Monday, February 11, 2008

Prognostication 'Neath the Waxing Crescent

Since both the New Moon and Super Tuesday have recently passed, I feel the time is ripe to cast my personal augury for the 2008 presidential election.

Do I eviscerate a chicken? Read tea leaves? Draw up astrological charts?

None of the above. I name my Nethack characters after the candidates. A difference in score of more than one order of magnitude portends a sure victory, where a narrower margin demands further scrutiny - comparisons of maximum level reached, number of artifacts collected, pet survival, and so on.

Unfortunately, I haven't kept track of the Nethack augury's accuracy over the years, but I have found it useful. Sometimes, when there doesn't seem to be any clear choice, I tell myself that I must vote for the winner of the Nethack augury. Then, when I consider the results, I am forced to have a really honest deliberation with myself about just how reprehensible I find that particular candidate.

Stay tuned for results.

3 comments:

avk said...

Of course, I back out after mentioned deliberation.

avk said...

Oh Ye Gods!!! Huckabee Upsets McCain! Though it is admittedly close enough to not be definitive.

McCain:Chaotic female human Rogue
S12/D18/C13/W7/I12/Ch13
Final Attributes: Devoutly Aligned, stealthy, dead.
22 creatures vanquished, including 7 Grid Bugs, 5 jackals, 3 lichens; a hobbit
Conducts: Atheist, Illiterate, no genocide, no object polymorph, no change form, no wish

$113 killed by a fountain full of snakes in the Dungeons of Doom on level 4 with 452 points after 1101 moves. Level 3, 26 hp.
----
Huckabee:Neutral female gnomish Healer
S10/D8/C14/I11/W15/Ch17
Final Attributes: Devoutly Aligned, Poison Resistant, Ifravision, Dead.
31 creatures vanquished, including: 8 newts, 4 jackals, 3 lichens; a dwarf
Conduct: Atheist, no genocide, no polymorphed objects, no wishes

$2108 killed by a bat in the Gnomish mines on level 5 with 675 points, after 1644 moves. Level 3, 27 hp.

Unknown said...

In Dwarf Fortress both of them would have been killed by cave spiders.

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