Hunter

Version 0.26: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

The Hunter is a type of fighter who specialises in missile weapons. A Hunter starts with either some throwing weapons or a ranged weapon and some ammunition, as well as a short sword and a set of leathers.

Preferred Races

Hill Orc, Halfling, Kobold, Ogre, and Troll are the recommended races if you pick a Hunter background.

Racial Restrictions

Felids are forbidden for becoming Hunters, because they cannot use ranged weapons.

Starting Equipment

Some species may receive different items based on their unique restrictions.

• +1 ranged weapon (shortbow, hand crossbow, hunting sling or throwing weapons) & ammo
  • Ranged weapons start with 20 of the appropriate ammo
  • Javelin users start with 6 javelins and 2 throwing nets (The javelins are replaced with 4 large rocks for large races and 10 tomahawks for small races.)
• +0 short sword
• +0 leather armour
• Ration

Starting Skills and Stats

These are adjusted by your species' aptitudes.

• Fighting: 2
• Chosen Weapon's Skill: 4
• Dodging: 2
• Stealth: 1

Choosing Hunter adds 4 to your starting Strength, 3 to your starting Intelligence and 5 to your starting Dexterity.

Strategy

Hunter is a good background for species with good skill aptitudes for ranged combat. Choosing hunter also allows melee-centric species immediate access to throwable weapons, which can be used to soften up approaching monsters.

Characters relying on ranged combat should still be on the lookout for a better backup weapon than your +0 short sword in case you run out of projectiles in the early dungeon. For your own safety, it is recommended to have a scroll of remove curse at hand before wielding any unidentified weapons. Many ranged characters have died wielding a cursed -3 dagger.

History

• Prior to 0.15, Hunters that chose javelins started with only 5 and did not have throwing nets.
• Prior to 0.14, Hunters started with 20 gold.