Amnesia

Amnesia is an effect in NetHack that causes the player character to forget some of the knowledge they have accrued.

Description

A character afflicted by amnesia will potentially forget known spells, dungeon level maps, annotations, and even the identities of items - entering a level whose map is forgotten due to amnesia will print a message. There are two sources of amnesia:

• a read scroll of amnesia
• an intelligence-draining attack, specifically the tentacle attacks of mind flayers and master mind flayers

Monsters will not read the scroll of amnesia, and brain-eating attacks only apply extra damage to other monsters.

The following information pertains to an upcoming version (NetHack 3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.

Amnesia now forgets spells and skills; object identities and maps are not forgotten. Also, mind flayers no longer cause amnesia.

Strategy

Amnesia is often a devastating occurrence for characters - not only is it one of many reasons why reading random scrolls is a Bad Idea, but it is also one of the primary reasons behind the mind flayer's status as a gain-ruining menace. With this in mind, the best way to deal with amnesia is to avoid it as much as possible:

• Formally or informally identifying scrolls can detect a scroll of amnesia and make it easier to avoid.
• Mind flayers are enough of a threat with amnesia alone to warrant a scroll of genocide, or even a blessed one if the character is not a dwarf that would be wiped out by the scroll.
• Some especially paranoid players will name one item out of each particular type that is considered vital and/or does not auto-identify itself.

History

Amnesia as a mechanic first appears in Hack 1.0.

Messages

Thinking of Maud you forget everything else.
Who was that Maud person anyway?

You forgot the current level map along with other information due to reading a scroll of amnesia.

As your mind turns inward on itself, you forget everything else.

As above, but the character was named Maud.

Your mind releases itself from mundane concerns.

As above, while hallucinating.

You have a sense of deja vu.

You entered a level whose map you forgot.

The following information pertains to an upcoming version (NetHack 3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.

The "deja vu" message is associated with bones instead - adjust the message redirect so it points to that article.

Variants

SLASH'EM

SLASH'EM adds the potion of amnesia, which causes amnesia when thrown or quaffed, and adds the migo queen, a monster with an intelligence-draining sting.