Utility:Lazy Newb Pack

xTATTEREDx  · +FINE+  · *SUPERIOR*  · ≡EXCEPTIONAL≡  · ☼MASTERWORK☼

The first Lazy Newb Pack was a Windows-only package containing Dwarf Fortress, a launcher program, and a small collection of graphics packs and utilities; it was officially discontinued in November 2013 since it had not been updated in over a year.

It has been replaced by similar packs which are available on each platform, detailed below. These new packs generally include all the utilities that a veteran player might want on a new computer, while configuring everything in such a way that it is still easier for new players.

General information

The updated starter packs are based on Dricus's new cross-platform LNP program, which is more configurable than the old windows-only version, and of course works on other platforms.

The packages are built around the idea that newbies will likely have more difficulty with the game than with a package of utilities - which will hopefully make the game a little easier - and that there are many players who are not new but would still prefer an option to get all the extras in one place with a minimum of fiddling. Most include just about everything that still works and could be useful.

It is also worth noting that most of the contents of each pack were created by the community and just collected, configured, and redistributed by the maintainer of each pack. Of course there are a few personal touches too, but the vast majority of each is thanks to others - not least Toady for Dwarf Fortress itself.

Most Lazy Newb Pack variants include DFHack and enable various plugins by default - as such, if you are using any of these and encounter any sort of bug in gameplay, do NOT report it on the official bug tracker unless you can reproduce the problem with a vanilla, unmodified version of Dwarf Fortress (and in a world which has not been touched by any utilities) and ensure that the bug is not being caused by one of the modifications.

PeridexisErrant's DF Starter Pack (Windows)

This pack is maintained by PeridexisErrant. Feedback, comments, suggestions, and requests for help are all welcome on the Bay12 thread; making things more fun is the whole point of the exercise. A full and up to date list of contents is also available there. There is a detailed changelog available as part of the pack, or as second post in the Bay12 forum thread.

This starter pack bundles Dwarf Fortress with the best community graphics packs, tools, and interface improvements already configured - so getting the best of everything only takes a single download and no fiddling, easy for anyone.

It's suitable for anyone - if you've never tried DF before, or played for years - because while I've set up all the included parts already, the core is as easily accessible to you: you can add, remove, update, replace whatever you want to and customise the pack as much as you want. The tools I've included make the game easier to get into, but avoid changing any of the fundamentals - there are no mods here. Dwarf Fortress can be confusing enough to play, but doesn't need to be hard to set up too.

Setup

1. Download and unzip the folder - there's no further installation procedure.
2. Open dfhack.init in the dwarf fortress folder with a text editor, and enable mouse control if you want it.
3. If you're upgrading from a previous version of this pack, run the 'copy my data' script with both versions next to each other in a folder.
4. See the links menu in the new GUI for a lot of useful links

MacNewbie Reborn

This pack is an updated version of the old MacNewbie Cyan, based around Dricus's new cross-platform LNP program. It is maintained by Fricy.

Lazy Newb Pack Installer for Linux

Created by Andrewd18, the Linux installer "is a shell script that installs the Dwarf Fortress Lazy Newb Pack. It downloads and builds a DF installation from available source code and binaries" and also checks for the dependencies required by 64-bit systems. The home of this pack is on Github, and development is active.