I was on level 2. I had saved my game multiple times. I had invested in multiple hours. I was standing in a hallway, fighting off a monster zoo. There is no error log. The game crashes to desktop and when I reload, my saved game is gone! Windows 7 ultimate 64-bit. 1280x1024 resolution. 8 GB of RAM. i7-930 processor.
Similar thing happened on my first run was clearing a monster zoo and it crashed, sent them my save couple days ago never got a response but they are probably super busy, since you were only on level 2 I'd just start over, might want to wait till after tomorrow's patch though it's going to fix some more bugs.
I know that you think I am "only on level 2," but when it takes hours to get there, and you lose your game permanently, it's no small inconvenience.
I lost about 6 hrs it sucks but what else can you do besides start over? There's a log though in \steam\steamapps\common\dungeons of dredmor\stdout not sure what help that would be though maybe send it to them.
Likewise, I crashed to desktop when moving from level 3 up to level 2. It was a level 7 character so no small loss. Dying is one thing, but loosing to a crash is just plain gnarly. At least don't wipe the save if a crash happens, if possible.
Here's how to make a backup, so you don't lose a perma-death character to CTD: (quoting "Afterstar", thanks to him for posting this) "The solution is really simple,backup once in a while your save files. Open the following folder (For Win7/Vista): C:\Users\(USERNAME)\Documents\Gaslamp Games\Dungeons of Dredmor There are always two files for each saved character; for instance Afterstar.sav Bitmap_Afterstar.sav AND you will also need Loadsave.dat file. Copy and paste those saved files somewhere else,like on your desktop temporarily. Alt-tab and do this every 30minutes or so and you won't regret it." Personally, I just created a file named "Bkup" in that save folder, made a shortcut to that DoD save folder on my desktop. So all I have to do now is alt-tab or save & exit out of game occasionaly, open that folder shortcut, copy the three files, open the Bkup folder in same location and paste it there. Sounds like a lot of steps, but it's not much of a bother until they track down some more of the crashing stuff. I suggest saving & doing this so you also get a game restart out of it. I'm sure there must be memory leaks as it can get a bit more sluggish after long periods and can possibly crash if not restarting every couple hours.
I would advice that you play with Permadeath OFF until they fix the crashes. If you have the .sav files, you can still re-add your character back to the game, check my link it has the steps how to do it.It's really simple. http://www.gaslampgames.com/forum/discussion/127/a-temporary-solution-to-avoid-losing-your-game-in-case-of-crash-and-restore#Item_13