Nightingale

)   Nightingale
Base item	katana
Damage vs. small	1d10 +3 +(1d5 * 6) (10% chance)
Damage vs. large	1d12 +3 +(1d5 * 6) (10% chance)
To-hit bonus	+2
Bonus versus	(any)
Weapon skill	long sword
Size	one-handed
Affiliation	chaotic (Ninja)
When carried	(none)
When wielded	(none)
When invoked	toggles invisibility
Base price	2000 zm
Weight	40
Material	iron

Nightingale is an artifact weapon that appears in SlashTHEM. It is chaotic-aligned, and its base item is a katana.

Generation

Nightingale is the guaranteed first sacrifice gift for Ninjas.

Description

Nightingale deals +3 damage against all monsters, with a ¹⁄₁₀ chance of dealing an extra 1d5 * 6 damage every attack. While the average damage of +6d5 vs +1d5 * 6 is the same (18), the damage output distribution is conceptually different as you will only get values of 6, 12, 18, 24, and 30.

When invoked, Nightingale toggles invisibility.

Strategy

Although Nightingale's potential for damage is high, the ¹⁄₁₀ chance makes its output "spiky" and somewhat unreliable. With that in mind, the average damage is still on par with that of other artifact weapons like Excalibur, and the additional to-hit bonus and invisibility toggle can make Nightingale quite the powerful early- or mid-game weapon.

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.

Bonus Damage Proc
$\frac{6+12+18+24+30}{5}*10%=\bold{1.8}$

Weapon	Small monsters	Large monsters
+0 Nightingale	$\frac{1+10}{2}+3+1.8=\bold{10.3}$	$\frac{1+12}{2}+3+1.8=\bold{11.3}$
+7 Nightingale	$\frac{1+10}{2}+3+1.8+7=\bold{17.3}$	$\frac{1+12}{2}+3+1.8+7=\bold{18.3}$

Messages

The night blade howls as it slices through <monster>.

Nightingale's extra damage effect has triggered.