# Constitution
Constitution is an attribute in NetHack.

Contents

1 Effects

1.1 Messages
1.2 Exercising and abusing constitution

2 References

Effects
Having a high constitution increases your healing rate and the number of HP you gain when leveling up and allows you to carry more weight in your inventory.
Constitution is most easily exercised by keeping from being hungry and is increased when you sleep with a foocubus and "feel good enough to do it again."

constitution

HP/level bonus

3
−2

4–6
−1

7–14
0

15–16
+1

17
+2

18
+3

&gt;18
+4

Reference: attrib.c, line 649.
Above level 9, higher constitution can also help you regenerate more HP every 3 turns. Specifically, having 13 or more constitution regenerates a random amount of HP from 1 to your current constitution which is then capped by level − 9, so to gain more than 1 HP on these turns you must be at least level 11.[1]
In 3.6.1 wielding the Ogresmasher sets constitution to 25.

Messages
You feel tough! You must be leading a healthy life-style.
You gained a point of constitution by exercise.[2]
You feel fragile! You haven't been watching your health.
You lost a point of constitution from abuse.[3]
Exercising and abusing constitution
Constitution is exercised by the following:

Having a hunger status of "Not hungry" on a turn whose number is a multiple of 10[4]
Being healed by a nurse (one in three chance)[5]
Consorting with a foocubus and getting the "You feel raised to your full potential"[6] or "You feel good enough to do it again"[7] message
Drinking holy water, as a non-chaotic hero, unless polymorphed into an undead or demon[8]
Drinking unholy water, as a chaotic hero, or polymorphed into an undead or demon[9]
Drinking or breathing the vapors[10] of a potion of healing,[11] extra healing[12] or full healing[13]
Reading a non-cursed scroll of enchant armor while not wearing armor[14]
Digesting a monster (other than a green slime)[15]
Eating a non-cursed flint stone (but this is impossible in vanilla NetHack)[16]
Constitution is abused by the following:

Having a nutrition status of "Fainting" or "Fainted" on a turn whose number is a multiple of 10[17]
Being overtaxed (once every ten turns)[18]
Being sick, including both fatal illness and food poisoning, and non-fatal vomiting (once every five turns)[19]
Vomiting (every turn, in addition to the abuse from the previous item)[20]
Being unable to move while encumbered and with low hit points[21]
Passing out from exertion when heavily encumbered[22][23]
Having an object "drop from your grasp" when attempting to throw it while encumbered and with low hit points[24]
Choking from overnutrition (even if you have magical breathing)[25]
Drinking from a fountain and getting one of the following effects: contaminated water (without poison resistance),[26] curse items ("this water's no good!")[27]
Falling onto a sink, if there is a weapon or weapon-tool on the sink[28]
Being hit by a monster attack that causes lycanthropy,[29] or by Famine's hunger-inducing attack[30]
Consorting with a foocubus and getting the "You feel drained of energy"[31] or "You are down in the dumps"[32] message
Being hit by a silver object thrown at you by a monster, while polymorphed into a silver hater[33]
Suffering a system shock when attempting to polymorph[34]
Polymorphing[35]
Becoming deathly sick, or making your sickness worse, or only partly curing your sickness[36]
Drinking holy water, as a chaotic hero, or polymorphed into an undead or demon[37]
Drinking unholy water, as a non-chaotic hero, unless polymorphed into an undead or demon[38]
Drinking a non-blessed potion of sickness, as a non-Healer[39]
Drinking a potion of acid (unless acid resistant)[40]
Breathing the vapors of a potion of sickness (as a non-Healer),[41] or a potion of polymorph[42]
Being turned back to your natural form, by praying to a non-chaotic god while polymorphed into an undead[43]
Reading a cursed scroll of enchant armor while not wearing armor[44]
Reading a scroll of destroy armor while not wearing armor, if you are confused[45], or the scroll is non-cursed[46]
Sitting on a throne and getting the electric shock effect[47]
Being caught in a poison gas[48] or poison needle[49] container trap, or by a booby trapped door or tin[50]
Being zapped by a wand of lightning, either by yourself[51] or by a monster[52], while not shock resistant
References

↑ allmain.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 171

↑ attrib.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 435

↑ attrib.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 436

↑ attrib.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 324

↑ mhitu.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1406

↑ mhitu.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 2327

↑ mhitu.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 2332

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 481

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 474

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1224

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 791

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 799

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 814

↑ read.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 679

↑ uhitm.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1827

↑ attrib.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1640

↑ attrib.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 330

↑ attrib.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 342

↑ attrib.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 356

↑ timeout.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 72

↑ hack.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 891

↑ attrib.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 356

↑ hack.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1086

↑ dothrow.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 896

↑ eat.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 238

↑ fountain.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 267

↑ fountain.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 284

↑ hack.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 474

↑ mhitu.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1262

↑ mhitu.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1520

↑ mhitu.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 2290

↑ mhitu.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 2295

↑ mthrowu.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 76

↑ polyself.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 239

↑ polyself.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 564

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 136

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 461

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 493

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 688

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 890

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1234

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1299

↑ potion.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1611

↑ read.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 679

↑ read.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 790

↑ read.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 801

↑ sit.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 177

↑ trap.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 3706

↑ trap.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 3714

↑ trap.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 3856

↑ trap.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 1904

↑ trap.c in NetHack 3.4.3, line 3161