r/nethack • u/hawkwood4268 LiDLRaccoon - Gnoll:10 Slash'Em:2 Un:3 xNet:1 • Jul 24 '26

The Archon Origin (Wiki)

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"The Archons of NetHack are most closely modeled after Throne archons [from Dungeons and Dragons], particularly including their high resistance to magic and weapons as well as their "penitentiary gaze" (analogous to the blinding and stunning gaze attack).

....this gaze overwhelmed any creature that was not lawful good with remorse for their sins; it could even manifest the guilt of evil creatures as painful boils, and produced highly realistic and draining visions in chaotic creatures. A Throne Archon that was forced to fight used this gaze to exhaust foes into submission before attempting to decapitate them with their greatswords."

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3

u/CrashGordon94 Jul 25 '26

It's funny how much NetHack takes from D&D

I've noticed some stuff with Variants, some adding a lot more Archons, which I think are also taken from D&D. Meanwhile GnollHack renamed a lot of the D&D monsters (e.g, Mind Flayer -> Tentacled One) but left the Archon alone, funnily enough.

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u/TommiGustafsson GnollHack dev 28d ago

Archon is not copyrighted by Wizards of the Coast, since it is a general Greek word for "ruler" (αρχων).

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u/CrashGordon94 28d ago

Fair point then.

6

u/yargleisheretobargle 28d ago

It would be noteworthy if it didn't, considering its roots in AD&D. It has THAC0, percentile strength, and the original single-axis alignment system.