Dwarf Fortress: The dwarvening

[Xerapis]

Where the fuck is the update? I'm bored at work!!!!

[bhodi]

Soon, Soon! I've been busy! I'll try and play some tonight.

[Slyfeind]

Yaay. My dwarves were invaded by goblins, and someone's wife was killed, so the widower flew into a rage and killed someone else's husband. The widow to him started breaking furniture, then the sherrif came and beat them both up, and...madness ensued! I enjoyed the carnage for a while then restarted.

Your dwarves are more well-mannered, Bhodi.

[dusematic]

slacker.

[Torinak]

Yaay. My dwarves were invaded by goblins, and someone's wife was killed, so the widower flew into a rage and killed someone else's husband. The widow to him started breaking furniture, then the sherrif came and beat them both up, and...madness ensued! I enjoyed the carnage for a while then restarted.

Your dwarves are more well-mannered, Bhodi.

In the early spring of the first year of my latest game, my carpenter crafted a masterpiece. She was so excited she ran into the still-being-excavated living quarters to tell her spouse. Right after she left the carpenter's shop, a wily raccoon stole the masterpiece! She went crazy, killed her pet and beat up her spouse, and then went to the expedition leader for grief counseling. Apparently the leader did a bad job, because she went crazy again and punched him, giving him permanent brain damage and plunging him into a coma.

Three years later, the fortress had grown to the point where it could have a mayor, and the wise dwarves elected someone other than the vegetable who hadn't left his room in many years.  Now, the visiting caravan merchants don't have to hope for a rare moment of consciousness to work out trade agreements!

So yeah, pretty typical to have your dwarves freak out like that. Bhodi may be lucky, so far...

[ashrik]

This is too awesome. I'd like to enlist!

[bhodi]

Finished. Have to write it up. Man this game is frustrating sometimes.

My dwarves are pretty well mannered, yeah.

[bhodi]

Episode Five: Operation Waterfail


Here's where we look after 4 episodes:



As you can see, we've got a respectable community going here. 50 dwarves of various skills, lots of food and drink, and some decent amount of wealth.

Our mayor must have been doing something right, people liked those unreasonable mandates.



Goblins continue to come at regular intervals and are dealt with swiftly and efficiently:



And, sometimes, they get good hits in.




Artifacts continue to be produced:




And the dwarves continue their unsanitary tradition of dropping their food whenever they are standing when they are placed on duty.



It's good to see the elves finally get what's coming to them, right before they make it to the trade depot:




I can't trade them blood covered ex-goblin goods anyway, so it's probably for the best.


There's a new type of goblin in town!



Unfortunately for him, he fares no better than his mates. There's simply no way to sneak past the high traffic entrance covered with traps.



Spring dawns, and with it our yearly dose of slave labor, which brings our number of dwarves to 61.



They are immediately put to work, hauling all loose rock into a gigantic pile outside.



And a new (unnamed, as of yet) noble, who thinks just as highly of himself as does the mayor. What's he do? I dunno. Bondage games, probably.



Here's something you don't see everyday:



Fortunately, he was able to get away without injury.


It's time to focus on the construction project: Operation waterfall.

The main elements:

A Flootgate to the river tunnel and Pressure sensitive switch (linked to the floodgate)



The pressure switch set to trigger the floodgate if it's under less than 5 units of water



The pumps to draw water up from the underground cistern:



A room with two switches, one linked to the floodgate and one linked to the pumps. We pull the one linked to the floodgate once so that "trigger the floodgate if it's under less than 5 units of water" means trigger it OPEN to let more water in. The other switch is connected to the mechanism that feeds the pumps and is an emergency power off if something goes disastrously wrong with the waterfall and we need to turn off the flow. (or if we have to do maintenance)



Making sure no one EVER opens the doors to the pumps while they are in operation:



And no project would be incomplete without stupid dwarves digging themselves into a corner and becoming stuck:

.

But eventually, the task is complete. One dwarf is chosen to make the final hole into the bottom of the lake. He'll then have to outpace the water and into the cistern and up the stairs before the pressure switch slams shut the floodgate.



It's Merusk, of course. He's the only one with a pick.

A shot one level above where the hole is to be made in the bottom of the brook:



He slices into the wall!



And easily outpaces the water.




The water sprays into the cistern!



Fills it, and starts moving down the tunnel towards the pumps...




The pressure plate works! It reaches it's pressure point and slams shut the floodgate! That worked at least; now the entire fortress won't flood.



But there's a small problem... It's taking a LONG time for that water to creep down the tunnel. A very long time. And it's only water level 1.



It FINALLY is taken up by the pumps and begins to dribble to the top...



Let's pull the lever to let more water into the system...



It does no good - the trigger just closes the floodgate immediately. Curse this failproof design!

What's that?! Oh, you have got to be kidding me:



It's taking so long that a TREE grew in our aqueduct! And now it's partially blocking the flow.


What a disaster!

[Trippy]

Who is going to go in there and chop down that tree?

[Slyfeind]

Wow, that is just insane. And I thought I was clever the first time I drained a lake into an underground pool. As simple as the graphics are, I'm continually amazed at the physics in this game. I can't wait until someone goes into there and chops down that tree....

So how do you designate special rooms when the furniture is off-center? I'm thinking like putting all the beds in a Barracks against a wall, but it always wants to center the room around one of my beds. So then I have to move a bed into the middle of the room.

[bhodi]

Wow, that is just insane. And I thought I was clever the first time I drained a lake into an underground pool. As simple as the graphics are, I'm continually amazed at the physics in this game. I can't wait until someone goes into there and chops down that tree....

So how do you designate special rooms when the furniture is off-center? I'm thinking like putting all the beds in a Barracks against a wall, but it always wants to center the room around one of my beds. So then I have to move a bed into the middle of the room.

The room designation is stopped by walls and doors. Just have a door in the barracks and hit + to expand to encompass the entire room.

[Slyfeind]

Wow, that is just insane. And I thought I was clever the first time I drained a lake into an underground pool. As simple as the graphics are, I'm continually amazed at the physics in this game. I can't wait until someone goes into there and chops down that tree....

So how do you designate special rooms when the furniture is off-center? I'm thinking like putting all the beds in a Barracks against a wall, but it always wants to center the room around one of my beds. So then I have to move a bed into the middle of the room.

The room designation is stopped by walls and doors. Just have a door in the barracks and hit + to expand to encompass the entire room.

Aha thanx /facepalm

[Merusk]

Clearly my dwarf was on track instead of swimming in dwarf High School.  Good thing.

[ashrik]

Wow, this is a pain to get started. I had finally selected a starting location and picked out my skills and items from among the undocumented horde. I was basically copying your starting picks.

I can't find "serpentine" anywhere on the list for stones to buy though. I forged ahead.

When I had actually placed some buildings so that my dwarves would aimlessly wander, I tried to build additional picks.

Zulban Kelimik, Metalsmith cancels Forge Copper pick: Needs refined coal

Time to start over! 

[dusematic]

This update started slow, but what a cliffhanger at the end.  I CAN FEEL THE TENSION BUILDING. 

[Ironwood]

2 things :

1 - Pressure plates ?  Since when ?  Arg, I must design something using them, though it's great to finally see your construction taking shape.

2 - Start over due to coal ?  Why ?  Just make some.

[Lantyssa]

I don't even worry about coal.  I always make sure there is magma on my maps.

Fire Imp bone crossbows also sell for a lot, though I keep them for the prestige.

[schild]

Moving this to Radicalthon.

[ashrik]

I'm doing somewhat better this time around. Can anyone tell me how I can get these guys to move beds into the bedrooms I've created for them? Is it done by setting a custom stockpile of beds in the place where I want it? I'm afraid that they've decided not to move the hallway beds they've already slept in. Burn you- get to hauling!

[sidereal]

First you have to get the beds built.  You can either make them out of wood at a carpenter's shop or out of stone at a mason's.  (whoops.  I just reread the question and you have beds built, so.....)

Then you hit b) for building and b) for bed and 'build' the bed (kind of confusing since the bed is already built, but what you're really doing is installing it) in your bedroom.  Someone should move a free one there shortly.  If none of the current beds are moving, it might be because they're already designated in bedrooms or barracks, in which case they're not available.  Build more or de-designate them (through the q menu).

[Lantyssa]

If you build a bed but don't turn it into a bedroom then any dwarf will sleep in it if tired and not occupied.

You can designate the area around a bed as a bedroom and a bedless dwarf will claim it.  Or you can designate it for a specific dwarf, which you'll want to do for nobles.

If a bed is built, but you want to move it, you need to removed it (q -> highlight -> x) and designate one be built in the new place once it's back in storage.

[FatuousTwat]

Beds can only be made from wood.

[sidereal]

Oh, right right.  Beds and buckets.  I was confusing them with chairs.

[ashrik]

oh holy crap, my first caravan is on the way!

 Can anyone tell me how to put things into barrels?

[sidereal]

It should happen automagically if you have empty barrels, a correctly designated storeroom, and stuff to put in them.

Keep in mind that most stuff goes into bins, not barrels.  Barrels are for food and drink mostly, IIRC.

[Fargull]

So.. can someone confirm that if I look at civilizations in my current game and the Goblins have a big fat P next to them that they are peaceful with my fortress?  I am guessing yes since I have not had any attack.

[Lantyssa]

You can hit a key on the civilization screen (tab?) to get more details.  That should tell you for sure.

[ashrik]

My first wave of migrants! After 2 seasons of nothing, 21 members of the unwashed masses have finally come to join me at Hamlet Ingisshalis "The Bodicekiss"

Whenever I mention this game to a friend, he always replies with nothing but this picture

[dusematic]

I don't think I even understand that comic.  But I still laughed my ass off and sent it to everyone I know.  Weird.

[schild]

I don't think I even understand that comic.  But I still laughed my ass off and sent it to everyone I know.  Weird.

I would assume the cats mate and fuck Everything Up.

[dusematic]

Creep avatar.

[Kail]

I would assume the cats mate and fuck Everything Up.

Yeah, nothing kills them, so if left alone, they eat the planet.

[FatuousTwat]

My first wave of migrants! After 2 seasons of nothing, 21 members of the unwashed masses have finally come to join me at Hamlet Ingisshalis "The Bodicekiss"

Whenever I mention this game to a friend, he always replies with nothing but this picture

Please...

My neckbeard is much longer than that.

[bhodi]

The other joke that that anything fits in a cage, and you can fit any number of the same creature type in a single cage.

[Slyfeind]

And there's nothing cuter than a crate full of kittens!!!