Blood on the Walls

Sometimes you will find cryptic messages written in blood on the dungeon walls. Most of them are easy to interpret, but some might not be. Below is a list of messages and what they are thought to mean.

List of Messages

Message	Interpretation
A bug was fixed here	A bug was removed at this point.
Rodney was here	Rodney was the name of the hero in the original game "Rogue". Backward spelling of Rodney is Yendor.
I left a present for you upstairs.	Oh, hey, a free chest in the Overworld! I wonder what's inside...
I have no tongue, but these bones cut stone	The minion reassures you that he is not useless.
Okay, technically dead	The minion is like a zombie, technically dead but still alive.
Eat it, wear it, it's all the same to me	This may refer to runes and your choice to enchant armour with them or eat them immediately.
Smite? It's like the holy punch of a god	A great thunderous sound echoes and the victim gets sent flying back from smite. Talk about knockout.
I've not made friends with any of these monsters	There are no friendly monsters in the dungeon
At last I'm beyond madness	"At last I'm beyond [Chaos]." Hah, get it?! Not that funny? Oh...
I will find you Red	The minion will always find and follow Red, except when busy fighting or stuck in the Underworld. On the other hand, it could also be a threat from the Balrog.
He's such a coward	This refers to how the Balrog runs at the sight of you
He's scared of you - I don't blame him	Red is faster, stronger, smarter, and often better equipped than any other single creature of equal level in the dungeon. Also, pretty much everything Red does is terrifying.
I miss being able to pee, but don't miss smells	One of few benefits to being a skeleton.
I will escape this place	A desperate plea from Rogue. This is a promise she cannot fulfill... At least, not permanently.
Married to a bloody skeleton.	I suppose "till death do us part" does not really apply here.
What's that grinding noise?	Something Rogue notices in Chaos with all the cogs.
It's the Balrog that did it	The Balrog killed Red's husband, @.
Don't give up my love	A reminder to not rage quit. Remember, you have all the "time" in the world.
Why did I let myself get killed by that demon?	This is an important, philosophical question that many of you will ask of yourselves one day and struggle to come up with an acceptable answer as you wrangle with the chaotics strands of reasonings in your confused minds... Or you just done screwed up.
Madness	MADNESS?!? THIS IS CHAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOS!!!!!!!!!!
Freedom	"Our freedom can be measured by the number of things we can walk away from." ~Vernon Howard
I have escaped the Underworld	Come to think of it, this is a pretty impressive feat by itself. What does Death get out of this deal?
Three runes are all I could carry	- A frustrated dungeon crawl player finishing with only three runes.
At least Kobolds are weak here	A friendly reminder in the first level that you are dealing with an easy level, but an unfriendly reminder that you are dealing with an easy level this time.
Arm yourself darling	Grab weapons and equip them.
Sleep my love, restore your health	Use the sleep command in the menu; your health will be fully restored
Camping always refreshes me	Basically a restatement of the above message, but stating that it heals the Minion too.
Hearts, eat them	Raw hearts are so nutritious that they restore your health. Not recommended to try this at home.
Use runes wisely	Runes can only be consumed once which cannot be undone, so take care not to waste them.
You'd set off fewer traps if you'd look for them	Use the Z shortcut or the Scan button in the menu. Fewer because using the "Search" option will never give you a better XP points unlike disarming it by looking for it manually.
Eat not the bleed rune	A seriously bad idea to eat the Rune of Bleed. As you might guess, all of Rogue's pores will be spilling blood because of your rookie move.
Goblins are bloody cowards	Goblins tend to use a tactic of striking you once and speeding away. They take a while before gathering enough guts to go at Rogue again.
Take two weapons into the fray for a whirlwind	Rogue and her minions are able to carry two weapons at a time, a melee weapon and a throwing weapon.
Do not wear the Balrog's face	Wearing his face will _____ your ____ . If you let the minion wear it, then his ____ will be ________, and you permanently lose the minion unless you reset the data. Starting a new game won't help.
Seriously, don't wear his face	A reminder to NOT WEAR THE BALROG'S FACE. However, if you ???, then ???.
Indifference? They can't touch you	An introduction to the item Indifference and its ability. For more details, visit the Armour page on the wiki.
We can take their form with their faces	By stomping on a decapitated head or smashing it against something solid, you may create a Face item. Not only can you pick it up, but you can wear it, too. Gross, but effective.
I'm good with a throwing knife, me	The Rogue is a rogue, so this is not surprising. Don't give the minion a throwing weapon. He'll act like a coward because his priority will be throwing his weapon first, even if the enemy is close.
You sometimes smite them when you attack in the air	You can smite enemies if you fall and in the process hit them (while in the air) or use the Amulet of Yendor to jump and whack them. Hit 'em real good.
If I die, use magic to open a portal for me.	The Rune of Undead, when enchanted on weapons, will allow you to offer sacrifices to heal your minion or bring him back. RNG can also do this.
Leech magic is cursed	Beware of taking a Leech or using the Rune of Leech. They cast curses.
A leech can be destroyed and become armour	If you have a Leech and get rid of its curse by enchanting it with Null, you end up destroying the Leech and creating Blood, a type of armour.
Chakrams come bouncing back, like me	Chakrams are throwing weapons that will bounce off walls. A good item for the less accurate.
Never a bad thing from a holy rune	Holy runes bless whatever they are enchanted upon.
Dive upon our enemies, literally	Dropping onto an enemy from above will always stun the enemy and sometimes smite it.
I'm not touching a werewolf ever again	An introduction to the werewolf and its ability to turn everything it touches into more werewolves.
Chaos magic everywhere here	This tip only appears in Chaos. When you get there, watch out for chaos bolts. They shoot from the walls.
I've no blood to bleed	The minion is bare bones. Logically, one would assume that the lack of blood protects the minion from blood effect damage. Of course, the minion has to be in his skeletal form for this to be true.
The Overworld will be a sort of time bubble	Time in the Overworld only passes when Rogue is there. Therefore, anything you do there will remain unchanged, including leaving behind an item or opening that free chest.
The Underworld is outside of time	Similar to the above with one major difference. Time does not exist at all in the Underworld. This allows players to do something in the Underworld that they cannot in the Overworld. Unfortunately, telling you what it is would be revealing a major spoiler.
Death opened a door for me	The Reaper, or Death in the game, in the Underworld can open a portal which allows the minion to return if he was destroyed. This portal will remain open, so you can visit Death as long as you like.
A weapon forged of quickening?	This is an introduction to the Lightning weapon. See the Weapon page in the wiki for more information.
Try making a healstone	The healstone is what the object in the Overworld's left side is. You can create healstones by throwing Runes of Heal at an inactive wall. Wall blocks that disperse when you move near them do not count.
I like to know the name of things	An introduction to the Rune of Identity. Refer to the Runes page in the wiki for more details.
Elbereth	The first time you read each of these messages, your log will say, "Your fury takes form..." which is fancy talk for a red Horror sprouting to attack a random enemy creature. Elbereth is also mentioned in one of Rogue's dreams. Elbereth refers to the fact that in a few original Roguelikes, one could scrawl Elbereth into the ground which would mean that monsters would not attack you. Elbereth is also an Elven goddess.
I have a love-hate relationship with RNG	There are altars in the game, which appear as small crosses with a red dot in the center. After praying, RNG will grant a random Miracle. The Miracles page on the wiki holds more information.
He can invade your dreams	The Balrog can enter your dreams, which is indicated by red letters, derogatory remarks, and a creepy sound effect. If this occurs, move quick, because an enemy Horror will spawn after you wake up.
The drow never need spectacles	Drows are a type of creature who can see in the dark. By turning into a Drow, you will be able to see everything in your path. Wearing a Drow Face will not auto-complete your map, however.
How do those gnolls find more treasure than me?	The Gnoll's special ability allows you to find more treasure in chests and have a higher chance at tearing out hearts.
There's something funny about a chest I saw	Mimics have a head that looks like a chest. Sometimes, players can stumble across pseudo-chests that turn out to be mimics. Be cautious if you are deep, deep inside chaos and are wearing the face of a strong creature.
I'll blessed strike them into next week	Blessed Strikes involve attacking with a blessed weapon. Genius.
Gun plus sword - I like it	The Gun Blade is an actual weapon in the game used for both melee and ranged attacks.
Leeches can't take from blood wearers	At first, I thought this meant enchanting my armour with Blood runes. Doh! There is an armour called Blood which works perfectly fine for protecting you from life steal effects.
Blood armour smells like leeches	Basically a hint of how to create blood amour.
He's hiding, in Chaos	The Balrog, your ultimate boss, is located in an area of dungeon called Chaos. You move from Dungeon to Sewers to Caves, and then to Chaos.
Get Yendor, get it back	Basically hinting that you have a quest to accomplish.
Yendor is in Chaos	Yendor is an item held by the Balrog, which also happens to be in Chaos.
I can live again, but it's complicated	An ambiguous statement that refers how the Minion can either be reincarnated or revived.
Don't give up on me	A modest comment that informs the player of an alternate ending. Other clues tied with this one are the one below and in the Rogue's dreams. The ambiguous statement above may also be correlated depending on its actual meaning.
Death holds my flesh to random	A harmless clue tied with the above messages.
Give me head until I'm dead	Gives clues as to the Balrog's latent attraction to Red, possibly providing motive for killing her husband.
The rakshasa here have lost themselves to chaos	Informs the player that the Rakshasa can cast chaos, a random enchantment.
Backstabbing's not cowardice, it's common sense	Attacking enemies from behind will cause twice the damage. Now go get those unsuspecting suckers!
Summon me? Well that's wives for you	Refers to the ability to summon the Minion to your side as you see fit. Use the C shortcut or the Summon command in the menu.
Please don't make me wear that Chaos Helm.	Introduction to the chaos helm armour. See the armor page on the wiki for more information.
Trolls heal naturally, I hate them	Trolls have the abilty to heal themselves with time. I wonder what would happen if you wore their face...
Blessed are the good leeches	A hint about blessings, leeches, and good things to do.
Hah, you can't curse me, I'm dead!	The undead are immune to curses. Maybe you can do something with that information.
He who comes, he's to be feared	A warning about a ceartain demon who comes in your sleep. Probably also refers towards the "Horror", an unkillable dangerous entity that will drain your health on touch.

Most of these messages and interpretations were taken from this spreadsheet. If you want to help expand this page, you can add more messages from the source code and rearrange them by the order they are mentioned in it.