Pony
u pony 
| |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | 4 |
| Attacks |
Kick 1d6, Bite 1d2 |
| Base level | 3 |
| Base experience | 31 |
| Speed | 16 |
| Base AC | 6 |
| Base MR | 0 |
| Alignment | 0 (neutral) |
| Frequency (by normal means) | 2 (Quite rare) |
| Genocidable | Yes |
| Weight | 1300 |
| Nutritional value | 250 |
| Size | Medium |
| Resistances | None |
| Resistances conveyed |
None |
|
A pony:
| |
| Reference | monst.c#line913 |
A pony, u, is a type of monster that appears in NetHack. The pony is a strong and herbivorous domestic animal that can be seen via infravision, has a tendency to wander and is the most basic type of horse-like monster a character will encounter. Ponies can be tamed with veggy food such as pears or lichen corpses, and consider carrots and apples treats.
A pony has a kick attack and a bite attack.
Generation
Ponies may be generated as peaceful towards neutral characters. A pony can grow up into a horse.
The Knight starts each game with a saddled pony.[1]
Ponies have a 1⁄100 chance of generating with a worn saddle.[2]
Strategy
Ponies move fairly fast at 16 speed and attack twice during each of their turns, making them troublesome encounters for weaker characters unless they have a means to tame or pacify them. Non-tripe rations are sufficient to pacify a hostile pony if a character either does not want to tame them or lacks the proper food items. Pony corpses do not penalize characters for eating them, making them a decent meaty source of nutrition.
As pets
As herbivores, pet ponies can be tricky to keep fed for many characters due to the relative rarity of pet-friendly veggy food and corpses, though this is somewhat mitigated by the fact that pets in general can retain nutrition for much longer depending on their size.[3] Knights in particular start with a set of apples and carrots that are meant to keep their steed well-fed, and can make them last long enough to find more permanent sources of food - see the article linked above for more details on Knights and steed maintenance.
In general, remember to chat with a pet pony or use a stethoscope to determine if it is hungry: a pony "whickers" if content, and "whinnies" if hungry.
History
The pony first appears in NetHack 3.3.0. In previous versions, Knights have the same chance of starting with a kitten or little dog as most other roles.
Encyclopedia entry
Hey! now! Come hoy now! Whither do you wander?
Up, down, near or far, here, there or yonder?
Sharp-ears, Wise-nose, Swish-tail and Bumpkin,
White-socks my little lad, and old Fatty Lumpkin!
[...]
Tom called them one by one and they climbed over the brow and stood in a line. Then Tom bowed to the hobbits.
"Here are your ponies, now!" he said. "They've more sense (in some ways) than you wandering hobbits have -- more sense in their noses. For they sniff danger ahead which you walk right into; and if they run to save themselves, then they run the right way."
