Mithril

Mithril is a material for items that appears in NetHack.

Mithril is a lightweight metal used by dwarves and elves to produce armor. It is immune to erosion, but since it is metallic it will hinder spellcasting.

Description

The two main items made of mithril are the dwarvish and elven mithril-coats, which provide 6 and 5 base AC, respectively; they are the lightest such suits of body armor for the AC they provide. The Amulet of Yendor is made of mithril, though this does not have any noticeable effect on its properties other than preventing it from being damaged. Metallivores such as rock moles and xorns can eat any item made of mithril, save for the Amulet.

Origin

Mithril is a material derived from the Middle-earth setting created by J. R. R. Tolkien.

Variants

Variants that incorporate object materials make it possible for certain metallic items to be made of mithril.

SLASH'EM

In SLASH'EM, the dark elven mithril-coat is a suit of body armor made from the material, and is functionally identical to a dwarvish mithril-coat.

UnNetHack

In UnNetHack, chunks of raw mithril ore can be found buried on the first level of the Ruins of Moria, but due to being unrefined they are considered stones (and thus made of mineral). Their only purpose is to be sold at shops, where they can be sold for more than twice the sell price of a dilithium crystal.

xNetHack

In xNetHack, mithril body armor always grants at least MC2. Dwarvish and elven mithril-coats are replaced by racial ring mail - a dwarvish or elven ring mail made of mithril thus acts identically to a mithril-coat. Hobbits that are given an elven ring mail will always get a mithril one; dwarf lords and kings that get a dwarvish ring mail have an increased chance of it being mithril.

EvilHack

In EvilHack, mithril gives a +2 damage bonus to slashing and piercing weapons, and is among one of the better materials for armor in particular. Mithril is inherently fixed, but is still subject to decay via the monster spell destroy armor. Elves wearing mithril body armor are granted MC3, compared to MC2 for all other races.

Orcish monsters are mithril-hating - they take extra damage from mithril weapons, and wielding or wearing any mithril that makes contact with their skin damages them and prevents HP regeneration. Wielding such an item without gloves will also result in a -1 Luck penalty.

Most objects with a base material of iron, steel, or wood have a low chance to be randomly generated as mithril, including non-cloth dwarvish and elven armor and weapons. Horns, most bows and reflective objects also have a slightly higher chance to generate as mithril. Staves of matter use mithril as their base material, and the artifact weapon Dirge is a mithril long sword.

dNetHack

In dNetHack, mithril weighs half as much as iron. High-elven armor and weapons use mithril as the base material.

Four dNetHack artifacts are made of mithril:

• Soulmirror (neutral mithril plate mail)
• The Web of Lolth (chaotic silvered elven mithril-coat)
• Spidersilk (chaotic elven mithril-coat)
• The Armor of Khazad-dum (lawful drawvish mithril-coat]]

It is possible to create a mithril Excalibur by dipping a mithril long sword, though these are usually difficult to find.

SlashTHEM

SlashTHEM features several new mithril items:

• The hugging boot, which despite its name is a type of weapon
• The cloak of quenching
• The amulet of undead warning

In addition, mithril is a randomized ring appearance.

Encyclopaedia entry

_Mithril_! All folk desired it. It could be beaten like
copper, and polished like glass; and the Dwarves could make
of it a metal, light and yet harder than tempered steel.
Its beauty was like to that of common silver, but the beauty
of _mithril_ did not tarnish or grow dim.

[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]