There are 8 cardinal directions in NetHack. You can use either the number keys or the vi-keys: If you have a number pad on your keyboard, you can turn on the num lock and set number_pad:1 in your options to use the keys for directions and movement: To use the vi-keys for directions or movement, set number_pad:0 in your options: Whenever you are prompted for a direction, you can also use the following: * upwards, < * downward, > * towards yourself, s or .