Dust vortex

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A dust vortex, v, is a type of monster that appears in NetHack. The dust vortex is one of two vortices that are not unsolid, though they share all of the same characteristics as any other vortex.

A dust vortex has an engulfing attack that deals no damage and instead blinds the target for a few turns, though like all non-elemental engulfing attacks this is replaced with a damaging physical "claw" attack if the attack hits the hero during the grace period where they were expelled and cannot be re-engulfed.[1] Dust vortices possess sleep resistance, poison resistance and stoning resistance.

Generation

Randomly generated dust vortices are always created hostile.

A dust vortex is generated on the Plane of Earth at level creation.[2] A dust vortex is also generated on the Plane of Fire at level creation.[3]

Dust vortices do not leave a corpse upon death.

Description

Dust vortexes are quite fast at 20 speed, and while they do not normally deal direct damage, their blinding attacks can be incredibly annoying to contend with, and they also possess a decent MR score of 30—engulfing attack rules also make it possible for a dust vortex to become lethal if the hero is weakened enough.

A hero that can blind themselves (e.g. with a blindfold or towel) can usually avoid the worst of a dust vortex's attacks, though they are also tough to track for a blind hero: they are mindless and so cannot be seen with telepathy, which is still useful to avoid attacking pets or peaceful monster while blind, and they may generate at a low enough monster level that warning will not detect them. Being engulfed by a dust vortex also makes them easier to destroy, since there is no risk of hitting an unintended target while attacking, and a crafty hero can take advantage of this with a blinding source to train weapons (though with more risk relative to the very slow fog cloud).

History

The dust vortex first appears in NetHack 3.0.0.

Messages

You can't see in here!
You were engulfed and blinded by a dust vortex.

Variants

dNetHack

In dNetHack, notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack, the dust vortex and almost all other vortices (except for the yochlol's stinking cloud form) take halved damage from blunt, piercing and slashing weapons.

Invoking Ehecailacocozcatl can summon a tame dust vortex.

SpliceHack

In SpliceHack, a dust vortex can grow up into a dust devil. This also applies to Hack'EM.

Encyclopedia entry

See the encyclopedia entry for vortex.

References