Alignment abuse - Revision history

Umbire the Phantom: /* EvilHack */ oppsie 2

2026-05-07T14:46:14Z

‎EvilHack: oppsie 2

Umbire the Phantom: /* EvilHack */ oopsie

2026-05-07T14:45:58Z

‎EvilHack: oopsie

Umbire the Phantom: /* EvilHack */ try our best to fix this bad boy up - honestly might just need its own article soon

2026-05-07T14:45:48Z

‎EvilHack: try our best to fix this bad boy up - honestly might just need its own article soon

Umbire the Phantom: /* Erinyes */ word choice and we're off

2026-05-07T12:56:40Z

‎Erinyes: word choice and we're off

Umbire the Phantom: /* Variants */ slap this down before I restart comp, so I can resume tailoring upon restart

2026-05-07T12:20:24Z

‎Variants: slap this down before I restart comp, so I can resume tailoring upon restart

Umbire the Phantom: tocirght

2026-05-07T11:45:16Z

tocirght

Umbire the Phantom: establish this finally!

2026-05-07T11:45:05Z

establish this finally!

New page

In ''[[NetHack]]'', '''alignment record abuse''' or simply '''alignment abuse''' is a value that tracks the amount of times a [[hero]] has transgressed over the course of a game.{{refsrc|src/attrib.c|1302-L1310|nethack=5.0.0|name="abuse"|comment=alignment abuse in <tt>adjalign()</tt>}}

==Description==
Alignment abuse represents how much the hero has gone against the moral path outlined for them by their [[role]], [[alignment]] and/or other moral codes—this is distinct from the hero's [[alignment record]], which both describes whether or not a hero has strayed from their path or adhered to it, and further measures to what extent they have sinned or remained aligned.

===Erinyes===
{{main|Erinys}}
The erinyes are a trio of monsters that actively become more hostile and powerful the more that a hero has abused their alignment:{{refsrc|src/makemon.c|2280-L2281|nethack=5.0.0|comment=alignment abuse determines hostility of a freshly-generated erinys}}{{refsrc|src/mon.c|5920-L5966|nethack=5.0.0|comment=<tt>adj_erinys()</tt> function}} As the hero's alignment abuses increase, an erinys will gain more [[monster level]]s and [[Monster difficulty|difficulty]], along with additional properties and attacks such as [[monster spells]] and [[teleport control]].<ref name="abuse"/>{{refsrc|include/monsters.h|2952-L2954|nethack=5.0.0}}

An erinys can be summoned with an abuse-dependent chance if the hero shifts alignment as well, such as when they put on a [[helm of opposite alignment]] (which increments the hero's alignment abuse prior to the hero's record being cleared).{{refsrc|src/attrib.c|1340-L1348|nethack=5.0.0|comment=summon always occurs on Astral Plane}}

==Strategy==
The erinyes and their ability to become more threatening in response to the hero's alignment abuse makes it a much riskier prospect to both put on [[Identification|unidentified]] [[helm]]s in the early game ''and'' to use helms of opposite alignment for an "easier" time during the endgame stages.

==History==
Alignment abuse is introduced in [[NetHack 5.0.0]].

==Variants==
Several ''NetHack'' [[variant]]s prior to NetHack 5.0.0 introduce an alignment abuse system or a similar mechanic that differs heavily from the alignment abuse system established in that version of ''NetHack''.

==References==
<references/>
{{nethack-500}}
[[Category:Your character]]

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 {|class="wikitable"
 !Alignment abuse statement!!Alignment abuse range
 |  "You have never abused your alignment." || 0
 |-

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 |  "You have gravely abused your alignment." || 50 or higher
 |}
 Alignment abuse and its effects are most pronounced on the [[Quest]], whose mechanics for completion are also significantly changed from ''NetHack'': if the hero successfully defeats their [[quest nemesis]] and retrieves the [[quest artifact]], they must chat to their [[quest leader]] to enable the [[Bell of Opening]] for use in the [[invocation]] and officially complete the Quest. Upon speaking to the quest leader, there is an alignment-abuse-in-50 chance that the hero will be asked by the quest leader to return their quest artifact to them&mdash;this means that a hero with no alignment abuse will '''never''' have to return their quest artifact, while one that has gravely abused their alignment will almost be ''guaranteed'' to have their leader request it back from them.

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 ===EvilHack===
-In [[EvilHack]], alignment abuse plays a much more significant role in several mechanics, such as the quality of the hero's [[sacrifice gift]]s and the outcome of the hero completing their [[Quest]].
+In [[EvilHack]], alignment abuse plays a much more significant role in several mechanics, such as the caliber of the hero's [[sacrifice gift]]s and the outcome of the hero completing their [[Quest]]. Any alignment record penalties the hero takes raises their alignment abuse by the same amount, and the last five chronological events that resulted in alignment abuse can be viewed using the #conduct [[extended command]]. The levels of alignment abuse are listed below alongside their #conduct statements:
-Causing a decrease in your [[alignment record]] equally causes the same deficit with your alignment abuse record, which is virtually permanent, and can only be correct via atonement. Your alignment abuse record can be tracked at any time by checking ones #conduct, and the last five events that caused you to abuse your alignment are listed in chronological order.
+<div style="display: flex; justify-content: space-between; margin: 10px; align-items: start;">
-These are the rankings vs point values:
+Alignment abuse and its effects are most pronounced on the [[Quest]], whose mechanics for completion are also significantly changed from ''NetHack'': if the hero successfully defeats their [[quest nemesis]] and retrieves the [[quest artifact]], they must chat to their [[quest leader]] to enable the [[Bell of Opening]] for use in the [[invocation]] and officially complete the Quest. Upon speaking to the quest leader, there is an alignment-abuse-in-50 chance that the hero will be asked by the quest leader to return their quest artifact to them&mdash;this means that a hero with no alignment abuse will '''never''' have to return their quest artifact, while one that has gravely abused their alignment will almost be ''guaranteed'' to have their leader request it back from them.
-To atone for your past transgressions, find a co-aligned temple priest, #chat with them and donate at least 50,000 zorkmids for each level of alignment abuse. Correcting one level of alignment abuse will bring you down point-wise to the top of the next lowest tier (e.g. going from severely abused to seriously abused will put you at 29 alignment abuse points). To go from gravely abused to no abuse in one go will cost you 250,000 zorkmids. To help compensate for the cost in case not enough gold can be found throughout the various dungeons and branches, wishing for gold cap has been increased from 5,000 to 25,000 zorkmids per wish. Conduct tracking for 'never abused your alignment' correctly knows if you've fully atoned for your sins; paying to fix your alignment abuse will not reset the conduct if broken.
+Handing over the quest artifact peacefully will transfer it to the leader's inventory, while declining will cause them to become hostile and forces the hero to kill them to complete the Quest: evading the quest leader after defeating the nemesis will only postpone this decision, with either outcome being necessary to eventually perform the invocation using the Bell of Opening. Other scenarios are accounted for with these mechanics as well&mdash;heroes that killed their quest leader before proceeding further into the branch only need to kill their nemesis to complete the Quest, while a hero that has killed their quest nemesis but somehow angers their quest leader before speaking to them with the artifact can still complete the quest by killing them. The only exception to the above is the [[Archbishop of Moloch]] for [[Infidel]]s, who will always become hostile so that [[the Idol of Moloch]] is not lost since it is required for Infidels to complete the game.
-Once you've defeated the [[quest nemesis]] and returned with your [[quest artifact]] and the [[Bell of Opening]] to speak with your quest leader, there's a chance they may ask you to actually return the quest artifact as they originally alluded to when you first accepted the quest.
+Alignment abuse is thankfully not permanent, although repairing it can be difficult: an [[aligned priest]] tending to a co-aligned [[temple]] will offer "cleansing" services that correct one or more levels of alignment abuse. [[Chatting]] with a co-aligned temple priest and donating at least 50,000 [[zm]] will correct one level of alignment abuse for every 50,000 gold pieces donated, and will bring the hero down to the highest point value of the ''next'' tier of alignment abuse (e.g. going from severely abused to seriously abused will put you at 29 alignment abuse points)&mdash;it costs 250,000 zm to go from gravely abused alignment to none in a single donation, and to compensate for the possibility that not enough gold is generated in a game, the cap on the amount of gold that a hero can wish for is increased to 25,000 per wish. Conduct tracking for alignment abuse will display different output for a hero that has fully atoned versus one that has never sinned in the first place, and cleansing services will not reset this conduct.
-Abusing your alignment will increase the cost range for donations at temples. The base threshold increases by 1.25x if you've slightly abused your alignment, 1.5x if moderately abused, 1.75x if seriously abused, 2x if severely or gravely abused. The kicker with divine protection - if gravely abused, priest will deny divine protection outright but will still grant clairvoyance or alignment record cleansing.
+Each level of alignment abuse has the following effects on the hero's standing with their god and priests, the [[Equipment quality (EvilHack)|quality]], [[beatitude]] and [[enchantment]] of their mundane and artifact gifts from [[sacrifice]] (which will always be [[erosion]]-proofed regardless of alignment abuse), and more general effects on gameplay:
-The base cost thresholds for temple blessings are 200/400/600 zorkmids per experience level for clairvoyance/divine protection/cleanse or increase alignment record. Those values increase to 250/500/750 per exp level (slightly abused alignment), 300/600/900 (moderately abused), 350/700/1050 (seriously abused), and 400/800/1200 (severely/gravely abused).
+* A hero that has never abused their alignment will have slightly increased odds of a sacrifice gift. Their sacrifice gifts will be blessed and have an enchantment ranging from +3 to +5, with a decently high chance of a good [[Object properties#EvilHack|object property]] and good build quality (i.e. being superior or exceptional).
+* A hero that has slightly abused their alignment will experience a price increase of 25% for temple services. Their sacrifice gifts will be blessed and have an enchantment ranging from +2 to +3, with a lesser chance of a good object property or good build quality than the previous abuse level.
-How you abuse your alignment can have a direct bearing on a gift's properties (beatitude, enchantment, build quality, and a chance of an object property) that you can receive from your deity. This holds true for both artifacts and regular gifts. If your alignment has been 'severely' abused (30 points) or greater, whatever gift you receive will be uncursed instead of blessed (not counting Infidels). Regardless of the level of alignment abuse, gifts will always be [[fixed]], and will have a chance to come with a desirable object property, and also a chance of being made of a better build quality (superior or exceptional).
+* A hero that has moderately abused their alignment will experience a price increase of 50% for temple services. Their sacrifice gifts will be blessed and have an enchantment ranging from +1 to +2, with a lesser-still chance of a good object property or good build quality than the previous abuse level.
+* A hero that has seriously abused their alignment will experience a price increase of 75% for temple services. Their sacrifice gifts will be blessed and have no enchantment, with a lesser-still chance of a good object property or good build quality than the previous abuse level.
-Enchantment is a bit more granular:
+* A hero that has severely abused their alignment will experience a price increase of 100% for temple services. Their sacrifice gifts will be uncursed unless they are an Infidel, and the gift will have an enchantment ranging from +0 to -1 with a much lesser chance of a good object property or good build quality than the previous abuse level. If the hero reaches the Astral Plane with severely abused alignment or worse, they will not be given the [[Red Horse]].
-* Never abused alignment, +3 to +5 enchantment
+* A hero that has gravely abused their alignment will experience a price increase of 100% for temple services, and will also be denied the opportunity to buy divine protection. Their sacrifice gifts will be uncursed unless they are an Infidel, and the gift will have an enchantment ranging from -1 to -3 with a low chance of a good object property or good build quality.
 ==References==

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:45, 7 May 2026
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		+	{{tocright}}
	In ''[[NetHack]]'', '''alignment record abuse''' or simply '''alignment abuse''' is a value that tracks the amount of times a [[hero]] has transgressed over the course of a game.{{refsrc\|src/attrib.c\|1302-L1310\|nethack=5.0.0\|name="abuse"\|comment=alignment abuse in <tt>adjalign()</tt>}}		In ''[[NetHack]]'', '''alignment record abuse''' or simply '''alignment abuse''' is a value that tracks the amount of times a [[hero]] has transgressed over the course of a game.{{refsrc\|src/attrib.c\|1302-L1310\|nethack=5.0.0\|name="abuse"\|comment=alignment abuse in <tt>adjalign()</tt>}}

@@ Line 9: / Line 9: @@
 The erinyes are a trio of monsters that actively become more hostile and powerful the more that a hero has abused their alignment:{{refsrc|src/makemon.c|2280-L2281|nethack=5.0.0|comment=alignment abuse determines hostility of a freshly-generated erinys}}{{refsrc|src/mon.c|5920-L5966|nethack=5.0.0|comment=<tt>adj_erinys()</tt> function}} As the hero's alignment abuses increase, an erinys will gain more [[monster level]]s and [[Monster difficulty|difficulty]], along with additional properties and attacks such as [[monster spells]] and [[teleport control]].<ref name="abuse"/>{{refsrc|include/monsters.h|2952-L2954|nethack=5.0.0}}
-An erinys can be summoned with an abuse-dependent chance if the hero shifts alignment as well, such as when they put on a [[helm of opposite alignment]] (which increments the hero's alignment abuse prior to the hero's record being cleared).{{refsrc|src/attrib.c|1340-L1348|nethack=5.0.0|comment=summon always occurs on Astral Plane}}
+An erinys can be summoned with an abuse-dependent chance if the hero shifts alignment as well, such as when they put on a [[helm of opposite alignment]] (which increments the hero's alignment abuse prior to the hero's record being cleared), and will always occur if they do so on the [[Astral Plane]].{{refsrc|src/attrib.c|1340-L1348|nethack=5.0.0|comment=summon always occurs on Astral Plane}}
 ==Strategy==

@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 ==Variants==
 Several ''NetHack'' [[variant]]s prior to NetHack 5.0.0 introduce an alignment abuse system or a similar mechanic that differs heavily from the alignment abuse system established in that version of ''NetHack''.
 ==References==