Chaos Temple Quest

The Chaos Temple Quest (informally "chaos1") is one of three possible variants for the Chaos Quest in dNethack.

A user has suggested improving this page or section as follows:

"Continue fleshing out article starting from Ancient Temple stairs/ladders, expand References tab maybe?"

Areas

Branch entrance

.  |.|...                         ...|.|  .
.  |.|.-...-...             ...-...-.|.|  .
.  |.|...............................|.|  .
.--|.|-------------------------------|.|--.
.||.....................................||.
.||.-|------------|-|^|-|------------|-.||.
.|---|            |-...-|            |---|.
..........................................




                   >---<
                   ..-..
                   .....

The two fixed "rooms" shown above are embedded in a Gnomish Mines-style cavern, which may additionally feature a network of maze-like passages. The up and down stairs are located close together at the bottom center of the map, while the magic portal to the branch proper is placed in the marked location at the top center of the map.

Fourteen acid blobs are generated on level creation - random monster generation is biased toward chaotic monsters. There are twelve each of the following traps laid around the level: anti-magic fields, magic traps, teleportation traps, and level teleporters. Fourteen random items are also scattered around the level; both these items and the traps may be generated embedded in the walls of the level.

Ruined Temple

               |---|            |-----|            |---|                    
 ,,#,,,,,,,,,,}|(|.|------------| ... |------------|.|(|,,,,},,,#,,,,#,,,,} 
 ,,,},,#,,#,,,}|.+..............---.---..............+.|,#,,#,,,,,,,,,,##,, 
 ,#,,#,,,,,,#,}--|.|-----------|.......|-----------|.|--,,,,,,,,#,,,,,,,,,, 
 ,,##,,,#,,,,,,,#|.|...........----.----...........|.|,#,#,,,,#,,,,,#,,,,#, 
 ,,,,,#,,,#,,,#,,|.|...............................|.|,,,,,,,,,,,#,},,#,#,, 
 ,#,,,#,#,,#,,,,#|.-|.............-.-.............|-.|,,#,,,#,,#,,,,,,,,,,, 
 ,,,,#,,#,,,#,,,--|.|........|-----------|........|.|--,,#,,,,,,,,,,#,}#,,, 
 #,,#,,,,,,,#,#,| |.|.......||.(.......(.||.......|.| |,,,,,#,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 
 ,,,-,,,-,,,-,,,|.-.-.-.-.-.|.-.`.._..`.-.|.-.-.-.-.-.|,,,-,,,-,,,-,,,-,,,- 
 ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,+...........|....`-^-`....|...........+,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 
 ,,,-,,,-,,,-,,,|.-.-.-.-.-.|.-.`..@..`.-.|.-.-.-.-.-.|,,,-,,,-,,,-,,,-,,,- 
 ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,| |.|.......||.(.-...-.(.||.......|.| |,,,#,,,,,#,,,,,,,,,, 
 #,,,,,#,,,#,,,,--|.|........|---| . |---|........|.|--,#,,,#,,,,,#,,,,,#,, 
 ,#,,,,,,,,,,,,,#|.-|............|-+-|............|-.|,,,,,,#,,#,,,##,#,,,# 
 ,,,,#,,#,,,,,#,#|.|...............................|.|#,,#,,,},,,,#,,#,,,#, 
 ,,#,,,,,,,#,,,,}|.|...........----+----...........|.|,,#,#,#,,,}#,,,,,#,,, 
 ,,,}#,#,#,,,,,--|.|-----------|.......|-----------|.|--,},,,,,#,,,,#,},,,# 
 ,,#,,,,,,,,#,,|.+..............---+---..............+.|,,#,,#,,,},#,#,,#,, 
 ,,,,,,,#,,,},,|(|.|------------| ... |------------|.|(|,,,#,,,#,#,,#,,#,,, 
               |---|            |- ^ -|            |---|                    

The magic portal from the branch level leads into the southernmost square marked below; a second magic portal is in the center of the map that takes you to the "past", leading to the Ancient Temple map below. This entire floor and its walls are undiggable; both the forest outside of the temple and the central room within it are fully lit. The center door on the western side, all the doors on the eastern side and the door leading to the central room are locked.

Twelve goblins and three hobgoblins are randomly generated in the grassy forest outside of the temple at level creation, along with six random items. Sixteen zombies and three random items are scattered throughout the temple outside the central room, as well as nine piles of gold which each have a ³⁄₄ chance of generating.

Within the central room, Sir Garland awaits just in front of the portal to the Ancient Temple; a heavy iron ball is generated on the same square as the portal, and north of it is an unaligned altar to a god known as Chaos. Arranged around the room are several cursed statues of Garland and the Four Fiends of Chaos, each represented by the underlined and colored glyph of the monster they depict - both the statues and four uncursed Crystals are embedded in the walls on the marked squares. Under each Crystal and also embedded in their wall is a statue of that Crystal's guardian.

These four Crystals can be retrieved safely by kicking the walls containing them, but will subject you to artifact blasts and evade your attempts to pick them up until you purify them. To do so, you must defeat each of their guardians elsewhere in the branch - the fifth Crystal can only be obtained after purifying the other four, which will change their glyph colors from those shown on the map to the ones listed below. Clockwise from the top left:

• Kraken, the Fiend of Water, ;, must be defeated to purify the Water Crystal, (.
• Tiamat, the Fiend of Wind, D, must be defeated to purify the Air Crystal, (.
• Kary, the Fiend of Fire, &, must be defeated to purify the Fire Crystal, (.
• Lich, the Fiend of Earth, L, must be defeated to purify the Earth Crystal, (.

The four chests in the corners of the temple each contain one item, in clockwise order from top left:

• An uncursed potion of healing.
• The blessed -2 Werebuster.
• A cursed +3 runesword, which has a 1/20 chance to be generated as an artifact.
• An uncursed +0 leather hat.

Ancient Temple

###############|---|#############.-.-.#############|---|####################
##...#.#.#.#.#.|>..|------------|.....|------------|..<|....}#.#}}.#.#.#..}#
##.#}#.#...#..}|................--- ---................|.###.#.##}.#...###.#
## # # # # # .}--|.|-----------|.......|-----------|.|-- # # # # # # # # # #
#################|.|...........---- ----...........|.|######################
## # # # # # # # |.|...............................|.| # # # # # # # # # # #
#################|.-|.............-.-.............|-.|######################
## # # # # # # #--|.|........|-----------|........|.|--# # # # # # # #}# # #
################|.| |.......||. ....... .||.......| |.|#####################
-. .-. .-. .-. @|.-.-.-.-.-.|.-. .._.. .-.|.-.-.-.-.-.|@ .-. .-. .-. .-. .-.
................+...........|.... -^- ....|...........+.....................
-. .-. .-. .-. @|.-.-.-.-.-.|.-. . . . .-.|.-.-.-.-.-.|@ .-. .-. .-. .-. .-.
################|.|.|.......||. .-...-. .||.......|.|.|#####################
## # # # # # # #--|.|........|---| . |---|........|.|--# # # # # # # # # # #
#################|.-|............|-+-|............|-.|######################
## # # # # # # # |.|...............................|.| # # # } # # # # # # #
####.###########}|.|...........----+----...........|.|##########}#####.#####
## .}. # # # # --|.|-----------|.......|-----------|.|-- } # # # # # #}. # #
###############|................--- ---................|#########}##########
## # # # # #}# |>..|------------|.....|------------|..<| # # # # # # # # # #
###############|---|#############.-.-.#############|---|####################

The map above is the floor as it appears in the game files, before level creation takes place and the mazewalk algorithm is applied to the forest sections in each corner - the pools of water and displayed floor squares near them are the only fixed terrain, and the algorithm constructs a random path through each set of trees. The magic portal leading here from the Ruined Temple occupies the same square as it does there, with a heavy iron ball occupying that square as well, and the altar to Chaos on the square north of it; there are stairways in the southernmost corners of the building, and ladders in the northernmost corners. All doors are closed, and all except the door across from the central room are locked.

Twelve Mordor orcs, two orc shamans, two ogres, two trolls, and an orc-captain are placed randomly within the forest area outside of the temple, as well as eight random objects, two random potions and a random weapon. Four hostile player monster knights named Black Knights are stationed just outside the west and east doors of the temple at the marked locations, with plate mail on each one's square - they are also generated with the usual monster starting inventory for their role. Inside the temple, six clay golems and three stone golems are placed randomly in the exterior section, along with three random objects and two random weapons.

Origin

The entire branch and the artifacts and bosses within are derived from Final Fantasy, the first game in the series of the same name. The Chaos Shrine, also known as the Temple of Fiends and Temple of Chaos depending on the port, is a dungeon in the game that bookends the events of the plot (spoilered in the tab below).

• References
• Plot spoiler

The four items in the Ruined Temple chests are based on items found in the Final Fantasy Chaos Shrine: a basic Potion used for healing, the Leather Cap, the Rune Blade and the Werebuster. In Final Fantasy, the Rune Blade has an attack stat 3 points higher than the Broadsword, while Werebuster has 2 fewer attack points than the Longsword; this is the basis for the enchantment of both items in dNetHack.

The Warriors of Light, an adventuring party of four youths who each hold one of the four elemental Crystals, travel to the Shrine to defeat the fallen Cornelian knight Garland and free his hostage, Princess Sarah. From there, the party then travels the world to fight the Four Fiends, each of whom guard a larger power-drained crystal of their respective element, and defeat them in order to restore the Crystals.

The power of those four Crystals were funneled into a fifth Dark Crystal within the Chaos Shrine, which opens a portal to the past; once the Crystals are restored, the party discover that the Fiends were sent by their master from two thousand years in the past. Using the Dark Crystal, the Warriors travel to the past and defeat the Four Fiends again before discovering Garland is still alive - he was sent to the past by the Four Fiends of the present when he was at death's door after his defeat; Garland then sent the Four Fiends in the past to the present, creating a time loop that makes him immortal. Garland then absorbs the Fiends' power and transforms into Chaos to do battle with the heroes, but is defeated, breaking the time loop and restoring the land.