Bullwhip

From NetHackWiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
) Bullwhip.png
Name bullwhip
Appearance bullwhip
Damage vs. small 1d2
Damage vs. large 1
To-hit bonus +0
Weapon skill whip
Size one-handed
Base price 4 zm
(+10/positive
enchant)
Weight 20
Material leather

A bullwhip is a type of weapon that appears in NetHack. It is made of leather.

Generation

The Archeologist starts each game with a +2 bullwhip.[1]

Bullwhips are quite rare, making up 1500 (0.2%) of all randomly-generated weapons. General stores, used armor dealerships and antique weapon outlets can sell bullwhips.

Balrogs are always generated with a bullwhip, and horned devils have a 14 chance (25%) of being generated with a bullwhip.[2][3]

Player monsters, including those on the Astral Plane, have a 1580 chance (~0.17%) of generating with a bullwhips as their initial weapon before role-based replacements[4]—player monster archeologists have a 12 chance of forcing a bullwhip as their melee weapon[5]

The following information pertains to an upcoming version (NetHack 3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.

As part of commit 20cbadcf - which strengthens quest leaders and makes it so that killing them no longer makes the game unwinnable - the Archeologist quest leader Lord Carnarvon generates with a +4 bullwhip.

Whip skill

Whip
Max Role
Basic
Expert

Both bullwhips and rubber hoses use the whip skill. There are no artifact whips.

Description

A bullwhip is ineffective against thick-skinned monsters, and can be applied by a hero to snap it in a direction and perform a number of special tricks:[6]

The success of these tricks depends on the hero's dexterity, whether they are an Archaeologist, and whether they are fumbling. A hero who is not an Archaeologist must have a dexterity higher than 14 to be considered proficient - whip tricks will always fail unless the hero is proficient.

NetHack makes the following assumptions to determine what to do when a whip is applied:

  • If the hero is in a pit, then they are attempting to get out of the pit unless they are applying the whip towards a small monster, in which case it is assumed that they are trying to attack it.
  • If the hero is in a pit, and the monster is wielding a weapon, then they are attempting to disarm a monster.
  • If the hero is in a pit and applies the whip towards a monster without a wielded weapon, then they are attempting to hit the monster.
  • The hero cannot perform any tricks (besides attacking monsters) if they are confused or engulfed.

Disarming

If applying a bullwhip at a monster disarms them, the disarmed weapon may end up on the floor at their feet, on the floor at the hero's feet, or in the hero's inventory, depending on a 'proficiency' check. Disarming a pet does not reduce its tameness, but disarming a peaceful monster will anger it.

A hero that successfully disarms a target wielding a non-cursed weapon does not break weaponless conduct, but failing and attacking the monster will break the conduct and always has a 110 chance of occurring: this attack can only be declined for pets.

Disarming is the only trick that whip-wielding monsters can use, and functions similarly to the same trick for the hero, with the following exceptions:[7]

  • A heavy iron ball is too heavy to be disarmed.
  • A silver-hating monster using a whip to pull a silver item from the hero's hands will never pull the item into its inventory, instead dropping it at the hero's feet.

Additionally, the order of monster weapon preference means that a monster may be unlikely to wield a bullwhip they possess to begin with, e.g. a balrog will only wield their bullwhip if they somehow lose their broadsword.[8]

Picking up items

Applying a bullwhip down towards an item while the hero is riding or levitating has a luck-based chance of picking it up off the floor, including out of a pool or moat of water or lava if applicable. When applying a whip downwards while riding a steed, there is always a 20-33% chance of hitting the steed instead.[9]

The following information pertains to an upcoming version (NetHack 3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.

Snagging items from the bottom of water or lava using a bullwhip is no longer possible, and in the case of lava can burn or even destroy the whip.

Riding

Applying the bullwhip to snap it at a steed while riding will cause it to gallop, temporarily increasing its speed but reducing its tameness by 1 - this includes hitting the steed while trying to pick up an item off the floor using the bullwhip.

Strategy

Bullwhips are viable utility items, primarily sought after for their ability to pry desirable weapons out of the hands of a humanoid pet and/or forcing it to pick up and wield a different (usually better) weapon. While disarming thankfully does not constitute pet abuse, you will anger any peaceful monsters you disarm - using a bullwhip to grab the Minetown watch captain's silver saber is probably a Bad Idea if you expect to make off with it scot-free. Most monsters can wield bullwhips, but will prefer most other weapons over them, as indicated in the case of the balrog - they will still wield a bullwhip over some weapons, such as quarterstaves and daggers.

Heroes looking to levitate frequently (e.g., Barbarians using The Heart of Ahriman) will also want to carry a bullwhip with them in order to reach items on the floor, as well as those retrieving loot or thrown weapons from moats - since this is reliant on dexterity rather than weapon skill, all roles can make use of this through varying amounts of stat exercise.

Beware: snagging a wielded footrice corpse from a monster with a bullwhip causes it to make contact with the hero's hands, carrying the risk of stoning them, although picking up a footrice corpse from the ground does not.[10][11] Flight will not allow you to pick up items from moats this way unless you are also levitating.

Bullwhips can be used as an aid for riding players - in addition to increasing a steed's movement speed, all roles capable of advancing the whip skill can also advance the riding skill to basic. While the former can also be achieved by kicking your steed, rendering the bullwhip somewhat redundant, it is still useful for picking up items off the floor while unskilled if you encounter one early enough.

History

The bullwhip is introduced in NetHack 3.0.0.

In NetHack 3.4.3 and previous versions, including some variants based on those versions, the bullwhip is the subject of a few now-fixed bugs:

  • A player polymorphed into a xorn cannot pick up items in pits, and could not fall into them; the primary workaround was to obtain levitation and apply a bullwhip downward towards the pit in question. This was bug C343-16, and was fixed on January 27, 2004.
  • Sunsword would continue to remain lit if snatched out of a monster's hands with a bullwhip. This was bug C343-106, and was fixed on July 15, 2005.
  • Applying a bullwhip while stunned or confused and at an edge of the map may cause a panic or crash. This was bug C343-383, and fixed prior to the next version's release; the commits containing the fixes was pushed on February 23, 2009.[12][13]

Origin

The Archeologist's starting bullwhip, along with the leather jacket and fedora, is one of the many trademark accessories of Indiana Jones, the titular character and star of a franchise of movies made by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. Jones in turn is based on the heroes of 1930s pulp serials and inspired the Archaeologist role.

Messages

Snap!
You applied a bullwhip without hitting anything.[14]
Why beat a dead horse?
You applied a bullwhip downwards while flying or levitating, on a square containing a horse corpse.

The following information pertains to an upcoming version (NetHack 3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.

The "dead horse" message is given for pony and warhorse corpses as well.

Variants

SLASH'EM

In SLASH'EM, Undead Slayers have a 14 chance of starting with a +2 bullwhip—this is derived from the Castlevania franchise, where the whip is frequently used by the Belmont clan.

An Archeologist wielding a bullwhip will not fall through trap doors, though objects on the trap door's square can still fall through.[15]

Bullwhips tend to see more use in SLASH'EM - players with powerful humanoid pets will want to enchant that pet's weapon so that it can take on late-game foes that need enchanted weapons of a certain level to hit. Additionally, vampire heroes will want a bullwhip and a source of levitation to retrieve items in moats or pits.

Messages

But thanks to your trusty whip ... You don't fall in.
A trap door opened under you, but you were an Archeologist wielding a bullwhip, preventing you from falling through.

UnNetHack

In UnNetHack, an archeologist corpse can sometimes be found under a boulder trap, and may be accompanied by the former adventurer's bullwhip.

Durin's Bane is always generated with an uncursed fireproof bullwhip that has an enchantment of up to +7.

dNetHack

dNetHack, notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack add the viperwhip and force whip as weapons that use the whip skill.

Xiuhcoatl is an artifact that has a bullwhip form, which is made of dragonhide flavored as serpenthide.

Balam is a spirit that grants skill in bullwhips while bound.

Gnomish heroes in roles that start with bullwhips (i.e. Archeologist) have them replaced with an aklys, and drow heroes in roles that start with bullwhips (i.e. Noble and Priest) have them replaced with viperwhips.

Durin's Bane is always generated with a cursed +9 iron bullwhip.

SpliceHack

SpliceHack adds the flaming lash as a weapon that uses the whip skill.

EvilHack

In EvilHack, Lord Carnarvon always generates with a +4 bullwhip.

SlashTHEM

In SlashTHEM, in addition to SLASH'EM details, the Zookeeper starts each game with a +1 bullwhip.

Liontamer is an artifact bullwhip that has +5 to-hit and +8 damage versus felines and acts as the first sacrifice gift for Zookeepers.

Hack'EM

Hack'EM adds the fly swatter from SLASH'EM and the flaming lash from SpliceHack as weapons that use the whip skill.

Encyclopedia entry

"Good," he said and, unbelievably, smiled at me, a smirk like
a round of rotted cheese. "What did your keeper use on you?
A bullwhip?"

[ Melusine, by Sarah Monette ]

References