Nuke



The Nuke spell is a useful offensive pickup in Catacomb 3D. It is extremely handy against multiple opponents and larger foes at close range. The pickup resembles a glass sphere filled with crackling red energy. The spell reappears in the Catacomb Adventure Series, albeit in a new form. In these games it resembles a crystal orb with a cluster of four lights inside.

In Catacomb 3D
This spell fires off 8 Fireballs - one in every direction around the player. Each does 3 points of damage. At close range, it's possible for a single target to be hit more than once, allowing it to do much more damage. Nukes are best used to clear out enemies crowding the player; bigger targets, like Trolls and Demons, are especially vulnerable to being hit more than once. Spamming nukes is by far the easiest way to clear out Nemesis' boss room, as well.

The hotkey for Nukes in Catacomb 3D is N. While you can carry up to 99 Nukes, only 10 will be shown in your status screen.

While Nukes are slightly more common than Bolts in Catacomb 3D, they're still uncommon, and should be saved for emergencies. They're often found as treasure hidden in secret areas early on, with caches of them hidden away throughout the labyrinth. It is recommended that you either hoard them for the fight against Nemesis or save them for when you're in danger of being mobbed by a large pack of enemies.

In the Catacomb Adventure Series


Now known as the Xterminator spell, the version in the Catacomb Adventure Series is more powerful than they were in Catacomb 3D, despite some toning-down.

The spell no longer produces Fireballs, instead creating Magick Missile projectiles, which has reduced the damage from 3 to 1 per projectile. In return, the number of projectiles fired is more than doubled from eight to eighteen, allowing it to score more hits and hit a target multiple times easier. Additionally, because of the huge number of projectiles being fired off, the Xterminator is capable of doing enormous amounts of damage at close range, effectively allowing it to be used as a Magick Missile shotgun if the player's willing to get close.

Even better, Xterminators are also substantially easier to come by in the Adventure Series, as they can be both found in levels and in Treasure Chests. On the downside, destructible treasure in the Adventure Series means that they can be destroyed by accident, and the Xterminator, which shoots projectiles everywhere, can be a particular offender in destroying treasure the player needs, so it is best to use them carefully.

The hotkey for Xterminators in the Catacomb Trilogy is X. You can carry up to 99 Xterminators.