Aasimar (starting race in dNetHack)

This article is about the race in dNetHack, notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack. For the playable race in EvilHack, see Aasimar (starting race in EvilHack).

For other instances of the term, see Aasimar (disambiguation).

The aasimar is a playable race of hero that appears in dNetHack, notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack. Aasimars are celestial-descended beings with holy auras. Basic aasimar traits are shared by all aasimar, while advanced traits are determined by the specific celestial type the aasimar descends from.

Aasimars can be of any alignment. Most aasimar heroes are randomly assigned one of three celestial types at character creation, without regard for their starting alignment: archon, deva, or eladrin. Madman aasimars instead receive a type determined by their starting alignment: lawful Madmen become seraphs, neutral Madmen become priminals, and chaotic Madmen become cloud-faced beings.

All aasimar heroes possess a holy aura that improves their AC and grants additional defensive or offensive properties depending on their type. Their racial special spell affinity is abjuration, reducing spell difficulty by 20.

Racial benefits and restrictions

As holy beings, aasimar heroes take extra damage from unholy sources (+1d9 from the typical cursed weapon), and suffer reduced regeneration if a cursed item is worn touching the skin. The bare flesh of an aasimar hero can sear unholy beings.

All aasimar heroes gain shock resistance at level 1. In addition, their holy aura grants a base AC bonus that improves with level: -1 AC at level 1, -2 AC at level 7, and -3 AC at level 21.

Beginning at level 7, the holy aura also grants damage reduction depending on the aasimar's type. Many aasimar types additionally gain secondary aura manifestations at level 14, such as wings, extra arms, storm discharges, or other supernatural effects.

Attributes

Character Race	Strength	Dexterity	Constitution	Intelligence	Wisdom	Charisma
Aasimar	20	18	14	18	20	18

HP gain	Starting HP	Pre-cutoff	Post-cutoff
Aasimar	2	1d4	1
Energy gain	Starting energy	Pre-cutoff	Post-cutoff
Aasimar	1	2	2

Aasimars have high strength and wisdom and strong overall physical and mental attributes, though their constitution cap is comparatively low at 14.

Types

Archon

Archon-descended aasimar develop shining halos that protect the head and wings of light. Their aura also infuses their weapon attacks.

At level 7, Archons begin emitting light with a radius equal to their level divided by 7, and their holy aura grants +3 DR to the head slot. Their aura also begins infusing weapon strikes with celestial power: positively-aligned Archons deal bonus holy damage on hit, while negatively-aligned Archons instead deal unholy damage.

At level 14, an Archon's aura forms into wings, granting permanent flight.

At level 21, the holy aura's head-slot protection increases to +7 DR, while the aura's infused weapon damage also improves further.

Alignment state	Levels 7–13	Levels 14–20	Levels 21+
Positive	+1d7 holy	+3d7 holy	+7d7 holy
Negative	+1d9 unholy	+3d9 unholy	+6d9 unholy

Deva

Deva-descended aasimars develop shining aureoles that shield the torso and manifest additional limbs of light.

At level 7, Devas begin emitting faint light with radius 1. Their holy aura also grants +2 DR to the upper torso and +1 DR to the head and lower torso.

At level 14, a Deva's aura forms into additional arms, enabling extra unarmed strikes. From levels 14–27, they gain two additional arm attacks dealing 2d8 damage each.

At level 24, the holy aura's protection improves to +4 DR for the upper torso and +2 DR for the head and lower torso.

At level 28, the aura manifests additional limbs again, increasing the number of bonus arm attacks from two to four.

Eladrin

Eladrin-descended aasimars possess unstable auras that fluctuate between protective radiance and wild magical discharges.

At level 7, Eladrin gain +1 DR to all body slots from their holy aura.

At level 14, all Eladrin have their aura destabilize, gaining a subtype-specific effect.

At level 30, the holy aura's protection increases from +1 DR to +3 DR on all body slots.

Subtypes

Eladrin are assigned a subtype at character creation. There is a 6/7 chance to receive one of the common subtypes—Coure, Noviere, Bralani, Firre, Shiere, or Ghaele—with each appearing at equal probability (so each has a 1/7 overall probability). There is also a 1/7 chance to receive one of the uncommon subtypes: Tulani, Gae, Brighid, Uiscerre, or Caillea, each with a 1/35 overall probability.

At level 14, the Coure's aura forms blades of starlight that attack one adjacent foe each turn for 4d4 star damage.

At level 14, the Gae's aura forms reaching vines that attack adjacent foes each turn for 4d4 ensnaring damage. The attack chance increases with level and becomes guaranteed at level 30.

All other Eladrin subtypes are "Storm" Eladrin and gain magical storm discharges at level 14. Each turn, the aura may fire a spell effect at a visible hostile target within bolt range. The attack becomes more reliable against nearby targets and increases in frequency with level, becoming nearly guaranteed at level 30.

Subtype	Storm spell(s)
Noviere	Geyser (2/3) or Hail Fury (1/3)
Bralani	Sandstorm (2/3) or Hail Fury (1/3)
Firre	Fire Pillar (2/3) or Lightning (1/3)
Shiere	Moon Beam (2/3) or Hail Fury (1/3)
Ghaele	Lightning (2/3) or Hail Fury (1/3)
Tulani	Lightning, Ice Storm, or Fire Pillar (equal chance)
Brighid	Pyro Storm (2/3) or God Ray (1/3)
Uiscerre	Geyser (always)
Caillea	Ice Storm (2/3) or Starfall (1/3)

Madman types

Seraph

Seraphs are lawful-aligned Madman aasimars. Seraph-descended aasimars develop blazing halos and should have many eyes. However, the player-character's eyes were stolen, causing them to begin play with severely impaired vision.

At level 7, Seraphs begin emitting bright light with a radius equal to their level divided by 4, and their holy aura grants +3 DR to the head slot.

At level 14, a Seraph's aura forms into wings, granting permanent flight.

At level 21, the holy aura's protection increases to +7 DR for the head slot.

As Seraphs recover their stolen eyes from the Madman quest, they regain their supernatural vision powers:

Eye recovered	Ability gained
1	Can now see lit squares normally, rather than only squares lit by light sources.
2	See invisible
3	Detect hidden things
4	Detect evil and curses
5	Detect magical auras
6	Extramission
7	See one instant into the future

Priminal

Priminals are neutral-aligned Madman aasimars, and are something like monkeys, something like dragons, and something like shoggoths. However, the player-character begins the game having forgotten some of their more unusual physical traits, and so fails to put them to use.

At level 7, Priminals become thick-skinned, gain acid resistance, begin emitting faint light with radius 1, and holy aura protection of +2 DR to the upper torso and +1 DR to the head and lower torso. They also gain a natural DR bonus equal to their level divided by 10.

At level 14, Priminals gain stoning resistance.

At level 24, the holy aura's protection improves to +4 DR for the upper torso and +2 DR for the head and lower torso.

Priminals remember their more unusual physical traits when they recover their posessions from the Madman quest.

Gelatinous Form

• An acid-touch offhand attack. Can be used in combination with offhand unarmed combat.
• A suction pseudopod attack when not wearing hard full-body armor, which can cause struck targets to stick to the PC.
• Additional natural DR to all body slots that stacks with the type's base DR bonus.
• Polearm jumping using a quarterstaff or khakkhara, scaling from Quarterstaff and Martial Arts skill.
• The ability to engage in mid-air combat (such as when jumping).

Prehensile Tail

• Each turn in combat, there is a 7/8 chance to steal an item from one adjacent hostile monster.
• Two-handed weapons may be wielded in one hand.

Cloudface

Cloudfaces are chaotic-aligned Madman aasimars. Aasimars descended from surreal cloud-faced beings and possess fragmented halos and multiple sets of mouths. They cannot, however, percieve many of their more unusual physical traits until they have accumulated sufficient Insight, reducing the impact of those traits and causing them to mis-attribute the some of the things that they do or say.

They have strange mouths on their palms and shoulders. Their palm-mouths handle eating and drinking, their shoulders breathe, speak, and whisper prayers.

At level 7, Cloudfaces gain +3 DR to the head slot from their holy aura.

At level 21, the holy aura also grants +3 DR to the upper torso and arms if Insight is at least 21. Cloudfaces additionally begin emitting light at radius 1, increasing by 1 every four levels thereafter.

Palm Mouths

The mouths set into the palms handle all eating and drinking. Eating and drinking become impossible if the palm mouths are blocked by cursed gloves or regular gloves if no free hand is available.

Without gloves, Cloudfaces gain enhanced unarmed attacks that deal at least 1d8 damage and have the slash, pierce, and whack damage types.

Shoulder Mouths

The shoulder mouths independently handle breathing and speech. Because of this separate respiration system, strangulation does not prevent eating, drinking, or speaking.

Armor or clothing that covers the shoulders blocks the shoulder mouths unless modified with the Shoulder-Baring property. Each blocked layer applies penalties to HP regeneration, energy regeneration, and prayer-effect frequency. The Shoulder-Baring modification can be added with upgrade kits.

The mouths mumble constantly, alerting nearby monsters to the PC's exact position. Occasionally, this mumbling forms prayers and spells. The frequency of intelligible utterances increases with level and insight, and decreases when the shoulder mouths are obstructed.

Possible effects include:

• Mapping and divination effects
• Healing and mass healing
• Turning undead or demons
• Protection and abjuration
• Item repair, blessing, identification, or enchantment
• Intrinsic-granting and ability-boosting effects

Musical performances gain a bonus due to the harmonizing mouths.

Gaze Attack

Each turn, Cloudfaces automatically perform a passive wizegaze attack against visible creatures. Living creatures may become demoralized, with effectiveness scaling by Insight.

Nonliving creatures, tomb herd, primordials, alienists, Great Old Ones, creatures wearing Faceless gear, and sufficiently discouraged creatures are immune.

Additional Effects

Cloudfaces gain several additional passive benefits:

• Large monsters drop spellbooks at triple the normal rate when killed.
• Eladrin and Lillend monsters become peaceful at alignment record 20 or higher.
• Alabaster elf monsters are always peaceful.

Dokkimar

The Dokkimar are an aasimar-drow hybrid race exclusive to Healers.

Attributes

Character Race	Strength	Dexterity	Constitution	Intelligence	Wisdom	Charisma
Dokkimar	18/**	20	12	20	20	20

HP gain	Starting HP	Pre-cutoff	Post-cutoff
Dokkimar	6	1d6	1
Energy gain	Starting energy	Pre-cutoff	Post-cutoff
Dokkimar	6	1d6	1d4

Dokkimar gain shock resistance at level 1 and sleep resistance at level 4.

Iksh'na

Iksh'na are currently the only Dokkimar aasimar type. They do not emit light, and their level-up bonuses are mostly eye-based physical mutations rather than aura-derived powers.

Beginning at level 7, Iksh'na gain +1 DR to all slots, increasing to +2 DR at level 30.

Iksh'na gain eye-based mutations at fixed level milestones:

Level	Mutation pool
7	A "single eye" mutation: Paralysis Gaze, Cancel Gaze, or Probing Gaze
14	A "many eyes" mutation: Beholder gazes, Discovery, or Many Odd Eyes
21	Random eligible eye-slot mutation, excluding "single eye" mutations (the level 7 pool) and redundant mutations.

The level 21 mutation excludes duplicates, overlapping effect groups, and can't be a second "one large eye" mutation.

Starting equipment

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Strategy

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Origin

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