The Staff of Aesculapius

)   The Staff of Aesculapius
Base item	quarterstaff
Damage vs. small	1d6 x2 +1d8
Damage vs. large	1d6 x2 +1d8
To-hit bonus	+0
Bonus versus	not drain resistant
Weapon skill	quarterstaff
Size	two-handed
Affiliation	neutral Healer intelligent
When carried	(none)
When wielded	hungerless regeneration drain resistance
When invoked	heals HP cures sickness, sliming, and blindness
Base price	5000 zm
Weight	40
Material	wood

The Staff of Aesculapius is the healer quest artifact. It is the prize for completing the healer quest. It is neutral for wishing purposes. Its base item type is a quarterstaff.

It deals double damage to all monsters without level-drain resistance, drains levels from them, and also gives hungerless regeneration and protection from level drain. The life draining itself applies a further +1d8 damage to the target's current and maximum hp, and restores half that to the wielder's current hp. This bonus damage is not doubled, and does not apply against monsters with drain resistance.

If #invoked, it heals half the HP you would need to return to full health, and cures sickness, blindness, and sliming. It does not cure blindness caused by a cream pie.

Like all staves, it is two-handed. It is an unpopular weapon in Gehennom because of the associated danger, and also the fact that many enemies in Gehennom are drain-resistant.

Average damage calculation

The average damage calculations in the following table do not include bonuses from weapon skills, strength, or from using a blessed weapon against undead or demons.

Weapon	Drain resistant	Not drain resistant
+0 Staff of Aesculapius	$\frac{1+6}{2}=\bold{3.5}$	$\left (\frac{1+6}{2}\right )\times 2+\frac{1+8}{2}=\bold{11.5}$
+7 Staff of Aesculapius	$\frac{1+6}{2}+7=\bold{10.5}$	$\left (\frac{1+6}{2}+7\right )\times 2+\frac{1+8}{2}=\bold{25.5}$

Encyclopedia entry

This staff is considered sacred to all healers, as it truly
holds the powers of life and death. When wielded, it
protects its user from all life draining attacks, and
additionally gives the wielder the power of regeneration.
When invoked it performs healing magic.

References

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