Bell
( 
| |
|---|---|
| Name | bell |
| Appearance | bell |
| Base price | 50 zm |
| Weight | 30 |
| Material | copper |
| Monster use | Will not be used by monsters. |
A bell is a type of tool that appears in NetHack. It is an atonal instrument that is made of copper.
The Bell of Opening is a distinct type of bell with its own item type and appearance.
Generation
Bells are generated uncursed with the exception of bones levels and trap "bones".
In addition to random generation, general stores and hardware stores can sell bells.
A headstone that reads "Saved by the bell!" will always have a bell on its square.[1]
Description
Applying a non-cursed bell makes noise that wakes nearby sleeping monsters and calls pets. A cursed bell has the same effect, but has a 1⁄4 chance (25%) of summoning a random nymph instead if none of them are extinct or genocided, with a 7⁄100 chance (7%) of the bell breaking after generating the monster - a nymph summoned by bell is created without a starting inventory. If a cursed bell summons a nymph without breaking, there is a 1⁄3 chance of the nymph being fast and a 1⁄3 chance of the character being paralyzed for 2 turns.[2]
Strategy
Bells tend to have very little use in most games, since a tin whistle is often sufficient for pets. A cursed bell may be viable in some cases where a character wants to get rid of a cursed piece of armor or other item stuck to their person, with the other valuable items stashed nearby. Otherwise, bells are either ignored or carried to sell at a shop.
History
The bell first appears in NetHack 3.1.0. From this version to NetHack 3.1.3, a cursed bell could be exploited to summon nymphs indefinitely without respecting extinction, risking paralysis or generating a fast nymph, and the nymph would generate with their usual starting inventory.[3][4] A character can use this to accumulate large numbers of mirrors for polypiling, as well as many potions of object detection for dilution, alchemy, or polypiling; notably, if potions of object detection were smoky potions, this provided a very easy way to generate a large number of wishes. NetHack 3.2.0 fixes this by ensuring that the summoned nymph has no starting inventory.
References
- ↑ mklev.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1394
- ↑ apply.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 771
- ↑ apply.c in NetHack 3.1.0, line 1315
- ↑ See NetHack Code version 1.1, under the section "cursed bell".
This page may need to be updated for the current version of NetHack.
It may contain text specific to NetHack 3.4.3. Information on this page may be out of date.
Editors: After reviewing this page and making necessary edits, please change the {{nethack-343}} tag to the current version's tag or {{noversion}} as appropriate.
