Water walking

Water walking is a property in NetHack that allows you to walk over deep water without drowning.

Currently, the only source of water walking in the game is a worn pair of water walking boots.

Description

Water walking lets you walk over moats, pools and swamps as if they were normal land it can also work for walking on lava, you will sustain damage unless you have fire resistance and risk destroying whatever item confers the property if it is flammable - this will plunge you into the lava, with possibly fatal results. Water walking does not work on the Plane of Water, as you are situated in air bubbles within the water rather than above.

Displacing a pet while standing on water this way will cause them to drown unless they can swim or fly, and standing on water has no effect on drowning attacks.

Strategy

Players walking over water can #dip as much as they want without fear of releasing monsters as with fountains; however, giant eels and kraken are just as much a danger as before, and nymphs and foocubi can cause you to disrobe and take off your boots, sending you plunging to a possible doom. Take care to avoid sea monster-infested waters when dipping, unless you plan to cross quickly or else dispatch potential drowning hazards.

Variants

Variants often introduce additional sources of water walking; see the article on water walking boots for relevant changes to them in variants.

SLASH'EM

In SLASH'EM, water walking becomes a more vital property to have due to the presence of the create pool monster spell on hostile spellcasters in the late game.

dNetHack

In dNetHack, Monks gain intrinsic water walking at experience level 21. The Lance of Longinus is an artifact lance that can be invoked to toggle the water walking property.

Binders that have Eurynome bound gain water walking, as well as increased speed while on water.

FIQHack

In FIQHack, water walking is one of the intrinsic properties a non-cursed potion of wonder can confer when quaffed; dipping an appropriate item in a non-cursed potion also has a chance of giving it water walking as an object property.

EvilHack

In EvilHack, Monks gain water walking at experience level 23. Monsters are capable of water walking if they put on a pair of water walking boots.

A hero with intrinsic water walking can submerge themselves at will with >, and while underwater can resurface at any time with <.