Amulet of unchanging
An amulet of unchanging is a type of amulet that appears in NetHack.
Contents
Generation
Amulets of unchanging are the least common type of amulet, and make up 9⁄200 (4.5%) of all amulets randomly generated on the ground, in general shops or as death drops. Jewelers shops can also stock amulets of unchanging.
Description
A hero that puts on an amulet of unchanging gains the unchanging property, which prevents them from polymorphing or changing form by any other means including sliming (but not stoning). A hero that puts on an amulet of unchanging while afflicted with sliming will be immediately cured of it. Monsters will not use this item.
If a hero dies while polymorphed and they are wearing an amulet of unchanging, they will die in their current form instead of being returned to their normal self in most cases. The exceptions are listed below, and will return the hero to normal form even if they are wearing the amulet:
- While in the form of a wood or leather golem, the hero is hit by a brown pudding bite and rots away.[1]
- While in the form of an iron golem, the hero is hit by a rust monster attack and rusts away.[2]
- While in the form of a clay golem, the hero is hit by the intrinsic-stealing attack of a gremlin and the writing that animates their body disappears.[3]
- While in the form of an undead monster, the hero prays to their god.
Wearing a cursed amulet of unchanging while in the form of a monster with no hands is considered a major trouble by the hero's god, and successful prayer will uncurse the amulet so they can remove it and eventually return to their base form.
If the hero is polymorphed into a metallivore, eating the amulet has a 1⁄5 chance of successfully absorbing its magic and "un-changing" them to their normal form.
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.
Per commit 3c94b276, the amulet of unchanging cannot be polymorphed.
Per commit 43af05a6, a hero that improvises with a musical instrument and is not deaf, will produce "familiar" music if they are wearing an amulet of unchanging.Strategy
If discovered early, the amulet of unchanging can be a good "poor man's substitute" for magic resistance when dealing with polymorph traps in areas such as the Gnomish Mines beyond Minetown. If you are riding and do not have magic resistance, an amulet of unchanging will also protect your steed from polymorph traps. The amulet of unchanging can also suppress unwanted polymorphing from other sources, such as lycanthropy.
Amulets of unchanging are often used to remain in a particular monster form (usually a powerful one chosen via polymorph control) for various strategies, which is especially handy if you lack a reusable source of polymorph—in exchange for this potential, the hero risks any death that occurs becoming permanent where it would not be otherwise. It can also become a literal life-saver if you accidentally genocide your role or race while polymorphed.
Identification
The amulet of unchanging is most reliably identified by wearing the suspected amulet while eating a mimic corpse: the hero will not turn into a pile of gold (or an orange if hallucinating) if the amulet is unchanging and otherwise will not affect their armor as other forms of polymorph do, at worst dismounting the hero from their steed if they are riding.
For polyselfless, vegan and/or vegetarian conducts, the best alternative is to polymorph yourself while wearing the suspected amulet and a known ring of polymorph control, which allows you to specify a safe form if you do polymorph; if you intend to use a polytrap for this purpose, you must remove any source of magic resistance as well. If the amulet is unchanging, the polymorph trap will not disappear and you will receive the standard message for a blocked polymorph. ("You feel momentarily different.")
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.
As indicated by the above commits, musical instruments provide an additional method to identify the amulet. The blessed potion of polymorph will also give a controlled polymorph when quaffed, providing another way to informally identify the amulet without breaking polyselfless conduct.History
The amulet of unchanging first appears in NetHack 3.3.0.
Variants
Some variants grant the amulet of unchanging further properties.
SLASH'EM
In SLASH'EM, an amulet that is polymorphed into an amulet of unchanging will not revert to its original object like other polymorphed items.
UnNetHack
In UnNetHack, amulets of unchanging cannot be polymorphed.
Hack'EM
In Hack'EM, doppelganger Convicts start each game with a cursed amulet of unchanging, which prevents them from polymorphing or liquid leaping out of the chained heavy iron ball as early as turn 1. Once removed and uncursed, they can use the amulet as a means to keep themselves locked into powerful forms (usually obtained from applying a mask) or to avoid being polymorphed by traps and other monsters.
See also
References
- ↑ src/mhitu.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 1458
- ↑ src/mhitu.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 1440: Hit by rusting attack while poly'd
- ↑ src/mhitu.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 1537
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