Explorers' Instincts

Each time your character enters a new level of Angband, he or she will get an intuitive feeling about how interesting this area is and how worthwhile exploring it is. This description is shown at the top left of the screen, until replaced by later messages. It can be reviewed by pressing Ctrl-F.

The hunch is vague, but accurate, and may be influenced by the number and power of monsters lurking here, and the number and power of magical items lying around to be discovered. The better the feeling, the more powerful the incentive should be to stay and explore as fully as possible.

In order to get this feeling, your character shouldn't rush from level to level: leaving a level too soon means there will be little to go on for the next level. These instincts work whether a character is descending or ascending.

The list of level feelings can be found here.

Lighting Your Way

Although at some of the early levels, some rooms are illuminated, your character will find it is essential to carry some source of light with them. Without light, you cannot see to read and cast spells, or fight your enemies in the darkness.

Initially you can only buy torches from the general store; these are the weakest source of light, only lighting a small circle around the explorer. In the dungeon your character may find abandoned oil lanterns, which provide more light than torches, or various items of magical equipment which are even more efficacious. The effect of light sources can be cumulative: the more your character has, the greater the area lit.

Torches and lanterns burn away their fuel over time; torches can be replaced (or replenished from other torches found or carried by an explorer), while lanterns can be refilled with flasks of oil, either bought in the town or found in the dungeons. Magical sources of light do not need refuelling.

Certain magical items and spells can permanently illuminate part or all of the current level.

Staying Healthy

All explorers need to eat to stay healthy; the more encumbered a character is, the more energy they will expend, and hence the quicker they will become hungry. Different races also have differing appetites.

While food can be found in the dungeons from time to time, you cannot count on this; it is always wise to equip your character with some food before each expedition into Angband. There are many different types of food (including drink available), from simple basic rations like beef jerky, through flagons of wine and normal food, to the extremely nutritious elvish waybread, each offering different amounts of sustenance. If the worst comes to the worst, an adventurer can always resort to eating molds and mushrooms found growing on walls and floors; be wary, though: some of these fungi may have unexpected effects on the unwary diner.

An explorer will also recover from injuries, and regain expended mana, over the course of time. When badly hurt, it is very advisable to stop and rest (use the R command) to recuperate before exploring further. Potions to speed recovery can be bought or found.

If your character has received cuts or has been poisoned, he or she will continue to take damage for some time unless treated or until the effect wears off.

Messages

The top line of the screen, just above the race, class and title information, is where information messages are shown. This includes your location and surroundings (You are on an open floor. You see a door.); descriptions of combat (You hit the Stone troll. You have slain the Stone Troll. The Necromancer hits you. You die...); finding and losing items (You have found 595 gold pieces worth of adamantite. You destroy a Piece of Elvish Waybread); using magic items (You activate it...), and many others.

This information can be very important in monitoring how your character is doing, particularly in combat, and you should keep a close eye on it. The space is limited, so messages are constantly being replaced by newer information. To review old messages, press Ctrl-P to see a full list of every message in this session, which you can scroll up and down using p for older messages and n for newer ones

Moving

The basic way of moving your character is to use the numeric keypad to move one space in the specified direction: e.g. pressing the 6 key will move the character 1 space to the right; pressing 1 will move one space down and to the left; 5 means the character stays in place for one turn.

When you can see some distance around your character, you can save time and energy by pressing . before pressing a number: your character will then move in that direction until something of interest (a choice of directions, stairs, a door, a monster or some treasure, etc.) is found. moving like this through corridors, your character will automatically follow the twists and turns without needing more commands.

You may also use the mouse to move your character: this also allows the system to use a degree of intelligence, moving your character around corners and making choices about the best route, up to a distance of 50 spaces (as the crow flies) along a path up to 250 spaces long.

For experienced users, there are many commands and other ways of refining how your character moves and what they do as they move. These will be described later.