Assuming it actually works. Way I see it is that there are 3 possible outcome;
1.) Works perfectly, huge success.
2.) I screw up when flooding the moat and end up flooding the fortress.
3.) Attempts to capture hippos fail miserably and simply produce coffins.
Still, I think this is one the things that really shows why I love Dwarf Fortress. What other game lets you dig an artificial river to flood a moat which you then fill with hippos to feed invaders to?
To trap the Hippos properly you'll really need a flood gate on either end to keep sea-creatures out and the hippos in. Problem is going to be that you may end up forming an aquifer. And can a drawbridge stretch that far?
To trap the Hippos properly you'll really need a flood gate on either end to keep sea-creatures out and the hippos in. Problem is going to be that you may end up forming an aquifer. And can a drawbridge stretch that far?
Again, that is a shitty diagram. What appear to be one drawbridge will actually be multiple drawbridges all linked to the same lever.
This is terrible and I apologize to anyone that looks at it.
Basically, by leaving a piece of solid land in the middle of the moat you can use it as an anchor for the drawbridges. By buildings multiple drawbridges and linking them all to the same lever, you can essentially create on large drawbridge.
When I saw the thread title update I thought this fortress was already screwed. Love the twist on HFS, though in the end you're still kind of screwed. I can't see taming hippos going very well.
The construction plans look good though. For those who haven't heard of it, I demand that you observe the mermaid bone harvester so that you truly understand the feats of cruel and unusual engineering regularly introduced by DF players.
PS: Hoary marmots have some wicked looking claws. I can totally see dwarves running in terror as that monster chases them down with the same cold, dead look in its eyes as in the photo.
I really don't think tilesets help that much. I mean, the most they do is replace a walking e with an Elf sprite. But given the context I'm trying to give for each screenshot, you'd be able to tell that was an elf anyways. If tilesets really did help I would use them myself, but I never found them to make playing or understanding the game easier. If I did suddenly switch to a tileset, I'd run into the problem of not knowing what I'm looking at, making explaining it impossible.
So yeah, sorry about this. But I'm trying to do more to make it easier to understand. If you have any ideas, feel free to pitch them. And again, as soon as stone sense is updated to the new version
Chal said:
The construction plans look good though. For those who haven't heard of it, I demand that you observe the mermaid bone harvester so that you truly understand the feats of cruel and unusual engineering regularly introduced by DF players.
Well, I spent some time talking to the other dwarves, and I've come to a conclusion; we need to build the H.F.S. I need an excuse to catch those adorable little hippos, and the idea of using them for fortress defense is perfect. So I took the H.F.S plans, added my signature to make them official, and then handed them over to Goden for safe keeping.
(I add the smiley face to brighten the reader's day!)
Of course it will be a while before we can actually begin construction, but we can start planning ahead for it.
On a less positive note, I've canceled the plans for the underground farm. The reason being that the terrain is simply too difficult to navigate. So many slopes and hills, with barely any room to place down a single large farm plot! If we ever decide to expand our farming industry beyond plump helmets, we'd have to relocate the farms anyways. Dishmab was very relieved to hear this, though this relief instantly vanished the second I mentioned building a farm on the second cavern layer rather than the first. I know that the deeper you go the.....weirder, for lack of a better term, the creatures get, but how dangerous could it really be? Assuming of course the terrain down there is more manageable.
I really can't be too hard on Dishmab though. After all, she surprised us all with a new talent today. Apparently, she has some simple brewing knowledge in addition to her vast farming skills. She's already begun putting together stills near the food stockpile.
28th Hematite, 1051, Early Summer
Looking back on my previous entries, I think I've been overreacting to the current rate of construction. We're really not doing to bad. We have a good place to store food, an area for brewing and other cooking duties, a fully constructed depot, and progress on the dining hall is going well. I now realize that in my haste, I overlooked many of the basic parts of comfortable life, which is no doubt bothering the other dwarves.
Like beds, for example. I guess I never really thought about where everyone else was sleeping. Apparently while I was sleeping in the wagon they had to lie on the filthy, cold dirt. Oops. But, I'm already working to remedy that! I reassigned Thob from masonry to carpentry. She still isn't happy about not being able to fish (I told her as soon as she finds a way to catch hippos I'll let her fish all the time), but it isn't any worse than masonry. Granted she doesn't know a thing about carpentry, but neither does anyone else in Reveredtour. How hard could it be though? Just nail a few pieces of wood together and call it a bed!
I also hadn't seen Momuz working lately. He wasn't out killing warthogs either, so I was worried for a second. However, I soon found that he had carved a room out himself overnight and was now using it for training.
At first I was confused by how he could be training by himself. Apparently he's spending most of his time smashing warthog bones, beating on an armor stand with his axe, or wrestling with his war beasts. At least he's resourceful. Though at this point anything is preferable to watching him butcher those poor warthogs all day.
There are some things you never forget. The sound of a battle axe shattering a skull is one of them.
6th Malachite, 1051, Mid-Summer
I was talking to Dishmab again today. She's been a lot calmer now that the warthogs are gone and she doesn't have to work in the caverns (for now). I inquired about why she's so easily scared, but she didn't want to talk about it. However, I did learn that she actually has a number of cooking skills. If we ever run low on supplies, she could serve as a decent chef in a pinch. Though I'm hoping that the caravans will come before this is necessary. Or perhaps if migrants somehow arrive that one of them has some decent cooking skills. Speaking of which, I thought I saw some dwarves out in the distance last night. I was overjoyed at the idea of some new friends, and wanted to meet them as soon as possible. Goden even encouraged me to leave the safety of the fort to greet them, and I almost did before Zuntir stopped me. He said it was best not to risk it, as they could be fiends of the night (whatever those are). They didn't show up today, so I guess they weren't dwarves after all. Wow, Goden could have accidentally gotten me killed!
8th Malachite, 1051, Mid-Summer
I told Dishmab that she was going into the caves today. I figure we could at least establish a temporary farm and get some extra plump helmets, as it's taking a long time to work our way down to the second cavern layer. She begged me not to make her go, but I sent her off anyways. It's not like I thought anything bad would happen! But to my horror, I found that I was actually wrong for once!
Kraken's notes: You know what a naked mole rat is? Well, picture one of those, only a lot bigger and uglier. That's a naked mole dog. They're not particularly aggressive, but they can severely injure civilians if they somehow get in a fight. The bigger threat they pose is stealing your food and booze. Naked mole dogs are one of several creatures that like to run into your food stockpile, steal as much food and drink as much booze as they can, and then run away. They can also steal food from underground beastmen civilizations, who won't even respond to naked mole dogs raiding their food supply.
Dishmab's screams could be heard echoing through the tunnels all the way from the surface. For once it was justified, as I would have screamed to if that thing snuck up on me. It was this disgusting, mole dog creature that had miasma pouring out its bloated body. Half of its skin was gone, and the other half was either rotting or pulsating due to some weird goo stuck underneath. You wouldn't even think something like that could be alive, let alone chase a dwarf around with vicious determination.
Fortunately, Momuz did not fear the abomination. Instead he charged down into the tunnels to hunt the foul creature. You certainly can't fault his bravery, or his results.
He came back up only a few minutes later. He was covered in blood and bits of crushed bone, and some his war octopre were still cradling a few pieces of torn flesh. He proudly announced that an entire family of those things had taken up residence in the farm, trying to dig up the growing plump helmets. I congratulated him on his success in combat, and would have given him a medal if I had one. Instead I gave him a little coin I hastily crafted out of mud. I figure that what it represents is more important than how it looks. He took the coin, and then walked over to Dishmab. She was sitting in the corner, trying to calm herself down after her encounter with the mole dogs. Momuz then showed her one of the severed heads he had collected, causing her to faint instantly. He smiled to himself, threw the coin at her unconscious body (rude!), and then went back to training. There's a lot of bad chemistry between those two. I guess everyone can't be as charismatic as me. At least this little incident proved that Momuz can do a decent job defending the fortress when the need arises. When Dishmab comes back to, I'll probably give her the day off or something. But after that it's right back to the caverns for her, as I don't think we'll be reaching the second layer anytime soon. Besides, it's not like there's anything else crawling down there. I think.
Despite this update having less content than the other ones, it still took me the longest to do (3 hours). Not sure how that happened.
I find that portraying combat in Dwarf Fortress beyond the report screen is pretty difficult. Looking back, I probably should have put in some pictures of the corpses to show the aftermath of the whole thing (though miasma probably would have obscured them anyways). Some feedback on this part of the update would be much appreciated so I could improve it in the future.
Despite this update having less content than the other ones, it still took me the longest to do (3 hours). Not sure how that happened.
I find that portraying combat in Dwarf Fortress beyond the report screen is pretty difficult. Looking back, I probably should have put in some pictures of the corpses to show the aftermath of the whole thing (though miasma probably would have obscured them anyways). Some feedback on this part of the update would be much appreciated so I could improve it in the future.
I think abstracting the combat in DF is not such a bad idea for short stories. If you get a cool detail like a dwarf braining something with a random object, it's worth tossing in, but I'd say most people don't bother reading combat logs anyway so you might as well spruce them up with outright fabrications (/glados).
Other than that, keep up the humor and focus on characterization as you get more migrants. Migrursut does well on that front, so I suggest you (and you too, whoever is lurking around here. Yes, you!) read it if you get some spare time.
By the by, what the hell is an octopre? I assume it's a modded creature and not some sort of "microphone preamp"?
It is a modded creature. One of the most common ones since it basically replaces the role of dogs in all of my forts. The reason I haven't made an info block about them is......I'm stupid. I'll have to shoehorn that into the next update.
They're basically just land-dwelling octopuses that are domestic pets. One of the first creatures I made. There's actually no real problems with their design from a modding standpoint, which surprises me since I made them when my knowledge of modding was very shallow.
On the subject of combat, I've been thinking about it and I'll probably avoid going into to much detail unless it's a particularly notable fight. But I don't need to spend half an update talking about how Momuz chased a warthog across the wastes for 3 days before cornering it on the beach and smashing its skull (he really likes to do that).
Momuz came up to me this morning with some kind of document. I'd seen him talking with Goden for the past few weeks, and I guess it was about this. He then proceeded to show me some potential fortress defense plan.
(Momuz's diagram kind of sucks, but I won't tell him that)
I told them I was flattered that they recognized my superior tactical knowledge and came to me for advice. Goden then said that they were only showing me this because they needed my stamp of approval to actually begin work on it. It's okay though, I know she's just jealous. I won't hold that against her.
But I'm really not sure what to think of this H.F.S. I'm tempted to implement it if only to give myself an excuse to catch those adorable little hippos, but I'm not sure if subsequently trapping them in a moat is a good idea. Plus this could be dangerous to build. Maybe I'll ask some of the other dwarves what they think about it. In the meantime, Momuz and Goden will have to put this aside. We need to focus on sealing off the caverns anyways so Dishmab stops having panic attacks.
__________________________________________________
And with this post, you finally got me to install the game. I've been curious about it for months, but the H.F.S. is what pushed me over the line. Well, that and the Merfolk harvester that was linked from the official forums...
Dishmab has gone back to working in the caverns. She certainly isn't enjoying it, but she isn't resisting it as much now. Looks like she's finally toughened up! Or her spirits are crushed. I'd prefer the former, but I guess either one works. Unfortunately, it was only a few hours before she once again ran up from the deep, shouting and screaming about monsters. It seems that Momuz wasn't able to clear out all of the zombie mole dogs, and now the survivors were once again moving in on the farm. Fortunately these beasts are no match for Momuz!
He's capable of killing them with ease, so it seems like he's doing strange things like biting them for sport. I don't see why he would try to devour those foul creatures fetid flesh, but it's probably not in my best interest to ask. He's doing such a good job, I should probably do something to show my appreciation.
17th Malachite, 1051, Mid-Summer
I walked into Momuz's barracks earlier today, and found him training there, as usual. It looked like he was exchanging blows with his earth golem Mistem (I wonder if it's friends with Lorbam). His octopres were wrestling with each other over in the corner. They were all completely absorbed in their training, but only a few seconds I walked in, they all stopped and turned to face me. It was a bit unnerving to be honest.
Kraken's notes: This should have been one of the first creatures I talked about. Octopre are essentially just an octopus that is about as big as a dog and can survive fine on dry land. I modded them in because I felt they fit more with the shoreline fortresses I typically build. They basically just replace dogs, serving as both a source of mediocre war beasts and food. They were one of my first modding projects, and despite this work surprisingly well.
Momuz wiped some sweat and grime off his brow, and then set aside his axe to come talk to me.
Momuz: "What do you want? Are those damn mole dogs already attacking Dishmab again?"
Stinthad: "No, but-"
Momuz: "Is she crying about warthogs?"
Stithad: "No, you killed them all. The reason I'm here is because I wanted to thank you for doing so well defending Reveredtour!"
Momuz: "Are you giving me another crummy coin?"
Stinthad: "Uh, no. Instead I wanted to give you this."
I handed him the shale bracelet I had been carving in my spare time. Originally I was making it as a ring for Lorbam, but figured Momuz deserved some kind of recognition. Lorbam and I are already best friends anyways.
Momuz: "Did you make this?"
Stinthad: "Yep! Been crafting it for about a month now. I even tried engraving a little picture of you killing zombies on it. You don't have to pretend to like it, but please don't throw this one at Dishmab."
To my surprise, he didn't toss it into the corner but instead put it inside a small chest he carried for safekeeping. I guess he appreciated the thought. After that I decided to leave him be, and I heard him start training again right away. He sure is dedicated to his work.
23rd Malachite, 1051, Mid-Summer
I've been spending my spare time the past few days gazing off into the distance. I keep hoping to see someone new come over the horizon, so I can welcome them to our wonderful home. It's not that the other seven aren't good company, but I didn't really realize how lonely it would get out here on the wastes. Back in the capital I was usually the center of attention, and I kind of miss that. I suppose it's foolish though, since there's no way migrants would come here yet. We haven't even made a name for ourselves.
However, I did notice some large creatures over in the distance, across the river. They were bigger than anything I'd ever seen in my life. I consulted my bestiary, and found that their appearance most closely resembles that of an elephant!
Kraken's notes: Elephants have quite the reputation amongst Dwarf Fortress players, mainly because of the role they played in the Boatmurdered Let's Play. Elephants were known for their incredible power and tendency to use said power to crush dwarves like bugs. But that was many versions ago, and the modern Elephant is quite different. They are still just as strong, but now they do not actively seek out conflict and will only attack dwarves when threatened. A large elephant population that frequents your fort may actually be a blessing. When tamed and trained, elephants will serve you as incredibly powerful war beasts. Their large size also means they provided you with a mountain of meat when butchered, and their body parts are also worth 5x that of a normal creature.
It's also worth noting that Elephants are the largest land-dwelling creatures in vanilla Dwarf Fortress, barring megabeasts.
I was a bit nervous at first, given all those old horror stories with elephants involved. But after watching them for a while they don't seem to look as bloodthirsty or vicious as those silly tales would have you believe. The bestiary also mentions that deaths involving wild elephants are quite rare. Still, I think it's best to avoid them when our fortress is so young. They're not as cute as the hippos anyways.
24th Malachite, 1051, Mid-Summer
I can't believe it! I was looking out in the distance again today, when I saw an unfamiliar shape wandering towards the fortress. Too small to be an elephant, too big to be a warthog. And they didn't appear to be wandering aimlessly, a characteristic typically associated with the undead. As they came closer, I realized that they were dwarves! Migrants have finally come to Reveredtour!
As soon as they realized that we were living here, they picked up the pace. They seemed to be surprised that they had actually found a place inhabited by dwarves. Atir, who I assumed was the leader of the 3, approached Reveredtour first.
Atir: "Hello? Are you dwarves of the Relieved Craft? What is this place?"
Stinthad: "Yes, we are members of the Relieved Craft! And this is Reveredtour, a glorious outpost of our nation. Lead by yours truly, Stinthad Kekimtobul."
He looked a bit surprised by what I had just told him.
Atir: "I've heard your name before. They actually let you lead an expedition to this place??
Stinthad: "Yep! I know you probably expected someone of my status to found a fortress in a more "pleasant" environment, but I'm quite fond of this land!"
Atir: "Yeah, sure. Look, we've been traveling for months. We haven't eaten decent food in weeks, and the heats almost gotten to us. Mosus over there hasn't said a word all day, which would shock you if you knew her. Could we please have some food and drink before continuing this conversation any further?"
I was about to invite them in, but Goden stopped me. She seemed to be suspicious of these travelers.
Goden: "Not so fast. Who are you? Where did you come from? Why did you come here? It seems odd that anyone would come to this place when we haven't even received a visit from a caravan."
Alath: "Oh come on lady. Your glorious "leader" already said we could come in. Besides, what do you think we're going to do? We don't even have weapons with us, and one of us is about to collapse from hunger. It's not like we're planning to rob you blind in your sleep."
Atir: "Alath, calm down. We don't want to anger to first sign of civilization we've seen in months. But he's right, we really would prefer to give you an explanation for our arrival after we've had a chance to recuperate."
Stinthad: "Don't mind Goden, it's her job to second guess everything I do!"
I tried telling that joke to lighten the mood, but it didn't seem to amuse anyone. Goden just gave me a cold stare before heading back to her work. I guess she figured I was right for once? I suppose it doesn't matter.
Stinthad: "Um, anyways, the food stockpile is right over there. Help yourself to whatever you need. The beds are just a few levels underground, you shouldn't miss them. Take your time to rest and we'll talk tomorrow."
And with that they hurried over to get something to eat. The limited selection didn't seem to bother them. I'm guessing that they've come to Reveredtour under special circumstances. Either way, I'm glad to finally see some new faces. I'll get to know them better tomorrow, and I'm sure we'll become fast friends!
__________________________________________________
And with this post, you finally got me to install the game. I've been curious about it for months, but the H.F.S. is what pushed me over the line. Well, that and the Merfolk harvester that was linked from the official forums...
Wonderful! I always love new players discovering this gem. Sure, it takes a few walkthroughs before anything makes sense, but once you have things figured out there is nothing that compares. Do share how your first fortress meets its demise. It's just a fact of life that you're going to end up with a flood of midget corpses in one way or another.
On the topic of elephants, I'd like to add that while they no longer are much of a threat to the lives of the dwarves, they certainly are dangerous to the aesthetics of your fort. If you cut one open and it decides to flee instead of fight, it will spill gallons of blood all across the landscape, which can tarnish it for months, depending on how often it rains. Prior to the current version, the dwarves merrily trekking through the puddles of blood would extend the blemish further, which meant the land was sometimes permanently painted with the lifeblood of the pachyderms.
I'm interested to see how the migrants will react to living on a blighted coast. It really makes you wonder how bad things are at the capital if they would give it up for a place like Reveredtour. *Zombie Naked Mole Dog Flesh* for all!
On the topic of elephants, I'd like to add that while they no longer are much of a threat to the lives of the dwarves, they certainly are dangerous to the aesthetics of your fort. If you cut one open and it decides to flee instead of fight, it will spill gallons of blood all across the landscape, which can tarnish it for months, depending on how often it rains. Prior to the current version, the dwarves merrily trekking through the puddles of blood would extend the blemish further, which meant the land was sometimes permanently painted with the lifeblood of the pachyderms.
Ah yes, the spread of blood is quite an interesting thing in Dwarf Fortress. I'm quite familiar with just how annoying it can be in extreme situations.
That was from a single tile during the downfall of my previous fort. Blood has a tendency to splatter everywhere. A dwarf can step in a small pool of it and somehow manage to spread it across multiple Z levels. Currently, there is no sensible way to clean it off either. Normally this is just annoying from an aesthetic point. But if this blood happens to spread a disease that causes a dwarf to collapse into a bloody lump of blistered gore, it's catastrophic.
When I woke up today, I found the new arrivals were sitting near the entrance, discussing their current situation I imagine. They had been patiently waiting for me to come talk to them, so I felt a bit bad about sleeping in. Again. I don't think they noticed though. The dwarf that had been barely awake the other they ran up to me the second I stepped into her line of sight.
Mosus: "Oh thank you sooooooo much for letting us stay here! I was starting to think that we would die out there on the wastes but then we saw light coming from your fort out in the distance one night so we started heading towards it but then those shadow freaks attacked and-"
Atir: "Calm down Mosus. We are thankful for you giving us shelter. Now I suppose you want to know what brought us to your fortress?"
Stinthad: "Yes, we haven't been here for very long, so it seems odd that migrants would arrive, and in such small numbers."
Atir: "Well, we're not migrants. Or at least we weren't. The 3 of us used to be part of a trading caravan. We were in the middle of a trade mission to the Comedic Empire before we came here."
Stinthad: "You mean those warmongering humans of to the east? Why would you want to trade with them? You'd have to cross through miles of goblin territory to reach them!"
Atir: "Well their frequent conflicts means they are always seeking to acquire high quality weapons. As a result, they will pay a huge amount of gold for weapons crated by the finest dwarven weaponsmiths. We figured that it was worth risking the hostile journey to reach them."
Goden: "Did you really think you could make it through 2 goblin territories carrying such valuable cargo?"
Atir: "Yes, actually, though in retrospect that was quite foolish. We weren't that big of a group, and considering how convoluted and twisted the goblin lands are, we figured the odds of running into goblins were actually low so long as we kept moving. I was honestly more worried about running into beak dogs or harpies."
Goden: "Then you're an idiot. Goblins have scouts keeping watch all over their territory. Nobody makes it through their without heavy protection."
Atir: "Well, I guess that's a fair assessment. We were being stupid. We had almost made it through when a huge group of goblins from the Witch of Silencing attacked us. We didn't have a chance against them. Most of us ran off into the wilds without even trying to fight. At least, that's what we did. We've spent the last few months crawling through swamps and wastelands, living off whatever plants we can dig out of the soil in a hurry. We were worried that if we stayed in any one place to long the goblins would get us."
Goden: "You said there were others with you? What happened to them?"
Atir: "Dead."
Mosus: "You don't know that! If we made it here, why couldn't they??
Alath: "Oh grow up! We barely made it this far, and I doubt they had the luxury of stumbling upon some random outpost. They're probably being eaten by beak dogs right now."
Mosus: "I don't believe you! They're probably going to show up here any day now!"
Alath: "Keep thinking that. I'm sure if you wish hard enough they'll just pop up out of nowhere. And hell, maybe your cat will come back to!"
Goden: "He's probably right. I'm shocked you even managed to make it to us, considering the foul nature of this land."
Atir: "Actually, I've been meaning to ask about that. Where the hell are we? If I had to guess it would be the Pregnant Ocean, but that doesn't seem right. I've seen a lot of strange creatures on the way here, ones you would never find in such a peaceful place. And then there's that terrible stench. If I didn't know better, I'd think we were right next to the Ocean of Shriveling."
Stinthad: "Actually, that's correct!"
All 3 of them looked like they had just seen a ghost upon learning this.
Alath: "WHAT?! Of all the places in the Realm, why would the Relieved Craft establish an outpost here?!"
Mosus: "Wait, so were those really zombies we saw the other day? Oh no no no no."
I wasn't quite sure how to respond to this. I mean, I know this place doesn't have the best reputation, but they seemed to think they had just entered hell itself!
Stinthad: "Well, if you don't want to stay I won't make you."
Atir: "No, it's fine. I just didn't think anyone would willingly choose to live here. But it's better than being eaten by Ogres. If we really are next to the Ocean of Shriveling, we don't have a chance of making it back to the mountainhomes."
They may not have been pleased about living here, but I'm sure it will grow on them. Eventually you stop noticing the smell, and the howls of the undead can sometimes actually be pleasant to listen to during those warm summer nights. Goden pointed out that we can't accommodate freeloaders, and that they needed to work if they wanted to stay here. Atir has begun working in masonry, as we always need more masons. Mosus seemed willing to do almost anything, so I assigned her to hauling labors. It's a repetitive and unrewarding task that most dwarves hate doing, but she doesn't seem bothered by it. Alath actually begged us to let him into the military, despite his lack of skill. Momuz originally wasn't keen on the idea, but after a while he decided that any additional soldier would be helpful, no matter how unskilled. I'm sure he will do a good job training him anyways. Momuz is a great commander, I'm really glad he came on this trip.
1st Galena, 1051, Late Summer
Some zombie conchmen have shown up near the outskirts of our territory. Mosus seems to be absolutely terrified by the idea of zombies, though unlike Dishmab she doesn't go insane just by seeing them. They should only be a problem if they come closer to the fort. I'm not worried about Momuz, but rather Alath. He's a complete neophyte, and we lack the ability to properly equip him at the moment. He could easily receive a serious injury from those foul beasts.
I talked with Ushrir today about our goal of reaching the second cavern. She said she was still working on it, but that the rock was harder to dig through the deeper she went down. However, it's not all bad. She says she'd seen a vast number of different types of stone, minerals, and even gems during her digging! She presented me with a complete list of all the ones she'd identified so far.
I never would have thought our fortress was situated right on top of such a vast deposit of resources! This could easily make up for the unpleasant environment surrounding Reveredtour. When dwarves back in the capital hear about this, migrants will flock to our home! At least I hope so.
6th Galena, 1051, Late Summer
When Atir and his friends first came to Reveredtour, they brought a horse along with them. At the time I didn't think anything of it, assuming that the horse was one of their pets that had fortunately survived the trip. But over the past few days I've only seen the horse sitting near the entrance, keeping to itself. Apparently, it doesn't belong to any of them.
It was a horse that belonged to a friend of theirs before he was devoured by a pack of beak dogs. Alath said he would have butchered it for food, but lacked the skill and tools needed to do so without receiving a kick to the face. Since nobody seems to be interested in taking care of it, I figure butchering it might be a good idea. We're running low on meat, and I hear horse tastes okay. Sure it may not have the tangy quality of voracious cave crawler, but that's a luxury we can do without at the moment. Though some voracious cave crawler with diced plump helmet would really hit the spot right about now.
Kraken's notes: Horses are a domesticated animal that is often kept by dwarves as pets. However, wild groups of horses can still be found on some embarks. The role of horses as domesticated animals in both Dwarf Fortress and real life seems to have led to many players underestimating their strength. Horses can easily deliver a fatal blow to unarmored dwarves. If you're wondering why, think about how powerful a horses legs must be for them to run so fast. Now picture being short enough for any kick from a horse to strike you right in the forehead. Suddenly dwarves being killed by horses makes perfect sense.
Horses can also be used by humans and elves as mounts, and they sometimes ride them into battle.
Unfortunately, the only one of us who knows anything about butchering animals is Dishmab, for some reason. Unsurprisingly, she didn't find the idea of killing and eating the horse to be very appealing. However, it didn't take much persuasion for her to give in and do it. She's been much more agreeable lately. I decided to make the butcher's shop out of pitchblende as a sign of appreciation. The pretty purple color is sure to be more pleasant than the blood red bauxite they are usually made out of.
11th Galena, 1051, Late Summer
I've begun planning ahead for the construction of the H.F.S. Once Ushrir manages to make her way to the second cavern layer, she can dig out more of the moat to prepare for flooding. In the meantime, I've ordered Thob to throw together some cages for the purpose of capturing hippos.
Goden says that flimsy wooden cages have no hope of containing such mighty beasts. How silly, she seems to forget that these are dwarven cages! Even our worst constructions are a thousand times more durable than that of other races. I am confident the hippos have no chance of breaking out of the cages. Now that I think about it, I don't think I've actually shown the H.F.S plans to Atir or his friends. I should probably do that soon, they'll be eager to help build it, I'm sure!
The place where you produce food is made out of pitchblende?
I know that there are no syndromes for radiation yet, but I hope you somehow utilize the... interesting... properties of the material for the sake of storytelling. Fallout, meet Dwarf Fortress.
The place where you produce food is made out of pitchblende?
I know that there are no syndromes for radiation yet, but I hope you somehow utilize the... interesting... properties of the material for the sake of storytelling. Fallout, meet Dwarf Fortress.
It honestly didn't occur to me that there would be anything wrong with a pitchblende work shop until I actually started writing that part of the update. I don't think you have to worry about Dishmab getting sick though. One of her favorite things is lead, I'm sure the damage has already been done.
Probably not going to be an update today on account of it being monday and me feeling like crap.
The conchmen appear to be heading right towards our fortress. Their rotten flesh and decayed joints of course means their approach is taking quite a while, but is undeniable that they will eventually be upon us. I figure it's best to attack them now, rather than wait form them to come in close proximity to the fort itself. Between Momuz's fighting skills and his army of war beasts, I don't think the conchmen will give him much trouble. Alath is confident in his own fighting skills, but he's still quite new. I'm worried that he will be injured. With nobody here with proper medical knowledge, even a minor infection could mean death. Momuz believes that if conchmen can send him to the grave then he is unfit to serve in the militia anyways. I think he's being far too harsh, but regrettably I don't have many options at this point.
16th Galena, 1051, Late Summer
Momuz and Alath set out to vanquish the conchmen. I wished them luck, though I had hoped they wouldn't need it. Alath appeared very eager but clearly nervous, while Momuz barely expressed any emotion at the task. It was just another day of work for him. I decided to watch them as best as I could from the fortress, as I couldn't work properly knowing they were fighting to protect our lives.
The Conchmen had lumbered somewhat closer, though they were still in close proximity to the dried up murky pool. Therefore, finding them was an easy task. But to my horror, Alath ran ahead of Momuz and engaged the zombies in combat first!
He was caught up in the adrenaline of battle, not even realizing that Momuz was still behind him. The two beasts we're not intimidated by the lone soldier, and let out a chilling roar before lunging towards him. I closed my eyes in horror. I just couldn't stand to watch what I thought would be the death of a foolishly brave dwarf!
But when opened my eyes, I did not see a bloodied corpse. Rather, Momuz and Alath appeared perfectly fine. There were no conchmen either.
We have no idea what happened. One second Alath was locked in a grapple with the conchmen, staring right into their cold lifeless eyes. Then they were gone. No corpse, no blood, just gone, As if some god had plucked them out of existence. The two were horribly confused, but decided not to think too much about it and instead celebrate their ?victory? with a drink. However, I can't stop thinking about this strange occurrence. What happened out there? Why was Alath not crushed by the conchmen's mighty fists? What caused them to disappear, without any indication as to what fate befell them?
Perhaps??Reveredtour is a blessed land. Goden laughs at such a notion, but what other explanation could there possibly be? Something is watching us. Protecting us.
17th Galena, 1051, Late Summer
I still can't get over what happened. I keep finding myself gazing towards the north, at the small area where Alath fought the conchmen. Everyone else has decided it best not to dwell on it, but I just can't help myself. Nothing like this has ever happened before. How can they dismiss what appears to be a miracle? I contemplated this question before my thoughts were once again interrupted by the cries of Dishmab. She emerged from the mines pale as a ghost, screaming like a banshee, and clutching a zombie mole dog corpse in her hands.
She continued to scream and sob as she ran towards the butcher's shop. Atir was so shocked by her actions that he almost fell out of the food stockpile and into the ocean! I had no clue what was going on. But upon entering the butcher's shop, she locked herself inside and began hacking up the mole dog corpse like a maniac.
Because she was clearly incapable of explaining what she was doing, I asked the other dwarves if they had any idea. Mosus told me she had seen Momuz yelling at Dishmab earlier, but she didn't know what it was about. I soon learned that Momuz had ordered Dishmab to chop up the zombie mole dogs, and that she would ?conquer her fears? in doing so. Appalling! Momuz should know better than to give any orders outside of the military without consulting me first! I don't see how this could possibly help Dishmab's mental health, the poor girl.
26th Galena, 1051, Late Summer
It's been over a week and Dishmab is still working on chopping up that mole dog corpse. I've only seen her emerge to take a drink and gnaw on a few plump helmets. It looked like she was in another world. She wouldn't respond to anyone, smelled of a blood and guts, and appeared to be quite ill. I can only assume the illness is somehow a result of butchering a zombie. She'll probably be fine a few days after she's done tearing the mole apart, but who knows how long that will take.
I still can't believe Momuz had the nerve to make Dishmab do this! I think all that praise I gave him went to his head. He doesn't even appear to regret doing so either. This had to have been done out of spite. We're not going to get a single usable thing from those dogs, aside from a few of their bones, which are hardly needed. The meat couldn't possibly be consumed safely; even the gulls won't touch it. The ones that do wash up on the shore as lifeless corpses the next day. I'd think of some kind of punishment for Momuz, but he's the sheriff so I don't think that will work out. This has been a wakeup call for me. Clearly, there's a lot more hostile tension in Reveredtour than I initially realized. I know Dishmab and Momuz were never what you would call friends, but this has gone too far! As the expedition leader, it is my duty to address these issues. Now to figure out how to go about doing so.
Alright, I solved the mystery behind the mysterious mollusks. Or at least believe I have. In the most recent version of Dwarf Fortress[/u], Toady made a minor change to undead that was not documented, for some reason. Nobody mentioned it either. In previous versions, slaying an undead would always yield a corpse. However, when killed now the undead merely vanish into nothingness. I didn't know about this change, so when writing this update I was working under the assumption that undead still left behind corpses.
Now, you may be wondering, how Dishmab is butchering an undead zombie mole dog. The answer; no fucking clue. I'm guessing some of the mole dogs leaving corpses is actually a glitch, while the conchmen dissolving was perfectly normal for the new version.
Alright, I solved the mystery behind the mysterious mollusks. Or at least believe I have. In the most recent version of Dwarf Fortress[/u], Toady made a minor change to undead that was not documented, for some reason. Nobody mentioned it either. In previous versions, slaying an undead would always yield a corpse. However, when killed now the undead merely vanish into nothingness. I didn't know about this change, so when writing this update I was working under the assumption that undead still left behind corpses.
Now, you may be wondering, how Dishmab is butchering an undead zombie mole dog. The answer; no fucking clue. I'm guessing some of the mole dogs leaving corpses is actually a glitch, while the conchmen dissolving was perfectly normal for the new version.
I think it might be chance-based whether they disappear on death. While adventuring and fighting bogeymen, sometimes they will "mysteriously vanish before your eyes" but sometimes they will collapse into a plain old gory, mutilated mess, thanks to the new system for aimed attacks.
Also, I believe Stonesense has an unofficial update to .18 floating around, though I'm not positive. On the thread in the Bay12 mod forum, someone says they have a working xml, only that it doesn't render critters. Try using the xml file from DFhack and seeing if it works.
Summer has passed into autumn, and unsurprisingly very little has changed. The breeze is slightly cooler, but other than that the wastes surrounding Reveredtour look the same as ever. Well, mostly. Today I saw some new creatures gallop into view.
Kraken's Notes: Nothing particularly interesting or notable about gazelles. Like most herbivores, they will flee from your dwarves and generally don't pose any danger to them. They aren't any better than dogs as war animals and don't provide more meat than them either. So the only reason to catch gazelles and breed them would be for diversities sakes.
Goden informed me that these creatures are called gazelles, and that they are harmless. They certainly don't look dangerous or aggressive, though they did come very close to the fort itself. Perhaps they do not fear dwarves as aggression is rarely shown towards them. Momuz aimed to change this and prepared to go out and slaughter the innocent creatures. Though it was difficult to work up the courage to do so, I stopped him at the last moment and ordered him to return to training. Though I give him authority over the military for the most part, I felt it necessary to remind him that I am the one is ultimately in charge. I don't want the incident between him and Dishmab to repeat itself!
Speaking of which, Dishmab finished butchering the mole dog yesterday. Nobody even noticed, since she has been surprisingly quiet lately. I managed to track her down earlier today and saw her dragging another mole dog towards the butcher's shop. I informed her that she need not continue to carry out the assignments Momuz wrongfully gave her. She started at me for a few moments, with a cold, dead look in her eyes. Then she mumbled something I couldn't quite understand before dropping the rotting mole dog and heading towards the temporary farms. She's starting to worry me.
3rd Limestone, 1051, Early Autumn
Originally I had planned to only capture and tame the hippos living in the river, however I have been contemplating the possibility of domesticating other animals. As it stands now, the only breeding livestock we have, if you can count them, are Momuz's war octopre. I'm not particularly fond of octopre myself, so perhaps diversifying our livestock is not a bad idea. We could start capturing animals right away to. All it would require is the construction of some cage traps.
Unfortunately, it seems that nobody here has any skill in mechanics. However, from what I understand the mechanisms used in cage traps are not particularly complex and any dwarf could probably manage to produce them by following a guide. Therefore, I have decided to once again reassign Thob. She was hoping that I would let her get back to fishing, but we have no need for fish and she has yet to find a way to catch those hippos. Instead, she will work on producing mechanisms for the cages she has spent the last month building. She was furious about being reassigned to another profession she has no experience with. However, I have no patience for her complaints at the moment. If she doesn't like her work, then tough luck. I'm the ultimate authority around here, and what I say goes!
5th Limestone, 1051, Early Autumn
What a coincidence! One of Momuz's octopre just gave birth to two little ocotopudi. They're so cute, the way they squirm around and curiously inspect whatever they touch with their little tentacles. I asked Momuz what he was going to name them, and he was surprised by this question. Apparently he has no interest in keeping them, as he says they have no practical purpose on the battlefield, other than distractions (horrible!). He asked me to butcher them instead! There only a day old and he already wants to devour them! I refused, and have instead put them up for adoption. I'd take care of them myself, but I'm worried Lorbam will crush one of them by accident. He can be quite clumsy sometimes.
11th Limestone, 1051, Early Autumn
It has come to my attention that we are running low on microline for constructions. I must admit, I never thought this would be a problem, at least not so early in Reveredtour's lifespan. Fortunately, Ushrir found a deposit of microline whilst searching for an entrance into the second cavern layer. We need only to dig it out of the walls and the microline shortage will no longer be an issue.
15th Limestone, 1051, Early Autumn
Mosus ran up to me today, claiming to have seen a giant squid swimming out in the ocean. At first I was skeptical of her claims, but upon looking out towards the sea I found that her sightings were indeed accurate. However, it was not a lesser kraken as one might think, but rather a hulking demikraken!
Kraken's Notes: Demikraken can actually be dangerous opponents, capable of quickly latching onto a dwarf and tearing them to shreds. Their ability to move quickly both through water and on land means they can ambush unsuspecting dwarves with ease. However, lacking any type of natural armor, they will be defeated quite easily by armed dwarves when outnumbered.
I was quite surprised by this. Demikraken are far less common than lesser kraken. On top of this, the demikraken does not appear to be among the walking dead, despite living within the Ocean of Shriveling. The odds of seeing a living demikraken here are horribly low. Catching it would be of great benefit to the fort. Even if it lacks a partner for breeding, it could still serve as a powerful war beast for Momuz. I have ordered Thob to quickly assemble cage traps along the shoreline. Though I doubt they will be able to catch the beast, I cannot simply let this opportunity pass me by.
18th Limestone, 1051, Early Autumn
Damn! It appears the demikraken has completely bypassed our fortress and is now swimming out of Reveredtour's borders. I am quite disappointed by this turn of events. While I knew the odds of catching it were low, I at least expected it to come examine the fortress. Members of the kraken family are inquisitive creatures, or at least that's what my bestiary says. Had it bypassed the cage traps I would have had an excuse for Momuz and Alath to dispose of it. Then we could at least butcher its corpse for meat, provided-
Wait, it sounds like there's some commotion coming from the surface. I'll continue this journal entry later.
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