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Site

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This article is about the current version of DF.
Note that some content may still need to be updated.

Sites preview.png

Sites are inhabited locations found on region tiles adjacent to at least one non-mountain land biome. These include settlements of any civilization, and caves habitable by named creatures. The type of site will be represented on maps in any mode with a tile that replaces the region tile. In adventure mode, the site becomes the default arrival location for travel to that region tile. Sites acquire a history that can be viewed in Legends mode.

Site Types[edit]

Tile Sprite Name Inhabitated by
Icon site camp2.png Icon site camp.png Icon site camp3.png Camp Bandits
Icon site cave2.png Icon site cave.png Cave Monsters
Π Π Icon site dark fortress b.png Icon site dark fortress 1.png Icon site dark fortress 3.png Dark fortress Goblins (and potentially a special creature)
º Icon site dark fortress 2.png Dark pits Goblins and Humans
î Icon site forest retreat 1.png Icon site forest retreat 2.png Forest retreat Elves and Dwarves
Ω Icon site mountainhome.png Fortress Dwarves
Icon site castle.png Castle Humans
Icon site fort2.png Icon site fort.png Fort Bandits
= æ Æ Icon site village.png Hamlet Humans and Goblins
Ω Icon site hillocks.png Hillocks Dwarves and Humans
# Icon site labyrinth.png Labyrinth Minotaur
Icon site lair burrow.png Lair Monsters
Icon site monastery.png Monastery
Ω Icon site fortress.png Mountain halls Dwarves
μ μ μ μ Icon site ruin1.png Icon site ruin2.png Icon site ruin dwarf.png Icon site ruin castle.png Icon site ruin castle2.png Icon site ruin castle3.png Icon site ruin small1.png Icon site ruin small2.png
Icon village ruin1.png Icon village ruin2.png
Ruins
μ Icon site ruin forest retreat1.png Icon site ruin forest retreat2.png Forest retreat ruins
Å Icon site shrine titan.png Icon site fort2.png Shrine Megabeast
0 Icon site tomb.png Tomb Undead
I Icon site necrotower.png Tower Necromancer(s) and undead
+ * # Icon site city 1.png Icon site city 2.png Icon site city 3.png Icon site city 4.png Town Humans
Icon site vault.png Vault Special creatures

Drawn site key (graphics)[edit]

This is how sites and landscapes appear on the map when they are out of range and/or undiscovered.

Sprite Name
Icon drawn grassland.png Grassland
Icon drawn water.png Water
Icon drawn forest conifer.png Conifer Forest
Icon drawn forest broadleaf.png Broadleaf Forest
Icon drawn hills.png Hills
Icon drawn mountains.png Mountains
Icon drawn marsh.png Marsh
Icon drawn glacier.png Glacier
Icon drawn site.png Site
Icon drawn desert rock.png Desert Rock
Icon drawn desert badlands.png Desert Badlands
Icon drawn desert sand.png Desert Sand
Icon drawn roads.png Roads
Icon drawn rivers.png Rivers
Icon drawn labyrinth.png Labyrinth
Icon drawn shrine.png Shrine
Icon drawn lair.png Lair
Icon drawn cave.png Cave
Icon drawn mountain home.png Mountain Home
Icon drawn hillocks.png Hillocks
Icon drawn fortress.png Fortress
Icon drawn mountain ruin.png Mountain Ruin
Icon drawn dark fortress.png Dark Fortress
Icon drawn dark pits.png Dark Pits
Icon drawn evil ruin.png Evil Ruin
Icon drawn home tree.png Home Tree
Icon drawn forest retreat.png Forest Retreat
Icon drawn forest ruin.png Forest Ruin
Icon drawn castle ruin.png Castle Ruin
Icon drawn necrotower.png Necromancer Tower
Icon drawn fort.png Fort
Icon drawn monastery.png Monastery
Icon drawn castle.png Castle
Icon drawn vault.png Vault
Icon drawn tomb.png Tomb
Icon drawn city.png City
Icon drawn town.png Town
Icon drawn city ruin.png City Ruin
Icon drawn village1.png Icon drawn village2.png Icon drawn village3.png Icon drawn village4.png Village
Icon drawn village ruin.png Village Ruin

Detailed Description[edit]

Sites are grouped by civilizations, which are organized groups of creatures (generally of the same race) which build these sites.

Human sites

Towns Icon site city 1.png Icon site city 2.png Icon site city 3.png Icon site city 4.png / + * # [edit]

Humans live in towns comprised of buildings and often a paved road. Human towns are highly modular, and are usually near some source of water, either the coast or a river. Towns appear on the fast travel map (when outside a site) as or symbols, which are small collections of buildings. When you are near a human site, large yellow blocks indicate where various houses and shops are found (though not all houses and shops can be found in these blocks; sometimes you'll find a house or two out in a site's fields). You usually have to follow the roads in a yellow block on the fast travel map. Towns usually have lots of interesting structures which are described fully in the town article.

Hamlets Icon site village.png / æ Æ = [edit]

Most of the time, the majority of a human civilization's population will live in small hamlets, which tend to be sprawled out along coastlines and through river valleys. Like other sites, they can be invaded, and you'll sometimes find them captured by other civilizations, necromancers, or criminal syndicates. Human adventurers usually spawn in hamlets. Note that hamlets are similar in structure to towns, only they have mead halls instead of keeps, and don't have any defensive walls.

Dwarven sites

Dwarf fortresses Icon site mountainhome.png / Ω[edit]

These are the randomly generated equivalent of the sites you build in fortress mode. Fortresses are described in detail in their own article. Their main function for adventurers is that they have a central, spiraling ramp that connects the underground and above-ground worlds, particularly in that they connect the subterranean tunnel networks to the rest of the dwarf civilization. They are located at the edges of mountain ranges. Player-made fortresses are considered dwarf fortresses by the game, in addition to the randomly-generated ones.

Mountain halls Icon site fortress.png / Ω[edit]

Mountain halls are the sites of the "deep dwarves," located far beneath the mountains. They can be accessed via down-stairs found in underground tunnels, and are comprised of a couple of levels that contain bedrooms and large halls filled with smelters or forges.

Hillocks Icon site hillocks.png / Ω[edit]

Hillocks are the dwarf equivalent to human hamlets. They consist of a few circular mounds, filled with dwarf citizens. There doesn't seem to be any settlement pattern for them; they are equally likely to be found in any land biome.

Elven sites

Forest retreats Icon site ruin forest retreat1.png Icon site ruin forest retreat2.png / î [edit]

Elves live in forest retreats located, unsurprisingly, in forest biomes. They are essentially clusters of huge trees with elves standing in and around them.

Goblin sites

Dark fortresses Icon site dark fortress b.png Icon site dark fortress 1.png Icon site dark fortress 3.png / π π[edit]

These are the main goblin sites. Dark fortresses contain a certain spoiler.

Dark pits Icon site dark fortress 2.png / º[edit]

These are the goblin equivalent of hamlets and hillocks. Dark pits are essentially canyons lined with wooden guard towers. They tend to be built in huge clusters around the dark fortresses, such that large chunks of the map may be covered with them.[Verify]

Kobold sites

Caves Icon site cave.png / [edit]

Caves are sometimes home to kobold groups. They are mounds filled with narrow tunnels leading to the caverns and usually contain piles of random loot resulting from kobold thieving incursions. Kobold caves often feature venom-coated traps or fun pets such as giant cave spiders, so beware. Some caves are inhabited by bandits or megabeasts instead.

Beast and night creature sites

Necromancers' towers Icon site necrotower.png / I[edit]

Necromancers' towers are built by necromancers who have at least 50 followers; younger necromancers may take over towns or camps instead. Usually you can find books written by the necromancer, some of which contain the secret to life and death. Towers require abundant human populations (low savagery, large tracts of neutral land) and a high number of secrets to be generated in world generation. Necromancers will rarely be elves or goblins, because elves and goblins are immortal (they lack a [MAXAGE] token) and therefore can't be obsessed with their own mortality. However, they may still acquire the secrets of life and death by reading them (e.g. in a necromancy book from your library) and gain the ability to raise corpses.

Lairs Icon site lair burrow.png / [edit]

Lairs are the homes of predatory animals, megabeasts, or night trolls. Lairs are mounds or holes in the ground. Night troll lairs have doors or hatch covers. Most lairs are inhabited by a single creature, but sometimes you'll encounter entire families of them.

Minotaurs' labyrinths Icon site labyrinth.png / #[edit]

A labyrinth is an intricate network of tunnels, often filled with the bodies of previous adventurers slain in worldgen by its resident minotaur. Each labyrinth contains a hidden chamber filled with treasures. As you explore the labyrinth, you will hear the minotaur taunting you.

Shrines Icon site shrine titan.png Icon site fort2.png / Å[edit]

Shrines are huge stone structures surrounded by pillars that are the homes of bronze colossuses and titans. Several of them can be found on a single site, making its exploration particularly hazardous. Clowns have also been reported to inhabit them.

Dwarf Fortresses[edit]

During the embark phase of Fortress Mode, sites can be seen in region and local views. Some site types can be included in the embark region; namely caves or previous player fortresses (Reclaim). Embarking on settlements is disabled. On embarking, the fortress becomes a site of the size and location chosen.

Abandoned fortresses are displayed on the map as Ruins.

Worlds
General
Map
Biomes
Chasm · Desert · Forest · Glacier · Grassland · Lake · Mountain · Murky pool · Ocean · River · Savanna · Shrubland · Tundra · Wetland
Features
Aquifer · Brook · Deep pit · Island · Magma pool · Passage · Road · Tunnel · Volcano · Waterfall
Underground
Civilization
Sites
Camp · Castle · Cave · Dark fortress · Dark pits · Forest retreat · Fort · Fortress · Hamlet · Hillocks · Labyrinth · Lair · Monastery · Mountain halls · Ruins · Shrine · Tomb · Tower · Town · Vault
Structures
Other