# Scroll

Item classes

"&nbsp;Amulets

[&nbsp;Armor

%&nbsp;Comestibles

$&nbsp;Coins

*&nbsp;Gems

!&nbsp;Potions

=&nbsp;Rings

?&nbsp;Scrolls

+&nbsp;Spellbooks

`&nbsp;Statues

(&nbsp;Tools

`&nbsp;Boulders

)&nbsp;Weapons

/&nbsp;Wands

Wikipedia has an article about:
Scroll

A scroll, represented by ?, performs magic when you read it, and then vanishes. All scrolls have a weight of 5.

Contents

1 Table of scrolls
2 Generation
3 Writing scrolls
4 Reading scrolls
5 Identification

5.1 Scare monster
5.2 Price
5.3 Monster use
5.4 Position
5.5 Reading

5.5.1 Precautions
5.5.2 Maximizing benefits
5.5.3 Auto-identification
5.5.4 Messages

6 Messages
7 Strategy
8 Encyclopedia entry
9 See also
10 References
11 External links

Table of scrolls

Scroll
Cost
Relative probability
Ink
Appearance

mail
0
0
2
stamped

identify
20
18%
14
random

light
50
9%
8
random

blank paper2
60
2.8%
0
unlabeled

enchant weapon
60
8%
16

random

enchant armor
80
6.3%
16

random

remove curse
80
6.5%
16

random

confuse monster
100
5.3%
12

random

destroy armor
100
4.5%
10

random

fire
100
3%
8
random

food detection
100
2.5%
8

random

gold detection
100
3.3%
8

random

magic mapping
100
4.5%
8

random

scare monster
100
3.5%
20

random

teleportation1, 3
100
5.5%
20

random

amnesia
200
3.5%
8
random

create monster1
200
4.5%
10

random

earth1
200
1.8%
8
random

taming
200
1.5%
20
random

charging
300
1.5%
16
random

genocide
300
1.5%
30
random

punishment
300
1.5%
10

random

stinking cloud
300
1.5%
20

random

1 Scroll is more common than its probability would imply due to monster starting inventory.
2 Scroll is more common than its probability would imply due to paper golems' death drops.
3 Scroll is more common than its probability would imply due to inaccessable closets. 

Generation
Scrolls constitute 16% of all randomly-generated items in the main dungeon, 18% in containers, 22% on the Rogue level, and 1% in Gehennom. Scrolls appear 1/8 cursed, 3/4 uncursed, and 1/8 blessed.
On top of random generation, scrolls can be found in book shops, in bones files, and amongst the possessions of recently deceased monsters.

Writing scrolls
Main article: Magic marker
The Ink column gives the greatest number of magic marker charges required to write a scroll. The actual number of charges used will be a random amount from Ink/2 to Ink-1; if your marker has fewer than Ink/2 charges, you will be unable to attempt to write the scroll.
Wizards have a base 1/3 chance of writing an unknown scroll, and all other classes have a base 1/15 chance; your chance generally improves with higher Luck, to a maximum of about 98% for Wizards and 32% for other classes. You can only write scrolls on blank paper, which can be made by getting any scroll wet (except mail) or cancelling any scroll (except mail). Failure to write the scroll will cause the blank scroll to be used up. You can select non-blank scrolls to write on, but this will abuse your wisdom and you will be told, "That scroll is not blank!" You need hands to write a scroll.

Reading scrolls
All scrolls take one turn to read and are destroyed if successfully read, except for the scroll of blank paper which has no effect.
To read a scroll, you must either be unblind or know the appearance of the scroll. When a scroll is read, it will be used up and disappear (except blank paper). The effects depend on the blessing of the scroll. Non-cursed means either blessed or uncursed. If you are confused while reading the scroll, "you mispronounce the magic words" and may obtain a different effect (this applies to confused monsters reading scrolls, too). Some scrolls have a different message for "beginners"; a character is considered a beginner until accumulating 2000 score points (1000 for wizards). See the individual scroll articles for details on each scroll.

Identification
Scare monster
There are several ways to indirectly identify the scroll of scare monster:

You stand on the scroll and adjacent monsters turn to flee (including pets &amp; shopkeepers)
You pick up the scroll and it turns to dust
You are a Priest(ess), and a scroll changes its BUC when you pick it up
You find the scroll under the Sokoban prize or the chest with the wand of wishing at the Castle
Price
Main article: Price identification
Scrolls of identify, light, enchant weapon, enchant armor and remove curse are pretty easy to identify by price. The more expensive scrolls, with base costs of 100 zm or more, are much more difficult to distinguish.
Here are the inconvenient and dangerous scrolls of each price class. A more detailed guide to price-identifying scrolls is here.

Base cost

Scroll

Problem

100

fire

Fire damage to you, your inventory, and adjacent monsters

destroy armor

Destroying your armor

scare monster

If picked up in a shop, it may turn to dust and you must pay for it

teleportation

Teleporting into a dangerous situation, or out of a shop

200

amnesia

Forgetting object identities, map layouts, spells

create monster

Dangerous if you're not ready to fight

earth

Boulders hitting you and adjacent monsters

taming

If cursed, will anger nearby peaceful monsters, such as shopkeepers

300

genocide

Genociding your own race if confused

punishment

Being chained to an iron ball

Monster use
Monsters can be generated with scrolls of teleportation, earth, and create monster. If you observe them reading said scrolls, that identifies to scroll to you.

Position
Scrolls of earth can be identified by the guaranteed ones in the first level of Sokoban. Scrolls of teleportation are the only ones generated inside closets.  Scrolls of scare monster are placed under the Sokoban prize and the chest with the wand of wishing at the Castle.

Reading
Many veteran players will not read an unidentified scroll unless they have a pretty good guess what it could be. Nonetheless, if you are desperate and you have a large variety of price-identified, pet-tested scrolls in your inventory, you may try to identify them by reading them.

Precautions
You should not try to read-identify scrolls if the game considers your character a beginner. If your character is a beginner, then several scrolls have a possibility of giving the message "You have a strange feeling for a moment, then it passes." If your character is not a beginner, then it will be possible to distinguish all scrolls by the messages and effects obtained by reading them.
BUC-testing scrolls before reading them is important: some scrolls are much more deadly when cursed.
Some scrolls are less dangerous if read while confused. However, the scroll of genocide can kill you instantly if read while confused, so read-identification while confused is not universally helpful. Don't be blind or hallucinating.
Beware of the scroll of amnesia. There is no defense against the possibility of losing up to 25% of your discoveries.
The table below summarizes precautions for reading unidentified scrolls. Some precautions may contradict: you need other means of identification to assist in these cases.

Scroll

Less harmful if confused

Other precautions

destroy armor

Yes

Remove important helmets, gloves, cloaks and shoes; remove all other armor or wear a junk cloak over your body armor.

fire

Yes

Keep flammable items (including scrolls, spellbooks and potions) at least one square away or in a container
Don't read if a pet is next to you

enchant armor

Yes

Remove any elven armor of +6 or higher enchantment; remove any non-elven armor of +4 or higher enchantment

enchant weapon

Yes

Unwield any weapon of +6 or higher enchantment

earth

Yes

Wear a hard helmet
Don't read in Sokoban
Don't read in positions where boulders might trap you
Don't read if a pet is next to you

teleportation

No

Do not read when confused or scroll is cursed, to avoid levelporting
Read in a no-teleport level, or at least a fully mapped level.

punishment

Yes

Have a way to escape punishment

create monster

Yes

Be ready to fight or escape

genocide

No

Do NOT read while confused, that's an instadeath
Pick kraken if BUC is unknown: krakens are threatening in water and easy to kill on land

amnesia

No

No precaution can defend you from this scroll, never read it
Don't be confused: confusion worsens the already bad effects

taming

No

Don't read if cursed
If BUC is unknown, don't read near peaceful monsters

Maximizing benefits
In addition to take precautions against harmful scrolls, you might also want to maximize the benefits of helpful scrolls. Some of these may contradict the above precautions: you need other means of identification to assist in these cases. 

Scroll

Benefit maximizers

magic mapping

Read on an unmapped level

identify

Keep some unidentified items in inventory

charging

Keep some chargeable items in inventory

enchant weapon

Wield a weapon you want to enchant

enchant armor

Remove all armor except ones you want to enchant

Auto-identification
Some scrolls will always identify themselves to you when you read them. Others might only identify themselves if read under certain situations.

Auto-identification

Scroll

Always

amnesia

blank paper

charging

earth

fire

genocide

identify

magic mapping

punishment

stinking cloud

If new monsters are seen

create monster

If not cursed, and gold on level

gold detection

If not blind

light

If blessed, or you are teleported sufficiently far

teleportation

If wearing armor

destroy armor

enchant armor

If not cursed, and wielding a weapon

enchant weapon

If food on level

food detection

If monsters were tamed or angered

taming

Never

confuse monster

remove curse

scare monster

Messages
Scrolls that don't auto-identify can be identified by their messages or effects

Scroll

Messages

Effects

create monster

New monsters are generated around you

gold detection

Scroll of gold detection § Messages

If confused, or the scroll is cursed, you detect traps instead of gold
If you try to detect gold but there isn't any, the message will still be about money
If you try to detect traps but there isn't any, the message will be about your toes itching

light

If confused, generates yellow lights or black lights
This scroll auto-identifies if you can see, and is useless if blind

teleportation

Pay attention to your position before and after

destroy armor

Your bones itch.
Confused, not wearing armor
Your skin itches.
Not confused, not wearing armor

enchant armor

Your skin glows then fades.
Not wearing armor
Your skin feels warm for a moment
Blind, not wearing armor

enchant weapon

Your 

<hands> twitch
Non-cursed, no weapon
Your <hands> itch
Non-cursed, weapon

detect food

Won't auto-identify if there's no food to detect

taming

Nothing interesting happens.
No monsters in range
Nothing interesting seems to happen.
Monsters in range were not tamed or angered

confuse monster

Scroll of confuse monster § Messages

When hitting a monster in melee, you will confuse it.
You may confuse yourself
You may unconfuse yourself, if the scroll was blessed

remove curse

You feel like someone is helping you.
Normal use
You feel like you need some help.
Confused

You will be unpunished
Some cursed items may become uncursed
If confused, BUC identification may be removed on some items
If confused, BUC of uncursed items will change

scare monster

Scroll of scare monster § Messages

If not cursed, some monsters may become scared and flee
If cursed, some monsters may become awake, unscared, and unparalyzed.

Messages
When you read a scroll, you receive the following messages:

As you read the scroll, it disappears.
You are not blind and read a scroll. Effects of the scroll happen.
As you pronounce the formula on it, the scroll disappears.
You are blind, have a mouth and know either the magic words or the identity of the scroll. Effects of the scroll happen.
As you cogitate the formula on it, the scroll disappears.
You are blind, have no mouth and know either the magic words or the identity of a scroll. Effects of the scroll happen.
Being blind, you cannot read the formula on the scroll.
You are blind but have neither seen the magic words nor identified the scroll. No effects happen and the scroll is not destroyed.
Strategy
Scrolls, along with potions and comestibles, are one of the main types of consumable items in the game. The fact that they can only be used once tends to encourage hoarding; if you notice yourself frequently dying with large numbers of unused scrolls, consider using them next time!
For scroll-specific strategy tips, see the individual articles.

Encyclopedia entry

And I was gazing on the surges prone,
With many a scalding tear and many a groan,
When at my feet emerg'd an old man's hand,
Grasping this scroll, and this same slender wand.
I knelt with pain--reached out my hand--had grasp'd
Those treasures--touch'd the knuckles--they unclasp'd--
I caught a finger: but the downward weight
O'erpowered me--it sank. Then 'gan abate
The storm, and through chill aguish gloom outburst
The comfortable sun. I was athirst
To search the book, and in the warming air
Parted its dripping leaves with eager care.
Strange matters did it treat of, and drew on
My soul page after page, till well-nigh won
Into forgetfulness; when, stupefied,
I read these words, and read again, and tried
My eyes against the heavens, and read again.

[ Endymion, by John Keats ] 

See also
Scroll origins
Scroll of flood - scroll added in UnNetHack
References
scrl-343.txt
External links
Scrolls and their effects in NetHack 3.4

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