robison@eosp1.UUCP (Tobias D. Robison) (05/10/84)
References: Trying to polymorph a monster into a purple worm or jabberwock at an early dungeon level is the best use (?) of the wand. It doesn't matter if you get an eye and get transfixed so early; you can always afford to start over. This trick works if you have the scare monster scroll; it also works if you have a slow monster staff as well. For this reason, I usually do not try out an unknown staff early in the game unless I have TWO unknown staffs. If the first turns out to be polymprph, I try the other at once (but only near the start of the game, since this tactic gives you a big chance of dying fast.) It has always seemed to me that that one's first two staffs are poly and slow more often than one would expect. By the way, if the first wand is slow monster, and the second one you try is poly, the polymorphed monster will no longer be slowed. - Toby Robison (not Robinson!) allegra!eosp1!robison decvax!ittvax!eosp1!robison princeton!eosp1!robison