I've never played DCSS, but after a few nethack ascensions I've found its "chores" (getting the wand, etc) interfere with actually enjoying the parts of the genre I like most: resource management in an unknown world. I suspect DCSS will be a similar experience.
For those that feel similarly, I heartily recommend giving brogue[0] a try. It's beautiful, balances many strategies without giving dominance to any (dwarven valkyrie, anyone?) and drops the "schlepping" associated with nethack and related titles.
If you've never tried DCSS, I think you should try it. I think it also mitigates a number of the same things you complained about. The game's built-in manual has a whole section about its game philosophy you're likely to find appealing, especially if you were frustrated with Nethack for those reasons:
For those that feel similarly, I heartily recommend giving brogue[0] a try. It's beautiful, balances many strategies without giving dominance to any (dwarven valkyrie, anyone?) and drops the "schlepping" associated with nethack and related titles.
[0]: https://sites.google.com/site/broguegame/