Scroll of deflection
| ? | |
| Base value (Au) | 250 |
|---|---|
| Item level | 3 |
| Random generation | Probability table |
| Weight | 5 |
| Fragility | 1 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Unidentified appearance | Random inscription |
| Cursed name | scroll of vulnerability |
The scroll of deflection briefly protects the reader from incoming bolts. A cursed copy is identified as a scroll of vulnerability and instead makes night-gaunt abduction automatic while the status lasts.
Generation and appearance
It is one of the 24 common random scroll types and receives a shuffled unidentified inscription each game. Randomly generated copies begin uncursed. No fixed carrier is defined.
Data and mechanics
It is object ID 65 and scroll ID 23, with weight 5, fragility 1, base value 250 Au, and item level 3. Noncursed use identifies the scroll; cursed use does not.
Effects and interactions
| BUC state | Result |
|---|---|
| Blessed | Sets deflection to 1 through 6 units. |
| Uncursed | Sets deflection to 0 through 5 units. |
| Cursed | Adds 1 through 6 units of vulnerability. |
While deflection is positive, a fire, lightning, normal-missile, or cold bolt that reaches the player's square reports a miss instead of applying its damage. The effect assigns rather than adds duration, so a later noncursed scroll can shorten an existing deflection and an uncursed roll of zero grants no protection.
The vulnerability flag is not a general damage multiplier in this source revision. Its sole combat consumer makes a nearby night gaunt's grab-and-teleport check succeed instead of using the normal one-in-five chance. Both statuses decay in ten-minute units.
Strategy
Use deflection immediately before facing bolt attacks, but remember that an uncursed copy can roll zero and that rereading can replace a longer duration with a shorter one. Do not test an unknown copy near a night gaunt: cursed vulnerability guarantees its abduction condition while active.
Trivial
No reliable creator statement tying this generic item name to a particular cultural source was found.