Weapon
| Item classes | ||
|---|---|---|
| " Amulets | [ Armor | |
| % Comestibles | $ Coins | |
| * Gems | ! Potions | |
| = Rings | ? Scrolls | |
| + Spellbooks | ` Statues | |
| ( Tools | ` Boulders | |
| ) Weapons | / Wands | |
In NetHack, a weapon is an item used to attack opponents.
Description
Most weapons are wielded with w and used to hit enemies; you cannot wield a weapon if you are handless or tiny.[1] To attack with a wielded weapon, simply try to move into a monster's space, or use Shift + F to attack in any direction.
Some weapons are missiles that are designed to be thrown or shot with t (or f to fire quivered weapons), and others require a launcher to be wielded in order to shoot them as ammo—still other items are not designed as weaponry, but can be improvised to serve as one, such as a cream pie. Hitting monsters properly with actual weapons can increase your skill in that weapon.
You can ready a second weapon for use, and use x to exchange between your primary and secondary weapons. Some roles can wield both weapons at once using the #twoweapon command. Pressing w, then - will unwield your current weapon and have you fight empty-handed; this is the default for Monks, who excel in fighting without a weapon, and Tourists that start the game without a tin opener.
Weapon generation
Randomly generated weapons have the following total probability of beatitude and enchantment:[2]
| +0 | +1 | +2 | +3 | +4 | >+4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blessed | 4.09% | 3.03% | 1.01% | 0.34% | 0.11% | 0.06% |
| Uncursed | 73.64% | 3.03% | 1.01% | 0.34% | 0.11% | 0.06% |
| +0 | -1 | -2 | -3 | -4 | <-4 | |
| Cursed | 4.09% | 6.06% | 2.02% | 0.67% | 0.22% | 0.11% |
Given the BUC status, the chance of enchantment is:
| +0 | +1 | +2 | +3 | +4 | >+4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blessed | 47.37% | 35.09% | 11.70% | 3.90% | 1.30% | 0.65% |
| Uncursed | 94.19% | 3.88% | 1.29% | 0.43% | 0.14% | 0.07% |
| +0 | -1 | -2 | -3 | -4 | <-4 | |
| Cursed | 31.03% | 45.98% | 15.33% | 5.11% | 1.70% | 0.85% |
After the type of weapon is chosen, if an artifact matching the base type exists, there is a 1/(20 + 10*N) chance that the weapon is converted into an artifact (where N is the number of artifacts already existing).
Poisonable weapons are generated as poisoned 1% of the time.
Weapons and erosion
Many weapons are subject to possible erosion from various sources, such as rust traps and monsters with eroding attacks (typically in the form of a passive attack); erosion can significantly reduce a weapon's effectiveness. Most metallic weapons can rust or corrode, while wooden weapons can be burnt.
A weapon can be made erodeproof by wielding it as a primary weapon and reading a scroll of enchant weapon while confused; this also repairs any current erosion on the weapon in question. Some weapons can also have their erosion repaired by dipping the weapon in a potion of oil.
Weapon attacks and usage
A hero or monster that has a weapon attack will use their wielded weapon when performing that attack, and weapon attacks are denoted with the AT_WEAP attack type flag within monattk.h in the source code.[3] The damage from a weapon attack serves as the base damage that is modified by the wielded weapon's damage if applicable, which includes any enchantments and damage bonuses:[4][5] for example, a hill orc has a 1d6 weapon attack (as detailed in its infobox), and if it attacks without a wielded weapon, it will only deal 1-6 damage—if that same hill orc attacks while wielding an uncursed +0 scimitar, which deals 1d8 damage to small and large monsters, the hill orc will deal 1-6 damage plus 1-8 damage from the scimitar for a total damage range of 2-14.
Monsters with weapon attacks can also throw or shoot projectiles at distant targets, depending on whether the ammo requires an appropriate launcher and if the attacker currently has that launcher wielded. If a monster with ammo that requires a launcher wants to shoot at a target but does not have the proper launcher wielded, they will take a turn to attempt wielding that launcher.
Table of weapons and their properties
| Weapon | Skill | Cost | Hands | Weight | Prob (‰) | Dam. (S) | Dam. (L) | Material | Appearance | Tile | Glyph |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| orcish dagger | dagger | 4 zm | 1 | 10 | 12† | 2 | 2 | iron | crude dagger |  |
) |
| dagger | dagger | 4 zm | 1 | 10 | 30 | 2.5 | 2 | iron |  |
) | |
| silver dagger | dagger | 40 zm | 1 | 12 | 3 | 2.5 | 2 | silver |  |
) | |
| athame | dagger | 4 zm | 1 | 10 | N/A | 2.5 | 2 | iron |  |
) | |
| elven dagger | dagger | 4 zm | 1 | 10 | 10† | 3 | 2 | wood | runed dagger |  |
) |
| worm tooth | knife | 2 zm | 1 | 20 | N/A | 1.5 | 1.5 | bone |  |
) | |
| knife (shito) | knife | 4 zm | 1 | 5 | 20 | 2 | 1.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| stiletto | knife | 4 zm | 1 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 1.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| scalpel | knife | 6 zm | 1 | 5 | N/A | 2 | 2 | metal |  |
) | |
| crysknife | knife | 100 zm | 1 | 20 | N/A | 5.5 | 5.5 | bone |  |
) | |
| axe | axe | 8 zm | 1 | 60 | 40 | 3.5 | 2.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| battle-axe | axe | 40 zm | 2 | 120 | 10 | 7 | 8.5 | iron | double-headed axe |  |
) |
| pick-axe | pick-axe | 50 zm | 1 | 100 | tool | 3.5 | 2 | iron |  |
( | |
| dwarvish mattock | pick-axe | 50 zm | 2 | 120 | 13† | 6.5 | 11.5 | iron | broad pick |  |
) |
| orcish short sword | short sword | 10 zm | 1 | 30 | 3† | 3 | 4.5 | iron | crude short sword |  |
) |
| short sword (wakizashi) | short sword | 10 zm | 1 | 30 | 8 | 3.5 | 4.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| dwarvish short sword | short sword | 10 zm | 1 | 30 | 2† | 4 | 4.5 | iron | broad short sword |  |
) |
| elven short sword | short sword | 10 zm | 1 | 30 | 2† | 4.5 | 4.5 | wood | runed short sword |  |
) |
| broadsword (ninja-to) | broadsword | 10 zm | 1 | 70 | 8 | 5 | 4.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| runesword | broadsword | 300 zm | 1 | 40 | N/A | 5 | 4.5 | iron | runed broadsword |  |
) |
| elven broadsword | broadsword | 10 zm | 1 | 70 | 4† | 6 | 4.5 | wood | runed broadsword |  |
) |
| long sword | long sword | 15 zm | 1 | 40 | 50† | 4.5 | 6.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| katana | long sword | 80 zm | 1 | 40 | 4 | 5.5 | 6.5 | iron | samurai sword |  |
) |
| two-handed sword | two-handed sword | 50 zm | 2 | 150 | 22 | 6.5 | 10.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| tsurugi | two-handed sword | 500 zm | 2 | 60 | N/A | 8.5 | 11.5 | metal | long samurai sword |  |
) |
| scimitar | saber | 15 zm | 1 | 40 | 15† | 4.5 | 4.5 | iron | curved sword |  |
) |
| silver saber | saber | 75 zm | 1 | 40 | 6 | 4.5 | 4.5 | silver |  |
) | |
| club | club | 3 zm | 1 | 30 | 12 | 3.5 | 2 | wood |  |
) | |
| aklys | club | 4 zm | 1 | 15 | 8 | 3.5 | 2 | iron | thonged club |  |
) |
| mace | mace | 5 zm | 1 | 30 | 40 | 4.5 | 3.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| silver mace | mace | 60 zm | 1 | 36 | 2 | 4.5 | 3.5 | silver |  |
) | |
| morning star | morning star | 10 zm | 1 | 120 | 12 | 5 | 4.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| flail (nunchaku) | flail | 4 zm | 1 | 15 | 40 | 4.5 | 5 | iron |  |
) | |
| grappling hook | flail | 50 zm | 1 | 30 | tool | 1.5 | 3.5 | iron | iron hook |  |
( |
| war hammer | hammer | 5 zm | 1 | 50 | 15 | 3.5 | 2.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| quarterstaff | quarterstaff | 5 zm | 2 | 40 | 11† | 3.5 | 3.5 | wood | staff |  |
) |
| partisan | polearms | 10 zm | 2 | 80 | 5 | 3.5 | 4.5 | iron | vulgar polearm |  |
) |
| fauchard | polearms | 5 zm | 2 | 60 | 6 | 3.5 | 4.5 | iron | pole sickle |  |
) |
| glaive (naginata) | polearms | 6 zm | 2 | 75 | 8 | 3.5 | 5.5 | iron | single-edged polearm |  |
) |
| bec de corbin | polearms | 8 zm | 2 | 100 | 4 | 4.5 | 3.5 | iron | beaked polearm |  |
) |
| spetum | polearms | 5 zm | 2 | 50 | 5 | 4.5 | 7 | iron | forked polearm |  |
) |
| lucern hammer | polearms | 7 zm | 2 | 150 | 5 | 5 | 3.5 | iron | pronged polearm |  |
) |
| guisarme | polearms | 5 zm | 2 | 80 | 6 | 5 | 4.5 | iron | pruning hook |  |
) |
| ranseur | polearms | 6 zm | 2 | 50 | 5 | 5 | 5 | iron | hilted polearm |  |
) |
| voulge | polearms | 5 zm | 2 | 125 | 4 | 5 | 5 | iron | pole cleaver |  |
) |
| bill-guisarme | polearms | 7 zm | 2 | 120 | 4 | 5 | 5.5 | iron | hooked polearm |  |
) |
| bardiche | polearms | 7 zm | 2 | 120 | 4 | 5 | 7.5 | iron | long poleaxe |  |
) |
| halberd | polearms | 10 zm | 2 | 150 | 8 | 5.5 | 7 | iron | angled poleaxe |  |
) |
| orcish spear | spear | 3 zm | 1 | 30 | 13† | 3 | 4.5 | iron | crude spear |  |
) |
| spear | spear | 3 zm | 1 | 30 | 50† | 3.5 | 4.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| silver spear | spear | 40 zm | 1 | 36 | 2 | 3.5 | 4.5 | silver |  |
) | |
| elven spear | spear | 3 zm | 1 | 30 | 10† | 4 | 4.5 | wood | runed spear |  |
) |
| dwarvish spear | spear | 3 zm | 1 | 35 | 12† | 4.5 | 4.5 | iron | stout spear |  |
) |
| javelin | spear | 3 zm | 1 | 20 | 10 | 3.5 | 3.5 | iron | throwing spear |  |
) |
| trident | trident | 5 zm | 1 | 25 | 8 | 4.5 | 7.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| lance1 | lance | 10 zm | 1 | 180 | 4 | 3.5 | 4.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| orcish bow | bow | 60 zm | 1 | 30 | 12† | 1.5 | 1.5 | wood | crude bow |  |
) |
| orcish arrow2 | bow | 2 zm | 1 | 1 | 20† | 3 | 3.5 | iron | crude arrow |  |
) |
| bow | bow | 60 zm | 1 | 30 | 24 | 1.5 | 1.5 | wood |  |
) | |
| arrow2 | bow | 2 zm | 1 | 1 | 55† | 3.5 | 3.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| elven bow | bow | 60 zm | 1 | 30 | 12† | 1.5 | 1.5 | wood | runed bow |  |
) |
| elven arrow2 | bow | 2 zm | 1 | 1 | 20† | 4 | 3.5 | wood | runed arrow |  |
) |
| yumi | bow | 60 zm | 1 | 30 | 0 | 1.5 | 1.5 | wood | long bow |  |
) |
| ya2 | bow | 4 zm | 1 | 1 | 15 | 4 | 4 | metal | bamboo arrow |  |
) |
| silver arrow2 | bow | 5 zm | 1 | 1 | 12 | 3.5 | 3.5 | silver |  |
) | |
| sling | sling | 20 zm | 1 | 3 | 40 | 1.5 | 1.5 | leather |  |
) | |
| flint stone2 | sling | 1 zm | 1 | 10 | gem | 3.5 | 3.5 | mineral | gray stone |  |
* |
| crossbow | crossbow | 40 zm | 1 | 50 | 45† | 1.5 | 1.5 | wood |  |
) | |
| crossbow bolt2 | crossbow | 2 zm | 1 | 1 | 55† | 3.5 | 4.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| dart2 | dart | 2 zm | 1 | 1 | 60† | 2 | 1.5 | iron |  |
) | |
| shuriken2 | shuriken | 5 zm | 1 | 1 | 35 | 4.5 | 3.5 | iron | throwing star |  |
) |
| boomerang2 | boomerang | 20 zm | 1 | 5 | 15 | 5 | 5 | wood |  |
) | |
| bullwhip | whip | 4 zm | 1 | 20 | 2 | 1.5 | 1 | leather |  |
) | |
| rubber hose | whip | 3 zm | 1 | 20 | N/A | 2.5 | 2 | plastic |  |
) | |
| unicorn horn | unicorn horn | 100 zm | 2 | 20 | tool | 6.5 | 6.5 | bone |  |
( |
(‰) Relative probability.[6] Figures are given as probability in a thousand, or permille.
(†) Objects are significantly more common in play than their probability would otherwise imply due to monster starting inventory or certain traps.
(1) When the user is riding, the lance gets an additional 2d10 in case of a successful joust if the lance is wielded as a primary weapon and 2d2 if it is wielded as a secondary weapon[7]. The victim is also automatically stunned and thrown back a square.
(2) This is a projectile weapon that is meant to be thrown or fired, not wielded, in order to deal damage.
Strategy
A significant part of NetHack strategy comes down to weapon selection. On a basic level, curse-testing any weapons you find before wielding them is ideal, whether it be via a starting pet or an altar.
Erodeproofing
Once you have settled on your main weapon(s), erodeproof them as soon as you can in order to preserve their damage output. The urgency of this varies with your role and weapon(s) of choice: for instance, while most wooden and organic weapons risk being burnt, this is only a risk against monsters with fiery passive attacks (i.e. the fire elemental, fire vortex, and red mold), and fire traps also do not affect weapons.[8] Therefore, you can save scrolls of enchant weapon by switching to a metallic weapon or other burn-proof alternative against those monsters.
Weapons and monster size
Another aspect of weapon selection is accounting for the physical size of hostile monsters that you will face in the various stages of the game. As shown in the table above, various weapons have different hit dice against monsters depending on whether they are small (medium-sized or smaller) or large (large-sized or bigger).
The majority of monsters in the game are classified as small; this includes most of the monsters you encounter early on, with large monsters being intermittent and often more difficult in comparison. In contrast, the mid-game tends towards a mix of medium-sized monsters and larger; during the late game and end game, a majority of the most threatening monsters you will face - the Wizard of Yendor, the high priest of Moloch, and many of the Astral Plane denizens - are at least medium-sized, and most of the demon princes in Gehennom are large minus the dangerous but rarely-seen Dispater.
Fighting weaponless
In addition to being the preferred combat style of Monks, unwielding a weapon is viable if you must take on weapon-hazardous monsters such as acid blobs or rust monsters in melee, provided you lack a resistant weapon (e.g. a silver weapon or unicorn horn).
Encyclopedia entry
A weapon is a device for making your enemy change his mind.
See also
References
- ↑ mondata.h in NetHack 3.4.3, line 106
- ↑ src/mkobj.c in NetHack 5.0.0, line 876
- ↑ include/monattk.h in NetHack 5.0.0, line 28
- ↑ src/mhitu.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 959: base attack damage
- ↑ src/mhitu.c in NetHack 3.6.7, line 1003: weapon damage is added to base attack damage
- ↑ http://www.steelypips.org/nethack/343/weap-343.html
- ↑ include/objects.h in NetHack 5.0.0, line 351
- ↑ src/trap.c in NetHack 3.6.6, line 3124
