, if not expensive, boots. We can't afford them now, but I make a mental note to go back and get them.



Aha, a second Orc Warrior! The army is starting to shape up and not make me worry about its safety every time a Quokka shows up.



Like I said, Beogh is fickle. You need a constant supply of blood to get piety with him, and a small period without it means a good chunk of Piety gone.



Nearby, a rather messy fight for regular fighter-types. The Wights can drain, the Orc can smite, and the Orc Warrior is physically brutal.



Thankfully, our Orc Warriors are stronger, and they tear through the crowd.



Occasionally, if you kill something, there is a chance of an existing Orc gaining a bonus. Sometimes they get defense, offense, or healing. However, if you still have basic Orcs, there is a slight chance that they become Priests instead. This is a huge boon.

Let's talk Orc Priests.

9 to 21 HP
3 HD

Their best asset is their Smite ability, which deals around 15~ damage to a creature with very low, if any cooldown. As long as they decide to use it, it does irresistible damage. Because of this, Orc Priests will never become worthless; guaranteed damage is helpful at any stage of the game. They are slightly frail, but less so then the Wizards. They can equip the same items as a Warrior, as well, so they can have enough AC to survive. They are very vital to having a strong backline of ranged damage.



Don't forget to allow them to upgrade gear and weapons! They will pick whatever does the most damage (ignoring brands), favoring branded gear over unbranded. They will pick whatever provides most AC, ignoring resistances. They do not seem to be harmed by stat deflation from randarts, either.

Also, one of our Orc Warriors has a name now. They get names after gaining so much EXP.



Our skills as it stands. Oh, did I say I was already training Translocations? I meant I should have already started training Translocations. Whoops!



Giant Spores are fucking lethal to your army and I was blessed to kill it with a dart before it reached. They deal enough damage to one shot an Orc Warrior, and confusion will cause the army to kill each other.

Very lucky to kill it before it got close.



We find the Orcish Mines, and a Shadow. The shadow dies quite quickly, and I opt to delay the Orcish Mines until my army has more experience and gear.



A floor later we encounter Gastronok. Normally he is a tough fight because he is so bulky, but we have several extra sets of hands to diffuse his damage and hammer his HP. We get quite a bit of EXP, even though we didn't get the killing blow.



I'm glad we didn't, though. It allowed another Orc to become an Orc Warrior! Also a random wizard hat.



Oh no!! A HUNGRY GHOST and my army is far away!! What will I do??

(Hint: You can see it in the picture)



That damage occurred right after I recalled them. Literally on the same turn. See, your Orcs get to act on the turn they are recalled, since Player is always the first to go.



Find Enemy.
Hit Recall.
Gain EXP.
Get Loot.

The Large Shield is particularly good for us, as it gives a ton of SH, meaning we're even stronger as a tank for our followers.

Unfortunately, the Hill Giant instantly kills our Orc Priest as well.
Easy come, Easy go.



Turning the c-



FUCK

These things are lethal, I tell ya!



We manage to gain, and lose, an Orc in the next room's fight.

The book is of Burglary, which will eventually grant us Swiftness and Apportation.



Erica could chew through our army with Venom Bolt, if she so chose.



Which she does! She also chooses to have a second unique with her!

Urug flings Javelins at you, dealing a good chunk of damage. He is also an Orc. You see where I'm going with this, don't you?



Urug doesn't. He prefers to demolish my entire army with Wands.

Fuck it, CHARGE!



That Orc Warrior, while we're fighting Urug, kills the invisible Erica. He probably single-handedly saved the fight with that kill. See, Orcs will attack invisible targets as if they weren't invisible, as long as the target is both adjacent and attacks them first.



There are two times when an Orc might join you.
1) When they first see you, they have a chance to convert.
2) When you deal a killing blow unto them, they have a chance to convert.

Sadly, since our Hit Die wasn't much higher than his, our chance to convert was slim. At least an Orc Warrior got the killing blow, promoting him to Orc Knight!

Let's talk Orc Knights.

36-99 HP
9 HD
25 base damage.

I include the base damage part, because I'm fairly certain whatever they do gains that added amount. At least, it seems like it since they hit very, very hard. Orc Knights are very strong, very hardy, and very important. They will help you kill things quickly, while taking a decent chunk of damage for you in the meantime. They are self-reliant, as they will gain healing from kills, thanks to Beogh's blessings. It'll take a lot to take down an Orc Knight at this stage of the game.

Because of him becoming an Orc Knight, I feel as if our other warrior is close to it too. So I decide to wait it out until that happens before I go to Orc Mines.



Suddenly, a cloud of poison!

I don't know why this happens. Sometimes the dungeon just fucks you over.



Sigh. Fine, fuck it. We're going to the mines!

Next time: The Orcish Mines