Tin whistle
( 
| |
|---|---|
| Name | tin whistle |
| Appearance | whistle |
| Base price | 10 zm |
| Weight | 3 |
| Material | metal |
| Monster use | Will not be used by monsters. |
A tin whistle is a tool that appears in NetHack. It is a simple nonmagical and non-tonal instrument made of metal, and appears as a whistle when unidentified.
Contents
Generation
Watchmen have a 2⁄3 chance of being generated with a tin whistle.[1] Vault guards will also generate carrying cursed tin whistles, providing a source for the shrill whistling sound a player will hear while escaping them (see the section on messages below).[2]
Effects
Applying a tin whistle of any beatitude can wake nearby monsters from sleep;[3] if your pet is close enough to hear the noise, then for the next five turns it will try to approach you more closely.[4][5] Additionally, using a cursed tin whistle in a vault will immediately summon a guard.[6]
Range
The range of a tin whistle is sqrt(xlvl*20), which in practice is half the range of a leather drum.[7] This results in a radius of about 4 squares at XL 1, 16 squares at XL 14, and a maximum of 24 squares at XL 30.
Strategy
The tin whistle is incredibly easy to identify. In addition to the above means of generation, you can apply any unidentified whistle; if you produce a strange or humming noise, then you have a magic whistle. See the messages below for further reference.
The best use of tin whistles is for attracting pets by applying one repeatedly until they come to you; this can sometimes help you take pets through stairs or out of shops. Once you find a magic whistle, you can safely stash the tin whistle elsewhere. Knights can also apply tin whistles to wake sleeping monsters before attacking them in order to avoid violating their code of conduct - for most other situations involving waking up monsters, other instruments such as a bugle are the superior choice.
History
The tin whistle has been present in the game since the first version of Hack. The effect of cursed tin whistles in vaults was introduced in NetHack 3.6.1; 3.6.2 gives the vault guards their own cursed whistles.
Messages
- You produce a high whistling sound.
- You applied a non-cursed or blessed tin whistle.
- You produce a shrill whistling sound.
- You applied a cursed tin whistle.
- You feel rushing air tickle your nose.
- You applied a tin whistle while deaf.
- You hear the shrill sound of a guard's whistle.
- You fled from a guard without dropping your carried gold, and they blew the whistle in their inventory.
Variants
In variants using an object materials system, the tin whistle can be made of varying materials, and the base item is referred to as a pea whistle.
SLASH'EM
In SLASH'EM, tin whistles can be upgraded into magic whistles, making them far more useful in general - upgrading also does not break any conducts.
UnNetHack
In UnNetHack, both types of whistle are easier to differentiate, as each will autoidentify upon applying one.
