Stat zero

Version 0.16: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

When one of a character's primary attributes (strength, intelligence, or dexterity) is lowered to 0 or below, the character will suffer crippling penalties until that attribute is restored and stays above 0 for a period of time equal to: 10 + 1d10 + the number of turns it was below 0 (Max: 200 turns).

Causes

The following can all drain your attributes:

• By 1 at a time, and thus blocked by sustain abilities:
  • The Deterioration mutation. Rank 1 is generally kept in check by your natural regeneration, but ranks 2 and 3 are eventually lethal.
  • Sickness.
  • The special attacks of certain monsters quasits (dexterity only).
  • Decomposition (not to be confused with rotting) from attempted mutation of an undead character.
• By more than 1 at a time, but damage can be halved by sustain abilities:
  • Brain Feed.
  • Spell miscast effects, as caused by actual miscasts, Hell effects, and mummy death curses.
  • Evoking certain items, such as a crystal ball of energy or the staff of Wucad Mu.
  • Stepping on or being in view of a monster stepping on Zot traps.
  • Certain spells, such as Summon Horrible Things or Alistair's Intoxication, have a chance of draining INT when cast.

Unless you have Slow Healing 3 (which Deep Dwarves have innately), you will slowly regain stats lost through any of these means.

Stats can be more permanently lowered by the following means:

• Mutations which affect attributes (this lasts until the mutation is removed potion of cure mutation).
• Equipment with negative stat modifiers (but you can remove the equipment to restore the stat).
• The Focus card.
• Jiyva's stat shuffling.
• The Shuffle card.

The last two will never lower a base stat to zero. Sustain abilities provides no help with any of these, and the stat will not restore naturally.

Effects

When any stat reaches 0, you will immediately suffer 2-4 turns of paralysis which ignores stasis. Stat zero will also inflict various penalties for each stat reduced to zero:

Collapse (Strength)

• The speed of all your actions is halved (stacks with other stats' speed penalties)
• Your regeneration rate is divided by 4

Brainless (Intelligence)

• The speed of all your actions is halved (stacks with other stats' speed penalties)
• You can't read books
• You can't cast spells
• You will fail to read scrolls 4 of every 5 times

Clumsy (Dexterity)

• The speed of all your actions is halved (stacks with other stats' speed penalties)
• Your evasion is set to 2 + size_bonus + Phase Shift bonus + Repulsion field bonus
• Your stealth is set to 0
• You can't stab monsters

Losing stat points from a stat that is already below 0 also inflicts some HP damage: 4 + 1d(max hp/10). If a character dies from this damage, the stat death is recorded (weakness, clumsiness, stupidity).

Precautions

Any character with a particularly low attribute should be aware of the dangers involved. Any attribute below 8 could conceivably be reduced to 0 by a single unfortunate effect, some of which are common, some less so.

• Cursed artefact equipment can reduce an attribute by up to 6 for as long as it's equipped, so be cautious about wearing unidentified items if you're at risk.
• Miscast effects, Hell effects, Zot traps, and mummy death curses can temporarily reduce an attribute by up to 7. You may wish to bring all of your attributes up to a minimum of 8 to guarantee that you can survive a single worst-case scenario shot from either one. Alternatively, you could quaff a potion of restore abilities.

History

In 0.17, taking further stat damage after a stat reaches 0 will no longer inflict HP damage.

Prior to 0.15, items had mass, and strength determined your carrying capacity. The "collapse" status effect serious reduced this.

Stat zero was added in 0.13, replacing stat death.