xref: /dports/games/nethack33/nethack-3.3.1/dat/data.base

#	SCCS Id: @(#)data.base	3.3	1999/11/28
#	Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 by the NetHack Development Team
#	Copyright (c) 1994 by Boudewijn Wayers
#	NetHack may be freely redistributed.  See license for details.
#
# This is the source file for the "data" file generated by `makedefs -d'.
# A line starting with a # is a comment and is ignored by makedefs.
# Any other line not starting with whitespace is a creature or an item.
#
# Each entry should be comprised of:
# the thing/person being described on a line by itself, in lowercase;
# on each succeeding line a <TAB> description.
#
# If the first character of a key field is "~", then anything which matches
# the rest of that key will be treated as if it did not match any of the
# following keys for that entry.  For instance, `~orc ??m*' preceding `orc*'
# prevents "orc mummy" and "orc zombie" from matching.
#
abbot
	For it had been long apparent to Count Landulf that nothing
	could be done with his seventh son Thomas, except to make him
	an Abbot or something of that kind.  Born in 1226, he had from
	childhood a mysterious objection to becoming a predatory eagle,
	or even to taking an ordinary interest in falconry or tilting
	or any other gentlemanly pursuits.  He was a large and heavy and
	quiet boy, and phenomenally silent, scarcely opening his mouth
	except to say suddenly to his schoolmaster in an explosive
	manner, "What is God?"  The answer is not recorded but it is
	probable that the asker went on worrying out answers for himself.
		[ The Runaway Abbot, by G. K. Chesterton ]
aclys
aklys
	A short studded or spiked club attached to a cord allowing
	it to be drawn back to the wielder after having been thrown.
	It should not be confused with the atlatl, which is a device
	used to throw spears for longer distances.
aleax
	Said to be a doppelganger sent to inflict divine punishment
	for alignment violations.
*altar
	Altars are of three types:
	1.  In Temples.  These are for Sacrifices [...].  The stone
	top will have grooves for blood, and the whole will be covered
	with _dry brown stains of a troubling kind_ from former
	Sacrifices.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]

	To every man upon this earth
	Death cometh soon or late;
	And how can man die better
	Than facing fearful odds
	For the ashes of his fathers
	And the temples of his gods?
		[ Lays of Ancient Rome, by Thomas B. Macaulay ]
amaterasu omikami
	The Shinto sun goddess, Amaterasu Omikami is the central
	figure of Shintoism and the ancestral deity of the imperial
	house.  One of the daughters of the primordial god Izanagi
	and said to be his favourite offspring, she was born from
	his left eye.
		[ Encyclopedia of Gods, by Michael Jordan ]
amber*
	"Tree sap," Wu explained, "often flows over insects and traps
	them.  The insects are then perfectly preserved within the
	fossil.  One finds all kinds of insects in amber - including
	biting insects that have sucked blood from larger animals."
		[ Jurassic Park, by Michael Crichton ]
*amnesia
maud
	Get thee hence, nor come again,
	Mix not memory with doubt,
	Pass, thou deathlike type of pain,
	Pass and cease to move about!
	'Tis the blot upon the brain
	That will show itself without.
		...
	For, Maud, so tender and true,
	As long as my life endures
	I feel I shall owe you a debt,
	That I never can hope to pay;
	And if ever I should forget
	That I owe this debt to you
	And for your sweet sake to yours;
	O then, what then shall I say? -
	If ever I should forget,
	May God make me more wretched
	Than ever I have been yet!
		[ Maud, And Other Poems by Alfred, Lord Tennyson ]
~amulet of yendor
*amulet
amulet of *
	"The complete Amulet can keep off all the things that make
	people unhappy -- jealousy, bad temper, pride, disagreeableness,
	greediness, selfishness, laziness.  Evil spirits, people called
	them when the Amulet was made.  Don't you think it would be nice
	to have it?"
	"Very," said the children, quite without enthusiasm.
	"And it can give you strength and courage."
	"That's better," said Cyril.
	"And virtue."
	"I suppose it's nice to have that," said Jane, but not with much
	interest.
	"And it can give you your heart's desire."
	"Now you're talking," said Robert.
		[ The Story of the Amulet, by Edith Nesbit ]
amulet of yendor
	This mysterious talisman is the object of your quest.  It is
	said to possess powers which mere mortals can scarcely
	comprehend, let alone utilize.  The gods will grant the gift of
	immortality to the adventurer who can deliver it from the
	depths of Moloch's Sanctum and offer it on the appropriate high
	altar on the Astral Plane.
angel*
	He answered and said unto them, he that soweth the good seed
	is the Son of man; the field is the world, and the good seed
	are the children of the kingdom; but the weeds are the
	children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the
	devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers
	are the angels.  As therefore the weeds are gathered and
	burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.
	[...]  So shall it be at the end of the world; the angels
	shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,
	and shall cast them into the furnace of fire; there shall be
	wailing and gnashing of teeth.
		[ The Gospel According to Matthew, 13:37-42, 49-50 ]
anhur
	An Egyptian god of war and a great hunter, few gods can match
	his fury.  Unlike many gods of war, he is a force for good.
	The wrath of Anhur is slow to come, but it is inescapable
	once earned.  Anhur is a mighty figure with four arms.  He
	is often seen with a powerful lance that requires both of
	his right arms to wield and which is tipped with a fragment
	of the sun.  He is married to Mehut, a lion-headed goddess.
ankh-morpork
	The twin city of Ankh-Morpork, foremost of all the cities
	bounding the Circle Sea, was as a matter of course the home
	of a large number of gangs, thieves' guilds, syndicates and
	similar organisations.  This was one of the reasons for its
	wealth.  Most of the humbler folk on the widdershin side of
	the river, in Morpork's mazy alleys, supplemented their
	meagre incomes by filling some small role for one or other
	of the competing gangs.
	    [ The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett ]
anshar
	A primordial Babylonian-Akkadian deity, Anshar is mentioned
	in the Babylonian creation epic _Enuma Elish_ as one of a
	pair of offspring (with Kishar) of Lahmu and Lahamu.  Anshar
	is linked with heaven while Kishar is identified with earth.
	    [ Encyclopedia of Gods, by Michael Jordan ]
ant
* ant
	This giant variety of the ordinary ant will fight just as
	fiercely as its small, distant cousin.  Various varieties
	exist, and they are known and feared for their relentless
	persecution of their victims.
anu
	Anu was the Babylonian god of the heavens, the monarch of
	the north star.  He was the oldest of the Babylonian gods,
	the father of all gods, and the ruler of heaven and destiny.
	Anu features strongly in the _atiku_ festival in
	Babylon, Uruk and other cities.
~* cape
*ape
	The most highly evolved of all the primates, as shown by
	all their anatomical characters and particularly the
	development of the brain.  Both arboreal and terrestrial,
	the apes have the forelimbs much better developed than
	the hind limbs.  Tail entirely absent.  Growth is slow
	and sexual maturity reached at quite an advanced age.
	[ A Field Guide to the Larger Mammals of Africa by Dorst ]

	Aldo the gorilla had a plan.  It was a good plan.  It was
	right.  He knew it.  He smacked his lips in anticipation as
	he thought of it.  Yes.  Apes should be strong.  Apes should
	be masters.  Apes should be proud.  Apes should make the
	Earth shake when they walked.  Apes should _rule_ the Earth.
		[ Battle for the Planet of the Apes,
			by David Gerrold ]
apple
	NEWTONIAN, adj.  Pertaining to a philosophy of the universe
	invented by Newton, who discovered that an apple will fall
	to the ground, but was unable to say why.  His successors
	and disciples have advanced so far as to be able to say
	when.
		[ The Devil's Dictionary, by Ambrose Bierce ]
archon
	Archons are the predominant inhabitants of the heavens.
	However unusual their appearance, they are not generally
	evil.  They are beings at peace with themselves and their
	surroundings.
arioch
	Arioch, the patron demon of Elric's ancestors; one of the most
	powerful of all the Dukes of Hell, who was called Knight of
	the Swords, Lord of the Seven Darks, Lord of the Higher Hell
	and many more names besides.
		[ Elric of Melnibone, by Michael Moorcock ]
*arrow
	I shot an arrow into the air,
	It fell to earth, I knew not where;
	For, so swiftly it flew, the sight
	Could not follow it in its flight.

	I breathed a song into the air,
	It fell to earth, I knew not where;
	For who has sight so keen and strong
	That it can follow the flight of song?

	Long, long afterward, in an oak
	I found the arrow still unbroke;
	And the song, from beginning to end,
	I found again in the heart of a friend.
		[ The Arrow and the Song,
		  by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ]
ashikaga takauji
	Ashikaga Takauji was a daimyo of the Minamoto clan who
	joined forces with the Go-Daigo to defeat the Hojo armies.
	Later when Go-Daigo attempted to reduce the powers of the
	samurai clans he rebelled against him.  He defeated Go-
	Daigo and established the emperor Komyo on the throne.
	Go-Daigo eventually escaped and established another
	government in the town of Yoshino.  This period of dual
	governments was known as the Nambokucho.
	[ Samurai - The Story of a Warrior Tradition, by Cook ]
asmodeus
	It is said that Asmodeus is the overlord over all of hell.
	His appearance, unlike many other demons and devils, is
	human apart from his horns and tail.  He can freeze flesh
	with a touch.
athame
	The consecrated ritual knife of a Wiccan initiate (one of
	four basic tools, together with the wand, chalice and
	pentacle).  Traditionally, the athame is a double-edged,
	black-handled, cross-hilted dagger of between six and
	eighteen inches length.
athen*
	Athene was the offspring of Zeus, and without a mother.  She
	sprang forth from his head completely armed.  Her favourite
	bird was the owl, and the plant sacred to her is the olive.
	    [ Bulfinch's Mythology by Thomas Bulfinch ]
axolotl
	A mundane salamander, harmless.
bag
bag of *
sack
	"Now, this third handkerchief," Mein Herr proceeded, "has also
	four edges, which you can trace continuously round and round:
	all you need do is to join its four edges to the four edges of
	the opening.  The Purse is then complete, and its outer
	surface--"
	"I see!" Lady Muriel eagerly interrupted.  "Its outer surface
	will be continuous with its inner surface!  But it will take
	time. I'll sew it up after tea."  She laid aside the bag, and
	resumed her cup of tea.  "But why do you call it Fortunatus's
	Purse, Mein Herr?"
	The dear old man beamed upon her, with a jolly smile, looking
	more exactly like the Professor than ever.  "Don't you see,
	my child--I should say Miladi?  Whatever is inside that Purse,
	is outside it; and whatever is outside it, is inside it.  So
	you have all the wealth of the world in that leetle Purse!"
		[ Sylvie and Bruno Concluded, by Lewis Carroll ]
b*lzebub
	The "lord of the flies" is a translation of the Hebrew
	Ba'alzevuv (Beelzebub in Greek).  It has been suggested that
	it was a mistranslation of a mistransliterated word which
	gave us this pungent and suggestive name of the Devil, a
	devil whose name suggests that he is devoted to decay,
	destruction, demoralization, hysteria and panic...
		[ Notes on _Lord of the Flies_, by E. L. Epstein ]
balrog
	...  It came to the edge of the fire and the light faded as
	if a cloud had bent over it.  Then with a rush it leaped
	the fissure.  The flames roared up to greet it, and wreathed
	about it; and a black smoke swirled in the air.  Its streaming
	mane kindled, and blazed behind it.  In its right hand
	was a blade like a stabbing tongue of fire; in its left it
	held a whip of many thongs.
	'Ai, ai!' wailed Legolas.  'A Balrog!  A Balrog is come!'
		   [ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
baluchitherium
titanothere
	Extinct rhinos include a variety of forms, the most
	spectacular being _Baluchitherium_ from the Oligocene of
	Asia, which is the largest known land mammal.  Its body, 18
	feet high at the shoulder and carried on massive limbs,
	allowed the 4-foot-long head to browse on the higher branches
	of trees.  Though not as enormous, the titanotheres of the
	early Tertiary were also large perissodactyls, _Brontotherium_
	of the Oligocene being 8 feet high at the shoulder.
		[ Prehistoric Animals, by Barry Cox ]
banana
	He took another step and she cocked her right wrist in
	viciously.  She heard the spring click.  Weight slapped into
	her hand.
	"Here!" she shrieked hysterically, and brought her arm up in
	a hard sweep, meaning to gut him, leaving him to blunder
	around the room with his intestines hanging out in steaming
	loops.  Instead he roared laughter, hands on his hips,
	flaming face cocked back, squeezing and contorting with great
	good humor.
	"Oh, my dear!" he cried, and went off into another gale of
	laughter.
	She looked stupidly down at her hand.  It held a firm yellow
	banana with a blue and white Chiquita sticker on it.  She
	dropped it, horrified, to the carpet, where it became a
	sickly yellow grin, miming Flagg's own.
	"You'll tell," he whispered.  "Oh yes indeed you will."
	And Dayna knew he was right.
		[ The Stand, by Stephen King ]
barbarian
human barbarian
	They dressed alike -- in buckskin boots, leathern breeks and
	deerskin shirts, with broad girdles that held axes and short
	swords; and they were all gaunt and scarred and hard-eyed;
	sinewy and taciturn.
	They were wild men, of a sort, yet there was still a wide
	gulf between them and the Cimmerian.  They were sons of
	civilization, reverted to a semi-barbarism.  He was a
	barbarian of a thousand generations of barbarians.  They had
	acquired stealth and craft, but he had been born to these
	things.  He excelled them even in lithe economy of motion.
	They were wolves, but he was a tiger.
		[ Conan - The Warrior, by Robert E. Howard ]
barbed devil
	Barbed devils lack any real special abilities, though they
	are quite difficult to kill.
*bat
	A bat, flitting in the darkness outside, took the wrong turn
	as it made its nightly rounds and came in through the window
	which had been left healthfully open.  It then proceeded to
	circle the room in the aimless fat-headed fashion habitual
	with bats, who are notoriously among the less intellectually
	gifted of God's creatures.  Show me a bat, says the old
	proverb, and I will show you something that ought to be in
	some kind of a home.
		[ A Pelican at Blandings, by P. G. Wodehouse ]
*bee
	This giant variety of its useful normal cousin normally
	appears in small groups, looking for raw material to produce
	the royal jelly needed to feed their queen.  On rare
	occasions, one may stumble upon a bee-hive, in which the
	queen bee is being well provided for, and guarded against
	intruders.
*beetle
	[ The Creator ] has an inordinate fondness for beetles.
		[ attributed to biologist J.B.S. Haldane ]

	The common name for the insects with wings shaped like
	shields (_Coleoptera_), one of the ten sub-species into
	which the insects are divided.  They are characterized by
	the shields (the front pair of wings) under which the back
	wings are folded.
		[ Van Dale's Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal ]
bell of opening
	"A bell, book and candle job."
	The Bursar sighed.  "We tried that, Archchancellor."
	The Archchancellor leaned towards him.
	"Eh?" he said.
	"I _said_, we tried that Archchancellor," said the Bursar loudly,
	directing his voice at the old man's ear.  "After dinner, you
	remember?  We used Humptemper's _Names of the Ants_ and rang Old
	Tom."*
	"Did we, indeed.  Worked, did it?"
	"_No_, Archchancellor."

	* Old Tom was the single cracked bronze bell in the University
	bell tower.
		[ Eric, by Terry Pratchett ]
blindfold
	The blindfolding was performed by binding a piece of the
	yellowish linen whereof those of the Amahagger who condescended
	to wear anything in particular made their dresses tightly round
	the eyes.  This linen I afterwards discovered was taken from the
	tombs, and was not, as I had first supposed, of native
	manufacture.  The bandage was then knotted at the back of the
	head, and finally brought down again and the ends bound under
	the chin to prevent its slipping.  Ustane was, by the way, also
	blindfolded, I do not know why, unless it was from fear that she
	should impart the secrets of the route to us.
		[ She, by H. Rider Haggard ]
blind io
	On this particular day Blind Io, by dint of constant vigilance
	the chief of the gods, sat with his chin on his hand
	and looked at the gaming board on the red marble table in
	front of him.  Blind Io had got his name because, where his
	eye sockets should have been, there were nothing but two
	areas of blank skin.  His eyes, of which he had an impressively
	large number, led a semi-independent life of their
	own.  Several were currently hovering above the table.
	    [ The Colour of Magic, by Terry Pratchett ]
* blob
gelatinous cube
ooze
* ooze
*pudding
* slime
	These giant amoeboid creatures look like nothing more than
	puddles of slime, but they both live and move, feeding on
	metal or wood as well as the occasional dungeon explorer to
	supplement their diet.

	But we were not on a station platform.  We were on the track ahead
	as the nightmare, plastic column of fetid black iridescence oozed
	tightly onward through its fifteen-foot sinus, gathering unholy
	speed and driving before it a spiral, re-thickening cloud of the
	pallid abyss vapor.  It was a terrible, indescribable thing vaster
	than any subway train -- a shapeless congeries of protoplasmic
	bubbles, faintly self-luminous, and with myriads of temporary eyes
	forming and unforming as pustules of greenish light all over the
	tunnel-filling front that bore down upon us, crushing the frantic
	penguins and slithering over the glistening floor that it and its
	kind had swept so evilly free of all litter.
		[ At the Mountains of Madness, by H.P. Lovecraft ]
bone devil
	Bone devils attack with weapons and with a great hooked tail
	which causes a loss of strength to those they sting.
book of the dead
candelabrum*
*candle
	Faustus: Come on Mephistopheles.  What shall we do?
	Mephistopheles: Nay, I know not.  We shall be cursed with bell,
	book, and candle.
	Faustus: How?  Bell, book, and candle, candle, book, and bell,
	Forward and backward, to curse Faustus to hell.
	Anon you shall hear a hog grunt, a calf bleat, and an ass bray,
	Because it is Saint Peter's holy day.
	(Enter all the Friars to sing the dirge)
		[ Doctor Faustus and Other Plays, by Christopher Marlowe ]
*boot*
	In Fantasyland these are remarkable in that they seldom or
	never wear out and are suitable for riding or walking in
	without the need of Socks.  Boots never pinch, rub, or get
	stones in them; nor do nails stick upwards into the feet from
	the soles.  They are customarily mid-calf length or knee-high,
	slip on and off easily and never smell of feet.  Unfortunately,
	the formula for making this splendid footwear is a closely
	guarded secret, possibly derived from nonhumans (see Dwarfs,
	Elves, and Gnomes).
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
boulder
	I worked the lever well under, and stretched my back; the end
	of the stone rose up, and I kicked the fulcrum under.  Then,
	when I was going to bear down, I remembered there was
	something to get out from below; when I let go of the lever,
	the stone would fall again.  I sat down to think, on the root
	of the oak tree; and, seeing it stand about the ground, I saw
	my way.  It was lucky I had brought a longer lever.  It would
	just reach to wedge under the oak root.
	Bearing it down so far would have been easy for a heavy man,
	but was a hard fight for me.  But this time I meant to do it
	if it killed me, because I knew it could be done.  Twice I
	got it nearly there, and twice the weight bore it up again;
	but when I flung myself on it the third time, I heard in my
	ears the sea-sound of Poseidon.  Then I knew this time I
	would do it; and so I did.
		[ The King Must Die, by Mary Renault ]
~*longbow of diana
bow
* bow
	"Stand to it, my hearts of gold," said the old bowman as he
	passed from knot to knot.  "By my hilt! we are in luck this
	journey.  Bear in mind the old saying of the Company."
	"What is that, Aylward?" cried several, leaning on their bows
	and laughing at him.
	"'Tis the master-bowyer's rede: 'Every bow well bent.  Every
	shaft well sent.  Every stave well nocked.  Every string well
	locked.'  There, with that jingle in his head, a bracer on
	his left hand, a shooting glove on his right, and a
	farthing's-worth of wax in his girdle, what more doth a
	bowman need?"
	"It would not be amiss," said Hordle John, "if under his
	girdle he had four farthings'-worth of wine."
		[ The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle ]
brigit
	Brigit (Brigid, Bride, Banfile), which means the Exalted One,
	was the Celtic (continental European and Irish) fertility
	goddess.  She was originally celebrated on February first in
	the festival of Imbolc, which coincided with the beginning
	of lactation in ewes and was regarded in Scotland as the date
	on which Brigit deposed the blue-faced hag of winter.  The
	Christian calendar adopted the same date for the Feast of St.
	Brigit.  There is no record that a Christian saint ever
	actually existed, but in Irish mythology she became the
	midwife to the Virgin Mary.
		[ Encyclopedia of Gods, by Michael Jordan ]
~stormbringer
*broadsword
	Bring me my broadsword
	And clear understanding.
	Bring me my cross of gold,
	As a talisman.
		[ "Broadsword" (refrain) by Ian Anderson ]
bugbear
	Bugbears are relatives of goblins, although they tend to be
	larger and more hairy.  They are aggressive carnivores and
	sometimes kill just for the treasure their victims may be
	carrying.
bugle
	'I read you by your bugle horn
	And by your palfrey good,
	I read you for a Ranger sworn
	To keep the King's green-wood.'
	'A Ranger, Lady, winds his horn,
	And 'tis at peep of light;
	His blast is heard at merry morn,
	And mine at dead of night.'
		[ Brignall Banks, by Sir Walter Scott ]
*camaxtli
	A classical Mesoamerican Aztec god, also known as Mixcoatl-
	Camaxtli (the Cloud Serpent), Camaxtli is the god of war.  He
	is also a deity of hunting and fire who received human
	sacrifice of captured prisoners.  According to tradition, the
	sun god Tezcatlipoca transformed himself into Mixcoatl-Camaxtli
	to make fire by twirling the sacred fire sticks.
		[ Encyclopedia of Gods, by Michael Jordan ]
candy bar
	Only once a year, on his birthday, did Charlie Bucket ever
	get to taste a bit of chocolate.  The whole family saved up
	their money for that special occasion, and when the great
	day arrived, Charlie was always presented with one small
	chocolate bar to eat all by himself.  And each time he
	received it, on those marvelous birthday mornings, he would
	place it carefully in a small wooden box that he owned, and
	treasure it as though it were a bar of solid gold; and for
	the next few days, he would allow himself only to look at it,
	but never to touch it.  Then at last, when he could stand it
	no longer, he would peel back a tiny bit of the paper
	wrapping at one corner to expose a tiny bit of chocolate, and
	then he would take a tiny nibble - just enough to allow the
	lovely sweet taste to spread out slowly over his tongue.  The
	next day, he would take another tiny nibble, and so on, and
	so on.  And in this way, Charlie would make his ten-cent bar
	of birthday chocolate last him for more than a month.
		[ Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl ]
s*d*g*r* cat
	Imagine a sealed container, so perfectly constructed that no
	physical influence can pass either inwards or outwards across its
	walls.  Imagine that inside the container is a cat, and also a
	device that can be triggered by some quantum event.  If that event
	takes place, then the device smashes a phial containing cyanide and
	the cat is killed.  If the event does not take place, the cat lives
	on.  In Schroedinger's original version, the quantum event was the
	decay of a radioactive atom.  ...  To the outside observer, the cat
	is indeed in a linear combination of being alive and dead, and only
	when the container is finally opened would the cat's state vector
	collapse into one or the other.  On the other hand, to a (suitably
	protected) observer inside the container, the cat's state-vector
	would have collapsed much earlier, and the outside observer's
	linear combination has no relevance.
		[ The Emperor's New Mind, by Roger Penrose ]
*cat
kitten
	Well-known quadruped domestic animal from the family of
	predatory felines (_Felis ochreata domestica_), with a thick,
	soft pelt; often kept as a pet.  Various folklores have the
	cat associated with magic and the gods of ancient Egypt.

	So Ulthar went to sleep in vain anger; and when the people
	awakened at dawn - behold!  Every cat was back at his
	accustomed hearth!  Large and small, black, grey, striped,
	yellow and white, none was missing.  Very sleek and fat did
	the cats appear, and sonorous with purring content.
		[ The Cats of Ulthar, by H.P. Lovecraft ]
*centaur
	Of all the monsters put together by the Greek imagination
	the Centaurs (Kentauroi) constituted a class in themselves.
	Despite a strong streak of sensuality, in their make-up,
	their normal behaviour was moral, and they took a kindly
	thought of man's welfare.  The attempted outrage of Nessos on
	Deianeira, and that of the whole tribe of Centaurs on the
	Lapith women, are more than offset by the hospitality of
	Pholos and by the wisdom of Cheiron, physician, prophet,
	lyrist, and the instructor of Achilles.  Further, the
	Centaurs were peculiar in that their nature, which united the
	body of a horse with the trunk and head of a man, involved
	an unthinkable duplication of vital organs and important
	members.  So grotesque a combination seems almost un-Greek.
	These strange creatures were said to live in the caves and
	clefts of the mountains, myths associating them especially
	with the hills of Thessaly and the range of Erymanthos.
		     [ Mythology of all races, Vol. 1, pp. 270-271 ]
centipede
	I observed here, what I had often seen before, that certain
	districts abound in centipedes.  Here they have light
	reddish bodies and blue legs; great myriapedes are seen
	crawling every where.  Although they do no harm, they excite
	in man a feeling of loathing.  Perhaps our appearance
	produces a similar feeling in the elephant and other large
	animals.  Where they have been much disturbed, they
	certainly look upon us with great distrust, as the horrid
	biped that ruins their peace.
		[ Travels and Researches in South Africa,
			by Dr. David Livingstone ]
cerberus
kerberos
	Cerberus, (or Kerberos in Greek), was the three-headed dog
	that guarded the Gates of Hell.  He allowed any dead to enter,
	and likewise prevented them all from ever leaving.  He was
	bested only twice:  once when Orpheus put him to sleep by
	playing bewitching music on his lyre, and the other time when
	Hercules confronted him and took him to the world of the
	living (as his twelfth and last labor).
chameleon
	Name of a family (_Chameleonidae_) and race (_Chameleo_) of
	scaly lizards, especially the _Chameleo vulgaris_ species,
	with a short neck, claws, a grasping tail, a long, extendible
	tongue and mutually independent moving eyes.  When it is
	scared or angry, it inflates itself and its transparent skin
	shows its blood:  the skin first appears greenish, then
	gradually changes color until it is a spotted red.  The final
	color depends on the background color as well, hence the
	(figurative) implication of unreliability.  [Capitalized:]
	a constellation of the southern hemisphere (Chameleo).
	    [ Van Dale's Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal ]
charo*n
	When an ancient Greek died, his soul went to the nether world:
	the Hades.  To reach the nether world, the souls had to cross
	the river Styx, the river that separated the living from the
	dead.  The Styx could be crossed by ferry, whose shabby ferry-
	man, advanced in age, was called Charon.  The deceased's next-
	of-kin would place a coin under his tongue, to pay the ferry-
	man.
chest
large box
	Dantes rapidly cleared away the earth around the chest.  Soon
	the center lock appeared, then the handles at each end, all
	delicately wrought in the manner of that period when art made
	precious even the basest of metals.  He took the chest by the
	two handles and tried to lift it, but it was impossible.  He
	tried to open it; it was locked.  He inserted the sharp end
	of his pickaxe between the chest and the lid and pushed down
	on the handle.  The lid creaked, then flew open.
	Dantes was seized with a sort of giddy fever.  He cocked his
	gun and placed it beside him.  The he closed his eyes like a
	child, opened them and stood dumbfounded.
	The chest was divided into three compartments.  In the first
	were shining gold coins.  In the second, unpolished gold
	ingots packed in orderly stacks.  From the third compartment,
	which was half full, Dantes picked up handfuls of diamonds,
	pearls and rubies.  As they fell through his fingers in a
	glittering cascade, they gave forth the sound of hail beating
	against the windowpanes.
		[ The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas ]
chih*sung*tzu
	A Chinese rain god.
chromatic dragon
tiamat
	Tiamat is said to be the mother of evil dragonkind.  She is
	extremely vain.
~elven cloak
~oilskin cloak
*cloak*
	Cloaks are the universal outer garb of everyone who is not a
	Barbarian.  It is hard to see why.  They are open in front
	and require you at most times to use one hand to hold them
	shut.  On horseback they leave the shirt-sleeved arms and
	most of the torso exposed to wind and Weather.  The OMTs
	[ Official Management Terms ] for Cloaks well express their
	difficulties.  They are constantly _swirling and dripping_
	and becoming _heavy with water_ in rainy Weather, _entangling
	with trees_ or _swords_, or needing to be _pulled close
	around her/his shivering body_.  This seems to suggest they
	are less than practical for anyone on an arduous Tour.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
cloud*
	I wandered lonely as a cloud
	That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
	When all at once I saw a crowd,
	A host, of golden daffodils;
	Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
	Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
		[ I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud, by William Wordsworth ]
cobra
	Darzee and his wife only cowered down in the nest without
	answering, for from the thick grass at the foot of the bush
	there came a low hiss -- a horrid cold sound that made
	Rikki-tikki jump back two clear feet.  Then inch by inch out of
	the grass rose up the head and spread hood of Nag, the big
	black cobra, and he was five feet long from tongue to tail.
	When he had lifted one-third of himself clear of the ground,
	he stayed balancing to and fro exactly as a dandelion-tuft
	balances in the wind, and he looked at Rikki-tikki with the
	wicked snake's eyes that never change their expression,
	whatever the snake may be thinking of.
	'Who is Nag?' said he.  '_I_ am Nag.  The great God Brahm put
	his mark upon all our people, when the first cobra spread his
	hood to keep the sun off Brahm as he slept.  Look, and be
	afraid!'
		[ Rikki-tikki-tavi, by Rudyard Kipling ]
c*ckatrice
	Once in a great while, when the positions of the stars are
	just right, a seven-year-old rooster will lay an egg.  Then,
	along will come a snake, to coil around the egg, or a toad,
	to squat upon the egg, keeping it warm and helping it to
	hatch.  When it hatches, out comes a creature called basilisk,
	or cockatrice, the most deadly of all creatures.  A single
	glance from its yellow, piercing toad's eyes will kill both
	man and beast.  Its power of destruction is said to be so
	great that sometimes simply to hear its hiss can prove fatal.
	Its breath is so venomous that it causes all vegetation
	to wither.

	There is, however, one creature which can withstand the
	basilisk's deadly gaze, and this is the weasel.  No one knows
	why this is so, but although the fierce weasel can slay the
	basilisk, it will itself be killed in the struggle.  Perhaps
	the weasel knows the basilisk's fatal weakness:  if it ever
	sees its own reflection in a mirror it will perish instantly.
	But even a dead basilisk is dangerous, for it is said that
	merely touching its lifeless body can cause a person to
	sicken and die.
	[ Mythical Beasts by Deirdre Headon (The Leprechaun Library)
	  and other sources ]
cornuthaum
	He was dressed in a flowing gown with fur tippets which had
	the signs of the zodiac embroidered over it, with various
	cabalistic signs, such as triangles with eyes in them, queer
	crosses, leaves of trees, bones of birds and animals, and a
	planetarium whose stars shone like bits of looking-glass with
	the sun on them.  He had a pointed hat like a dunce's cap, or
	like the headgear worn by ladies of that time, except that
	the ladies were accustomed to have a bit of veil floating
	from the top of it.
			[ The Once and Future King, by T.H. White ]

		"A wizard!" Dooley exclaimed, astounded.
		"At your service, sirs," said the wizard.  "How
	perceptive of you to notice.  I suppose my hat rather gives me
	away.  Something of a beacon, I don't doubt."  His hat was
	pretty much that, tall and cone-shaped with stars and crescent
	moons all over it.  All in all, it couldn't have been more
	wizardish.
			[ The Elfin Ship, James P. Blaylock ]
couatl
	A mythical feathered serpent.  The couatl are very rare.
coyote
	This carnivore is known for its voracious appetite and
	inflated view of its own intelligence.
cram*
	If you want to know what cram is, I can only say that I don't
	know the recipe; but it is biscuitish, keeps good indefinitely,
	is supposed to be sustaining, and is certainly not entertaining,
	being in fact very uninteresting except as a chewing
	exercise.  It was made by the Lake-men for long journeys.
		[ The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
*crocodile
	A big animal with the appearance of a lizard, constituting
	an order of the reptiles (_Loricata_ or _Crocodylia_), the
	crocodile is a large, dangerous predator native to tropical
	and subtropical climes.  It spends most of its time in large
	bodies of water.
croesus
kroisos
creosote
	Croesus (in Greek: Kroisos), the wealthy last king of Lydia;
	his empire was destroyed when he attacked Cyrus in 549, after
	the Oracle of Delphi (q.v.) had told him:  "if you attack the
	Persians, you will destroy a mighty empire".  Herodotus
	relates of his legendary conversation with Solon of Athens,
	who impressed upon him that being rich does not imply being
	happy and that no one should be considered fortunate before
	his death.
crom
	Warily Conan scanned his surroundings, all of his senses alert
	for signs of possible danger.  Off in the distance, he could
	see the familiar shapes of the Camp of the Duali tribe.
	Suddenly, the hairs on his neck stand on end as he detects the
	aura of evil magic in the air.  Without thought, he readies
	his weapon, and mutters under his breath:
	"By Crom, there will be blood spilt today."

	[ Conan the Avenger by Robert E. Howard, Bjorn Nyberg, and
	  L. Sprague de Camp ]
crossbow*
	"God save thee, ancient Mariner!
	From the fiends, that plague thee thus! -
	Why look'st thou so?" - With my cross-bow
	I shot the Albatross.
		[ The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, by Samuel Taylor
		  Coleridge ]
crystal ball
	You look into one of these and see _vapours swirling like
	clouds_.  These shortly clear away to show a sort of video
	without sound of something that is going to happen to you
	soon.  It is seldom good news.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
curse*
	Curses are longstanding ill-wishings which, in Fantasyland,
	often manifest as semisentient.  They have to be broken or
	dispelled.  The method varies according to the type and
	origin of the Curse:
	[...]
	4.  Curses on Rings and Swords.  You have problems.  Rings
	have to be returned whence they came, preferably at over a
	thousand degrees Fahrenheit, and the Curse means you won't
	want to do this.  Swords usually resist all attempts to
	raise their Curses.  Your best source is to hide the Sword
	or give it to someone you dislike.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
cwn*n
	A pack of snow-white, red-eared spectral hounds which
	sometimes took part in the kidnappings and raids the
	inhabitants of the underworld sometimes make on this world
	(the Wild Hunt).  They are associated in Wales with the sounds
	of migrating wild geese, and are said to be leading the souls
	of the damned to hell.  The phantom chase is usually heard or
	seen in midwinter and is accompanied by a howling wind.
		[ Encyclopedia Mythica, ed. M.F. Lindemans ]
cyclops
	And after he had milked his cattle swiftly,
	he again took hold of two of my men
	and had them as his supper.
	Then I went, with a tub of red wine,
	to stand before the Cyclops, saying:
	"A drop of wine after all this human meat,
	so you can taste the delicious wine
	that is stored in our ship, Cyclops."
	He took the tub and emptied it.
	He appreciated the priceless wine that much
	that he promptly asked me for a second tub.
	"Give it", he said, "and give me your name as well".
			...
	Thrice I filled the tub,
	and after the wine had clouded his mind,
	I said to him, in a tone as sweet as honey:
	"You have asked my name, Cyclops?  Well,
	my name is very well known.  I'll give it to you,
	if you give me the gift you promised me as a guest.
	My name is Nobody.  All call me thus:
	my father and my mother and my friends."
	Ruthlessly he answered to this:
	"Nobody, I will eat you last of all;
	your host of friends will completely precede you.
	That will be my present to you, my friend."
	And after these words he fell down backwards,
	restrained by the all-restrainer Hupnos.
	His monstrous neck slid into the dust;
	the red wine squirted from his throat;
	the drunk vomited lumps of human flesh.
		[ The Odyssey, (chapter Epsilon), by Homer ]
~sting
*dagger
	Is this a dagger which I see before me,
	The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee.
	I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.
	Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible
	To feeling as to sight? or art thou but
	A dagger of the mind, a false creation,
	Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?
	I see thee yet, in form as palpable
	As this which now I draw.
                [ Macbeth, by William Shakespeare ]
dark one
	... But he ruled rather by force and fear, if they might
	avail; and those who perceived his shadow spreading over the
	world called him the Dark Lord and named him the Enemy; and
	he gathered again under his government all the evil things of
	the days of Morgoth that remained on earth or beneath it,
	and the Orcs were at his command and multiplied like flies.
	Thus the Black Years began ...
		[ The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
demogorgon
	Demogorgon, the prince of demons, wallows in filth and can
	spread a quickly fatal illness to his victims while rending
	them.  He is a mighty spellcaster, and he can drain the life
	of mortals with a touch of his tail.
demon
	It is often very hard to discover what any given Demon looks
	like, apart from a general impression of large size, huge
	fangs, staring eyes, many limbs, and an odd color; but all
	accounts agree that Demons are very powerful, very Magic (in
	a nonhuman manner), and made of some substance that can squeeze
	through a keyhole yet not be pierced with a Sword.  This makes
	them difficult to deal with, even on the rare occasions when
	they are friendly.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
dingo
	A wolflike wild dog, Canis dingo, of Australia, having a
	reddish- or yellowish-brown coat, believed to have been
	introduced by the aborigines.
	[Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language]
dispater
	Dispater is an arch-devil who rules the city of Dis.  He is
	a powerful mage.
djinn*
	The djinn are genies from the elemental plane of Air.  There,
	among their kind, they have their own societies.  They are
	sometimes encountered on earth and may even be summoned here
	to perform some service for powerful wizards.  The wizards
	often leave them about for later service, safely tucked away
	in a flask or lamp.  Once in a while, such a tool is found by
	a lucky rogue, and some djinn are known to be so grateful
	when released that they might grant their rescuer a wish.
~hachi
~slasher
~sirius
*dog
pup*
	A domestic animal, the _tame dog_ (_Canis familiaris_), of
	which numerous breeds exist.  The male is called a dog,
	while the female is called a bitch.  Because of its known
	loyalty to man and gentleness with children, it is the
	world's most popular domestic animal.  It can easily be
	trained to perform various tasks.
*door
doorway
	Through me you pass into the city of woe:
	Through me you pass into eternal pain:
	Through me among the people lost for aye.
	Justice the founder of my fabric mov'd:
	To rear me was the task of power divine,
	Supremest wisdom, and primeval love.
	Before me things create were none, save things
	Eternal, and eternal I endure.
	All hope abandon ye who enter here.
		[ The Inferno, from The Divine Comedy of Dante
			Alighieri, translated by H.F. Cary ]
*dragon
*xoth
	In the West the dragon was the natural enemy of man.  Although
	preferring to live in bleak and desolate regions, whenever it
	was seen among men it left in its wake a trail of destruction
	and disease.  Yet any attempt to slay this beast was a perilous
	undertaking.  For the dragon's assailant had to contend
	not only with clouds of sulphurous fumes pouring from its fire
	breathing nostrils, but also with the thrashings of its tail,
	the most deadly part of its serpent-like body.
	[ Mythical Beasts by Deirdre Headon (The Leprechaun Library) ]

	"One whom the dragons will speak with," he said, "that is a
	dragonlord, or at least that is the center of the matter.  It's
	not a trick of mastering the dragons, as most people think.
	Dragons have no masters.  The question is always the same, with
	a dragon:  will he talk to you or will he eat you?  If you can
	count upon his doing the former, and not doing the latter, why
	then you're a dragonlord."
		[ The Tombs of Atuan, by Ursula K. Le Guin ]
*drum*
	Many travelers have seen the drums of the great apes, and
	some have heard the sounds of their beating and the noise of
	the wild, weird revelry of these first lords of the jungle,
	but Tarzan, Lord Greystoke, is, doubtless, the only human
	being who ever joined in the fierce, mad, intoxicating revel
	of the Dum-Dum.
		[ Tarzan of the Apes, by Edgar Rice Burroughs ]
dwarf*
	Dwarfs have faces like men (ugly men, with wrinkled, leathery
	skins), but are generally either flat-footed, duck-footed, or
	have feet pointing backwards.  They are of the earth, earthy,
	living in the darkest of caverns and venturing forth only
	with the cloaks by which they can make themselves invisible,
	and others disguised as toads.  Miners often come across them,
	and sometimes establish reasonably close relations with them.
	... The miners of Cornwall were always delighted to hear a
	bucca busily mining away, for all dwarfs have an infallible
	nose for precious metals.
	Among other things, dwarfs are rightly valued for their skill
	as blacksmiths and jewellers: they made Odin his famous spear
	Gungnir, and Thor his hammer; for Freya they designed a
	magnificent necklace, and for Frey a golden boar.  And in their
	spare time they are excellent bakers.  Ironically, despite
	their odd feet, they are particularly fond of dancing.  They
	can also see into the future, and consequently are excellent
	meteorologists.  They can be free with presents to people
	they like, and a dwarvish gift is likely to turn to gold in
	the hand.  But on the whole they are a snappish lot.
	    [ The Immortals, by Derek and Julia Parker ]
earendil
elwing
	In after days, when because of the triumph of Morgoth Elves and
	Men became estranged, as he most wished, those of the Elven-race
	that lived still in Middle-earth waned and faded, and Men usurped
	the sunlight.  Then the Quendi wandered in the lonely places of the
	great lands and the isles, and took to the moonlight and the
	starlight, and to the woods and the caves, becoming as shadows
	and memories, save those who ever and anon set sail into the West
	and vanished from Middle-earth.  But in the dawn of years Elves
	and Men were allies and held themselves akin, and there were some
	among Men that learned the wisdom of the Eldar, and became great
	and valiant among the captains of the Noldor.  And in the glory
	and beauty of the Elves, and in their fate, full share had the
	offspring of elf and mortal, Earendil, and Elwing, and Elrond
	their child.
		[ The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
eel
giant eel
	The behaviour of eels in fresh water extends the air of
	mystery surrounding them.  They move freely into muddy, silty
	bottoms of lakes, lying buried in the daylight hours in summer.
	[...]  Eels are voracious carnivores, feeding mainly at
	night and consuming a wide variety of fishes and invertebrate
	creatures.  Contrary to earlier thinking, eels seek living
	rather than dead creatures and are not habitual eaters of
	carrion.
	    [ Freshwater Fishes of Canada, by Scott and Crossman ]
egg
	But I asked why not keep it and let the hen sit on it till it
	hatched, and then we could see what would come out of it.
	"Nothing good, I'm certain of that," Mom said.  "It would
	probably be something horrible.  But just remember, if it's a
	crocodile or a dragon or something like that, I won't have it
	in my house for one minute."
		[ The Enormous Egg, by Oliver Butterworth ]
elbereth
	... Even as they stepped over the threshold a single clear
	voice rose in song.

		A Elbereth Gilthoniel,
		silivren penna miriel
		o menel aglar elenath!
		Na-chaered palen-diriel
		o galadhremmin ennorath,
		Fanuilos, le linnathon
		nef aear, si nef aearon!

	Frodo halted for a moment, looking back.  Elrond was in his
	chair and the fire was on his face like summer-light upon the
	trees.  Near him sat the Lady Arwen.  [...]
	He stood still enchanted, while the sweet syllables of the
	elvish song fell like clear jewels of blended word and melody.
	"It is a song to Elbereth," said Bilbo.  "They will sing that,
	and other songs of the Blessed Realm, many times tonight.
	Come on!"
	   [ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
electric eel
	South-American fish (_Gymnotus electricus_), living in fresh
	water.  Shaped like a serpent, it can grow up to 2 metres.
	This eel is known for its electrical organ which enables it
	to paralyse creatures up to the size of a horse.
	   [ Van Dale's Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal ]
*elemental
	Elementals are manifestations of the basic nature of the
	universe.  There are four known forms of elementals:  air, fire,
	water, and earth.  Some mystics have postulated the necessity
	for a fifth type, the spirit elemental, but none have ever
	been encountered, at least on this plane of existence.
~elf ??m*
*elf*
elvenking
elven archeologist
elven cave*man
elven healer
elven samurai
elven wizard
	The Elves sat round the fire upon the grass or upon the sawn
	rings of old trunks.  Some went to and fro bearing cups and
	pouring drinks; others brought food on heaped plates and
	dishes.
	"This is poor fare," they said to the hobbits; "for we are
	lodging in the greenwood far from our halls.  If ever you are
	our guests at home, we will treat you better."
	"It seems to me good enough for a birthday-party," said Frodo.
	Pippin afterwards recalled little of either food or drink, for
	his mind was filled with the light upon the elf-faces, and the
	sound of voices so various and so beautiful that he felt in a
	waking dream.  [...]
	Sam could never describe in words, nor picture clearly to
	himself, what he felt or thought that night, though it remained
	in his memory as one of the chief events of his life.  The
	nearest he ever got was to say: "Well, sir, if I could grow
	apples like that, I would call myself a gardener.  But it was
	the singing that went to my heart, if you know what I mean."
	   [ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
elven cloak
	The Elves next unwrapped and gave to each of the Company the
	clothes they had brought.  For each they had provided a hood
	and cloak, made according to his size, of the light but warm
	silken stuff that the Galadrim wove.  It was hard to say of
	what colour they were: grey with the hue of twilight under
	the trees they seemed to be; and yet if they were moved, or
	set in another light, they were green as shadowed leaves, or
	brown as fallow fields by night, dusk-silver as water under
	the stars.
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
emerald
	'Put off that mask of burning gold
	With emerald eyes.'
	'O no, my dear, you make so bold
	To find if hearts be wild and wise,
	And yet not cold.'

	'I would but find what's there to find,
	Love or deceit.'
	'It was the mask engaged your mind,
	And after set your heart to beat,
	Not what's behind.'

	'But lest you are my enemy,
	I must enquire.'
	'O no, my dear, let all that be;
	What matter, so there is but fire
	In you, in me?'
		[ The Mask, by W.B. Yeats ]
erinys
erinyes
	These female-seeming devils named after the Furies of mythology
	attack hand to hand and poison their unwary victims as well.
ettin
	The two-headed giant, or ettin, is a vicious and unpredictable
	hunter that stalks by night and eats any meat it can catch.
excalibur
	At first only its tip was visible, but then it rose, straight,
	proud, all that was noble and great and wondrous.  The tip of
	the blade pointed toward the moon, as if it would cleave it
	in two.  The blade itself gleamed like a beacon in the night.
	There was no light source for the sword to be reflecting
	from, for the moon had darted behind a cloud in fear.  The
	sword was glowing from the intensity of its strength and
	power and knowledge that it was justice incarnate, and that
	after a slumber of uncounted years its time had again come.
	After the blade broke the surface, the hilt was visible, and
	holding the sword was a single strong, yet feminine hand,
	wearing several rings that bore jewels sparkling with the
	blue-green color of the ocean.
		[ Knight Life, by Peter David ]
expensive camera
	There was a time when Rincewind had quite liked the iconoscope.
	He believed, against all experience, that the world was
	fundamentally understandable, and that if he could only equip
	himself with the right mental toolbox he could take the back off
	and see how it worked.  He was, of course, dead wrong.  The
	iconoscope didn't take pictures by letting light fall onto
	specially treated paper, as he had surmised, but by the far
	simpler method of imprisoning a small demon with a good eye for
	colour and a speedy hand with a paintbrush.  He had been very
	upset to find that out.
		[ The Light Fantastic, by Terry Pratchett ]
eye of the aethiopica
	This is a powerful amulet of ESP.  In addition to its standard
	powers, it regenerates the energy of anyone who carries
	it, allowing them to cast spells more often.  It also reduces
	any spell damage to the person who carries it by half, and
	protects from magic missiles.  Finally, when invoked it has
	the power to instantly open a portal to any other area of the
	dungeon, allowing its invoker to travel quickly between
	areas.
eyes of the overworld
	... and finally there is "the Eyes of the Overworld".  This
	obscure artifact pushes the wearer's view sense into the
	"overworld" -- another name for a segment of the Astral Plane.
	Usually, there is nothing to be seen.  However, the wearer
	is also able to look back and see the area around herself,
	much like looking on a map.  Why anyone would want to ...
figurine*
	Then it appeared in Paris at just about the time that Paris
	was full of Carlists who had to get out of Spain.  One of
	them must have brought it with him, but, whoever he was, it's
	likely he knew nothing about its real value.  It had been --
	no doubt as a precaution during the Carlist trouble in Spain
	-- painted or enameled over to look like nothing more than a
	fairly interesting black statuette.  And in that disguise,
	sir, it was, you might say, kicked around Paris for seventy
	years by private owners and dealers too stupid to see what
	it was under the skin.
		[ The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett ]
floating eye
	Floating eyes, not surprisingly, are large, floating eyeballs
	which drift about the dungeon.  Though not dangerous in and
	of themselves, their power to paralyse those who gaze at
	their large eye in combat is widely feared.  Many are the
	tales of those who struck a floating eye, were paralysed by
	its mystic powers, and then nibbled to death by some other
	creature that lurked around nearby.
flesh golem
	With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected
	the instruments of life around me, that I might infuse a spark
	of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet.  It was
	already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against
	the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the
	glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow
	eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive
	motion agitated its limbs.

	How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how
	delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I
	had endeavoured to form?  His limbs were in proportion, and I
	had selected his features as beautiful.  Beautiful!--Great God!
	His yellow skin scarcely covered the work of muscles and
	arteries beneath; his hair was of a lustrous black, and
	flowing; his teeth of a pearly whiteness; but these luxuriances
	only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, that
	seemed almost of the same colour as the dun white sockets in
	which they were set, his shrivelled complexion and straight
	black lips.
		[ Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley ]
*flute
	With this thou canst do mighty deeds
	And change men's passions for thy needs:
	A man's despair with joy allay,
	Turn bachelors old to lovers gay.
		[ The Magic Flute, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ]
fog cloud
	The fog comes
	on little cat feet.

	It sits looking
	over harbor and city
	on silent haunches
	and then moves on.
	     [ Fog, by Carl Sandburg ]
fountain
	Rest! This little Fountain runs
	Thus for aye: -- It never stays
	For the look of summer suns,
	Nor the cold of winter days.
	Whose'er shall wander near,
	When the Syrian heat is worst,
	Let him hither come, nor fear
	Lest he may not slake his thirst:
	He will find this little river
	Running still, as bright as ever.
	Let him drink, and onward hie,
	Bearing but in thought, that I,
	Erotas, bade the Naiad fall,
	And thank the great god Pan for all!
		[ For a Fountain, by Bryan Waller Procter ]
fox
	One hot summer's day a Fox was strolling through an orchard
	till he came to a bunch of Grapes just ripening on a vine
	which had been trained over a lofty branch. "Just the thing
	to quench my thirst," quoth he. Drawing back a few paces, he
	took a run and a jump, and just missed the bunch. Turning
	round again with a One, Two, Three, he jumped up, but with
	no greater success. Again and again he tried after the
	tempting morsel, but at last had to give it up, and walked
	away with his nose in the air, saying: "I am sure they are
	sour."
		[ Aesop's Fables ]
*fung*
	Fungi, division of simple plants that lack chlorophyll, true
	stems, roots, and leaves.  Unlike algae, fungi cannot
	photosynthesize, and live as parasites or saprophytes.  The
	division comprises the slime molds and true fungi.  True
	fungi are multicellular (with the exception of yeasts); the
	body of most true fungi consists of slender cottony
	filaments, or hyphae.  All fungi are capable of asexual
	reproduction by cell division, budding, fragmentation, or
	spores.  Those that reproduce sexually alternate a sexual
	generation (gametophyte) with a spore-producing one.  The
	four classes of true fungi are the algaelike fungi (e.g.,
	black bread mold and downy mildew), sac fungi (e.g., yeasts,
	powdery mildews, truffles, and blue and green molds such as
	Penicillium), basidium fungi (e.g., mushrooms and puffballs)
	and imperfect fungi (e.g., species that cause athlete's foot
	and ringworm).  Fungi help decompose organic matter (important
	in soil renewal); are valuable as a source of antibiotics,
	vitamins, and various chemicals; and for their role in
	fermentation, e.g., in bread and alcoholic beverage
	production.
		[ The Concise Columbia Encyclopedia ]
*gargoyle
	And so it came to pass that while Man ruled on Earth, the
	gargoyles waited, lurking, hidden from the light.  Reborn
	every 600 years in Man's reckoning of time, the gargoyles
	joined battle against Man to gain dominion over the Earth.

	In each coming, the gargoyles were nearly destroyed by Men
	who flourished in greater numbers.  Now it has been so many
	hundreds of years that it seems the ancient statues and
	paintings of gargoyles are just products of Man's
	imagination.  In this year, with Man's thoughts turned toward
	the many ills he has brought among himself, Man has forgotten
	his most ancient adversary, the gargoyles.
	[ Excerpt from the opening narration to the movie
		_Gargoyles_, written by Stephen and Elinor Karpf ]
*garlic
	1 November - All day long we have travelled, and at a good
	speed.  The horses seem to know that they are being kindly
	treated, for they go willingly their full stage at best
	speed.  We have now had so many changes and find the same
	thing so constantly that we are encouraged to think that the
	journey will be an easy one.  Dr. Van Helsing is laconic, he
	tells the farmers that he is hurrying to Bistritz, and pays
	them well to make the exchange of horses.  We get hot soup,
	or coffee, or tea, and off we go.  It is a lovely country.
	Full of beauties of all imaginable kinds, and the people are
	brave, and strong, and simple, and seem full of nice
	qualities.  They are very, very superstitious.  In the first
	house where we stopped, when the woman who served us saw the
	scar on my forehead, she crossed herself and put out two
	fingers towards me, to keep off the evil eye.  I believe they
	went to the trouble of putting an extra amount of garlic into
	our food, and I can't abide garlic.  Ever since then I have
	taken care not to take off my hat or veil, and so have
	escaped their suspicions.
		[ Dracula, by Bram Stoker ]
# gas spore -- see *spore
geryon
	Geryon is an arch-devil sometimes called the Wild Beast,
	attacking with his claws and poison sting.  His ranking in
	Hell is rumored to be quite low.
*ghost
	And now the souls of the dead who had gone below came swarming
	up from Erebus -- fresh brides, unmarried youths, old men
	with life's long suffering behind them, tender young girls
	still nursing this first anguish in their hearts, and a great
	throng of warriors killed in battle, their spear-wounds gaping
	yet and all their armour stained with blood.  From this
	multitude of souls, as they fluttered to and fro by the
	trench, there came a moaning that was horrible to hear.
	Panic drained the blood from my cheeks.
	     [ The Odyssey, (chapter Lambda), by Homer ]
ghoul
	The forces of the gloom know each other, and are strangely
	balanced by each other.  Teeth and claws fear what they cannot
	grasp.  Blood-drinking bestiality, voracious appetites, hunger
	in search of prey, the armed instincts of nails and jaws which
	have for source and aim the belly, glare and smell out
	uneasily the impassive spectral forms straying beneath a
	shroud, erect in its vague and shuddering robe, and which seem
	to them to live with a dead and terrible life.  These
	brutalities, which are only matter, entertain a confused fear
	of having to deal with the immense obscurity condensed into an
	unknown being.  A black figure barring the way stops the wild
	beast short.  That which emerges from the cemetery intimidates
	and disconcerts that which emerges from the cave; the
	ferocious fear the sinister; wolves recoil when they encounter
	a ghoul.
		[ Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo ]
*giant
giant humanoid
	Giants have always walked the earth, though they are rare in
	these times.  They range in size from little over nine feet
	to a towering twenty feet or more.  The larger ones use huge
	boulders as weapons, hurling them over large distances.  All
	types of giants share a love for men - roasted, boiled, or
	fried.  Their table manners are legendary.
~gnome ??m*
gnome*
gnomish wizard
	...  And then a gnome came by, carrying a bundle, an old
	fellow three times as large as an imp and wearing clothes of
	a sort, especially a hat.  And he was clearly just as frightened
	as the imps though he could not go so fast.  Ramon Alonzo
	saw that there must be some great trouble that was vexing
	magical things; and, since gnomes speak the language of men, and
	will answer if spoken to gently, he raised his hat, and asked
	of the gnome his name.  The gnome did not stop his hasty
	shuffle a moment as he answered 'Alaraba' and grabbed the rim
	of his hat but forgot to doff it.
	'What is the trouble, Alaraba?'  said Ramon Alonzo.
	'White magic.  Run!'  said the gnome ..
	     [ The Charwoman's Shadow, by Lord Dunsany ]
goblin
	Now goblins are cruel, wicked, and bad-hearted.  They make
	no beautiful things, but they make many clever ones.  They
	can tunnel and mine as well as any but the most skilled
	dwarves, when they take the trouble, though they are usually
	untidy and dirty.  Hammers, axes, swords, daggers, pickaxes,
	tongs, and also instruments of torture, they make very well,
	or get other people to make to their design, prisoners and
	slaves that have to work till they die for want of air and
	light.
	     [ The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
god
goddess
	Goddesses and Gods operate in ones, threesomes, or whole
	pantheons of nine or more (see Religion).  Most of them claim
	to have made the world, and this is indeed a likely claim in
	the case of threesomes or pantheons:  Fantasyland does have
	the air of having been made by a committee.  But all Goddesses
	and Gods, whether they say they made the world or not, have
	very detailed short-term plans for it which they are determined
	to carry out.  Consequently they tend to push people into the
	required actions by the use of coincidence or Prophecy, or just
	by narrowing down your available choices of what to do next:
	if a deity is pushing you, things will go miserably badly until
	there is only one choice left to you.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
gold
gold piece
zorkmid
	A metal of characteristic yellow colour, the most precious
	metal used as a common commercial medium of exchange.  Symbol,
	Au; at. no. 79; at. wt. 197.2.  It is the most malleable
	and ductile of all metals, and very heavy (sp. gr., 19.3).
	It is quite unalterable by heat, moisture, and most
	corrosive agents, and therefore well suited for its use in
	coin and jewelry.
	     [ Webster's New International Dictionary
		  of the English Language, Second Edition ]
gold golem
	The bellows he set away from the fire, and gathered all the tools
	wherewith he wrought into a silver chest; and with a sponge wiped
	he his face and his two hands withal, and his mighty neck and
	shaggy breast, and put upon him a tunic, and grasped a stout staff,
	and went forth halting; but there moved swiftly to support their
	lord handmaidens wrought of gold in the semblance of living maids.
	In them is understanding in their hearts, and in them speech and
	strength, and they know cunning handiwork by gift of the immortal
	gods.
		[ The Iliad, by Homer ]
~gold golem
~flesh golem
*golem
	"The original story harks back, so they say, to the sixteenth
	century.  Using long-lost formulas from the Kabbala, a rabbi is
	said to have made an artificial man -- the so-called Golem -- to
	help ring the bells in the Synagogue and for all kinds of other
	menial work.
	"But he hadn't made a full man, and it was animated by some sort
	of vegetable half-life.  What life it had, too, so the story
	runs, was only derived from the magic charm placed behind its
	teeth each day, that drew down to itself what was known as the
	`free sidereal strength of the universe.'
	"One evening, before evening prayers, the rabbi forgot to take
	the charm out of the Golem's mouth, and it fell into a frenzy.
	It raged through the dark streets, smashing everything in its
	path, until the rabbi caught up with it, removed the charm, and
	destroyed it.  Then the Golem collapsed, lifeless.  All that was
	left of it was a small clay image, which you can still see in
	the Old Synagogue." ...
	    [ The Golem, by Gustav Meyrink ]
grave
	"Who'd care to dig 'em," said the old, old man,
	"Those six feet marked in chalk?
	Much I talk, more I walk;
	Time I were buried," said the old, old man.
		[ Three Songs to the Same Tune, by W.B. Yeats ]
grayswandir
	Why had I been wearing Grayswandir?  Would another weapon have
	affected a Logrus-ghost as strongly?  Had it really been my
	father, then, who had brought me here?  And had he felt I might
	need the extra edge his weapon could provide?  I wanted to
	think so, to believe that he had been more than a Pattern-ghost.
		[ Knight of Shadows, by Roger Zelazny ]
*grease
	ANOINT, v.t.  To grease a king or other great functionary
	already sufficiently slippery.
		[ The Devil's Dictionary, by Ambrose Bierce ]
gremlin
	The gremlin is a highly intelligent and completely evil
	creature.  It lives to torment other creatures and will go
	to great lengths to inflict pain or cause injury.

	Suddenly, Wilson thought about war, about the newspaper
	stories which recounted the alleged existence of creatures in
	the sky who plagued the Allied pilots in their duties.  They
	called them gremlins, he remembered.  Were there, actually,
	such beings?  Did they, truly, exist up here, never falling,
	riding on the wind, apparently of bulk and weight, yet
	impervious to gravity?
	He was thinking that when the man appeared again.
		[ Nightmare at 20,000 Feet, by Richard Matheson ]
grid bug
	These electronically based creatures are not native to this
	universe.  They appear to come from a world whose laws of
	motion are radically different from ours.

	Tron looked to his mate and pilot.  "I'm going to check on
	the beam connection, Yori.  You two can keep a watch out for
	grid bugs."  Tron paced forward along the slender catwalk
	that still seemed awfully insubstantial to Flynn, though he
	knew it to be amazingly sturdy.  He gazed after Tron, asking
	himself what in the world a grid bug was, and hoping that the
	beam connection -- to which he'd given no thought whatsoever
	until this moment -- was healthy and sound."
	    [ Tron, novel by Brian Daley, story by Steven Lisberger ]
gunyoki
	The samurai's last meal before battle.  It was usually made
	up of cooked chestnuts, dried seaweed, and sake.
hachi
	Hachi was a dog that went with his master, a professor, to
	the Shibuya train station every morning.  In the afternoon,
	when his master was to return from work Hachi would be there
	waiting.  One day his master died at the office, and did not
	return.  For over ten years Hachi returned to the station
	every afternoon to wait for his master.  When Hachi died a
	statue was erected on the station platform in his honor.  It
	is said to bring you luck if you touch his statue.
*harp
	A triangular stringed instrument, often Magic.  Even when not
	Magic, a Harp is surprisingly portable and tough and can be
	carried everywhere on the back of the Bard or Harper in all
	weathers.  A Harp seldom goes out of tune and never warps.
	Its strings break only in very rare instances, usually
	because the Harper is sulking or crossed in love.  This is
	just as well as no one seems to make or sell spare strings.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]

	After breakfast was over, the ogre called out: "Wife, wife,
	bring me my golden harp."  So she brought it and put it on
	the table before him.  Then he said: "Sing!" and the golden
	harp sang most beautifully.  And it went on singing till the
	ogre fell asleep, and commenced to snore like thunder.
	Then Jack lifted up the copper-lid very quietly and got down
	like a mouse and crept on hands and knees till he came to the
	table, when up he crawled, caught hold of the golden harp and
	dashed with it towards the door.  But the harp called out
	quite loud: "Master!  Master!" and the ogre woke up just in
	time to see Jack running off with his harp.
		[ Jack and the Beanstalk, from English Fairy Tales,
		  by Joseph Jacobs ]
heart of ahriman
	The other three drew in their breath sharply, and the dark,
	powerful man who stood at the head of the sarcophagus whispered:
	"The Heart of Ahriman!"  The other lifted a quick hand
	for silence.  Somewhere a dog began howling dolefully, and a
	stealthy step padded outside the barred and bolted door. ...
	But none looked aside from the mummy case over which the man
	in the ermine-trimmed robe was now moving the great flaming
	jewel, while he muttered an incantation that was old when
	Atlantis sank.  The glare of the gem dazzled their eyes, so
	that they could not be sure what they saw; but with a
	splintering crash, the carven lid of the sarcophagus burst
	outward as if from some irresistible pressure applied from
	within and the four men, bending eagerly forward, saw the
	occupant -- a huddled, withered, wizened shape, with dried
	brown limbs like dead wood showing through moldering bandages.
	"Bring that thing back?" muttered the small dark man who
	stood on the right, with a short, sardonic laugh.  "It is
	ready to crumble at a touch.  We are fools ---"
		[ Conan The Conqueror, by Robert E. Howard ]
hell hound*
	Hell hounds are fire-breathing canines from another plane of
	existence brought here in the service of evil beings.  A hell
	hound resembles a large hound with rust-red or red-brown fur,
	and red, glowing eyes.  The markings, teeth, and tongue are
	soot black.  It stands two to three feet high at the shoulder
	and has a distinct odour of smoke and sulphur.  The baying
	sounds it makes have an eerie, hollow tone that sends a shiver
	through any who hear them.
hermes
	Messenger and herald of the Olympians.  Being required to do
	a great deal of travelling and speaking in public, he became
	the god of eloquence, travellers, merchants, and thieves.  He
	was one of the most energetic of the Greek gods, a
	Machiavellian character full of trickery and sexual vigour.
	Like other Greek gods, he is endowed with not-inconsiderable
	sexual prowess which he directs towards countryside nymphs.
	He is a god of boundaries, guardian of graves and patron deity
	of shepherds.  He is usually depicted as a handsome young
	man wearing winged golden sandals and holding a magical
	herald's staff consisting of intertwined serpents, the
	kerykeion.  He is reputedly the only being able to find his way
	to the underworld ferry of Charon and back again.  He is said
	to have invented, among other things, the lyre, Pan's Pipes,
	numbers, the alphabet, weights and measures, and sacrificing.
hezrou
	"Hezrou" is the common name for the type II demon.  It is
	among the weaker of demons, but still quite formidable.
hippocrates
	Greek physician, recognized as the father of medicine.  He
	is believed to have been born on the island of Cos, to have
	studied under his father, a physician, to have traveled for
	some time, perhaps studying in Athens, and to have then
	returned to practice, teach, and write at Cos.  The
	Hippocratic or Coan school that formed around him was of
	enormous importance in separating medicine from superstition
	and philosophic speculation, placing it on a strictly
	scientific plane based on objective observation and critical
	deductive reasoning.
		[ The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition ]
hobbit
	Hobbits are an unobtrusive but very ancient people, more
	numerous formerly than they are today; for they love peace
	and quiet and good tilled earth:  a well-ordered and well-
	farmed countryside was their favourite haunt.  They do not
	and did not understand or like machines more complicated
	than a forge-bellows, a water-mill, or a handloom, although
	they were skillful with tools.  Even in ancient days they
	were, as a rule, shy of "the Big Folk", as they call us, and
	now they avoid us with dismay and are becoming hard to find.
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
hobgoblin
	Hobgoblin.  Used by the Puritans and in later times for
	wicked goblin spirits, as in Bunyan's "Hobgoblin nor foul
	friend", but its more correct use is for the friendly spirits
	of the brownie type.  In "A midsummer night's dream" a
	fairy says to Shakespeare's Puck:
		Those that Hobgoblin call you, and sweet Puck,
		You do their work, and they shall have good luck:
		Are you not he?
	and obviously Puck would not wish to be called a hobgoblin
	if that was an ill-omened word.
	Hobgoblins are on the whole, good-humoured and ready to be
	helpful, but fond of practical joking, and like most of the
	fairies rather nasty people to annoy.  Boggarts hover on the
	verge of hobgoblindom.  Bogles are just over the edge.
	One Hob mentioned by Henderson, was Hob Headless who haunted
	the road between Hurworth and Neasham, but could not cross
	the little river Kent, which flowed into the Tess.  He was
	exorcised and laid under a large stone by the roadside for
	ninety-nine years and a day.  If anyone was so unwary as to
	sit on that stone, he would be unable to quit it for ever.
	The ninety-nine years is nearly up, so trouble may soon be
	heard of on the road between Hurworth and Neasham.
		[ A Dictionary of Fairies, by Katharine Briggs ]
hom*nculus
	A homunculus is a creature summoned by a mage to perform some
	particular task.  They are particularly good at spying.  They
	are smallish creatures, but very agile.  They can put their
	victims to sleep with a venomous bite, but due to their size,
	the effect does not last long on humans.

	"Tothapis cut him off.  'Be still and hearken.  You will travel
	aboard the sacred wingboat.  Of it you may not have heard; but
	it will bear you thither in a night and a day and a night.
	With you will go a homunculus that can relay your words to me,
	and mine to you, across the leagues between at the speed of
	thought.'"
		[ Conan the Rebel, by Poul Anderson ]
# also gets 'pruning hook' aka guisarme
*hook
	But as for Queequeg -- why, Queequeg sat there among them --
	at the head of the table, too, it so chanced; as cool as an
	icicle.  To be sure I cannot say much for his breeding.  His
	greatest admirer could not have cordially justified his
	bringing his harpoon into breakfast with him, and using it
	there without ceremony; reaching over the table with it, to
	the imminent jeopardy of many heads, and grappling the
	beefsteaks towards him.
		[ Moby Dick, by Herman Melville ]
~unicorn horn
*horn
	Roland hath set the Olifant to his mouth,
	He grasps it well, and with great virtue sounds.
	High are those peaks, afar it rings and loud,
	Thirty great leagues they hear its echoes mount.
	So Charles heard, and all his comrades round;
	Then said that King: "Battle they do, our counts!"
	And Guenelun answered, contrarious:
	"That were a lie, in any other mouth."
		[ The Song of Roland ]
horned devil
	Horned devils lack any real special abilities, though they
	are quite difficult to kill.
~horsem*
*horse
	King Richard III: A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!
	Catesby: Withdraw, my lord; I'll help you to a horse.
	King Richard III: Slave, I have set my life upon a cast,
	                  And I will stand the hazard of the die:
	                  I think there be six Richmonds in the field;
	                  Five have I slain to-day instead of him.
	                  A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!
		[ King Richard III, by William Shakespeare ]
*horsem*
rider*
death
famine
pestilence
war
hunger
	[Pestilence:] And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals,
	and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four
	beasts saying, Come and see.  And I saw, and behold a white
	horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given
	unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

	[War:] And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the
	second beast say, Come and see.  And there went out another
	horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon
	to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one
	another: and there was given unto him a great sword.

	[Famine:] And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the
	third beast say, Come and see.  And I beheld, and lo a black
	horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his
	hand.  And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say,
	A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley
	for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.

	[Death:] And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the
	voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.  And I looked, and
	behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death,
	and Hell followed with him.  And power was given unto them over
	the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with
	hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
	     [ Revelations of John, 6:1-8 ]
huan*ti
	The first of five mythical Chinese emperors, Huan Ti is known
	as the yellow emperor.  He rules the _moving_ heavens, as
	opposed to the _dark_ heavens.  He is an inventor, said to
	have given mankind among other things, the wheel, armour, and
	the compass.  He is the god of fortune telling and war.
hu*h*eto*l
minion of huhetotl
	Huehuetotl, or Huhetotl, which means Old God, was the Aztec
	(classical Mesoamerican) god of fire.  He is generally
	associated with paternalism and one of the group classed
	as the Xiuhtecuhtli complex.  He is known to send his
	minions to wreak havoc upon ordinary humans.
	     [ after the Encyclopedia of Gods, by Michael Jordan ]
humanoid
	Humanoids are all approximately the size of a human, and may
	be mistaken for one at a distance.  They are usually of a
	tribal nature, and will fiercely defend their lairs.  Usually
	hostile, they may even band together to raid and pillage
	human settlements.
human
human archeologist
human cave*man
human healer
human monk
human samurai
human wizard
acolyte
apprentice
archeologist
arch priest
attendant
cave*man
chieftain
guard
healer
monk
ninja
nurse
page
*priest*
ronin
samurai
shopkeeper
student
thug
warrior
*watch*
wizard
player
	These strange creatures live mostly on the surface of the
	earth, gathering together in societies of various forms, but
	occasionally a stray will descend into the depths and commit
	mayhem among the dungeon residents who, naturally, often
	resent the intrusion of such beasts.  They are capable of
	using weapons and magic, and it is even rumored that the
	Wizard of Yendor is a member of this species.
ice devil
	Ice devils are large semi-insectoid creatures, who are
	equally at home in the fires of Hell and the cold of Limbo,
	and who can cause the traveller to feel the latter with just
	a touch of their tail.
imp
	 ... imps ... little creatures of two feet high that could
	gambol and jump prodigiously; ...
		[ The Charwoman's Shadow, by Lord Dunsany ]

	An 'imp' is an off-shoot or cutting.  Thus an 'ymp tree' was
	a grafted tree, or one grown from a cutting, not from seed.
	'Imp' properly means a small devil, an off-shoot of Satan,
	but the distinction between goblins or bogles and imps from
	hell is hard to make, and many in the Celtic countries as
	well as the English Puritans regarded all fairies as devils.
	The fairies of tradition often hover uneasily between the
	ghostly and the diabolic state.
		[ A Dictionary of Fairies, by Katharine Briggs ]
incubus
succubus
	The incubus and succubus are male and female versions of the
	same demon, one who lies with a human for its own purposes,
	usually to the detriment of the mortals who are unwise in
	their dealings with them.
*iron ball
*iron chain
	"You are fettered, " said Scrooge, trembling.  "Tell me why?"
	"I wear the chain I forged in life," replied the Ghost.  "I
	made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on of my
	own free will, and of my own free will I wore it.  Is its
	pattern strange to you?"
	Scrooge trembled more and more.
	"Or would you know," pursued the Ghost, "the weight and
	length of the strong coil you bear yourself?  It was full as
	heavy and as long as this, seven Christmas Eves ago.  You
	have laboured on it, since.  It is a ponderous chain!"
		[ A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens ]
ishtar
	Ishtar (the star of heaven) is the Mesopotamian goddess of
	fertility and war.  She is usually depicted with wings and
	weapon cases at her shoulders, carrying a ceremonial double-
	headed mace-scimitar embellished with lion heads, frequently
	being accompanied by a lion.  She is symbolized by an eight-
	pointed star.
		[ Encyclopedia of Gods, by Michael Jordan ]
issek
	Now Issek of the Jug, whom Fafhrd chose to serve, was once
	of the most lowly and unsuccessful of the gods, godlets
	rather, in Lankhmar.  He had dwelt there for about thirteen
	years, during which time he had traveled only two squares up
	the Street of the Gods and was now back again, ready for
	oblivion.  He is not to be confused with Issek the Armless,
	Issek of the Burnt Legs, Flayed Issek, or any other of the
	numerous and colorfully mutilated divinities of that name.
	Indeed, his unpopularity may have been due in part to the
	fact that the manner of his death -- racking -- was not
	deemed particularly spectacular. ... However, after Fafhrd
	became his acolyte, things somehow began to change.
		[ Swords In The Mist, by Fritz Leiber ]
izchak
	The shopkeeper of the lighting shop in the town level of the
	gnomish mines is a tribute to Izchak Miller, a founding member
	of the NetHack development team and a personal friend of a large
	number of us.  Izchak contributed greatly to the game, coding a
	large amount of the shopkeep logic (hence the nature of the tribute)
	as well as a good part of the alignment system, the prayer code and
	the rewrite of "hell" in the 3.1 release.  Izchak was a professor
	of Philosophy, who taught at many respected institutions, including
	MIT and Stanford, and who also worked, for a period of time, at
	Xerox PARC.  Izchak was the first "librarian" of the NetHack project,
	and was a founding member of the DevTeam, joining in 1986 while he
	was working at the University of Pennsylvania (hence our former
	mailing list address).  Until the 3.1.3 release, Izchak carefully
	kept all of the code synchronized and arbitrated disputes between
	members of the development teams.  Izchak Miller passed away at the
	age of 58, in the early morning hours of April 1, 1994 from
	complications due to cancer.  We then dedicated NetHack 3.2 in his
	memory.
			[ Mike Stephenson, for the NetHack DevTeam ]
jabberwock
vorpal*
	"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
	  The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
	Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
	  The frumious Bandersnatch!"

	He took his vorpal sword in hand;
	  Long time the manxome foe he sought --
	So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
	  And stood awhile in thought.

	And, as in uffish thought he stood,
	  The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
	Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
	  And burbled as it came!

	One, two! One, two! And through and through
	  The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
	He left it dead, and with its head
	  He went galumphing back.
				[ Jabberwocky, by Lewis Carroll ]
jackal
	In Asiatic folktale, jackal provides for the lion; he scares
	up game, which the lion kills and eats, and receives what is
	left as reward.  In stories from northern India he is
	sometimes termed "minister to the king," i.e. to the lion.
	From the legend that he does not kill his own food has arisen
	the legend of his cowardice.  Jackal's heart must never be
	eaten, for instance, in the belief of peoples indigenous to
	the regions where the jackal abounds. ... In Hausa Negro
	folktale Jackal plays the role of sagacious judge and is
	called "O Learned One of the Forest."  The Bushmen say that
	Jackal goes around behaving the way he does "because he is
	Jackal".
		[ Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore ]
jade*
	Nothing grew among the ruins of the city.  The streets were
	broken and the walls of the houses had fallen, but there were
	no weeds flowering in the cracks and it seemed that the city
	had but recently been brought down by an earthquake.  Only
	one thing still stood intact, towering over the ruins.  It
	was a gigantic statue of white, gray and green jade - the
	statue of a naked youth with a face of almost feminine beauty
	that turned sightless eyes toward the north.
	"The eyes!" Duke Avan Astran said.  "They're gone!"
		[ The Jade Man's Eyes, by Michael Moorcock ]
jaguar
	Large, flesh-eating animal of the cat family, of Central and
	South America.  This feline predator (_Panthera onca_) is
	sometimes incorrectly called a panther.
	 [ Van Dale's Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal ]
jellyfish
	I do not care to share the seas
	With jellyfishes such as these;
	Particularly Portuguese.
		[ Lines on Meeting a Portuguese Man-o'-war while
			Bathing, by Michael Flanders ]
juiblex
jubilex
	Little is known about the Faceless Lord, even the correct
	spelling of his name.  He does not have a physical form as
	we know it, and those who have peered into his realm claim
	he is a slime-like creature who swallows other creatures
	alive, spits acidic secretions, and causes disease in his
	victims which can be almost instantly fatal.
kabuto
	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 & Armour of the Samurai, by Bottomley & Hopson ]
katana
	The katana is a long, single-edged samurai sword with a
	slightly curved blade.  Its long handle is designed to allow
	it to be wielded with either one or two hands.
ki-rin
	The ki-rin is a strange-looking flying creature.  It has
	scales, a mane like a lion, a tail, hooves, and a horn.  It
	is brightly colored, and can usually be found flying in the
	sky looking for good deeds to reward.
king arthur
*arthur
	Ector took both his sons to the church before which the
	anvil had been placed.  There, standing before the anvil, he
	commanded Kay:  "Put the sword back into the steel if you
	really think the throne is yours!"  But the sword glanced
	off the steel.  "Now it is your turn", Ector said facing
	Arthur.
	The young man lifted the sword and thrust with both arms; the
	blade whizzed through the air with a flash and drilled the
	metal as if it were mere butter.  Ector and Kay dropped to
	their knees before Arthur.
	"Why, father and brother, do you bow before me?", Arthur asked
	with wonder in his voice.
	"Because now I know for sure that you are the king, not only
	by birth but also by law", Ector said.  "You are no son of
	mine nor are you Kay's brother.  Immediately after your birth,
	Merlin the Wise brought you to me to be raised safely.  And
	though it was me that named you Arthur when you were baptized,
	you are really the son of brave king Uther Pendragon and queen
	Igraine..."
	And after these words, the lord rose and went to see the arch-
	bishop to impart to him what had passed.
	   [ Van Gouden Tijden Zingen de Harpen, by Vladimir Hulpach,
		Emanuel Frynta, and Vackav Cibula ]
knife
stiletto
	Possibly perceiving an expression of dubiosity on their
	faces, the globetrotter went on adhering to his adventures.

	-- And I seen a man killed in Trieste by an Italian chap.
	Knife in his back.  Knife like that.

	Whilst speaking he produced a dangerous looking clasp knife,
	quite in keeping with his character, and held it in the
	striking position.

	-- In a knockingshop it was count of a tryon between two
	smugglers.  Fellow hid behind a door, come up behind him.
	Like that.  Prepare to meet your God, says he.  Chuck!  It
	went into his back up to the butt.
		[ Ulysses, by James Joyce ]
knight
human knight
	Here lies the noble fearless knight,
	Whose valour rose to such a height;
	When Death at last had struck him down,
	His was the victory and renown.
	He reck'd the world of little prize,
	And was a bugbear in men's eyes;
	But had the fortune in his age
	To live a fool and die a sage.
		[ Don Quixote of La Mancha by Miquel de
		  Cervantes Saavedra ]
~kobold ??m*
*kobold*
	The race of kobolds are reputed to be an artificial creation
	of a master wizard (demi-god?).  They are about 3' tall with
	a vaguely dog-like face.  They bear a violent dislike of the
	Elven race, and will go out of their way to cause trouble
	for Elves at any time.
*kop*
	The typical policeman of 1920's movies, the Keystone Kop was
	modeled like the English "bobby", with a long brass-buttoned
	overcoat, carrying long nightsticks that he (more often than
	not) whapped himself with, rather than anyone else.  The
	Keystone Kops were very slapstick-like, relying on speed and
	numbers to achieve their comedy, rather than sophisticated
	wit.
kos
	"I am not a coward!" he cried.  "I'll dare Thieves' House
	and fetch you Krovas' head and toss it with blood a-drip at
	Vlana's feet.  I swear that, witness me, Kos the god of
	dooms, by the brown bones of Nalgron my father and by his
	sword Graywand here at my side!"
	   [ Swords and Deviltry, by Fritz Leiber ]
koto
	A Japanese harp.
kraken
	Out from the water a long sinuous tentacle had crawled; it
	was pale-green and luminous and wet.  Its fingered end had
	hold of Frodo's foot, and was dragging him into the water.
	Sam on his knees was now slashing at it with a knife.  The
	arm let go of Frodo, and Sam pulled him away, crying out
	for help.  Twenty other arms came rippling out.  The dark
	water boiled, and there was a hideous stench.
	   [ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
*lady
offler
	Blind Io took up the dice-box, which was a skull whose various
	orifices had been stoppered with rubies, and with several of
	his eyes on the Lady he rolled three fives.  She smiled.  This
	was the nature of the Lady's eyes:  they were bright green,
	lacking iris or pupil, and they glowed from within.

	The room was silent as she scrabbled in her box of pieces and,
	from the very bottom, produced a couple that she set down on
	the board with two decisive clicks.  The rest of the players,
	as one God, craned forward to peer at them.

	"A wenegade wiffard and fome fort of clerk," said Offler the
	Crocodile God, hindered as usual by his tusks.  "Well,
	weally!"  With one claw he pushed a pile of bone-white tokens
	into the centre of the table.

	The Lady nodded slightly.  She picked up the dice-cup and held
	it as steady as a rock, yet all the Gods could hear the three
	cubes rattling about inside.  And then she sent them bouncing
	across the table.

	A six.  A three.  A five.

	Something was happening to the five, however.  Battered by the
	chance collision of several billion molecules, the die flipped
	onto a point, spun gently and came down a seven.  Blind Io
	picked up the cube and counted the sides.

	"Come _on_," he said wearily, "Play fair."
		[ The Colour of Magic, by Terry Pratchett ]
*lamp
	When he came to himself he told his mother what had passed,
	and showed her the lamp and the fruits he had gathered in the
	garden, which were in reality precious stones.  He then asked
	for some food.

	"Alas! child," she said, "I have nothing in the house, but I
	have spun a little cotton and will go and sell it."

	Aladdin bade her keep her cotton, for he would sell the lamp
	instead.  As it was very dirty she began to rub it, that it
	might fetch a higher price.  Instantly a hideous genie
	appeared, and asked what she would have.  She fainted away,
	but Aladdin, snatching the lamp, said boldly:
	"Fetch me something to eat!"
		[ Aladdin, from The Arabian Nights, by Andrew Lang ]
lance
	With this the wind increased, and the mill sails began to turn
	about; which Don Quixote espying, said, 'Although thou movest
	more arms than the giant Briareus thou shalt stoop to me.'
	And, after saying this, and commending himself most devoutly to
	his Lady Dulcinea, desiring her to succor him in that trance,
	covering himself well with his buckler, and setting his lance
	on his rest, he spurred on Rozinante, and encountered with the
	first mill that was before him, and, striking his lance into
	the sail, the wind sung it about with such fury, that is broke
	his lance into shivers, carrying him and his horse after it,
	and finally tumbled him a good way off from it on the field in
	evil plight.
		[ Don Quixote of La Mancha by Miquel de
		  Cervantes Saavedra ]
leash
	They had splendid heads, fine shoulders, strong legs, and
	straight tails.  The spots on their bodies were jet-black and
	mostly the size of a two-shilling piece; they had smaller
	spots on their heads, legs, and tails.  Their noses and eye-
	rims were black.  Missis had a most winning expression.
	Pongo, though a dog born to command, had a twinkle in his
	eye.  They walked side by side with great dignity, only
	putting the Dearlys on the leash to lead them over crossings.
		[ The Hundred and One Dalmatians, by Dodie Smith ]
lembas*
	In the morning, as they were beginning to pack their slender
	goods, Elves that could speak their tongue came to them and
	brought them many gifts of food and clothing for their
	journey.  The food was mostly in the form of very thin cakes,
	made of a meal that was baked a light brown on the outside,
	and inside was the colour of cream.  Gimli took up one of the
	cakes and looked at it with a doubtful eye.
	'Cram,' he said under his breath, as he broke off a crisp
	corner and nibbled at it.  His expression quickly changed,
	and he ate all the rest of the cake with relish.
	'No more, no more!' cried the Elves laughing.  'You have
	eaten enough already for a long day's march.'
	'I thought it was only a kind of cram, such as the Dalemen
	make for journeys in the wild,' said the Dwarf.
	'So it is,' they answered.  'But we call it lembas or
	waybread, and it is more strengthening than any foods made by
	Men, and it is more pleasant than cram, by all accounts.'
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
lemure
	The lowliest of the inhabitants of hell.
leocrotta
leu*otta
	... the leucrocotta, a wild beast of extraordinary swiftness,
	the size of the wild ass, with the legs of a Stag, the neck,
	tail, and breast of a lion, the head of a badger, a cloven
	hoof, the mouth slit up as far as the ears, and one continuous
	bone instead of teeth; it is said, too, that this animal can
	imitate the human voice.
		[ Curious Creatures in Zoology, by John Ashton ]
leprechaun
	The Irish Leprechaun is the Faeries' shoemaker and is known
	under various names in different parts of Ireland:
	Cluricaune in Cork, Lurican in Kerry, Lurikeen in Kildare
	and Lurigadaun in Tipperary.  Although he works for the
	Faeries, the Leprechaun is not of the same species.  He is
	small, has dark skin and wears strange clothes.  His nature
	has something of the manic-depressive about it:  first he
	is quite happy, whistling merrily as he nails a sole on to a
	shoe; a few minutes later, he is sullen and morose, drunk
	on his home-made heather ale.  The Leprechaun's two great
	loves are tobacco and whiskey, and he is a first-rate con-man,
	impossible to out-fox.  No one, no matter how clever, has ever
	managed to cheat him out of his hidden pot of gold or his
	magic shilling.  At the last minute he always thinks of some
	way to divert his captor's attention and vanishes in the
	twinkling of an eye.
		[ A Field Guide to the Little People
			       by Nancy Arrowsmith & George Moorse ]
*lich
	But on its heels ere the sunset faded, there came a second
	apparition, striding with incredible strides and halting when
	it loomed almost upon me in the red twilight-the monstrous mummy
	of some ancient king still crowned with untarnished gold but
	turning to my gaze a visage that more than time or the worm had
	wasted. Broken swathings flapped about the skeleton legs, and
	above the crown that was set with sapphires and orange rubies, a
	black something swayed and nodded horribly; but, for an instant,
	I did not dream what it was.  Then, in its middle, two oblique
	and scarlet eyes opened and glowed like hellish coals, and two
	ophidian fangs glittered in an ape-like mouth.  A squat, furless,
	shapeless head on a neck of disproportionate extent leaned
	unspeakably down and whispered in the mummy's ear. Then, with
	one stride, the titanic lich took half the distance between us,
	and from out the folds of the tattered sere-cloth a gaunt arm
	arose, and fleshless, taloned fingers laden with glowering gems,
	reached out and fumbled for my throat . . .
		[ The Abominations of Yondo, Clark Ashton Smith, 1926 ]
lichen
	The chamber was of unhewn rock, round, as near as might
	be, eighteen or twenty feet across, and gay with rich
	variety of fern and moss and lichen.  The fern was in
	its winter still, or coiling for the spring-tide; but
	moss was in abundant life, some feathering, and some
	gobleted, and some with fringe of red to it.
		[ Lorna Doone, by R.D. Blackmore ]
~* of light
* light
	Strange creatures formed from energy rather than matter,
	lights are given to self-destructive behavior when battling
	foes.
gecko
iguana
lizard
	Lizards, snakes and the burrowing amphisbaenids make up the
	order Squamata, meaning the scaly ones.  The elongate, slim,
	long-tailed bodies of lizards have become modified to enable
	them to live in a wide range of habitats.  Lizards can be
	expert burrowers, runners, swimmers and climbers, and a few
	can manage crude, short-distance gliding on rib-supported
	"wings".  Most are carnivores, feeding on invertebrate and
	small vertebrate prey, but others feed on vegetation.
		[ Macmillan Illustrated Animal Encyclopedia ]
loki
	Loki, or Lopt, is described in Snorri's _Edda_ as being
	"pleasing and handsome in appearance, evil in character, and
	very capricious in behaviour".  He is the son of the giant
	Farbauti and of Laufey.
	Loki is the Norse god of cunning, evil, thieves, and fire.
	He hated the other gods and wanted to ruin them and overthrow
	the universe.  He committed many murders.  As a thief, he
	stole Freyja's necklace, Thor's belt and gauntlets of power,
	and the apples of youth.  Able to shapechange at will, he is
	said to have impersonated at various times a mare, flea, fly,
	falcon, seal, and an old crone.  As a mare he gave birth to
	Odin's horse Sleipnir.  He also allegedly sired the serpent
	Midgard, the mistress of the netherworld, Hel, and the wolf
	Fenrir, who will devour the sun at Ragnarok.
*longbow of diana
	This legendary bow grants ESP when carried and can reflect magical
	attacks when wielded.  When invoked it provides a supply of arrows.
# long worm -- see "worm"
looking glass
mirror
	But as Snow White grew, she became more and more beautiful,
	and by the time she was seven years old she was as beautiful
	as the day and more beautiful than the queen herself.  One
	day when the queen said to her mirror:

		"Mirror, Mirror, here I stand.
		Who is the fairest in the land?" -

	the mirror replied:

		"You, O Queen, are the fairest here,
		But Snow White is a thousand times more fair."
		[ Snow White, by Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm ]
lord carnarvon
	Lord Carnarvon was a personality who could have been produced
	nowhere but in England, a mixture of sportsman and collector,
	gentleman and world traveler, a realist in action and a
	romantic in feeling.  ...  In 1903 he went for the first time
	to Egypt in search of a mild climate and while there visited
	the excavation sites of several archaeological expeditions.
	...  In 1906 he began his own excavations.
		[ Gods, Graves, and Scholars, by C. W. Ceram ]
lord sato
	Lord Sato was the family head of the Taro Clan, and a mighty
	daimyo.  He is a loyal servant of the Emperor, and will do
	everything in his power to further the imperial cause.
lord surt*
	Yet first was the world in the southern region, which was
	named Muspell; it is light and hot; that region is glowing
	and burning, and impassable to such as are outlanders and
	have not their holdings there.  He who sits there at the
	land's-end, to defend the land, is called Surtr; he brandishes
	a flaming sword, and at the end of the world he shall go forth
	and harry, and overcome all the gods, and burn all the
	world with fire.
			[ The Prose Edda, by Snorri Sturluson ]
lug*
	Lugh, or Lug, was the sun god of the Irish Celts.  One of his
	weapons was a rod-sling which worshippers sometimes saw in
	the sky as a rainbow.  As a tribal god, he was particularly
	skilled in the use of his massive, invincible spear, which
	fought on its own accord.  One of his epithets is _lamfhada_
	(of the long arm).  He was a young and apparently more
	attractive deity than Dagda, the father of the gods.  Being
	able to shapeshift, his name translates as lynx.
lurker*
	These dungeon scavengers are very adept at blending into the
	surrounding walls and ceilings of the dungeon due to the
	stone-like coloring of their skin.
lycanthrope
were*
human were*
*were
	In 1573, the Parliament of Dole published a decree, permitting
	the inhabitants of the Franche-Comte to pursue and kill a
	were-wolf or loup-garou, which infested that province,
	"notwithstanding the existing laws concerning the chase."
	The people were empowered to "assemble with javelins,
	halberds, pikes, arquebuses and clubs, to hunt and pursue the
	said were-wolf in all places where they could find it, and to
	take, burn, and kill it, without incurring any fine or other
	penalty."  The hunt seems to have been successful, if we may
	judge from the fact that the same tribunal in the following
	year condemned to be burned a man named Giles Garnier, who
	ran on all fours in the forest and fields and devoured little
	children, "even on Friday."  The poor lycanthrope, it appears,
	had as slight respect for ecclesiastical feasts as the French
	pig, which was not restrained by any feeling of piety from
	eating infants on a fast day.
		[ The History of Vampires, by Dudley Wright ]
lynx
	To dream of seeing a lynx, enemies are undermining your
	business and disrupting your home affairs.  For a woman,
	this dream indicates that she has a wary woman rivaling her
	in the affections of her lover. If she kills the lynx, she
	will overcome her rival.
		[ 10,000 Dreams Interpreted, by Gustavus Hindman Miller ]
magic marker
	The pen is mightier than the sword.
		[ Richelieu, by Edward Bulwer-Lytton ]
magic mirror of merlin
	This powerful mirror was created by Merlin, the druid, in ages
	past, when trees sang and rocks danced.  It protects all who
	carry it from magic missiles, and gives them ESP.
mail d*emon
	It is rumoured that these strange creatures can be harmed by
	domesticated canines only.
ma*annan*
	Normally called Manannan, Ler's son was the patron of
	merchants and sailors.  Manannan had a sword which never
	failed to slay, a boat which propelled itself wherever its
	owner wished, a horse which was swifter than the wind, and
	magic armour which no sword could pierce.  He later became
	god of the sea, beneath which he lived in Tir na nOc, the
	underworld.
manes
	The gnats of the dungeon, these swarming monsters are rarely
	seen alone.
marduk
	First insisting on recognition as supreme commander, Marduk
	defeated the Dragon, cut her body in two, and from it created
	heaven and earth, peopling the world with human beings who not
	unnaturally showed intense gratitude for their lives.  The
	gods were also properly grateful, invested him with many
	titles, and eventually permitted themselves to be embodied in
	him, so that he became supreme god, plotting the whole course
	of known life from the paths of the planets to the daily
	events in the lives of men.
		[ The Immortals, by Derek and Julia Parker ]
marilith
	The marilith has a torso shaped like that of a human female,
	and the lower body of a great snake.  It has multiple arms,
	and can freely attack with all of them.  Since it is
	intelligent enough to use weapons, this means it can cause
	great damage.
mars
	The god of war, and one of the most prominent and worshipped
	gods.  In early Roman history he was a god of spring, growth in
	nature, and fertility, and the protector of cattle.  Mars is
	also mentioned as a chthonic god (earth-god) and this could
	explain why he became a god of death and finally a god of war.
	He is the son of Jupiter and Juno.
		[ Encyclopedia Mythica, ed. M.F. Lindemans ]
master assassin
	He strolled down the stairs, followed by a number of assassins.
	When he was directly in front of Ymor he said: "I've come for
	the tourist." ...
	"One step more and you'll leave here with fewer eyeballs than
	you came with," said the thiefmaster.  "So sit down and have
	a drink, Zlorf, and let's talk about this sensibly.  _I_
	thought we had an agreement.  You don't rob -- I don't kill.
	Not for payment, that is," he added after a pause.
	Zlorf took the proffered beer.
	"So?" he said.  "I'll kill him.  Then you rob him.  Is he that
	funny looking one over there?"
	"Yes."
	Zlorf stared at Twoflower, who grinned at him.  He shrugged.
	He seldom wasted time wondering why people wanted other people
	dead.  It was just a living.
	"Who is your client, may I ask?" said Ymor.
	Zlorf held up a hand.  "Please!" he protested.  "Professional
	etiquette."
		[ The Colour of Magic, by Terry Pratchett ]
master key of thievery
	This skeleton key was fashioned in ages past and imbued with
	a powerful magic which allows it to open any lock.  When
	carried, it grants its owner warning, teleport control, and
	reduces all physical damage by half.  Finally, when invoked,
	it has the ability to disarm any trap.
master of thieves
	There was a flutter of wings at the window.  Ymor shifted his
	bulk out of the chair and crossed the room, coming back with
	a large raven.  After he'd unfastened the message capsule from
	its leg it flew up to join its fellows lurking among the
	rafters.  Withel regarded it without love.  Ymor's ravens were
	notoriously loyal to their master, to the extent that Withel's
	one attempt to promote himself to the rank of greatest thief
	in Ankh-Morpork had cost their master's right hand man his
	left eye.  But not his life, however.  Ymor never grudged a
	man his ambitions.
		[ The Colour of Magic, by Terry Pratchett ]
mastodon
	Any large, elephantlike mammal of the genera Mammut, Mastodon,
	etc., from the Oligocene and Pleistocene epochs, having
	conical projections on the molar teeth.
		[ Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary
			of the English Language ]
meat*
huge chunk of meat
	Some hae meat and canna eat,
	And some would eat that want it;
	But we hae meat, and we can eat,
	Sae let the Lord be thankit.
		[ Grace Before Meat, by Robert Burns ]
medusa
	Medusa, one of the three Gorgons or Graeae, is the only one
	of her sisters to have assumed mortal form and inhabited the
	dungeon world.

	When Perseus was grown up Polydectes sent him to attempt the
	conquest of Medusa, a terrible monster who had laid waste the
	country.  She was once a beautiful maiden whose hair was her
	chief glory, but as she dared to vie in beauty with Minerva,
	the goddess deprived her of her charms and changed her
	beautiful ringlets into hissing serpents.  She became a cruel
	monster of so frightful an aspect that no living thing could
	behold her without being turned into stone.  All around the
	cavern where she dwelt might be seen the stony figures of men
	and animals which had chanced to catch a glimpse of her and
	had been petrified with the sight.  Perseus, favoured by
	Minerva and Mercury, the former of whom lent him her shield
	and the latter his winged shoes, approached Medusa while she
	slept and taking care not to look directly at her, but guided
	by her image reflected in the bright shield which he bore, he
	cut off her head and gave it to Minerva, who fixed it in the
	middle of her Aegis.
		[ Bulfinch's Mythology, by Thomas Bulfinch ]
melon
	"What is it, Umbopa, son of a fool?" I shouted in Zulu.
	"It is food and water, Macumazahn," and again he waved the
	green thing.
	Then I saw what he had got.  It was a melon.  We had hit upon
	a patch of wild melons, thousands of them, and dead ripe.
	"Melons!" I yelled to Good, who was next me; and in another
	second he had his false teeth fixed in one.
	I think we ate about six each before we had done, and, poor
	fruit as they were, I doubt if I ever thought anything nicer.
		[ King Solomon's Mines, by H. Rider Haggard ]
mercury
	Roman god of commerce, trade and travellers.  He is commonly
	depicted carrying a caduceus (a staff with two snakes
	intertwining around it) and a purse.
*mimic
	The ancestors of the modern day chameleon, these creatures can
	assume the form of anything in their surroundings.  They may
	assume the shape of objects or dungeon features.  Unlike the
	chameleon though, which assumes the shape of another creature
	and goes in hunt of food, the mimic waits patiently for its
	meals to come in search of it.
*mind flayer
	This creature has a humanoid body, tentacles around its
	covered mouth, and three long fingers on each hand.  Mind
	flayers are telepathic, and love to devour intelligent beings,
	especially humans.  If they hit their victim with a tentacle,
	the mind flayer will slowly drain it of all intelligence,
	eventually killing its victim.
mine*
	Made by Dwarfs.  The Rule here is that the Mine is either long
	deserted or at most is inhabited by a few survivors who will
	make confused claims to have been driven out/decimated by humans/
	other Dwarfs/Minions of the Dark Lord.  Inhabited or not, this
	Mine will be very complex, with many levels of galleries,
	beautifully carved and engineered.  What was being mined here
	is not always evident, but at least some of the time it will
	appear to have been Jewels, since it is customary to find
	unwanted emeralds, etc., still embedded in the rock of the
	walls.  Metal will also be present, but only when made up into
	armor and weapons (_wondrous_).
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
minotaur
	The Minotaur was a monster, half bull, half human, the
	offspring of Minos' wife Pasiphae and a wonderfully beautiful
	bull. ...  When the Minotaur was born Minos did not kill him.
	He had Daedalus, a great architect and inventor, construct a
	place of confinement for him from which escape was impossible.
	Daedalus built the Labyrinth, famous throughout the world.
	Once inside, one would go endlessly along its twisting paths
	without ever finding the exit.
		[ Mythology, by Edith Hamilton ]
mit*ra*
	Originating in India (Mitra), Mithra is a god of light who
	was translated into the attendant of the god Ahura Mazda in
	the light religion of Persia; from this he was adopted as
	the Roman deity Mithras.  He is not generally regarded as a
	sky god but a personification of the fertilizing power of
	warm, light air.  According to the _Avesta_, he possesses
	10,000 eyes and ears and rides in a chariot drawn by white
	horses.  Mithra, according to Zarathustra, is concerned with
	the endless battle between light and dark forces:  he
	represents truth.  He is responsible for the keeping of oaths
	and contracts.  He is attributed with the creation of both
	plants and animals.  His chief adversary is Ahriman, the
	power of darkness.
		[ The Encyclopaedia of Myths and Legends of All
			Nations, by Herbert Spencer Robinson and
			Knox Wilson ]
*mithril*
	_Mithril_!  All folk desired it.  It could be beaten like
	copper, and polished like glass; and the Dwarves could make
	of it a metal, light and yet harder than tempered steel.
	Its beauty was like to that of common silver, but the beauty
	of _mithril_ did not tarnish or grow dim.
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
*mitre of holiness
	This helm of brilliance performs all of the normal functions
	of a helm of brilliance, but also has the ability to protect
	anyone who carries it from fire.  When invoked, it boosts
	the energy of the invoker, allowing them to cast more spells.
mjollnir
	Forged by the dwarves Eitri and Brokk, in response to Loki's
	challenge, Mjollnir is an indestructible war hammer.  It has
	two magical properties:  when thrown it always returned to
	Thor's hand; and it could be made to shrink in size until it
	could fit inside Thor's shirt.  Its only flaw is that it has
	a short handle.  The other gods judged Mjollnir the winner of
	the contest because, of all the treasures created, it alone had
	the power to protect them from the giants.  As the legends
	surrounding Mjollnir grew, it began to take on the quality of
	"vigja", or consecration.  Thor used it to consecrate births,
	weddings, and even to raise his goats from the dead.  In the
	Norse mythologies Mjollnir is considered to represent Thor's
	governance over the entire cycle of life - fertility, birth,
	destruction, and resurrection.
~slime mold
*mold
	Mold, multicellular organism of the division Fungi, typified
	by plant bodies composed of a network of cottony filaments.
	The colors of molds are due to spores borne on the filaments.
	Most molds are saprophytes.  Some species (e.g., penicillium)
	are used in making cheese and antibiotics.
		[ The Concise Columbia Encyclopedia ]
mol?ch
	And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
	Again, thou shalt say to the children of Israel, Whosoever
	he be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that
	sojourn in Israel, that giveth any of his seed unto Molech;
	he shall surely be put to death: the people of the land shall
	stone him with stones.
	And I will set my face against that man, and will cut him off
	from among his people; because he hath given of his seed unto
	Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name.
	And if the people of the land do any ways hide their eyes
	from the man, when he giveth of his seed unto Molech, and kill
	him not:
	Then I will set my face against that man, and against his
	family, and will cut him off, and all that go a whoring after
	him, to commit whoredom with Molech, from among their people.
		[ Leviticus 20:1-5 ]
monkey
	"Listen, man-cub," said the Bear, and his voice rumbled like
	thunder on a hot night.  "I have taught thee all the Law of
	the Jungle for all the peoples of the jungle--except the
	Monkey-Folk who live in the trees.  They have no law.  They
	are outcasts.  They have no speech of their own, but use the
	stolen words which they overhear when they listen, and peep,
	and wait up above in the branches.  Their way is not our way.
	They are without leaders.  They have no remembrance.  They
	boast and chatter and pretend that they are a great people
	about to do great affairs in the jungle, but the falling of
	a nut turns their minds to laughter and all is forgotten.
	We of the jungle have no dealings with them.  We do not drink
	where the monkeys drink; we do not go where the monkeys go;
	we do not hunt where they hunt; we do not die where they die...."
		[ The Jungle Book, by Rudyard Kipling ]
mumak*
	... the Mumak of Harad was indeed a beast of vast bulk, and
	the like of him does not walk now in Middle-Earth; his kin
	that live still in latter days are but memories of his girth
	and majesty.  On he came, ... his great legs like trees,
	enormous sail-like ears spread out, long snout upraised like
	a huge serpent about to strike, his small red eyes raging.
	His upturned hornlike tusks ... dripped with blood.
		[ The Two Towers, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
*mummy
	But for an account of the manner in which the body was
	bandaged, and a list of the unguents and other materials
	employed in the process, and the words of power which were
	spoken as each bandage was laid in its place, we must have
	recourse to a very interesting papyrus which has been edited
	and translated by M. Maspero under the title of Le Rituel de
	l'Embaumement. ...
	Everything that could be done to preserve the body was now
	done, and every member of it was, by means of the words of
	power which changed perishable substances into imperishable,
	protected to all eternity; when the final covering of purple
	or white linen had been fastened upon it, the body was ready
	for the tomb.
		[ Egyptian Magic, by E.A. Wallis Budge ]
mummy wrapping
	He held a white cloth -- it was a serviette he had brought
	with him -- over the lower part of his face, so that his
	mouth and jaws were completely hidden, and that was the
	reason for his muffled voice.  But it was not that which
	startled Mrs. Hall.  It was the fact that all his forehead
	above his blue glasses was covered by a white bandage, and
	that another covered his ears, leaving not a scrap of his
	face exposed excepting only his pink, peaked nose.  It was
	bright, pink, and shiny just as it had been at first.  He
	wore a dark-brown velvet jacket with a high, black, linen-
	lined collar turned up about his neck.  The thick black
	hair, escaping as it could below and between the cross
	bandages, project in curious tails and horns, giving him
	the strangest appearance conceivable.
		[ The Invisible Man, by H.G. Wells ]
*naga*
*naja*
	The naga is a mystical creature with the body of a snake and
	the head of a man or woman.  They will fiercely protect the
	territory they consider their own.  Some nagas can be forced
	to serve as guardians by a spellcaster of great power.
naginata
	A Japanese pole-arm, fitted with a curved single-edged blade.
	The blades ranged in length from two to four feet, mounted on
	shafts about four to five feet long.  The naginata were cut
	with a series of short grooves near to the tang, above which
	the back edge was thinned, but not sharpened, so that the
	greater part of the blade was a flattened diamond shape in
	section.  Seen in profile, the curve is slight or non-
	existent near the tang, becoming more pronounced towards the
	point.

	"With his naginata he killed five, but with the sixth it
	snapped asunder in the midst and, flinging it away, he drew
	his sword, wielding it in the zigzag style, the interlacing,
	cross, reversed dragonfly, waterwheel, and eight-sides-at-
	once styles of fencing and cutting down eight men; but as he
	brought down the ninth with a mighty blow on the helmet, the
	blade snapped at the hilt."
	[ Story of Tsutsui no Jomio Meishu from Tales of Heike ]
nalfeshnee
	Not only do these demons do physical damage with their claws
	and bite, but they are capable of using magic as well.
nalzok
	Nalzok is Moloch's cunning and unfailingly loyal battle
	lieutenant, to whom he trusts the command of warfare when he
	does not wish to exercise it himself.  Nalzok is a major
	demon, known to command the undead.  He is hungry for power,
	and secretly covets Moloch's position.  Moloch doesn't trust
	him, but, trusting his own power enough, chooses to allow
	Nalzok his position because he is useful.
neanderthal*
	1.  Valley between Duesseldorf and Elberfeld in Germany,
	where an ancient skull of a prehistoric ancestor to modern
	man was found.  2.  Human(oid) of the race mentioned above.
newt
	(kinds of) small animal, like a lizard, which spends most of
	its time in the water.
		[ Oxford's Student's Dictionary of Current English ]

	"Fillet of a fenny snake,
	In the cauldron boil and bake;
	Eye of newt and toe of frog,
	Wool of bat and tongue of dog,
	Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting,
	Lizard's leg and howlet's wing,
	For a charm of powerful trouble,
	Like a hell-broth boil and bubble."
		[ Macbeth, by William Shakespeare ]
ninja-to
	A Japanese broadsword.
*norn
	The Norns were the three Norse Fates, or the goddesses of fate.
	Female giants, they brought the wonderful Golden Age to an end.
	They cast lots over the cradle of every child that was born,
	and placed gifts in the cradle.  Their names were Urda,
	Verdandi, and Skuld, representing the past, the present, and
	the future.  Urda and Verdandi were kindly disposed, but Skuld
	was cruel and savage.  Their tasks were to sew the web of
	fate, to water the sacred ash, Yggdrasil, and to keep it in
	good condition by placing fresh earth around it daily.  In her
	fury, Skuld often spoiled the work of her sisters by tearing
	the web to shreds.
		[ The Encyclopedia of Myths and Legends of All
			Nations by Herbert Spencer Robinson and Knox
			Wilson ]
nunchaku
	A Japanese flail.
*nymph
	A female creature from Roman and Greek mythology, the nymph
	occupied rivers, forests, ponds, etc.  A nymph's beauty is
	beyond words:  an ever-young woman with sleek figure and
	long, thick hair, radiant skin and perfect teeth, full lips
	and gentle eyes.  A nymph's scent is delightful, and her
	long robe glows, hemmed with golden threads and embroidered
	with rainbow hues of unearthly magnificence.  A nymph's
	demeanour is graceful and charming, her mind quick and witty.

	"Theseus felt her voice pulling him down into fathoms of
	sleep.	The song was the skeleton of his dream, and the dream
	was full of terror.  Demon girls were after him, and a bull-
	man was goring him.  Everywhere there was blood.  There was
	pain.  There was fear.	But his head was in the nymph's lap
	and her musk was about him, her voice weaving the dream.  He
	knew then that she had been sent to tell him of something
	dreadful that was to happen to him later.  Her song was a
	warning.  But she had brought him a new kind of joy, one that
	made him see everything differently.  The boy, who was to
	become a hero, suddenly knew then what most heroes learn
	later -- and some too late -- that joy blots suffering and
	that the road to nymphs is beset by monsters."
	    [ The Minotaur by Bernard Evslin ]
odin
	Also called Sigtyr (god of Victory), Val-father (father of
	the slain), One-Eyed, Hanga-god (god of the hanged), Farma-
	god (god of cargoes), Hapta-god (god of prisoners), and
	Othin.  He is the prime god of the Norsemen:  god of war and
	victory, wisdom and prophecy, poetry, the dead, air and wind,
	hospitality, and magic.
	As the god of war and victory, Odin is ruler of the Valkyries,
	warrior-maidens who lived in the halls of Valhalla in Asgard,
	the hall of dead heroes where he held his court.
	These chosen ones will defend the realm of the gods against
	the Frost Giants on the final day of reckoning, Ragnarok.
	As god of the wind, Odin rides through the air on his eight-
	footed horse, Sleipnir, wielding Gungner, his spear, normally
	accompanied by his ravens, Hugin and Munin, who he would also
	use as his spies.
	As a god of hospitality, he enjoys visiting the earth in
	disguise to see how people were behaving and to see how they
	would treat him, not knowing who he was.
	Odin is usually represented as a one-eyed wise old man with a
	long white beard and a wide-brimmed hat (he gave one of his
	eyes to Mimir, the guardian of the well of wisdom in Hel, in
	exchange for a draught of knowledge).
ogre*
	Anyone who has met a gluttonous, nude, angry ogre, will not
	easily forget this encounter -- if he survives it at all.
	Both male and female ogres can easily grow as tall as three
	metres.  Build and facial expressions would remind one of a
	Neanderthal.  Its small, pointy, keen teeth are striking.
	Since ogres avoid direct sunlight, their ragged, unfurry
	skin is as white as a sheet.  They enjoy coating their body
	with lard and usually wear nothing but a loin-cloth.  An elf
	would smell its rancid stench at ten metres distance.
	Ogres are solitary creatures:  very rarely one may encounter
	a female with two or three young.  They are the only real
	carnivores among the humanoids, and its favourite meal is --
	not surprisingly -- human flesh.  They sometimes ally with
	orcs or goblins, but only when they anticipate a good meaty
	meal.
		[ het Boek van de Regels; Het Oog des Meesters ]
oilskin cloak
	During our watches below we overhauled our clothes, and made
	and mended everything for bad weather.  Each of us had made
	for himself a suit of oil-cloth or tarpaulin, and these we
	got out, and gave thorough coatings of oil or tar, and hung
	upon the stays to dry.  Our stout boots, too, we covered
	over with a thick mixture of melted grease and tar.  Thus we
	took advantage of the warm sun and fine weather of the
	Pacific to prepare for its other face.
		[ Two Years Before the Mast, by Richard Henry Dana ]
oilskin sack
	Summer passed all too quickly.  On the last day of camp, Mr.
	Brickle called his counselors together and paid them what he
	owed them.  Louis received one hundred dollars - the first
	money he had ever earned.  He had no wallet and no pockets,
	so Mr. Brickle placed the money in a waterproof bag that had
	a drawstring.  He hung this moneybag around Louis' neck,
	along with the trumpet, the slate, the chalk pencil, and the
	lifesaving medal.
		[ The Trumpet of the Swan, by E.B. White ]
olog-hai
	But at the end of the Third Age a troll-race not before seen
	appeared in southern Mirkwood and in the mountain borders of
	Mordor.  Olog-hai they were called in the Black Speech.  That
	Sauron bred them none doubted, though from what stock was not
	known.  Some held that they were not Trolls but giant Orcs;
	but the Olog-hai were in fashion of body and mind quite unlike
	even the largest of Orc-kind, whom they far surpassed in size
	and power.  Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will
	of their master:  a fell race, strong, agile, fierce and
	cunning, but harder than stone.  Unlike the older race of the
	Twilight they could endure the Sun....  They spoke little,
	and the only tongue they knew was the Black Speech of Barad-dur.
		[ The Return of the King, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
oracle
delphi
p*thia
	Delphi under towering Parnassus, where Apollo's oracle was,
	plays an important part in mythology.  Castalia was its
	sacred spring; Cephissus its river.  It was held to be the
	center of the world, so many pilgrims came to it, from
	foreign countries as well as Greece.  No other shrine rivaled
	it.  The answers to the questions asked by the anxious
	seekers for Truth were delivered by a priestess who went into
	a trance before she spoke.
		[ Mythology, by Edith Hamilton ]
orange
pear
	What was the fruit like?  Unfortunately, no one can describe
	a taste.  All I can say is that, compared with those fruits,
	the freshest grapefruit you've ever eaten was dull, and the
	juiciest orange was dry, and the most melting pear was hard
	and woody, and the sweetest wild strawberry was sour.  And
	there were no seeds or stones, and no wasps.  If you had once
	eaten that fruit, all the nicest things in this world would
	taste like medicines after it.  But I can't describe it.  You
	can't find out what it is like unless you can get to that
	country and taste it for yourself.
		[ The Last Battle, by C.S. Lewis ]
*orb of detection
	This Orb is a crystal ball of exceptional powers.  When
	carried, it grants ESP, limits damage done by spells, and
	protects the carrier from magic missiles.  When invoked it
	allows the carrier to become invisible.
orb of fate
	Some say that Odin himself created this ancient crystal ball,
	although others argue that Loki created it and forged Odin's
	signature on the bottom.  In any case, it is a powerful
	artifact.  Anyone who carries it is granted the gift of
	warning, and damage, both spell and physical, is partially
	absorbed by the orb itself.  When invoked it has the power
	to teleport the invoker between levels.
goblin king
orcrist
	The Great Goblin gave a truly awful howl of rage when he
	looked at it, and all his soldiers gnashed their teeth,
	clashed their shields, and stamped.  They knew the sword at
	once.  It had killed hundreds of goblins in its time, when
	the fair elves of Gondolin hunted them in the hills or did
	battle before their walls.  They had called it Orcrist,
	Goblin-cleaver, but the goblins called it simply Biter.
	They hated it and hated worse any one that carried it.
		[ The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
orcus
	Orcus, Prince of the Undead, has a ram's head and a poison
	stinger.  He is most feared, though, for his powerful magic
	abilities.  His wand causes death to those he chooses.
~orc ??m*
orc*
* orc
uruk*hai
	Orcs, bipeds with a humanoid appearance, are related to the
	goblins, but much bigger and more dangerous.  The average orc
	is only moderately intelligent, has broad, muscled shoulders,
	a short neck, a sloping forehead and a thick, dark fur.
	Their lower eye-teeth are pointing forward, like a boar's.
	Female orcs are more lightly built and bare-chested.  Not
	needing any clothing, they do like to dress in variegated
	apparels.  Suspicious by nature, orcs live in tribes or
	hordes.  They tend to live underground as well as above
	ground (but they dislike sunlight).  Orcs can use all weapons,
	tools and armours that are used by men.  Since they don't have
	the talent to fashion these themselves, they are constantly
	hunting for them.  There is nothing a horde of orcs cannot
	use.
		[ het Boek van de Regels; Het Oog des Meesters ]
orion
sirius
	Orion was the son of Neptune. He was a handsome giant and a
	mighty hunter. His father gave him the power of wading
	through the depths of the sea, or, as others say, of
	walking on its surface.

	He dwelt as a hunter with Diana (Artemis), with whom he
	was a favourite, and it is even said she was about to marry
	him. Her brother was highly displeased and often chid her,
	but to no purpose. One day, observing Orion wading through
	the sea with his head just above the water, Apollo pointed
	it out to his sister and maintained that she could not hit
	that black thing on the sea. The archer-goddess discharged
	a shaft with fatal aim. The waves rolled the dead body of
	Orion to the land, and bewailing her fatal error with many
	tears, Diana placed him among the stars, where he appears
	as a giant, with a girdle, sword, lion's skin, and
	club. Sirius, his dog, follows him, and the Pleiads fly
	before him.
		[ Bulfinch's Mythology, by Thomas Bulfinch ]
osaku
	The osaku is a small tool for picking locks.
owlbear
	Owlbears are probably the crossbreed creation of a demented
	wizard; given the lethal nature of this creation, it is quite
	likely the wizard who created them is no longer alive.  As
	the name might already suggest, owlbears are a cross between
	a giant owl and a bear.  They are covered with fur and
	feathers.
panther
	And lo! almost where the ascent began,
	A panther light and swift exceedingly,
	Which with a spotted skin was covered o'er!

	And never moved she from before my face,
	Nay, rather did impede so much my way,
	That many times I to return had turned.
		[ Dante's Inferno, as translated
			by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ]
pelias
	Conan cried out sharply and recoiled, thrusting his companion
	back.  Before them rose the great shimmering white form of Satha,
	an ageless hate in its eyes.  Conan tensed himself for one mad
	berserker onslaught -- to thrust the glowing faggot into that
	fiendish countenance and throw his life into the ripping sword-
	stroke.  But the snake was not looking at him.  It was glaring
	over his shoulder at the man called Pelias, who stood with his
	arms folded, smiling.  And in the great, cold, yellow eyes
	slowly the hate died out in a glitter of pure fear -- the only
	time Conan ever saw such an expression in a reptile's eyes.
	With a swirling rush like the sweep of a strong wind, the great
	snake was gone.
	"What did he see to frighten him?" asked Conan, eyeing his
	companion uneasily.
	"The scaled people see what escapes the mortal eye," answered
	Pelias cryptically.  "You see my fleshy guise, he saw my naked
	soul."
	    [ Conan the Usurper, by Robert E. Howard and L. Sprague de Camp ]
pick*ax*
	The mine is full of holes;
	With the wound of pickaxes.
	But look at the goldsmith's store.
	There, there is gold everywhere.
		[ Divan-i Kebir Meter 2, by Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi ]
*piercer
	Ye Piercer doth look like unto a stalactyte, and hangeth
	from the roofs of caves and caverns.  Unto the height of a
	man, and thicker than a man's thigh do they grow, and in
	groups do they hang.  If a creature doth pass beneath them,
	they will by its heat and noise perceive it, and fall upon
	it to kill and devour it, though in any other way they move
	but exceeding slow.
		[ the Bestiary of Xygag ]
pit
spiked pit
	Amid the thought of the fiery destruction that impended, the
	idea of the coolness of the well came over my soul like balm.
	I rushed to its deadly brink.  I threw my straining vision
	below.  The glare from the enkindled roof illumined its inmost
	recesses.  Yet, for a wild moment, did my spirit refuse to
	comprehend the meaning of what I saw.  At length it forced --
	it wrestled its way into my soul -- it burned itself in upon my
	shuddering reason.  Oh! for a voice to speak! -- oh! horror! --
	oh! any horror but this!
		[ The Pit and the Pendulum, by Edgar Allan Poe ]
pit fiend
	Pit fiends are among the more powerful of devils, capable of
	attacking twice with weapons as well as grabbing and crushing
	the life out of those unwary enough to enter their
	domains.
platinum yendorian express card
	This is an ancient artifact made of an unknown material.  It
	is rectangular in shape, very thin, and inscribed with
	unreadable ancient runes.  When carried, it grants the one
	who carries it ESP, and reduces all physical damage done to
	the carrier by half.  It also protects from magic missile
	attacks.  Finally, its power is such that when invoked, it
	can charge other objects.
pony
		Hey! now! Come hoy now! Whither do you wander?
		Up, down, near or far, here, there or yonder?
		Sharp-ears, Wise-nose, Swish-tail and Bumpkin,
		White-socks my little lad, and old Fatty Lumpkin!

	[...]
	Tom called them one by one and they climbed over the brow and
	stood in a line.  Then Tom bowed to the hobbits.

	"Here are your ponies, now!" he said.  "They've more sense (in some
	ways) than you wandering hobbits have -- more sense in their noses.
	For they sniff danger ahead which you walk right into; and if they
	run to save themselves, then they run the right way."
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
*portal
	Portals can be Mirrors, Pictures, Standing Stones, Stone
	Circles, Windows, and special gates set up for the purpose.
	You will travel through them both to distant parts of the
	continent and to and from our own world.  The precise manner
	of their working is a Management secret.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
poseido*n
	Poseido(o)n, lord of the seas and father of rivers and
	fountains, was the son of Chronos and Rhea, brother of Zeus,
	Hades, Hera, Hestia and Demeter.  His rank of ruler of the
	waves he received by lot at the Council Meeting of the Gods,
	at which Zeus took the upper world for himself and gave
	dominion over the lower world to Hades.
	Poseidon is associated in many ways with horses and thus is
	the god of horses.  He taught men how to ride and manage the
	animal he invented and is looked upon as the originator and
	guardian deity of horse races.
	His symbol is the familiar trident or three-pronged spear
	with which he can split rocks, cause or quell storms, and
	shake the earth, a power which makes him the god of
	earthquakes as well.  Physically, he is shown as a strong and
	powerful ruler, every inch a king.
		[ The Encyclopedia of Myths and Legends of All
		  Nations, by Herbert Robinson and Knox Wilson ]
*potion*
	POTABLE, n.  Suitable for drinking.  Water is said to be
	potable; indeed, some declare it our natural beverage,
	although even they find it palatable only when suffering
	from the recurrent disorder known as thirst, for which it
	is a medicine.  Upon nothing has so great and diligent
	ingenuity been brought to bear in all ages and in all
	countries, except the most uncivilized, as upon the
	invention of substitutes for water.  To hold that this
	general aversion to that liquid has no basis in the
	preservative instinct of the race is to be unscientific --
	and without science we are as the snakes and toads.
		[ The Devil's Dictionary, by Ambrose Bierce ]
prisoner
	Where am I?
		In the Village.
	What do you want?
		Information.
	Whose side are you on?
		That would be telling.  We want information ...
		information ...
	You won't get it.
		By hook or by crook, we will.
	Who are you?
		The new Number 2.
	Who is Number 1?
		You are Number 6.
	I am not a number!  I am a free man!
		[ The Prisoner, by Patrick McGoohan ]
ptah
	Known under various names (Nu, Neph, Cenubis, Amen-Kneph,
	Khery-Bakef), Ptah is the creator god and god of craftsmen.
	He is usually depicted as wearing a closely fitting robe
	with only his hands free.  His most distinctive features are
	the invariable skull-cap exposing only his face and ears,
	and the _was_ or rod of domination which he holds,
	consisting of a staff surmounted by the _ankh_ symbol of
	life.  He is otherwise symbolized by his sacred animal, the
	bull.
*purple worm
	A gargantuan version of the harmless rain-worm, the purple
	worm poses a huge threat to the ordinary adventurer.  It is
	known to swallow whole and digest its victims within only a
	few minutes.  These worms are always on guard, sensitive
	to the most minute vibrations in the earth, but may also
	be awakened by a remote shriek.
quadruped
	The woodlands and other regions are inhabited by multitudes
	of four-legged creatures which cannot be simply classified.
	They might not have fiery breath or deadly stings, but
	adventurers have nevertheless met their end numerous times
	due to the claws, hooves, or bites of such animals.
quantum mechanic
	These creatures are not native to this universe; they seem
	to have strangely derived powers, and unknown motives.
quasit
	Quasits are small, evil creatures, related to imps.  Their
	talons release a very toxic poison when used in an attack.
quest
	Many, possibly most, Tours are organized as a Quest.  This
	is like a large-scale treasure hunt, with clues scattered
	all over the continent, a few false leads, Mystical Masters
	as game-show hosts, and the Dark Lord and the Terrain to
	make the Quest interestingly difficult.  [...]
	In order to be assured of your future custom, the Management
	has a further Rule:  Tourists, far from being rewarded for
	achieving their Quest Object, must then go on to conquer
	the Dark Lord or set about Saving the World, or both.  And
	why not?  By then you will have had a lot of practice in
	that sort of thing and, besides, the Quest Object is usually
	designed to help you do it.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
quetzalcoatl
	One of the principal Aztec-Toltec gods was the great and wise
	Quetzalcoatl, who was called Kukumatz in Guatemala, and
	Kukulcan in Yucatan.  His image, the plumed serpent, is found
	on both the oldest and the most recent Indian edifices. ...
	The legend tells how the Indian deity Quetzalcoatl came from
	the "Land of the Rising Sun".  He wore a long white robe and
	had a beard; he taught the people crafts and customs and laid
	down wise laws.  He created an empire in which the ears of
	corn were as long as men are tall, and caused bolls of colored
	cotton to grow on cotton plants.  But for some reason or other
	he had to leave his empire. ...  But all the legends of
	Quetzalcoatl unanimously agree that he promised to come again.
		[ Gods, Graves, and Scholars, by C. W. Ceram ]
raijin
raiden
	The god of thunder.
human ranger
ranger
	"Lonely men are we, Rangers of the wild, hunters -- but hunters
	ever of the servants of the Enemy; for they are found in many
	places, not in Mordor only.
	If Gondor, Boromir, has been a stalwart tower, we have played
	another part.  Many evil things there are that your strong walls
	and bright swords do not stay.  You know little of the lands
	beyond your bounds.  Peace and freedom, do you say?  The North
	would have known them little but for us.  Fear would have
	destroyed them.  But when dark things come from the houseless
	hills, or creep from sunless woods, they fly from us.  What
	roads would any dare to tread, what safety would there be in
	quiet lands, or in the homes of simple men at night, if the
	Dunedain were asleep, or were all gone into the grave?"
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
rat
* rat
	Rats are long-tailed rodents.  They are aggressive,
	omnivorous, and adaptable, often carrying diseases.

	"The rat," said O'Brien, still addressing his invisible
	audience, "although a rodent, is carnivorous.  You are aware
	of that.  You will have heard of the things that happen in
	the poor quarters of this town.  In some streets a woman dare
	not leave her baby alone in the house, even for five minutes.
	The rats are certain to attack it.  Within quite a small time
	they will strip it to the bones.  They also attack sick or
	dying people.  They show astonishing intelligence in knowing
	when a human being is helpless."
		[ 1984, by George Orwell ]
raven
	But the raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only
	That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour.
	Nothing further then he uttered -- not a feather then he fluttered--
	Till I scarcely more than muttered, 'other friends have flown before--
	On the morrow *he* will leave me, as my hopes have flown before.'
		Then the bird said, 'Nevermore.'
				[ The Raven - Edgar Allan Poe ]
*ring
ring of *
	Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
	Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
	Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
	One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
	In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
	One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
	One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
	In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
robe
	Robes are the only garments, apart from Shirts, ever to have
	sleeves.  They have three uses:
	1.  As the official uniform of Priests, Priestesses, Monks,
	Nuns (see Nunnery), and Wizards.  The OMT [ Official Management
	Term ] prescribed for the Robes of Priests and Nuns is that
	they _fall in severe folds_; of Priestesses that they _float_;
	and of Wizards that they _swirl_.  You can thus see who you
	are dealing with.
	2.  For Kings.  The OMT here is _falling in stately folds_.
	3.  As the garb of Desert Nomads.  [...]
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
rock
	Bilbo saw that the moment had come when he must do something.
	He could not get up at the brutes and he had nothing to shoot
	with; but looking about he saw that in this place there were
	many stones lying in what appeared to be a now dry little
	watercourse.  Bilbo was a pretty fair shot with a stone, and
	it did not take him long to find a nice smooth egg-shaped one
	that fitted his hand cosily.  As a boy he used to practise
	throwing stones at things, until rabbits and squirrels, and
	even birds, got out of his way as quick as lightning if they
	saw him stoop; and even grownup he had still spent a deal of
	his time at quoits, dart-throwing, shooting at the wand,
	bowls, ninepins and other quiet games of the aiming and
	throwing sort - indeed he could do lots of things, besides
	blowing smoke-rings, asking riddles and cooking, that I
	haven't time to tell you about.  There is no time now.  While
	he was picking up stones, the spider had reached Bombur, and
	soon he would have been dead.  At that moment Bilbo threw.
	The stone struck the spider plunk on the head, and it dropped
	senseless off the tree, flop to the ground, with all its legs
	curled up.
		[ The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
rock mole
	A rock mole is a member of the rodent family.  They get their
	name from their ability to tunnel through rock in the same
	fashion that a mole tunnels through earth.  They are known to
	eat anything they come across in their diggings, although it
	is still unknown how they convert some of these things into
	something of nutritional value.
rogue
human rogue
	I understand the business, I hear it: to have an open ear, a
	quick eye, and a nimble hand, is necessary for a cut-purse; a
	good nose is requisite also, to smell out work for the other
	senses.  I see this is the time that the unjust man doth
	thrive. <...> The prince himself is about a piece of iniquity,
	stealing away from his father with his clog at his heels:  if
	I thought it were a piece of honesty to acquaint the king
	withal, I would not do't:  I hold it the more knavery to
	conceal it; and therein am I constant to my profession.
		[ Autolycus the Rogue, from The Winter's Tale by
			William Shakespeare ]
rothe
	The rothe (pronounced roth-AY) is a musk ox-like creature with
	an aversion to light.  It prefers to live underground near
	lichen and moss.
*royal jelly
	"'Royal Jelly,'" he read aloud, "'must be a substance of
	tremendous nourishing power, for on this diet alone, the
	honey-bee larva increases in weight fifteen hundred times in
	five days!'"

	"How much?"

	"Fifteen hundred times, Mabel.  And you know what that means
	if you put it in terms of a human being?  It means," he said,
	lowering his voice, leaning forward, fixing her with those
	small pale eyes, "it means that in five days a baby weighing
	seven and a half pounds to start off with would increase in
	weight to five tons!"
		[ Royal Jelly, by Roald Dahl ]
rust monster
	These strange creatures live on a diet of metals.  They can
	turn a suit of armour into so much useless rusted scrap in no
	time at all.
*saber
*sabre
	Flashed all their sabres bare,
	Flashed as they turned in air,
	Sab'ring the gunners there,
	Charging an army, while
	All the world wondered:
	Plunged in the battery smoke,
	Right through the line they broke;
	Cossack and Russian
	Reeled from the sabre-stroke
	Shattered and sundered.
	Then they rode back, but not--
	Not the six hundred.
		[ The Charge of the Light Brigade,
		  by Alfred, Lord Tennyson ]
saddle
	The horseman serves the horse,
	The neat-herd serves the neat,
	The merchant serves the purse,
	The eater serves his meat;
	'Tis the day of the chattel,
	Web to weave, and corn to grind,
	Things are in the saddle,
	And ride mankind.
		[ Ode, by Ralph Waldo Emerson ]
sake
	Japanese rice wine.
salamander
	For hundreds of years, many people believed that salamanders
	were magical.  In England in the Middle Ages, people thought
	that fire created salamanders.  When they set fire to damp
	logs, dozens of the slimy creatures scurried out.  The word
	salamander, in fact, comes from a Greek word meaning "fire
	animal".
		[ Salamanders, by Cherie Winner ]
sandestin
	Ildefonse left the terrace and almost immediately sounds
	of contention came from the direction of the work-room.
	Ildefonse presently returned to the terrace, followed by
	Osherl and a second sandestin using the guise of a gaunt blue
	bird-like creature, some six feet in height.

	Ildefonse spoke in scathing tones:  "Behold these two
	creatures!  They can roam the chronoplex as easily as you
	or I can walk around the table; yet neither has the wit to
	announce his presence upon arrival.  I found Osherl asleep
	in his fulgurite and Sarsem perched in the rafters."
		[...]
	"No matter," said Rhialto.  "He has brought Sarsem, and this
	was his requirement.  In the main, Osherl, you have done well!"

	"And my indenture point?"

	"Much depends upon Sarsem's testimony.  Sarsem, will you sit?"

	"In this guise, I find it more convenient to stand."

	"Then why not alter to human form and join us in comfort at
	the table?"

	"That is a good idea."  Sarsem became a naked young epicene
	in an integument of lavender scales with puffs of purple hair
	like pom-poms growing down his back.  He seated himself at
	the table but declined refreshment.  "This human semblance,
	though typical, is after all, only a guise.  If I were to put
	such things inside myself, I might well become uneasy."
		[ Rhialto the Marvellous, by Jack Vance ]
sasquatch
	The name _Sasquatch_ doesn't really become important in Canada
	until the 1930s, when it appeared in the works of J. W. Burns,
	a British Columbian writer who used a great deal of Indian
	lore in his stories.  Burn's Sasquatch was a giant Indian who
	lived in the wilderness.  He was hairy only in the sense that
	he had long hair on his head, and while this Sasquatch lived a
	wild and primitive life, he was fully human.
	Burns's character proved to be quite popular.  There was a
	Sasquatch Inn near the town of Harrison, British Columbia, and
	Harrison even had a local celebration called "Sasquatch Days."
	The celebration which had been dormant for years was revived
	as part of British Columbia's centennial, and one of the
	events was to be a Sasquatch hunt.  The hunt never took place,
	perhaps it was never supposed to, but the publicity about it
	did bring out a number of people who said they had encountered
	a Sasquatch -- not Burns's giant Indian, but the hairy apelike
	creature that we have all come to know.
		[ The Encyclopedia of Monsters, by Daniel Cohen ]
*sceptre of might
	This mace was created aeons ago in some unknown cave,
	and has been passed down from generation to generation of
	cave dwellers.  It is a very mighty mace indeed, and in
	addition will protect anyone who carries it from magic
	missile attacks.  When invoked, it causes conflict in the
	area around it.
scorpio*
	A sub-species of the spider (_Scorpionidae_), the scorpion
	distinguishes itself from them by having a lower body that
	ends in a long, jointed tail tapering to a poisonous stinger.
	They have eight legs and pincers.
		[ Van Dale's Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal ]
scorpius
	Since early times, the Scorpion has represented death, darkness,
	and evil.  Scorpius is the reputed slayer of Orion the Hunter.
	[...]  The gods put both scorpion and hunter among the stars, but
	on opposite sides of the sky so they would never fight again.
	As Scorpius rises in the east, Orion sets in the west.
		[ 365 Starry Nights, by Chet Raymo ]
*scroll
scroll of *
	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 ]
shad*
	Shades are undead creatures.  They differ from zombies in
	that a zombie is an undead animation of a corpse, while a
	shade is an undead creature magically created by the use
	of black magic.
shaman karnov
	Making his quarters in the Caves of the Ancestors, Shaman
	Karnov unceasingly tries to shield his neanderthal people
	from Tiamat's minions' harassments.
shan*lai*ching
	The Chinese god of Mountains and Seas, also the name of an
	old book (also Shan Hai Tjing), the book of mountains and
	seas - which deals with the monster Kung Kung trying to
	seize power from Yao, the fourth emperor.
		[ Spectrum Atlas van de Mythologie ]
shito
	A Japanese stabbing knife.
skeleton
	A skeleton is a magically animated undead creature.  Unlike
	shades, only a humanoid creature can be used to create a
	skeleton.  No one knows why this is true, but it has become
	an accepted fact amongst the practitioners of the black arts.
slasher
	"That dog belonged to a settler who tried to build his cabin
	on the bank of the river a few miles south of the fort,"
	grunted Conan. ...  "We took him to the fort and dressed his
	wounds, but after he recovered he took to the woods and turned
	wild.  -- What now, Slasher, are you hunting the men who
	killed your master?" ...  "Let him come," muttered Conan.
	"He can smell the devils before we can see them." ...
	Slasher cleared the timbers with a bound and leaped into the
	bushes.  They were violently shaken and then the dog slunk
	back to Balthus' side, his jaws crimson. ...  "He was a man,"
	said Conan.  "I drink to his shade, and to the shade of the
	dog, who knew no fear."  He quaffed part of the wine, then
	emptied the rest upon the floor, with a curious heathen
	gesture, and smashed the goblet.  "The heads of ten Picts
	shall pay for this, and seven heads for the dog, who was a
	better warrior than many a man."
		[ Conan The Warrior, by Robert E Howard ]
slime mold
	Slime mold or slime fungus, organism usually classified with
	the fungi, but showing equal affinity to the protozoa.  Slime
	molds have complex life cycles with an animal-like motile
	phase, in which feeding and growth occur, and a plant-like
	immotile reproductive phase.  The motile phase, commonly
	found under rotting logs and damp leaves, consists of either
	solitary amoebalike cells or a brightly colored multinucleate
	mass of protoplasm called a plasmodium, which creeps about
	and feeds by amoeboid movement.
		[ The Concise Columbia Encyclopedia ]
sling
	And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and
	drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward
	the army to meet the Philistine.
	And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone,
	and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that
	the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face
	to the earth.
	So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with
	a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there
	was no sword in the hand of David.
		[ 1 Samuel 17:48-50 ]
*snake
serpent
water moccasin
python
pit viper
	Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field
	which the Lord God had made.  And he said unto the woman, Yea,
	hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
	And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of
	the trees of the garden:  but of the fruit of the tree which is
	in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of
	it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.  And the serpent
	said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:  for God doth
	know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be
	opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.  And
	when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it
	was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one
	wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also
	unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

	And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou
	hast done?  And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I
	did eat.  And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou
	hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above
	every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and
	dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:  And I will put
	enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her
	seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
		[ Genesis 3:1-6,13-15 ]
snickersnee
	Ah, never shall I forget the cry,
	    or the shriek that shrieked he,
	As I gnashed my teeth, and from my sheath
	    I drew my Snickersnee!
	--Koko, Lord high executioner of Titipu
		[ The Mikado, by Sir W.S. Gilbert ]
sokoban
	Sokoban (Japanese for "warehouse person") is a puzzle-type
	game where the player must push around treasure to a goal
	area.  It apparently won first prize in a Japanese programming
	contest.
		[ Xsokoban web site ]
*soldier
sergeant
lieutenant
captain
	The soldiers of Yendor are well-trained in the art of war,
	many trained by the Wizard himself.  Some say the soldiers
	are explorers who were unfortunate enough to be captured,
	and put under the Wizard's spell.  Those who have survived
	encounters with soldiers say they travel together in platoons,
	and are fierce fighters.  Because of the load of their combat
	gear, however, one can usually run away from them, and doing
	so is considered a wise thing.
*spear
javelin
	- they come together with great random, and a spear is brast,
	and one party brake his shield and the other one goes down,
	horse and man, over his horse-tail and brake his neck, and
	then the next candidate comes randoming in, and brast his
	spear, and the other man brast his shield, and down he goes,
	horse and man, over his horse-tail, and brake his neck, and
	then there's another elected, and another and another and
	still another, till the material is all used up; and when you
	come to figure up results, you can't tell one fight from
	another, nor who whipped; and as a picture of living, raging,
	roaring battle, sho! why it's pale and noiseless - just
	ghosts scuffling in a fog.  Dear me, what would this barren
	vocabulary get out of the mightiest spectacle? - the burning
	of Rome in Nero's time, for instance?  Why, it would merely
	say 'Town burned down; no insurance; boy brast a window,
	fireman brake his neck!'  Why, that ain't a picture!
		[ A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, by Mark
		  Twain ]
*spellbook*
	The Book of Three lay closed on the table.  Taran had never
	been allowed to read the volume for himself; now he was sure
	it held more than Dallben chose to tell him.  In the sun-
	filled room, with Dallben still meditating and showing no
	sign of stopping, Taran rose and moved through the shimmering
	beams.  From the forest came the monotonous tick of a beetle.
	His hands reached for the cover.  Taran gasped in pain and
	snatched them away.  They smarted as if each of his fingers
	had been stung by hornets.  He jumped back, stumbled against
	the bench, and dropped to the floor, where he put his fingers
	woefully into his mouth.
	Dallben's eyes blinked open.  He peered at Taran and yawned
	slowly.  "You had better see Coll about a lotion for those
	hands," he advised.  "Otherwise, I shouldn't be surprised if
	they blistered."
		[ The Book of Three, by Lloyd Alexander ]
*spider
	Eight legged creature capable of spinning webs to trap prey.

	"You mean you eat flies?" gasped Wilbur.
	"Certainly.  Flies, bugs, grasshoppers, choice beetles,
	moths, butterflies, tasty cockroaches, gnats, midges, daddy
	longlegs, centipedes, mosquitoes, crickets - anything that is
	careless enough to get caught in my web.  I have to live,
	don't I?"
	"Why, yes, of course," said Wilbur.
		[ Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White ]
*spore
*sphere
	The attack by those who want to die -- this is the attack
	against which you cannot prepare a perfect defense.
					--Human aphorism
		[ The Dosadi Experiment, by Frank Herbert ]
~*aesculapius
*staff
	So they stood, each in his place, neither moving a finger's
	breadth back, for one good hour, and many blows were given
	and received by each in that time, till here and there were
	sore bones and bumps, yet neither thought of crying "Enough,"
	or seemed likely to fall from off the bridge.  Now and then
	they stopped to rest, and each thought that he never had seen
	in all his life before such a hand at quarterstaff.  At last
	Robin gave the stranger a blow upon the ribs that made his
	jacket smoke like a damp straw thatch in the sun.  So shrewd
	was the stroke that the stranger came within a hair's breadth
	of falling off the bridge; but he regained himself right
	quickly, and, by a dexterous blow, gave Robin a crack on the
	crown that caused the blood to flow.  Then Robin grew mad
	with anger, and smote with all his might at the other; but
	the stranger warded the blow, and once again thwacked Robin,
	and this time so fairly that he fell heels over head into the
	water, as the queen pin falls in a game of bowls.
		[ The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, by Howard Pyle ]
*staff of aesculapius
	This staff is considered sacred to all healers, as it truly
	holds the powers of life and death.  When wielded, it
	protects its user from all life draining attacks, and
	additionally gives the wielder the power of regeneration.
	When invoked it performs healing magic.
staircase*
	Up he went -- very quickly at first -- then more slowly -- then
	in a little while even more slowly than that -- and finally,
	after many minutes of climbing up the endless stairway, one
	weary foot was barely able to follow the other.  Milo suddenly
	realized that with all his effort he was no closer to the top
	than when he began, and not a great deal further from the
	bottom.  But he struggled on for a while longer, until at last,
	completely exhausted, he collapsed onto one of the steps.
	"I should have known it," he mumbled, resting his tired legs
	and filling his lungs with air.  "This is just like the line
	that goes on forever, and I'll never get there."
	"You wouldn't like it much anyway," someone replied gently.
	"Infinity is a dreadfully poor place.  They can never manage to
	make ends meet."
		[ The Phantom Tollbooth, by Norton Juster ]
~statue trap
statue*
	Then at last he began to wonder why the lion was standing so
	still - for it hadn't moved one inch since he first set eyes
	on it.  Edmund now ventured a little nearer, still keeping in
	the shadow of the arch as much as he could.  He now saw from
	the way the lion was standing that it couldn't have been
	looking at him at all.  ("But supposing it turns its head?"
	thought Edmund.)  In fact it was staring at something else -
	namely a little dwarf who stood with his back to it about
	four feet away.  "Aha!" thought Edmund.  "When it springs at
	the dwarf then will be my chance to escape."  But still the
	lion never moved, nor did the dwarf.  And now at last Edmund
	remembered what the others had said about the White Witch
	turning people into stone.  Perhaps this was only a stone
	lion.  And as soon as he had thought of that he noticed that
	the lion's back and the top of its head were covered with
	snow.  Of course it must be only a statue!
		[ The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis ]
sting
	There was the usual dim grey light of the forest-day about
	him when he came to his senses.  The spider lay dead beside
	him, and his sword-blade was stained black.  Somehow the
	killing of the giant spider, all alone and by himself in the
	dark without the help of the wizard or the dwarves or of
	anyone else, made a great difference to Mr. Baggins.  He felt
	a different person, and much fiercer and bolder in spite of
	an empty stomach, as he wiped his sword on the grass and put
	it back into its sheath.
	"I will give you a name," he said to it, "and I shall call
	you Sting."
		[ The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
stormbringer
	There were sounds in the distance, incongruent with the
	sounds of even this nameless, timeless sea: thin sounds,
	agonized and terrible, for all that they remained remote -
	yet the ship followed them, as if drawn by them; they grew
	louder - pain and despair were there, but terror was
	predominant.
	Elric had heard such sounds echoing from his cousin Yyrkoon's
	sardonically named 'Pleasure Chambers' in the days before he
	had fled the responsibilities of ruling all that remained of
	the old Melnibonean Empire.  These were the voices of men
	whose very souls were under siege; men to whom death meant
	not mere extinction, but a continuation of existence, forever
	in thrall to some cruel and supernatural master.  He had
	heard men cry so when his salvation and his nemesis, his
	great black battle-blade Stormbringer, drank their souls.
		[ The Lands Beyond the World, by Michael Moorcock ]
susano*o
	The Shinto chthonic and weather god and brother of the sun
	goddess Amaterasu, he was born from the nose of the
	primordial creator god Izanagi and represents the physical,
	material world.  He has been expelled from heaven and taken
	up residence on earth.
		[ Encyclopedia of Gods, by Michael Jordan ]
tanko
	Samurai plate armor of the Yamato period (AD 300 - 710).
tengu
	The tengu was the most troublesome creature of Japanese
	legend.  Part bird and part man, with red beak for a nose
	and flashing eyes, the tengu was notorious for stirring up
	feuds and prolonging enmity between families.  Indeed, the
	belligerent tengus were supposed to have been man's first
	instructors in the use of arms.
	[ Mythical Beasts, by Deirdre Headon (The Leprechaun Library) ]
thoth
	The Egyptian god of the moon and wisdom, Thoth is the patron
	deity of scribes and of knowledge, including scientific,
	medical and mathematical writing, and is said to have given
	mankind the art of hieroglyphic writing.  He is important as
	a mediator and counsellor amongst the gods and is the scribe
	of the Heliopolis Ennead pantheon.  According to mythology,
	he was born from the head of the god Seth.  He may be
	depicted in human form with the head of an ibis, wholly as an
	ibis, or as a seated baboon sometimes with its torso covered
	in feathers.  His attributes include a crown which consists
	of a crescent moon surmounted by a moon disc.
	Thoth is generally regarded as a benign deity.  He is also
	scrupulously fair and is responsible not only for entering
	in the record the souls who pass to afterlife, but of
	adjudicating in the Hall of the Two Truths.  The Pyramid
	Texts reveal a violent side of his nature by which he
	decapitates the adversaries of truth and wrenches out their
	hearts.
		[ Encyclopedia of Gods, by Michael Jordan ]
thoth*amon
	Men say that he [Thutothmes] has opposed Thoth-Amon, who is
	master of all priests of Set, and dwells in Luxor, and that
	Thutothmes seeks hidden power [The Heart of Ahriman] to
	overthrow the Great One.
		[ Conan the Conqueror, by Robert E. Howard ]
*throne
	Methought I saw the footsteps of a throne
	Which mists and vapours from mine eyes did shroud--
	Nor view of who might sit thereon allowed;
	But all the steps and ground about were strown
	With sights the ruefullest that flesh and bone
	Ever put on; a miserable crowd,
	Sick, hale, old, young, who cried before that cloud,
	"Thou art our king,
	O Death! to thee we groan."
	Those steps I clomb; the mists before me gave
	Smooth way; and I beheld the face of one
	Sleeping alone within a mossy cave,
	With her face up to heaven; that seemed to have
	Pleasing remembrance of a thought foregone;
	A lovely Beauty in a summer grave!
		[ Sonnet, by William Wordsworth ]
tiger
	1.  A well-known tropical predator (_Felis tigris_): a
	feline.  It has a yellowish skin with darker spots or
	stripes.  2.  Figurative: _a paper tiger_, something that is
	meant to scare, but has no really scaring effect whatsoever,
	(after a statement by Mao Ze Dong, August 1946).
		[ Van Dale's Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal ]

	Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
	In the forests of the night,
	What immortal hand or eye
	Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
		[ The Tyger, by William Blake ]
tin
tin of *
tinning kit
	"You know salmon, Sarge," said Nobby.
	"It is a fish of which I am aware, yes."
	"You know they sell kind of slices of it in tins..."
	"So I am given to understand, yes."
	"Weell...how come all the tins are the same size?  Salmon
	gets thinner at both ends."
	"Interesting point, Nobby.  I think-"
		[ Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett ]
tin opener
	Less than thirty Cat tribes now survived, roaming the cargo
	decks on their hind legs in a desperate search for food.
	But the food had gone.
	The supplies were finished.
	Weak and ailing, they prayed at the supply hold's silver
	mountains: huge towering acres of metal rocks which, in their
	pagan way, the mutant Cats believed watched over them.
	Amid the wailing and the screeching one Cat stood up and held
	aloft the sacred icon.  The icon which had been passed down
	as holy, and one day would make its use known.
	It was a piece of V-shaped metal with a revolving handle on
	its head.
	He took down a silver rock from the silver mountain, while
	the other Cats cowered and screamed at the blasphemy.
	He placed the icon on the rim of the rock, and turned the
	handle.
	And the handle turned.
	And the rock opened.
	And inside the rock was Alphabetti spaghetti in tomato sauce.
		[ Red Dwarf, by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor ]
titan
	Gaea, mother earth, arose from the Chaos and gave birth to
	Uranus, heaven, who became her consort.  Uranus hated all
	their children, because he feared they might challenge his
	own authority.  Those children, the Titans, the Gigantes,
	and the Cyclops, were banished to the nether world.  Their
	enraged mother eventually released the youngest titan,
	Chronos (time), and encouraged him to castrate his father and
	rule in his place.  Later, he too was challenged by his own
	son, Zeus, and he and his fellow titans were ousted from
	Mount Olympus.
		[ Greek Mythology, by Richard Patrick ]
tourist
elven tourist
human tourist
	The road from Ankh-Morpork to Chrim is high, white and
	winding, a thirty-league stretch of potholes and half-buried
	rocks that spirals around mountains and dips into cool green
	valleys of citrus trees, crosses liana-webbed gorges on
	creaking rope bridges and is generally more picturesque than
	useful.
	Picturesque.  That was a new word to Rincewind the wizard
	(BMgc, Unseen University [failed]).  It was one of a number
	he had picked up since leaving the charred ruins of
	Ankh-Morpork.  Quaint was another one.  Picturesque meant --
	he decided after careful observation of the scenery that
	inspired Twoflower to use the word -- that the landscape was
	horribly precipitous.  Quaint, when used to describe the
	occasional village through which they passed, meant fever-
	ridden and tumbledown.
	Twoflower was a tourist, the first ever seen on the discworld.
	Tourist, Rincewind had decided, meant "idiot".
		[ The Colour of Magic, by Terry Pratchett ]
towel
	The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has a few things to say
	on the subject of towels.
	A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing
	an interstellar hitchhiker can have.  Partly it has great
	practical value.  You can wrap it around you for warmth as
	you bound across the cold moons of Jaglan Beta; you can lie
	on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches of Santraginus
	V, inhaling the heady sea vapors; you can sleep under it
	beneath the stars which shine so redly on the desert world of
	Kakrafoon; use it to sail a miniraft down down the slow heavy
	River Moth; wet it for use in hand-to-hand combat; wrap it
	round your head to ward off noxious fumes or avoid the gaze
	of the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal (a mind-bogglingly
	stupid animal, it assumes that if you can't see it, it can't
	see you - daft as a brush, but very very ravenous); you can
	wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of
	course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean
	enough.
		[ The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy,
		  by Douglas Adams ]
*tower
	Towers (_brooding_, _dark_) stand alone in Waste Areas and
	almost always belong to Wizards.  All are several stories high,
	round, doorless, virtually windowless, and composed of smooth
	blocks of masonry that make them very hard to climb. [...]
	You will have to go to a Tower and then break into it at some
	point towards the end of your Tour.
	[ The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, by Diana Wynne Jones ]
trap*door
	I knew my Erik too well to feel at all comfortable on jumping
	into his house.  I knew what he had made of a certain palace at
	Mazenderan.  From being the most honest building conceivable, he
	soon turned it into a house of the very devil, where you could
	not utter a word but it was overheard or repeated by an echo.
	With his trap-doors the monster was responsible for endless
	tragedies of all kinds.
		[ The Phantom of the Opera, by Gaston Leroux ]
trapper
	The trapper is a creature which has evolved a chameleon-like
	ability to blend into the dungeon surroundings.  It captures
	its prey by remaining very still and blending into the
	surrounding dungeon features, until an unsuspecting creature
	passes by.  It wraps itself around its prey and digests it.
tree
	I think that I shall never see
	A poem lovely as a tree.
	A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
	Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;
	A tree that looks at God all day,
	And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
	A tree that may in Summer wear
	A nest of robins in her hair;
	Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
	Who intimately lives with rain.
	Poems are made by fools like me,
	But only God can make a tree.
		[ Trees - Joyce Kilmer ]
tripe ration
	If you start from scratch, cooking tripe is a long-drawn-out
	affair.  Fresh whole tripe calls for a minimum of 12 hours of
	cooking, some time-honored recipes demanding as much as 24.
	To prepare fresh tripe, trim if necessary.  Wash it thoroughly,
	soaking overnight, and blanch, for 1/2 hour in salted water.
	Wash well again, drain and cut for cooking.  When cooked, the
	texture of tripe should be like that of soft gristle.  More
	often, alas, because the heat has not been kept low enough,
	it has the consistency of wet shoe leather.
		[ Joy of Cooking, by I Rombauer and M Becker ]
*troll
	The troll shambled closer.  He was perhaps eight feet tall,
	perhaps more.  His forward stoop, with arms dangling past
	thick claw-footed legs to the ground, made it hard to tell.
	The hairless green skin moved upon his body.  His head was a
	gash of a mouth, a yard-long nose, and two eyes which drank
	the feeble torchlight and never gave back a gleam.
	[...]
	Like a huge green spider, the troll's severed hand ran on its
	fingers.  Across the mounded floor, up onto a log with one
	taloned forefinger to hook it over the bark, down again it
	scrambled, until it found the cut wrist.  And there it grew
	fast.  The troll's smashed head seethed and knit together.
	He clambered back on his feet and grinned at them.  The
	waning faggot cast red light over his fangs.
		[ Three Hearts and Three Lions, by Poul Anderson ]
*tsurugi of muramasa
	This most ancient of swords has been passed down through the
	leadership of the Samurai legions for hundreds of years.  It
	is said to grant luck to its wielder, but its main power is
	terrible to behold.  It has the capability to cut in half any
	creature it is wielded against, instantly killing them.
~*muramasa
tsurugi
	The tsurugi, also known as the long samurai sword, is an
	extremely sharp, two-handed blade favored by the samurai.
	It is made of hardened steel, and is manufactured using a
	special process, causing it to never rust.  The tsurugi is
	rumored to be so sharp that it can occasionally cut
	opponents in half!
twoflower
guide
	"Rincewind!"
	Twoflower sprang off the bed.  The wizard jumped back,
	wrenching his features into a smile.
	"My dear chap, right on time!  We'll just have lunch, and
	then I'm sure you've got a wonderful programme lined up for
	this afternoon!"
	"Er --"
	"That's great!"
	Rincewind took a deep breath.  "Look," he said desperately,
	"let's eat somewhere else.  There's been a bit of a fight
	down below."
	"A tavern brawl?  Why didn't you wake me up?"
	"Well, you see, I - _what_?"
	"I thought I made myself clear this morning, Rincewind.  I
	want to see genuine Morporkian life - the slave market, the
	Whore Pits, the Temple of Small Gods, the Beggar's Guild...
	and a genuine tavern brawl."  A faint note of suspicion
	entered Twoflower's voice.  "You _do_ have them, don't you?
	You know, people swinging on chandeliers, swordfights over
	the table, the sort of thing Hrun the Barbarian and the
	Weasel are always getting involved in.  You know --
	_excitement_."
		[ The Colour of Magic, by Terry Pratchett ]
tyr
	Yet remains that one of the Aesir who is called Tyr:
	he is most daring, and best in stoutness of heart, and he
	has much authority over victory in battle; it is good for
	men of valor to invoke him.  It is a proverb, that he is
	Tyr-valiant, who surpasses other men and does not waver.
	He is wise, so that it is also said, that he that is wisest
	is Tyr-prudent.  This is one token of his daring:  when the
	Aesir enticed Fenris-Wolf to take upon him the fetter Gleipnir,
	the wolf did not believe them, that they would loose him,
	until they laid Tyr's hand into his mouth as a pledge.  But
	when the Aesir would not loose him, then he bit off the hand
	at the place now called 'the wolf's joint;' and Tyr is one-
	handed, and is not called a reconciler of men.
			[ The Prose Edda, by Snorri Sturluson ]
*hulk
	Umber hulks are powerful subterranean predators whose
	iron-like claws allow them to burrow through solid stone in
	search of prey.  They are tremendously strong; muscles bulge
	beneath their thick, scaly hides and their powerful arms and
	legs all end in great claws.
*unicorn
unicorn horn
	Men have always sought the elusive unicorn, for the single
	twisted horn which projected from its forehead was thought to
	be a powerful talisman.  It was said that the unicorn had
	simply to dip the tip of its horn in a muddy pool for the water
	to become pure.  Men also believed that to drink from this horn
	was a protection against all sickness, and that if the horn was
	ground to a powder it would act as an antidote to all poisons.
	Less than 200 years ago in France, the horn of a unicorn was
	used in a ceremony to test the royal food for poison.

	Although only the size of a small horse, the unicorn is a very
	fierce beast, capable of killing an elephant with a single
	thrust from its horn.  Its fleetness of foot also makes this
	solitary creature difficult to capture.  However, it can be
	tamed and captured by a maiden.  Made gentle by the sight of a
	virgin, the unicorn can be lured to lay its head in her lap, and
	in this docile mood, the maiden may secure it with a golden rope.
	[ Mythical Beasts, by Deirdre Headon (The Leprechaun Library) ]

	Martin took a small sip of beer.  "Almost ready," he said.
	"You hold your beer awfully well."
	Tlingel laughed.  "A unicorn's horn is a detoxicant.  Its
	possession is a universal remedy.  I wait until I reach the
	warm glow stage, then I use my horn to burn off any excess and
	keep me right there."
		[ Unicorn Variations, by Roger Zelazny ]
valkyrie
human valkyrie
	The Valkyries were the thirteen choosers of the slain, the
	beautiful warrior-maids of Odin who rode through the air and
	over the sea.  They watched the progress of the battle and
	selected the heroes who were to fall fighting.  After they
	were dead, the maidens rewarded the heroes by kissing them
	and then led their souls to Valhalla, where the warriors
	lived happily in an ideal existence, drinking and eating
	without restraint and fighting over again the battles in
	which they died and in which they had won their deathless
	fame.
		[ The Encyclopaedia of Myths and Legends of All
			Nations, by Herbert Robinson and Knox
			Wilson ]
vampire
vampire bat
vampire lord
	The Oxford English Dictionary is quite unequivocal:
	_vampire_ - "a preternatural being of a malignant nature (in
	the original and usual form of the belief, a reanimated
	corpse), supposed to seek nourishment, or do harm, by sucking
	the blood of sleeping persons. ..."
venus
	Venus, the goddess of love and beauty, was the daughter of
	Jupiter and Dione.  Others say that Venus sprang from the
	foam of the sea.  The zephyr wafted her along the waves to
	the Isle of Cyprus, where she was received and attired by
	the Seasons, and then led to the assembly of the gods.  All
	were charmed with her beauty, and each one demanded her
	for his wife.  Jupiter gave her to Vulcan, in gratitude for
	the service he had rendered in forging thunderbolts.  So
	the most beautiful of the goddesses became the wife of the
	most ill-favoured of gods.
		[ Bulfinch's Mythology, by Thomas Bulfinch ]
vlad*
	Vlad Dracula the Impaler was a 15th-Century monarch of the
	Birgau region of the Carpathian Mountains, in what is now
	Romania.  In Romanian history he is best known for two things.
	One was his skilled handling of the Ottoman Turks, which kept
	them from making further inroads into Christian Europe.  The
	other was the ruthless manner in which he ran his fiefdom.
	He dealt with perceived challengers to his rule by impaling
	them upright on wooden stakes.  Visiting dignitaries who
	failed to doff their hats had them nailed to their head.
*vortex
vortices
	Swirling clouds of pure elemental energies, the vortices are
	thought to be related to the larger elementals.  Though the
	vortices do no damage when touched, they are noted for being
	able to envelop unwary travellers.  The hapless fool thus
	swallowed by a vortex will soon perish from exposure to the
	element the vortex is composed of.
vrock
	The vrock is one of the weaker forms of demon.  It resembles
	a cross between a human being and a vulture and does physical
	damage by biting and by using the claws on both its arms and
	feet.
wakizashi
	The samurai warrior traditionally wears two swords; the
	wakizashi is the shorter of the two.  See also katana.
wand of *
*wand
	'Saruman!' he cried, and his voice grew in power and authority.
	'Behold, I am not Gandalf the Grey, whom you betrayed.  I am
	Gandalf the White, who has returned from death.  You have no
	colour now, and I cast you from the order and from the Council.'
	He raised his hand, and spoke slowly in a clear cold voice.
	'Saruman, your staff is broken.'  There was a crack, and the
	staff split asunder in Saruman's hand, and the head of it
	fell down at Gandalf's feet.  'Go!' said Gandalf.  With a cry
	Saruman fell back and crawled away.
		[ The Two Towers, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
warg
	Suddenly Aragorn leapt to his feet.  "How the wind howls!"
	he cried.  "It is howling with wolf-voices.  The Wargs have
	come west of the Mountains!"
	"Need we wait until morning then?" said Gandalf.  "It is as I
	said.  The hunt is up!  Even if we live to see the dawn, who
	now will wish to journey south by night with the wild wolves
	on his trail?"
	"How far is Moria?" asked Boromir.
	"There was a door south-west of Caradhras, some fifteen miles
	as the crow flies, and maybe twenty as the wolf runs,"
	answered Gandalf grimly.
	"Then let us start as soon as it is light tomorrow, if we can,"
	said Boromir.  "The wolf that one hears is worse then the orc
	that one fears."
	"True!" said Aragorn, loosening his sword in its sheath.  "But
	where the warg howls, there also the orc prowls."
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
~mjollnir
war*hammer
	They had come together at the ford of the Trident while the
	battle crashed around them, Robert with his warhammer and his
	great antlered helm, the Targaryen prince armored all in
	black.  On his breastplate was the three-headed dragon of his
	House, wrought all in rubies that flashed like fire in the
	sunlight.  The waters of the Trident ran red around the
	hooves of their destriers as they circled and clashed, again
	and again, until at last a crushing blow from Robert's hammer
	stove in the dragon and the chest behind it.  When Ned had
	finally come on the scene, Rhaegar lay dead in the stream,
	while men of both armies scrambled in the swirling waters for
	rubies knocked free of his armor.
		[ A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin ]
water
	Day after day, day after day,
	We stuck, nor breath nor motion;
	As idle as a painted ship
	Upon a painted ocean.

	Water, water, everywhere,
	And all the boards did shrink;
	Water, water, everywhere
	Nor any drop to drink.
		[ The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, by Samuel Taylor
		  Coleridge ]
web
	Oh what a tangled web we weave,
	When first we practise to deceive!
		[ Marmion, by Sir Walter Scott ]
# werecritter -- see "lycanthrope"
*wight
	When he came to himself again, for a moment he could recall
	nothing except a sense of dread.  Then suddenly he knew that
	he was imprisoned, caught hopelessly; he was in a barrow.  A
	Barrow-wight had taken him, and he was probably already under
	the dreadful spells of the Barrow-wights about which whispered
	tales spoke.  He dared not move, but lay as he found himself:
	flat on his back upon a cold stone with his hands on his
	breast.
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
wizard of balance
	The Wizard of Balance holds office in his hidden tower, only
	reachable by magical means, where he teaches his apprentices
	the enigmatic skills of occultism.  He considers himself a
	guardian of the equilibrium of the universe, and goes out of
	his way to promote stability.
wizard of yendor
	No one knows how old this mighty wizard is, or from whence he
	came.  It is known that, having lived a span far greater than
	any normal man's, he grew weary of lesser mortals; and so,
	spurning all human company, he forsook the dwellings of men
	and went to live in the depths of the Earth.  He took with
	him a dreadful artifact, the Book of the Dead, which is said
	to hold great power indeed.  Many have sought to find the
	wizard and his treasure, but none have found him and lived to
	tell the tale.  Woe be to the incautious adventurer who
	disturbs this mighty sorcerer!
wolf
*wolf
*wolf cub
	The ancestors of the modern day domestic dog, wolves are
	powerful muscular animals with bushy tails.  Intelligent,
	social animals, wolves live in family groups or packs made
	up of multiple family units.  These packs cooperate in hunting
	down prey.
woodchuck
	The Usenet Oracle requires an answer to this question!

	> How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could
	> chuck wood?

	"Oh, heck!  I'll handle *this* one!"  The Oracle spun the terminal
	back toward himself, unlocked the ZOT-guard lock, and slid the
	glass guard away from the ZOT key.  "Ummmm....could you turn around
	for a minute?  ZOTs are too graphic for the uninitiated.  Even *I*
	get a little squeamish sometimes..."  The neophyte turned around,
	and heard the Oracle slam his finger on a computer key, followed
	by a loud ZZZZOTTTTT and the smell of ozone.
		[ Excerpted from Internet Oracularity 576.6 ]
*worm
long worm tail
worm tooth
crysknife
	[The crysknife] is manufactured in two forms from teeth taken
	from dead sandworms.  The two forms are "fixed" and "unfixed".
	An unfixed knife requires proximity to a human body's
	electrical field to prevent disintegration.  Fixed knives
	are treated for storage.  All are about 20 centimeters long.
		[ Dune, by Frank Herbert ]
wraith
nazgul
	Immediately, though everything else remained as before, dim
	and dark, the shapes became terribly clear.  He was able to
	see beneath their black wrappings.  There were five tall
	figures:  two standing on the lip of the dell, three advancing.
	In their white faces burned keen and merciless eyes; under
	their mantles were long grey robes; upon their grey hairs
	were helms of silver; in their haggard hands were swords of
	steel.  Their eyes fell on him and pierced him, as they
	rushed towards him.  Desperate, he drew his own sword, and
	it seemed to him that it flickered red, as if it was a
	firebrand.  Two of the figures halted.  The third was taller
	than the others:  his hair was long and gleaming and on his
	helm was a crown.  In one hand he held a long sword, and in
	the other a knife; both the knife and the hand that held it
	glowed with a pale light.  He sprang forward and bore down
	on Frodo.
		[ The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien ]
wumpus
	The Wumpus, by the way, is not bothered by the hazards since
	he has sucker feet and is too big for a bat to lift.  If you
	try to shoot him and miss, there's also a chance that he'll
	up and move himself into another cave, though by nature the
	Wumpus is a sedentary creature.
		[ wump (6) -- "Hunt the Wumpus" ]
xan
	They sent their friend the mosquito [xan] ahead of them to
	find out what lay ahead.  "Since you are the one who sucks
	the blood of men walking along paths," they told the mosquito,
	"go and sting the men of Xibalba."  The mosquito flew
	down the dark road to the Underworld.  Entering the house of
	the Lords of Death, he stung the first person that he saw...

	The mosquito stung this man as well, and when he yelled, the
	man next to him asked, "Gathered Blood, what's wrong?"  So
	he flew along the row stinging all the seated men until he
	knew the names of all twelve.
			[ Popul Vuh, as translated by Ralph Nelson ]
xorn
	A distant cousin of the earth elemental, the xorn has the
	ability to shift the cells of its body around in such a way
	that it becomes porous to inert material.  This gives it the
	ability to pass through any obstacle that might be between it
	and its next meal.
ya
	The arrow of choice of the samurai, ya are made of very
	straight bamboo, and are tipped with hardened steel.
yeenoghu
	Yeenoghu, the demon lord of gnolls, still exists although
	all his followers have been wiped off the face of the earth.
	He casts magic projectiles at those close to him, and a mere
	gaze into his piercing eyes may hopelessly confuse the
	battle-weary adventurer.
yeti
	The Abominable Snowman, or yeti, is one of the truly great
	unknown animals of the twentieth century.  It is a large hairy
	biped that lives in the Himalayan region of Asia ... The story
	of the Abominable Snowman is filled with mysteries great and
	small, and one of the most difficult of all is how it got that
	awful name.  The creature is neither particularly abominable,
	nor does it necessarily live in the snows.  _Yeti_ is a Tibetan
	word which may apply either to a real, but unknown animal of
	the Himalayas, or to a mountain spirit or demon -- no one is
	quite sure which.  And after nearly half a century in which
	Westerners have trampled around looking for the yeti, and
	asking all sorts of questions, the original native traditions
	concerning the creature have become even more muddled and
	confused.
		[ The Encyclopedia of Monsters, by Daniel Cohen ]
*yugake
	Japanese leather archery gloves.  Gloves made for use while
	practicing had thumbs reinforced with horn.  Those worn into
	battle had thumbs reinforced with a double layer of leather.
yumi
	The samurai is highly trained with a special type of bow,
	the yumi.  Like the ya, the yumi is made of bamboo.  With
	the yumi-ya, the bow and arrow, the samurai is an extremely
	accurate and deadly warrior.
*zombie
	The zombi... is a soulless human corpse, still dead, but
	taken from the grave and endowed by sorcery with a
	mechanical semblance of life, -- it is a dead body which is
	made to walk and act and move as if it were alive.
		[ W. B. Seabrook ]
zruty
	The zruty are wild and gigantic beings, living in the
	wildernesses of the Tatra mountains.