Occasionally when you try to attack a python in melee, you instead swap places with it and get the message: “It slithers around you; S, @ = @, S.” (replacing the @ with the hero’s glyph if they are different). This is a reference to multiple variable assignment in the Python language.

If the hero can be represented by S themselves, the displacement never happens, because S, S = S, S is not syntactically correct in some versions of Python (though it is in current versions).

If you attempt to move into a ghost’s space (either if it’s invisible and unseen by you, or by m-moving, not by moving normally towards it when you know something’s there which would still be an attack), you successfully move there, displace the ghost to an adjacent space, and take some damage from creepily passing through a ghost. If this is implemented in an extra evil way, this could be cold damage that destroys potions.

If the player can displace peaceful monsters, hostile monsters should be able to as well.

You can displace peaceful monsters (but not shopkeepers, priests, or Quest leaders) by either walking into them (as the default choice) or by walking into them preceded by the m key.

Croesus is able to displace other monsters, because he’s the king. Perhaps all king-type monsters should be able to displace other monsters.

When you have displacement, you displace your pets appropriately even when stunned, confused, or hallucinating, rather than attacking them.

Wearing a cloak of displacement allows you to displace pets 100% of the time and also peacefuls; this still works if you are confused, stunned or hallucinating.