Difference between revisions of "Zorkmid"
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==Messages== | ==Messages== | ||
| − | {{message|1 Zorkmid 857 GUE. In Frobs we trust.|YAFM}} | + | {{message|1 Zorkmid. 857 GUE. In Frobs we trust.|[[YAFM]] generated from selecting your gold in the [[read]] command's extended list.}} |
== See also == | == See also == | ||
Revision as of 07:08, 17 February 2020
- For the material, see gold (material).
A zorkmid is a single unit of currency in NetHack. A gold piece, $, has the value of 1 zorkmid.
"Gold piece" and "zorkmid" are used similarly but slightly differently throughout NetHack. For example, when you pick up money lying on the floor, you receive the message, "# gold piece(s)", but when you pick up an item in a shop, you receive the message, "x- an [item] (unpaid, # zorkmids)". The difference is that the zorkmid is the currency and gold pieces are the coinage.
Gold pieces are a special type of object: they have weight and take up an inventory slot when dropping items, but have no BUC status. The inventory slot they occupy is represented by their symbol is $; the abbreviations zm and zk are sometimes appended to a number as a currency symbol.
Contents
Weight
A gold piece weighs 0.01 "weight units". Since these units have no name, it is common to consider 100 gold pieces the base unit of weight. All weight figures given in spoilers and on this wiki are in units of 100 gold pieces.
Generation
Gold pieces are an incredibly common sight in the Dungeons of Doom, and can be found on the floor, in containers and the inventory of other monsters. Vaults containing gold are generated on some floors; Fort Ludios has a massive well-guarded repository of gold and can only be accessed through a vault portal. In addition, treasure zoos and leprechaun halls are generated with gold on most of their tiles, along with a sleeping monster on top of them.
Both the Healer and Tourist start with a significant amount of gold. Gold golems will leave behind a pile of gold upon dying.
Gold and monsters
Monsters that love gold have a 1/5 chance of being generated with some in their inventory, and hostile gold lovers will often pick up any gold they come across. The amount of gold given is determined by die roll: the number of dice rolled is the current dungeon level, with the usual adjustments for players carrying the Amulet or in the endgame. If the monster already has some items in its inventory these, a d5 is used; otherwise the roll uses d10. A monster on Dlvl:10 with no items might get 10d10 zorkmids, whereas a monster on Dlvl:20 with some items might get 20d5 zorkmids.
There are some exceptions to the above formula. Leprechauns always receive gold, and always roll a number of d30 equal to the dungeon level; aligned priests always get gold and receive 20–29 zorkmids. Another less exceptional case is an ordinary soldier - they will only be generated with gold 1/13 of the time.
Strategy
Gold is used to buy items from shops, and is also used for other similar transactions, such as buying services from the Minetown priest or consultations from the Oracle. Thus, it is usually an early-game objective for most players, especially to, but becomes less absolutely necessary once the player has assembled a solid enough inventory with which to progress further into the game, especially once they can reliably obtain more by killing monsters, polypiling, sacrifice, etc. As such, gold is sometimes put to more unorthodox uses, some of which are detailed below.
Shops
Dropping gold on any of the tiles of a shop will establish credit in that shop only.
One consistently applicable use for gold in shops is detecting hidden mimics: throwing projectiles and other items in shops will automatically sell them, and no player will want to deal with hassles such as buying back their valuable stack of daggers or darts. Searching can uncover mimics easily, but will also result in the larger ones sticking to you. Throwing a single gold piece in the direction of a suspected mimic will reveal it safely, and the gold will simply give you store credit.
Credit cloning is a means of taking the shopkeeper's gold using your own gold; specifically, this is done by dropping your gold or a container with your gold in it to establish credit, then using your pet or a gold-loving monster to steal it back from the shop. You can then retrieve the gold and keep your store credit. See that article for more detailed information.
Gold can be used to pacify angry shopkeepers, e.g. in the event of accidental theft; in Minetown, pacifying an angry shopkeeper will also pacify Minetown's watchmen if they are angry at you. This is commonly done by stealing a cheap item or a single piece of gold.
Temple priests
If you chat with a peaceful temple priest while carrying gold in your open inventory, the priest will prompt you for a contribution to the temple; donating a specific amount of gold to them can net several beneficial effects, such as alignment points or intrinsic protection.
Bribery
In addition to shopkeepers, some monsters, specifically named demons and soldiers, may accept bribes of gold to leave the player alone.
Combat
Some gold-loving monsters such as orcs can be distracted by strategically placed piles of gold, potentially allowing you to distance yourself or escape from them in a pinch, or else positioning them to maximize damage from certain attacks, e.g. a rebounded magic missile.
Conducts
Pacifists can use gold to gain experience points and exercise wisdom by consulting the Oracle. They can also use it as a means of detecting monsters in dark corridors - it will produce the usual hit/miss messages without doing any actual damage.
Polypiling
Some players drop gold on top of piles used for polypiling to reduce the chance of creating a golem from other items; at the same time, too many gold objects in a pile may result in a gold golem.
Other uses
In addition to the above, players use gold pieces to:
- Mark bubbles on the Plane of Water you've already searched for the portal;
- Weight-test items, e.g. suspected levitation boots or a loadstone in a chest;
- Generate throne room monsters by #looting the throne while confused and carrying gold;
- For style points, #chat with the high priest on the Astral Plane right before ascending;
- Feed a pet metallivore, or eat gold if polymorphed into one;
- Make a leprechaun teleport;
- Polymorph it for a gold golem;
- Make a boulder fall down stairs by throwing gold onto its square
Origin
The name "zorkmid" is a reference to the currency used in the text adventures series Zork, made by Infocom, where the currency used by the monarchy of Quendor is the zorkmid, and often carries a likeness of the most recent (and last) ruler of Quendor, Lord Dimwit Flathead.
Messages
- 1 Zorkmid. 857 GUE. In Frobs we trust.
- YAFM generated from selecting your gold in the read command's extended list.
See also
Encyclopedia entry (for "gold")
A metal of characteristic yellow colour, the most precious
metal used as a common commercial medium of exchange. Symbol,
Au; at. no. 79; at. wt. 197.2. It is the most malleable
and ductile of all metals, and very heavy (sp. gr., 19.3).
It is quite unalterable by heat, moisture, and most
corrosive agents, and therefore well suited for its use in
coin and jewelry.
of the English Language, Second Edition ]
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