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As an Assassin in Desktop Dungeons I'm trying to use the APHEELSIK glyph to help me kill higher level monsters. The game says APHEELSIK:

Poisons an enemy, negating health regeneration until player next deals damage.

So after attacking a zombie a few times I get low health and use APHEELSIK on the zombie. I assume that I can explore to regenerate health and mana well the zombie stays wounded (because I'm only exploring, not dealing damage) but then I come back and the zombie is fully regenerated!

So how does one use APHEELSIK in order to prevent monsters from regenerating health while you explore? Have I completely misinterpreted how to use APHEELSIK? Are certain monsters immune?

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The problem is not in how you are using APHEELSIK, but in your target. Normally, you would use APHEELSIK in a battle where both you and the target monster have taken a reasonable amount of damage. By casting APHEELSIK on a monster, you decrease its ability to heal from things that would normally heal both you and wounded monsters (exploration and use of LEMMISI). In the free version healing is prevented completely, while in the full version it is decreased by your level (so if the monster is 2 levels higher than you, it still heals 2 points per square).

However, Undead are immune:

Casting APHEELSIK on a Wraith, Zombie or Vampire will not inflict Poison on them, and thus has no effect on their Health Regeneration. It will still cost you Mana to cast the Glyph despite having no effect.

and some other creatures (like the Golem and Goat) can resist poison

The Golem and Goat, with their significant Magic Resistance, are poor targets for APHEELSIK. There is a chance for the spell to fail equal to the monster's Magic Resistance score. So, for instance, a Goat (with 25% Magic Resistance) will be able to resist APHEELSIK 25% of the time on average. When resisted, APHEELSIK does not inflict Poison on the monster.

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    Well that explains everything :S that's why Assassin on Crypt is hard to do.
    – Sadly Not
    May 6, 2011 at 0:52
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    When the poison works, their health bar will turn purple, indicating it is safe for you to go heal. Be careful though, it only lasts until your next attack. I've often been walking around to regenerate and swatted a level 1 monster out of the way, then come back to realize that it made my poision wear off and the target is now fully healed.
    – bwarner
    May 6, 2011 at 1:19
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    @Sadly To expand on Dave's answer with a tangential helpful hint - the Golem and Goat are resistant to only APHEELSIK when it comes to poisoning. If you need to poison those two, the Venom Blade you may find in a shop will work 100% of the time, as it is not subject to magic resistance. Of course, undead are still immune to its effects, but just a helpful tip. ♪
    – Grace Note ♦
    May 6, 2011 at 15:11
  • @Grace - I've been lucky enough to find a vemon blade once or twice, I'll keep that in mind next time I come across one :)
    – Sadly Not
    May 6, 2011 at 15:26

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