WereProfessor

WereProfessor is the Spring 2024 special challenge path, introduced on February 15th, 2024. This path adds variant rules and restrictions to an ascension run. Its description in The Bureau of Reincarnation reads "You are a kindly profressor^[sic] inflicted with a horrible curse."

Restrictions

• None of your permed skills are available.
• You don't play as any of the six basic classes and have no guild access or access to any area requiring guild access.
• Differing restrictions depending on whether you are currently a WereProfessor or WereBeast.
• The Campground is replaced with Your Humble Cottage.
• You cannot adventure in The Sea. Attempting to talk to An Old Man gives the following message:

That shack you saw on the main map was just a picture of a shack drawn on the ground.

Divergences

• Your adventure begins with "The coffee was *gasp* decaf!"

Class

• You play as a hybrid class of professor and beast.
  • In your first ascension, you start as a beast in The coffee was *gasp* decaf!.
  • After that, you start as a professor for one turn, allowing you to spend research points on beast upgrades.
• After at least 50 turns as a beast, you transform into a professor at the end of the next combat via a chained non-combat Hang On to Yourself.
• You then have 50 turns as a professor. After at least 50 turns, you transform into a beast at the end of the next combat via a chained non-combat Ch-ch-ch-ch-chaaaanges.

As a WereProfessor:

• You have the intrinsic Mild-Mannered Professor
  • -25% combat encounter bonus
  • Your stats are limited to 1 Muscle, 5 Mysticality, and 1 Moxie.
  • Your HP is limited to 1 and cannot be raised by any means.
  • You can't use basic attacks or skills in combat.
  • You can always run from combat
• Collect 1 research from combat.
• You can't access your normal campground at all, but you can access Your Humble Cottage.
  • Beast skills must be unlocked at Research Bench. Most skills are only active as a beast, except for organ size increases.
  • You can build professor equipment at Tinkering Bench from smashed scientific equipment.
  • You can use an adventure to produce 5 research in the cottage.
  • You can rest in your bed.
• The crafted equipment allows increased research and survivability while a professor.

As a WereBeast:

• You have the intrinsic Savage Beast
  • +25% combat encounter bonus
  • Regenerate 1 HP per Adventure
  • You cannot run away from combat. (This includes free runaways)
  • Any upgrades you research as professor are added to the intrinsic effects.
• You can't access most NPC stores.
  • The Hermit is a notable exception.
  • The Trapper will talk to you as a beast during his quest, but will suddenly become scared of you after the quest.
• You can't access Your Humble Cottage.
• smashed scientific equipment currency must be collected as a beast from The Antiscientific Method found in different zones.

Consumption

• To start out with, you have only 5 stomach and 4 liver.
• Stomach and liver capacity can be upgraded as a professor, up to 14 stomach and 13 liver.
• The Steel margarita can be obtained and consumed and grants the skill Liver of Steel but, alas, it does not confer increased liver capacity.

Skills

• Skills are available at Your Humble Cottage via a non-apparent system of 3 skill trees, unlocked by a resource called Research.
• You begin with 50 Research Points for each normal (softcore) WereProfessor ascension, 100 Research Points for each hardcore WereProfessor ascension, and if research fragments have been used, 50 Research Points per research fragment. Start-of-the-run bonus is limited to 1150 total Research Points.

Bosses

In a beast form, you encounter bestial versions of the usual bosses:

• Instead of the Boss Bat, you fight the The Boss Beast.
• Instead of the Knob Goblin King, you fight The Knob Goblin Beast.
• Instead of The Bonerdagon, you fight The Curséd Bonerdagon.
• Instead of Groar, you fight... uh, Just Groar.

Text

See The Council of Loathing/WereProfessor.

Strategy

Combat

• For the first 50 turns, you are quite limited in power with no skills, no access to NPC shops, and no campground.
  • If you get beat up, you may need to heal by using A Comfy Sofa in the Clan Rumpus Room (if available) or A Relaxing Hot Tub in the VIP lounge.
  • Otherwise, you have to spend turns at a low level area or even The Odd Jobs Board.
• Professors are very limited in combat and must either use combat items or flee.
  • If you can survive a round, remember to research before fleeing, if you are fleeing.
• Beasts gradually become more powerful and unlock strong skills, potentially including a banish.

General

• Low-progression ascensions should be planned around gathering research for the professor and unlocking useful skills first.
  • In particular, the expanded liver and stomach are high-priority for players who want adventure generation.
• Remember that you don't transform until you enter a combat.
  • This means you can spend extra turns as a professor researching at the Cottage.
  • While less effective than researching in combat with the right equipment, there are no limits to how long you can sit down and research.
• As the beast has very increased combat encounter frequency and the professor has very reduced combat encounter frequency, special care will need to be taken when you're aiming for a non-combat.

Astral gear and consumables

• With low progression or even no progression, the astral hot dog might be a good choice to help with early leveling. Players used to using the model train set should also consider the hot dogs.

• The astral pets can help you fill in holes before you've unlocked "skills" via Research.
  • The astral mask can help with you with item drops before you unlock your passive item drops, and remains useful even after then.

IotM

• Neither Just the Facts from book of facts nor the model train set are available.

Softcore-specific advice

• Equipment items like the F.L.U.D.A can help you with your lack of skills before you've researched them.
• As hermit access is delayed, a 11-leaf clover can be pulled if you need one earlier.
• You could pull a combat item if you need to fight as a professor but have no other method of combat.
  • There are a few reusable combat items, although many like the Gnomitronic Hyperspatial Demodulizer and the time shuriken are a bit low on damage.
  • Other items like Zombo's empty eye have their own restrictions to be wary about.

Rewards

• Finishing a WereProfessor run while it is the current special challenge path -- between February 15th, 2024 and May 14th, 2024 -- gives players 50 (in Normal) or 100 (in Hardcore) extra karma points the next time they visit Valhalla.
• A class tattoo is obtained when starting the path.

References

• The path is inspired by Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and its many many adaptations.

Ascension Paths
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Special Challenge Paths
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