Werespider - Revision history

Umbire the Phantom: further wordsmithing

2025-02-27T14:12:36Z

further wordsmithing

Umbire the Phantom: leave the explanation to the appropriate werecreature article, dial this back some

2025-02-27T14:05:14Z

leave the explanation to the appropriate werecreature article, dial this back some

Ion frigate: word; also in the mines, which in some sense are all special levels (generated by .des files, as opposed to the main dungeon/gehennom)

2025-02-27T07:19:55Z

word; also in the mines, which in some sense are all special levels (generated by .des files, as opposed to the main dungeon/gehennom)

Ion frigate: emphasis

2025-02-27T07:14:04Z

emphasis

Ion frigate: try to make briefer and a little more cohesive

2025-02-27T07:10:44Z

try to make briefer and a little more cohesive

Ion frigate: not sure if this fuller explanation belongs at werecreature (SLASH'EM), but this is ordinarily the only example one sees in slash'em

2025-02-27T07:01:56Z

not sure if this fuller explanation belongs at werecreature (SLASH'EM), but this is ordinarily the only example one sees in slash'em

Ion frigate: actually implicitly generated

2025-02-27T06:52:59Z

actually implicitly generated

Umbire the Phantom: mention eggs

2024-10-22T17:39:29Z

mention eggs

Umbire the Phantom: /* Generation */ oops

2024-10-22T17:35:14Z

‎Generation: oops

Umbire the Phantom: /* Generation */ spider caves - thanks hackemslashem

2024-10-22T17:34:21Z

‎Generation: spider caves - thanks hackemslashem

@@ Line 47: / Line 47: @@
 ==Generation==
-Werespiders are not randomly generated, and normally-created werespiders are always hostile. Neither form of werespider can be chosen for normal [[polymorph]]. Werespiders are unusual among werecreatures, in that their animal form of werespider can be selected for [[genocide]], and they can be generated in either human form or spider form:
+Werespiders are not randomly generated, and normally-created werespiders are always hostile. Neither form of werespider can be chosen for normal [[polymorph]]. Werespiders are unusual among werecreatures in that their animal form of werespider can be selected for [[genocide]], and they can also generate in either human form or spider form:
 * In human form, werespiders may appear among the {{mcsl|@}} generated within the [[Lawful Quest]]'s Chamber of Junk, including ones that are generated as peaceful.
-* In spider form, they may be generated among the random {{mcsl|s}} placed in [[the Spider Caves]] at level creation.
+* In spider form, they may be generated among the random {{mcsl|s}} placed in [[the Spider Caves]] at level creation, since monster class-based generation does not default to human form for werecreatures.
 A werespider summoning help has a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[cave spider]] and a {{frac|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[recluse spider]] on each applicable square{{refsrc|were.c|154|version=SLASH'EM 0.0.7E7F2}}&mdash;heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider can summon these monsters as pets using the [[Monster (command)|#monster]] [[extended command]], which costs 10 [[power]]. In Hack'EM, they have a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile cave spider, a {{frac|2|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[jumping spider]], and a {{frac|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[giant spider]]. Heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider and change to animal form can lay [[egg]]s that will hatch into tame werespiders.
@@ Line 57: / Line 57: @@
 ==Strategy==
-Werecreatures in SLASH'EM and SlashTHEM are already made more dangerous than in ''[[NetHack]]'' due to changes in [[polymorph]] mechanics, which allows them to revert to the form they were initially generated in if they are killed in their other form&mdash;if the hero cannot dispatch the werecreature fast enough, they may have to be "killed" several times before going down for good. Werespiders present a relatively unique wrinkle to this mechanic, since the ones encountered in the Spider Caves are the only instances where a werecreature is ever specified as generating in their animal forms.
+Werecreatures in SLASH'EM and SlashTHEM are already made more dangerous than in ''[[NetHack]]'' due to changes in [[polymorph]] mechanics, which allows them to revert to the form they were initially generated in if they are killed in their other form&mdash;if the hero cannot dispatch the werecreature fast enough, they may have to be "killed" several times before going down for good, and werespiders present a relatively unique wrinkle to this mechanic, as explained above.
 As always, silver items are good options for dealing with werespiders and other lycanthropes, and there is a better selection of silver weapons and items available compared to ''NetHack''. The [[ring of protection from shape changers]] is considerably stronger against lycanthropes, since they only need to be killed once while locked into human form, and cannot give the hero lycanthropy or summon help. [[Ranged weapon]]s with [[multishot]] bonuses can bring them down before they get close enough, and engraving [[Elbereth]] can scare off both a werespider in animal form and any help they summon in order to either create space for an escape or more efficiently kill them.

@@ Line 40: / Line 40: @@
 }}
-A '''werespider''', {{monsym|werespider}}, is a type of [[monster]] that appears in [[SLASH'EM]], [[SlashTHEM]] and [[Hack'EM]]. The werespider is an [[omnivorous]] [[Human (monster attribute)|human]] [[werecreature]] that can shift between [[Human or elf|human]] and [[Arachnid or centipede|arachnid]] form - in both forms, they possess enhanced [[regeneration]].
+A '''werespider''', {{monsym|werespider}}, is a type of [[monster]] that appears in [[SLASH'EM]], [[SlashTHEM]] and [[Hack'EM]]. The werespider is an [[omnivorous]] [[Human (monster attribute)|human]] [[Werecreature (SLASH'EM)|werecreature]] that can shift between [[Human or elf|human]] and [[Arachnid or centipede|arachnid]] form - in both forms, they possess enhanced [[regeneration]]. In human form, werespiders will seek out and pick up weapons and food; in [[spider]] form, they are [[carnivorous]] and [[oviparous]].
-Werespiders may appear among the {{mcsl|@}} generated within the [[Lawful Quest]]'s Chamber of Junk, including ones that are generated as peaceful. They may also be generated among the random {{mcsl|s}} in [[the Spider Caves]] at level creation.
+A werespider in human form has a weapon attack&mdash;in spider form, they have a strong bite that can cause [[lycanthropy]] in the [[hero]], along with the ability to summon other spiders on nearby squares when in melee range. Werespiders possess [[poison resistance]] and [[drain resistance]], and are weak to [[silver]].
-==Description==
+A werespider [[corpse]] is [[poisonous]] to [[eat]], and a hero eating a werespider corpse or [[tin]] will be given lycanthropy&mdash;a werespider that is [[digest]]ed while in animal form will also give a hero lycanthropy, but can grant poison resistance.
-A werespider in human form has a weapon attack&mdash;in [[spider]] form, they have a strong bite that can cause [[lycanthropy]] in the [[hero]], along with the ability to summon other spiders on nearby squares when in melee range. Werespiders possess [[poison resistance]] and [[drain resistance]], and are weak to [[silver]].  In human form, they will seek out and pick up weapons and food; in spider form, they are [[oviparous]].
+==Generation==
-A werespider [[corpse]] is [[poisonous]] to [[eat]], and a hero eating a werespider corpse or [[tin]] will be given lycanthropy&mdash;a werespider that is [[digest]]ed while in animal form will also give a hero lycanthropy, but can grant poison resistance.
+* In human form, werespiders may appear among the {{mcsl|@}} generated within the [[Lawful Quest]]'s Chamber of Junk, including ones that are generated as peaceful.
 A werespider summoning help has a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[cave spider]] and a {{frac|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[recluse spider]] on each applicable square{{refsrc|were.c|154|version=SLASH'EM 0.0.7E7F2}}&mdash;heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider can summon these monsters as pets using the [[Monster (command)|#monster]] [[extended command]], which costs 10 [[power]]. In Hack'EM, they have a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile cave spider, a {{frac|2|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[jumping spider]], and a {{frac|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[giant spider]]. Heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider and change to animal form can lay [[egg]]s that will hatch into tame werespiders.
 A werespider that leaves a [[corpse]] upon death will always leave a corpse of its human form: their animal form is considered to be [[corpseless]].
 ==Strategy==
-Werecreatures in SLASH'EM and SlashTHEM are already made more dangerous than in ''[[NetHack]]'' due to changes in [[polymorph]] mechanics, which allows them to revert to human form if killed while in animal form&mdash;if the hero cannot dispatch the werecreature fast enough, they may have to be "killed" several times before going down for good.
+Werecreatures in SLASH'EM and SlashTHEM are already made more dangerous than in ''[[NetHack]]'' due to changes in [[polymorph]] mechanics, which allows them to revert to the form they were initially generated in if they are killed in their other form&mdash;if the hero cannot dispatch the werecreature fast enough, they may have to be "killed" several times before going down for good. Werespiders present a relatively unique wrinkle to this mechanic, since the ones encountered in the Spider Caves are the only instances where a werecreature is ever specified as generating in their animal forms.
 As always, silver items are good options for dealing with werespiders and other lycanthropes, and there is a better selection of silver weapons and items available compared to ''NetHack''. The [[ring of protection from shape changers]] is considerably stronger against lycanthropes, since they only need to be killed once while locked into human form, and cannot give the hero lycanthropy or summon help. [[Ranged weapon]]s with [[multishot]] bonuses can bring them down before they get close enough, and engraving [[Elbereth]] can scare off both a werespider in animal form and any help they summon in order to either create space for an escape or more efficiently kill them.

@@ Line 54: / Line 54: @@
 A werespider summoning help has a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[cave spider]] and a {{frac|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[recluse spider]] on each applicable square{{refsrc|were.c|154|version=SLASH'EM 0.0.7E7F2}}&mdash;heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider can summon these monsters as pets using the [[Monster (command)|#monster]] [[extended command]], which costs 10 [[power]]. In Hack'EM, they have a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile cave spider, a {{frac|2|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[jumping spider]], and a {{frac|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[giant spider]]. Heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider and change to animal form can lay [[egg]]s that will hatch into tame werespiders.
-The werespiders that appear in the Spider Caves are an example of unusual SLASH'EM werecreature behavior: they die permanently if killed in their ''animal'' form, and revert to said form if killed in their ''human'' form.  Polymorphed monsters in SLASH'EM&mdash;including werecreatures&mdash;revert to their ''original'' form on death.  The werespiders in the Spider Caves were generated as {{white|s}}, making their original form their animal form.  For ordinary werecreature generation, this is impossible (as the animal forms do not randomly generate), but it is possible when monsters are generated as part of specific class on special levels and [[quest]]s.
+The werespiders that appear in the Spider Caves are an example of unusual SLASH'EM werecreature behavior: they die permanently if killed in their ''animal'' form, and revert to said form if killed in their ''human'' form.  Polymorphed monsters in SLASH'EM&mdash;including werecreatures&mdash;revert to their ''original'' form on death.  The werespiders in the Spider Caves were generated as {{white|s}}, making their original form their animal form.  For ordinary werecreature generation, this is impossible (as the animal forms do not randomly generate), but it is possible when monsters are generated as part of a specific class on special levels and [[quest]]s.
 A werespider that leaves a [[corpse]] upon death will always leave a corpse of its human form: their animal form is considered to be [[corpseless]].

@@ Line 54: / Line 54: @@
 A werespider summoning help has a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[cave spider]] and a {{frac|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[recluse spider]] on each applicable square{{refsrc|were.c|154|version=SLASH'EM 0.0.7E7F2}}&mdash;heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider can summon these monsters as pets using the [[Monster (command)|#monster]] [[extended command]], which costs 10 [[power]]. In Hack'EM, they have a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile cave spider, a {{frac|2|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[jumping spider]], and a {{frac|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[giant spider]]. Heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider and change to animal form can lay [[egg]]s that will hatch into tame werespiders.
-The werespiders that appear in the Spider Caves are an example of unusual SLASH'EM werecreature behavior: they die permanently if killed in their ''animal'' form, and revert to said form if killed in their ''human'' form.  Polymorphed monsters in SLASH'EM&mdash;including werecreatures&mdash;revert to their original form on death.  The werespiders in the Spider Caves were generated as {{white|s}}, making their ''original'' form their animal form.  For ordinary werecreature generation, this is impossible (as the animal forms do not randomly generate) but it is possible when monsters are generated as part of specific class on special levels and [[quest]]s.
+The werespiders that appear in the Spider Caves are an example of unusual SLASH'EM werecreature behavior: they die permanently if killed in their ''animal'' form, and revert to said form if killed in their ''human'' form.  Polymorphed monsters in SLASH'EM&mdash;including werecreatures&mdash;revert to their ''original'' form on death.  The werespiders in the Spider Caves were generated as {{white|s}}, making their original form their animal form.  For ordinary werecreature generation, this is impossible (as the animal forms do not randomly generate), but it is possible when monsters are generated as part of specific class on special levels and [[quest]]s.
 A werespider that leaves a [[corpse]] upon death will always leave a corpse of its human form: their animal form is considered to be [[corpseless]].

@@ Line 54: / Line 54: @@
 A werespider summoning help has a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[cave spider]] and a {{frac|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[recluse spider]] on each applicable square{{refsrc|were.c|154|version=SLASH'EM 0.0.7E7F2}}&mdash;heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider can summon these monsters as pets using the [[Monster (command)|#monster]] [[extended command]], which costs 10 [[power]]. In Hack'EM, they have a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile cave spider, a {{frac|2|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[jumping spider]], and a {{frac|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[giant spider]]. Heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider and change to animal form can lay [[egg]]s that will hatch into tame werespiders.
-The werespiders that can appear in the Spider Caves are a rare example of unusual SLASH'EM werecreature behavior: they die permanently if killed in their ''animal'' form, and revert to said form if killed in their ''human'' form.  This occurs because they were generated as {{white|s}}, making their ''original'' form their animal form.  Polymorphed monsters in SLASH'EM&mdash;including werecreatures&mdash;revert to their original form on death, not their human form.  For ordinary werecreature generation, the original form is always the human form as the animal one does not randomly generate, but for werecreatures generated as part of a class of monsters at level creation, it can be their animal form.
+The werespiders that appear in the Spider Caves are an example of unusual SLASH'EM werecreature behavior: they die permanently if killed in their ''animal'' form, and revert to said form if killed in their ''human'' form.  Polymorphed monsters in SLASH'EM&mdash;including werecreatures&mdash;revert to their original form on death.  The werespiders in the Spider Caves were generated as {{white|s}}, making their ''original'' form their animal form.  For ordinary werecreature generation, this is impossible (as the animal forms do not randomly generate) but it is possible when monsters are generated as part of specific class on special levels and [[quest]]s.
 A werespider that leaves a [[corpse]] upon death will always leave a corpse of its human form: their animal form is considered to be [[corpseless]].

@@ Line 40: / Line 40: @@
 }}
-A '''werespider''', {{monsym|werespider}}, is a type of [[monster]] that appears in [[SLASH'EM]], [[SlashTHEM]] and [[Hack'EM]]. The werespider is an [[omnivorous]] [[Human (monster attribute)|human]] [[werecreature]] that can shift between [[Human or elf|human]] and [[Arachnid or centipede|arachnid]] form - in both forms, they possess enhanced [[regeneration]]. In human form, werespiders will seek out and pick up weapons and food.
+A '''werespider''', {{monsym|werespider}}, is a type of [[monster]] that appears in [[SLASH'EM]], [[SlashTHEM]] and [[Hack'EM]]. The werespider is an [[omnivorous]] [[Human (monster attribute)|human]] [[werecreature]] that can shift between [[Human or elf|human]] and [[Arachnid or centipede|arachnid]] form - in both forms, they possess enhanced [[regeneration]]. In human form, werespiders will seek out and pick up weapons and food; in spider form, they are [[oviparous]].
 A werespider in human form has a weapon attack&mdash;in [[spider]] form, they have a strong bite that can cause [[lycanthropy]] in the [[hero]], along with the ability to summon other spiders on nearby squares when in melee range. Werespiders possess [[poison resistance]] and [[drain resistance]], and are weak to [[silver]].
@@ Line 49: / Line 49: @@
 Werespiders are not randomly generated, and normally-created werespiders are always hostile and in human form. Neither form of werespider can be chosen for normal [[polymorph]] - only the animal form of werespider can be selected for [[genocide]], unlike other were creatures
-A werespider summoning help has a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[cave spider]] and a {{frac|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[recluse spider]] on each applicable square{{refsrc|were.c|154|version=SLASH'EM 0.0.7E7F2}}&mdash;heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider can summon these monsters as pets using the [[Monster (command)|#monster]] [[extended command]], which costs 10 [[power]]. In Hack'EM, they have a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile cave spider, a {{frac|2|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[jumping spider]], and a {{frac|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[giant spider]].
+A werespider summoning help has a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[cave spider]] and a {{frac|5}} chance of generating a hostile [[recluse spider]] on each applicable square{{refsrc|were.c|154|version=SLASH'EM 0.0.7E7F2}}&mdash;heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider can summon these monsters as pets using the [[Monster (command)|#monster]] [[extended command]], which costs 10 [[power]]. In Hack'EM, they have a {{frac|4|5}} chance of generating a hostile cave spider, a {{frac|2|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[jumping spider]], and a {{frac|15}} chance of summoning a hostile [[giant spider]]. Heroes that get lycanthropy from a werespider and change to animal form can lay [[egg]]s that will hatch into tame werespiders.
 Werespiders may appear among the {{mcsl|@}} generated within the [[Lawful Quest]]'s Chamber of Junk, including ones that are generated as peaceful. They may also be generated in [[the Spider Caves]] at level creation.