dumb question about extra loot

I'm not even finished with the first floor and my inventory is packed. I'm not one to let anything go to waste, but I can't seem to find a way to recycle or sell any of this stuff. Can anyone advise me? Thanks.

 

If I'm loaded down and haven't found pocket dimension key, I'll ask Inconsequentia to watch my stuff - in other words, I'll make a pile of everything that won't directly help me survive next to the statue since I know I'll be coming back to do the quest once I've cleared the level.

If you're a packrat like I, inventory can be a problem until the pocket dimension becomes available. The lutefisk cube is good for getting rid of items that have no utility and such low monetary value that it's not worth the effort of keeping them for Brax (like most booze for a non-caster). Also, I'll happily drop a thousand zorkmids to get an ingot grinder. I grind all cheeses (except the one for grilled cheese sandwiches) and meats. That way you've only got 2 slots occupied instead of 10.

 

So, I found Brax, thankfully. Next question, how do I know what not to sell? For weapons and other equipment it's pretty obvious, but my inventory is still loaded with mushrooms, bolts, traps, potions that might be useful, and assorted items that I presume are used for crafting (I only have tinkerer, if that matters). Also, I have the lucky pick skill. Does that mean I can sell all my lockpicks now?

 

I'm not 100%, but I think lucky pick only works on doors and not chests. If I'm wrong about that, selling them would be fine, but honestly, the reason I'm no sure is that I just stick them in an inventory slot and forget they exist.

As for other things:

Tinkering uses the metals copper, steel, iron and brass (and can make bolts out of bronze and bombs out of ground aluminum). The precious metals (gold, silver, electrum and platinum) can be sold. Plastic can be made into bolts.Tin can be sold.

Save odd things that are made of metal like copper wire or brass piping. Some recipes call for these. Once you have the pocket dimension available, I would just make a single stack with these odds and ends.

Potions that heal, invisibility potions and potions of purity should be kept. Potions like voltaic or infernal give minor combat buffs - use 'em or sell 'em. Hang on to alchemical ooze and keep an eye out for a potion of alchemical inspiration - it gives you +1 Alchemy, so you can use it (with an alchemical apparatus) to convert the ooze to plastic. Alchemical inspirations are very rare, so wait to use it when you've got a good stash of ooze.

The other equipment you need varies. Open the crafting menu for tinkering and look through it to see the sort of things you may want to keep.

I keep healing shrooms (fairywodger and greedy blungecap), fell truffles (for the crit boost before shooting tough monsters), puffballs (to have something to throw and get a monster's attention without exposing yourself by walking up to it) and inky hoglanterns (I start selling these if I get ninja vanish from burglary). Some of the others are useful, but I sell them all because they're no so useful that it justifies taking up an inventory spot.

 

I wrote this guide because the op's question is incredibly common: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=154134469

Note that since writing the guide, on I did a challenge run, where I limited my carried items to that which could fit on the toolbar (not counting quest items, and the lutefisk cube). Furthermore, I did not use the pocket dimension for storage. Anything that would not fit on the toolbar, and was not immediately usable (eg. potions, food) had to be lutefisked. It really changed my outlook on what is essential to keep, and what is not. During the challenge run, I was pretty much sticking anything that would not fit on my toolbar, into the cube, including very valuable items that I formerly would have kept stockpiled for a while in order to sell to Brax, or as a contingency against bad krongings and/or corruption.

You don't have to go that far, but you really don't need to carry around that much at one time -- a few essential heal items (potions, food, and/or coral wands), a couple of debuff-cancelling items, a few piles of items meant to deal with zoos (AE ranged items) and a few piles of ranged items. Anything that is not really valuable that you PROBABLY will never need, should be lutefisked. Save utility potions and items for Dredmor or teen-levels of the dungeon in a single pile in your Pocket dimension (anything that you REALLY won't need on your current level).

You DO NOT need to carry with you EVERY little piece of cheese, every piece of meat, every bolt (there are simply too many different kinds) and every wand or potion or thrown item. Use them or lutefisk them or stick them in a dark corner of your pocket dimension.