Itlachiayaque

Itlachiayaque
Author	L
Download	link
NetHack PatchDB	unknown

[   Itlachiayaque
Base item	shield of reflection
Affiliation	lawful Archeologist intelligent
When carried	ESP half spell damage fire resistance
When worn	reflection
When invoked	stinking cloud
Base price	3000 zm
Weight	50

Itlachiayaque is an artifact introduced in L's Itlachiayaque Patch, where it acts as a replacement for the Archeologist quest artifact, the Orb of Detection. Itlachiayaque replaces the Orb of Detection in UnNetHack, dNetHack, Fourk, xNetHack, and SlashTHEM. It is lawful for wishing purposes, and its base item is a shield of reflection.

Effects

When carried, Itlachiayaque confers ESP, fire resistance and half spell damage—additionally, in many variants, it does not inhibit spellcasting for an Archeologist wearing it. When invoked, it duplicates the effects of a scroll of stinking cloud of the same beatitude, allowing the player to create a temporary mass of poison clouds. Archaeologists invoking the artifact can center it on a designated visible tile—other roles will end up being the "target" of the resulting cloud, unless the artifact is cursed. (This exemption is likely a typo, as a comment suggests that cursed Itlachiayaque should "cause trouble" for all roles instead. UnNetHack and xNetHack fix it.)

In xNetHack, Itlachiayaque has quite a few differences from other variants—it is made out of gold and confers warning and fire resistance while carried, rather than ESP and half spell damage. When invoked, it prompts the player to choose from two different effects: they can create a poison cloud as normal, or gaze into the surface to look for an object, monster, or furniture symbol just like a crystal ball.

Strategy

Itlachiayaque effectively exchanges the Orb's magic resistance for reflection, but at the cost of blocking the player's off-hand for twoweaponing Archeologists and other roles. Fire resistance, telepathy and half spell damage are welcome, though the former can easily be acquired intrinsically before the quest in most variants. The invoke ability is an improvement on the Orb's invisibility—the stinking cloud is efficient in clearing masses of enemies that lack poison resistance, and should be useful in barracks and treasure zoos.

Players should be warned that the quest nemesis, the Minion of Huhetotl, is almost guaranteed to put on the shield and subsequently benefit from its reflection—avoid using ray attacks that can be reflected back at you.

Origin

Itlachiayaque is the name of an object, either a mirror or a shield, carried by the Aztec god Tezcatlipoca (whose name literally translates to "fiery mirror").

Encyclopedia entry

Tezcatlipoca (Fiery Mirror) was undoubtedly the Jupiter of the
Nahua pantheon. He carried a mirror or shield [ Itlachiayaque ],
from which he took his name, and in which he was supposed to see
reflected the actions and deeds of mankind. The evolution of this
god from the status of a spirit of wind or air to that of the
supreme deity of the Aztec people presents many points of deep
interest to students of mythology.

[ The Myths of Mexico and Peru, by Lewis Spence ]