User:Umbire the Phantom/Death magic

Death, often known more specifically as death magic, is a form of element that occurs in NetHack.

Description

Death magic is generally only encountered in two forms: the form of concentrated rays zapped from a wand of death or the finger of death spell, and the touch of death monster spell.

Death magic is not treated as a formal damage type in either case, since the touch of death is a mage monster spell, while the death rays technically shares its damage type with disintegration rays: the code uses the same ray color and damage type flag of AD_DISN for both types of ray, with cases distinguishing between the two that effectively depend on whether the ray's source is a wand (i.e. the wand of death or finger of death) or a monster (i.e. a black dragon's breath weapon).

Death resistance is an informal property that fully protects monsters from the effects of death magic, including a hero in the form of a monster with the property: unlike magic resistance, it also protects the hero from death rays zapped directly at themselves.

TODO: Figure out where Death's deadly touch figures into this.

Variants

dNetHack

In dNetHack, notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack, death magic is included as a formal damage type.