I got Xills as "other" enemy on this floor. I don't mind kiting as melee character and don't mind extensive reloading, but I am seeking ways of convenient fast reload and way to remove hiccups. Cocaktrices reminded me of boss in Agarest 1, for whom I undergo preparations currently. As you see from screenshot, it is first turn of fight, and 3/6 of my characters are already dead (turned into crystals) before even getting chance to attack. Boss' name could be funny if he wasn't so frenzied and if boss music wasn't so oppressing (very cool boss music btw).

Floor 8 is Chimeras and Shambling Mounds. Chimeras aren't dangerous, and Protection from Fire blocks fire breath. Shambling Mounds can do a lot of damage (as much as 18), but that's it. No Undead, so every enemy is vulnerable to Vampiric Touch (except the boss).

The enemies did do enough damage to get rid of my Vampiric Touch, believe it or not. (Without Heal, Vampiric Touch is the best way to get large amounts of HP quickly.) On the other hand, I did adopt a more offensive strategy after a while, replacing my Bracers of Protection +3 with Gauntlets that provide 22 Strength.

Found Rings of Might and Regeneration. Also, another Ring of Strength. Rings of Strength stack with each other but not with the gauntlets. Ring of Regeneration restores hit points very slowly unless you're resting; it is mainly useful if you are not a cleric.

I wish I had more 4th and 5th level mage spells, but the game isn't giving me any. My 4th level spell hasn't found any situation where it might have any use.

Reaching level 10 as Fighter and Cleric gave me 2 hit points each, which is more than it is supposed to.

Blur's duration is rather short; for me it lasts only half a food bar (with food consumption at max).

Prayer and True Seeing wear off before Spiritual Hammer, which gives me advance warning about when I should rest.

Heal should be coming fairly soon.

I am now #1 on the hall of fame.

The highest + you can get in AD&D is +5 for armor, +5 for Swords and +3 for other weapons. With some special weapons having situational modifiers.

So, unless they break too far away from the basic rules, that should give you a decent guideline.

So far, the highest I have seen is +3. I have +3 bracers of protection and a +3 ring of protection (hence why my AC is so low). I have a +3 staff of striking I found early that I haven't been using (does it have limited charges?). My current weapons are +2 Spiritual Hammers, but I expect them to be +3 at Cleric level 13.

A Staff of Striking is indeed supposed to have limited charges, 1d6+19 according to DMG, and it's supposed to expend one per hit (dealing 1d6+3 damage). So 20-25 hits with it and it should be drained (but ready to be recharged if you have the ability to do so).

9th floor is easy. Spirit Nagas and some other scorpion-like enemy, neither of which does anything nasty.

I finally learned Fireball! Now I just need to find 4th and 5th level spells that are actually useful.

I have Heal now, but chose to prepare Hero's Feast instead. (How many AD&D based games actually implement that spell anyway?)

Found a Flail +3 and a special hat that gives -1 AC and a useless +1 Intelligence.

That's the point that max "+" differs from game to game. I think there are some +^ weapons in AD&D also (Carsomyr? My memory might be wrong on that one).
Difficulty curve in this game is very uneven. And it isn't exactly suited for lonely melee fighting style.

Thing is, there are two types of enemies.
1. Enemies who are non-threats, with the only danger being hit point damage.
2. Enemies that do nasty things that can require you to reload.\

When both common enemies are type 1, the floor is really easy to clear. Put a type 2 enemy in the floor and suddenly things become much more dangerous. Two type 2 enemies on the same floor can mean a lot of saving and possibly reloading.

IMO, the game should have had an option to prevent enemies with instant death attacks from appearing. That would make Death Real runs (for those inclined to do such things) more reasonable. As it is, one failed saving throw can end your game suddenly.

YES!
I love this game but for one thing that almost ruin it for me. The limited ways to identify stuff. I want to know what shiny things I'm running around with. This should in theory make it possible to always "start" with a identify spell for mages.

About the cheat that gives you items. If I'm correct it works like taking cards from a stack of cards. You just speed up your loot finding and does not create new items. So it's quite possible to newer get a identify spell in a game.

Edit: You should be able to make a save game when you find a identify scroll. Use it and save in another slot. Check the difference with a hex editor.
Could you do that for me? I haven't used a hex editor for years.

yeah and this whole floor with Cockatrices and Xills was nightmare. Cockatrice = instant-kill, Xill = perma-stun. Finally done with this floor (Wyvern was floor master), headcount attached. And what is your headcount?

In my save file, the number of Identify spells I have selected to memorize is at $70A. A value of FF means the spell is not known, while a value of 00 means the spell is known, but isn't set to be memorized. A value of 01 may allow you to memorize one copy of the spell even if you aren't high enough level.

Floor 10: Both enemies are quite strong physically, sometimes hitting for over 20 damage. One is undead and seems to be immune to fire. Getting off Vampiric Touch is becoming rather tricky.

Fortunately, no enemy does anything other than damage.

I currently have 90 max HP, and on this floor, it sometimes feels like that is not enough.

A few observations:
1. On high magic power, Cure Light Wounds seems stronger than Cure Serious Wounds.
2. Blur lasts much shorter than the other spells I have, so I have two copies of the spell memorized.
3. Dual-wielding Vampiric Touch doesn't work; hit with 1 and both go away.
4. Casting healing spells on rest doesn't cast Heal. Therefore, it may be better to say no, cast heal after waking up, and then rest again to regain heal.

Edit:
5. If cast facing a wall, Flame Strike will not hurt you, but Fireball will. (Either that or I managed to somehow completely avoid damage from Flame Strike.)
6. Cure Critical Wounds also seems to not benefit from high magic power.

Edit 2:
7. If you see the level's boss, the stairs are likely nearby. The boss can sometimes be avoided, however.

That happens in EOB2 as well. Flamestrike uses the same animation as fireball, but maybe the effects of the spell are different in nature.

Thank you!
When I get paid in a couple days I'll buy the game and test this. :D