Finisher

Version 0.30: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

A long and exceedingly sharp scythe, capable of eviscerating in a single blow. Its extraordinary speed is the work of a mad wizard, who spent years refining it before discarding it in a fit of rage.

the +5 scythe "Finisher"

+5 scythe (modified halberd; base damage 14, base delay 20)

Speed brand
(50 - HD)/200 chance to instantly kill target on successful attack

Desirability

Finisher has a horrendous base delay, but this is made up for by the speed brand. This eccentric combination also gives Finisher quite the fast minimum delay, but only at very high skill levels. The ​chance to instantly kill your target makes it quite an appealing weapon: it ranges from about a 1-in-4 chance to kill goblins and the like, to about a 1-in-10 chance to kill orbs of fire.

Finisher doesn't stand out as much later on in the game, where you can generally find a glaive or bardiche with a good brand and a much better ratio of damage to speed, but it's still a weapon worth considering if you find it early. Do what you can to improve your attack speed in tough fights -- a potion of haste or Okawaru's Finesse will let you try to instagib your opponents more often.

History

• In 0.29, Finisher's base weapon, a scythe, lost its unique stats. This weapon retains those stats, except that it gained +1 accuracy in the process.
• Prior to 0.26, players could use Finisher with the Spectral Weapon spell. The evisceration property applied to the spectral copy's attacks as well, effectively doubling the chance to one-shot enemies.
• Prior to 0.23, Finisher did not have a chance to instantly kill, but did have +3 strength.
• Prior to 0.15, Finisher had a +3, +5 enchantment level.