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 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.

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. The associated dangers make it an unpopular weapon in Gehennom.

Average damage calculation

We assume the player has expert skill in quarterstaff, which gives a +2 damage bonus. A blessed weapon deals 1d4 extra damage against demons and undead. The worst case scenario is against a level-drain resistant, non-undead, non-demon monster. The best case scenario is against a non-drain resistant non-undead, non-demon monster (since non-drain resistant undead/demons don't exist). Also note that the 1d8 bonus damage against a non drain-resistant monster also affects its maximum HP.

Weapon	Against regular non-drain resistant monsters (best case scenario)	Against undead or demons	Worst case scenario
Blessed Staff of Aesculapius +0	$(\frac{1+6}{2})\times 2+\frac{1+8}{2}+2=\bold{13.5}$	$\frac{1+6}{2}+\frac{1+4}{2}+2=\bold{8}$	$\frac{1+6}{2}+2=\bold{5.5}$
Blessed Staff of Aesculapius +7	$(\frac{1+6}{2}+7)\times 2+\frac{1+8}{2}+2=\bold{27.5}$	$\frac{1+6}{2}+7+\frac{1+4}{2}+2=\bold{15}$	$\frac{1+6}{2}+7+2=\bold{12.5}$

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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