Release 0.31 "The Alchemy of Forms"

Highlights

New skill and background: Shapeshifters, using Talismans to change forms.
New skill and background: Alchemists, melding Poison Magic and Transmutation.
A variety of exciting new spells for sorcerers and sword-slingers alike.
Many dangerous new monsters, from the early Dungeon to the Realm of Zot.
Major changes to many species.

Artefacts

New unrand: Mule, a +7 flaming hand cannon which sometimes knocks the
user backwards when fired.
The dreamshard necklace now has Acrobat, but only restores the player to 1 HP
when they'd otherwise die, rather than healing 50-100% of their max HP.
Artefact staves and orbs can now enhance other schools of magic, even those
which don't have corresponding base enhancer staff types.
Gyre & Gimble's enchantment is reduced from +12 to +8.
The macabre finger necklace is now evil, and the amulet of Vitality
no longer is.
Glaive of the Guard no longer gives +5 AC.

Branches, Environment

The Slime Pits now have many new endings, instead of one fixed ending.
Fast-moving adventurers can find gems at the bottom of many branches.
These have no use, but are great for bragging rights.
Negative energy clouds have been replaced with clouds of excruciating
misery, which deal damage based on max HP %.
The Ecumenical Temple is now fully mapped on entry.
The lairs of the lords of Pandemonium have been reworked.
Bazaars now have other (friendly!) patrons.
Crypt now has a 1/3 chance of containing a talisman of death.
The Hall of Blades in Elf:2 now holds weapon-enhancing scrolls, and sometimes
has a blade talisman.
'Hard' ice caves are displayed pre-entry as "glacial chasms".

Character

New skill: Shapeshifting, used for talismans.
New background: Shapeshifter, replacing Transmuter. Shapeshifters enter the
dungeon with a beast talisman, a potion of lignification, and an animal skin.
Merged skills: Poison Magic and Transmutations have been merged into Alchemy.
Reworked background: Venom Mage has become Alchemist, which has the reworked
spells Mercury Vapours and Sticky Flame, along with Sting, Mephitic Cloud,
and Olgreb's Toxic Radiance.
Reworked Hexslinger, which now starts with new spells Jinxbite, Sigil of
Binding, and Dimensional Bullseye, along with Inner Flame and Cause Fear.
Conjurers no longer start with Dazzling Flash.
Shields no longer degrade in effectiveness with each hit taken per-turn.
Instead, they now have a limit on per-turn blocks, based on shield type.
New mutation: persistent drain, which makes HP drain take more XP to cure.
Hunters and Chaos Knights now start with scrolls of butterflies instead
of immolation and xom's chesspieces, respectively.

Gods

Okawaru now gives exactly one weapon gift and one armour gift as a capstone
(chosen by the player), rather than giving many random gifts.
Ashenzari now gives perfect mapping, but only maps within LOS radius.
Trog now disables pain brand instead of becoming angry at it.
Nemelex:
    The Swarm card can now summon higher level bees.
    The Elements card has had its summon set adjusted.
    The Cloud card now produces different types of cloud based on power.
    The Deal Four ability now costs more piety.
The Wu Jian Council now allows rampaging.
Cheibriados piety gain now only depends on monsters' base speed.
The good gods now hate distortion-branded weapons.
Gozag no longer detects gold.
Kikubaaqudgha's wrath has been overhauled to be much more dangerous.

Interface and Options

Monsters with unusual items (e.g. distortion) are now highlit in purple
by default.
Monster descriptions have been compacted and made more informative.
Monster resists from equipment is now used for display and targeting.
For many list options, commas can now be escaped with backslash.
The ctrl-T "toggle travel speed" option has been removed.

Items

New item type: talismans.
    When used, talismans transform the player into a corresponding form.
    This transformation lasts until the player chooses to end it.
    It takes five turns to use a talisman.
    Shapeshifting skill increases the power of talismans' forms. Insufficient
    Shapeshifting skill reduces the player's maximum HP while in a form.
    Different forms have different min and max Shapeshifting skills.
    Beast talisman: starting talisman for Shapeshifters. Gives +Slay
    but melds aux armour.
    Flux talisman: starting talisman for Shapeshifters. Over multiple hits,
    contaminates enemies with magical radiation until they explode.
    Serpent talisman: transforms the player into a big, constricting python.
    Maw talisman: melds the body slot, transforming it into a devouring maw.
    Launches auxiliary chomp attacks and heals the player by devouring foes.
    Blade talisman: gives the player blade hands and also a blade body,
    reducing AC from body armour at lower Shapeshifting skill.
    Statue talisman: turns the player into a slow-moving, durable statue.
    Dragon-blood talisman: turns the player into a fire-breathing dragon.
    Storm talisman: turns the player into living lightning.
    Talisman of death: turns the player into an undead abomination, blighting
    foes on hit and tormenting them to heal.
New item: sack of spiders, an XP-charged evoker which webs foes and
summons creepy-crawlies. Alternates with boxes of beasts.
Potions of flight replaced with enlightenment, which also give Will+.
Scrolls of magic mapping replaced with revelation, which also give X-ray
vision and sInv for one turn.
New weapon: orcbow, between a shortbow and an arbalest in strength.
Hand crossbows are now hand cannons, alchemically belching smoke and death.
Ranged weapons' damage, delay and accuracy have been adjusted.
Quick blades now hit twice for every swing, with a higher attack delay.
Boomerangs of dispersal have been replaced with darts.
Condenser vanes are now more effective at low power.
Spectral weapons now share 70% of damage taken (from 50%).
Staves of earth now check only 1x AC, but deal 1/3rd damage to fliers.
The 'chaos' brand has a new set of possible effects.
Wands of light no longer affect undead, plant and nonliving monsters.
Wands of quicksilver can no longer be self-targeted.
Troll leather armour now has slightly less base AC.
Removed books: Sky, Rime and Transfigurations.
Removed: silver boomerangs and xom's chesspieces.

Monsters

Uniques:
    New: Jeremiah, a peaceful barachi trapped between sleep and waking.
    Their dreams leak into reality in a stream of beautiful butterflies.
    Returned and revamped: Norris, a death cultist who surfs into battle with a
    gang of skysharks.
    Maurice is now a vine stalker, with high regen and antimagic bites.
    Erica is now an octopode, with constriction and a more focused spell set.
    Frederick holds an orb, has a new spell set, and is much stronger.
    Boris now sprays clouds of misery instead of casting Invisibility.
    Xtahua and Mnoleg are considerably stronger.
Other new and returned monsters:
    Arcanists, fairly dangerous vitrifying wizards.
    Bombardier beetles, an early monster that shoots sticky flame.
    Brain worms, which eat magic and minds alike.
    Burial acolytes, masters of the Ossuary.
    Crocodiles, which drag victims backward.
    Formless jellyfish, which constrict and sting for single-turn paralysis.
    Glass eyes, which vitrify victims to make them fragile as glass.
    Kobold blastminers, who blast enemies with alchemical cannons and get sent
    flying backwards by the recoil.
    Laughing skulls, whose painful laughter grows stronger in numbers.
    Protean progenitors, which split into shapeshifting fragments when slain.
    Weeping skulls, which spray clouds of misery.
Other changes to individual monsters:
    Alligators and reapers are a bit weaker, but drag victims backward.
    Ufetubi, tengu warriors, and draconian monks now slip behind their foes
    before meleeing.
    Tengu reavers now have rMsl.
    'Wizard' has been renamed to 'occultist' and has a new spell set.
    Worms have turned into ribbon worms, doing less damage but ensnaring.
    Great orbs of eyes have a new spell set, and are slightly stronger.
    Cacodemons now Vitrify instead of casting Slow/Confuse.
    Killer Klowns now Vitrify instead of Polymorphing.
    Monsters which cast Energy Bolt now instead cast Bolt of Devastation,
    which applies Will/2 temporarily.
    Concentrate Venom (from naga mages and Amaemon) is more effective.
    Naga ritualists are much more powerful.
    Nagas' spit is now more powerful.
    Deep Elf Elementalists now cast LRD instead of Awaken Earth.
    Deep Elf Death Mages are tougher and summon many more lost souls.
    Red very ugly things now do direct fire damage instead of sticky flame.
    Sun moths have a different spellset and melee attack effects.
    Wargs are now notably stronger and faster.
    Abominations' speed is no longer randomized.
Attacks of opportunity have been reworked.
    Monsters now have a chance to attack when moving into melee with a player
    who just moved away. Previously, this triggered immediately when the
    player moved away, didn't use any of the monster's time, and couldn't
    trigger for monsters slower than the player.
    Monsters have a slight chance to fall behind or catch up while following
    the player.
Other behavioral changes:
    Giant monsters can now be ensnared by webs and nets.
    Jellies can no longer be netted or constricted.
    Allied undead no longer become angry when damaged.
    Allies match your speed when no foes are nearby.
    Polymorphing monsters no longer heals them.
    Monsters no longer use up charges when zapping wands.
    Monsters can no longer use scrolls or potions.
Some monsters now have special dialogue after killing the player.
Flying skulls have been removed.

Species

Ogres have been renamed to Oni.
    They heal twice as much from potions, and launch a 'drunken brawling'
    melee attack against all adjacent foes when drinking healing potions.
    Some apts have been improved or tweaked.
    They now have Horns 1.
Armataurs:
    At XL7 and higher, armataurs now regenerate HP and MP when rampaging.
    Their 'double potion' effect has been removed.
    Their max HP is reduced.
Felids now get an extra life at XL 1, and don't lose XLs on dying.
They also have higher base health, but no longer have fast movement.
Tengu now have inherent Acrobat (+15 EV after moving/waiting) at XL 1.
They now gain +4 EV at XL7 instead of a 20% EV bonus and fast movement.
Humans now heal while exploring, but their XP apt is now average.
Mummies now get their first necromancy enhancer at XL 1, not 3.
Vine Stalkers now get regeneration at XL 1, not 4.
Djinn now use all magic skills, instead of only Spellcasting. Djinn can
only choose to train all magic skills or none.
Ghouls start with an additional +4 Int and +1 MP.
Formicids can no longer be involuntarily shafted.
Meteorans have been removed.

Spells

Poison Magic and Transmutations have merged into a new Alchemy school.
    Poisonous Vapours has been replaced by Mercury Vapours, which can now
    inflict Weak on the target and other creatures nearby, but has short range.
    Sticky Flame is now L4 Fire/Alch (was L4 Fire/Conj), does much more
    damage, but can be shaken off by non-forced movement.
    Ignite Poison is now L4 Fire/Alch (was L3 Fire/Poison/Tmut).
    Leda's Liquefaction is now L4 Earth / Alch (was L4 Earth / Hexes)
    Sting is now Conj/Alch (was Pois/Tmut), and has more range and damage.
    Fulminant Prism is now Conj/Alch (was Conj/Hex).
New spells:
    Jinxbite (L2 Hex): deals additional Will-checking damage to foes attacked
    while its duration lasts, but also halves the caster's will.
    Sigil of Binding (L3 Hex): creates two magical traps nearby, which
    temporarily bind hapless victims in place.
    Brom's Barrelling Boulder (L4 Earth/Conj): creates a boulder, which crushes
    and knocks back foes and explodes when hitting walls.
    Martyr's Knell: L4 Summ/Necro. Summons a shade that absorbs damage taken
    by other allies. Becomes a flayed ghost on death.
Replaced spells:
    Fugue of the Fallen (replacing Wereblood): Now L3 Necro (was L2 Tmut),
    triggers on ally kills as well as the player's, inflicts pain on nearby
    foes at max power, caps at +7 (was +9), and no longer gives minor healing.
    Blazeheart Golem (replacing Guardian Golem): Now L4 Summ/Fire (was L3
    Summ/Hex). Now has slow, powerful, self-damaging melee, and blows up one
    turn after dying. Only functions when the player is adjacent.
    Dimensional Bullseye (replacing Portal Projectile): targets a foe and
    teleports all shots fired at other foes to also hit the chosen unfortunate.
    Curse of Agony (replacing Agony). Hexed foes have their health halved after
    each of the next two melee attacks the caster lands against them.
    Bombard (replacing Iron Shot). Sometimes knocks back the caster.
    Sculpt Simulacrum (replacing Simulacrum). L6 Ice/Alch (was L6 Ice/Necro).
    Creates simulacra of an adjacent foe after a few turns.
Call Canine Familiar now summons inugami, dog spirits which scale with power.
Recasting the spell heals the dogs and gives them a free cleaving attack, but
if the inugami is defeated, it can't be resummoned for some time.
Passwall is now L3 Earth (was L2 Earth/Tmut). It now has fixed range and gives
temporary AC.
Petrify can now chain its effect on up to two other adjacent foes, but has
its range reduced to 6.
Summon Ice Beast is now L3 (was L4).
Plasma Beam no longer has limited range, but does 10% less damage.
Arcjolt now initially arcs to foes within two tiles of the caster.
Static Discharge now does more damage, but checks half AC instead of none.
Hailstorm does more damage at low power and less at high power.
Swiftness now works in water.
Cigotuvi's Dreadful Rot now drains the user much less.
Borgnjor's Vile Clutch (and Fastroot) now work on invisible enemies.
Borgnjor's Vile Clutch does less damage.
Blastmotes now explode when waited in.
Spellforged Servitor requires conjurations to be <=20% fail (was 50%).
Many summons now have a shorter duration.
Removed: Beastly Appendage, Spider Form, Ice Form, Blade Hands, Statue
Form, Dragon Form, Storm Form, Necromutation.

Tiles and Other Art

New art for existing game elements:
    Monsters:
        Ancient liches.
        Blink frogs.
        Deep elf death mages.
        Dragons.
        Rakshasas.
        Shrike simulacrula.
        Barachi and Oni (decorative).
    Unrands: Eos, Sniper, Starlight, Dragonskin, Ratskin and the Thief.
    Short sword and eveningstar artefacts.
    All bardings.
    Volatile Blastmotes (spell icon and clouds).
    Dragon form.
    Many mutation icons.
    Stone walls and floors in the Depths.
    Dithmenos's altar.
    The Orb of Zot.
New Eustachio splash screen.
Player body variants are randomized at the start of each game.