NetHack Fourk

NetHack Fourk is a NetHack variant based on the NetHack 4 codebase but with a more experimental approach to game-play changes (but still conservative compared to heavily modified variants like Slash'em and dnethack).

Public Server

A public server is available on nethack.xd.cm.

Changes

In addition to the NetHack 4 interface and AI enhancements, Fourk has made a number of gameplay changes. These fall into two major categories:

• Balance Adjustments
  • Death drops are more common in the early game but are less common when killing many of the same kind of monster (e.g., pudding farming).
  • Engraving is more reliable if done infrequently, less reliable if frequently abused.
  • Alignment record is a significant strategic concern. Notably, you no longer get alignment points for killing most monsters. You get warning messages when losing alignment.
  • The chance-to-hit formula relies on skill, so restricted weapons are hard to hit with.
  • Unicorn horns degrade when used to fix attribute loss.
  • Falling rock traps do not generate on early dungeon levels.
  • Arrows and darts do more damage.
  • The Wizard of Yendor can change your alignment (if you are not pious).
  • Early poison attacks are less likely to kill you outright.
  • Rings are easier to identify in the early game. (Wands of enlightenment are often generated early in the game, and dropping rings into a sink only buries them under the sink, rather than destroying them. They can be recovered by digging.)
  • Minetown is more likely to have a general store.
  • Luck penalties in Sokoban do not apply if you are carrying a non-cursed luckstone or have entered the Sokoban zoo. The penalty can also be dodged via hallucination.
  • Wands of wishing are not rechargeable; but there are guaranteed single-use wishes in Vlad's Tower, the Wizard's Tower, and Orcus Town.
  • The Backstab bonus depends on weapon skill.
  • Spears are more common in the early game.
  • The odds of thrown or fired projectiles breaking decreases as your skill increases.
  • Engravings do not degrade as easily, especially from non-fighting actions (such as walking).

• Differentiation / Variety
  • The floating eyes' passive attack does damage directly, rather than paralyzing.
  • More monsters have unique attacks (e.g., pit fiends, ice devils, hezrou).
  • Some monsters have been moved to different letter classes (e.g., leprechauns are lowercase i) or have changed colors (e.g., acid blobs are yellow).
  • Valkyries fly and get better starting armor but start with a spear or war hammer instead of the long sword; and some of their weapon skill caps are reduced.
  • Barbarians have improved melee weapon skill caps, and the Heart of Ahriman has a remove curse effect when invoked.
  • Knights, Samurai, and Valkyries get strategically important items from their quests (lances, ya, and cone of cold, respectively).
  • The Caveman quest text is rewritten in 4.3.0.2.
  • Monkeys are better at stealing something and getting away.
  • The Oracle can sell you enlightenment, and Oracle prices are reduced.
  • Sokoban has more variety of levels.
  • The Wizard of Yendor can get interesting items in his inventory.
  • Mazes in Gehennom can have wider corridors and/or wider walls. Occasionally, the "walls" can be made of something other than wall, e.g., lava or iron bars.

External Links

• Source Repository
• Changelog (master)
• Changelog (bleeding-edge)
• Public Server (ssh nethack@nethack.xd.cm to play)