Graffiti
Graffiti refers to the random messages engraved on the floors of the Dungeons of Doom. These messages are often helpful tips, but sometimes are silly.
There are various non-random types of engravings which are not graffiti. Conversely, graves use random epitaphs that come from a different pool of messages and cannot be changed, so they are also not graffiti.
Graffiti generates most frequently at the topmost floors and less often deeper into the dungeon. They are fairly rare: each room on level 1 has a 1/30 chance of having graffiti in it somewhere, each room on level 2 has a 1/33 chance, and so on.
You can create graffiti on the floor by engraving with a magic marker. It will degrade as fast as a semipermanent engraving.
Random messages
Graffiti messages are drawn randomly from three sources:
- engrave.txt, a list of various floor engravings (25% chance)
- rumors.tru, the list of true rumors (37.5% chance)
- rumors.fal, the list of false rumors (37.5% chance)
Note that engrave.txt allows a few misleading messages to generate as graffiti, such as "Elbereth" (which would normally indicate a bones level), "Vlad was here", and "ad aerarium". However, graffiti always appears as "graffiti"; player-written Elbereth engravings rarely come from markers, and the other types of engravings always appear written in dust.
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