
                            Character Classes
                            =================

Quoted from the spoilers "classes" and "classabi" by Boudewijn Wayers, 
and from the WCST 8.00 spoilers by Paul Waterman. Minor commentary on 
weapon skills added from Kevin Hugo's "weapons.txt" file - full info on
weapon skills for characters can be found in that file.

Character Classes
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Picking the right character and playing the character in an appropriate
way is one of the best ways to make Nethack easier on a character just
starting out. So, to this end, here is a description of the character
classes with their abilities, starting equipment and some other comments.

The Archeologist
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Lawful
        
The archeologist in Nethack is basically an Indiana Jones clone.  The 
clothing is the same, the abilities are the same, and to all intents and 
purposes, the goals are the same:  Survive, explore, and bring back lots of 
exotic treasures! 
                          
Archeologists start with the innate ability to identify any gem.  This makes 
it a lot easier to figure out what's worthless glass and what's literally a 
diamond in the rough.  Archeologists can be especially useful to play in the 
Gnomish Mines. Intrinsic speed and stealth - and later searching - are good, 
but the weapon and armor are poor and the Lawful alignment makes it harder to
obtain decent artifacts from sacrificing as so many useless ones are lawful.
If you're lucky you might get Grayswandir or Excalibur... They can become 
expert in such strange weapons as the pick-axe, silver sabre, boomerang, 
whip, and in bare-handed combat: however, overall their weapon skills are low.

---------------------------------------------
| Level  | Title           | Intrinsics     |
|--------|-----------------|----------------|
| 1-2    | Digger          | speed, stealth |
| 3-5    | Field Worker    |                |
| 6-9    | Investigator    |                |
| 10-13  | Exhumer         | searching      |
| 14-17  | Excavator       |                |
| 18-21  | Spelunker       |                |
| 22-25  | Speleologist    |                |
| 26-29  | Collector       |                |
| 30     | Curator         |                |
---------------------------------------------
                         
Starting equipment:      
1 uncursed or blessed +2 bull whip                
1 uncursed of blessed +0 leather armor            
1 uncursed or blessed +0 fedora                   
3 uncursed food rations  
1 uncursed or blessed +(random) pick axe       
1 uncursed or blessed tinning kit              
1 uncursed sack
10% chance of 1 uncursed tin opener - otherwise...
25% chance of 1 uncursed lamp - otherwise...      
10% chance of 1 uncursed magic marker

ADVANTAGES: The ability to identify gems, starting with a pick-axe,
starting with speed and stealth, starting with a tinning kit, very good
intelligence and wisdom.
DISADVANTAGES: Very poor starting armour (the fedora is useless, ditch
it), poor starting weapon, poor physical characteristics.
DIFFICULTY: Moderate.

The Barbarian
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Neutral

Conan was, is, and always will be the classic example of a barbarian.  Good 
wine, good food, good money, and good women are what a barbarian considers to 
be the most important aspects of life, and they will do almost anything in 
their pursuit of these things, including delving deep into the dungeons of 
Nethack. With good physical characteristics and poison resistance, they can
kill most things and eat them afterwards without fear, and the neutral 
alignment is a bonus when it comes to getting good artifacts from sacrificing.
Their first gift is always Cleaver, and their best weapons are the battle axe,
pick axe, two-handed sword and war hammer, though they are fairly good with 
most weapons.

------------------------------------------------
| Level  | Title           | Intrinsics        |
|--------|-----------------|-------------------|
| 1-2    | Plunderer/ess   | poison resistance |
| 3-5    | Pillager        |                   |
| 6      | Bandit          |                   |
| 7-9    | Bandit          | speed             |
| 10-13  | Brigand         |                   |
| 14     | Raider          |                   |
| 15-17  | Raider          | searching         |
| 18-21  | Reaver          |                   |
| 22-25  | Slayer          |                   |
| 26-29  | Chieftain(ess)  |                   |
| 30     | Conqueror/ess   |                   |
------------------------------------------------

Starting Equipment:
50% chance each of 1 uncursed or blessed +0 two-handed sword
     or 1 uncursed or blessed +0 battle axe
50% chance each of 1 uncursed or blessed +0 axe
     or 1 uncursed or blessed +0 short sword
1 uncursed or blessed +0 ring mail
1 uncursed food ration
17% chance of 1 uncursed lamp

ADVANTAGES: Poison resistance, good weapons, good physical stats, Cleaver, 
get speed later
DISADVANTAGES: Poor mental stats, starting armor could be better.
DIFFICULTY: Low.

The Caveman
~~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Lawful
                                                                   
"You Jane, Me Stupid." That about sums up the eloquent vocabulary, stunning 
personality, and puissant brain-power of a caveman.  In the game of Nethack, 
cavemen really don't have much going for them.  They don't start with very 
good equipment, and they're not very intelligent.  About the only thing they 
have going for them is their brute strength and incredible constitution.  If 
you really want a challenge in the game of Nethack, try playing a caveman all 
the way through sometime... Their first pet is always a dog, and their 
preferred weapons are the club, mace, quarterstaff, spear, bow and boomerang:
primitive weapons, as developed by our first primitive ancestors.
                                                                   
-----------------------------------------
| Level  | Title           | Intrinsics |
|--------|-----------------|------------|
| 1-2    | Troglodyte      |            |
| 3-5    | Aborigine       |            |
| 6      | Wanderer        |            |
| 7-9    | Wanderer        | speed      |
| 10-13  | Vagrant         |            |
| 14     | Wayfarer        |            |
| 15-17  | Wayfarer        | warning    |
| 18-21  | Roamer          |            |
| 22-25  | Nomad           |            |
| 26-29  | Rover           |            |
| 30     | Pioneer         |            |
-----------------------------------------

Starting Equipment:             
1 uncursed or blessed +1 club
1 uncursed or blessed +1 bow
13-42 uncursed or blessed +0 arrows
1 uncursed or blessed +0 leather armor

Yes, believe it or not, that's all the starting equipment!

ADVANTAGES: Good physical characteristics.
DISADVANTAGES: Poor mental characteristics, poor armour, poor hand to
hand weapon.
DIFFICULTY: Moderate to high.

The Elf
~~~~~~~

Alignment: Chaotic

Elves are hardy folk of humanoid stock.  Nethack elves are fashioned after 
Tolkien's elves, and as such are tall, thin, and light of foot.  Elves have 
excellent vision, and thus are more likely to notice things like secret 
doors. They also start off with sleep resistance, see invisible and speed.
Given the traditional hatred between elves and orcs, orcs are always hostile
despite the fact that both are basically chaotic in nature, and the first
gift from a god to an elf is always Orcrist.  Unlike many chaotic races, 
the chaotic nature of elves stems not from any allegiance to evil but from
strong individualism and rejection of authority.  Elves are also excellent 
archers, and the bow is their best weapon - they also can become expert in 
dagger, short sword, broad sword and spear.

-----------------------------------------------------------
| Level  | Title              | Intrinsics                |
|--------|--------------------|---------------------------|
| 1-5    | Edhel/Elleth       | searching, see invisible, |
|        |                    | sleep resistance, speed   |
| 6-9    | Ohtar/Ohtie        |                           |
| 10-13  | Kano/Kanie         |                           |
| 14-17  | Arandur/Aranduriel |                           |
| 18-21  | Hir/Hiril          |                           |
| 22-25  | Aredhel/Arwen      |                           |
| 26-29  | Ernil/Elentariel   |                           |
| 30     | Elentar/Elentari   |                           |
-----------------------------------------------------------

Starting Equipment:       
1 uncursed or blessed +0 elven short sword         
1 uncursed or blessed +0 elven bow                 
16-35 uncursed or blessed +0 elven arrows           
50% chance of 1 uncursed or blessed +0 elven mithril armor - otherwise 
1 uncursed or blessed +0 elven cloak - and         
   20% chance of wooden flute, tooled horn, wooden harp, bell, bugle, or     
   leather drum              
2 uncursed lembas wafers  
20% chance of 1 uncursed blindfold - otherwise
17% chance of 1 uncursed lamp

ADVANTAGES: Good equipment, good intrinsics, good characteristics, good with
bows, can sacrifice and eat humans without penalty.
DISADVANTAGES: None, really. Getting Orcrist early reduces the chance of a 
better weapon later, not that there are many - and Stormbringer, by far the
best chaotic weapon, is something that they will get if they are crowned, so 
there is little reason to worry about the chance of not getting it if you
pray a lot when you are in good standing with your god...
DIFFICULTY: Low.

The Healer

Alignment: Neutral

The healer has dedicated his or her life to medicine.  They have the 
capability to restore hit points through their spells (learned, of course, 
from their spellbooks).  Healers are not well versed in the skills of 
fighting, but when in need they can turn their sharpened scalpel against a 
foe. They are the experts at healing themselves, starting with both healing
spellbooks, several potions and the ability to never be harmed by poison, 
and have naturally good constitutions and gain alignment bonuses from 
healing peaceful or tame creatures. They have little weapon skill except
in the dagger, quarterstaff and dart, but their knowledge of the healing
properties of a unicorn's horn allows them to use that as a weapon very well. 

-----------------------------------------------
| Level | Title           | Intrinsics        |
|-------|-----------------|-------------------|
| 1-2   | Barber/Midwife  | poison resistance |
| 3-5   | Leech           |                   |
| 6-9   | Embalmer        |                   |
| 10-13 | Dresser         |                   |
| 14    | Bone Setter     |                   |
| 15-17 | Bone Setter     | warning           |
| 18-21 | Herbalist       |                   |
| 22-25 | Apothecary      |                   |
| 26-29 | Physician       |                   |
| 30    | Chirurgeon      |                   |
-----------------------------------------------

Healer Starting Equipment:
1 uncursed or blessed +0 scalpel
1 uncursed or blessed +1 pair of leather gloves
1 uncursed stethoscope
4 uncursed or blessed potions of healing
4 uncursed or blessed potions of extra healing
1 uncursed or blessed wand of sleep
1 blessed spellbook of healing
1 blessed spellbook of extra healing
5 uncursed apples
1001-2000 gold pieces
4% chance of 1 uncursed oil lamp

ADVANTAGES: Lots of hit points, good constitution, poison resistance.
DISADVANTAGES: Poor weapons and poor armour, poor strength.
DIFFICULTY: Moderate.

The Knight
~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Lawful

The knight is considered by many to be one of the hardest Nethack characters 
to play.  The knight does not start with exceptional items (though his armour
and weapon are at least decent, and he can also turn the undead), does not 
gain much as he goes along, and is constrained by many more rules than normal 
characters because of the code of chivalry that a knight must follow.
Their quest artifact (the Magic Mirror of Merlin) is good, though, which can 
help out in later stages. They recognise all weapons and armour, and get an 
alignment penalty of -1 for attacking creatures which cannot move, are 
fleeing or sleeping, and also for eating when already satiated (a true knight 
does not stuff himself like a glutton when the poor are going hungry.) Their 
code also frowns on the use of such weapons as the club and dagger (weapons 
of the common people): the preferred weapons of the nobility are the long 
sword and the lance, though some have preferred to become skilled in the use
of the battle axe.
 
In the game of Nethack, Knights have inherited chess-like mobility. They have 
the ability to jump, unlike any other character class - but only in an L-shape, 
two spaces horizontally or vertically and one at right angles to that.

------------------------------------
| Level | Title     | Intrinsics   |
|-------|-----------|--------------|
| 1-2   | Gallant   |              |
| 3-5   | Esquire   |              |
| 6     | Bachelor  |              |
| 7-9   | Bachelor  | speed        |
| 10-13 | Sergeant  |              |
| 14-17 | Knight    |              |
| 18-21 | Banneret  |              |
| 22-25 | Chevalier |              |
| 26-29 | Seignieur |              |
| 30    | Paladin   |              |
------------------------------------
                                     
Starting Equipment:
1 uncursed or blessed +0 long sword
1 uncursed or blessed +2 spear
1 uncursed or blessed +1 ring mail
1 uncursed or blessed +0 helmet
1 uncursed or blessed +0 small shield
1 uncursed or blessed +0 pair of leather gloves

ADVANTAGES: Good weapons, good armour, Excalibur, Magic Mirror of Merlin, 
undead turning.
DISADVANTAGES: Mediocre statistics, no useful intrinsics, code of
conduct, no equipment apart from weapons and armour.
DIFFICULTY: Moderate to high.

The Priest
~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Random (any)

The priest is a cleric who has set him/herself apart for service to his/her 
deity.  Priests begin the game blessed with the ability to immediately 
determine whether items are cursed, uncursed, or blessed.  Also, since many 
orders have injunctions against the shedding of blood, their preferred 
weapons are the blunt ones - mace, club, quarterstaff, flail, war hammer and 
morning star. They can turn undead, and start with a couple of spell books
and some holy water, and can choose what alignment to be at the start of the
game - their quest artifact (a fairly good one) will automatically be of the 
same alignment.

----------------------------------------------------
| Level | Title               | Intrinsics         |
|-------|---------------------|--------------------|
| 1-2   | Aspirant            |                    |
| 3-5   | Acolyte             |                    |
| 6-9   | Adept               |                    |
| 10-13 | Priest(ess)         |                    |
| 14    | Curate              |                    |
| 15-17 | Curate              | warning            |
| 18-19 | Canon(ess)          |                    |
| 20-21 | Canon(ess)          | fire resistance    |
| 22-25 | Lama                |                    |
| 26-29 | Patriarch/Matriarch |                    |
| 30    | High Priest(ess)    |                    |
----------------------------------------------------

Starting Equipment:           
1 blessed +1 mace
1 uncursed or blessed +0 chain mail
1 uncursed or blessed +0 small shield
4 potions of holy water         
1 uncursed clove of garlic
1 uncursed sprig of wolfsbane
2 uncursed or blessed random spellbooks *
10% chance of 1 uncursed magic marker - otherwise
10% chance of 1 uncursed lamp

* See the limitations on the random creation of magic items at the end of 
this section. 

ADVANTAGES: Identification of blessed/uncursed/cursed status, holy
water, decent equipment, decent statistics.
DISADVANTAGES: No real useful intrinsics.
DIFFICULTY: Low to moderate.

The Rogue
~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Chaotic

The rogue is an outlaw, a bandit who makes his living off of the misery of 
others.  In short, rogues are thieves, and usually of the common sort.  
Killing, maiming, and despoiling passing strangers gives a rogue great glee, 
and they receive no alignment penalties for robbing shops or backstabbing 
peaceful creatures. They are at their best with daggers and darts (especially
of the poisoned variety), but can also handle the crossbow and short sword 
very well. Their dexterity allows them to be good at hitting monsters, and 
can make up for their lack of brute strength by finding weak spots for 
critical hits.

--------------------------------------------
| Level | Title           | Intrinsics     |
|-------|-----------------|----------------|
| 1-2   | Footpad         | stealth        |
| 3-5   | Cutpurse        |                |
| 6-9   | Rogue           |                |
| 10-13 | Pilferer        | searching      |
| 14-17 | Robber          |                |
| 18-21 | Burglar         |                |
| 22-25 | Filcher         |                |
| 26-29 | Magsman         |                |
| 30    | Thief           |                |
--------------------------------------------
                         
1 uncursed or blessed +0 short sword
6-15 uncursed +0 daggers
1 uncursed or blessed +1 leather armor
1 uncursed potion of sickness
1 uncursed lock pick
1 uncursed sack
20% chance of 1 uncursed blindfold

ADVANTAGES: Good dexterity, decent equipment.
DISADVANTAGES: Poor armour and weapon.
DIFFICULTY: Moderate.

The Samurai
~~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Lawful

The Samurai is an ancient order of Japanese warrior, the oriental equivalent 
of a knight.  Samurai have a long, glorious, and honorable history of 
following the code of Bushido.  The code of Bushido is a very strict moral 
and behavioral code, much like the code of chivalry followed by European 
knights, and they may not attack a fleeing or peaceful creature and keep 
their honour intact (there is an alignment penalty). They do automatically
recognise the different types of body armour and weaponry, and are highly 
skilled with all kinds of swords and the long bow (but not the crossbow.) 
Their first gift, from sacrificing to their god, is always Snickersnee, and 
their initial pet is always a dog.

Several terms should be known to players who wish to become Samurai.  Most 
important are the words katana and wakizashi.  The katana is the Japanese 
long sword, a beautiful, slightly curved weapon with a wicked blade about 32" 
in length.  The wakizashi is the companion short sword, a smaller version 
with a blade about 17" in length.  The yumi is the Japanese long bow, and you 
shoot ya, or bamboo arrows from it.  Gunyoki are food rations.

-------------------------------------
| Level | Title       | Intrinsics  |
|-------|-------------|-------------|
| 1-2   | Hatamoto    | speed       |
| 3-5   | Ronin       |             |
| 6-9   | Ninja       |             |
| 10-13 | Joshu       |             |
| 14    | Ryoshu      |             |
| 15-17 | Ryoshu      | stealth     |
| 18-21 | Kokushu     |             |
| 22-25 | Daimyo      |             |
| 26-29 | Kuge        |             |
| 30    | Shogun      |             |
-------------------------------------

Starting Equipment:
1 uncursed or blessed +0 katana
1 uncursed or blessed +0 wakizashi
1 uncursed or blessed +0 yumi
26-45 uncursed or blessed +0 ya
1 uncursed or blessed +0 splint mail
3 uncursed or blessed fortune cookies
20% chance of 1 uncursed blindfold


ADVANTAGES: Very good equipment and statistics.
DISADVANTAGES: No useful intrinsics.
DIFFICULTY: Low

The Tourist
~~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Neutral

"Oh, Wanda!  Take a look at that strange creature!" *CLICK*...  Tourists are 
just what they sound like - loud, hungry, overweight people carrying cameras 
and wearing ugly clothing who have no business being where they are. They have
no melee weapon, no armor (a Hawaiian shirt offers no protection), lousy stats 
and no intrinisics to start with, and their only hope in early combats is to 
blind the creature with the flash from their camera first. It must be said that 
playing a tourist is truly a challenge... On the other hand, at higher levels 
they get bonuses at finding things, and can even gain poison resistance 
intrinsically eventually - perhaps all that experience in dealing with rotten 
hotel foods - and their quest artifact allows them to use and re-use all wands 
(except that of wishing) indefinitely. They can eventually learn to handle a 
dagger and short sword well, and are capable of learning to hold their own in 
a punch-up or at throwing darts.

--------------------------------------------------
| Level |  Title            | Intrinsics         |
|-------|-------------------|--------------------|
| 1-2   | Rambler           |                    |
| 3-5   | Sightseer         |                    |
| 6-9   | Excursionist      |                    |
| 10-13 | Peregrinator/trix | searching          |
| 14-17 | Traveler          |                    |
| 18-19 | Journeyer         |                    |
| 20-21 | Journeyer         | poison resistance  |
| 22-25 | Voyager           |                    |
| 26-29 | Explorer          |                    |
| 30    | Adventurer        |                    |
--------------------------------------------------

Starting Equipment:           
21-40 uncursed or blessed +2 darts                      
10 uncursed random food items                           
2 uncursed or blessed potions of extra healing
4 uncursed or blessed scrolls of magic mapping      
1 uncursed or blessed +0 Hawaiian shirt
1 uncursed expensive camera
1 uncursed credit card
1-1000 gold pieces
4% chance of 1 uncursed tin opener - otherwise
4% chance of 1 uncursed leash - otherwise
4% chance of 1 uncursed towel - otherwise
4% chance of 1 uncursed magic marker

ADVANTAGES: A camera. The Quest artifact (the Platinum Yendorian
Express Card.) 4 scrolls of magic mapping. Enough food that they
should not starve early on.
DISADVANTAGES: Everything else.
DIFFICULTY: High

The Valkyrie
~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Neutral

These women warriors out of Norse mythology are among the fiercest fighters 
known.  This, of course, is because their main mission in life is to fight 
glorious battles and then escort the fallen warriors to the halls of 
Valhalla. Their starting armour is poor, but they can easily gain more in 
the dungeon (for instance, a suit of chain mail plus shield, helmet and a 
pair of hard shoes will give a surprisingly good AC.) Apart from that, they 
also get cold resistance and stealth intrinsically, speed at level 7, and 
their first gift from their god will be Mjollnir - which will return to the 
Valkyrie's hand if she has Strength 25 when throwing it, with a 99% chance.
And they gain hit points like nobody's business... Their preferred weapons
are the axe, long sword, two-handed sword and war hammer.

--------------------------------------------------------
| Level | Title             | Intrinsics               |
|-------|-------------------|--------------------------|
| 1-2   | Stripling         | stealth, cold resistance |
| 3-5   | Skirmisher        |                          |
| 6     | Fighter           |                          |
| 7-9   | Fighter           | speed                    |
| 10-13 | Man/Woman-at-arms |                          |
| 14-17 | Warrior           |                          |
| 18-21 | Swashbuckler      |                          |
| 22-25 | Hero(ine)         |                          |
| 26-29 | Champion          |                          |
| 30    | Lord/Lady         |                          |
--------------------------------------------------------

Starting Equipment:
1 uncursed or blessed +1 long sword
1 uncursed or blessed +0 dagger
1 uncursed or blessed +3 small shield
1 uncursed food ration
17% chance of 1 uncursed lamp

ADVANTAGES: Good equipment, good weapon, great statistics, cold
resistance, Mjollnir
DISADVANTAGES: None - given that they don't *need* to be good at magic.
DIFFICULTY: Low

The Wizard
~~~~~~~~~~

Alignment: Neutral

Wizards are considered by many to be a difficult character to play, because 
they are very poor fighters when they start. Wizards do, however, start out 
with the absolute best selection of magic items - a veritable treasure trove 
of useful trinkets.  With a little bit of luck, a wizard can end up being one 
of the most powerful characters in the game. They also start with an athame 
(a special kind of dagger that will never dull unless magically cursed), so 
they can engrave Elbereth for ever and avoid all fights with any monsters 
that do not use the @ symbol. Their first gift from their god when sacrificing
is always, not surprisingly, the greatest of athames - Magicbane. The cloak 
of magic resistance will stop them being randomly teleported around or 
polymorphed by traps. They can cast the spell of magic missile more easily 
than other characters, gain some measure of control over the random-teleport 
intrinsic at level 8 (instead of the usual 12) so they can choose when to 
teleport, and regenerate spell power points faster, and gain teleport control 
at level 17 (especially good with choosing when to teleport.) Their starting 
pet is always a cat, never a dog. The only weapons they can handle with any 
skill are the dagger (including athames) and dart, because these require 
little skill to use, and the quarterstaff - this latter because wizards are 
used to having a staff about, and what cannot be stopped by the magic in a 
wizard's staff can usually be brought short by a good solid thump in any 
available soft bits with four feet of solid bog-oak.

------------------------------------------------
| Level | Title           | Intrinsics         |
|-------|-----------------|--------------------|
| 1-2   | Evoker          |                    |
| 3-5   | Conjurer        |                    |
| 6-9   | Thaumaturge     |                    |
| 10-13 | Magician        |                    |
| 14    | Enchanter/tress |                    |
| 15-16 | Enchanter/tress | warning            |
| 17    | Enchanter/tress | teleport control   |
| 18-21 | Sorcerer(ess)   |                    |
| 22-25 | Necromancer     |                    |
| 26-29 | Wizard          |                    |
| 30    | Mage            |                    |
------------------------------------------------

Starting Equipment:           
1 blessed +1 athame
1 uncursed or blessed +0 cloak of magic resistance
1 uncursed or blessed random wand *
2 uncursed or blessed random rings *
3 uncursed or blessed random potions *
3 uncursed or blessed random scrolls *
1 uncursed or blessed random spellbook *
20% chance of 1 uncursed magic marker
20% chance of 1 uncursed blindfold

ADVANTAGES: Elbereth, good mental characteristics, magic resistance, 
Magicbane, equipment, equipment, equipment.
DISADVANTAGES: Poor weapon, poor armour, poor physical characteristics, 
equipment may be lousy though *something* has to be useful somehow.
DIFFICULTY: Low to high, depending on their starting equipment.

* There some are limitations on the generation of random magic items.  These 
are delineated as follows: 

1. No "useless" items will be generated.  The following items are considered 
(by the game) to be useless items: 
      potion of hallucination
      scroll of amnesia
      scroll of fire
      ring of aggravate monster
      ring of hunger
      wand of nothing

   However, some items which would appear to be useless *can* indeed be 
generated: scrolls of punishment and destroy armor, potions of booze, 
confusion and sickness have all been recorded. Enterprising players will
be able to find *some* use for these items, even if it is only blanking 
the scrolls and diluting the potions to get blank paper (for writing on 
with a magic marker) and water (for turning holy).

2. No overly powerful items will be generated.  This includes wands of wishing, 
and spell books containing spells of higher than third level. For some reason 
wands of polymorph *can* be generated.

3. It is impossible to begin the game with both polymorph and polymorph 
control.  In other words, if your character has a ring or wand of polymorph, 
he/she will not have a ring of polymorph control, and vice-versa. The same 
is true of teleport and teleport control.

4. Two of the same ring will not be generated. 


Alignment
~~~~~~~~~
Every character and monster in Nethack has an alignment.  Even some objects 
(specifically artifacts, or named weapons) have alignments.  Describing 
exactly what alignment is and what it entails is tricky, however.  Expressed 
simply, alignment is what side you've aligned yourself with - good, evil, or 
neither.  What is considered "good" and "evil" in Nethack is very much the 
traditional medieval picture of good and evil.  Thus, a brief description of 
the three alignments and the behavior expected from a character of that 
alignment follows: 

Chaotic:  A chaotic character has basically aligned him/herself with the side 
of evil.  He/she likes doing things that would normally be considered "bad" 
just for the joy of it.  Chaotics tend to have the attitude of "looking out 
for number one."  A chaotic character will probably kill anything that walks, 
just for fun, and will tend to rob shops as a principle. Rogues start out 
chaotic: Elves are also chaotic, but are not considered necessarily evil. 
Priests may also be chaotic. Chaotic characters lose 2d6 hit points from 
drinking holy water.

Neutral:  Neutrality tends to be a refusal to take sides.  The attitude of a 
neutral is basically "live and let live."  A character who is neutral 
probably won't kill creatures that aren't bothering it, but won't have any 
qualms about killing those that do.  A neutral character won't really care 
about robbing from shops, as long as it will benefit him/her.  Barbarians, 
Healers, Tourists, Valkyries and Wizards start as Neutral, and Priests also
have that option.

Lawful:  A lawful character has aligned him/herself with the side of good. 
He/she will tend to follow societal rules, even if it won't benefit him/her. 
A lawful character will have the attitude that "there is a higher good." 
Lawful characters usually will try to befriend other creatures, but may 
attempt to hunt down and kill those creatures that are by their very nature 
"evil."  (Chaotic monsters especially would be considered to be "evil" by a 
lawful type.)  A lawful character would never even think of robbing a shop. 
Archaeologists, Cavemen, Knights and Samurai all start out Lawful, and Priests
may also be of this alignment. Lawful characters lose 2d6 hit points from 
drinking unholy water.

Now, here's how alignment works in Nethack:  There is a number associated 
with your alignment, which will determine if you are "stridently aligned," 
etc. This number is increased for every action you perform which is in 
keeping with your alignment, and decreased for every action you perform 
which would be against your alignment.  
   If you sacrifice on another god's altar when your own god is angry with 
you (as often as not because you are of low alignment) you may end up changing alignment permanently: this is the only way to do this (as the effects of a 
helm of Opposite Alignment last only as long as your wearing the helm does.) 
Doing this before the Quest will render your game unwinnable, as your Quest 
Leader will only accept you if you are in your original alignment. The chart 
below shows what actions can affect your alignment and by how much. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Action                                                          | Aln +/- |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Sacrificing a unicorn of your alignment on an altar not of your | Change  |
| alignment                                                       |alignment|
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Refusing to give money to a co-aligned priest(ess) after        |      -1 |
| chatting with him/her                                           |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Giving between two hundred times your level and one less than   |      +1 |
| four hundred times your level gold pieces to a co-aligned       |         |
| priest(ess) in a temple when your alignment is currently worse  |         |
| than -5                                                         |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Giving six hundred times your level or more gold pieces to a    | Becomes |
| priest(ess) in a temple when you're "strayed"                   |       0 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Giving more than six hundred times your level gold pieces to a  |      +2 |
| priest(ess) in a temple otherwise                               |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Displacing your pet in such a manner as to cause it to become   |      -5 |
| trapped                                                         |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Displacing your pet in such a manner as to cause it to drown or |     -15 |
| die                                                             |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Killing a co-aligned priest                                     |      -2 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Killing a non-co-aligned priest                                 |      +2 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Killing your leader on the Quest (i.e. Lord Carnarvon, Pelias,  |   -lots |
| etc.)                                                           |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Killing a "guardian" on the Quest (i.e. students, acolytes,     |    -Var |
| etc.)                                                           |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Killing your nemesis on the Quest (i.e. Lord Surtur, Dark One,  |    +Var |
| etc.)                                                           |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Killing a tame creature                                         |     -15 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Killing a peaceful creature                                     |      -5 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Angering a co-aligned priest                                    |      -5 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Angering a non-co-aligned priest                                |      +2 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Angering any other creature                                     |      -1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Killing a hostile creature                                      |    +Var |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Praying on a non-co-aligned altar                               |      -1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Praying on a co-aligned altar and pleasing your deity           |      +1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Sacrificing a non-co-aligned unicorn on a co-aligned altar      |      +5 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Offering the Amulet of Yendor on the wrong altar in the Endgame |     -99 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Offering the Amulet of Yendor on the correct altar in the       |     +10 |
| Endgame                                                         |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Offering a fake Amulet of Yendor in the Endgame                 |      -1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Changing alignment                                              |  +/-Var |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Having a sacrifice rejected (sacrificing on Moloch's altar)     |      -5 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Sacrificing on your god's altar or converting an altar          |    +Var |
|=================================================================|=========|
| Non-Chaotic:  Sacrificing your own race                         |      -5 |
|=================================================================|=========|
| Chaotic: Sacrificing your own race                              |      +5 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Chaotic: Genociding a human type of creature (e.g. Keystone     |      +1 |
| Kops, any non-elven "@"                                         |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Chaotic:  Genociding a type of demon (anything "i" or "&")      |      -1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Chaotic:  Being seduced by a succubus/incubus                   |      +1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Rogue:  Stealing from a shop (i.e. "Somehow you escaped the     |      +1 |
| shop without paying!"                                           |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Rogue:  Pacifying an angry shopkeeper                           |      -1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Rogue:  Refusing to pay a shopkeeper for damage done to the     |      +1 |
| shop                                                            |         |
|=================================================================|=========|
| Lawful:  Genociding a human type of creature (i.e. Keystone     |      -1 |
| Kops, any non-elven "@"                                         |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Lawful:  Genociding a type of demon ("i" and "&")               |      +1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Lawful:  Stealing form a shop (i.e. "Somehow you escaped the    |      -1 |
| shop without paying!") Using your pet doesn't count...          |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Lawful:  Pacifying an angry shopkeeper                          |      +1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Lawful:  Refusing to pay a shopkeeper for damage done to the    |      -1 |
| shop                                                            |         |
|=================================================================|=========|
| Knight: Kicking or attacking a monster that cannot move or is   |      -1 |
| sleeping or fleeing                                             |         |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Knight:  Eating when satiated                                   |      -1 |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Knight:  Digging in a shop or stealing from it                  |extra -1 |
|=================================================================|=========|
| Samurai:  Attacking a peaceful creature                         |      -1 |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The chart at right will help you determine  ---------------------------------
a little more about your alignment.  The    | Align.   | Description        |
description is the description as shown by  |----------|--------------------|
a potion of enlightenment or the            | > 20     | Piously aligned    |
equivalent.  Thus, if you quaff a potion of | 14 to 19 | Devoutly aligned   |
enlightenment and are told that you are     | 9 to 13  | Fervently aligned  |
fervently aligned, you know that your       | 4 to 8   | Stridently aligned |
alignment is somewhere in the nine to       | 3        | Aligned            |
thirteen range.                             | 1 to 2   | Haltingly aligned  |
                                            | 0        | Nominally aligned  |
It should be noted that alignment is very   | -3 to -1 | Strayed            |
important in current versions, for the      | -8 to -4 | Sinned             |
simple reason that in order to be able to   | Below -8 | Transgressed       |
accomplish the Quest that will be set for   ---------------------------------
your character (see The Quest for more                               
details) you will need to be piously aligned in your original alignment...  
So, watch that alignment! 


Character Levels of Experience
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     All characters gain "experience points" as they go through the game - 
usually from killing monsters. As you gain more experience points, you will
eventually go up one level of experience - and when you gain a level, you 
gain some hit points (to your maximum and current values), some spell energy 
points (ditto) and possibly some intrinsics depending on your class and the 
level you have reached. 
     One other interesting fact is that if your character has the random-
teleporting intrinsic (often known as "teleportitis"), they will gain some 
measure of control over it at level 12 (8 for wizards), and become able to 
teleport themselves at will if they have enough power points and are not hungry
(the random teleporting will still occur, and unlike teleporting at will it 
does not use up food or power points.) Teleport control is still needed if you 
want to control the destination...

The following table shows when exactly you gain a level:

level     XP     level          XP     level            XP
~~~~~   ~~~~     ~~~~~   ~~~~~~~~~     ~~~~~   ~~~~~~~~~~~
    1      1        11      10.000        21    10.000.000
    2     20        12      20.000        22    20.000.000
    3     40        13      40.000        23    30.000.000
    4     80        14      80.000        24    40.000.000
    5    160        15     160.000        25    50.000.000
    6    320        16     320.000        26    60.000.000
    7    640        17     640.000        27    70.000.000
    8   1280        18   1.280.000        28    80.000.000
    9   2560        19   2.560.000        29    90.000.000
   10   5120        20   5.120.000       30+   100.000.000

  Characters can also gain levels, hit points and energy points by other means.
In the case of levels, this is particularly important as it is practically 
impossible to get to the really higher levels simply by killing monsters - it 
takes just too many XP.

Levels can be gained by:
 - eating a wraith corpse (always works)
 - quaffing an uncursed or blessed potion of gain level (always works)
 - dealing with succubi (if male) or incubi (if female) - this can also 
   reduce your level, or have other effects both good and bad (see misc.txt)
 - buying a major consultation from the Oracle (*VERY* occasionally - and 
   only once per game)
 - Polymorphing into a new self (can also reduce your level)

Hit points
~~~~~~~~~~

  Hit points determine how much damage your character can survive - whether 
that damage is taken in melee combat, from having a missile or wand shot at
you or having an object thrown at you, or from starving. Obviously, the 
more hit points your character has, the better. Hit points regenerate over
time - faster if you are wearing an item of regeneration, but you will get
hungry more quickly unless that item is an artifact. You may also restore
lost hit points by drinking potions of (extra) healing. Your hit points 
will  be shown in the form: x(y), where x is the current value, and y is 
the maximum, which the current value can never exceed.

You can increase your maximum hit points by:

 - Gaining a level of experience
 - Quaffing an uncursed or blessed potion of healing or extra healing while at 
   maximum hit points, or if the hit points gained would put you over
   the maximum
 - Getting hit by a nurse when wearing no armor and not wielding any weapon
 - Praying to your god (small chance)

Power points
~~~~~~~~~~~~

  These determine how often you can cast spells, if you know any spells. 
They appear the same way on your character screen as hit points - x(y), for 
current and maximum values. You can lose power points temporarily by casting
spells (the most usual method), choosing to teleport (if you have the random
teleport intrinsic and are of high enough level to have the choice to teleport)
or stepping on an anti-magic trap, or when you are unlucky in dealing with a 
succubus.  Spell points recover over time, at a faster rate if you are have 
regeneration either intrinsically or from an object (as with hit points.)

You can increase your maximum power points by:

 - Gaining a level of experience
 - Quaffing an uncursed or blessed potion of gain energy while at maximum power, 
   or if the energy gained would put you over the maximum
 - dealing with succubi or incubi (you can also lose energy from your maximum)
 - absorbing some of the magical energy from an exploding magic trap (rare - and 
   risky, as magic traps can have other consequences)
 - Reading a scroll of charging while confused
