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*Tel Cont Monster controls where it teleports to Thick Hide Monster has thick hide (kicking attacks do no damage to it) Tunnel Monster can tunnel through rock ---------------------------------------------------------- | The Dungeon | ---------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Castle Level: Contrary to popular belief, the castle (or stronghold) level is not where the wizard is. The castle level is more of a proving ground - if you can get by it, you can probably finish the game, and if you do finish it, there are excellent rewards (specifically, there is a wand of wishing in one of the outer four rooms). Beware, though. Although this level is littered with loot (four whole rooms full of stuff to start with), it's also littered with monsters. Guards abound, as well as at least four dragons, several lichs, some nagas, and so on. An example castle level is below: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |< |}}}}}}}}} }}}}}}}}}| | | | ----|}-------}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}-------}| | | | | | |}| |-----------------------------------------------| |}| | | | | | |}| + + |}|---- | | | |}-------------------------------------------------------------}| | | --- |}}}}}}| | + | + + |}}}}}}| --- | | | | }| | | | | | |} | | | | | | | }| |----------| |-----------------|} --| | | | | | | }# { + + \ | ^ ^ ^ ^ ^+ | | | |-- |-- }| |----------| |-----------------|} | | --| | | }| | | | | | |} | | | | --- |}}}}}}| | + | + + |}}}}}}| --- | | | |}-------------------------------------------------------------}| | | | | --|}| + + |}| --- | | | |}| |-----------------------------------------------| |}| | | | --- |}-------}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}-------}|-- | | | |}}}}}}}}} }}}}}}}}}| | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- The first hint that you are on the castle level is the fact that you will appear in the upper-left corner of the map, and in a maze to boot. You will also tend to hear 'courtly sounds'. The maze you are in (see map above) is not large, but beware, for a minotaur lurks within, and they are more than a little trouble. After you complete the maze, you will be on a large landing, with the castle in front of you and the moat around it. The moat will drown you in a second, so beware. Also, there are invisible giant eels in the water and they will attack you. The first question asked is: How do I get in? Well, there are many answers, so I will outline several ideas below: If you have sacrificed enough, your god will have given you five musical notes when you pray. Play these notes on an instrument, and the drawbridge will open. If your god hasn't given you the five musical notes, try random notes. You'll get a series of sounds. Use these sounds like the old Master Mind game to determine the correct notes. (One sound means correct note, correct spot. The other means correct note, wrong spot.) Keep trying until the drawbridge comes down. A wand of opening or a spellbook of knock will cause the drawbridge to come down - but watch out! If you are standing directly in front of the drawbridge, it will fall on you and squash you. A wand of striking will disintegrate the portcullis, but you still have to bridge the moat to get in. Try pushing in a boulder, zapping a wand of cold or fire at the moat, or using water walking, levitation, or jumping boots. Another method of entering the castle is by polymorphing yourself into a xorn. A xorn can walk through the walls of the castle straight into the middle. Be warned, though - xorns can't swim, so you'll still have to bridge the moat. A final method of getting in is using the back door. Using boots of levitation or water walking (or equivalent items or spells), walk through the moat around to the back of the castle. Pick the lock on the back door and walk in. Be careful of the trapdoors, though! Once you're into the castle, if you're not prepared to fight for your life against ravenous hordes of monsters, there are two ways of getting rid of most of them (albeit forfeiting the experience for killing them). Either use a ring of conflict or walk back over the trapdoors, letting them all go falling down into the upper level of hell as they try to follow you. Kill off the rest, grab the wand of wishing, try sitting on the throne for another wish or two, and then go for the ultimate challenge - the Wizard himself, by teleporting down to level fifty or so. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special Levels: Nethack has several "special levels." The actual level of each of these varies from game to game, so we can't tell you what level to look for each on, but we can give you a description of each so that you recognize what you're running into. Big Level: Basically, this level is exactly what the name implies. The entire level is one big room. This is a bad level to have aggravate monster on, and a ring of conflict is really handy here. Here's an example of a big level: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |.....d...).................o...ooo....................................| |............................o.o.oo....................................| |.............................oo...........Z...........................| |......................................w<.............oo...............| |.....................................................o................| |............................................P............a............| |.......................i......................f.......................| |?.....................................................................| |.....[................................................................| |....................!...a................[.............q..............| |.........................a............................................| |.........................aa...........................................| |....................................%.............................T...| |...............................>......................................| |................................$.......f.............................| ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Castle/Stronghold Level: see section CASTLE LEVEL Medusa Level: Of all the creatures of Greek mythology, the gorgons ------- were among the most powerful. One of these was the medusa, whose |.``..| visage was so terrible to behold that one look at her countenance -...`.| would turn any living creature instantly to stone. She was finally |...`.| slain by Perseus with the use of a reflective shield given him by |.@..`| Athena. It is rumored that the only two ways to kill a medusa are ------- to fight her without gazing upon her, or to reflect her terrible gaze back upon her, so that she, looking upon her own reflection, should turn to stone. The medusa is raised back to life in nethack, so beware of the level upon which she resides. You will know you are there when you begin to see an inordinately large number of statues, hear nothing but silence, etc. A sample room in which the medusa might reside is above at right. Oracle of Delphi: The Oracle of Delphi was reknowned in ancient -|-@-- times for her ability to tell the future with admirable accuracy. |.```| For instance, a great king once came to the Oracle and asked if he |....| should send his armies against the armies of another nation. The |..{.| Oracle told him, "I tell you truly. If you do so, you will destroy ------ a mighty army." Enheartened, he attacked, and sure enough, a mighty army was destroyed - his own! The Oracle in nethack will give you minor or major consultations. Minor ones are cheap, and are the same as a fortune cookie. Major ones are expensive, but can give some good clues. The oracle room will have the oracle sitting in a niche in the wall, with statues of mountain, plain, and forest centaurs in front of her, and a fountain in the room. An example is shown above at right. Rogue Level: Rogue was one of the first of the hack and slash games. Hack, Nethack, UltraRogue, Moria, UMoria, Larn, Omega, and undoubtedly many more, were all based on the idea started by rogue. Now, rogue, like early versions of hack, had a very distinctive look. There were always nine rooms on each level, and each wall of each room never had more than one doorway. In memory of rogue, the nethack engineers have added a "rogue level," that looks very much like the original rogue game, and the game will tell you that it seems like you've been on that level before. Here's an example of one: ----- -------------------- --------------------- | +##########+ | | | | | | +######+ | | | -------------------- | > | ----- | | --------------------- # #### ------------- ----------------- | | ##########+ | | +############################## | | ------------- ######## | | # ----------------- # ####### # ------------------ --------------------- -----------------####+ | | |########+ +# | | | +# | | | < | --------------------- ----------------- ------------------ Tower Levels: The three tower levels are the three levels that probably generate more confusion that the entire rest of the game combined (a little hyperbole, but not a lot). Basically, the tower levels are three consecutive maze levels in hell. In the center of each of these maze levels is the a section of the tower proper. The tower can only be entered from the lowest level, and there's no exit at the top. Inside the tower are many riches, and vampires galore. On the top level of the tower, you'll find Vlad the Impaler, master of the tower. (Oh, did I forget to mention that he's also a Vampire Lord?) Below is an example of the three tower sections. Put each of them in the center of a maze level, and you've got a tower level! ------------------- ------------------- ------------------- | | L | | M | | U | --- --- --- | o | --- --- --- | i | --- --- --- | p | | | | | | | | w | | | | | | | | d | | | | | | | | p | --------------- | e | --------------- | d | --------------- | e | | | | | | r | | | | | | l | | . . | | r | --| |-- - | --| ------.---- - e | --------| |---- - | | + L | | | <| | | \ | .>| L | --| |-- | e | -------- |----- - L | --------| |---- | e | | |< | | | v | | |> . | | | e | | . . | | v | --------------- | e | --------------- | v | --------------- | e | | | | | | | | l | | | | | | | | e | | | | | | | | l | --- --- --- | | --- --- --- | l | --- --- --- | | | | | | | ------------------- ------------------- ------------------- Wizard Level: The wizard level is (you guessed it) where the Wizard }}}}}}} of Yendor lives. He has a little room in the middle of an otherwise }}---}} normal maze level. Now, the trick is that this little room looks }--^--} just like the little rooms that are on about half of the maze }|^^^|} levels. Only one of them holds the Wizard of Yendor, and the real }--^--} Amulet of Yendor, though, so don't be fooled. The best way to tell }}---}} where you are in relation to the Wizard is to put on a blindfold and }}}}}}} apply a mirror to yourself (use '.' for direction). After a few tries, this will tell you whether the wizard is above you, below you, or very close. When you're on the same level, trek in towards the middle, get past the moat, break into his home, and take the Amulet! An example of the Wizard's room is above at right. Incidentally, the traps are squeaky boards which will instantly wake up the Wizard. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special Rooms: There are many varied and interesting rooms to explore in nethack. Besides your standard room with the possibility of randomly generated items, traps, monsters, etc., there are several special room types that can be found within the dungeon. These are listed below: Beehives: Beehives are (you guessed it) rooms completely filled ------- with killer bees. There are usually one or more queen bees in one |.aaaa| as well. Beehives can be quite nasty for the inexperienced -.aaaa| character, but if you can manage to kill them off, run around |.aaaa| picking up the royal jelly that will be left behind. Eat it, and |.aaaa| hey presto -instant strength! ------- Barracks: The barracks are a room type that will usually only show ------- up on lower levels due to the fact that it will kill of all but the |.@@@@| most powerful characters. Barracks are rooms filled with soldiers. -.@@@@| Be careful not to blow a whistle or play a bugle on the level if you |.@@@@| don't want to face them. Soldiers will always wake up for a whistle |.@@@@| or a bugle, and come to investigate what woke them! ------- David's Treasure Zoo: David's Treasure Zoo is a room totally filled ------- with random monsters of all types and sizes. This room can be quite |.DooQ| deadly, but each monster in the room will carry a sizeable sum of -.aggh| gold, so if you can kill off all of them, you'll probably end up |.dCkq| quite rich. Wands and other ray type weapons, rings of conflict, |.qoGc| the ability to teleport out if you have to can be quite handy here, ------- as in any room filled with monsters. Graveyards: If you have a character with a bad AC, you'd better ------- pray that you don't run into one of these. Graveyards are rooms |W WZV| filled with nasty undead creatures - wraiths and vampires that will -ZZSWS| drain your levels away, and zombies and skeletons and ghosts. (Note |VSW V| that ghosts in a graveyard are randomly generated, although they may |WWZZ | take names from the high score file. Thus, they won't leave ghost ------- stacks.) If you have a character with a good AC, these can be quite a boost: Kill off all the wraiths and eat the corpses to go up many levels! Shops: Shops can be an adventurer's best friend. Note that I said ------- shops, not shopkeepers - shopkeepers can be an adventurer's worst |@??!!| nightmare! Shops come in all sizes and types. There are shops that -.%[))| sell everything, and shops that specialize in an item type (wands, |.[!%(| for instance). Shopkeepers always carry a key and a lot of gold, |.!?/=| and they guard their wares jealously. Check out the section on ------- ROBBING SHOPS for more information on how to rob shopkeepers blind. Temples: A temple is a room that is dedicated to a particular ------- deity. Temples invariably contain an altar to that deity in the |.....| center of the room, and a priest(ess) of that deity nearby. You can -..@..| give an offering to the deity by #chatting to the priest(ess), and |.._..| will perhaps have a blessing bestowed upon you. You'll know you're |.....| entering a temple when you get a message along the lines of ------- "Pilgrim, you enter a holy place." Throne Rooms: A throne room is a room filled with monsters. The ------- major difference between this room and David's Treasure Zoo is that |.kodk| throne rooms have a throne in them. Sitting on this throne can -.ooG\| produce all sort of interesting effects, and gold can be gotten (if |.dkgh| you're lucky) by kicking the throne. See the THRONE EFFECTS and |.qCoc| KICKING sections for more information about thrones. ------- Vaults: Vaults are scattered about the various levels, and can ---- never be entered except by digging, teleporting, or walking through |$$| walls (they have no doors). Most levels with one of these two by |$$| two rooms filled with gold will also have a closet with a single use ---- teleport trap in it. That teleport trap will teleport you into the vault (just be sure you have a way to get out). Oh, and remember - Croesus was the king who commissioned the vaults, and all of the vault guards know him. ---------------------------------------------------------- | The Game | ---------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Damage: If you would like to figure out how much damage you can do to a given monster upon a successful hit, this section will tell you how. Please note that all computations will involve ranges, so you will end up with a minimum and maximum amount of damage you can do to a monster. The following formula can be used to compute damage when attacking a monster: weapon damage value (see explanation) + undead/demon bonus (see explanation) + weapon enchantment (see explanation) + relative damage bonus (see explanation) + special bonuses (see chart) + ring bonus (see explanation) + strength bonus (see chart) ------------------------------------------------------------------- total damage done Weapon damage value: The weapon damage value will be listed in the WEAPONS section as a minimum and maximum value. Just look up the weapon that you're using and take either the small or large monster value depending upon what type of monster you're fighting. If the "weapon" you're using isn't really a weapon, but is some other object, look at the chart at the end of this section for information on the damage values of other objects. Undead/demon bonus: If the weapon you are fighting with is blessed, and the monster you are fighting is undead or a demon, you will do an extra one to four points of damage. Weapon enchantment: This is whatever the "plus" on the weapon is. For instance, if it's a +3 crysknife, you can add another +3 here. Relative damage bonus: The relative damage bonus is only figured in for artifacts (named weapons). See the section on ARTIFACTS to look up the relative damage bonus on a named weapon. Also, please note that if "x2" is listed for the relative damage bonus, it means to total everything up to the relative damage bonus in the above equation and double it. Then you can continue adding the other bonuses. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Special bonuses: | Bonus | |------------------------------------------------------------------------| |weapon is boomerang, is thrown, and breaks | +1 | |weapon is silver arrow, and is used versus a lycanthrope, | | | minor demon (except tengus) or major demon | +1-20 | |if the weapon drains life (also removes one level from monster) | +1-8 | |if the weapon is poisoned (or can kill monster outright) | +1-6 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ring bonus: The ring bonus is only figured in if you are wearing a ring of increase damage. If so, take the enchantment on the ring (for instance, 2 if you're wearing a +1 ring of increase damage) and add it in here. ----------------------- | Strength | Bonus | |---------------------| | 01-05 | -1 | | 06-15 | 0 | | 16-17 | +1 | | 18 | +2 | | 18/01-18/75 | +3 | | 18/76-18/90 | +4 | | 18/91-18/99 | +5 | | 18/**-25 | +6 | ----------------------- These objects use the following for the weapon damage value: ---------------------------------------------------------- | Object | Dam | |--------------------------------------------------------| | bare hands | 1-2 | | boulder | 1-20 | | bow (any type when used to bash) | 1-2 | | clove of garlic (undead will flee) | 1 | | egg | 1 | | corpse (depends on size) | 1-5 | | heavy iron ball | 1-25 | | mirror (also -2 luck) | 1 | | potion | 1 | ---------------------------------------------------------- Finally, all other objects except cameras and cream pies use a weapon damage value based upon their weight (cameras and cream pies cannot do damage): damage value = weight/10 (minimum of 1, maximum of 6) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fountain Effects: There are basically two things you can do at a fountain. You can either quaff of dip something. Different effects can occur when you do these as follows: Quaffing at the fountain: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Chance | Effect | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9/30 | "The cool draught refreshes you." | | | You gain 1-10 nutrition points (i.e. makes you less hungry). | | | | | 9/30 | "This tepid water is tasteless." | | | Nothing happens. | | | | | 1/30 | "You feel self knowledgeable..." | | | Lists all of your intrinsics for you. | | | | | 1/30 | "The water is foul! You gag and vomit!" | | | You lose 11-30 nutrition points (i.e. makes you hungrier). | | | | | 1/30 | "The water is contaminated!" | | | If you are poison resistant, you will lose 1-4 hit points. | | | Otherwise, you will lose 1-10 hit points and 3-6 points of | | | strength.) | | | | | 1/30 | "An endless stream of snakes pour forth!" | | | "You hear something hissing!" (if blind) | | | "The fountain bubbles furiously for a moment, then calms." (if | | | water moccasins have been genocided) | | | Creates several water moccasins around you. | | | | | 1/30 | "You have unleased a water demon!" | | | "You feel the presence of evil." (if blind) | | | This creates a water demon. The water demon will give you a wish | | | (20 - dungeon level)% of the time. | | | | | 1/30 | "This water's no good!" | | | Each item you have has a percentage chance of being cursed. | | | | | 1/30 | "You see an image of someone stalking you. But it disappears." | | | You gain the intrinsic of see invisible. | | | | | 1/30 | "You sense the presence of monsters." | | | You detect monsters, as the spell or potion of detect monster. | | | | | 1/30 | "You spot a gem in the sparkling waters." | | | A gem appears where the fountain is. | | | | | 1/30 | "You have attracted a water nymph!" | | | "You hear a seductive voice." (if blind) | | | "A large bubble rises to the surface and pops." (if nymphs have | | | been genocided) | | | "You hear a loud pop." (if blind and nymphs are genocided) | | | Creates a water nymph next to you. | | | | | 1/30 | "This water gives you bad breath." | | | Monsters around you will flee for one round. | | | | | 1/30 | "Water gushes forth from the overflowing fountain." | | | Just exactly like it sounds - creates several pools in the room. | | | (Note: this cannot happen in a room with a staircase.) | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dipping an item at a fountain: If the item is a longsword, your experience level is five or greater, the longsword dipped is not an artifact, and Excalibur does not yet exist in your dungeon, then you have a one out of six chance of gaining Excalibur. "A murky hand from the depths reaches up to bless the sword. As the hand retreats, the fountain disappears." Otherwise the following effects can occur: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Chance | Effect | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------| |16/30 | "The [object name] gets wet." | | | Nothing happens. | | | | | 4/30 | "The water glows for a moment." | | | "A feeling of loss comes over you." (if dipped item is not | | | cursed) | | | The dipped item will become uncursed if it is currently cursed. | | | | | 1/30 | No message. | | | The item becomes cursed. | | | | | 1/30 | A water demon is summoned (same messages and effects as in | | | quaffing). | | | | | 1/30 | A water nymph is summoned (same messages and effects as in | | | quaffing). | | | | | 1/30 | Water moccasins are created (same messages and effects as in | | | quaffing). | | | | | 1/30 | You find a gem (same message and effect as in quaffing) | | | | | 1/30 | The fountain overflows (same message and effect as in quaffing). | | | | | 1/30 | "A strange tingling runs up your arm." | | | Nothing happens. | | | | | 1/30 | "You feel a sudden chill." | | | Nothing happens. | | | | | 1/30 | "An urge to take a bath overwhelms you." (only if gold > 10...) | | | You will lose some of your gold in the fountain. | | | | | 1/30 | "Far below, you see coins glistening in the water." | | | You will find some gold (the lower the dungeon level number, the | | | greater the treasure). | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Game Messages: "The hair on the back of your neck stands up" - graveyard on level "You feel a momentary chill." - fire resistance gained "You feel a strange mental acuity." - telepathy gained "You feel controlled." - teleport control gained "You feel feverish." - lycanthropy gained* "You feel foolish." - wisdom decreased "You feel full of hot air." - cold resistance gained "You feel healthy." - poison resistance gained "You feel hardy." - poison resistance gained "Your health currently feels amplified."- shock resistance gained "You feel hidden." - invisibility gained "You feel in control of yourself." - teleport control gained "You feel sensitive." - warning gained "You feel strong." - strength increased "You feel tough." - constitution increased "You feel very firm." - disintegration resistance gained "You feel very jumpy." - teleportation gained "You feel vulnerable." - constitution decreased "You feel wide awake." - sleep resistance gained "You hear a low buzzing." - beehive on level "You hear an angry drone." - beehive on level "You hear the sound of crashing rock." - dwarf, rock mole, or umber hulk on level "You hear a jackal howling at the moon."- werejackal on level "You hear a slurping sound." - gelatinous cube on level "You hear a gulping sound." - ochre jelly nearby "You hear a gurgling noise." - sink on level "You seem to hear Donald Duck." - fountain on level "You hear a dishwasher." - sink on level "You hear a mumbled curse." - monster trying to curse you "You hear a slow drip." - sink on level "You hear bubbling water." - sink on level "You hear someone counting money." - vault on level "You hear someone cursing shoplifters." - shop on level "You hear the chime of a cash register."- shop on level "You hear someone searching." - vault on level "You hear the sound of a door opening." - monster has opened a door "You hear the splashing of a naiad." - fountain on level "You hear water falling on coins." - fountain on level "Your health currently feels amplified!"- shock resistance gained "You hear the howling of CwnAnnwn." - character in bad shape "You hear the wailing of the Banshee." - you have 1 HP left "You hear a rushing sound." - an invisible swallower just missed you * Lycanthropy means that you will periodically change into a were-thing. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hit Probability: Computing your probability to hit a monster involves many variables, and is quite a complicated procedure (which is why the computer does it so much better). However, here is an outline of how you can figure out your probability of hitting a given monster with a given weapon... First of all, compute your chance to hit by using the following formula: character luck + character level + monster AC (see MONSTER INFORMATION section) + dexterity bonus (see chart) + strength bonus (see chart) + level bonus (see chart) + special bonuses (see chart) + to hit modifier (see chart) + weapon enchantment (see explanation) + relative hit bonus (see explanation) - weight modifier (see formula) ------------------------------------------------------------------- chance to hit The chance to hit is out of twenty. Thus, to determine your percentage chance of hitting, use the following formula: percent chance to hit = 100 * (chance to hit) / 20 ------------------ --------------------- ------------------ | Dex |Bonus| | Str |Bonus| | Level | Bonus | |----------------| |-------------------| |----------------| | 01-03 | -3 | | 01-05 | -2 | | 01-03 | +2 | | 04-05 | -2 | | 06-07 | -1 | | 04-05 | +1 | | 06-07 | -1 | | 08-16 | 0 | | 05-30 | 0 | | 08-13 | 0 | | 17-18/50 | +1 | ------------------ | 15 | +1 | | 18/51-18/99 | +2 | | 16 | +2 | | 18/**-25 | +3 | | 17 | +3 | --------------------- | * | * | * Both the Dex and the bonuse just keep increasing | 25 | +11 | by one until the hit maximum at 25 and +11. ------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ | Special bonuses: | Bonus | |----------------------------------------------------------| | character is an elf and monster is an orc | +1 | | character is trapped | -3 | | monster cannot move | +4 | | monster is fleeing | +2 | | monster is sleeping | +2 | | monster is stunned | +2 | ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ | To hit modifier: | Bonus | |----------------------------------------------------------| | athame | +2 | | crysknife | +3 | | dagger (elven/orcish) | +2 | | dwarvish mattock | -1 | | katana | +1 | | scalpel | +2 | | two handed sword | -1 | | blessed weapon vs. undead or demon | +2 | | spear (elven/orcish/dwarvish) or javelin vs. | | | xorn, dragon, naga, or giant | +2 | ------------------------------------------------------------ Weapon enchantment: This is whatever the "plus" on the weapon is. For instance, if it's a +3 crysknife, add +3 for the weapon enchantment. Relative hit bonus: The relative hit bonus is only figured in for artifacts (named weapons). See the section on ARTIFACTS to look up the relative hit bonus on a named weapon. Weight modifier: the weight modifier is computed as follows (to determine carrying capacity, see the section on CARRYING CAPACITY, and to determine weight you are carrying, total the weights of all items in your inventory): (weight you are carrying - carrying capacity + 40) / 20 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kicking: Kicking is one of the more useful functions in nethack. Basically, you can kick any creature or object within the game. You cannot, however kick anything if you are polymorphed into a monster with no legs (a snake, for instance) or a monster that is too small, if your legs are wounded, if your load is too heavy, or if you are stuck in a pit or bear trap. The effects of kicking certain things are listed below (although be careful - kicking things can make a lot of noise and wake up monsters on the level): Altars - kicking an altar is, in general, a bad idea. Deities can do all sorts of nasty things to you if you get them pissed off. Doors - if a door is locked and you don't have a lock-pick, one way to get through the door is to kick it down. Watch out for lost hit points and wounded legs if you do this, though. Similarly, it is possible to kick down a secret door, even if you haven't found it. So... if you're pretty sure there's a secret door there, and you haven't found it after the last five searches, you might want to try kicking it a bit. Chests - it is possible to break the lock on a locked chest by kicking it. Of course, it is also possible to lose hit points and damage your legs by doing so, so be careful to keep on eye out when at lower experience levels. Empty space - kicking at empty space isn't terribly smart. Although you probably will get away with it, you do have a chance of straining a muscle, which wounds your right leg. Monsters - in general, when you kick a monster you will damage it. Kicking a monster is a good alternative if you have no weapon. It is also a good alternative if you are confused, as you will not then randomly wander around if you miss the monster aimed at. There are however a few exceptions to the rule with kicking monsters... notably, kicking dragons and other thick- skinned creatures will do no damage. Objects - in general, when you kick an object, it will move in the direction in which you kick it. The distance it moves will depend on your strength and the weight of the object. Fragile objects are not good to kick. For instance, kicking an egg will cause it to go splat, and kicking a potion will generally break it. Of course, this can be a way of identifying potions, as you will then get the vapor effect if the potion has any. Sinks - kicking a sink will produce various effects. 75% of the time, you will merely get the message "Klunk! The pipes vibrate noisily." (or just "Klunk!" if you're blind). Otherwise, there is a 1/3 chance of having a black pudding ooze up from the drain and attack you (assuming they haven't been genocided yet). If this doesn't happen, you have a 1/3 chance of "the dish washer" returning. It just so happens that the dish washer is a succubus/incubus, however, so you might want to watch out for this. Assuming that doesn't happen, you've got a 1/3 chance that a ring (only one per sink) will pop up from the drain in a bunch of muddy waste. Thrones - kicking a throne can have several effects. If your luck is negative, you will always end up destroying the throne and finding several gold pieces in the rubble (probably after a few sore toes, however). If your luck is positive, you have a chance of kicking loose some ornamental coins and gems instead. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Luck: Your luck begins at 0, (+/-1 depending on the moon), and can range from -10 to +10. When modified, it will decrease or increase (time-out) by 1 toward its starting value every 600 moves (300 for angry gods) unless you're carrying a luckstone (see TOOLS for more information about luckstones). While carrying a luckstone it is still possible to change your luck. Increasing Luck 1. Throw a gem at a unicorn. +5 luck if the jewel is identified and the unicorn is co-aligned. +1 luck if the jewel is unidentified. -3 to +3 luck if the jewel is identified and the unicorn is non-co- aligned. 2. Sacrifice on a co-aligned altar. +0 to +5 luck if the sacrifice is accepted, depending on monster difficulty factor. Seeing a four-leaf clover is a sign that your luck has improved. =0 if your luck is negative luck your god is not angry. +1 luck if your luck is negative and your god is angry. 3. Sacrifice on a non-co-aligned altar. +1 if your luck is negative, the sacrifice is accepted and your god is not angry. Chance of success is (3 + exp. level) / (8 + exp. level) 4. Sacrificing a human corpse at a chaotic altar. +2 luck if you are chaotic too. 5. Sitting on a throne. +1 luck if your luck is negative (sometimes). 6. Prayer. =0 if your luck is negative and your god is not angry (small chance) Decreasing Luck 1. Killing a co-aligned unicorn. -5 luck no matter what. 2. Sacrificing a human. -5 luck if you are non-chaotic. 3. After converting to a new god, trying to sacrifice at the altar of your original god. Conversion is accomplished by sacrificing at a non-co- aligned altar while your god is angry. -5 luck no matter what. 4. Converting to a new god. -3 luck always. 5. Praying before your between prayer time-out expires. -3 luck. Moral: don't pray too often. 6. Breaking a mirror. -2 luck. (It figures, doesn't it?) 7. Killing a friendly human. -2 luck always. 8. Killing a pet (or other tame monster). -1 luck each time. 9. Desecrating (kicking or digging) a co-aligned altar. -1 luck (Ouch!) 10. Killing a peaceful monster. -1 luck (50% chance). 11. Sacrifice at a non-co-aligned altar. -1 luck if you fail and your god is not angry. Chance of success is (3 + exp. level) / (8 + exp. level). 12. Hitting a blind monster. -1 luck (0.2% chance). Robbing shops does not lower your luck. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Magic: Many people have asked for a section which details information about how the reading of spellbooks and casting of spells works. Well, here it is! Memorizing spellbooks: If the spellbook is cursed, it will be impossible to memorize under any conditions. Otherwise, the following test must be passed in order to successfully memorize a spellbook: (your intelligence + 4) + (your experience level / 2) - (2 * the spell level of the spellbook) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Must be greater than a randomly generated number from 0 to 20. The possible effects from failing to memorize a spellbook are as follows (chances of each effect are equal): 1. Your character is teleported. "You feel a wrenching sensation." 2. Your character gains the aggravate monster intrinsic. "You feel threatened." 3. You are blinded for 250 to 349 turns. 4. You lose all of your gold. "You realize that you have no gold." 5. You become confused for 16 to 22 turns. "These runes were just to much to comprehend." 6. Poison! Gloves, if being worn, are corroded (assuming they're not rustproof) by 1 (i.e. +2 gloves become +1, +0 gloves become -1. -2 is the worst your gloves will corrode to). If you are poison resistant, you will lose 2 points of strength and 1 to 6 hit points. Otherwise, you will lose 3 to 6 points of strength and 1 to 10 hit points. "The book was coated with contact poison!" 7. The book explodes, doing 7 to 25 points of damage. If you are magic resistant, no damage ensues. "As you read the book, it explodes in your face." When a spellbook is successfully memorized, it is placed in the list of spells that you know. You will then be able to use that spell (i.e. cast or attempt to cast it) from 2 to (10 - the spell level) times before you will need to "re-memorize" the spell by reading another spellbook of that type. Casting memorized spells: Attempts to cast a spell while you are confused will always fail. Otherwise, in order to successfully cast a spell, the following test must be passed: your intelligence + your luck - (3 * the level of the spell) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Must be greater than or equal to 0. If a spell is successfully cast, the appropriate effects take place and a number of energy points equal to the level of the spell is removed from your current EP. If the spell is failed, a number of energy points equal to the level of the spell is still removed from your current EP, and the following message is given: "The air around you crackles as you goof up." or "Far out... a light show!" (if you are hallucinating) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pets: Pets are one of the most useful things in the dungeons and so should be treated as such. Here are a few useful hints regarding pets: They will eat only what they need in order to survive and will leave food rations alone unless they are very hungry or you throw them one. Pets will become violent if they are too hungry, or if you leave them on a level, go down the stairs and them come back later. You can actually chat with your pets to gain knowledge about how hungry they are. "You feel worried about your [pet]" means that your pet is starving. "You have a sad feeling for a moment" means that your pet has snuffed it. "You hear noises in the distance" means that your pet is in battle. Kittens change into housecats and then large cats, whereas little dogs become dogs, and then large dogs. Watch out when you are confused, blind, etc. You do not want to accidentally kill your pet. The minute you eat a dog or cat, every non-tame, non-peaceful monster that is on the level will head for you with blood in its eye(s). That is, you gain an intrinsic: Aggravate monster What monsters your pets will attack is directly dependent on the level of the pet and the level of the monster. Pets will not attack monsters more powerful than them. The one exception is if you have on a ring of conflict. If so, your pets will attack anything. (Ever seen a minotaur make doggie pancake? Moral: keep your ring of conflict off if you're near a big nasty.) If you think your pet is a bit wimpy, use a wand of polymorph on him. If this makes him wimpier, don't blame us - try again! A scroll of taming can create more pets for you, but having devils as pets can be a minor problem (although not as much of a problem in current versions). If you meet a wild pet, the best bet is to throw food at it - anything you could eat. Tripe is wonderful, but don't bother throwing rotted corpses. You can even tame pets with names given by other people, i.e. bones levels. A leash will allow you to keep the animal with you at all times (even if you get teleported or go through a trap door), but also tends to make him get in your way more often. A whistle will attract your pet to you when applied. Even better, a magic whistle will teleport your pet to your side when applied. Very useful when going up or down levels with your pet. Pets will not pick up cursed objects or even cross over them, which will help you to avoid these items. However, keep in mind that you may have to clear cursed items from halls if you want your pet to follow you, and that if you throw a food item (especially tripe) on a cursed item, your pet will be trained to step on cursed items in the future. A warning: dead-end corridors can be very bad if there is a cursed item in the exit and the pet is between you and the cursed item (this can happen if your pet kills a creature that was carrying a cursed item). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Praying: Praying can get you out of a lot of jams in the game of nethack, if your god is pleased with you. On the other hand, if the gods are angry at you, you can get into an awful lot of trouble. If your deity is pleased with you, chances are that your worst problem will be fixed, although all of your problems could be fixed, or none of them might be fixed (this is dependent on your luck). The following are problems that your deity might fix, from worst (in the deity's eyes, not necessarily yours!) to least: 1. You are turning to stone. 2. You are being strangled (by an amulet of strangulation). 3. You are sick. 4. You are starving. 5. Your hp are below 5, or your hp are below 1/7 of max. 6. You have lycanthropy. 7. You are stuck in a wall. 8. You are wearing a cursed item which levitates you. 9. You are wearing a cursed blindfold. 10. You are being punished. 11. You have a cursed loadstone or cursed luckstone. 12. You are wielding/wearing a cursed weapon/armor. 13. You are blind. 14. You are hungry. 15. You are poisoned. 16. You have wounded legs. 17. You are stunned. 18. You are confused. 19. You are hallucinating. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Removing Curses: There are several ways to uncurse cursed items - and several other ways to get rid of cursed items: 1. Dipping in fountains will eventually remove the curse from stuff - "The water glows for a moment" indicates that your item has been uncursed. You can dip items even if you are wearing them. 2. Reading a scroll of remove curse will remove the curse from stuff you are wearing. If the scroll of remove curse is blessed, everything in your pack will be uncursed.