Unique monsters — variable Life

The following monsters may all have between 1 and 16 Life points.

Deaths are agents of the Grim Reaper itself. Wrapped in gray cloaks from which only the glow of their eyes emerges, they will converge upon Prince Argonn and attempt to slay him with blows from their scythes. Each such hit does 20 points of damage. Deaths cannot be damaged by normal arrows, while a magical arrow does only 1 point of damage to a Death. They are also not affected by bombs. Being undead, they take no damage from poison. A sword blow, fortunately, does them normal damage.

Dark Knights are Prince Argonn’s antithesis. They patrol the levels, and will challenge him to fight them. Blows from their unholy flails do 12 points of damage. Dark Knights are vulnerable to all weapons.

Dark Princes are the superiors of Dark Knights. They wield halberds that cause 15 points of damage when they hit. They also have the power to summon Dark Knights to their aid (20% chance each turn unless they are engaged in combat with Prince Argonn). Each summoned Dark Knight will have 6 Life. Dark Princes are vulnerable to all weapons.

Dark Kings rule Dark Knights and Dark Princes. Their scepters do 12 points per blow. Dark Kings are sorcerers and may cast a spell of lightning that also does 12 points. If not in a line of sight with Prince Argonn, they may (25% chance) summon Dark Knights (6 Life), Dark Princes (8 Life) and even Doppelgangers (4-7 Life) to their aid. They are vulnerable to all weapons.

Specters alone of all monsters possess an uncanny ability: when there is an obstacle between a Specter and its prey, it will pass through it (in effect, teleport beyond it). This makes it very difficult to escape them. They will be held back by a double thickness of walls or by the Void. Furthermore, their unearthly senses allow them to perceive you even while you wear the Cloak of Invisibility. A Specter’s chilling touch does 15 points of damage. Specters are vulnerable to swords, magic arrows and bombs.

Thorn Trees cannot move, but they will scratch Prince Argonn with their thorns should he come next to them, causing 4 points of damage. Thorn Trees are invulnerable to all forms of arrows, which get harmlessly tangled in their branches. However, the blast from a bomb’s explosion will uproot and destroy a Thorn Tree, regardless of its Life points. Other weapons work normally.

Blobs are gigantic amœbæ. Their caustic touch does 6 points of damage. When not next to a victim, they may wander about randomly, or may divide in two (10% chance per turn). The two resulting blobs have only half the Life points of the original, fortunately. A Blob with 1 Life point left will not divide. Blobs are not hurt by arrows, which bounce off their elastic hide. All other weapon effects are normal.

Tricorns are mysterious beings who have harnessed the power of the lightning. They will move toward Prince Argonn, and when sufficiently close (3 squares away or less) will fire a bolt of electricity at him. The bolt does 6 points of damage. Should they fight hand-to-hand, they will do 5 points. They may be killed by any weapon.

Archdevils are the lords of devilkind. They have the ability to throw fireballs as do their subjects. Archdevil fireballs do 15 points of damage. If next to Prince Argonn, an Archdevil will strike with its three-pronged metal rod, causing 12 points of damage. When Archdevils are not able to cast a fireball at Prince Argonn, they may try to move toward him, or else (25% chance) they will summon a Devil to their aid. This Devil will have 1, 2 or 3 Life. Archdevils may summon Devils indefinitely. They are vulnerable to all weapons.

Golems are clay statues magically endowed with life. They are immune to normal arrows and poison. Golems remain inert until Prince Argonn approaches within 3 squares, at which point they will move toward him to attack. They are terrifically strong: a blow from their clay fists causes 18 points of damage.

Sirens, half-woman half-fish hybrids, may cast a spell at Prince Argonn (25% chance each turn he is in sight); this spell causes him to be paralyzed for 3 turns. Otherwise, Sirens will advance toward him to attack. A Siren fights hand-to-hand for 5 points of damage. They are vulnerable to all weapons.

Spiders are huge arachnids. They spin webs: every time a Spider moves, it leaves a web behind it. The bite of a Spider does 10 points of damage. Spiders move about randomly unless Prince Argonn is within 2 squares, when they move toward him to attack. Alone of all monsters, Spiders will move onto and through webs. They are vulnerable to all weapons.

Giant Ants have a poisonous bite which causes paralysis (for 3 turns). While Prince Argonn is paralyzed, a Giant Ant will bite normally, causing 7 points of damage. Giant Ants are vulnerable to all weapons.

Archmages cast disenchantment spells from their wands. When he is hit by the spell, Prince Argonn loses one of the beneficial effects that he enjoyed, at random (for example: if he is invisible, speeded and semi-material, he will lose any one of those three powers instantly). When there is no enchantment to be dissolved, the spell causes 12 points of damage. Archmages can see invisible objects and the Cloak of Invisibility is thus useless against them. Archmages may fight hand-to-hand, but they only do 2 points of damage. They are vulnerable to all weapons.

Cyclopses are one-eyed giants. They carry huge shields, but no weapons. They will never attack, but seek instead to surround Prince Argonn and hinder his movements. Their huge shields make them invulnerable to all weapons, save bombs and poison.

Dark Brains come from some strange corner of Hell. Their oversized brains allow them to project telepathic attacks when they are in a clear line of sight. Such attacks either do 8 points of damage (50% chance) or else induce confusion. In hand-to-hand combat, they cannot use their confusion ability and do 8 points of damage. They are vulnerable to all weapons.

Blind Mages have deliberately sacrificed their sight to the powers of darkness. They can cast spells, which will either (50% chance of each) do 8 points of damage when they hit, or dim Prince Argonn’s vision, effectively lowering the light intensity by 1. In hand-to-hand combat, Blind Mages fight for 4 points. They detect their opponents by sound, and are obviously not fooled by invisibility.

Invisible Mages cannot be seen unless Prince Argonn possesses an Amulet of Sight. They teleport randomly from one square to the other, trying to get Prince Argonn in their field of fire. If they find themselves with a clear line of sight, they will (75% of the time) fire a spell that causes 10 points of damage. Invisible Mages are vulnerable to all weapons.

Doppelgangers appear as exact copies of Prince Argonn. They possess the power of empathy: for every point of damage he inflicts on a Doppelganger, Prince Argonn suffers 5 points of damage himself! In close combat, Doppelgangers do 5 points per attack. They are vulnerable to all weapons.

Dragons are probably the most powerful of all monsters. They exist in three varieties: Eggs, Wyrms, and Adult Dragons.

Dragon Eggs are immobile and have no attack. A Dragon Egg has 1 Life point at the start. Every turn, a Dragon Egg has an 80% chance of growing, adding 1 point of Life. If a Dragon Egg grows to more than 4 Life, it hatches into a Wyrm.

Wyrms, or Young Dragons, are snake-like reptiles. Their jaws do 9 points of damage when they hit. Every turn, a Wyrm has a 60% chance of growing, adding 1 point of Life. If a Wyrm grows to more than 8 Life, it becomes a Dragon.

Dragons grow wings and legs, and gain the ability to breathe fire. A blow from one of their scaly paws causes 20 points of damage. A Dragon fireball also does 20 points. Every turn, a Dragon has a 40% chance of growing, adding 1 point of Life. If a Dragon already has 16 Life, it does not grow any further.

Kroggs are mostly head, and that mostly jaws. Kroggs wander about at random unless they are next to Prince Argonn, in which case they bite. A bite from a Krogg inflicts 10 points of damage. Kroggs are able to eat stone and will happily eat any form of wall (except phasing walls, but including pillars) that stands in their way. They are invulnerable to bombs. There is a 10% chance that a dying Krogg will disgorge a handful of gems.

A Lord of the Undead is a fearsome monster. It is able to cast spells, which may blind Prince Argonn (25%) or cause 5 points of damage (75%). In hand-to-hand combat, its scaly wings deal out 15 points of damage. It may also summon ghosts and shades to its aid (25% chance, Life = 1, 2 or 3).

Snitches are greedy little pests. If a Snitch is next to Prince Argonn, it will steal one object from his pack. If the pack is empty, the Snitch will steal a key. If Prince Argonn has no keys, the Snitch will strike for 2 points of damage. Once a Snitch has stolen an object, it will run away. Snitches will steal objects they find lying on the ground. A Snitch can’t carry more than one object at a time and will drop what it had when it picks up a new treasure. Sometimes it will also drop its loot simply because it's grown tired of it. Snitches can’t be hurt by arrows, which they snatch out of the air. If they are more than four squares away from Prince Argonn, they don't notice him and just wander around.

Vampires are fearsome undead. They can strike for 10 points with their bare hands. They are able to summon 1-3 Giant Bats per turn to their aid (always 3-life Bats). They are also able to vampirize humanoids: any Orc, Goblin or Wizard standing next to a Vampire may find itself transformed into a Vampire! Fortunately, Prince Argonn is immune to this effect. Vampires are vulnerable to all weapons. When a Vampire is killed, it transforms into a Giant Bat. This Bat has 3 life points but has no other special powers. If a Vampire isn’t right next to Prince Argonn, it will often wander about rather than approach, since Vampires dislike physical combat.

Unique monsters — fixed Life

Floaters are unintelligent life forms, appearing as airborn men-o-war (jellyfish) of great size. They are full of flammable gas. When one is hit, it immediately explodes; if Prince Argonn happens to be next to the explosion, he will take 10 points of damage. Floaters may also explode spontaneously when next to him (20% chance per turn). Otherwise, they wander at random, pushed by the air currents. Floaters are damaged by all weapons.

Negatons are negative energy beings. They appear as featureless holes in space, through which the false stars of the Void are seen to shine. Negatons will converge upon Prince Argonn. As soon as one touches him, it delivers 25 points of damage and vanishes. Negatons cannot be damaged by anything, save for magical arrows; a magic arrow will destroy a Negaton (and continue on its way).

Fire Mages have the ability to cast fireballs at Prince Argonn, whenever they have a clear line of sight. The fireballs do 10 points of damage. In addition, Fire Mages have learned a spell which renders them immaterial. This means that they are invulnerable to ALL weapons—the only way to destroy them is to use a Wand of Annihilation or a Wand of Death. Fortunately, keeping the immateriality spell active forces Fire Mages to remain immobile. Their fire can thus be avoided if one is cautious.

Gunks are a horrid protoplasmic life form. In their mature state, they cannot be harmed save by poison and bombs. Even then, such an attack merely reduces them to Gunk Seeds. Gunks can reproduce: every turn, there is a 20% chance that a Gunk will create a Gunk Seed in a free square next to itself. If a Gunk is next to Prince Argonn, instead of reproducing, it will attack with its pseudopods for 2 points of damage.

Gunk Seeds are the offspring of Gunks. The first turn a Gunk Seed is active (when it has been created or when it first appears on-screen), it spends growing to maturity. Once a Gunk Seed is mature, there is a 1 in 4 chance each turn that it will grow into a Gunk. Gunk Seeds, unlike Gunks, are vulnerable to all weapons.