A Guide to the Mazes of Menace
(Guidebook for NetHack)
Eric S. Raymond
(Extensively edited and expanded for 3.4)
1. Introduction
Recently, you have begun to find yourself unfulfilled and distant
in your daily occupation. Strange dreams of prospecting, steal-
ing, crusading, and combat have haunted you in your sleep for
many months, but you aren't sure of the reason. You wonder
whether you have in fact been having those dreams all your life,
and somehow managed to forget about them until now. Some nights
you awaken suddenly and cry out, terrified at the vivid recollec-
tion of the strange and powerful creatures that seem to be lurk-
ing behind every corner of the dungeon in your dream. Could
these details haunting your dreams be real? As each night pass-
es, you feel the desire to enter the mysterious caverns near the
ruins grow stronger. Each morning, however, you quickly put the
idea out of your head as you recall the tales of those who en-
tered the caverns before you and did not return. Eventually you
can resist the yearning to seek out the fantastic place in your
dreams no longer. After all, when other adventurers came back
this way after spending time in the caverns, they usually seemed
better off than when they passed through the first time. And who
was to say that all of those who did not return had not just kept
going?
Asking around, you hear about a bauble, called the Amulet of
Yendor by some, which, if you can find it, will bring you great
wealth. One legend you were told even mentioned that the one who
finds the amulet will be granted immortality by the gods. The
amulet is rumored to be somewhere beyond the Valley of Gehennom,
deep within the Mazes of Menace. Upon hearing the legends, you
immediately realize that there is some profound and undiscovered
reason that you are to descend into the caverns and seek out that
amulet of which they spoke. Even if the rumors of the amulet's
powers are untrue, you decide that you should at least be able to
sell the tales of your adventures to the local minstrels for a
tidy sum, especially if you encounter any of the terrifying and
magical creatures of your dreams along the way. You spend one
last night fortifying yourself at the local inn, becoming more
and more depressed as you watch the odds of your success being
posted on the inn's walls getting lower and lower.
NetHack Guidebook 1
NetHack Guidebook 2
In the morning you awake, collect your belongings, and set
off for the dungeon. After several days of uneventful travel,
you see the ancient ruins that mark the entrance to the Mazes of
Menace. It is late at night, so you make camp at the entrance
and spend the night sleeping under the open skies. In the morn-
ing, you gather your gear, eat what may be your last meal out-
side, and enter the dungeon...
2. What is going on here?
You have just begun a game of NetHack. Your goal is to grab
as much treasure as you can, retrieve the Amulet of Yendor, and
escape the Mazes of Menace alive.
Your abilities and strengths for dealing with the hazards of
adventure will vary with your background and training:
Archeologists understand dungeons pretty well; this enables
them to move quickly and sneak up on the local nasties. They
start equipped with the tools for a proper scientific expedition.
Barbarians are warriors out of the hinterland, hardened to
battle. They begin their quests with naught but uncommon
strength, a trusty hauberk, and a great two-handed sword.
Cavemen and Cavewomen start with exceptional strength but,
unfortunately, with neolithic weapons.
Healers are wise in medicine and apothecary. They know the
herbs and simples that can restore vitality, ease pain, anes-
thetize, and neutralize poisons; and with their instruments, they
can divine a being's state of health or sickness. Their medical
practice earns them quite reasonable amounts of money, with which
they enter the dungeon.
Knights are distinguished from the common skirmisher by
their devotion to the ideals of chivalry and by the surpassing
excellence of their armor.
Monks are ascetics, who by rigorous practice of physical and
mental disciplines have become capable of fighting as effectively
without weapons as with. They wear no armor but make up for it
with increased mobility.
Priests and Priestesses are clerics militant, crusaders ad-
vancing the cause of righteousness with arms, armor, and arts
thaumaturgic. Their ability to commune with deities via prayer
occasionally extricates them from peril, but can also put them in
it.
Rangers are most at home in the woods, and some say slightly
out of place in a dungeon. They are, however, experts in archery
as well as tracking and stealthy movement.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 3
Rogues are agile and stealthy thieves, with knowledge of
locks, traps, and poisons. Their advantage lies in surprise,
which they employ to great advantage.
Samurai are the elite warriors of feudal Nippon. They are
lightly armored and quick, and wear the dai-sho, two swords of
the deadliest keenness.
Tourists start out with lots of gold (suitable for shopping
with), a credit card, lots of food, some maps, and an expensive
camera. Most monsters don't like being photographed.
Valkyries are hardy warrior women. Their upbringing in the
harsh Northlands makes them strong, inures them to extremes of
cold, and instills in them stealth and cunning.
Wizards start out with a knowledge of magic, a selection of
magical items, and a particular affinity for dweomercraft. Al-
though seemingly weak and easy to overcome at first sight, an ex-
perienced Wizard is a deadly foe.
You may also choose the race of your character:
Dwarves are smaller than humans or elves, but are stocky and
solid individuals. Dwarves' most notable trait is their great
expertise in mining and metalwork. Dwarvish armor is said to be
second in quality not even to the mithril armor of the Elves.
Elves are agile, quick, and perceptive; very little of what
goes on will escape an Elf. The quality of Elven craftsmanship
often gives them an advantage in arms and armor.
Gnomes are smaller than but generally similar to dwarves.
Gnomes are known to be expert miners, and it is known that a se-
cret underground mine complex built by this race exists within
the Mazes of Menace, filled with both riches and danger.
Humans are by far the most common race of the surface world,
and are thus the norm by which other races are often compared.
Although they have no special abilities, they can succeed in any
role.
Orcs are a cruel and barbaric race that hate every living
thing (including other orcs). Above all others, Orcs hate Elves
with a passion unequalled, and will go out of their way to kill
one at any opportunity. The armor and weapons fashioned by the
Orcs are typically of inferior quality.
3. What do all those things on the screen mean?
On the screen is kept a map of where you have been and what
you have seen on the current dungeon level; as you explore more
of the level, it appears on the screen in front of you.
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NetHack Guidebook 4
When NetHack's ancestor rogue first appeared, its screen
orientation was almost unique among computer fantasy games.
Since then, screen orientation has become the norm rather than
the exception; NetHack continues this fine tradition. Unlike
text adventure games that accept commands in pseudo-English sen-
tences and explain the results in words, NetHack commands are all
one or two keystrokes and the results are displayed graphically
on the screen. A minimum screen size of 24 lines by 80 columns
is recommended; if the screen is larger, only a 21x80 section
will be used for the map.
NetHack can even be played by blind players, with the assis-
tance of Braille readers or speech synthesisers. Instructions
for configuring NetHack for the blind are included later in this
document.
NetHack generates a new dungeon every time you play it; even
the authors still find it an entertaining and exciting game de-
spite having won several times.
NetHack offers a variety of display options. The options
available to you will vary from port to port, depending on the
capabilities of your hardware and software, and whether various
compile-time options were enabled when your executable was creat-
ed. The three possible display options are: a monochrome charac-
ter interface, a color character interface, and a graphical in-
terface using small pictures called tiles. The two character in-
terfaces allow fonts with other characters to be substituted, but
the default assignments use standard ASCII characters to repre-
sent everything. There is no difference between the various dis-
play options with respect to game play. Because we cannot repro-
duce the tiles or colors in the Guidebook, and because it is com-
mon to all ports, we will use the default ASCII characters from
the monochrome character display when referring to things you
might see on the screen during your game.
In order to understand what is going on in NetHack, first
you must understand what NetHack is doing with the screen. The
NetHack screen replaces the ``You see ...'' descriptions of text
adventure games. Figure 1 is a sample of what a NetHack screen
might look like. The way the screen looks for you depends on
your platform.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
The bat bites!
------
|....| ----------
|.<..|####...@...$.|
|....-# |...B....+
|....| |.d......|
------ -------|--
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 5
Player the Rambler St:12 Dx:7 Co:18 In:11 Wi:9 Ch:15 Neutral
Dlvl:1 $:0 HP:9(12) Pw:3(3) AC:10 Exp:1/19 T:257 Weak
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Figure 1
3.1. The status lines (bottom)
The bottom two lines of the screen contain several cryptic
pieces of information describing your current status. If either
status line becomes longer than the width of the screen, you
might not see all of it. Here are explanations of what the vari-
ous status items mean (though your configuration may not have all
the status items listed below):
Rank
Your character's name and professional ranking (based on the
experience level, see below).
Strength
A measure of your character's strength; one of your six ba-
sic attributes. A human character's attributes can range
from 3 to 18 inclusive; non-humans may exceed these limits
(occasionally you may get super-strengths of the form 18/xx,
and magic can also cause attributes to exceed the normal
limits). The higher your strength, the stronger you are.
Strength affects how successfully you perform physical
tasks, how much damage you do in combat, and how much loot
you can carry.
Dexterity
Dexterity affects your chances to hit in combat, to avoid
traps, and do other tasks requiring agility or manipulation
of objects.
Constitution
Constitution affects your ability to recover from injuries
and other strains on your stamina.
Intelligence
Intelligence affects your ability to cast spells and read
spellbooks.
Wisdom
Wisdom comes from your practical experience (especially when
dealing with magic). It affects your magical energy.
Charisma
Charisma affects how certain creatures react toward you. In
particular, it can affect the prices shopkeepers offer you.
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NetHack Guidebook 6
Alignment
Lawful, Neutral, or Chaotic. Often, Lawful is taken as good
and Chaotic as evil, but legal and ethical do not always co-
incide. Your alignment influences how other monsters react
toward you. Monsters of a like alignment are more likely to
be non-aggressive, while those of an opposing alignment are
more likely to be seriously offended at your presence.
Dungeon Level
How deep you are in the dungeon. You start at level one and
the number increases as you go deeper into the dungeon.
Some levels are special, and are identified by a name and
not a number. The Amulet of Yendor is reputed to be some-
where beneath the twentieth level.
Gold
The number of gold pieces you are openly carrying. Gold
which you have concealed in containers is not counted.
Hit Points
Your current and maximum hit points. Hit points indicate
how much damage you can take before you die. The more you
get hit in a fight, the lower they get. You can regain hit
points by resting, or by using certain magical items or
spells. The number in parentheses is the maximum number
your hit points can reach.
Power
Spell points. This tells you how much mystic energy (mana)
you have available for spell casting. Again, resting will
regenerate the amount available.
Armor Class
A measure of how effectively your armor stops blows from un-
friendly creatures. The lower this number is, the more ef-
fective the armor; it is quite possible to have negative ar-
mor class.
Experience
Your current experience level and experience points. As you
adventure, you gain experience points. At certain experi-
ence point totals, you gain an experience level. The more
experienced you are, the better you fight and withstand mag-
ical attacks. Many dungeons show only your experience level
here.
Time
The number of turns elapsed so far, displayed if you have
the time option set.
Hunger status
Your current hunger status, ranging from Satiated down to
Fainting. If your hunger status is normal, it is not dis-
played.
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NetHack Guidebook 7
Additional status flags may appear after the hunger status:
Conf when you're confused, FoodPois or Ill when sick, Blind when
you can't see, Stun when stunned, and Hallu when hallucinating.
3.2. The message line (top)
The top line of the screen is reserved for messages that de-
scribe things that are impossible to represent visually. If you
see a ``--More--'' on the top line, this means that NetHack has
another message to display on the screen, but it wants to make
certain that you've read the one that is there first. To read
the next message, just press the space bar.
3.3. The map (rest of the screen)
The rest of the screen is the map of the level as you have
explored it so far. Each symbol on the screen represents some-
thing. You can set various graphics options to change some of
the symbols the game uses; otherwise, the game will use default
symbols. Here is a list of what the default symbols mean:
- and |
The walls of a room, or an open door. Or a grave (|).
. The floor of a room, ice, or a doorless doorway.
# A corridor, or iron bars, or a tree, or possibly a kitchen
sink (if your dungeon has sinks), or a drawbridge.
> Stairs down: a way to the next level.
< Stairs up: a way to the previous level.
+ A closed door, or a spellbook containing a spell you may be
able to learn.
@ Your character or a human.
$ A pile of gold.
^ A trap (once you have detected it).
) A weapon.
[ A suit or piece of armor.
% Something edible (not necessarily healthy).
? A scroll.
/ A wand.
= A ring.
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NetHack Guidebook 8
! A potion.
( A useful item (pick-axe, key, lamp...).
" An amulet or a spider web.
* A gem or rock (possibly valuable, possibly worthless).
` A boulder or statue.
0 An iron ball.
_ An altar, or an iron chain.
{ A fountain.
} A pool of water or moat or a pool of lava.
\ An opulent throne.
a-zA-Z and other symbols
Letters and certain other symbols represent the various in-
habitants of the Mazes of Menace. Watch out, they can be
nasty and vicious. Sometimes, however, they can be helpful.
I This marks the last known location of an invisible or other-
wise unseen monster. Note that the monster could have
moved. The 'F' and 'm' commands may be useful here.
You need not memorize all these symbols; you can ask the
game what any symbol represents with the `/' command (see the
next section for more info).
4. Commands
Commands are initiated by typing one or two characters.
Some commands, like ``search'', do not require that any more in-
formation be collected by NetHack. Other commands might require
additional information, for example a direction, or an object to
be used. For those commands that require additional information,
NetHack will present you with either a menu of choices or with a
command line prompt requesting information. Which you are pre-
sented with will depend chiefly on how you have set the menustyle
option.
For example, a common question, in the form ``What do you
want to use? [a-zA-Z ?*]'', asks you to choose an object you are
carrying. Here, ``a-zA-Z'' are the inventory letters of your
possible choices. Typing `?' gives you an inventory list of
these items, so you can see what each letter refers to. In this
example, there is also a `*' indicating that you may choose an
object not on the list, if you wanted to use something unexpect-
ed. Typing a `*' lists your entire inventory, so you can see the
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 9
inventory letters of every object you're carrying. Finally, if
you change your mind and decide you don't want to do this command
after all, you can press the ESC key to abort the command.
You can put a number before some commands to repeat them
that many times; for example, ``10s'' will search ten times. If
you have the number_pad option set, you must type `n' to prefix a
count, so the example above would be typed ``n10s'' instead.
Commands for which counts make no sense ignore them. In addi-
tion, movement commands can be prefixed for greater control (see
below). To cancel a count or a prefix, press the ESC key.
The list of commands is rather long, but it can be read at
any time during the game through the `?' command, which accesses
a menu of helpful texts. Here are the commands for your refer-
ence:
? Help menu: display one of several help texts available.
/ Tell what a symbol represents. You may choose to specify a
location or type a symbol (or even a whole word) to explain.
Specifying a location is done by moving the cursor to a par-
ticular spot on the map and then pressing one of `.', `,',
`;', or `:'. `.' will explain the symbol at the chosen lo-
cation, conditionally check for ``More info?'' depending up-
on whether the help option is on, and then you will be asked
to pick another location; `,' will explain the symbol but
skip any additional information; `;' will skip additional
info and also not bother asking you to choose another loca-
tion to examine; `:' will show additional info, if any,
without asking for confirmation. When picking a location,
pressing the ESC key will terminate this command, or press-
ing `?' will give a brief reminder about how it works.
Specifying a name rather than a location always gives any
additional information available about that name.
& Tell what a command does.
< Go up to the previous level (if you are on a staircase or
ladder).
> Go down to the next level (if you are on a staircase or lad-
der).
[yuhjklbn]
Go one step in the direction indicated (see Figure 2). If
you sense or remember a monster there, you will fight the
monster instead. Only these one-step movement commands
cause you to fight monsters; the others (below) are
``safe.''
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 10
y k u 7 8 9
\ | / \ | /
h- . -l 4- . -6
/ | \ / | \
b j n 1 2 3
(if number_pad is set)
Figure 2
[YUHJKLBN]
Go in that direction until you hit a wall or run into some-
thing.
m[yuhjklbn]
Prefix: move without picking up objects or fighting (even
if you remember a monster there)
F[yuhjklbn]
Prefix: fight a monster (even if you only guess one is
there)
M[yuhjklbn]
Prefix: move far, no pickup.
g[yuhjklbn]
Prefix: move until something interesting is found.
G[yuhjklbn] or <CONTROL->[yuhjklbn]
Prefix: same as `g', but forking of corridors is not con-
sidered interesting.
_ Travel to a map location via a shortest-path algorithm. The
shortest path is computed over map locations the hero knows
about (e.g. seen or previously traversed). If there is no
known path, a guess is made instead. Stops on most of the
same conditions as the `G' command, but without picking up
objects, similar to the `M' command. For ports with mouse
support, the command is also invoked when a mouse-click
takes place on a location other than the current position.
. Rest, do nothing for one turn.
a Apply (use) a tool (pick-axe, key, lamp...).
A Remove one or more worn items, such as armor. Use `T' (take
off) to take off only one piece of armor or `R' (remove) to
take off only one accessory.
^A Redo the previous command.
c Close a door.
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NetHack Guidebook 11
C Call (name) an individual monster.
^C Panic button. Quit the game.
d Drop something. Ex. ``d7a'' means drop seven items of ob-
ject a.
D Drop several things. In answer to the question ``What kinds
of things do you want to drop? [!%= BUCXaium]'' you should
type zero or more object symbols possibly followed by `a'
and/or `i' and/or `u' and/or `m'. In addition, one or more
of the blessed/uncursed/cursed groups may be typed.
DB - drop all objects known to be blessed.
DU - drop all objects known to be uncursed.
DC - drop all objects known to be cursed.
DX - drop all objects of unknown B/U/C status.
Da - drop all objects, without asking for confirmation.
Di - examine your inventory before dropping anything.
Du - drop only unpaid objects (when in a shop).
Dm - use a menu to pick which object(s) to drop.
D%u - drop only unpaid food.
^D Kick something (usually a door).
e Eat food.
E Engrave a message on the floor. Engraving the word
``Elbereth'' will cause most monsters to not attack you
hand-to-hand (but if you attack, you will rub it out); this
is often useful to give yourself a breather. (This feature
may be compiled out of the game, so your version might not
have it.)
E- - write in the dust with your fingers.
f Fire one of the objects placed in your quiver. You may se-
lect ammunition with a previous `Q' command, or let the com-
puter pick something appropriate if autoquiver is true.
i List your inventory (everything you're carrying).
I List selected parts of your inventory.
I* - list all gems in inventory;
Iu - list all unpaid items;
Ix - list all used up items that are on your shopping bill;
I$ - count your money.
o Open a door.
O Set options. A menu showing the current option values will
be displayed. You can change most values simply by select-
ing the menu entry for the given option (ie, by typing its
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 12
letter or clicking upon it, depending on your user inter-
face). For the non-boolean choices, a further menu or
prompt will appear once you've closed this menu. The avail-
able options are listed later in this Guidebook. Options
are usually set before the game rather than with the `O'
command; see the section on options below.
p Pay your shopping bill.
P Put on a ring or other accessory (amulet, blindfold).
^P Repeat previous message. Subsequent ^P's repeat earlier
messages. The behavior can be varied via the msg_window op-
tion.
q Quaff (drink) something (potion, water, etc).
Q Select an object for your quiver. You can then throw this
using the `f' command. (In versions prior to 3.3 this was
the command to quit the game, which has now been moved to
`#quit'.)
r Read a scroll or spellbook.
R Remove an accessory (ring, amulet, etc).
^R Redraw the screen.
s Search for secret doors and traps around you. It usually
takes several tries to find something.
S Save (and suspend) the game. The game will be restored au-
tomatically the next time you play.
t Throw an object or shoot a projectile.
T Take off armor.
^T Teleport, if you have the ability.
v Display version number.
V Display the game history.
w Wield weapon.
w- - wield nothing, use your bare hands.
W Wear armor.
x Exchange your wielded weapon with the item in your alternate
weapon slot. The latter is used as your secondary weapon
when engaging in two-weapon combat. Note that if one of
these slots is empty, the exchange still takes place.
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NetHack Guidebook 13
X Enter explore (discovery) mode, explained in its own section
later.
^X Display your name, role, race, gender, and alignment as well
as the various deities in your game.
z Zap a wand. To aim at yourself, use `.' for the direction.
Z Zap (cast) a spell. To cast at yourself, use `.' for the
direction.
^Z Suspend the game (UNIX(R) versions with job control only).
: Look at what is here.
; Show what type of thing a visible symbol corresponds to.
, Pick up some things. May be preceded by `m' to force a se-
lection menu.
@ Toggle the autopickup option on and off.
^ Ask for the type of a trap you found earlier.
) Tell what weapon you are wielding.
[ Tell what armor you are wearing.
= Tell what rings you are wearing.
" Tell what amulet you are wearing.
( Tell what tools you are using.
* Tell what equipment you are using; combines the preceding
five type-specific commands into one.
$ Count your gold pieces.
+ List the spells you know. Using this command, you can also
rearrange the order in which your spells are listed. They
are shown via a menu, and if you select a spell in that
menu, you'll be re-prompted for another spell to swap places
with it, and then have opportunity to make further ex-
changes.
\ Show what types of objects have been discovered.
! Escape to a shell.
__________
(R)UNIX is a registered trademark of AT&T.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 14
# Perform an extended command. As you can see, the authors of
NetHack used up all the letters, so this is a way to intro-
duce the less frequently used commands. What extended com-
mands are available depends on what features the game was
compiled with.
#adjust
Adjust inventory letters (most useful when the fixinv option
is ``on'').
#chat
Talk to someone.
#conduct
List which challenges you have adhered to. See the section
below entitled ``Conduct'' for details.
#dip Dip an object into something.
#enhance
Advance or check weapons and spell skills.
#force
Force a lock.
#invoke
Invoke an object's special powers.
#jump
Jump to another location.
#loot
Loot a box or bag on the floor beneath you, or the saddle
from a horse standing next to you.
#monster
Use a monster's special ability (when polymorphed into mon-
ster form).
#name
Name an item or type of object.
#offer
Offer a sacrifice to the gods.
#pray
Pray to the gods for help.
#quit
Quit the program without saving your game.
#ride
Ride (or stop riding) a monster.
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NetHack Guidebook 15
#rub Rub a lamp or a stone.
#sit Sit down.
#turn
Turn undead.
#twoweapon
Toggle two-weapon combat on or off. Note that you must use
suitable weapons for this type of combat, or it will be au-
tomatically turned off.
#untrap
Untrap something (trap, door, or chest).
#version
Print compile time options for this version of NetHack.
#wipe
Wipe off your face.
#? Help menu: get the list of available extended commands.
If your keyboard has a meta key (which, when pressed in com-
bination with another key, modifies it by setting the `meta'
[8th, or `high'] bit), you can invoke many extended commands by
meta-ing the first letter of the command. In NT, OS/2, and PC
NetHack, the `Alt' key can be used in this fashion.
M-? #? (not supported by all platforms)
M-2 #twoweapon (unless the number_pad option is enabled)
M-a #adjust
M-c #chat
M-d #dip
M-e #enhance
M-f #force
M-i #invoke
M-j #jump
M-l #loot
M-m #monster
M-n #name
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 16
M-o #offer
M-p #pray
M-q #quit
M-r #rub
M-s #sit
M-t #turn
M-u #untrap
M-v #version
M-w #wipe
If the number_pad option is on, some additional letter com-
mands are available:
h Help menu: display one of several help texts available,
like ``?''.
j Jump to another location. Same as ``#jump'' or ``M-j''.
k Kick something (usually a door). Same as `^D'.
l Loot a box or bag on the floor beneath you, or the saddle
from a horse standing next to you. Same as ``#loot'' or
``M-l''.
N Name an item or type of object. Same as ``#name'' or ``M-
n''.
u Untrap a trap, door, or chest. Same as ``#untrap'' or ``M-
u''.
5. Rooms and corridors
Rooms and corridors in the dungeon are either lit or dark.
Any lit areas within your line of sight will be displayed; dark
areas are only displayed if they are within one space of you.
Walls and corridors remain on the map as you explore them.
Secret corridors are hidden. You can find them with the `s'
(search) command.
5.1. Doorways
Doorways connect rooms and corridors. Some doorways have no
doors; you can walk right through. Others have doors in them,
which may be open, closed, or locked. To open a closed door, use
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 17
the `o' (open) command; to close it again, use the `c' (close)
command.
You can get through a locked door by using a tool to pick
the lock with the `a' (apply) command, or by kicking it open with
the `^D' (kick) command.
Open doors cannot be entered diagonally; you must approach
them straight on, horizontally or vertically. Doorways without
doors are not restricted in this fashion.
Doors can be useful for shutting out monsters. Most mon-
sters cannot open doors, although a few don't need to (ex. ghosts
can walk through doors).
Secret doors are hidden. You can find them with the `s'
(search) command. Once found they are in all ways equivalent to
normal doors.
5.2. Traps (`^')
There are traps throughout the dungeon to snare the unwary
delver. For example, you may suddenly fall into a pit and be
stuck for a few turns trying to climb out. Traps don't appear on
your map until you see one triggered by moving onto it, see some-
thing fall into it, or you discover it with the `s' (search) com-
mand. Monsters can fall prey to traps, too, which can be a very
useful defensive strategy.
There is a special pre-mapped branch of the dungeon based on
the classic computer game ``Sokoban.'' The goal is to push the
boulders into the pits or holes. With careful foresight, it is
possible to complete all of the levels according to the tradi-
tional rules of Sokoban. Some allowances are permitted in case
the player gets stuck; however, they will lower your luck.
5.3. Stairs (`<', `>')
In general, each level in the dungeon will have a staircase
going up (`<') to the previous level and another going down (`>')
to the next level. There are some exceptions though. For in-
stance, fairly early in the dungeon you will find a level with
two down staircases, one continuing into the dungeon and the oth-
er branching into an area known as the Gnomish Mines. Those
mines eventually hit a dead end, so after exploring them (if you
choose to do so), you'll need to climb back up to the main dun-
geon.
When you traverse a set of stairs, or trigger a trap which
sends you to another level, the level you're leaving will be de-
activated and stored in a file on disk. If you're moving to a
previously visited level, it will be loaded from its file on disk
and reactivated. If you're moving to a level which has not yet
been visited, it will be created (from scratch for most random
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 18
levels, from a template for some ``special'' levels, or loaded
from the remains of an earlier game for a ``bones'' level as
briefly described below). Monsters are only active on the cur-
rent level; those on other levels are essentially placed into
stasis.
Ordinarily when you climb a set of stairs, you will arrive
on the corresponding staircase at your destination. However,
pets (see below) and some other monsters will follow along if
they're close enough when you travel up or down stairs, and occa-
sionally one of these creatures will displace you during the
climb. When that occurs, the pet or other monster will arrive on
the staircase and you will end up nearby.
5.4. Ladders (`<', `>')
Ladders serve the same purpose as staircases, and the two
types of inter-level connections are nearly indistinguishable
during game play.
5.5. Shops and shopping
Occasionally you will run across a room with a shopkeeper
near the door and many items lying on the floor. You can buy
items by picking them up and then using the `p' command. You can
inquire about the price of an item prior to picking it up by us-
ing the ``#chat'' command while standing on it. Using an item
prior to paying for it will incur a charge, and the shopkeeper
won't allow you to leave the shop until you have paid any debt
you owe.
You can sell items to a shopkeeper by dropping them to the
floor while inside a shop. You will either be offered an amount
of gold and asked whether you're willing to sell, or you'll be
told that the shopkeeper isn't interested (generally, your item
needs to be compatible with the type of merchandise carried by
the shop).
If you drop something in a shop by accident, the shopkeeper
will usually claim ownership without offering any compensation.
You'll have to buy it back if you want to reclaim it.
Shopkeepers sometimes run out of money. When that happens,
you'll be offered credit instead of gold when you try to sell
something. Credit can be used to pay for purchases, but it is
only good in the shop where it was obtained; other shopkeepers
won't honor it. (If you happen to find a "credit card" in the
dungeon, don't bother trying to use it in shops; shopkeepers will
not accept it.)
The `$' command, which reports the amount of gold you are
carrying (in inventory, not inside bags or boxes), will also show
current shop debt or credit, if any. The `Iu' command lists un-
paid items (those which still belong to the shop) if you are
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NetHack Guidebook 19
carrying any. The `Ix' command shows an inventory-like display
of any unpaid items which have been used up, along with other
shop fees, if any.
5.5.1. Shop idiosyncracies
Several aspects of shop behavior might be unexpected.
* The price of a given item can vary due to a variety of factors.
* A shopkeeper treats the spot immediately inside the door as if
it were outside the shop.
* While the shopkeeper watches you like a hawk, he will generally
ignore any other customers.
* If a shop is "closed for inventory", it will not open of its
own accord.
* Shops do not get restocked with new items, regardless of inven-
tory depletion.
6. Monsters
Monsters you cannot see are not displayed on the screen.
Beware! You may suddenly come upon one in a dark place. Some
magic items can help you locate them before they locate you
(which some monsters can do very well).
The commands `/' and `;' may be used to obtain information
about those monsters who are displayed on the screen. The com-
mand `C' allows you to assign a name to a monster, which may be
useful to help distinguish one from another when multiple mon-
sters are present. Assigning a name which is just a space will
remove any prior name.
The extended command ``#chat'' can be used to interact with
an adjacent monster. There is no actual dialog (in other words,
you don't get to choose what you'll say), but chatting with some
monsters such as a shopkeeper or the Oracle of Delphi can produce
useful results.
6.1. Fighting
If you see a monster and you wish to fight it, just attempt
to walk into it. Many monsters you find will mind their own
business unless you attack them. Some of them are very dangerous
when angered. Remember: discretion is the better part of valor.
If you can't see a monster (if it is invisible, or if you
are blinded), the symbol `I' will be shown when you learn of its
presence. If you attempt to walk into it, you will try to fight
it just like a monster that you can see; of course, if the
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NetHack Guidebook 20
monster has moved, you will attack empty air. If you guess that
the monster has moved and you don't wish to fight, you can use
the `m' command to move without fighting; likewise, if you don't
remember a monster but want to try fighting anyway, you can use
the `F' command.
6.2. Your pet
You start the game with a little dog (`d'), cat (`f'), or
pony (`u'), which follows you about the dungeon and fights mon-
sters with you. Like you, your pet needs food to survive. It
usually feeds itself on fresh carrion and other meats. If you're
worried about it or want to train it, you can feed it, too, by
throwing it food. A properly trained pet can be very useful un-
der certain circumstances.
Your pet also gains experience from killing monsters, and
can grow over time, gaining hit points and doing more damage.
Initially, your pet may even be better at killing things than
you, which makes pets useful for low-level characters.
Your pet will follow you up and down staircases if it is
next to you when you move. Otherwise your pet will be stranded
and may become wild. Similarly, when you trigger certain types
of traps which alter your location (for instance, a trap door
which drops you to a lower dungeon level), any adjacent pet will
accompany you and any non-adjacent pet will be left behind. Your
pet may trigger such traps itself; you will not be carried along
with it even if adjacent at the time.
6.3. Steeds
Some types of creatures in the dungeon can actually be rid-
den if you have the right equipment and skill. Convincing a wild
beast to let you saddle it up is difficult to say the least.
Many a dungeoneer has had to resort to magic and wizardry in or-
der to forge the alliance. Once you do have the beast under your
control however, you can easily climb in and out of the saddle
with the `#ride' command. Lead the beast around the dungeon when
riding, in the same manner as you would move yourself. It is the
beast that you will see displayed on the map.
Riding skill is managed by the `#enhance' command. See the
section on Weapon proficiency for more information about that.
6.4. Bones levels
You may encounter the shades and corpses of other adventur-
ers (or even former incarnations of yourself!) and their personal
effects. Ghosts are hard to kill, but easy to avoid, since
they're slow and do little damage. You can plunder the deceased
adventurer's possessions; however, they are likely to be cursed.
Beware of whatever killed the former player; it is probably still
lurking around, gloating over its last victory.
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NetHack Guidebook 21
7. Objects
When you find something in the dungeon, it is common to want
to pick it up. In NetHack, this is accomplished automatically by
walking over the object (unless you turn off the autopickup op-
tion (see below), or move with the `m' prefix (see above)), or
manually by using the `,' command.
If you're carrying too many items, NetHack will tell you so
and you won't be able to pick up anything more. Otherwise, it
will add the object(s) to your pack and tell you what you just
picked up.
As you add items to your inventory, you also add the weight
of that object to your load. The amount that you can carry de-
pends on your strength and your constitution. The stronger you
are, the less the additional load will affect you. There comes a
point, though, when the weight of all of that stuff you are car-
rying around with you through the dungeon will encumber you.
Your reactions will get slower and you'll burn calories faster,
requiring food more frequently to cope with it. Eventually,
you'll be so overloaded that you'll either have to discard some
of what you're carrying or collapse under its weight.
NetHack will tell you how badly you have loaded yourself.
The symbols `Burdened', `Stressed', `Strained', `Overtaxed' and
`Overloaded' are displayed on the bottom line display to indicate
your condition.
When you pick up an object, it is assigned an inventory let-
ter. Many commands that operate on objects must ask you to find
out which object you want to use. When NetHack asks you to
choose a particular object you are carrying, you are usually pre-
sented with a list of inventory letters to choose from (see Com-
mands, above).
Some objects, such as weapons, are easily differentiated.
Others, like scrolls and potions, are given descriptions which
vary according to type. During a game, any two objects with the
same description are the same type. However, the descriptions
will vary from game to game.
When you use one of these objects, if its effect is obvious,
NetHack will remember what it is for you. If its effect isn't
extremely obvious, you will be asked what you want to call this
type of object so you will recognize it later. You can also use
the ``#name'' command for the same purpose at any time, to name
all objects of a particular type or just an individual object.
When you use ``#name'' on an object which has already been named,
specifying a space as the value will remove the prior name in-
stead of assigning a new one.
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NetHack Guidebook 22
7.1. Curses and Blessings
Any object that you find may be cursed, even if the object
is otherwise helpful. The most common effect of a curse is being
stuck with (and to) the item. Cursed weapons weld themselves to
your hand when wielded, so you cannot unwield them. Any cursed
item you wear is not removable by ordinary means. In addition,
cursed arms and armor usually, but not always, bear negative en-
chantments that make them less effective in combat. Other cursed
objects may act poorly or detrimentally in other ways.
Objects can also be blessed. Blessed items usually work
better or more beneficially than normal uncursed items. For ex-
ample, a blessed weapon will do more damage against demons.
There are magical means of bestowing or removing curses upon
objects, so even if you are stuck with one, you can still have
the curse lifted and the item removed. Priests and Priestesses
have an innate sensitivity to this property in any object, so
they can more easily avoid cursed objects than other character
roles.
An item with unknown status will be reported in your inven-
tory with no prefix. An item which you know the state of will be
distinguished in your inventory by the presence of the word
``cursed'', ``uncursed'' or ``blessed'' in the description of the
item.
7.2. Weapons (`)')
Given a chance, most monsters in the Mazes of Menace will
gratuitously try to kill you. You need weapons for self-defense
(killing them first). Without a weapon, you do only 1-2 hit
points of damage (plus bonuses, if any). Monk characters are an
exception; they normally do much more damage with bare hands than
they do with weapons.
There are wielded weapons, like maces and swords, and thrown
weapons, like arrows and spears. To hit monsters with a weapon,
you must wield it and attack them, or throw it at them. You can
simply elect to throw a spear. To shoot an arrow, you should
first wield a bow, then throw the arrow. Crossbows shoot cross-
bow bolts. Slings hurl rocks and (other) stones (like gems).
Enchanted weapons have a ``plus'' (or ``to hit enhancement''
which can be either positive or negative) that adds to your
chance to hit and the damage you do to a monster. The only way
to determine a weapon's enchantment is to have it magically iden-
tified somehow. Most weapons are subject to some type of damage
like rust. Such ``erosion'' damage can be repaired.
The chance that an attack will successfully hit a monster,
and the amount of damage such a hit will do, depends upon many
factors. Among them are: type of weapon, quality of weapon
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NetHack Guidebook 23
(enchantment and/or erosion), experience level, strength, dexter-
ity, encumbrance, and proficiency (see below). The monster's ar-
mor class - a general defense rating, not necessarily due to
wearing of armor - is a factor too; also, some monsters are par-
ticularly vulnerable to certain types of weapons.
Many weapons can be wielded in one hand; some require both
hands. When wielding a two-handed weapon, you can not wear a
shield, and vice versa. When wielding a one-handed weapon, you
can have another weapon ready to use by setting things up with
the `x' command, which exchanges your primary (the one being
wielded) and alternate weapons. And if you have proficiency in
the ``two weapon combat'' skill, you may wield both weapons si-
multaneously as primary and secondary; use the `#twoweapon' ex-
tended command to engage or disengage that. Only some types of
characters (barbarians, for instance) have the necessary skill
available. Even with that skill, using two weapons at once in-
curs a penalty in the chance to hit your target compared to using
just one weapon at a time.
There might be times when you'd rather not wield any weapon
at all. To accomplish that, wield `-', or else use the `A' com-
mand which allows you to unwield the current weapon in addition
to taking off other worn items.
Those of you in the audience who are AD&D players, be aware
that each weapon which existed in AD&D does roughly the same dam-
age to monsters in NetHack. Some of the more obscure weapons
(such as the aklys, lucern hammer, and bec-de-corbin) are defined
in an appendix to Unearthed Arcana, an AD&D supplement.
The commands to use weapons are `w' (wield), `t' (throw),
`f' (fire, an alternative way of throwing), `Q' (quiver), `x'
(exchange), `#twoweapon', and `#enhance' (see below).
7.2.1. Throwing and shooting
You can throw just about anything via the `t' command. It
will prompt for the item to throw; picking `?' will list things
in your inventory which are considered likely to be thrown, or
picking `*' will list your entire inventory. After you've chosen
what to throw, you will be prompted for a direction rather than
for a specific target. The distance something can be thrown de-
pends mainly on the type of object and your strength. Arrows can
be thrown by hand, but can be thrown much farther and will be
more likely to hit when thrown while you are wielding a bow.
You can simplify the throwing operation by using the `Q'
command to select your preferred ``missile'', then using the `f'
command to throw it. You'll be prompted for a direction as
above, but you don't have to specify which item to throw each
time you use `f'. There is also an option, autoquiver, which has
NetHack choose another item to automatically fill your quiver
when the inventory slot used for `Q' runs out.
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NetHack Guidebook 24
Some characters have the ability to fire a volley of multi-
ple items in a single turn. Knowing how to load several rounds
of ammunition at once -- or hold several missiles in your hand --
and still hit a target is not an easy task. Rangers are among
those who are adept at this task, as are those with a high level
of proficiency in the relevant weapon skill (in bow skill if
you're wielding one to shoot arrows, in crossbow skill if you're
wielding one to shoot bolts, or in sling skill if you're wielding
one to shoot stones). The number of items that the character has
a chance to fire varies from turn to turn. You can explicitly
limit the number of shots by using a numeric prefix before the
`t' or `f' command. For example, ``2f'' (or ``n2f'' if using
number_pad mode) would ensure that at most 2 arrows are shot even
if you could have fired 3. If you specify a larger number than
would have been shot (``4f'' in this example), you'll just end up
shooting the same number (3, here) as if no limit had been speci-
fied. Once the volley is in motion, all of the items will travel
in the same direction; if the first ones kill a monster, the oth-
ers can still continue beyond that spot.
7.2.2. Weapon proficiency
You will have varying degrees of skill in the weapons avail-
able. Weapon proficiency, or weapon skills, affect how well you
can use particular types of weapons, and you'll be able to im-
prove your skills as you progress through a game, depending on
your role, your experience level, and use of the weapons.
For the purposes of proficiency, weapons have been divided
up into various groups such as daggers, broadswords, and
polearms. Each role has a limit on what level of proficiency a
character can achieve for each group. For instance, wizards can
become highly skilled in daggers or staves but not in swords or
bows.
The `#enhance' extended command is used to review current
weapons proficiency (also spell proficiency) and to choose which
skill(s) to improve when you've used one or more skills enough to
become eligible to do so. The skill rankings are ``none'' (some-
times also referred to as ``restricted'', because you won't be
able to advance), ``unskilled'', ``basic'', ``skilled'', and
``expert''. Restricted skills simply will not appear in the list
shown by `#enhance'. (Divine intervention might unrestrict a
particular skill, in which case it will start at unskilled and be
limited to basic.) Some characters can enhance their barehanded
combat or martial arts skill beyond expert to ``master'' or
``grand master''.
Use of a weapon in which you're restricted or unskilled will
incur a modest penalty in the chance to hit a monster and also in
the amount of damage done when you do hit; at basic level, there
is no penalty or bonus; at skilled level, you receive a modest
bonus in the chance to hit and amount of damage done; at expert
level, the bonus is higher. A successful hit has a chance to
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NetHack Guidebook 25
boost your training towards the next skill level (unless you've
already reached the limit for this skill). Once such training
reaches the threshold for that next level, you'll be told that
you feel more confident in your skills. At that point you can
use `#enhance' to increase one or more skills. Such skills are
not increased automatically because there is a limit to your to-
tal overall skills, so you need to actively choose which skills
to enhance and which to ignore.
7.3. Armor (`[')
Lots of unfriendly things lurk about; you need armor to pro-
tect yourself from their blows. Some types of armor offer better
protection than others. Your armor class is a measure of this
protection. Armor class (AC) is measured as in AD&D, with 10 be-
ing the equivalent of no armor, and lower numbers meaning better
armor. Each suit of armor which exists in AD&D gives the same
protection in NetHack. Here is an (incomplete) list of the armor
classes provided by various suits of armor:
dragon scale mail 1
plate mail 3
crystal plate mail 3
bronze plate mail 4
splint mail 4
banded mail 4
dwarvish mithril-coat 4
elven mithril-coat 5
chain mail 5
orcish chain mail 6
scale mail 6
studded leather armor 7
ring mail 7
orcish ring mail 8
leather armor 8
leather jacket 9
no armor 10
You can also wear other pieces of armor (ex. helmets, boots,
shields, cloaks) to lower your armor class even further, but you
can only wear one item of each category (one suit of armor, one
cloak, one helmet, one shield, and so on) at a time.
If a piece of armor is enchanted, its armor protection will
be better (or worse) than normal, and its ``plus'' (or minus)
will subtract from your armor class. For example, a +1 chain
mail would give you better protection than normal chain mail,
lowering your armor class one unit further to 4. When you put on
a piece of armor, you immediately find out the armor class and
any ``plusses'' it provides. Cursed pieces of armor usually have
negative enchantments (minuses) in addition to being unremovable.
Many types of armor are subject to some kind of damage like
rust. Such damage can be repaired. Some types of armor may
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NetHack Guidebook 26
inhibit spell casting.
The commands to use armor are `W' (wear) and `T' (take off).
The `A' command can also be used to take off armor as well as
other worn items.
7.4. Food (`%')
Food is necessary to survive. If you go too long without
eating you will faint, and eventually die of starvation. Some
types of food will spoil, and become unhealthy to eat, if not
protected. Food stored in ice boxes or tins (``cans'') will usu-
ally stay fresh, but ice boxes are heavy, and tins take a while
to open.
When you kill monsters, they usually leave corpses which are
also ``food.'' Many, but not all, of these are edible; some also
give you special powers when you eat them. A good rule of thumb
is ``you are what you eat.''
Some character roles and some monsters are vegetarian. Veg-
etarian monsters will typically never eat animal corpses, while
vegetarian players can, but with some rather unpleasant side-ef-
fects.
You can name one food item after something you like to eat
with the fruit option.
The command to eat food is `e'.
7.5. Scrolls (`?')
Scrolls are labeled with various titles, probably chosen by
ancient wizards for their amusement value (ex. ``READ ME,'' or
``THANX MAUD'' backwards). Scrolls disappear after you read them
(except for blank ones, without magic spells on them).
One of the most useful of these is the scroll of identify,
which can be used to determine what another object is, whether it
is cursed or blessed, and how many uses it has left. Some ob-
jects of subtle enchantment are difficult to identify without
these.
A mail daemon may run up and deliver mail to you as a scroll
of mail (on versions compiled with this feature). To use this
feature on versions where NetHack mail delivery is triggered by
electronic mail appearing in your system mailbox, you must let
NetHack know where to look for new mail by setting the ``MAIL''
environment variable to the file name of your mailbox. You may
also want to set the ``MAILREADER'' environment variable to the
file name of your favorite reader, so NetHack can shell to it
when you read the scroll. On versions of NetHack where mail is
randomly generated internal to the game, these environment vari-
ables are ignored. You can disable the mail daemon by turning
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NetHack Guidebook 27
off the mail option.
The command to read a scroll is `r'.
7.6. Potions (`!')
Potions are distinguished by the color of the liquid inside
the flask. They disappear after you quaff them.
Clear potions are potions of water. Sometimes these are
blessed or cursed, resulting in holy or unholy water. Holy water
is the bane of the undead, so potions of holy water are good
things to throw (`t') at them. It is also sometimes very useful
to dip (``#dip'') an object into a potion.
The command to drink a potion is `q' (quaff).
7.7. Wands (`/')
Magic wands usually have multiple magical charges. Some
wands are directional--you must give a direction in which to zap
them. You can also zap them at yourself (just give a `.' or `s'
for the direction). Be warned, however, for this is often unwise.
Other wands are nondirectional--they don't require a direction.
The number of charges in a wand is random and decreases by one
whenever you use it.
When the number of charges left in a wand becomes zero, at-
tempts to use the wand will usually result in nothing happening.
Occasionally, however, it may be possible to squeeze the last few
mana points from an otherwise spent wand, destroying it in the
process. A wand may be recharged by using suitable magic, but
doing so runs the risk of causing it to explode. The chance for
such an explosion starts out very small and increases each time
the wand is recharged.
In a truly desperate situation, when your back is up against
the wall, you might decide to go for broke and break your wand.
This is not for the faint of heart. Doing so will almost cer-
tainly cause a catastrophic release of magical energies.
When you have fully identified a particular wand, inventory
display will include additional information in parentheses: the
number of times it has been recharged followed by a colon and
then by its current number of charges. A current charge count of
-1 is a special case indicating that the wand has been cancelled.
The command to use a wand is `z' (zap). To break one, use
the `a' (apply) command.
7.8. Rings (`=')
Rings are very useful items, since they are relatively per-
manent magic, unlike the usually fleeting effects of potions,
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NetHack Guidebook 28
scrolls, and wands.
Putting on a ring activates its magic. You can wear only
two rings, one on each ring finger.
Most rings also cause you to grow hungry more rapidly, the
rate varying with the type of ring.
The commands to use rings are `P' (put on) and `R' (remove).
7.9. Spellbooks (`+')
Spellbooks are tomes of mighty magic. When studied with the
`r' (read) command, they transfer to the reader the knowledge of
a spell (and therefore eventually become unreadable) -- unless
the attempt backfires. Reading a cursed spellbook or one with
mystic runes beyond your ken can be harmful to your health!
A spell (even when learned) can also backfire when you cast
it. If you attempt to cast a spell well above your experience
level, or if you have little skill with the appropriate spell
type, or cast it at a time when your luck is particularly bad,
you can end up wasting both the energy and the time required in
casting.
Casting a spell calls forth magical energies and focuses
them with your naked mind. Some of the magical energy released
comes from within you, and casting several spells in a row may
tire you. Casting of spells also requires practice. With prac-
tice, your skill in each category of spell casting will improve.
Over time, however, your memory of each spell will dim, and you
will need to relearn it.
Some spells are directional--you must give a direction in
which to cast them. You can also cast them at yourself (just
give a `.' or `s' for the direction). Be warned, however, for
this is often unwise. Other spells are nondirectional--they
don't require a direction.
Just as weapons are divided into groups in which a character
can become proficient (to varying degrees), spells are similarly
grouped. Successfully casting a spell exercises the skill group;
sufficient skill may increase the potency of the spell and reduce
the risk of spell failure. Skill slots are shared with weapons
skills. (See also the section on ``Weapon proficiency''.)
Casting a spell also requires flexible movement, and wearing
various types of armor may interfere with that.
The command to read a spellbook is the same as for scrolls,
`r' (read). The `+' command lists your current spells, their
levels, categories, and chances for failure. The `Z' (cast) com-
mand casts a spell.
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NetHack Guidebook 29
7.10. Tools (`(')
Tools are miscellaneous objects with various purposes. Some
tools have a limited number of uses, akin to wand charges. For
example, lamps burn out after a while. Other tools are contain-
ers, which objects can be placed into or taken out of.
The command to use tools is `a' (apply).
7.10.1. Containers
You may encounter bags, boxes, and chests in your travels.
A tool of this sort can be opened with the ``#loot'' extended
command when you are standing on top of it (that is, on the same
floor spot), or with the `a' (apply) command when you are carry-
ing it. However, chests are often locked, and are in any case
unwieldy objects. You must set one down before unlocking it by
using a key or lock-picking tool with the `a' (apply) command, by
kicking it with the `^D' command, or by using a weapon to force
the lock with the ``#force'' extended command.
Some chests are trapped, causing nasty things to happen when
you unlock or open them. You can check for and try to deactivate
traps with the ``#untrap'' extended command.
7.11. Amulets (`"')
Amulets are very similar to rings, and often more powerful.
Like rings, amulets have various magical properties, some benefi-
cial, some harmful, which are activated by putting them on.
Only one amulet may be worn at a time, around your neck.
The commands to use amulets are the same as for rings, `P'
(put on) and `R' (remove).
7.12. Gems (`*')
Some gems are valuable, and can be sold for a lot of gold.
They are also a far more efficient way of carrying your riches.
Valuable gems increase your score if you bring them with you when
you exit.
Other small rocks are also categorized as gems, but they are
much less valuable. All rocks, however, can be used as projec-
tile weapons (if you have a sling). In the most desperate of
cases, you can still throw them by hand.
7.13. Large rocks (``')
Statues and boulders are not particularly useful, and are
generally heavy. It is rumored that some statues are not what
they seem.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 30
Very large humanoids (giants and their ilk) have been known
to use boulders as weapons.
7.14. Gold (`$')
Gold adds to your score, and you can buy things in shops
with it. There are a number of monsters in the dungeon that may
be influenced by the amount of gold you are carrying (shopkeepers
aside).
8. Conduct
As if winning NetHack were not difficult enough, certain
players seek to challenge themselves by imposing restrictions on
the way they play the game. The game automatically tracks some
of these challenges, which can be checked at any time with the
#conduct command or at the end of the game. When you perform an
action which breaks a challenge, it will no longer be listed.
This gives players extra ``bragging rights'' for winning the game
with these challenges. Note that it is perfectly acceptable to
win the game without resorting to these restrictions and that it
is unusual for players to adhere to challenges the first time
they win the game.
Several of the challenges are related to eating behavior.
The most difficult of these is the foodless challenge. Although
creatures can survive long periods of time without food, there is
a physiological need for water; thus there is no restriction on
drinking beverages, even if they provide some minor food bene-
fits. Calling upon your god for help with starvation does not
violate any food challenges either.
A strict vegan diet is one which avoids any food derived
from animals. The primary source of nutrition is fruits and veg-
etables. The corpses and tins of blobs (`b'), jellies (`j'), and
fungi (`F') are also considered to be vegetable matter. Certain
human food is prepared without animal products; namely, lembas
wafers, cram rations, food rations (gunyoki), K-rations, and C-
rations. Metal or another normally indigestible material eaten
while polymorphed into a creature that can digest it is also con-
sidered vegan food. Note however that eating such items still
counts against foodless conduct.
Vegetarians do not eat animals; however, they are less se-
lective about eating animal byproducts than vegans. In addition
to the vegan items listed above, they may eat any kind of pudding
(`P') other than the black puddings, eggs and food made from eggs
(fortune cookies and pancakes), food made with milk (cream pies
and candy bars), and lumps of royal jelly. Monks are expected to
observe a vegetarian diet.
Eating any kind of meat violates the vegetarian, vegan, and
foodless conducts. This includes tripe rations, the corpses or
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 31
tins of any monsters not mentioned above, and the various other
chunks of meat found in the dungeon. Swallowing and digesting a
monster while polymorphed is treated as if you ate the creature's
corpse. Eating leather, dragon hide, or bone items while poly-
morphed into a creature that can digest it, or eating monster
brains while polymorphed into a mind flayer, is considered eating
an animal, although wax is only an animal byproduct.
Regardless of conduct, there will be some items which are
indigestible, and others which are hazardous to eat. Using a
swallow-and-digest attack against a monster is equivalent to eat-
ing the monster's corpse. Please note that the term ``vegan'' is
used here only in the context of diet. You are still free to
choose not to use or wear items derived from animals (e.g.
leather, dragon hide, bone, horns, coral), but the game will not
keep track of this for you. Also note that ``milky'' potions may
be a translucent white, but they do not contain milk, so they are
compatible with a vegan diet. Slime molds or player-defined
``fruits'', although they could be anything from ``cherries'' to
``pork chops'', are also assumed to be vegan.
An atheist is one who rejects religion. This means that you
cannot #pray, #offer sacrifices to any god, #turn undead, or
#chat with a priest. Particularly selective readers may argue
that playing Monk or Priest characters should violate this con-
duct; that is a choice left to the player. Offering the Amulet
of Yendor to your god is necessary to win the game and is not
counted against this conduct. You are also not penalized for be-
ing spoken to by an angry god, priest(ess), or other religious
figure; a true atheist would hear the words but attach no special
meaning to them.
Most players fight with a wielded weapon (or tool intended
to be wielded as a weapon). Another challenge is to win the game
without using such a wielded weapon. You are still permitted to
throw, fire, and kick weapons; use a wand, spell, or other type
of item; or fight with your hands and feet.
In NetHack, a pacifist refuses to cause the death of any
other monster (i.e. if you would get experience for the death).
This is a particularly difficult challenge, although it is still
possible to gain experience by other means.
An illiterate character cannot read or write. This includes
reading a scroll, spellbook, fortune cookie message, or t-shirt;
writing a scroll; or making an engraving of anything other than a
single ``x'' (the traditional signature of an illiterate person).
Reading an engraving, or any item that is absolutely necessary to
win the game, is not counted against this conduct. The identity
of scrolls and spellbooks (and knowledge of spells) in your
starting inventory is assumed to be learned from your teachers
prior to the start of the game and isn't counted.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 32
There are several other challenges tracked by the game. It
is possible to eliminate one or more species of monsters by geno-
cide; playing without this feature is considered a challenge.
When the game offers you an opportunity to genocide monsters, you
may respond with the monster type ``none'' if you want to de-
cline. You can change the form of an item into another item of
the same type (``polypiling'') or the form of your own body into
another creature (``polyself'') by wand, spell, or potion of
polymorph; avoiding these effects are each considered challenges.
Polymorphing monsters, including pets, does not break either of
these challenges. Finally, you may sometimes receive wishes; a
game without an attempt to wish for any items is a challenge, as
is a game without wishing for an artifact (even if the artifact
immediately disappears). When the game offers you an opportunity
to make a wish for an item, you may choose ``nothing'' if you
want to decline.
9. Options
Due to variations in personal tastes and conceptions of how
NetHack should do things, there are options you can set to change
how NetHack behaves.
9.1. Setting the options
Options may be set in a number of ways. Within the game,
the `O' command allows you to view all options and change most of
them. You can also set options automatically by placing them in
the NETHACKOPTIONS environment variable or in a configuration
file. Some versions of NetHack also have front-end programs that
allow you to set options before starting the game.
9.2. Using the NETHACKOPTIONS environment variable
The NETHACKOPTIONS variable is a comma-separated list of
initial values for the various options. Some can only be turned
on or off. You turn one of these on by adding the name of the
option to the list, and turn it off by typing a `!' or ``no'' be-
fore the name. Others take a character string as a value. You
can set string options by typing the option name, a colon or
equals sign, and then the value of the string. The value is ter-
minated by the next comma or the end of string.
For example, to set up an environment variable so that ``au-
toquiver'' is on, ``autopickup'' is off, the name is set to
``Blue Meanie'', and the fruit is set to ``papaya'', you would
enter the command
% setenv NETHACKOPTIONS "autoquiver,\!autopickup,name:Blue Meanie,fruit:papaya"
in csh (note the need to escape the ! since it's special to the
shell), or
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NetHack Guidebook 33
$ NETHACKOPTIONS="autoquiver,!autopickup,name:Blue Meanie,fruit:papaya"
$ export NETHACKOPTIONS
in sh or ksh.
9.3. Using a configuration file
Any line in the configuration file starting with `#' is
treated as a comment. Any line in the configuration file start-
ing with ``OPTIONS='' may be filled out with options in the same
syntax as in NETHACKOPTIONS. Any line starting with ``DUN-
GEON='', ``EFFECTS='', ``MONSTERS='', ``OBJECTS='', ``TRAPS='',
or ``BOULDER='' is taken as defining the corresponding dungeon,
effects, monsters, objects traps or boulder option in a different
syntax, a sequence of decimal numbers giving the character posi-
tion in the current font to be used in displaying each entry. A
zero in any entry in such a sequence leaves the display of that
entry unchanged; this feature is not available using the option
syntax. Such a sequence can be continued to multiple lines by
putting a `\' at the end of each line to be continued.
If your copy of the game included the compile time AUTOPICK-
UP_EXCEPTIONS option, then any line starting with ``AUTOPICK-
UP_EXCEPTION='' is taken as defining an exception to the pick-
up_types option. There is a section of this Guidebook that dis-
cusses that.
The default name of the configuration file varies on differ-
ent operating systems, but NETHACKOPTIONS can also be set to the
full name of a file you want to use (possibly preceded by an
`@').
9.4. Customization options
Here are explanations of what the various options do. Char-
acter strings that are too long may be truncated. Some of the
options listed may be inactive in your dungeon.
align
Your starting alignment (align:lawful, align:neutral, or
align:chaotic). You may specify just the first letter. The
default is to randomly pick an appropriate alignment. Cannot
be set with the `O' command.
autodig
Automatically dig if you are wielding a digging tool and moving
into a place that can be dug (default false).
autopickup
Automatically pick up things onto which you move (default on).
See pickup_types to refine the behavior.
autoquiver
This option controls what happens when you attempt the `f'
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NetHack Guidebook 34
(fire) command with an empty quiver. When true, the computer
will fill your quiver with some suitable weapon. Note that it
will not take into account the blessed/cursed status, enchant-
ment, damage, or quality of the weapon; you are free to manual-
ly fill your quiver with the `Q' command instead. If no weapon
is found or the option is false, the `t' (throw) command is ex-
ecuted instead. (default false)
boulder
Set the character used to display boulders (default is rock
class symbol).
catname
Name your starting cat (ex. ``catname:Morris''). Cannot be set
with the `O' command.
character
Pick your type of character (ex. ``character:Monk''); synonym
for ``role''. See ``name'' for an alternate method of specify-
ing your role. Normally only the first letter of the value is
examined; the string ``random'' is an exception.
checkpoint
Save game state after each level change, for possible recovery
after program crash (default on).
checkspace
Check free disk space before writing files to disk (default
on). You may have to turn this off if you have more than 2 GB
free space on the partition used for your save and level files.
Only applies when MFLOPPY was defined during compilation.
cmdassist
Have the game provide some additional command assistance for
new players if it detects some anticipated mistakes (default
on).
confirm
Have user confirm attacks on pets, shopkeepers, and other
peaceable creatures (default on).
DECgraphics
Use a predefined selection of characters from the DEC VT-
xxx/DEC Rainbow/ANSI line-drawing character set to display the
dungeon/effects/traps instead of having to define a full graph-
ics set yourself (default off). This option also sets up prop-
er handling of graphics characters for such terminals, so you
should specify it when appropriate even if you override the se-
lections with your own graphics strings.
disclose
Controls options for disclosing various information when the
game ends (defaults to all possibilities being disclosed). The
possibilities are:
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NetHack Guidebook 35
i - disclose your inventory.
a - disclose your attributes.
v - summarize monsters that have been vanquished.
g - list monster species that have been genocided.
c - display your conduct.
Each disclosure possibility can optionally be preceded by a
prefix which let you refine how it behaves. Here are the valid
prefixes:
y - prompt you and default to yes on the prompt.
n - prompt you and default to no on the prompt.
+ - disclose it without prompting.
- - do not disclose it and do not prompt.
(ex. ``disclose:yi na +v -g -c'') The example sets inventory to
prompt and default to yes, attributes to prompt and default to
no, vanquished to disclose without prompting, genocided to not
disclose and not to prompt, conduct to not disclose and not to
prompt. Note that the vanquished monsters list includes all
monsters killed by traps and each other as well as by you.
dogname
Name your starting dog (ex. ``dogname:Fang''). Cannot be set
with the `O' command.
dungeon
Set the graphics symbols for displaying the dungeon (default
`` |--------||.-|++##.##<><>_|\\#{}.}..## #}''). The dungeon
option should be followed by a string of 1-41 characters to be
used instead of the default map-drawing characters. The dun-
geon map will use the characters you specify instead of the de-
fault symbols, and default symbols for any you do not specify.
Remember that you may need to escape some of these characters
on a command line if they are special to your shell.
Note that NetHack escape-processes this option string in con-
ventional C fashion. This means that `\' is a prefix to take
the following character literally. Thus `\' needs to be repre-
sented as `\\'. The special escape form `\m' switches on the
meta bit in the following character, and the `^' prefix causes
the following character to be treated as a control character.
The order of the symbols is: solid rock, vertical wall, hori-
zontal wall, upper left corner, upper right corner, lower left
corner, lower right corner, cross wall, upward T wall, downward
T wall, leftward T wall, rightward T wall, no door, vertical
open door, horizontal open door, vertical closed door, horizon-
tal closed door, iron bars, tree, floor of a room, dark corri-
dor, lit corridor, stairs up, stairs down, ladder up, ladder
down, altar, grave, throne, kitchen sink, fountain, pool or
moat, ice, lava, vertical lowered drawbridge, horizontal low-
ered drawbridge, vertical raised drawbridge, horizontal raised
drawbridge, air, cloud, under water.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 36
You might want to use `+' for the corners and T walls for a
more aesthetic, boxier display. Note that in the next release,
new symbols may be added, or the present ones rearranged.
Cannot be set with the `O' command.
effects
Set the graphics symbols for displaying special effects (de-
fault ``|-\\/*!)(0#@*/-\\||\\-//-\\| |\\-/''). The effects op-
tion should be followed by a string of 1-29 characters to be
used instead of the default special-effects characters. This
string is subjected to the same processing as the dungeon op-
tion.
The order of the symbols is: vertical beam, horizontal beam,
left slant, right slant, digging beam, camera flash beam, left
boomerang, right boomerang, four glyphs giving the sequence for
magic resistance displays, the eight surrounding glyphs for
swallowed display, nine glyphs for explosions. An explosion
consists of three rows (top, middle, and bottom) of three char-
acters. The explosion is centered in the center of this 3 by 3
array.
Note that in the next release, new symbols may be added, or the
present ones rearranged.
Cannot be set with the `O' command.
extmenu
Changes the extended commands interface to pop-up a menu of
available commands. It is keystroke compatible with the tradi-
tional interface except that it does not require that you hit
Enter. It is implemented only by the tty port (default off),
when the game has been compiled to support tty graphics.
female
An obsolete synonym for ``gender:female''. Cannot be set with
the `O' command.
fixinv
An object's inventory letter sticks to it when it's dropped
(default on). If this is off, dropping an object shifts all
the remaining inventory letters.
fruit
Name a fruit after something you enjoy eating (ex. ``fruit:man-
go'') (default ``slime mold''). Basically a nostalgic whimsy
that NetHack uses from time to time. You should set this to
something you find more appetizing than slime mold. Apples,
oranges, pears, bananas, and melons already exist in NetHack,
so don't use those.
gender
Your starting gender (gender:male or gender:female). You may
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 37
specify just the first letter. Although you can still denote
your gender using the ``male'' and ``female'' options, the
``gender'' option will take precedence. The default is to ran-
domly pick an appropriate gender. Cannot be set with the `O'
command.
help
If more information is available for an object looked at with
the `/' command, ask if you want to see it (default on). Turn-
ing help off makes just looking at things faster, since you
aren't interrupted with the ``More info?'' prompt, but it also
means that you might miss some interesting and/or important in-
formation.
horsename
Name your starting horse (ex. ``horsename:Trigger''). Cannot
be set with the `O' command.
IBMgraphics
Use a predefined selection of IBM extended ASCII characters to
display the dungeon/effects/traps instead of having to define a
full graphics set yourself (default off). This option also
sets up proper handling of graphics characters for such termi-
nals, so you should specify it when appropriate even if you
override the selections with your own graphics strings.
ignintr
Ignore interrupt signals, including breaks (default off).
legacy
Display an introductory message when starting the game (default
on).
lit_corridor
Show corridor squares seen by night vision or a light source
held by your character as lit (default off).
lootabc
Use the old `a', `b', and `c' keyboard shortcuts when looting,
rather than the mnemonics `o', `i', and `b' (default off).
mail
Enable mail delivery during the game (default on).
male
An obsolete synonym for ``gender:male''. Cannot be set with
the `O' command.
menustyle
Controls the interface used when you need to choose various ob-
jects (in response to the Drop command, for instance). The
value specified should be the first letter of one of the fol-
lowing: traditional, combination, partial, or full. Tradi-
tional was the only interface available for earlier versions;
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 38
it consists of a prompt for object class characters, followed
by an object-by-object prompt for all items matching the se-
lected object class(es). Combination starts with a prompt for
object class(es) of interest, but then displays a menu of
matching objects rather than prompting one-by-one. Partial
skips the object class filtering and immediately displays a
menu of all objects. Full displays a menu of object classes
rather than a character prompt, and then a menu of matching ob-
jects for selection.
menu_deselect_all
Menu character accelerator to deselect all items in a menu.
Implemented by the Amiga, Gem, X11 and tty ports. Default '-'.
menu_deselect_page
Menu character accelerator to deselect all items on this page
of a menu. Implemented by the Amiga, Gem and tty ports. De-
fault '\'.
menu_first_page
Menu character accelerator to jump to the first page in a menu.
Implemented by the Amiga, Gem and tty ports. Default '^'.
menu_headings
Controls how the headings in a menu are highlighted. Values
are 'bold', 'inverse', or 'underline'. Not all ports can actu-
ally display all three types.
menu_invert_all
Menu character accelerator to invert all items in a menu. Im-
plemented by the Amiga, Gem, X11 and tty ports. Default '@'.
menu_invert_page
Menu character accelerator to invert all items on this page of
a menu. Implemented by the Amiga, Gem and tty ports. Default
'~'.
menu_last_page
Menu character accelerator to jump to the last page in a menu.
Implemented by the Amiga, Gem and tty ports. Default '|'.
menu_next_page
Menu character accelerator to goto the next menu page. Imple-
mented by the Amiga, Gem and tty ports. Default '>'.
menu_previous_page
Menu character accelerator to goto the previous menu page. Im-
plemented by the Amiga, Gem and tty ports. Default '<'.
menu_search
Menu character accelerator to search for a menu item. Imple-
mented by the Amiga, Gem and X11 ports. Default ':'.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 39
menu_select_all
Menu character accelerator to select all items in a menu. Im-
plemented by the Amiga, Gem, X11 and tty ports. Default '.'.
menu_select_page
Menu character accelerator to select all items on this page of
a menu. Implemented by the Amiga, Gem and tty ports. Default
','.
monsters
Set the characters used to display monster classes (default
``abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTU-
VWXYZ@ '&;:~]''). This string is subjected to the same pro-
cessing as the dungeon option. The order of the symbols is ant
or other insect, blob, cockatrice, dog or other canine, eye or
sphere, feline, gremlin, humanoid, imp or minor demon, jelly,
kobold, leprechaun, mimic, nymph, orc, piercer, quadruped, ro-
dent, arachnid or centipede, trapper or lurker above, horse or
unicorn, vortex, worm, xan or other mythical/fantastic insect,
light, zruty, angelic being, bat or bird, centaur, dragon, ele-
mental, fungus or mold, gnome, giant humanoid, invisible mon-
ster, jabberwock, Keystone Kop, lich, mummy, naga, ogre, pud-
ding or ooze, quantum mechanic, rust monster, snake, troll, um-
ber hulk, vampire, wraith, xorn, apelike creature, zombie, hu-
man, ghost, golem, demon, sea monster, lizard, long worm tail,
and mimic. Cannot be set with the `O' command.
msghistory
The number of top line messages to save (and recall with ^P)
(default 20). Cannot be set with the `O' command.
msg_window
Allows you to change the way recalled messages are displayed.
(It is currently implemented for tty only.) The possible val-
ues are:
s - single message (default, this was the behavior before 3.4.0).
c - combination, two messages as `single', then as `full'.
f - full window, oldest message first.
r - full window, newest message first.
For backward compatibility, no value needs to be specified
(which defaults to `full'), or it can be negated (which de-
faults to `single').
name
Set your character's name (defaults to your user name). You
can also set your character's role by appending a dash and one
or more letters of the role (that is, by suffixing one of -A -B
-C -H -K -M -P -Ra -Ro -S -T -V -W). If -@ is used for the
role, then a random one will be automatically chosen. Cannot
be set with the `O' command.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 40
news
Read the NetHack news file, if present (default on). Since the
news is shown at the beginning of the game, there's no point in
setting this with the `O' command.
null
Send padding nulls to the terminal (default off).
number_pad
Use the number keys to move instead of [yuhjklbn] (default 0 or
off). (number_pad:2 invokes the old DOS behavior where `5'
means `g', meta-`5' means `G', and meta-`0' means `I'.)
objects
Set the characters used to display object classes (default
``])[="(%!?+/$*`0_.''). This string is subjected to the same
processing as the dungeon option. The order of the symbols is
illegal-object (should never be seen), weapon, armor, ring,
amulet, tool, food, potion, scroll, spellbook, wand, gold, gem
or rock, boulder or statue, iron ball, chain, and venom. Can-
not be set with the `O' command.
packorder
Specify the order to list object types in (default
``")[%?+!=/(*`0_''). The value of this option should be a
string containing the symbols for the various object types.
Any omitted types are filled in at the end from the previous
order.
perm_invent
If true, always display your current inventory in a window.
This only makes sense for windowing system interfaces that im-
plement this feature.
pettype
Specify the type of your initial pet, if you are playing a
character class that uses multiple types of pets; or choose to
have no initial pet at all. Possible values are ``cat'',
``dog'' and ``none''. Cannot be set with the `O' command.
pickup_burden
When you pick up an item that would exceed this encumbrance
level (Unburdened, Burdened, streSsed, straiNed, overTaxed, or
overLoaded), you will be asked if you want to continue. (De-
fault `S').
pickup_types
Specify the object types to be picked up when autopickup is on.
Default is all types. If your copy of the game has the experi-
mental compile time option AUTOPICKUP_EXCEPTIONS included, you
may be able to use autopickup_exception configuration file
lines to further refine autopickup behavior.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 41
prayconfirm
Prompt for confirmation before praying (default on).
pushweapon
Using the `w' (wield) command when already wielding something
pushes the old item into your alternate weapon slot (default
off).
race
Selects your race (for example, ``race:human''). Default is
random. Cannot be set with the `O' command.
rest_on_space
Make the space bar a synonym for the `.' (rest) command (de-
fault off).
role
Pick your type of character (ex. ``role:Samurai''); synonym for
``character''. See ``name'' for an alternate method of speci-
fying your role. Normally only the first letter of the value
is examined; `r' is an exception with ``Rogue'', ``Ranger'',
and ``random'' values.
runmode
Controls the amount of screen updating for the map window when
engaged in multi-turn movement (running via shift+direction or
control+direction and so forth, or via the travel command or
mouse click). The possible values are:
teleport - update the map after movement has finished;
run - update the map after every seven or so steps;
walk - update the map after each step;
crawl - like walk, but pause briefly after each step.
This option only affects the game's screen display, not the ac-
tual results of moving. The default is `run'; versions prior
to 3.4.1 used `teleport' only. Whether or not the effect is
noticeable will depend upon the window port used or on the type
of terminal.
safe_pet
Prevent you from (knowingly) attacking your pets (default on).
scores
Control what parts of the score list you are shown at the end
(ex. ``scores:5 top scores/4 around my score/own scores'').
Only the first letter of each category (`t', `a', or `o') is
necessary.
showexp
Show your accumulated experience points on bottom line (default
off).
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NetHack Guidebook 42
showrace
Display yourself as the glyph for your race, rather than the
glyph for your role (default off). Note that this setting af-
fects only the appearance of the display, not the way the game
treats you.
showscore
Show your approximate accumulated score on bottom line (default
off).
silent
Suppress terminal beeps (default on).
sortpack
Sort the pack contents by type when displaying inventory (de-
fault on).
sound
Enable messages about what your character hears (default on).
Note that this has nothing to do with your computer's audio ca-
pabilities. This option is only partly under player control.
The game toggles it off and on during and after sleep, for ex-
ample.
sparkle
Display a sparkly effect when a monster (including yourself) is
hit by an attack to which it is resistant (default on).
standout
Boldface monsters and ``--More--'' (default off).
suppress_alert
This option may be set to a NetHack version level to suppress
alert notification messages about feature changes for that and
prior versions (ex. ``suppress_alert:3.3.1'').
time
Show the elapsed game time in turns on bottom line (default
off).
timed_delay
When pausing momentarily for display effect, such as with ex-
plosions and moving objects, use a timer rather than sending
extra characters to the screen. (Applies to ``tty'' interface
only; ``X11'' interface always uses a timer based delay. The
default is on if configured into the program.)
tombstone
Draw a tombstone graphic upon your death (default on).
toptenwin
Put the ending display in a NetHack window instead of on stdout
(default off). Setting this option makes the score list visi-
ble when a windowing version of NetHack is started without a
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 43
parent window, but it no longer leaves the score list around
after game end on a terminal or emulating window.
traps
Set the graphics symbols for displaying traps (default
``^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^"^^^^''). The traps option should be fol-
lowed by a string of 1-22 characters to be used instead of the
default traps characters. This string is subjected to the same
processing as the dungeon option.
The order of the symbols is: arrow trap, dart trap, falling
rock trap, squeaky board, bear trap, land mine, rolling boulder
trap, sleeping gas trap, rust trap, fire trap, pit, spiked pit,
hole, trap door, teleportation trap, level teleporter, magic
portal, web, statue trap, magic trap, anti-magic field, poly-
morph trap.
Cannot be set with the `O' command.
travel
Allow the travel command (default on). Turning this option off
will prevent the game from attempting unintended moves if you
make inadvertent mouse clicks on the map window.
verbose
Provide more commentary during the game (default on).
windowtype
Select which windowing system to use, such as ``tty'' or
``X11'' (default depends on version). Cannot be set with the
`O' command.
9.5. Window Port Customization options
Here are explanations of the various options that are used
to customize and change the characteristics of the windowtype
that you have chosen. Character strings that are too long may be
truncated. Not all window ports will adjust for all settings
listed here. You can safely add any of these options to your
config file, and if the window port is capable of adjusting to
suit your preferences, it will attempt to do so. If it can't it
will silently ignore it. You can find out if an option is sup-
ported by the window port that you are currently using by check-
ing to see if it shows up in the Options list. Some options are
dynamic and can be specified during the game with the `O' com-
mand.
align_message
Where to align or place the message window (top, bottom, left,
or right)
align_status
Where to align or place the status window (top, bottom, left,
or right).
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 44
ascii_map
NetHack should display an ascii character map if it can.
color
NetHack should display color if it can for different monsters,
objects, and dungeon features
eight_bit_tty
NetHack should pass eight-bit character values (for example,
specified with the traps option) straight through to your ter-
minal (default off).
font_map
NetHack should use a font by the chosen name for the map win-
dow.
font_menu
NetHack should use a font by the chosen name for menu windows.
font_message
NetHack should use a font by the chosen name for the message
window.
font_status
NetHack should use a font by the chosen name for the status
window.
font_text
NetHack should use a font by the chosen name for text windows.
font_size_map
NetHack should use this size font for the map window.
font_size_menu
NetHack should use this size font for menu windows.
font_size_message
NetHack should use this size font for the message window.
font_size_status
NetHack should use this size font for the status window.
font_size_text
NetHack should use this size font for text windows.
fullscreen
NetHack should try and display on the entire screen rather than
in a window.
hilite_pet
Visually distinguish pets from similar animals (default off).
The behavior of this option depends on the type of windowing
you use. In text windowing, text highlighting or inverse video
is often used; with tiles, generally displays a heart symbol
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 45
near pets.
large_font
NetHack should use a large font.
map_mode
NetHack should display the map in the manner specified.
mouse_support
Allow use of the mouse for input and travel.
player_selection
NetHack should pop up dialog boxes, or use prompts for charac-
ter selection.
popup_dialog
NetHack should pop up dialog boxes for input.
preload_tiles
NetHack should preload tiles into memory. For example, in the
protected mode MSDOS version, control whether tiles get pre-
loaded into RAM at the start of the game. Doing so enhances
performance of the tile graphics, but uses more memory. (de-
fault on). Cannot be set with the `O' command.
scroll_amount
NetHack should scroll the display by this number of cells when
the hero reaches the scroll_margin.
scroll_margin
NetHack should scroll the display when the hero or cursor is
this number of cells away from the edge of the window.
softkeyboard
Display an onscreen keyboard. Handhelds are most likely to
support this option.
splash_screen
NetHack should display an opening splash screen when it starts
up (default yes).
tiled_map
NetHack should display a tiled map if it can.
tile_file
Specify the name of an alternative tile file to override the
default.
tile_height
Specify the preferred height of each tile in a tile capable
port.
tile_width
Specify the preferred width of each tile in a tile capable port
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 46
use_inverse
NetHack should display inverse when the game specifies it.
vary_msgcount
NetHack should display this number of messages at a time in the
message window.
windowcolors
NetHack should display windows with the specified fore-
ground/background colors if it can.
wraptext
NetHack port should wrap long lines of text if they don't fit
in the visible area of the window.
9.6. Platform-specific Customization options
Here are explanations of options that are used by specific
platforms or ports to customize and change the port behavior.
altkeyhandler
Select an alternate keystroke handler dll to load (Win32 tty
NetHack only). The name of the handler is specified without
the .dll extension and without any path information. Cannot be
set with the `O' command.
altmeta
(default on, AMIGA NetHack only).
BIOS
Use BIOS calls to update the screen display quickly and to read
the keyboard (allowing the use of arrow keys to move) on ma-
chines with an IBM PC compatible BIOS ROM (default off, OS/2,
PC, and ST NetHack only).
flush
(default off, AMIGA NetHack only).
MACgraphics
(default on, Mac NetHack only).
page_wait
(default on, Mac NetHack only).
rawio
Force raw (non-cbreak) mode for faster output and more bullet-
proof input (MS-DOS sometimes treats `^P' as a printer toggle
without it) (default off, OS/2, PC, and ST NetHack only).
Note: DEC Rainbows hang if this is turned on. Cannot be set
with the `O' command.
soundcard
(default on, PC NetHack only). Cannot be set with the `O' com-
mand.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 47
subkeyvalue
(Win32 tty NetHack only). May be used to alter the value of
keystrokes that the operating system returns to NetHack to help
compensate for international keyboard issues. OPTIONS=subkey-
value:171/92 will return 92 to NetHack, if 171 was originally
going to be returned. You can use multiple subkeyvalue state-
ments in the config file if needed. Cannot be set with the `O'
command.
video
Set the video mode used (PC NetHack only). Values are `autode-
tect', `default', or `vga'. Setting `vga' (or `autodetect'
with vga hardware present) will cause the game to display
tiles. Cannot be set with the `O' command.
videocolors
Set the color palette for PC systems using NO_TERMS (default
4-2-6-1-5-3-15-12-10-14-9-13-11, (PC NetHack only). The order
of colors is red, green, brown, blue, magenta, cyan,
bright.white, bright.red, bright.green, yellow, bright.blue,
bright.magenta, and bright.cyan. Cannot be set with the `O'
command.
videoshades
Set the intensity level of the three gray scales available (de-
fault dark normal light, PC NetHack only). If the game display
is difficult to read, try adjusting these scales; if this does
not correct the problem, try !color. Cannot be set with the
`O' command.
9.7. Configuring autopickup exceptions
There is an experimental compile time option called AU-
TOPICKUP_EXCEPTIONS. If your copy of the game was built with
that option defined, you can further refine the behavior of the
autopickup option beyond what is available through the pick-
up_types option.
By placing autopickup_exception lines in your configuration
file, you can define patterns to be checked when the game is
about to autopickup something.
autopickup_exception
Sets an exception to the pickup_types option. The autopick-
up_exception option should be followed by a string of 1-80
characters to be used as a pattern to match against the singu-
lar form of the description of an object at your location.
You may use the following special characters in a pattern:
*--- matches 0 or more characters.
?--- matches any single character.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 48
In addition, some characters are treated specially if they
occur as the first character in the string pattern, specifically:
< - always pickup an object that matches the pattern that follows.
> - never pickup an object that matches the pattern that follows.
Can be set with the `O' command, but the setting is not pre-
served across saves and restores.
Here's a couple of examples of autopickup_exceptions:
autopickup_exception="<*arrow"
autopickup_exception=">*corpse"
autopickup_exception=">* cursed*"
The first example above will result in autopickup of any type of
arrow. The second example results in the exclusion of any corpse
from autopickup. The last example results in the exclusion of
items known to be cursed from autopickup. A `never pickup' rule
takes precedence over an `always pickup' rule if both match.
9.8. Configuring User Sounds
Some platforms allow you to define sound files to be played
when a message that matches a user-defined pattern is delivered
to the message window. At this time the Qt port and the win32tty
and win32gui ports support the use of user sounds.
The following config file entries are relevant to mapping
user sounds to messages:
SOUNDDIR
The directory that houses the sound files to be played.
SOUND
An entry that maps a sound file to a user-specified message
pattern. Each SOUND entry is broken down into the following
parts:
MESG - message window mapping (the only one supported in 3.4).
pattern - the pattern to match.
sound file - the sound file to play.
volume - the volume to be set while playing the sound file.
The exact format for the pattern depends on whether the
platform is built to use ``regular expressions'' or NetHack's own
internal pattern matching facility. The ``regular expressions''
matching can be much more sophisticated than the internal NetHack
pattern matching, but requires 3rd party libraries on some plat-
forms. There are plenty of references available elsewhere for
explaining ``regular expressions''. You can verify which pattern
matching is used by your port with the #version command.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 49
NetHack's internal pattern matching routine uses the follow-
ing special characters in its pattern matching:
*--- matches 0 or more characters.
?--- matches any single character.
Here's an example of a sound mapping using NetHack's inter-
nal pattern matching facility:
SOUND=MESG "*chime of a cash register*" "gong.wav" 50
specifies that any message with "chime of a cash register" con-
tained in it will trigger the playing of "gong.wav". You can
have multiple SOUND entries in your config file.
9.9. Configuring NetHack for Play by the Blind
NetHack can be set up to use only standard ASCII characters
for making maps of the dungeons. This makes the MS-DOS versions
of NetHack completely accessible to the blind who use speech
and/or Braille access technologies. Players will require a good
working knowledge of their screen-reader's review features, and
will have to know how to navigate horizontally and vertically
character by character. They will also find the search capabili-
ties of their screen-readers to be quite valuable. Be certain to
examine this Guidebook before playing so you have an idea what
the screen layout is like. You'll also need to be able to locate
the PC cursor. It is always where your character is located.
Merely searching for an @-sign will not always find your charac-
ter since there are other humanoids represented by the same sign.
Your screen-reader should also have a function which gives you
the row and column of your review cursor and the PC cursor.
These co-ordinates are often useful in giving players a better
sense of the overall location of items on the screen.
While it is not difficult for experienced users to edit the
defaults.nh file to accomplish this, novices may find this task
somewhat daunting. Included in all official distributions of
NetHack is a file called NHAccess.nh. Replacing defaults.nh with
this file will cause the game to run in a manner accessible to
the blind. After you have gained some experience with the game
and with editing files, you may want to alter settings to better
suit your preferences. Instructions on how to do this are includ-
ed in the NHAccess.nh file itself. The most crucial settings to
make the game accessible are:
IBMgraphics
Disable IBMgraphics by commenting out this option.
menustyle:traditional
This will assist in the interface to speech synthesizers.
number_pad
A lot of speech access programs use the number-pad to review
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 50
the screen. If this is the case, disable the number_pad option
and use the traditional Rogue-like commands.
Character graphics
Comment out all character graphics sets found near the bottom
of the defaults.nh file. Most of these replace NetHack's de-
fault representation of the dungeon using standard ASCII char-
acters with fancier characters from extended character sets,
and these fancier characters can annoy screen-readers.
10. Scoring
NetHack maintains a list of the top scores or scorers on
your machine, depending on how it is set up. In the latter case,
each account on the machine can post only one non-winning score
on this list. If you score higher than someone else on this
list, or better your previous score, you will be inserted in the
proper place under your current name. How many scores are kept
can also be set up when NetHack is compiled.
Your score is chiefly based upon how much experience you
gained, how much loot you accumulated, how deep you explored, and
how the game ended. If you quit the game, you escape with all of
your gold intact. If, however, you get killed in the Mazes of
Menace, the guild will only hear about 90% of your gold when your
corpse is discovered (adventurers have been known to collect
finder's fees). So, consider whether you want to take one last
hit at that monster and possibly live, or quit and stop with
whatever you have. If you quit, you keep all your gold, but if
you swing and live, you might find more.
If you just want to see what the current top players/games
list is, you can type nethack -s all on most versions.
11. Explore mode
NetHack is an intricate and difficult game. Novices might
falter in fear, aware of their ignorance of the means to survive.
Well, fear not. Your dungeon may come equipped with an ``ex-
plore'' or ``discovery'' mode that enables you to keep old save
files and cheat death, at the paltry cost of not getting on the
high score list.
There are two ways of enabling explore mode. One is to
start the game with the -X switch. The other is to issue the `X'
command while already playing the game. The other benefits of
explore mode are left for the trepid reader to discover.
12. Credits
The original hack game was modeled on the Berkeley UNIX
rogue game. Large portions of this paper were shamelessly
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 51
cribbed from A Guide to the Dungeons of Doom, by Michael C. Toy
and Kenneth C. R. C. Arnold. Small portions were adapted from
Further Exploration of the Dungeons of Doom, by Ken Arromdee.
NetHack is the product of literally dozens of people's work.
Main events in the course of the game development are described
below:
Jay Fenlason wrote the original Hack, with help from Kenny
Woodland, Mike Thome and Jon Payne.
Andries Brouwer did a major re-write, transforming Hack into
a very different game, and published (at least) three versions
(1.0.1, 1.0.2, and 1.0.3) for UNIX machines to the Usenet.
Don G. Kneller ported Hack 1.0.3 to Microsoft C and MS-DOS,
producing PC HACK 1.01e, added support for DEC Rainbow graphics
in version 1.03g, and went on to produce at least four more ver-
sions (3.0, 3.2, 3.51, and 3.6).
R. Black ported PC HACK 3.51 to Lattice C and the Atari
520/1040ST, producing ST Hack 1.03.
Mike Stephenson merged these various versions back together,
incorporating many of the added features, and produced NetHack
1.4. He then coordinated a cast of thousands in enhancing and
debugging NetHack 1.4 and released NetHack versions 2.2 and 2.3.
Later, Mike coordinated a major rewrite of the game, heading
a team which included Ken Arromdee, Jean-Christophe Collet, Steve
Creps, Eric Hendrickson, Izchak Miller, John Rupley, Mike Threep-
oint, and Janet Walz, to produce NetHack 3.0c.
NetHack 3.0 was ported to the Atari by Eric R. Smith, to
OS/2 by Timo Hakulinen, and to VMS by David Gentzel. The three
of them and Kevin Darcy later joined the main development team to
produce subsequent revisions of 3.0.
Olaf Seibert ported NetHack 2.3 and 3.0 to the Amiga. Norm
Meluch, Stephen Spackman and Pierre Martineau designed overlay
code for PC NetHack 3.0. Johnny Lee ported NetHack 3.0 to the
Macintosh. Along with various other Dungeoneers, they continued
to enhance the PC, Macintosh, and Amiga ports through the later
revisions of 3.0.
Headed by Mike Stephenson and coordinated by Izchak Miller
and Janet Walz, the development team which now included Ken Ar-
romdee, David Cohrs, Jean-Christophe Collet, Kevin Darcy, Matt
Day, Timo Hakulinen, Steve Linhart, Dean Luick, Pat Rankin, Eric
Raymond, and Eric Smith undertook a radical revision of 3.0.
They re-structured the game's design, and re-wrote major parts of
the code. They added multiple dungeons, a new display, special
individual character quests, a new endgame and many other new
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 52
features, and produced NetHack 3.1.
Ken Lorber, Gregg Wonderly and Greg Olson, with help from
Richard Addison, Mike Passaretti, and Olaf Seibert, developed
NetHack 3.1 for the Amiga.
Norm Meluch and Kevin Smolkowski, with help from Carl Sche-
lin, Stephen Spackman, Steve VanDevender, and Paul Winner, ported
NetHack 3.1 to the PC.
Jon W{tte and Hao-yang Wang, with help from Ross Brown, Mike
Engber, David Hairston, Michael Hamel, Jonathan Handler, Johnny
Lee, Tim Lennan, Rob Menke, and Andy Swanson, developed NetHack
3.1 for the Macintosh, porting it for MPW. Building on their de-
velopment, Barton House added a Think C port.
Timo Hakulinen ported NetHack 3.1 to OS/2. Eric Smith port-
ed NetHack 3.1 to the Atari. Pat Rankin, with help from Joshua
Delahunty, was responsible for the VMS version of NetHack 3.1.
Michael Allison ported NetHack 3.1 to Windows NT.
Dean Luick, with help from David Cohrs, developed NetHack
3.1 for X11. Warwick Allison wrote a tiled version of NetHack
for the Atari; he later contributed the tiles to the DevTeam and
tile support was then added to other platforms.
The 3.2 development team, comprised of Michael Allison, Ken
Arromdee, David Cohrs, Jessie Collet, Steve Creps, Kevin Darcy,
Timo Hakulinen, Steve Linhart, Dean Luick, Pat Rankin, Eric
Smith, Mike Stephenson, Janet Walz, and Paul Winner, released
version 3.2 in April of 1996.
Version 3.2 marked the tenth anniversary of the formation of
the development team. In a testament to their dedication to the
game, all thirteen members of the original development team re-
mained on the team at the start of work on that release. During
the interval between the release of 3.1.3 and 3.2, one of the
founding members of the development team, Dr. Izchak Miller, was
diagnosed with cancer and passed away. That release of the game
was dedicated to him by the development and porting teams.
During the lifespan of NetHack 3.1 and 3.2, several enthusi-
asts of the game added their own modifications to the game and
made these ``variants'' publicly available:
Tom Proudfoot and Yuval Oren created NetHack++, which was
quickly renamed NetHack--. Working independently, Stephen White
wrote NetHack Plus. Tom Proudfoot later merged NetHack Plus and
his own NetHack-- to produce SLASH. Larry Stewart-Zerba and War-
wick Allison improved the spell casting system with the Wizard
Patch. Warwick Allison also ported NetHack to use the Qt inter-
face.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 53
Warren Cheung combined SLASH with the Wizard Patch to pro-
duce Slash'em, and with the help of Kevin Hugo, added more fea-
tures. Kevin later joined the DevTeam and incorporated the best
of these ideas in NetHack 3.3.
The final update to 3.2 was the bug fix release 3.2.3, which
was released simultaneously with 3.3.0 in December 1999 just in
time for the Year 2000.
The 3.3 development team, consisting of Michael Allison, Ken
Arromdee, David Cohrs, Jessie Collet, Steve Creps, Kevin Darcy,
Timo Hakulinen, Kevin Hugo, Steve Linhart, Ken Lorber, Dean
Luick, Pat Rankin, Eric Smith, Mike Stephenson, Janet Walz, and
Paul Winner, released 3.3.0 in December 1999 and 3.3.1 in August
of 2000.
Version 3.3 offered many firsts. It was the first version to
separate race and profession. The Elf class was removed in pref-
erence to an elf race, and the races of dwarves, gnomes, and orcs
made their first appearance in the game alongside the familiar
human race. Monk and Ranger roles joined Archeologists, Barbar-
ians, Cavemen, Healers, Knights, Priests, Rogues, Samurai,
Tourists, Valkyries and of course, Wizards. It was also the
first version to allow you to ride a steed, and was the first
version to have a publicly available web-site listing all the
bugs that had been discovered. Despite that constantly growing
bug list, 3.3 proved stable enough to last for more than a year
and a half.
The 3.4 development team initially consisted of Michael Al-
lison, Ken Arromdee, David Cohrs, Jessie Collet, Kevin Hugo, Ken
Lorber, Dean Luick, Pat Rankin, Mike Stephenson, Janet Walz, and
Paul Winner, with Warwick Allison joining just before the re-
lease of NetHack 3.4.0 in March 2002.
As with version 3.3, various people contributed to the game
as a whole as well as supporting ports on the different platforms
that NetHack runs on:
Pat Rankin maintained 3.4 for VMS.
Michael Allison maintained NetHack 3.4 for the MS-DOS plat-
form. Paul Winner and Yitzhak Sapir provided encouragement.
Dean Luick, Mark Modrall, and Kevin Hugo maintained and en-
hanced the Macintosh port of 3.4.
Michael Allison, David Cohrs, Alex Kompel, Dion Nicolaas,
and Yitzhak Sapir maintained and enhanced 3.4 for the Microsoft
Windows platform. Alex Kompel contributed a new graphical inter-
face for the Windows port. Alex Kompel also contributed a Win-
dows CE port for 3.4.1.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 54
Ron Van Iwaarden maintained 3.4 for OS/2.
Janne Salmijarvi and Teemu Suikki maintained and enhanced
the Amiga port of 3.4 after Janne Salmijarvi resurrected it for
3.3.1.
Christian ``Marvin'' Bressler maintained 3.4 for the Atari
after he resurrected it for 3.3.1.
There is a NetHack web site maintained by Ken Lorber at
http://www.nethack.org/.
- - - - - - - - - -
From time to time, some depraved individual out there in
netland sends a particularly intriguing modification to help out
with the game. The Gods of the Dungeon sometimes make note of
the names of the worst of these miscreants in this, the list of
Dungeoneers:
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
NetHack Guidebook 55
Adam Aronow Izchak Miller Mike Stephenson
Alex Kompel J. Ali Harlow Norm Meluch
Andreas Dorn Janet Walz Olaf Seibert
Andy Church Janne Salmijarvi Pasi Kallinen
Andy Swanson Jean-Christophe Collet Pat Rankin
Ari Huttunen Jochen Erwied Paul Winner
Barton House John Kallen Pierre Martineau
Benson I. Margulies John Rupley Ralf Brown
Bill Dyer John S. Bien Ray Chason
Boudewijn Waijers Johnny Lee Richard Addison
Bruce Cox Jon W{tte Richard Beigel
Bruce Holloway Jonathan Handler Richard P. Hughey
Bruce Mewborne Joshua Delahunty Rob Menke
Carl Schelin Keizo Yamamoto Robin Johnson
Chris Russo Ken Arnold Roderick Schertler
David Cohrs Ken Arromdee Roland McGrath
David Damerell Ken Lorber Ron Van Iwaarden
David Gentzel Ken Washikita Ronnen Miller
David Hairston Kevin Darcy Ross Brown
Dean Luick Kevin Hugo Sascha Wostmann
Del Lamb Kevin Sitze Scott Bigham
Deron Meranda Kevin Smolkowski Scott R. Turner
Dion Nicolaas Kevin Sweet Stephen Spackman
Dylan O'Donnell Lars Huttar Stephen White
Eric Backus Malcolm Ryan Steve Creps
Eric Hendrickson Mark Gooderum Steve Linhart
Eric R. Smith Mark Modrall Steve VanDevender
Eric S. Raymond Marvin Bressler Teemu Suikki
Erik Andersen Matthew Day Tim Lennan
Frederick Roeber Merlyn LeRoy Timo Hakulinen
Gil Neiger Michael Allison Tom Almy
Greg Laskin Michael Feir Tom West
Greg Olson Michael Hamel Warren Cheung
Gregg Wonderly Michael Sokolov Warwick Allison
Hao-yang Wang Mike Engber Yitzhak Sapir
Helge Hafting Mike Gallop
Irina Rempt-Drijfhout Mike Passaretti
Brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks
of their respective holders.
NetHack 3.4 December 2, 2003
