Airstrike

Version 0.22: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

Airstrike
Level	4
School1	Air
Source(s)	Book of the Sky Book of Air
Casting noise	2
Spell noise	4

Causes the air around a creature to twist itself into a whirling vortex of meteorological fury. It is especially effective against flying enemies.

Spell Details
Damage Formula	8 + 1d(2 + (Power)/7)
Max Damage	8 + 1d(214/7)
Max Power	200
Range	LOS
Targeting	Smite
To-hit
Special	+50% damage vs. flying enemies

Airstrike is a level 4 Air Magic spell which hits a single enemy, dealing moderate wind damage using smite-targeting (anything in your LOS can be targeted with perfect accuracy). It is particularly effective against flying opponents, dealing 50% more damage than normal. Just be aware that this spell has no impact against wind-resistant enemies.

Strategy

Airstrike is a useful spell for elemental specialists who lack the means to deal with enemies immune to their attacks. Cloud-producing spells may match its accuracy and exceed its power, but they lack precision. It's also useful for summoners, as they can fire past their summoned creatures without fear, and it is lethal to most flying nuisances, like harpies.

Monster Version

This spell is known by a number of opponents, making them significantly more dangerous for flying characters; if possible, land before engaging them. The following monsters can cast Airstrike:

k Wind drake(0-26)

2 Blizzard demon(0-34)

i Spriggan air mage(0-38)

@ Cloud mage (0-50)

w Gastronok(0-50)

Q Sojobo(0-50)

C Titan(0-50)

History

• In 0.25, Airstrike will do damage based on how much empty space is around the target and will be less effective in corridors.
• In 0.20, the Airstrike damage formula was given a much-wanted simplification. The old formula was:

7 + 1d(1d4 1 + (1d(Power) - 1)/6) + (1d(Power) - 1)/7)