Unique monster
In NetHack, there are various unique monsters that are generally only generated once, which is governed by the G_UNIQ flag in the code.
Description
A unique monster that is generated and then killed usually will not be generated again, although it is usually possible to reanimate most of them from their corpses or using stone to flesh on their statue, provided they leave a corpse (and are not corpseless) and are not immune to stoning in the first place. The Riders in particular are capable of resurrecting from their own corpses.
Unique monsters cannot have figurines generated of them, and wishing for one will result in a random figurine being given instead.[1] If the corpse of a unique monster would be left in a bones file, it is replaced with the corpse of a doppleganger, and a statue of a unique monster found in bones will turn into a doppleganger in the guise of that monster if revived via stone to flesh.[2][3] Trying to wish for a statue of a unique monster and reanimating it will also produce a doppelganger disguised as that monster.[4]
The primary exception to the rule of not being generated again after death is the Wizard of Yendor, who can resurrect himself one level stronger after being killed for the first time.
List of unique monsters
The following is a list of unique monsters:
- Riders:
- & Death
- & Famine
- & Pestilence
- All quest leaders and nemeses
- V Vlad the Impaler
- Demon lords and princes:
- @ Croesus
- @ High priest of Moloch and the other gods
- An aligned priest can become a high priest by growing up
- @ Medusa
- @ Oracle
- @ Wizard of Yendor
- Defunct monsters
- @ Charon
- d Cerberus
- @ Earendil and Elwing
- o Goblin King
The long worm tail, ~, is an unusual case: it is a dummy monster that exists purely to represent the worm's body on the visual interface, and is marked unique primarily in order to prevent figurines of it generating.[5]
SLASH'EM
SLASH'EM features the following new unique monsters:
- Ruggo the Gnome King
- The Rat King
- Kroo the Kobold King
- Grund the Orc King
- Nightmare
- Beholder
- Vecna
- Jumbo the Elephant
- One-Eyed Sam, shopkeeper of the Black Market
- Aphrodite
- Girtab
- Shelob
- The Largest Giant
- Pegasus
- Doctor Frankenstein
- Frankenstein's Monster
- Deferred Lovecraftian unique monsters:
- Father Dagon
- Mother Hydra
- Cthulhu (replaces the high priest of Moloch in SLethe)
