Artifact (Hack'EM)

Design decisions

In SLASH'EM, artifacts granted a flat damage bonus (instead of their equivalent d-notation damage) - this has not been adapted in Hack'EM; in its absence, the rage object property has been introduced to give ordinary weapons the chance of dealing flat damage.

Artifact mechanics

• Players can two-weapon with an artifact in each hand, if those artifacts happen to get along with each other.
• If wielding/wearing any of the 'banes, taming becomes impossible.
• Various artifacts that have a nemesis monster warn against those monsters.
• Almost all of the stock weapon artifacts have had their to-hit and damage modifiers adjusted in the players favor.
• Certain artifacts can either deliver extra damage to their nemesis monsters, or have a small percentage chance of delivering a fatal blow – this applies to the player as well!

New artifacts

Artifact	Base item	Alignment	Notes	Origin
Angelslayer	trident	Non-aligned	+d5 to-hit, +d10 fire damage An artifact trident that warns of Angels Confers automatic searching and half-spell damage There is a 5% chance that a Balrog may spawn with this artifact.	EvilHack
Balmung	golden broadsword	Lawful	+d4 to-hit, +d10 damage Destruction proof Destroys random armor on defenders Grants fire resistance Made of gold	EvilHack
Bat from Hell	baseball bat	Chaotic	+d3 to-hit, +d20 damage Rogues receive this as their first guaranteed sacrifice gift.	SLASH'EM
Bradamante's Fury	lance	Lawful	+d5 to-hit, +d12 damage Occasionally stuns opponents Changed Bradamante's Fury to Lawful (matches Bradamante in the anime) Indestructible; no risk of breaking from jousting or any other source (aside from overenchantment)	SpliceHack
Butcher	triple-headed flail	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit, +d8 damage two-handed weapon Inflicts stunning Belongs to the demon lord Yeenoghu, who spawns with this artifact Cannot be wished for.	EvilHack
Carnwennan	knife	Lawful	Confers searching and stealth +d3 to-hit, +d8 damage Invoke for invisibility	SpliceHack
Chains of Malcanthet	spiked chain	Unaligned	+d6 to-hit, +d10 damage Bonus damage and warning vs angels Grants 25 charisma while wielded Special paralysis hit	SpliceHack
Circe's Witchstaff	staff of matter	Neutral	+d8 to-hit, +d4 damage Was a quarterstaff in SpliceHack 10% chance each attack can transform enemies into pigs or feral hogs. When both species of pigs are genocided or extinct, Circe's Witchstaff instead starts instakilling vs non-magic resistant monsters. Invoke for a scroll of taming effect	SpliceHack
David's Sling	sling	Neutral	+d5 to-hit, flat +6 damage to projectiles double damage vs giants Warns against giants half physical damage when wielded	SlashTHEM
Deathsword	two-handed sword	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit, +d14 damage Capable of inflicting a paralyzing hit 1 in 4 attacks. Barbarians no longer receive this as a guaranteed sacrifice gift. Changed from targeting vs humans to vs cross-aligned.	SLASH'EM
Deep Freeze	staff of matter	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit, +d4 cold damage Provides cold resistance when wielded Invoke for a Scroll of Ice effect that also summons freeze spheres (only Ice Mages can invoke.)	SLASH'EM
Deluder	cloak of displacement	Neutral	Confers stealth and luck Wizards no longer receive this as a guaranteed sacrifice gift, Jedi get it instead.	SLASH'EM
Dirge	mithril long sword	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit, +d12 acid damage The "Dark Knight"'s sword, can only be obtained by chaotic Knights by sacrificing a same race monster on a co-aligned altar while wielding a long sword, elven long sword, or orcish long sword (the exact type makes no difference, Dirge will become a 'long sword' regardless). Confers acid resistance when wielded.	EvilHack
Disrupter	mace	Neutral	+d5 to-hit and +d30 vs undead Grants warning vs undead. The priest's first guaranteed sacrifice gift (SLASH'EM).	SLASH'EM
Doomblade	orcish short sword	Chaotic	+d10 damage On each hit there is a 25% chance Doomblade deals an extra (1d4 * 5) damage.	SLASH'EM
Dramborleg	mithril dwarvish bearded axe	Lawful	Intelligent +d8 to-hit, +d8 damage From LotR. Provides magic resistance and one level of MC when wielded. Can destroy any balrog in one hit. Warns of any demons nearby.	EvilHack
Drowsing Rod	copper staff of healing	Unaligned	+d5 to-hit, +d5 damage Simulates the original drow attack from SLASH'EM; 19 in 20 times the sleep attack triggers and puts the defender to sleep for 2d4 turns. The gas vapor doesn't affect breathless monsters. Grants sleep resistance when wielded First sacrifice gift for the healer.	Hack'EM
Elfrist	orcish spear	Chaotic	Any orcish spear can be #named Elfrist +d5 and double damage vs elves Warns against elves and can instakill elves	SLASH'EM
Firewall	staff of divination	Lawful	Was an athame in SLASH'EM. +d4 to-hit, +d4 fire damage Confers fire resistance when wielded Invoke to summon flame spheres (only Flame Mages can invoke)	SLASH'EM
Gauntlets of Defense	gauntlets of dexterity	Neutral	Provides half physical damage when worn Invoke for invisibility First sacrifice gift for Monks	SLASH'EM
Gleipnir	grappling hook	Unaligned	+d5 to-hit, +d8 damage Based on the bindings used to trap Fenrir. This hook can grapple things regardless of size, and has a massive range.	SpliceHack
Gungnir	atgeir	Neutral	+d20 to-hit, +d12 damage When a player creates Gungnir, it converts the spear held to an atgeir (type of spear) Invoke for a lightning bolt. This acts as the replacement Excalibur for Valkyries. To acquire: Successfully pray as a lawful or neutral pious Valkyrie while wielding a non-artifact spear-like weapon that is at least +5. Beatitude and erosion do not matter. The spear will be turned into Gungnir with no other changes made.	dnh
Hand Grenade of Antioch	fire bomb	Lawful	When armed, this bomb will go off after exactly 3 turns - not 4 nor 5, but 3. When thrown this bomb explodes on impact, dealing 6d50 magical damage. Unlike other bombs, this will *not* be lit accidentally by sources of fire!	SpliceHack
Hellfire	crossbow	Chaotic	Provides fire resistance while wielded. Adds +d5 to-hit bonus and +d7 damage to bolts. Crossbow bolts fired from it cause fiery explosions in a 3x3 square centered on any target they hit, doing an additional 2d6 damage.	SLASH'EM
Spear of Light	silver spear	Lawful	+d5 to-hit and +d10 damage vs undead Grants warning vs undead. Invoke to create a blast of light that severely damages undead. The Spear of Light causes hostility from undead Invoking the Spear of Light lights the entire level. Renamed from "The Holy ..." because of naming and wish conflicts.	SLASH'EM
Houchou	spoon	Chaotic	Insta-kills any target when thrown and it successfully hits. One-time use only. Worth $50000	SLASH'EM
Imhullu	glaive	Neutral	+d4 to-hit, +d5 wind damage Mesopatamian in origin. Grants stability against clobber/hurtle attacks. Invoke for a scroll of air effect Hitting a monster with a tornado does 3d4 bonus damage, takes place 1/3 of the time. Does not affect big monsters.	SpliceHack
Keolewa	club	Neutral	+d5 to-hit, +d8 shock damage Grants shock resistance while wielded.	EvilHack
Kiku-ichimonji	katana	Lawful	+d4 to-hit, +d12 damage Replaces Snickersnee as the new sacrifice gift for Samurai.	SlashTHEM
Lifestealer	two-handed sword	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit, +d2 damage Found wielded by Vlad the Impaler, drains levels and also grants drain resistance when wielded. Cannot be wished for.	EvilHack
Luck Blade	short sword	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit, +d5 damage First sacrifice gift for Convicts Acts like a luckstone.	Convict Patch
Luckless Folly	short sword	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit, +d5 damage This bizarre weapon acts as a cursed luckstone regardless of its BUC status. It gets bonuses to hit and damage based on the opposite of your luck value. Allows for a very unconventional play-style, since getting luck of -13 will give this weapon an automatic +13 to damage and hit, but playing with -13 luck might prove difficult.	SpliceHack
The Marauder's Map	scroll of magic mapping	Chaotic	When read: clairvoyance. If blessed, the Marauder's Map gets a Luck-dependent chance of mapping the entire level. When invoked: artifact detection and magic detection The first sacrifice gift for Pirates. It is also the only artifact that Pirates can receive as a sacrifice gift.	SLASH'EM
The Master Sword	gemstone long sword	Unaligned	+d3 to-hit and +d3 damage Was a "named" silver long sword in the village level from SlashTHEM. If at full health, each hit has a 75% chance of shooting a magic missile for 2d6 damage. Will not fire rays if peacefuls or pets are in the way. 10% of bonus d2*6 magic attack on each successful hit. Has a 5% chance of appearing in the Village in the Town branch, guarded by the ruffians.	SlashTHEM
Mirrorbright	shield of reflection	Neutral	Provides reflection and resistance to hallucination Mirrorbright no longer hinders spell-casting. Healers no longer receive Mirrorbright as a sacrifice gift, they get the Drowsing Rod instead.	SLASH'EM
Mortality Dial	iron executioner's mace	Lawful	+d5 to-hit +d5 damage Provides regeneration while wielded Prevents monsters from regenerating. Prevents trolls and zombies from reviving.	SpliceHack
Mouser's Scalpel	rapier	Neutral	+d5 to-hit, +1 damage. Can deliver a flurry of extra hits, potentially with no limit.	slashem-up
Mystic Eyes	pair of gemstone lenses	Unaligned	(Previously known as Lenses of Death Perception in SpliceHack) Grants DeathVision, death resistance, and automatic searching Autocurses on wear. As long as the wearer is not blind, they deal double damage, but constantly hallucinate. Deathvision's double damage is applied everywhere.	SpliceHack
Origin	staff of escape	Unaligned	+d2 to-hit, +d6 damage While wielded, confers teleport control and spellcasting bonuses. Increases spellcasting ability as a robe would, and its base item ability reduces the cost of escape spells. Grants a discount of 5 energy for spells that cost 10 or more. Occasionally inflicts a teleporting effect on monsters hit by it.	SpliceHack
Plague	orcish bow	Chaotic	Grants +d5 to-hit and +d7 to damage to fired arrows. Arrows fired from Plague are auto-poisoned. Confers sickness resistance while wielded	SLASH'EM
Poseidon's Trident	golden trident	Chaotic	+d3 to-hit, +d7 damage Grants water-breathing. Invoke for water-walking and an earthquake.	SpliceHack
Pridwen	large shield	Lawful	Confers half physical damage and extreme stability while worn.	SpliceHack
Quick Blade	elven short sword	Lawful	+d9 to-hit, +d2 damage	SLASH'EM
Reaper	copper halberd	Lawful	+d5 to-hit, +d20 damage First sacrifice gift for Yeoman	SLASH'EM
Reaver	scimitar	Chaotic	The crowning gift for Pirates; it's the only artifact weapon they are able to receive from their deity (or guaranteed artifact weapon of any kind in the game). +d4 to-hit, +d8 damage. Steals one item from an opponent with each successful hit. Reaver will not steal an item if it causes you to become burdened.	SLASH'EM
Secespita	copper knife	Non-aligned (Chaotic)	+d5 to-hit, +d6 damage The first sacrifice gift for Infidels. It can restore a small amount of magical energy to the one that wields it if used to kill anything living. Secespita also acts as an utility artifact: wielding it while sacrificing a corpse improves its sacrifice value by 50% (rounded down). This is especially useful for Infidels, as they are required to make sacrifices to Moloch on a regular basis to avert his wrath. Secespita is unaligned for Infidels, chaotic for all other roles (bones/wishing purposes).	EvilHack
Serpent's Tongue	dagger	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit Deals double damage to all monsters, and even more to non-poison-resistant enemies: 40% chance of 2 + d6 damage 30% chance of 4 + 2d6 damage 20% chance of 6 + 3d6 damage 10% chance of poison insta-death First sacrifice gift for Necromancers	SLASH'EM
Skullcrusher	club	Lawful	+d3 to-hit, +d10 damage Made of mineral	SLASH'EM
Sunspot	mace	Unaligned	+d5 to-hit, +d5 damage 1/3 chance of blinding on attack. Provides protection against being blinded.	SpliceHack
Sword of Balance	short sword	Neutral	+d2 to-hit, +d5 damage Conveys "extreme stability" (hurtling resistance)	SLASH'EM
Sword of Justice	broadsword	Lawful	+d5 to-hit, +d12 damage versus cross-aligned monsters Yeoman receive this as a second guaranteed sacrifice gift. Used to be a long sword in SLASH'EM Made of steel	SLASH'EM
The End	scythe	Chaotic	+d3 to-hit, +d20 cold damage Provides drain resistance while wielded.	SpliceHack
Thiefbane	platinum long sword	Unaligned	Thiefbane no longer targets humans, it can be wielded by any race. +d5 to-hit, +1 damage 10% chance of beheading defenders Confers warning when wielded Cancels thieves and covetous monsters Protects from thievery and seduction Cannot be wished for	SLASH'EM
Thunderstruck	metal morning star	Unaligned	+d5 to-hit, double sonic damage Provides sonic resistance. On each successful hit, there is a 25% chance of a lightning bolt shooting out. Will not shoot rays if peacefuls or pets are in the way. (previously known as Sonicboom in SpliceHack)	SpliceHack
Wallet of Perseus	bag of holding	Unaligned	Effectively reduces the weight of all items inside it by 1⁄3 if uncursed, compared to 1⁄2 with its base item. When blessed, the weight of its contents is reduced to 1⁄6 compared to 1⁄4 from a blessed bag of holding. Can hold roughly 50% more than a regular bag of holding when non-cursed A cursed Wallet will quadruple the weight of its contents	SLASH'EM
Whisperfeet	speed boots	Neutral	Confers stealth and luck First sacrifice gift for Tourists	SLASH'EM
Windrider	boomerang	Unaligned	+d5 to-hit, and double damage vs all Thrown chakrams slice through monsters and always return to you. Windrider can be multishot (depending on your boomerang skill) Does not shatter if wielded in melee	dNetHack
The Candle of Eternal Flame	magic candle	Lawful	Quest artifact for the Flame Mage Always remains lit, no matter what #invoke to summon a tame Fire elemental Confers cold resistance, teleport control, and warning Grants a passive 2d10 fire attack to attackers while carrying.	SLASH'EM
The Storm Whistle	magic whistle	Neutral	Quest artifact for the Ice Mage No longer grants fire resistance, instead grants shock resistance Also grants warning, teleport control, and searching when carried Can now #invoke to summon random "storm" related pets When carried, the tech timeout for the ice armor tech is halved	SLASH'EM
Great Dagger of Glaurgnaa	great dagger	Chaotic	+d8 to-hit, +d4 drain life vs cross aligned Confers magic resistance when wielded. Quest artifact for the Necromancer For necromancers: grants double spirit bonuses and triples the radius of spirit auto-collection when carried. The energy boost #invoke has been removed in lieu of it's spirit power bonuses.	SLASH'EM
Crown of Saint Edward	helm of telepathy	Lawful	Quest artifact for the Yeoman Confers MR and half spell damage when worn. Made of steel	SLASH'EM
Stake of Van Helsing	wooden stake	Lawful	+d5 to-hit, +d12 vs all monsters Bonus chance of instakilling vampires. Quest artifact for the Undead Slayer Confers MR when wielded. Warns of vampires.	SLASH'EM
Iron Spoon of Liberation	spoon	Chaotic	Convict's quest artifact. Adapted from dnh, this replaces the Iron Ball of Liberation +d5 to-hit, double damage vs all Carrying the spoon confers luck Wielding the spoon confers free action, stealth, and searching. Invoke for temporary phasing. Apply to dig (similar to a pick-axe)	Convict Patch
The Idol of Moloch	figurine	Chaotic	The Infidel's quest artifact a figurine of a horned devil that can be used to easily convert altars to Moloch provides magic resistance when carried. It can also be used to summon demons to aid the Infidel. An Infidel cannot win the game without having the Idol in their possession.	EvilHack
The Ring of P'hul	ring of free action	Chaotic	The Ring of P'hul replaces The Heart of Ahriman as the Barbarian quest artifact. Confers magic resistance when worn and disease resistance when carried.	EvilHack
Gjallar	tooled horn	Neutral	Gjallar replaces The Orb of Fate as the Valkyrie quest artifact. It has the same artifact properties, but it is now a tooled horn instead of a crystal ball and doesn't have half spell damage. Blowing the horn will wake up any sleeping monsters on that level, and its scare radius is larger than that a regular tooled horn. Any monsters directly adjacent to the player when they use Gjallar have a 20% chance of being briefly stunned, and any non-Valkyrie players using it may become temporarily deaf.	EvilHack
Crossbow of Carl	crossbow	Chaotic	+d5 to-hit, +d6 damage If playing as a gnomish Ranger, the Crossbow of Carl replaces The Longbow of Diana as the Ranger quest artifact. It shares all of the same abilities and properties of the former, except it is now a crossbow instead of a bow. Invoking the crossbow produces crossbow bolts instead of arrows. In the hands of a gnomish ranger, its weight is the same as a bow (24 aum), for all others it has the same weight as a regular crossbow. If blessed, has a chance of producing ammo with an object property.	EvilHack
Itlachiayaque	shield of reflection	Lawful	Itlachiayaque replaces the Orb of Detection as the Archeologist quest artifact. When worn: reflection, ESP, half spell damage When carried: fire resistance and warning Invoke for a stinking cloud	Un/xnh
Treasury of Proteus	chest	Chaotic	Pirate quest artifact Weighs just 50 units When carried: magic resistance and acts as a luck item For Pirates only: You are considered "King of the Hill" which attracts a lot of pirate opposition For Pirates only: Periodically polymorphs its contents when carried For Pirates only: Blocks curses	SpliceHack
The Lightsaber Prototype	red lightsaber	Lawful	+d5 to hit bonus and +d10 damage bonus When wielded: reflection When invoked: energy boost Unlike a regular lightsaber, it never runs out of power or needs charging, so it can be wielded indefinitely. Intelligent	SlashTHEM
Staff of Rot	bone staff of necromancy	Chaotic	Has a special wither attack: +0 to-hit, +d12 wither While wielded, inflicts a passive wither attack (and occasional fear on defenders)	Hack'EM
The Eye of the Beholder	eyeball	Neutral	The Eye of the Beholder is an actual body part that comes from the Beholder itself. Grants warning when wielded. When invoked, it causes the Eye to death gaze at all monsters within visual range, either greatly reducing their hit points or killing them outright if they don't have magic resistance. The invoke has been copied from EvilHack's Eye of Vecna. Invoking the Eye can be detrimental, as each use drops the players luck and alignment by three points, and abuses wisdom. Invoking the Eye too often can cause it to turn on the player instead, killing them. It can be eaten, but doing so is strongly discouraged. It can also be sacrificed on an altar for maximum value. Intelligent. Cannot be wished for.	SLASH'EM/EvilHack
The Hand of Vecna	severed hand	Chaotic	The Hand of Vecna is also an extremely powerful artifact that is an actual body part that comes from Vecna himself. Vecna must be destroyed without disintegrating or digesting him in order to obtain the Hand. Its powers include: hungerless regeneration, half physical damage, and cold resistance. When wielded it grants drain resistance. It can be invoked to summon undead. Invoking its magic has consequences. Cannot be wished for. One drastic change from SLASH'EM is that the hand now weighs a base of 300aum. The Hand of Vecna is a heavy burden to bear, but it grants some coveted abilities. The Necromancer role has the advantage on other roles in that it can carry The Hand with only a burden of 1 aum.	SLASH'EM
Nighthorn	unicorn horn	Chaotic	Added +1 to-hit and +d3 damage bonus Nighthorn can be applied to cure fear if non-cursed If applied while cursed, it will always make you afraid. Confers stun resistance while wielded. Carrying a cursed Nighthorn will periodically scare the player. Cannot be wished for.	SLASH'EM
Key of Law	skeleton key	Lawful	Cannot be wished for.	SLASH'EM
Key of Chaos	skeleton key	Chaotic	Cannot be wished for.	SLASH'EM
Key of Neutrality	skeleton key	Neutral	Cannot be wished for.	SLASH'EM
Key of Access	skeleton key	Unaligned	Cannot be wished for. Two alignment keys can be forged together to create this key. Invoke for branchport.	SLASH'EM

Changes to existing artifacts

Artifact	Changes
Cleaver	Cleaver attacks in a wide arc, hitting enemies on the 2 spots adjacent to where you are attacking. If a peaceful monster is in the way of the arc - we won't execute the wide arc unless the player explicitly says so. If Cleaver is cursed, this protection is waived and it will cleave anything.
Demonbane	Silver heavy mace +d5 to-hit and double-damage vs demons Grants warning against demons Blocks demon gating while wielded Can be invoked for levitation
Dragonbane	An indestructible broadsword Provides reflection, acid resistance, and warns against dragons.
Excalibur	+d5 to-hit, +d10 damage Only lawful Knights can dip for Excalibur Note: there's a danger that the sword will rust away completely when you do (if not fixed).
Eyes of the Overworld	Now protects the wearer against many forms of gaze attacks, greatly reducing the need for the player to have to remove them to blind themselves with a blindfold or towel. Take note, Medusa's petrifying gaze attack is too powerful and will overcome the EotO's protection.
Fire Brand	Now a steel short sword. Engraving with Fire Brand burns engravings on the floor
Frost Brand	Now a steel short sword.
Grimtooth	Now has a sickness-inducing attack Has a 1 in 6 chance of making its target terminally ill. Grants sickness resistance while wielded.
Magicbane	No longer an athame, switched to a quarterstaff. None of its special abilities or functions have otherwise been changed. Magicbane no longer cancels inventory items. Magicbane is safe for any Bag of Holding.
Magic Mirror of Merlin	Has had magic resistance removed. In its place are reflection and half spell damage when carried.
Mitre of Holiness	Allows #pray and #turn to function in Gehennom when worn.
Mjollnir	Base type is now heavy war hammer
Ogresmasher	Base type is now heavy war hammer Ogresmasher can knock back enemies.
Sceptre of Might	Base type changed from a mace to an executioner's mace, dealing much more damage per hit.
Snickersnee	Grants stun resistance when wielded
Sting	Changed to Lawful (same alignment as elves) Sting also warns of spiders. (EvilHack)
Orcrist	Changed to Lawful (same alignment as elves)
Staff of Aesculapius	It's #invoke also cures afraid and larval infection.
Sunsword	Made of gemstone (crystal)
Tsurugi of Muramasa	Raised bisection chance to 15% Now confers half physical damage when wielded.
Vorpal Blade	Raised beheading chance to 10%. Wielding Vorpal Blade protects against decapitation attacks.