War hammer

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Name	war hammer
Appearance	war hammer
Damage vs. small	1d4+1
Damage vs. large	1d4
To-hit bonus	0
Weapon skill	hammer
Size	one-handed
Base price	500 zm (+10/positive enchant)
Weight	25
Material	wood

The war hammer is a weapon that appears in NetHack. It is the base item for the [[artifact weapon]s] Mjollnir and Ogresmasher.

Generation

War hammers make up about 1.5% of randomly generated weapons (on the floor, as death drops, or in shops).

Player monster valkyries on the Astral Plane have a 50% chance for their initial weapon to be changed to a war hammer - this warhammer has a 50% chance of being made into either Mjollnir or Ogresmasher if either weapon has not yet been generated.

Hammer skill

Hammer
Max	Role
Basic	Knight, Rogue, Ranger, Tourist
Skilled	Caveman
Expert	Barbarian, Priest, Valkyrie

The war hammer is the only weapon to use the hammer skill in vanilla NetHack. (The lucern hammer is a type of polearm, not a hammer.)

Strategy

The war hammer is generally an unremarkable weapon, with lower damage than the mace and the long sword. As a weapon skill, it is most relevant for those who find or receive Ogresmasher and Mjollnir.

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	Small monsters	Large monsters
+0 war hammer	$\frac{1+4}{2}+1=\bold{3.5}$	$\frac{1+4}{2}=\bold{2.5}$
+7 war hammer	$\frac{1+4}{2}+1+7=\bold{10.5}$	$\frac{1+4}{2}+7=\bold{9.5}$

History

The war hammer first appears in NetHack 3.0.3. The lucern hammer, which existed since NetHack 1.3d, was erroneously classified as using the hammer skill rather than polearm skill - a mistake that was carried over from Dungeons & Dragons. In NetHack 3.0.0, this led to Thunderfist (the predecessor of Mjollnir) and Ogresmasher having the base item of a lucern hammer instead, and was corrected a few versions later.

Origin

A horseman's pick, an example of a real-world type of war hammer

The war hammer is a weapon that was formerly used in warfare, dating back to as far as the 2nd century BCE. Its hit die are derived from Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. Real-world war hammers were quite versatile weapons and, much like maces, were important for facing heavily-armored opponents. The blunt hammerhead would deliver concussive force through thick armor - including most chain mail and even plate mail - and the pick end on the opposite face could be used to punch holes, whether through a piece of armor or the odd skull. They could also be used in grappling.

Variants

SLASH'EM

SLASH'EM adds a heavy hammer, a new weapon that uses the hammer skill, and is the new base item for Mjollnir.

xNetHack

In xNetHack, war hammers are made into a two-handed weapon that deals 2d6 damage to small creatures and 2d8 to large creatures.

Encyclopedia entry

They had come together at the ford of the Trident while the
battle crashed around them, Robert with his warhammer and his
great antlered helm, the Targaryen prince armored all in
black. On his breastplate was the three-headed dragon of his
House, wrought all in rubies that flashed like fire in the
sunlight. The waters of the Trident ran red around the
hooves of their destriers as they circled and clashed, again
and again, until at last a crushing blow from Robert's hammer
stove in the dragon and the chest behind it. When Ned had
finally come on the scene, Rhaegar lay dead in the stream,
while men of both armies scrambled in the swirling waters for
rubies knocked free of his armor.

[ A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin ]