Decaaut

Main Article: Actions

One decaAut (deca-aut, sometimes referred as a turn) is equal to 10 aut, or 10 arbitrary units of time. It is the time it takes for an untransformed, unstatused human to wait (with s or .) for one turn. It is also the 'standard' time for most actions in the game, and is therefore used as a general measurement of time. For example, decaAut (in the form of "turns") is used to measure the game's Zot clock.

Most species and monsters take 1 decaAut to move, and it is the time it takes for all species in their natural form and condition to do many actions (like reading scrolls, quaffing potions, or casting the vast majority of spells). A primary exception is attack speed, which is often measured by delay; weapons can take from 0.7 to 3 decaAut to swing, before modifiers like shields and skill.

DecaAut are often considered turns, but they are still technically distinct measures. The Time counter in the status bar only measures decaAut; the actual turn counter measures the amount of commands, irrespective of game-time. For example, a Naga normally moves at 1.4 decaAut, but technically takes only 1 turn. It'll still take 1.4 "turns" of the Zot clock, though.