Spelunky is © 2008, 2009 Derek Yu and Mossmouth, LLC, and is used under the [Spelunky User License v1.1b](https://spelunky.ai/LICENSE.txt). spelunky.ai is an unofficial fan project, not affiliated with or endorsed by Mossmouth. The game and its assets may not be sold. Music by George Buzinkai and Jonathan Perry; sound effects made in SFXR. From Spelunky Classic 1.1, © 2008, 2009 Derek Yu and Mossmouth, LLC. # Hawkman From the spelunky.ai wiki: . Verified against the spelunky.ai port [v0.1.10](https://github.com/851-labs/spelunky/releases/tag/v0.1.10) on 27 October 2026. The Hawkman is a monster of the Temple in Spelunky Classic that charges, leaping, when it sees the player, grabs him and flings him away. ![A man in a red hawk's-head helmet, running](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/17b72a4951674638/sprites/sHawkRunLeft/anim%404x.png) | Hawkman | | | ---------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Health | 4 hit points[^1] | | Damage | 1 heart[^2][^3] | | Speed | 3 pixels per step[^4] | | Behaviour | Charges on sight, then grabs and throws the player[^5] | | Objects | `oHawkman`, `oHawkmanWorship` | | Found in | The Temple, Olmec's Lair[^6] | | Dropped by | [Olmec](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/olmec) (its worshipper, as it wakes)[^6] | Hawkmen live in the Temple. A Hawkman behaves much like a [Caveman](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/caveman), wandering until it sees the player and then charging, but it leaps as it runs, and its touch is a throw: it grabs the player and flings him away, and he's hurt when he lands. Like a Caveman, it survives most single hits, which stun it instead. ## Behaviour A Hawkman stands still for a while, then sets off walking in a random direction, turning around at walls[^7][^8]. Its code sets its speed to 1.5 pixels per step, but, like a Caveman, it covers 4 pixels every 3 steps (40 per second): friction takes 0.1 off before it moves, and the game moves it in whole pixels[^9][^10]. It stops dead at the edge of a ledge, and with a 1 in 100 chance each step, to stand for 20–50 steps (0.67–1.67 seconds)[^11]. Standing beside a wall, it hops[^12]. Every 6 steps while it stands or walks, a Hawkman sends an invisible sight check flying ahead of it, as a Caveman does[^13][^14]. When one reaches the player, every Caveman and Hawkman within 100 pixels of him that isn't stunned starts charging, whichever sent it and whichever way it faces[^15]. **Clip: Hawkman throw.** A hawkman spots the player and charges, hopping. It grabs him and flings him away, and he loses a heart when he lands. Then it charges again. ([video](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/17b72a4951674638/clips/hawkman/throw/clip.mp4)) A charging Hawkman runs at 3 pixels per step (90 per second) the way it faces, turning only at walls, and leaps every time it lands, unless there's a block right above it[^16]. It keeps charging until something stuns it. The leaps often carry it clean over the player, as in the last clip on this page. **The throw.** When the player touches a Hawkman that isn't stunned, unless he's invincible from a recent hit, and there's no block right above it, it grabs him and flings him back the way he came, at 6 pixels per step sideways and 6 upward. He's stunned in the air and drops whatever he's holding[^5]. The first wall or floor he hits costs him 1 heart, unless the fall is long enough to hurt him by itself[^17]. The clip shows a Hawkman spotting the player, charging, and throwing him across the room, where he loses a heart as he lands; then it charges again[^18]. A Hawkman only acts while it's on screen or just off it[^19]. ## Damage **Clip: Hawkman bite.** Under a low ceiling, a hawkman charges the player but can't throw him: with a block right above it, it bites him for a heart instead. ([video](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/17b72a4951674638/clips/hawkman/ceiling/clip.mp4)) | Attack | Damage | | | ----------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | | The throw, in the open | 1 heart on landing; the player is stunned and drops what he holds | [^5] | | A bite, with a block right above it | 1 heart; the player is knocked away and invincible for 30 steps (1 second) | [^20] | A Hawkman under a low ceiling can't throw the player, so it bites him instead, as a [Yeti](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/yeti) does. The clip shows one charging the player along a low tunnel and biting him[^21]. A stunned or dead Hawkman does nothing to him[^22]. ## Defeating **Clip: Hawkman whipped.** The player whips a hawkman, which falls stunned. About eight seconds later it gets up and charges again, leaping over him. ([video](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/17b72a4951674638/clips/hawkman/whip/clip.mp4)) Most hits stun a Hawkman as well as hurting it: it's knocked back and lies on the ground for 200 steps (6.67 seconds), counted down only on the steps it's on the ground or carried, and then gets up if it has hit points left[^23]. The clip shows the Whip stunning a Hawkman, which bounces, lies still, gets up about eight and a half seconds after the hit and charges again, leaping over the player[^24]. The Whip, a stomp and thrown items can't hurt a Hawkman that's already stunned: | Way | Damage | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | | Whip, or its wind-up behind the player | 1 hit point, and stuns it; nothing while it's stunned | [^25] | | Machete | 2 hit points, and stuns it, even while it's stunned | [^26] | | Mattock | 2, and stuns it; nothing while it's stunned | [^25] | | Stomp (landing on it) | 1, plus 1 for every 16 steps of falling, three times that with Spike Shoes, and stuns it; nothing while it's stunned | [^27] | | A thrown item moving faster than 2 pixels per step, such as a Rock | 1, and stuns it; nothing while it's stunned | [^28] | | A stunned monster thrown into it | 1, and stuns it | [^29] | | A Shotgun or Pistol bullet | 4 hit points, enough to kill it | [^30] | | A Bomb's explosion | 30 hit points | [^31] | | A Spear Trap's spears | 2, and stuns it | [^32] | | A [Piranha](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/piranha)'s bite, while it's swimming | 1, at most once every 10 steps, and sets it charging | [^33] | | A [Magma Man](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/magma-man) or a blob of magma | 2, and stuns it | [^34] | | A [Tomb Lord](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/tomb-lord)'s fly | 2, and stuns it | [^35] | | Falling onto Spikes | Kills it | [^36] | | Standing in Lava | Kills it | [^37] | | Ending up inside solid ground | Kills it | [^38] | When its hit points run out, a Hawkman dies and leaves its body, which, like a stunned Hawkman, can be picked up and thrown[^39][^40]. Hawkmen killed count toward the player's kills, and the screen between levels draws a Hawkman for each[^41][^42]. One that Spikes, Lava or a Spear Trap killed doesn't count[^43][^44][^45]. A stunned or dead Hawkman left lying still on Kali's altar for 20 steps is sacrificed to her, adding 6 to her favour if it's stunned and half that if it's dead, unless her favour is already −8 or less[^46]. ## Locations Level generation makes Hawkmen only in the Temple, on top of blocks with open space above them, outside the starting room: a 1 in 40 chance for each such block, once the rolls for a [Tomb Lord](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/tomb-lord) and a [Caveman](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/caveman) have failed[^47]. In Olmec's Lair, a Hawkman bows before [Olmec](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/olmec). When Olmec cracks open, it's flung away, stunned for 300 steps, with 1 hit point[^6]. Custom levels can have them, as the level editor's tile `H`[^48]. ## Tips - In the open, a Hawkman's touch throws the player rather than hurting him, but he drops what he's holding: an item can end up out of reach. - A charging Hawkman leaps as it runs, so it can be ducked under rather than outrun: it often clears the player. - One bullet kills a Hawkman. The Whip can't hurt a stunned one, so with the Whip alone it takes four hits, each after it gets back up. - A stunned Hawkman is worth 6 to Kali, more than a stunned Caveman. ## Trivia - Its code names it `"Yeti"`, a copy of the [Yeti](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/yeti)'s, while the game's tables name it HAWKMAN[^49][^50]. It makes no difference: every check that names `"Hawkman"`, for Spear Traps, Spikes, thrown items and bullets, names `"Yeti"` too[^51][^52][^53]. - A Hawkman that throws a player carrying the golden idol lifts the idol 8 pixels before he drops it[^54]. ## FAQ ### How much damage does a Hawkman do in Spelunky Classic? 1 heart, when the player lands from its throw. A Hawkman with a block right above it can't throw him, and bites for 1 heart instead. ### How do you kill a Hawkman in Spelunky Classic? It has 4 hit points. A Whip hit or a thrown item takes 1 and stuns it, and a stomp takes 1 or more, but none of them can hurt it again until it gets up, so the Whip alone takes four rounds. A Machete keeps cutting while it's stunned, and one bullet or one Bomb kills it. ### Why does a Hawkman throw the player in Spelunky Classic? That's its attack. When a Hawkman touches the player in the open, it grabs him and flings him away; he drops whatever he's holding, and the first wall or floor he hits costs him 1 heart. ### Where are Hawkmen in Spelunky Classic? On the ground in the Temple. One also bows to [Olmec](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/olmec) in Olmec's Lair, and is flung away when he wakes. ## See also - **Damaged by:** Whip, Machete, Mattock, Stomping[^55], Throwing[^28], Shotgun[^30], Pistol[^30], Bomb[^31], Spear Trap[^32], Spikes[^36], Lava[^37], [Piranha](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/piranha), [Magma Man](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/magma-man), [Tomb Lord](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/tomb-lord) - **Related:** [Caveman](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/caveman), [Yeti](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/yeti) ## References [^1]: `objects/oHawkman/create.gml:11` [^2]: `objects/oPlayer1/step.gml:1823` [^3]: `objects/oPlayer1/step.gml:1839` [^4]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:134` [^5]: `objects/oHawkman/collision_oCharacter.gml:42-76` [^6]: `objects/oOlmec/alarm_1.gml:9-21` [^7]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:46-67` [^8]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:79-85` [^9]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:87-106` [^10]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:204-206` [^11]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:87-113` [^12]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:48-55` [^13]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:68-77` [^14]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:115-124` [^15]: `objects/oEnemySight/collision_oCharacter.gml:1-17` [^16]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:126-141` [^17]: `objects/oPlayer1/step.gml:1815-1842` [^18]: Clip hawkman/throw [^19]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:3-5` [^20]: `objects/oHawkman/collision_oCharacter.gml:25-41` [^21]: Clip hawkman/ceiling [^22]: `objects/oHawkman/collision_oCharacter.gml:2` [^23]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:142-175` [^24]: Clip hawkman/whip [^25]: `objects/oHawkman/collision_oWhip.gml:1-17` [^26]: `objects/oHawkman/collision_oWhip.gml:1` [^27]: `objects/oHawkman/collision_oCharacter.gml:1-22` [^28]: `objects/oItem/step.gml:270-288` [^29]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:169-199` [^30]: `objects/oBullet/collision_oEnemy.gml:16-25` [^31]: `objects/oExplosion/collision_oEnemy.gml:14` [^32]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:76-97` [^33]: `objects/oPiranha/step.gml:77-121` [^34]: `objects/oMagmaMan/collision_oEnemy.gml:1-19` [^35]: `objects/oFly/collision_oEnemy.gml:1-30` [^36]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:108-124` [^37]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:65-74` [^38]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:20-37` [^39]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:39-42` [^40]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:176-193` [^41]: `objects/oHawkman/step.gml:178-185` [^42]: `objects/oTransition/alarm_0.gml:227-232` [^43]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:68` [^44]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:87` [^45]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:120` [^46]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:130-167` [^47]: `scripts/scrEntityGen.gml:452-466` [^48]: `scripts/scrCreateTileObj.gml:217-220` [^49]: `objects/oHawkman/create.gml:10` [^50]: `scripts/scrWriteStats.gml:134` [^51]: `objects/oEnemy/step.gml:81` [^52]: `objects/oBullet/collision_oEnemy.gml:17-20` [^53]: Quirk 1 (docs/quirks.md) [^54]: `objects/oHawkman/collision_oCharacter.gml:69-76` [^55]: `objects/oHawkman/collision_oCharacter.gml:8-22` ### Source code - `objects/oHawkman/create.gml` - `objects/oHawkman/step.gml` - `objects/oHawkman/collision_oCharacter.gml` - `objects/oHawkman/collision_oWhip.gml` - `objects/oHawkman/collision_oWhipPre.gml` - `objects/oHawkman/other_animation_end.gml` - `objects/oEnemySight/collision_oCharacter.gml` - `objects/oEnemy/create.gml` - `objects/oEnemy/step.gml` - `scripts/scrEntityGen.gml` - `objects/oOlmec/alarm_1.gml`