Gold Scroll of Law
A Gold Scroll of Law is a type of scroll that appears in dNetHack, notdNetHack, and notnotdNetHack. It has a base-material of gold and appears as a golden scroll when unidentified.
Generation
Gold Scrolls of Law are not randomly generated, cannot be written with a magic marker, but can still be wished for.
318 Gold Scrolls of Law are generated in the Dungeon of Ill-Regard level in the Law Quest, embedded in the walls. 7 random scrolls will also be generated alongside the Gold Scroll of Law. One of the three spellbooks of secrets — either The Necronomicon, The Book of Infinite Spells or The Book of Lost Names — and 2 random spellbooks can also generate alongside the Gold Scrolls of Law, each with a 1⁄10 chance.
Description
Reading a scroll of resistance has different effects based on the hero's alignment and alignment record. A lawful hero reading a Gold Scroll of Law with an alignment record of 21 or higher gains 777 experience and regains a number of hit points equal to their alignment record, but gains 4 sins and has their alignment record halved. Additionally, when read, the scroll affects every adjacent monster, or a single monster that has you engulfed: if the monsters are chaotic, they will be scared for 77 turns, or only for 7 if they are neutral. Lawful monsters will instead be tamed, subject to a magic resistance check similar to a scroll of taming.
The Gold Scroll of Law has severely reduced effects for those with an alignment record lower than 21 points and for neutral heroes. In these two cases, only chaotic adjacent or engulfing monsters are scared and only for 7 turns. A lawful character has their alignment record reduced by 20 points and gains 10 sins when doing this, while a neutral character only loses 8 alignment points and gains 8 sins.
Chaotic characters will become confused for the modulo value of their alignment record, gain 8 sins, and subsequently lose 8 alignment points. A Gold Scroll of Law that is read while being confused or if the scroll was cursed, independently of the character's alignment and alignment record, will always wake up and unparalyze all monsters in a 7-square radius.
Reading the scroll will auto-identify it. The scroll itself also cannot be destroyed by fire damage of any kind, and cannot be blanked by dipping into a potion of water or a fountain, but is still affected by other forms of water damage and will turn into a gold scroll of blank paper if they get wet. Gold Scrolls of Law also cannot be cancelled, and remain completely unaffected by all such magical effects. If a Gold Scroll of Law is polymorphed, it does not transform into another type of scroll — instead it turns into 51–100 gold pieces.
Monsters will not pick up or use this scroll.
Identification
The Gold Scroll of Law is the only scroll with a base material of gold and the only scroll with a base price of 10 zm. Gold Scrolls of Law are a uniquely heavy scroll type, weighing 50 aum, as much as a spellbook, making it immediately identifiable.
Messages
- You read from the golden scroll.
- It is a log-book from the Eternal Library.
- It's meaning is clear in your mind, and the pronunciation obvious.
- You feel guilty for destroying such a valuable text.
- You read a Gold Scroll of Law as a piously aligned Lawful character.
- It's meaning is unclear, and you think you didn't pronounce it quite right.
- You read a Gold Scroll of Law as a neutral or poorly aligned lawful character.
- You feel less neutral.
- You read a Gold Scroll of Law as a neutral character.
- You find it quite confusing. You feel unworthy of such a lawful text.
