# Helmet

[&nbsp;   [&nbsp;   [&nbsp;   [&nbsp;helmet

Appearance

random

Slot

helm

AC

1

Special

(none)

Base price

10 zm

Weight

30

Material

iron

For head armor in general, see helm.
A helmet is the least interesting of the four randomized helms. It appears as a kabuto for Samurai.
Helmets hinder spellcasting when worn and are hard enough to reduce damage from falling rock traps and falling items created via a scroll of earth. In addition, since they are made of iron, they can rust or corrode.

Contents

1 Generation
2 Identification
3 Strategy
4 Encyclopedia entry

Generation
The Minetown watch are generated with helmets, and the equipment of the Yendorian army may include helmets as well. However, both equipment sets may also include dented pots, which are functionally identical but lighter.

Identification
This can easily be price-identified in a shop, as it is cheaper than the other randomized helms. Martial roles such as Barbarians, Knights, Monks, Samurai, and Valkyries begin the game with this item already identified.
Helmets are 20 weight units lighter than the other randomized helms, and thus is easily identifiable in variants where item weight is shown, such as SLASH'EM or NetHack 4.

Strategy
With no special abilities, there's little to recommend the helmet to a mid- or late-game character. If you're not interested in the powers of the magical helms, or the higher AC potential of the dwarvish iron helm or elven leather helm, consider instead the dented pot, which provides the same base AC and falling rock protection as the helmet at 1⁄3 the weight.

Encyclopedia entry

The kabuto is the helmet worn by the samurai.  It was characterized by a prominent beaked front which jutted out over the brow to protect the wearer's face; a feature that gives rise to their modern Japanese name of 'shokaku tsuki kabuto' (battering-ram helmet).  Their main constructional element was an oval plate, the shokaku bo, slightly domed for the head with a narrow prolongation in front that curved forwards and downwards where it developed a pronounced central fold.  Two horizontal strips encircling the head were riveted to this frontal strip:  the lower one, the koshimaki (hip wrap), formed the lower edge of the helmet bowl; the other, the do maki (body wrap), was set at about the level of the temples.  Filling the gaps between these strips and the shokaku bo were small plates, sometimes triangular but more commonly rectangular in shape.  Because the front projected so far from the head, the triangular gap beneath was filled by a small plate, the shoshaku tei ita, whose rear edge bent downwards into a flange that rested against the forehead.

[ Arms &amp; Armor of the Samurai, by Bottomley &amp; Hopson ] 

This page may need to be updated for the current version of NetHack.
It may contain text specific to NetHack 3.6.4. Information on this page may be out of date.
Editors: After reviewing this page and making necessary edits, please change the {{nethack-364}} tag to the current version's tag or {{noversion}} as appropriate.