Dispater
& Dispater 
| |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | 40 |
| Attacks |
Weapon 4d6, spell-casting |
| Base level | 36 |
| Base experience | 1923 |
| Speed | 15 |
| Base AC | -2 |
| Base MR | 80 |
| Alignment | 15 (lawful) |
| Frequency (by normal means) | Unique |
| Genocidable | No |
| Weight | 1500 |
| Nutritional value | 500 |
| Size | Medium |
| Resistances | Fire, poison |
| Resistances conveyed |
None |
|
Dispater:
| |
| Reference | monst.c#line2704 |
Dispater, &, is one of the many demon princes that can appear in NetHack. Like all other demon princes, he is covetous and capable of flying, and will attempt to steal the Amulet of Yendor if you possess it.
Dispater is one of three demon princes without his own lair in Gehennom, with the other two being Geryon and Demogorgon. He has the fourth-highest monster difficulty and experience point yield in the game behind Baalzebub.
Generation
Dispater will only appear if summoned via the summon nasties monster spell being cast in Gehennom, or being gated in by another demon prince (e.g., Asmodeus, Baalzebub or Geryon).
Dispater is always generated with a wand of striking.
Strategy
Dispater is a rather dangerous spellcaster - in spite of his relatively poor AC (easily surpassed by water demons and horned devils), he has a lot of hit points, great monster magic resistance, and can move almost as quickly as a fast player. In addition to the standard demon prince traits such as fire and poison resistance, he has a decently strong weapon attack and powerful mage spells at his disposal - up to and including curse items, summon nasties, and the touch of death - but will generally not use them in favor of his relatively harmless wand of striking.
Even if you possess magic resistance, it is still best kill Dispater as quickly as possible - while not a Demogorgon-level threat that requires a specialize kit, his magic is far more annoying to contend with once his wand is spent. Beware using shock damage against him, as he will cast spells much sooner if his wand is destroyed prematurely. Players going for speed ascensions should bribe Asmodeus and Baalzebub or else deal with them quickly before he can be gated, although it is still possible for the Wizard of Yendor to summon him if he gets a chance.
Origin
The NetHack incarnation of Dispater is based on his portrayal in Dungeons & Dragons source books, where he is a unique archdevil - this is in turn based on Dīs Pater, a Roman god of the underworld later subsumed by Pluto or the Greek Hades. Originally a chthonic god of riches, fertile agricultural land, and underground mineral wealth, he was later commonly equated with the Roman underworld deities Pluto and Orcus.
In Dungeons & Dragons, Dispater's appearance is that of a handsome human about 2 meters (ca. 7 feet) tall, with two small horns, a tail and a cloven left hoof - Dispater's portrayal and default tile in NetHack draws from this, although it retains only the former trait.[1][2][3] He is also known to carry a powerful rod that symbolizes his authority, and also acts as a staff of striking (hence why he always generates with a wand of striking).
The "City of Dis" mentioned in the encyclopedia entry is based on Dispater's appearance in the Inferno, where the infernal city under his rule made up the entire sixth circle of Hell; some variants of NetHack add a lair inspired by the City.
History
Dispater was introduced in NetHack 3.0.0.
SLASH'EM
In SLASH'EM, all demon princes have lairs. Dispater's lair is located between levels 10 and 15 of Gehennom, and Dispater himself waits near the center of the long winding hallway contained within the maze.
Encyclopaedia entry
The Roman ruler of the underworld and fortune, similar to the
Greek Hades. Every hundred years, the Ludi Tarentini were
celebrated in his honor. The Gauls regarded Dis Pater as
their ancestor. The name is a contraction of the Latin Dives,
"the wealthy", Dives Pater, "the wealthy father", or "Fater
Wealth". It refers to the wealth of precious stone below the
earth.
References
- ↑ monst.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 2708: Dispater has size
MZ_HUMAN - ↑ num_horns in mondata.c
- ↑ mbodypart in polyself.c: Dispater does not have a hoof
