v50 Steam/Premium information for editors
- v50 information can now be added to pages in the main namespace. v0.47 information can still be found in the DF2014 namespace. See here for more details on the new versioning policy.
- Use this page to report any issues related to the migration.
This notice may be cached—the current version can be found here.
Editing v0.34:Meat industry
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Warning: You are not logged in.
Your IP address will be recorded in this page's edit history.
You are editing a page for an older version of Dwarf Fortress ("Main" is the current version, not "v0.34"). Please make sure you intend to do this. If you are here by mistake, see the current page instead.
The edit can be undone. Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then save the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision | Your text | ||
Line 32: | Line 32: | ||
=== Trapping === | === Trapping === | ||
− | It is also possible to catch animals through judicious use of [[cage trap]]s. Building cage traps where animals will walk will ensure that some of them will be caught; | + | It is also possible to catch animals through judicious use of [[cage trap]]s. Building cage traps where animals will walk will ensure that some of them will be caught; [[trapper]]s can then haul the occupied [[cage]]s away and reset them with fresh cages. You can increase your chances of catching something by baiting the trap. |
− | Cage traps should be built where animals will walk, not where they are when you decide to trap them. Any dwarves sent out to create and arm traps in the animals' midst will scare them away or (worse) trigger their aggression. | + | Cage traps should be built where animals will walk, not where they are when you decide to trap them. Any dwarves sent out to create and arm traps in the animals' midst will scare them away or (worse) trigger their aggression. As such most of the animals that you will end up caging will be small [[vermin]], which cannot be turned into meat and, besides low-value pets, cannot be turned into anything particularly useful, except for the few that can be processed into extracts - see below. |
− | To successfully trap large animals you need to build choke points into your map. The destruction of ramps to create sheer cliffs is the easiest way to force them to go down a particular route; with the construction of walls, ponds, channels, and so forth, you can force them to walk right through your cage traps. | + | To successfully trap large animals you need to build choke points into your map. The destruction of ramps to create sheer cliffs is the easiest way to force them to go down a particular route; with the construction of walls, ponds, channels, and so forth, you can force them to walk right through your cage traps. This is additionally interesting for defense, which is probably your primary goal: anything that will funnel animals will funnel invaders too, and caged goblins make good target practice once [[mass pitting|pitted]]. |
Leave a small gap one or two tiles wide (depending on how many of the critters you want to trap) and build your cage traps there. If the animals haven't moved off or been scared off by the time you're done, and they're docile enough to not attack once they see your dwarves, use military orders to send a dwarf (or several) around behind the animals and herd them toward the choke point. | Leave a small gap one or two tiles wide (depending on how many of the critters you want to trap) and build your cage traps there. If the animals haven't moved off or been scared off by the time you're done, and they're docile enough to not attack once they see your dwarves, use military orders to send a dwarf (or several) around behind the animals and herd them toward the choke point. | ||
Line 45: | Line 45: | ||
=== Breeding === | === Breeding === | ||
− | + | When a male and a female of the same species are present on the map, sooner or later the male will impregnate the female. Animal reproduction requires absolutely no contact between them, and in fact will occur regardless of distance, physical obstacles such as walls or locked doors, number of each gender, and even ownership. This has been jokingly referred to by players as spore-based breeding; even a male in a herd of wild animals outside the fortress walls can impregnate a female locked deep in the lowest level, and females can get pregnant again immediately after giving birth (much like dwarves). The only thing that has been reported to prevent pregnancy is caging, but females that are already pregnant can give birth while caged (also much like dwarves). | |
− | Using [[cage trap|cage traps]] judiciously (or taking advantage of the animals [[elf|elves]] trade) can sometimes snag you a breeding pair of wild animals. These can be used to establish crazy schemes, like [[alligator]] farms and [[giant eagle]] [[egg production|hatcheries]]. Tame something unusual and start something crazy if you get lucky enough! | + | Some [[immigrant]]s will bring [[pet]]s or stray animals with them, often to the effect of forming or completing breeding pairs. Remember that you only ever need one male: the only non-butchering product male animals produce, besides reproduction, is [[wool]], and only a few of them. For this reason having one male bull and ten female cows is a good idea. |
+ | |||
+ | Using [[cage trap|cage traps]] judiciously (or taking advantage of the animals [[elf|elves]] trade) can sometimes snag you a breeding pair of wild animals. These can be used to establish crazy schemes, like [[alligator]] farms and [[giant eagle]] [[egg production|hatcheries]]. Tame something unusual and start something crazy if you get lucky enough! All tamable creatures can be tamed, but it can take a long time for exotic animals and they will slowly revert to wild state if left unattended; a skilled [[animal trainer]] is a real blessing in this regard. | ||
There is currently a per type population cap, currently observed to be around 50, past which animals will not get pregnant; existing pregnancies will mature to term, and once some adults are slaughtered, the population can begin moving up again. | There is currently a per type population cap, currently observed to be around 50, past which animals will not get pregnant; existing pregnancies will mature to term, and once some adults are slaughtered, the population can begin moving up again. | ||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
== Management == | == Management == | ||
Line 67: | Line 66: | ||
A strategy to improve your framerate is to [[restraint|restrain]] most of your livestock near your [[butcher's shop]], as a large number of free-roaming animals will reduce your game speed. Additionally it reduces the amount of time it takes butchers to track down and retrieve animals they are to slaughter. | A strategy to improve your framerate is to [[restraint|restrain]] most of your livestock near your [[butcher's shop]], as a large number of free-roaming animals will reduce your game speed. Additionally it reduces the amount of time it takes butchers to track down and retrieve animals they are to slaughter. | ||
− | Animals on [[restraint|restraints]] still can [[path]] (1 tile in any direction from the chain/rope), and that can hurt your [[Maximizing framerate|framerate]]. | + | Animals on [[restraint|restraints]] still can [[path]] (1 tile in any direction from the chain/rope), and that can hurt your [[Maximizing framerate|framerate]]. By making a series of 1x1 rooms with doors set to "non-pet-passable", and restraining the animals there, the animals have nowhere to go and so [[path|pathing]] is not a problem. The door keeps them from wandering; the restraint is necessary to get them into the room in the first place (see [[restraint]] for proper removal technique). [[Activity zone#Pit/Pond|Pits]] can also be adapted for this purpose, without the restraint and with multiple animals. |
− | + | The pens idea would be a good idea if pets actually understood non-pet-passable during calculation of paths. Instead they believe they can get through during mental calculations. Cold, hard, reality stops them at the door, but they continue to path as if they could get through, so they just stand there (until a dwarf comes by and opens the door, at which point they gleefully run past). Pets in cages helps framerate the most, followed closely by restraints, since the search space bottoms out after only 2 moves (corner to corner). Pits, with no access besides (raised) bridges and (closed) floodgates, are also very effective, as pathing will stop as soon as the space of the pit is exhausted, so it's like a restraint with a slightly longer leash. Pens using floodgates would work, although loading the pets in would be nigh impossible without dropping them in from above, as anything in the way of a closing floodgate stops it from closing. It would be quite extreme, but such a collection of 1x1 pits could be an effective way of stopping pathfinding while retaining breeding. One could even use bars instead of floodgates, and have a really proper zoo/cage. | |
− | |||
− | |||
A common strategy is to cage all your young until matured because they do not give the same amount of bones, meat, and fat as adults. Some tamed wild species take more than 1 year to mature, unlike most domestic animals; this makes it excusable to butcher, for instance, elephant calves right away, as they take ten years to mature. | A common strategy is to cage all your young until matured because they do not give the same amount of bones, meat, and fat as adults. Some tamed wild species take more than 1 year to mature, unlike most domestic animals; this makes it excusable to butcher, for instance, elephant calves right away, as they take ten years to mature. | ||
Line 83: | Line 80: | ||
=== Internal pastures === | === Internal pastures === | ||
− | The livestock of a large meat industry requires a lot of pasture space that might not be safe on the surface. Creating an underground pasture is more secure and relatively simple after discovering the [[cavern]]s. [[Floor fungus]] and other such underground "grass" will begin to grow anywhere there is [[soil]] or [[mud]]. You can take advantage of this by digging out a large room in a soil layer and waiting for floor fungus to grow. | + | The livestock of a large meat industry requires a lot of pasture space that might not be safe on the surface. Creating an underground pasture is more secure and relatively simple after discovering the [[cavern]]s. [[Floor fungus]] and other such underground "grass" will begin to grow anywhere there is [[soil]] or [[mud]]. You can take advantage of this by digging out a large room in a soil layer and waiting for floor fungus to grow. You can also create pastures in stone layers, but it will need to be cleared of all excess stone and irrigated to create mud. Drain the water and wait for the floor fungus to grow. Keep your dwarves away from that level to prevent plant trampling, and then wait a bit for it to grow dense enough to support your livestock. Forbidden doors and hatches or a restricted area [[traffic]] designation can be helpful for this. Once ready, make a new pasture and move the livestock underground. |
− | You can | + | You can further [[irrigation|irrigate]] the level to boost growth by emptying a body of water into it such that it spreads over it before evaporating. The easiest way to do this, and the easiest way to create an internal pasture is to dig out the topmost layer of [[soil]] (if your map has any) or rock and then either redirect some river flow or drain some small lakes to provide the necessary water. |
== Processing == | == Processing == | ||
=== Slaughtering and butchering === | === Slaughtering and butchering === | ||
− | Animals can be marked for slaughter in the [[Status#Animal Status Screen|animal status screen]]. Animals marked for slaughter will queue a "Slaughter animal" task at a [[butcher's shop]], be dragged there by | + | Animals can be marked for slaughter in the [[Status#Animal Status Screen|animal status screen]]. Animals marked for slaughter will queue a "Slaughter animal" task at a [[butcher's shop]], be dragged to there by an idle dwarf and put down; this is instant and doesn't require a butcher. |
− | Once an animal has been killed it | + | Once an animal has been killed (be it by slaughtering or hunting) you only have a limited amount of time to butcher the corpse before it rots. If your butcher is distracted by other tasks it is quite possible to lose the foodstuffs, so make sure to keep a number of [[butcher]]s ready. An animal corpse or body part is available if it is taken to the butcher's shop or in a refuse stockpile within a certain distance of the shop; it is not available if it is merely lying around, so a corpse stockpile near your butcher's shop may be necessary. The skill of the butcher only affects the time taken for the butcher animal task, not the amount produced, nor the quality. |
− | + | To keep your animal population growing you should preferably butcher the males except for one of each species you are breeding, because one male is enough to impregnate all the females. The number of males does not affect how frequently the females give birth as long as you have at least one (which can also be a pet). | |
− | + | Once butchered the animal will yield one skull (though [[hydra|hydras]] produce more than one), one raw hide and depending on the animal type a number of (prepared)(organ-)meat pieces, bones, and potentially [[horn|horns]], [[hoof|hoofs]], [[fat]] and [[cartilage]]. Meat and fat goes to your food stockpile. Bones, horns, hoofs, hair, cartilage and raw hides go to the refuse stockpile. Cartilage has no use and should be disposed of, but you would be well put to create custom stockpiles for hides next to your tanner's shop (see [[#Tanning|''Tanning'' below]]), for bones/horns/hoofs next to your craftsdwarves workshop (see [[#Bone carving|''Bone carving'' below]]), and changing the settings on your main refuse pile to not accept bones, horns/hoofs and hides. Hair can be weaved into low-value thread, but not into cloth, so it is useless outside hospital (note that it doesn't rot, so it has to be dumped manually). | |
− | |||
− | Meat and fat goes to your food stockpile. Bones, horns, hoofs, hair, cartilage and raw hides go to the refuse stockpile. Cartilage has no use and should be disposed of, but you would be well put to create custom stockpiles for hides next to your tanner's shop (see [[#Tanning|''Tanning'' below]]), for bones/horns/hoofs next to your craftsdwarves workshop (see [[#Bone carving|''Bone carving'' below]]), and changing the settings on your main refuse pile to not accept bones, horns/hoofs and hides. Hair can be | ||
If it takes too long for the butchered parts to be hauled into the stockpile, the food will rot and miasma spread. To prevent this, it is advisable to build the butcher's workshop outside of the fortress, near refuse piles (you may want it inside the walls though). The fresh air prevents miasma spreading. Miasma doesn't spread through diagonal openings, so a clever architect might isolate the smell in a 3x3 room with the shop. | If it takes too long for the butchered parts to be hauled into the stockpile, the food will rot and miasma spread. To prevent this, it is advisable to build the butcher's workshop outside of the fortress, near refuse piles (you may want it inside the walls though). The fresh air prevents miasma spreading. Miasma doesn't spread through diagonal openings, so a clever architect might isolate the smell in a 3x3 room with the shop. | ||
Line 113: | Line 108: | ||
===Fat=== | ===Fat=== | ||
− | Butchering an animal also produces some number of units of [[fat]], which | + | Butchering an animal also produces some number of units of [[fat]], which can be cooked into a proper meal, or processed into [[tallow]] at the kitchen, a very valuable input in the making of [[soap]]. Soap plays an important role in staving off [[infection]]s when performing operations and cleaning wounds in your [[Healthcare|hospital]], as well as increasing happiness from dwarves being able to clean themselves; it's recommended to stock your hospitals and baths with at least some bars of them. See [[soap]] on the exact details of processing. |
− | Tallow can also be cooked | + | Tallow can also be cooked, however, tallow is a small unit of food and as such will reduce the size of the resultant stacks, and is more useful as a soap input anyway. For this reason you're usually better off turning cooking off in the kitchen [[status]] screen. |
===Bones=== | ===Bones=== | ||
− | Butchering an animal produces a number of [[bone]]s. Craftsdwarves with [[bone carving]] enabled can turn these into bone [[craft]]s or bone [[bolt]]s | + | Butchering an animal produces a number of [[bone]]s. Craftsdwarves with [[bone carving]] enabled can turn these into bone [[craft]]s or bone [[bolt]]s at a [[craftsdwarf's workshop]], or a bone [[crossbow]] at a [[bowyer's workshop]]. These in turn can be traded, used to equip your [[marksdwarf|marksdwarves]], and used for practice, respectively (bone bolts are better than wooden ones, but inferior to metal bolts, and thus should not be used extensively militarily). |
===Skull=== | ===Skull=== | ||
− | [[Skull]]s can only be used to make [[totem]]s at a craftdwarf's workshop, for [[trading]]. Virtually all animals produce a single skull when they die; the only exception is the [[hydra]], which produces seven. Totems do not fall under any category in the "Move trade goods to depot" screen, so you need to {{k|s}}earch for them. Usually however they will be in a [[finished goods]] [[bin]], so just transport the bins to the depot. | + | [[Skull]]s are special in that unlike bones, they can only be used to make [[totem]]s at a craftdwarf's workshop, for [[trading]]. Virtually all animals produce a single skull when they die; the only exception is the [[hydra]], which produces seven. Totems do not fall under any category in the "Move trade goods to depot" screen, so you need to {{k|s}}earch for them. Usually however they will be in a [[finished goods]] [[bin]], so just transport the bins to the depot. |
===Hooves and horns=== | ===Hooves and horns=== | ||
− | Animals with hooves and/or horns will produce generic "[[horn]]" once butchered. These can be used to create horn trade goods or | + | Animals with hooves and/or horns will produce generic "[[horn]]" once butchered. These can be used to either create horn trade goods or decorated finished goods with horn at a craftsdwarf's workshop. |
===Raw hides=== | ===Raw hides=== | ||
Line 132: | Line 127: | ||
===Hair=== | ===Hair=== | ||
− | Some animals drop [[hair]] when butchered, which can be [[ | + | Some animals drop [[hair]] when butchered, which can be [[weaving|woven]] into [[thread]] at a [[farmer's workshop]]. However, animals hair cannot be used to make cloth, which means that the only use of hair thread is for [[suturing]] in [[hospital]]s and stitching decorative images on clothing. Hair thread can be [[dye]]d. |
===Cartilage and nervous tissue=== | ===Cartilage and nervous tissue=== | ||
− | [[Cartilage]] and [[nervous tissue]] are both butchering byproducts with no current uses, and should be dumped as garbage once stripped of their former owner | + | [[Cartilage]] and [[nervous tissue]] are both butchering byproducts with no current uses, and should be dumped as garbage once stripped of their former owner. |
− | ===Ivory | + | ===Ivory=== |
− | [[Ivory]] is used to | + | [[Ivory]] is used to decorate things at a craftsdwarf's workshop. Besides the obvious elephant tusks and so forth, teeth are actually also considered ivory for the purpose of decoration. |
==Secondary products== | ==Secondary products== | ||
Line 148: | Line 143: | ||
=== Milk === | === Milk === | ||
You can also [[milking|milk]] tame female mammals such as horses, cows, and so forth at the [[farmers workshop]] with an empty [[bucket]] and a dwarf with the milking labor enabled. The resulting [[milk]] can be used as a cooking ingredient or turned into high-value edible [[cheese]] at the farmers workshop by a dwarf with cheesemaking enabled (it cannot, however, be eaten raw). | You can also [[milking|milk]] tame female mammals such as horses, cows, and so forth at the [[farmers workshop]] with an empty [[bucket]] and a dwarf with the milking labor enabled. The resulting [[milk]] can be used as a cooking ingredient or turned into high-value edible [[cheese]] at the farmers workshop by a dwarf with cheesemaking enabled (it cannot, however, be eaten raw). | ||
− | |||
− | |||
===Wool=== | ===Wool=== | ||
[[Wool]] can be produced by [[shearing]] one of three animals: [[llama]]s, [[alpaca]]s, and [[sheep]] (also [[troll]]s, but only goblins can do so). It can be woven into wool [[thread]] and then wool [[cloth]]; for a full discussion on the uses of wool, see the [[textile industry]]. | [[Wool]] can be produced by [[shearing]] one of three animals: [[llama]]s, [[alpaca]]s, and [[sheep]] (also [[troll]]s, but only goblins can do so). It can be woven into wool [[thread]] and then wool [[cloth]]; for a full discussion on the uses of wool, see the [[textile industry]]. | ||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
== Summary == | == Summary == |