Square

A square in NetHack is a single space on the screen, in which a single ASCII character or tileset tile fits.

Each square can hold:

• One monster (including the player)
• One dungeon feature
• Up to 32,768 items

It is impossible to have two or more monsters or dungeon features on the same square, as is traditional for roguelikes, with the exception of the player riding a monster (ie, a knight riding a horse).

However, there can be many items on a space, even if a monster, player or dungeon feature is also there. If multiple objects are on the same square, the symbol for the topmost object is shown. The order of objects in the pile can be seen using the look here command: [:]

Sometimes an item or several items may appear in the same square with a wall. You cannot enter the square to pick up the items but you may kick the wall, causing the objects to come loose and fall off.

The floor on each square has one of several terrain types (such as ice, moat, dirt), which affects how you move through and interact with it.