Disenchanter

R Disenchanter
Difficulty	14
Attacks	Claw: disenchants

R Disenchanter
Difficulty	14
Attacks	Claw: disenchants
Base level	12
Base experience	272
Speed	12
Base AC	-10
Base MR	0
Alignment	-3 (chaotic)
Frequency (by normal means)	Quite rare
Genocidable	Yes
Weight	750
Nutritional value	200
Size	Large
Resistances	None
Resistances conveyed	None

A disenchanter is an annoying monster found in the deeper levels of the dungeons and in Gehennom. The random R at the castle may be a disenchanter, but they are otherwise only randomly generated in Gehennom. Its attack can decrease the enchantment of weapons and armor (as well as doing an unthreatening amount of damage). Disenchanters are rather fast, so that most players without intrinsic speed will find themselves confronted if they try to run a great distance away.

Hitting a disenchanter with a weapon can decrease the enchantment of the weapon.

Disenchanters are the deeper level equivalent of rust monsters. Disenchanters remove only positive enchantment; a disenchanter will not remove negative enchantment or cause an unenchanted item to gain negative enchantment.

Strategy

• Engrave Elbereth. Note that your weapon may still be disenchanted if you attack and hit.
• Cancel the disenchanter via a wand of cancellation or by hitting with Magicbane. Canceled disenchanters can not disenchant, neither by hitting nor by being hit.
• Use ranged attacks. Be aware that your projectiles will be disenchanted; prefer spells or wands. In a game where you had many scrolls of enchant weapon, you might choose to throw from your pile of +7 daggers; for though the resulting +6 daggers will not stack, they are much preferable to disenchanting your artifacts or armor.
• Genocide. Because rust monsters are not much of a threat once the player reaches Gehennom, and blessed scrolls of genocide are best reserved for monsters whose entire class is difficult (Liches, for example), disenchanters can be a good target for a single species (uncursed, if from a scroll) genocide.