Ballistomycete

Version 0.11: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

ballistomycete f
HP	20-32
HD	4
XP	0
Speed	0
AC	1
EV	0
Will	Immune
Resistances	rPois+, rN+++, rTorm, rDrown
Vulnerabilities	None
Habitat	Land
Intelligence	Plant
Uses	Uses nothing
Holiness	Plant
Size	Tiny
Type	fungus, ballistomycete
Flags	Stationary No experience gain

A lumpy reddish fungus covered in knobbly rhizome growths, growing well in the dank underground dungeon.

Useful Info

A ballistomycete is a plant-type monster, capable of spawning giant spores for both reproductive and combat purposes. Although seemingly harmless, they can become a serious menace if left unchecked, taking over the level and spitting out explosive spores at you endlessly. They give no experience individually, but offer a large chunk for killing off the entire colony.

Ballistomycete Life Cycle

• After wandering for 40 turns, crashing into a player, or taking damage, a spore will explode, dealing damage, confusion, and food destruction. This also creates a random number of new inactive ballistomycetes in the blast radius (2~3 on average)
• When this explosion occurs, a random ballistomycete on the level is activated. Roughly 500 turns later, it will create a new spore, continuing the cycle.
• If you kill an active ballistomycete, a random number of other ballistomycetes will activate.
• There can be up to 25 ballistomycetes on a floor at any given time. Any spore explosions beyond that will cause damage and confusion, but nothing else.
• Killing the entire colony will remove all moldy floor tiles, reward you with experience, and display the message:

Having destroyed the fungal colony, you feel a bit more experienced.

Hyperactive Ballistomycete

Followers of Fedhas Madash may use his Evolution ability to upgrade a ballistomycete to a hyperactive state. Hyperactive ballistomycetes will repeatedly cause explosions of spores similar to those of giant spores before eventually dying, leaving more ballistomycetes in their wake.

This ballistomycete is in a state of all-out reproduction. It is constantly ravaged by explosions of spores, damaging everything around, and it is ultimately going to die to its own spores. Be sure to keep your distance!

Tips & Tricks

• Giant spores leave a trail of moss behind them which lights a trail when a new ballistomycete activates, giving you a good idea of where to go next.
• Killing inactive ballistomycetes does not cause others to immediately become active, as is the case when you kill active ballistomycetes. Because of this, it's possible to "prune" an out-of-control outbreak without dooming yourself.
• Conservation will protect your food from contamination, and clarity will stop you from being confused, but it's best not to get caught in spore explosions at all. A wand of magic darts can reliably one-shot them.
• If you've killed everything attached to a particular patch of mold and it doesn't disappear, there's probably another patch (or maybe just a single spore) lurking somewhere else on the floor.