Gem

Trunk-only: This article pertains to a feature of Crawl which is being tested. It will likely change before the next release, and may even be removed entirely.

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A stone of unearthly beauty and almost immeasurable value outside the dungeon. Within its confines, it is utterly useless.

Zot hoards these gems jealously, and will spitefully smash them soon after an adventurer enters the branch of the Dungeon in which they rest. Still, a very quick-moving adventurer might seize one first and keep its precious shards. Zot cannot track gems outside their home branches, so with truly astonishing speed, it might be possible to abscond with one still intact... but such a feat is difficult to credit, and likely pointless besides.

Once the Orb of Zot is taken, Zot will be unable to smash any gems.

Useful Info

Each gem has its own timer that starts when you enter the corresponding dungeon branch and stops when you leave it.

Smoky gem (The Dungeon): 6,000 turns

Swirls of dark smoke seem to swirl in the depths of this gem. Countless dark deeds were done in the Dungeon even before Zot seized and remade it, and their dreadful residue now taints every hint of beauty trapped within its confines.

Shimmering gem (Elven Halls): 6,000 turns

Unearthly energies gently flow along the surface of this gem, guided by the archmage who first built the Elven Halls. Countless generations of elves flocked to learn from her, but her foremost pursuit was always the perfection of this piece of art.

Earthy gem (The Lair): 7,500 turns

Deep within this gem, flowing leaves and swaying branches seem to lurk. And here, a bone picked clean - there, a predator's eyes, staring hungrily out..?

Mossy gem (The Swamp): 4,500 turns

Though it drips with mud and muck, still a peculiar dignity attaches itself to this gem. The people of the Swamp, who first carried this stone, struggled against insurmountable odds. They failed, but there is much to admire even in the ruin of their efforts.

Azure gem (The Shoals): 4,500 turns

As clear and blue as a cloudless sky or a depthless sea, this gem holds its secrets locked within impenetrable depths.

Jade gem (Snake Pit): 6,000 turns

Sigils of fire burn deep within this gem, symbol of the eternal compact between naga and salamander. Their bond is that of the poison which scourges the impure and the flame which burns away impurity.

Milky-white gem (Spider's Nest): 6,000 turns

Smooth as a spider's silk, white as the eyes of some crawling thing which has lived too long in the dark, this gem buzzes with a fearful potential. Still, to a certain eye, it possesses a strange allure...

Starry gem (The Slime Pits): 1,200 turns

Odd lights twinkle within the depths of this gem. From what strange stuff is it made, and from what distant land did it travel?

Shining gem (The Vaults): 7,500 turns

Many are the treasures of the Ironbound Order, but none older nor more precious than this steel-shining gem. The Vaults were first forged to hold it, and none who gazed within its depths could fault the choice.

Ivory gem (The Crypt): 6,000 turns

Countless spirits swirl around this gem, shrouding it in a bone-deep chill. Unwelcome in the Good gods' afterlife, they find here a heaven of their own.

Sanguine gem (The Tomb): 6,000 turns

They who smote down Death herself and buried themselves in a Tomb of their own making were not shy of their ambitions. Fain to seize upon baubles and overweening proud, their Lord journeyed into their eternal unrest with this gem upon their breast.

Midnight gem (The Depths): 7,500 turns

The stoneborn brought forth this gem from the uttermost depths of the earth as a gift and a warning: beware Zot! That it lies now within Zot's power is a sure proof of the perversity of mortals and fate alike.

Prismatic gem (The Realm of Zot): 2,000 turns

Shining with every colour of the rainbow and a few others besides, some consider this gem 'a bit tacky'. Preposterous!

History

In 0.31, gems will be added to the game.