40d Talk:Wood cutter

Wood cutter militia

Would it be an advisable strategy to make every dwarf a woodcutter? That way they would all carry axes... Sergius 12:09, 5 January 2008 (EST)

I believe this method has been tried in the 2D version with good results (forget by whom, unfortunately).Fedor 15:15, 5 January 2008 (EST)

If you've got the supplies on hand to give every dwarf an axe, want to be able to do on the spot conscription in emergencies, and don't have a standing milita, then I suppose it's probably a good plan. If any of those are false, I'd say it's more hassle than needed. --Edward 20:00, 5 January 2008 (EST)

Civilians will still fight with an axe if they're carrying one, so it would make them better able to defend themselves against the occasional dangerous creature. I imagine the most annoying thing is that they'll all stream outdoors to chop down trees if you designate any. I've never tried it, personally. The new versions seem much less dangerous than the old ones: sieges don't happen until late in the game, and I believe there aren't any spontaneous "raids" from the cave river, chasm, etc.--Maximus 22:14, 6 January 2008 (EST)

I usually do this. I make all the dwarfs I don't care about woodcutters (and furnace operators, tanners, and anything else where skill doesn't matter). It is useful for dealing with Kobolds, and as a last ditch horde approach vs goblins, but it does take a lot of effort.

It also allows you to piss off elves at an amazing rate Dangerous Beans 07:48, 8 July 2009 (UTC)

Tree Choice

Is it just me, or do the wood cutters work from the outside-in when it comes to chopping trees? It seems like every time I designate a large area for tree cutting, they ignore all of the tree right next to my fortress and instead decide to chop one halfway across the map. Either that or it's just random enough that I'm only noticing these annoying exceptions... -Fuzzy 12:40, 3 September 2008 (EDT)

I think they use the same logic as for digging, which does not prefer to closest. HeWhoIsPale 13:57, 3 September 2008 (EDT)

It uses the same logic as plant gathering, which to me looks like "columns" of 10-15 going left to right. JuliusC 14:01, 3 September 2008 (EDT)

They start from the top-left, go to the right, then go down to the middle left again... as far as I can see. Also they always cut the tree from its West side. Speed 09:40, 13 July 2009 (GMT)