Ki-rin
A ki-rin 
| |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | 21 |
| Attacks |
Kick 2d4, kick 2d4, butt 3d6, spell-casting |
| Base level | 16 |
| Base experience | 552 |
| Speed | 18 |
| Base AC | -5 |
| Base MR | 90 |
| Alignment | 15 (lawful) |
| Frequency (by normal means) | 1 (Very rare) |
| Genocidable | No |
| Weight | 1450 |
| Nutritional value | 400 |
| Size | Large |
| Resistances | None |
| Resistances conveyed |
None |
|
A ki-rin:
| |
| Reference | monst.c#line1097 |
The ki-rin, A, is an angelic being in NetHack. It is often a candidate for a player's steed (if they manage to tame one - difficult due to its high magic resistance, making a wish for a figurine be a more likely method) due to its high speed, power, and ability to fly. They also will wear amulets and shields of reflection (though they are not generated with either), preventing any nasty disintegration accidents. A ki-rin steed will never buck you because of conflict due to its high combined base level and monster magic resistance unless it is level drained below 15.
Any non-knight should count on a charmed ki-rin going wild (peaceful) after mounting, kicking or whipping it five times.
A ki-rin is too large to wear shirts, body armor, or cloaks, and its horns will not fit into metal helmets, but is able to wear boots, shields, and gloves despite being ridable. This is bug C341-18.
Strategy
A ki-rin makes a superb steed for players that spend a lot of time riding. It is the only steed that can fly and has a faster-than-normal movement rate. Because ki-rin are spellcasters, they will cast haste self, giving them an effective movement rate of 22, making them almost as fast as a warhorse or unicorn. Perhaps more importantly, their high hit points, damaging attacks, ability to heal self, and high magic resistance make them powerful enough to survive in Gehennom.
Once you have mounted a ki-rin, you should not dismount unless absolutely necessary. Since only knights start with riding skill at basic, other roles will not be able to pick up objects, #loot containers, drop items on altars, #dip items in fountains, etc. initially. Because a ki-rin will go feral after five mount attempts, it is better to advance riding skill on a more traditional mount such as a horse first, then switch to your ki-rin once you reach basic skill. Roles which are restricted in riding will probably not have much use for them.
A ki-rin can benefit greatly from amulets and armor, as noted above. Ideally, you should give your ki-rin a pair of well-enchanted boots (elven boots are a good candidate since they can safely be enchanted to +7), gloves, and a shield. A shield of reflection is best; unlike magic resistance, the rider's reflection is not transmitted to his steed. Finally, if you have a spare amulet of life saving, it is probably worth giving one to your ki-rin for those tough fights. Since tame ki-rin are usually gotten by wishing for a figurine, you can generally control when you mount it. If at all possible, have all your equipment ready and get your ki-rin to wear it before mounting it for the first time; otherwise you will have to dismount to get it to do so, reducing your number of remaining mounts before it goes feral.
SLASH'EM
In addition to all the benefits above, ki-rin in SLASH'EM require a +3 weapon to hit. This makes them better steeds--they are immune to most physical attacks, including powerful minotaurs and even some Demon Princes--as well as tougher foes. Note that ki-rin are not level-drain or stoning resistant, so an amulet of drain resistance or an amulet versus stone are also good options for the amulet slot. Ki-rin are alwso given as minions to lawful players, starting at level 13, though minions cannot be saddled or ridden.
