Ashikaga Takauji
@ Ashikaga Takauji 
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|---|---|
| Difficulty | 19 |
| Attacks |
Weapon 2d6, Weapon 2d6, claw quest-artifact-stealing 2d6 |
| Base level | 15 |
| Base experience | 488 |
| Speed | 12 |
| Base AC | 0 |
| Base MR | 40 |
| Alignment | -13 (chaotic) |
| Frequency (by normal means) | Unique |
| Genocidable | No |
| Weight | 1450 |
| Nutritional value | 400 |
| Size | Medium |
| Resistances | Stoning |
| Resistances conveyed |
None |
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Ashikaga Takauji:
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| Reference | monst.c#line3298 |
Ashikaga Takauji, @, is the Samurai quest nemesis. He wields the Tsurugi of Muramasa against you, and can therefore kill in one hit. This, along with the fact that he ignores Elbereth, makes him one of the most dangerous quest nemeses, though his attacks other than the Tsurugi are unexceptional.
The easiest way to kill him is to zap him with a wand of death, which you may be able to obtain from a monster on the quest (attack wands are plentiful).
A wand of sleep may also work but carries the risk that he will resist (about 40%) or wake up, and swing the Tsurugi at you. If you take this route, it is strongly recommended to wear an amulet of lifesaving before engaging, to reduce the risk of YASD to an unlucky Tsurugi hit.
An alternative strategy is to polymorph into a large monster to avoid the risk of being bisected. Polymorphing into a black dragon adds the ability to kill Ashikaga Takauji instantly with disintegration breath via the #monster command. Neither the Tsurugi nor the Bell of Opening will be harmed.
It is very easy to approach Ashikaga Takauji without waking him due to the layout of the level; the final entrance before the inner section gives you a clear shot with any ranged weapon while still being far enough that he will not wake. He has no elemental immunities so an attack wand that hits will do enough damage to cause him to immediately flee to the up staircase, ignoring the Tsurugi. You can use this opportunity to pick up and stash the Tsurugi before he can return, making him relatively trivial to defeat. Alternatively a powerful pet could be left at the upstairs to defeat him as he tries to heal.
