Dantalion
Dantalion, Star Emperor is a spirit that appears in dNetHack, notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack.
Ritual, seal and taboo
Dantalion's seal must be drawn on a square containing a throne.
To remain bound to Dantalion, the hero cannot destroy thrones, which includes using them up after they sit on one.
Mark
A hero that has Dantalion bound grows extra faces on their chest, which can be seen from a distance and must be hidden with a worn shirt, body armor or a cloak. Crystal plate mail is an exception, as it is transparent and will not mask the faces if worn on its own.
Benefits
While bound, Dantalion grants immunity to blindness, but only while the extra faces are uncovered. Dantalion also grants skill in two-handed swords, broadswords and scimitars.
Dantalion's active powers are as follows:
- Thought Travel: The hero teleports adjacent to a chosen monster that can be sensed via telepathy in a manner similar to covetous warping—this ignores no-teleport level restrictions, but cannot be used on the Astral Plane and cannot be used to warp between the outside and inside sections of any floor within the Wizard's Tower.
- Dread of Dantalion: The hero causes all non-unique monsters in line-of-sight to flee from them, ignoring their MR score.
His passive powers are as follows:
- Read Thoughts: The hero gains a to-hit bonus against monsters that they can sense telepathically.
- Telepathy: The hero gains extrinsic telepathy, similar to a helm of telepathy.
- Perfect Strikes: An intelligence-based bonus is added to all of the hero's attacks, including ones that normally do not receive attribute bonuses, along with any strength or dexterity bonuses.
Strategy
Dantalion's Dread power can be valuable to give a character some additional breathing room.
As a monster
| @ Dantalion (No tile) | |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | 20 |
| Attacks | |
| Base level | 18 |
| Base experience | 707 |
| Speed | 15 |
| Base AC | 4 |
| Base MR | 40 |
| Alignment | 15 (lawful) |
| Frequency (by normal means) | 0 (Not randomly generated) |
| Genocidable | No |
| Weight | 1450 |
| Nutritional value | 400 |
| Size | medium |
| Resistances | none |
| Resistances conveyed | none |
|
Dantalion:
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In notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack, Dantalion, @, also appears as a monster that can be summoned by an Illithanachronounbinder. He is a strong human that can see invisible, can be seen via infravision, and can follow a character to other levels if adjacent. Dantalion is covetous and desires the hero's quest artifact, the invocation items and the Amulet of Yendor—he will also seek out and collect items such as gold, gems, magical items, and other objects. Like many summoned spirits, Dantalion cannot be tamed.
Dantalion has a single strong weapon attack.
Generation
Dantalion is first generated when summoned from his seal by an Illithanachronounbinder. He is always created hostile, and is not a valid polymorph form or genocide target.
Dantalion is generated with a pair of gloves, high boots, a helm of telepathy, uncursed +1 plate mail, and the uncursed +3 Dread of Dantalion—as an overlord to his kind, the non-plate mail armor that he generates with will have a minimum enchantment of +0. The Dread of Dantalion is a lawful intelligent artifact whose base item is a two-handed sword: it has a +1d10 damage bonus and while it is on the floor, it will act as a scroll of scare monster against cross-aligned monsters if the hero is standing on its square.
Dantalion does not leave a corpse upon death.
Strategy
Below this point, there are major spoilers for the Illithanachronounbinder role. They can be accessed by selecting the "Role spoiler" tab.
If Dantalion is killed after being summoned, he can be encountered again in the Void, a branch accessed by opening the high altar of Ilsensine the Fallen as an Illithanachronounbinder using the invoke effect of The Elder Cerebral Fluid. Dantalion is generated along with many other spirits of the near void on the first floor of the branch, and is generated with the "whispers" template, which makes him nonliving.
Messages
- You see a man with many countenances step out from behind the throne.
- Below his crown are many faces of <your race>,
- and as he nods and cranes his head, new faces are constantly revealed.
- "Tremble, for I am Dantalion, king over all the kings of <your race>."
- You attempted to bind Dantalion.
- The staring faces seem vaguely familiar...
- With a start, you realize they remind you of yourself, and your family!
- "You, who bear my bloodline,"
- go forth <and rule> with my blessing.
- You successfully bound Dantalion to yourself, with "and rule" omitted if you are a woman. The first two lines are omitted if you are blind.
- "You, who bear my sceptre,
- "go forth, in my name!"
- You successfully bound Dantalion to The Pen of the Void.
- His myriad faces study you with disapproval, and he departs as suddenly as he arrived.
- You failed to bind Dantalion due to a lack of open slots for spirits of the Near Void, and you were not blind.
- You hear royal trumpets.
- You performed the binding ritual incorrectly.
Encyclopedia entry
The Seventy-first Spirit is Dantalion. He is a Duke Great and Mighty, appearing in the Form of a Man with many Countenances, all Men's and Women's Faces; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one; for he knoweth the Thoughts of all Men and Women, and can change them at his Will.
