Black horse (SpliceHack)
| u pale horse (No tile) | |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | 21 |
| Attacks | |
| Base level | 18 |
| Base experience | ? |
| Speed | 24 |
| Base AC | 0 |
| Base MR | 70 |
| Alignment | 0 (neutral) |
| Frequency (by normal means) | 0 (Not randomly generated) |
| Genocidable | No |
| Weight | 1800 |
| Nutritional value | 350 |
| Size | Large |
| Resistances | cold resistance, poison resistance |
| Resistances conveyed | None |
|
A black horse:
| |
| Reference | SpliceHack 1.2.0 - src/monst.c, line 1437 |
- For the monster in EvilHack, see Black Horse (EvilHack).
A black horse, u, is a type of monster that appears in SpliceHack. The black horse is a horse that serves as the steed of Famine: it is strong, capable of flight, and can be seen via infravision.
A black horse has two kick attacks that deal physical damage and a bite attack that can inflict slowing. It has cold resistance and poison resistance.
Generation
Black horses are always generated hostile, and are not a valid polymorph form or genocide target.
Only one black horse is encountered on the Astral Plane, where Famine is generated riding atop it during level creation.
Origin
The "black horse" refers to the steed of Famine, who is one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (or the Riders of the Apocalypse) that appear in The Book of Revelation, the last book of most common versions of the Christian Bible. The sixth chapter of the book has verses describing Famine and the other Riders as they appear when the Lamb (representing Jesus) opens six of the seven seals of the Apocalypse—these quotes serve as the encyclopedia entry for the Riders and their steeds in NetHack and its variants, and are cited from the New International Version. The passage describing Famine and his horse is as follows:
- I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, 'A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and three quarts of barley for a day's wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!'
- Revelation 6:5-6.
Of note is that Famine and the black horse are the only ones whose appearance is accompanied by vocalization. The statement itself suggests that the black horse's famine is to drive up the price of grain but leave oil and wine supplies unaffected (though out of reach of the ordinary worker). One explanation is that grain crops would have been more naturally susceptible to famine years or locust plagues than olive trees and grapevines, which root more deeply. Another is that it might suggest a continuing abundance of luxuries for the wealthy, while staples, such as bread, are scarce, though not completely depleted—such selective scarcity may result from injustice and the deliberate production of luxury crops for the wealthy over grain (as would have happened during the time the Book of Revelation was written), which is used to support interpretations of the black horse as representing imperial oppression. Alternatively, the preservation of oil and wine could symbolize the preservation of the Christian faithful, who use oil and wine in their sacraments.
Encyclopedia entry
[Pestilence:] And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals,
and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four
beasts saying, Come and see. And I saw, and behold a white
horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given
unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
[War:] And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the
second beast say, Come and see. And there went out another
horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon
to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one
another: and there was given unto him a great sword.
[Famine:] And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the
third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black
horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his
hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say,
A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley
for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
[Death:] And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the
voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and
behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death,
and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over
the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with
hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
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