40d:Noise

Certain jobs generate noise which disturbs nearby sleeping dwarves. Depending on a job's noise level and proximity, your dwarves could sleep "uneasily due to noise", "very uneasily due to noise", or be woken up by noise. These events will produce unhappy thoughts in varying degrees.

Neither walls nor doors will insulate dwarves from noise. Distance and how loud a job is are the only factors determining whether a dwarf's sleep will be disturbed.

Noise is produced when a noisy job is completed. Thoughts about noise do not appear until the sleeping dwarf has woken up.

Dwarves walking through a sleeping dwarf's room (even over his head) will not cause noise, which is important for bedroom design.

Contrary to common belief based on earlier versions, Toady has stated that workshops do not currently^{v0.28.181.40d} produce any noise. Some of the information below refers to workshop noise - for the present version, that should be disregarded.

Noisiness of various jobs

It's important to remember that noise is created in all 3 dimensions, including across z-levels - see below for visualization.

Short distances:

• Eating is believed to cause noise within 1 or 2 tiles; probably 1. It is unknown whether the noise radiates from the eating dwarf or his food.

Within 3-4 tiles:

• Jobs performed at workshops have recently been confirmed by Toady to not cause any noise at all.

• Engraving jobs produce sound 4 tiles away.

• It has been claimed that most other jobs cause noise within 2-4 tiles. More research is necessary to determine the specifics.

• An operating water wheel causes noise within at least 3 tiles.

Within 8 tiles:

• Mining and wood cutting

• Removing a construction

Within 16 tiles:

• Placing and removing buildings causes noise within 16 tiles. For example, placing a chair will cause a 33x33x33 cube (or 35937 tiles) of noise centered on the chair. Hopefully this will change in future versions.

• Combat has also been observed to wake dwarves up, which suggests that it causes noise within 16 tiles as well. Strangely, sparring does not cause any noise at all -- which is just as well, considering dwarves will only spar in a barracks, which is essentially a communal bedroom.

• Firing siege engines also produces noise within 16 tiles.

Non-noise actions:

• Hauling, and taking from/placing in stockpiles
• Sparring
• Traffic

Visualization

Noise radiates across [z-level]]s in the shape of a cube, in all 6 directions (north/south, east/west, and up/down), so noise that travels 4 tiles will generate noise in a 9x9 pattern on 9 successive floors. The noise radiates from the center of the noise-producing apparatus.

  Level 0      Level ± 1     Level ± 2     Level ± 3     Level ± 4     Level ± 5

...........   ...........   ...........   ...........   ...........   ...........
.*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
.*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
.*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
.***www***.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
.***wWw***.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
.***www***.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
.*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
.*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
.*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   .*********.   ...........
...........   ...........   ...........   ...........   ...........   ...........

w = Workshop (3x3 as shown; 5x5 are similarly centered)
W = Origin of noise
* = Noise
. = No noise

Noise in practice

• Try not to place buildings like doors while your dwarves are asleep. Or if you do, make sure they are at least 16 tiles away from the nearest sleeping dwarf.

• Don't dig near the bedrooms when there are dwarves sleeping in them.

Designing in anticipation of noise

• A good way to start is to put all your bedrooms on level -9 or lower, so you don't have worry about noise from woodcutting.

• If you anticipate there to be fighting in your Trade Depot, you should keep bedrooms away from there. (It is believed that fighting creates noise within 16 tiles, since it has the power to wake units up.)

• Remember that jails, hospitals, and sleeping barracks should also ideally be kept away from noise, in addition to standard and noble bedrooms.

Facilities that can be safely built around or above/below bedrooms and other sleeping facilities, to separate the area set aside for the "quiet zone", include anything that does not make noise...

• More bedrooms, jails, hospitals or barracks (high-density housing)
• Stockpiles
• Hallway, stairs, ramps, etc.
• Aqueduct (or the magma equivalent) or reservoirs
• Trade depot
• Farm plots
• Tower cap farms
• Meeting zones
• Archery ranges
• Breeding pens & other creature-holding areas
• Control rooms
• Power conduit
• Dining hall (not within 1-2 tiles/levels, see above)
• Workshops Profiled solely to the dwarf who will sleep near them - a dwarf is either working, or sleeping, never both at once.
• Glass furnaces built solely to aid in the collection of sand for glass production elsewhere.
• Looms built solely to allow collection of webs (an obscure choice, but legit).
• Workshops (such as a non-magma forge, etc) built solely for emergency mood use will only create noise if they are ever claimed, and then only for that short period.

Moods FAQ
What's the easiest way to check dwarves happiness?
How do I get my dwarves to sleep peacefully?
How can I keep my dwarves happy?
What does "taken by mood" mean?
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