Finisher

Version 0.30: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

A long and exceedingly sharp scythe, capable of eviscerating in a single blow. Its extraordinary speed is the work of a mad wizard, who spent years refining it before discarding it in a fit of rage.

the +5 scythe "Finisher"

+5 scythe (modified halberd; base damage 14, base delay 20)

Speed brand
(50 - HD)/200 chance to instantly kill monster on successful attack

Desirability

Finisher has a horrendous base delay, though it's mitigated by the speed brand. This eccentric combination gives Finisher a fast minimum delay, but only at very high skill levels. The ​chance to instantly kill your target makes it quite an appealing weapon: it ranges from about a 1-in-4 chance to kill goblins and the like, to about a 1-in-10 chance to kill orbs of fire.

Finisher doesn't stand out as much later on in the game, where you can generally find a glaive or bardiche with a good brand and a much better ratio of damage to speed, but it's still a weapon worth considering if you find it early. Do what you can to improve your attack speed in tough fights -- a potion of haste or Okawaru's Finesse will let you try to instagib your opponents more often.

History

• In 0.29, Finisher's base weapon, a scythe, lost its unique stats. This weapon retains those stats, except that it gained +1 accuracy in the process.
• Prior to 0.26, players could use Finisher with the Spectral Weapon spell. The evisceration property applied to the spectral copy's attacks as well, effectively doubling the chance to one-shot enemies.
• Prior to 0.23, Finisher did not have a chance to instantly kill, but did have +3 strength.
• Prior to 0.15, Finisher had a +3, +5 enchantment level.