Durin's Bane (UnNetHack)
| & Durin's Bane (No tile) | |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | 20 |
| Attacks |
Weapon 8d4 physical, Weapon 4d6 physical |
| Base level | 16 |
| Base experience | ? |
| Speed | 7 |
| Base AC | −2 |
| Base MR | 80 |
| Alignment | −14 (chaotic) |
| Frequency (by normal means) | Unique |
| Genocidable | No |
| Weight | 1450 |
| Nutritional value | 400 |
| Size | Large |
| Resistances | fire, poison
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Durin's Bane:
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| Reference | UnNetHack - src/monst.c, line 3918 |
- This article is about the monster in UnNetHack. For the monster in dNetHack and its variants, see Durin's Bane (dNetHack).
Durin's Bane, &, is a monster that appears in UnNetHack. Durin's Bane is a strong and unique balrog-like demon that has many of the same traits: it can fly, has infravision, can be seen via infravision, can see invisible, will pick up weapons and other items to use, and can follow a hero to other levels if it is adjacent.
Durin's Bane has two strong weapon attacks, with the first being stronger, and like all major demons it possesses fire resistance, poison resistance, death resistance, and drain resistance.
Durin's Bane is poisonous to consume, which primarily comes up if it is digested by another monster.
Generation
Durin's Bane is always generated hostile.
Durin's Bane is generated on the far end of The Bridge of Khazad-dûm on the second floor of the Ruins of Moria at level creation.
Durin's Bane is always generated with an uncursed erosion-proof bullwhip that has an enchantment of up to +7, a wand of speed monster and a potion of paralysis, along with a 1⁄3 chance of being given a shield of reflection.
Durin's Bane does not leave a corpse upon death.
Strategy
Durin's Bane is slightly faster than a normal balrog, with a slightly better MR score of 80, but still moves at a slow base speed of 7 (which it can only boost to 9 with its wand of speed monster) and has the same -2 base AC. Like other hostile monsters, it will use its bullwhip to try and disarm you, so be sure to deal with it quickly—ranged attacks can circumvent the dangers of being disarmed, and well-trained and enchanted silver weapons can tear through Durin's Bane with relative ease.
Origin
Durin's Bane is a balrog that appears in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring, where it attacks the Fellowship as they try to pass through the halls of Moria. It is the only balrog seen and described in Lord of the Rings (though balrogs also figure in some of Tolkien's other writings, such as the Silmarillion) and serves as the model for balrogs in other media, including NetHack: the passage describing the encounter with Durin's Bane is used as the encyclopedia entry for "balrog" in NetHack (and in UnNetHack). This is retained even in some variants that add Durin's Bane, who is naturally a stronger version of vanilla's standard balrog; the balrog in turn is one of the strongest non-unique major demons in the game.
Durin's Bane is described in The Fellowship of the Ring as a vast shadowy creature with a humanoid shape and spreading "wings"—whether these wings are physical or merely a description of its shadow is up for debate. It wields a blazing sword in one hand and a burning whip in the other; the NetHack analogues to this are the broadsword and bullwhip that every balrog starts with.
The balrog that came to be known as "Durin's Bane" was a servant of the evil Morgoth. After Morgoth's defeat, the balrog concealed itself under the Misty Mountains, until it was disturbed or awakened by dwarves mining in their stronghold of Khazad-dûm (Moria). The dwarves gave the balrog its name after it killed their leader Durin VI in battle, which forced them to vacate Moria; the balrog remained in the complex after it was occupied by Sauron's orcs and trolls, and joined the occupying force in trying to kill the Fellowship of the Ring when they attempted to pass through Moria. Durin's Bane proved a powerful foe - it was only defeated after a grueling fight to the death with Gandalf the Grey.
Encyclopedia entry
... It came to the edge of the fire and the light faded as
if a cloud had bent over it. Then with a rush it leaped
the fissure. The flames roared up to greet it, and wreathed
about it; and a black smoke swirled in the air. Its streaming
mane kindled, and blazed behind it. In its right hand
was a blade like a stabbing tongue of fire; in its left it
held a whip of many thongs.
'Ai, ai!' wailed Legolas. 'A Balrog! A Balrog is come!'
