Helms are one of the seven slots for armor. Their primary use is protecting your head and cranium, especially against mind flayers. The most popular helms to carry are helm of telepathy, helm of brilliance, and elven leather helm. Cornuthaums are occasionally used by wizards, and a helm of opposite alignment is often used on the ascension run.
The helm of telepathy grants extrinsic telepathy, similar to an amulet of ESP. HoB will increase your intelligence and wisdom by its enchantment, so +5 HoB and 18 Int and 17 Wis will produce 23 Int and 22 Wis. Elven leather helms can take a higher enchantment than other items and weigh less than most other helms: 3 wt versus 50.
List of helms[]
| Name | COST | WGT | AC | Material | Appearance | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fedora | 1 | 3 | 0 | Cloth | ||
| Dunce cap | 1 | 4 | 0 | Cloth | Conical hat | Autocurses when worn; Int = 6, Wis = 6 |
| Cornuthaum | 80 | 4 | 0 | Cloth | Conical hat | MC2; Clairvoyance, Ch+1 for wizards; blocks Clairvoyance, Ch-1 for non-wizards |
| Elven leather helm | 8 | 3 | 1 | Leather | Leather hat | Can be Enchanted to +7 |
| Orcish helm | 10 | 30 | 1 | Iron | Iron skull cap | |
| Dented pot | 8 | 10 | 1 | Iron | ||
| Dwarvish iron helm | 20 | 40 | 2 | Iron | Hard hat | |
| Helmet (kabuto) | 10 | 30 | 1 | Iron | **** | |
| Helm of brilliance | 50 | 50 | 1 | Iron | **** | Int and Wis +/- enchantment amount; doesn't hinder Spellcasting |
| Helm of opposite alignment | 50 | 50 | 1 | Iron | **** | Autocurses when worn; opposite Alignment |
| Helm of telepathy | 50 | 50 | 1 | Iron | **** | Grants Telepathy |
The helms marked **** in the chart above have their appearances randomized from:
plumed etched crested visored
Of these, the visored helmet is always special. It protects against the blinding attack of ravens and the venom-spitting attack of cobras.