Water demon - Revision history

Umbire the Phantom: /* Strategy */ important-ish detail

2025-01-05T06:36:10Z

‎Strategy: important-ish detail

Umbire the Phantom: /* Generation */ word choice

2025-01-05T06:19:14Z

‎Generation: word choice

Umbire the Phantom: /* History */ detailing

2025-01-05T05:36:18Z

‎History: detailing

Umbire the Phantom: /* Origin */ word choice, particularly focusing on tense

2025-01-04T11:58:22Z

‎Origin: word choice, particularly focusing on tense

Umbire the Phantom: /* Generation */ word choice

2025-01-03T11:51:44Z

‎Generation: word choice

Umbire the Phantom: character(s) => hero(es); word choice; lede

2025-01-03T09:28:57Z

character(s) => hero(es); word choice; lede

Umbire the Phantom: note regular demon

2024-07-20T07:44:58Z

note regular demon

Umbire the Phantom: typo

2024-07-20T02:40:14Z

typo

Umbire the Phantom: /* Strategy */ word choice

2024-04-09T02:37:26Z

‎Strategy: word choice

Umbire the Phantom: messages and a bit more TLC

2024-04-09T02:32:04Z

messages and a bit more TLC

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 The possibility of water demon swarms is the result of code governing demon gating that makes monsters with a [[monster difficulty]] greater than the current dungeon level exponentially unlikely to generate, meaning that a majority of the gated demons will be other water demons and [[foocubi]].{{refsrc|src/makemon.c|1694|nethack=3.6.7}} Additionally, there is a {{frac|260}} chance of a water demon summoning [[Juiblex]] or [[Yeenoghu]] via demon gating. Death at the hands of a water demon also has the potential to create an early [[bones]] level that may be impassible for many heroes, particularly those who discover the presence of water demons (as well as one or both demon lords) far too late.
-For heroes confident enough to take chances with fountains, a kit of [[escape item]]s and a source of [[speed]] is all but necessary to ensure the best odds. One approach for wish hunters in particular is to start from the topmost fountain in the main dungeon - if the only objective is to obtain a wish, then dipping is generally safer than quaffing, since at worst only the dipped item will be cursed rather than much of the open inventory.<!--"The chances are very roughly {{frac|3}} that you'll get a wish from some water demon." unsure of that math-->
+For heroes confident enough to take chances with fountains, a kit of [[escape item]]s and a source of [[speed]] is all but necessary to ensure the best odds. One approach for wish hunters in particular is to start as soon as safely possible and begin from the topmost fountain in the main dungeon - if the only objective is to obtain a wish, then dipping is generally safer than quaffing, since at worst only the dipped item will be cursed rather than much of the open inventory.<!--"The chances are very roughly {{frac|3}} that you'll get a wish from some water demon." unsure of that math-->
 ==History==

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 Water demons are not randomly generated, and are not a valid a target for [[genocide]] or [[polymorph]].
-A water demon only generates when a hero [[quaff]]s from a [[fountain]] or [[dip]]s an item into one, with both actions each having a {{frac|30}} chance of generating one. The water demon will be hostile with a probability of {{frac|(80 + LD)|100}}, where LD is your current [[level difficulty]] (i.e. they are always hostile if a hero is at 20 difficulty or has the [[Amulet of Yendor]]), and otherwise will generate peaceful and grant a [[wish]].{{refsrc|src/fountain.c|70|nethack=3.6.7}} Water demons can [[Demon gating|gate in]] other water demons with their melee attacks.
+A water demon only generates when a hero [[quaff]]s from a [[fountain]] or [[dip]]s an item into one, with both actions each having a {{frac|30}} chance of generating one. The water demon will be hostile with a probability of {{frac|(80 + LD)|100}}, where LD is the hero's current [[level difficulty]] (i.e. they are always hostile if the hero is at 20 difficulty or has the [[Amulet of Yendor]]), and otherwise will generate peaceful and grant a [[wish]].{{refsrc|src/fountain.c|70|nethack=3.6.7}} Water demons can [[Demon gating|gate in]] other water demons with their melee attacks.
 The [[Wizard of Yendor]] may create a clone of himself in the guise of a water demon via the [[Double Trouble]] [[monster spell]].{{refsrc|src/wizard.c|50|version=NetHack 3.6.7}}

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 ==History==
-Water demons first appear in [[NetHack 3.0.0]]. In previous versions, fountain quaffing and dipping have the same chance of generating a normal [[Demon (monster)|demon]].
+The water demon first appears in [[NetHack 3.0.0]]. In previous versions, fountain quaffing and dipping have the same chance of generating a normal [[Demon (monster)|demon]], which has a low chance of granting the hero a wish.
 ==Origin==

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 Water demons and/or water spirits are supernatural beings that occur in [[Wikipedia:List of water deities|the folklore of many cultures.]] The encyclopedia entry is an excerpt from a Buddhist tale, [http://buddhanet.net/bt1_22.htm The Monkey King and the Water Demon].
-The titular monkey king had warned his nation of monkeys about water demons, which lurk in unfamiliar ponds and eat anything that enters, and thanks to his followers' attentiveness, none of the monkeys were eaten by any water demons. When the monkeys came across a pond, despite being tired and thirsty, not a one of them would approach, and instead sat in the trees and on the ground nearby. The monkey king sees his followers gathered around the pond and learns that none of them went into the water - he then walks along the bank and examines the footprints there, discovering that many animals had previously gone to drink and none had returned; the monkey king tells his followers that this was the work of a water demon.
+The titular monkey king had warned his nation of monkeys about water demons, which lurk in unfamiliar ponds and eat anything that enters, and thanks to his followers' attentiveness, none of the monkeys were eaten by any water demons. When the monkeys came across a pond, despite being tired and thirsty, not a one of them would approach, and instead sat in the trees and on the ground nearby. The monkey king saw his followers gathered around the pond and learned that none of them went into the water, then walked along the bank to examine the footprints there, discovering that many animals had previously gone to drink and none had returned - the monkey king tells his followers that this was the work of a water demon.
-When still none of the monkeys went in to drink, the water demon rises from the pond in the form of a frightening monster, but the monkey king remains calm and outwits the water demon by taking a young bamboo shoot and blowing through it to remove the knots: the monkey king uses it as a straw to sip water from the pond, then waved his hand and turned all the bamboo around that pond into the same kind of bamboo. The monkeys are able to drink from the pond safely, and the defeated water demon sinks back under the surface.
+When still none of the monkeys went in to drink, the water demon finally rose from the pond in the form of a frightening monster, but the monkey king remained calm: he outwits the water demon by taking a young bamboo shoot and blowing through it to remove the knots, then using it as a straw to sip water from the pond. After doing so, he then waved his hand and turned all the bamboo around the pond into straws that let the monkeys drink from the pond safely, leaving the defeated water demon to sink back under the surface.
 ==Messages==

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 The [[Wizard of Yendor]] may create a clone of himself in the guise of a water demon via the [[Double Trouble]] [[monster spell]].{{refsrc|src/wizard.c|50|version=NetHack 3.6.7}}
-A water demon has a {{frac|5|12}} chance of [[monster starting inventory|generating with]] any of the default weapon sets, with an equal probability of each: a [[two-handed sword]], a [[long sword]], a [[lucern hammer]], a [[battle-axe]], or a [[bow]] and 3-14 [[arrow]]s.{{refsrc|src/makemon.c|512|version=NetHack 3.6.7|name="default"|comment=Default cases for monster weapon generation}}
+A water demon has a {{frac|5|12}} chance of [[monster starting inventory|generating with]] chance of [[monster starting inventory|generating with]] any one of the default [[strong]] weapon sets, with an equal probability of each weapon: a [[two-handed sword]], a [[long sword]], a [[lucern hammer]], a [[battle-axe]], or a [[bow]] and 3-14 [[arrow]]s.{{refsrc|src/makemon.c|512|version=NetHack 3.6.7|name="default"|comment=Default cases for monster weapon generation}}
 Water demons [[Corpseless|do not leave a corpse]] upon death.

@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 }}
-A '''water demon''', {{monsym|water demon}}, is a type of [[monster]] that appears in ''[[NetHack]]''. It is a [[major demon]] that resides in [[fountain]]s.
+A '''water demon''', {{monsym|water demon}}, is a type of [[monster]] that appears in ''[[NetHack]]''. The water demon is a [[humanoid]] [[major demon]] that is capable of [[swimming]]&mdash;like other major demons, they have [[infravision]], can be seen via infravision, will seek out [[weapon]]s and other items to pick up, and can [[follow]] a [[hero]] to other levels if they are adjacent.
-Water demons have a weapon attack, a claw attack, and a bite attack, along with the standard demonic resistances to [[Fire resistance|fire]], [[Poison resistance|poison]], [[Drain resistance|draining attacks]], and [[Death resistance|death magic]].
+A water demon has a weapon attack, a claw attack and a bite attack, and like other major demons they possess [[fire resistance]], [[poison resistance]], [[drain resistance]], and [[death resistance]].
 ==Generation==
@@ Line 27: / Line 29: @@
 Water demons are not randomly generated, and are not a valid a target for [[genocide]] or [[polymorph]].
-A water demon only generates when [[quaff]]ing from or [[dip]]ping into a fountain, with both actions each having a {{frac|30}} chance of generating one. The water demon will be hostile with a probability of {{frac|(80 + LD)|100}}, where LD is your current [[level difficulty]] (i.e. they are always hostile if a character is at 20 difficulty or has the [[Amulet of Yendor]]), and otherwise will generate peaceful and grant a [[wish]].{{refsrc|src/fountain.c|70|nethack=3.6.7}} Water demons can [[Demon gating|gate in]] other water demons with their melee attacks.
+A water demon only generates when a hero [[quaff]]s from a [[fountain]] or [[dip]]s an item into one, with both actions each having a {{frac|30}} chance of generating one. The water demon will be hostile with a probability of {{frac|(80 + LD)|100}}, where LD is your current [[level difficulty]] (i.e. they are always hostile if a hero is at 20 difficulty or has the [[Amulet of Yendor]]), and otherwise will generate peaceful and grant a [[wish]].{{refsrc|src/fountain.c|70|nethack=3.6.7}} Water demons can [[Demon gating|gate in]] other water demons with their melee attacks.
 The [[Wizard of Yendor]] may create a clone of himself in the guise of a water demon via the [[Double Trouble]] [[monster spell]].{{refsrc|src/wizard.c|50|version=NetHack 3.6.7}}
@@ Line 36: / Line 38: @@
 ==Strategy==
-Though one of the less powerful major demons, their AC of -4 and gating abilities make the water demon more than capable of destroying early-game characters - starting characters should ideally avoid using fountains as much as possible, at least until they have a solidly built kit of armor and weapons capable of standing against water demons and [[water moccasin]]s. This danger is not at all limited to fresh characters and [[Bad Idea]]s: lawful characters that dip for [[Excalibur]] also face the threat of an unexpected water demon [[YASD|ruining their game]]. A tougher character who cannot dispatch one quickly may also find themselves overwhelmed if they gate in a second or third water demon, or even a [[demon lord]].
+Though one of the less powerful major demons, their AC of -4 and gating abilities make the water demon more than capable of destroying early-game heroes - starting heroes should ideally avoid using fountains as much as possible, at least until they have a solidly built kit of armor and weapons capable of standing against water demons and [[water moccasin]]s. This danger is not at all limited to fresh heroes and [[Bad Idea]]s: lawful heroes that dip for [[Excalibur]] also face the threat of an unexpected water demon [[YASD|ruining their game]]. A tougher hero who cannot dispatch one quickly may also find themselves overwhelmed if they gate in a second or third water demon, or even a [[demon lord]].
-The possibility of water demon swarms is the result of code governing demon gating that makes monsters with a [[monster difficulty]] greater than the current dungeon level exponentially unlikely to generate, meaning that a majority of the gated demons will be other water demons and [[foocubi]].{{refsrc|src/makemon.c|1694|nethack=3.6.7}} Additionally, there is a {{frac|260}} chance of a water demon summoning [[Juiblex]] or [[Yeenoghu]] via demon gating. Death at the hands of a water demon also has the potential to create an early [[bones]] level that may be impassible for many characters, particularly who discover the presence of water demons (as well as one or both demon lords) far too late.
+The possibility of water demon swarms is the result of code governing demon gating that makes monsters with a [[monster difficulty]] greater than the current dungeon level exponentially unlikely to generate, meaning that a majority of the gated demons will be other water demons and [[foocubi]].{{refsrc|src/makemon.c|1694|nethack=3.6.7}} Additionally, there is a {{frac|260}} chance of a water demon summoning [[Juiblex]] or [[Yeenoghu]] via demon gating. Death at the hands of a water demon also has the potential to create an early [[bones]] level that may be impassible for many heroes, particularly those who discover the presence of water demons (as well as one or both demon lords) far too late.
-For characters confident enough to take chances with fountains, a kit of [[escape item]]s and a source of [[speed]] is all but necessary to ensure the best odds. One approach for wish hunters in particular is to start from the topmost fountain in the main dungeon - if the only objective is to obtain a wish, then dipping is generally safer than quaffing, since at worst only the dipped item will be cursed rather than much of the open inventory.<!--"The chances are very roughly {{frac|3}} that you'll get a wish from some water demon." unsure of that math-->
+For heroes confident enough to take chances with fountains, a kit of [[escape item]]s and a source of [[speed]] is all but necessary to ensure the best odds. One approach for wish hunters in particular is to start from the topmost fountain in the main dungeon - if the only objective is to obtain a wish, then dipping is generally safer than quaffing, since at worst only the dipped item will be cursed rather than much of the open inventory.<!--"The chances are very roughly {{frac|3}} that you'll get a wish from some water demon." unsure of that math-->
 ==History==