-Game knowledge, which is a player's understanding of all of the game's rules, its various possible strategies and the links and synergies between them. A player with good game knowledge knows how each dungeon works and how to best conquer them with what they're given; furthermore, they adapt their strategy efficiently based on the information they glean as more of the dungeon is revealed. This is what lets high-level players pull off things like complex deity-conversion chains, level 1 boss kills and otherwise pull victories out of runs that by all means should've been losses.
-Execution, which is how efficiently a player makes every move as they progress through a dungeon. This includes careful, measured exploration, accurate choice of monsters to kill, and generally using all the resources available with as little waste as possible. In my mind, this is what makes the difference in the highest levels of play; it's the small cumulative advantages that let someone pull off a win in VT Vicious runs and the harder VGT badges. It's also knowing exactly when to use what resource: when should I use a potion instead of regen-figthing or popcorn, when is the best time to convert stuff and make use of a racial bonus or boons like Refreshment and Protection, etc.
Naturally, this thinking is based on my own experience playing DD and may not resonate with everyone else. As a player, I think I have a pretty good understanding of the game, but I've always had comparatively poor execution due to my tendency to get distracted easily, wasting exploration and messing up high-level kills that require careful setup (this is easily observed in my videos
). In difficult runs I often find myself wasting a lot of resources in the beginning, and I usually win by identifying everything in the dungeon that can help me make up for that waste. You can also definitely make the point that good execution relies on good game knowledge to a large extent.Besides, this analysis of DD skill doesn't account for a number of things, such as the creativity of players who come up with awesome new strategies and/or break new ground with existing stuff... But I think it's been helpful in considering my own playing and how I've improved and declined over the years
