Dagger
) 
| |
|---|---|
| Name | dagger |
| Appearance | dagger |
| Damage vs. small | 1d4 |
| Damage vs. large | 1d3 |
| To-hit bonus | +2 |
| Weapon skill | dagger |
| Size | one-handed |
| Base price | 4 zm (+10/positive enchant) |
| Weight | 10 |
| Material | iron |
A dagger is a type of weapon that appears in NetHack. It is a stackable weapon that can both be used in melee and thrown as a projectile, and is made of iron.
Contents
Generation
Various roles start the game with one or more daggers:
- Human and gnomish Rangers start each game with a +1 dagger as their secondary weapon.[1]
- Human Rogues start each game with a stack of +0 daggers as their secondary weapons.[2]
- Valkyries start each game with a +0 dagger as their secondary weapon.[3]
The dagger makes up about 3.0% of randomly generated weapons. weapon shops and general stores can stock daggers.
Various monsters are also generated with daggers:
- Hobbits have a 1⁄3 chance of generating with a dagger.[4]
- Live dwarves have an effective 1⁄2 chance of generating with a dagger.[5]
- Watchmen and soldiers may generate with daggers.[6][7]
- Monsters with weapon attacks that are not strong and do not have a default initial weapon may generate with a stack of daggers.[8]
- Students, attendants, abbots, acolytes, guides, and apprentices have an effective 1⁄3 chance of generating with a dagger.[9]
- Hunters also have a 1⁄3 chance of generating with a dagger.[10]
- Thugs have a 2⁄3 chance of generating with a dagger.[11]
- Player monsters, including those on the Astral Plane, have a ~2.6% chance of generating with a dagger as their initial weapon before role-based replacements.[12]
The following information pertains to an upcoming version (NetHack 3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.
As part of commit 20cbadc - which strengthens quest leaders and makes it so that killing them no longer makes the game unwinnable - The Master of Thieves generates with 2d4 non-cursed +2 daggers when serving as the Rogue quest leader.Dagger skill
| Dagger | |
|---|---|
| Max | Role |
| Basic | |
| Skilled | |
| Expert | |
The following weapons use the dagger skill:
The following artifact weapons use the dagger skill:
Rogues throwing dagger-type weapons gain a +1 multishot bonus, while Rangers throwing any projectile except for dagger-type weapons gain a +1 multishot bonus. Wielding a dagger-type weapon while eating a non-blessed tin will open the tin in 3 turns.
Strategy
Despite their weight and low base damage, daggers can be very useful in the early game: a ranged volley at sufficient skill can kill monsters before they even breach melee range, and can at least soften them up before they can engage you. They are typically cheap, plentiful, and more durable than arrows, crossbow bolts and darts, but cannot be poisoned by dipping into a potion of sickness. A spare, non-cursed dagger can also serve as a makeshift "pick" for forcing open boxes.
All roles except Monks and Priests can attain proficiency in dagger skill, and may wish to do so early on if the circumstances warrant it. Rogues and Wizards in particular can reach Expert and gain multishot bonuses, which gives them high damage potential from a "storm" of daggers. If using daggers as a primary choice of projectile, be sure to erodeproof them when possible, and avoid leaving any near metallivores such as rock moles and rust monsters - additionally, avoid throwing any enchanted daggers at disenchanters.
History
The dagger first appears in Hack 1.21 and Hack for PDP-11, variants of Jay Fenlason's Hack. It is included in the initial item list for Hack 1.0.
Variants
SLASH'EM
SLASH'EM adds the dark elven dagger, the great dagger and the wooden stake as weapons that use the dagger skill. There are also new artifact weapons that use the dagger skill:
- The Great Dagger of Glaurgnaa is an artifact great dagger that acts as the Necromancer quest artifact.
- Serpent's Tongue is a chaotic artifact dagger that is the guaranteed first sacrifice gift for Necromancers.
- Deep Freeze is an artifact athame that is the guaranteed first sacrifice gift for Ice Mages.
- Firewall is an artifact athame that is the guaranteed first sacrifice gift for Flame Mages.
- The Stake of Van Helsing is an artifact wooden stake that acts as the Undead Slayer quest artifact.
The dagger skill has also been adjusted:
| Dagger | |
|---|---|
| Max | Role |
| Basic | |
| Skilled | |
| Expert | |
All new roles can reach Expert in dagger except the Yeoman, who can reach Skilled.
dNetHack
dNetHack adds a few weapons that use the dagger skill: the droven dagger, the set of crow talons, the tecpatl, and the rakuyo-dagger. Any weapon that uses the dagger skill can be used to carve staves into wooden weapons.
Vampire characters in roles that would start with athames will instead start with daggers replacing each of them - currently, this only applies to the Wizard.
The Air Crystal increases a character's skill cap for daggers by 1 while carried.
Andromalius is a spirit that grants skill in daggers when bound - his seal must contain two items from a set of several eligible objects, including a standard dagger; successfully binding him will exchange the two items for a third object, which also has a chance of being a dagger.
SpliceHack
SpliceHack adds the parazonium as a weapon that uses the dagger skill, and imports the dark elven dagger from SLASH'EM.
A dagger can be combined with an iron chain at a furnace to create a spiked chain.
notdNetHack
In notdNetHack, in addition to dNetHack details, two spirits generate with daggers when summoned by an Illithanachronounbinder:
- Andromalius generates with a stack of 5-15 daggers.
- Balam generates with two separate sets of large daggers.
EvilHack
EvilHack adds the dark elven dagger as a weapon that uses the dagger skill, and adds Shadowblade as an artifact that uses the dagger skill. As of version 0.8.3, EvilHack also merges the knife skill into the dagger skill.
A dagger can be created at a forge by combining two arrows and a knife. Daggers can be used to create many other items:
- A dagger can be combined with two darts to create 3-4 shuriken.
- A dagger can be combined with two arrows to create a spear.
- A dagger can be combined with a stiletto to create an athame.
- A dagger can be combined with a spear to create an axe.
- A dagger can be combined with two crossbow bolts to create a short sword.
- A dagger can be combined with a broadsword to create a runesword.
- A dagger can be combined with a club to create a mace.
- A dagger can be combined with a mace to create a morning star.
- A dagger can be combined with a dented pot to create a helmet.
- A dagger can be combined with a helmet to create a small shield.
SlashTHEM
In addition to SLASH'EM details, SlashTHEM adds the sharpened pencil as a weapon that uses the dagger skill.
Player vampires, kobolds and doppelgangers can always reach a minimum of Basic skill in daggers.
Hack'EM
Hack'EM adds the great dagger and stake from SLASH'EM, and the parazonium from SpliceHack.
Encyclopedia entry
Is this a dagger which I see before me,
The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee.
I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.
Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible
To feeling as to sight? or art thou but
A dagger of the mind, a false creation,
Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?
I see thee yet, in form as palpable
As this which now I draw.
References
- ↑ src/u_init.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 114
- ↑ src/u_init.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 125
- ↑ src/u_init.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 154
- ↑ src/makemon.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 354
- ↑ src/makemon.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 385
- ↑ src/makemon.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 195
- ↑ src/makemon.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 211
- ↑ src/makemon.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 542
- ↑ src/makemon.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 279
- ↑ src/makemon.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 304
- ↑ src/makemon.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 313
- ↑ src/mplayer.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 155: 1⁄2 to get a random weapon - the designated range of objects covers weapons from the spear to the bullwhip inclusively in objects.c, and uses normal generation odds
