Luck item
A luck item is a general term for any item in NetHack that changes the hero's luck and/or luck timeout, such as a luckstone.
Some artifacts can "act" as a luckstone while carried, and function in the exact same way as one in addition to their other effects.[1][2]
List of luck items
Strategy
Since all luck items in vanilla NetHack outside of the luckstone are quest artifacts, the ability to obtain a luck item can render the guaranteed luckstone within Mines' End redundant. Some characters whose role this applies to may elect to postpone their trip to the Gnomish Mines in favor of Sokoban, for example, or else choose not to proceed beyond Minetown; other players may want a luckstone to tide them over until they obtain their quest artifact.
There is usually little tangible benefit to carrying multiple luck items in open inventory—spare luckstones can be kept within a container in the event your primary source of luck is cursed. While an uncursed luckstone can suffice in most cases, blessing one allows bad luck to time out and provides a buffer against the curse items monster spell and other similar effects. Other luck items may be preferred in the main inventory over luckstones due to the benefits from their base items: all of them are intelligent artifacts that will also resist the curse items spell 4⁄5 (80%) of the time, so blessing them is an unambiguous boon, and the quest artifact for your role will always be generated as blessed.
Variants
Some variants include other luck-altering items and artifacts that may function differently from a luckstone.
SLASH'EM
SLASH'EM has the following luck-affecting items:
- The fedora increases a hero's charisma by 1 while worn, and also prevents good luck from timing out similar to a blessed luckstone.[5][6]
- Luckblade is an artifact short sword that behaves as a luckstone of the same beatitude while carried.
- Whisperfeet is an artifact pair of speed boots that behaves as a luckstone of the same beatitude while carried.
UnNetHack
UnNetHack has the following luck-affecting items:
- A worn fedora increases an Archeologist's base luck by 1.
- Luck Blade is an artifact broadsword behaves as a luckstone of the same beatitude while carried.
A hero wielding a non-cursed weapon that functions as a luck item, i.e. Luck Blade or The Tsurugi of Muramasa, can completely resist the gaze attack of evil eyes. Luck items used as weapons also have unusual effects on an evil eye: hitting an evil eye with a cursed luck item will heal it for 4d6 HP, while hitting one with a blessed luck item will instantly kill it.
