Bolt spells

Version 0.28: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

The Bolt spells are a series of mid-level Conjurations spells which all function similarly, hitting multiple targets along a freely selectable line of effect. Although there is some variance in their damage output, range, and spell level, they all behave in nearly the same fashion. The majority of these spells have been removed from player libraries, but may still be accessible in other ways.

Player-Castable

Lightning Bolt

• Level 5, Air Magic/Conjurations
• Deals electricity damage
• Can bounce off walls; multizaps
• Range 5-12 (depending on spell power), undiminished by hitting targets
• Weaker version available through Shock, a level 1 Air/Conjurations spell with 8 range.

Evocable

Thunderbolt

• Available through a lightning rod
• Power determined by Evocations
• Consecutive zaps increases strength and changes behavior of the bolt
  • Aiming for a different target creates a wide spray that covers the area between the previous bolt and the current bolt
• Deals electricity damage; deals less damage when spread over a wide area
• Range 5, undiminished by hitting targets

Corrosive Bolt

• Available to players through a wand of acid, Nemelex's Vitriol card, or Makhleb
• Power determined by Evocations (wand) or Invocations (god)
• Deals acid damage.
• Inflicts corrosion.
• Range 5

Sword Beam

• Available through the unrand artefact, the sword of Power
• Deals irresistible damage, unaffected by skill
• Chance to activate increases with HP, (10 * HP/27)%.
• Range 4

Major Destruction

Makhleb's Major Destruction will fire a bolt spell, some of which are now exclusive to this ability:

Bolt of Fire

• Deals fire damage
• Range 7

Bolt of Magma

• Deals partially irresistible fire damage
• Range 5

Bolt of Draining

• Deals negative energy damage
• Inflicts draining
• Range 6
• Also available through Nemelex's pain card

Major Destruction can also fire Lightning Bolt and Corrosive Bolt.

Monster-only

Bolt of Fire

• Deals fire damage
• Range 7

Bolt of Cold

• Deals cold damage
• Range 6

Crystal Bolt

• Deals either fire or cold damage
• Bounces off walls
• Range 6

Bolt of Draining

• Deals negative energy damage
• Inflicts draining
• Range 6

Energy Bolt

• Deals irresistible damage
• Range 7

Bolt of Magma

• Deals partially irresistible fire damage
• Range 5

Quicksilver Bolt

• Deals irresistible damage
• Strips cancellable enchantments from targets
• Range 7

Venom Bolt

• Deals partially irresistible poison damage
• Inflicts poison.
• Range 6

History/Trivia

• Bolt of Magma was made monster and Makhleb only in 0.28.
• Makhleb's Major Destruction was made explicitly bolt-only in 0.27.
• Most bolt spells were removed from player's libraries in the positional magic update of 0.25; Bolt of Fire, Bolt of Cold, Bolt of Draining, and Venom Bolt were removed.
• Prior to 0.21, the wand of lightning existed, which cast Lightning Bolt.
• Prior to 0.20, there were special evocable items called rods; the Rod of inaccuracy had a powerful but highly inaccurate bolt spell called Bolt of Inaccuracy, and the Rod of ignition could fire a special version of Bolt of Fire named Explosive Bolt.
• Prior to 0.18, there were wands of fire, cold, and draining, which cast their bolt spells with Evocations. The Rod of destruction, had a special bolt spell called Random Bolt. In their place, the wand of acid gave players access to Corrosive Bolt.
• 0.17 added Corrosive Bolt.
• Prior to 0.16, the Tome of destruction could fire a number of these bolt spells.
• Random Bolt was added in 0.14.
• The term 'bolt' did not always refer only to spells which can hit multiple targets in a line. Notably, the spell Iron Shot went through the names Bolt of Iron and Iron Bolt before being renamed Iron Shot to avoid confusion, and Throw Icicle was renamed from Ice Bolt for the same reason.