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40d:Your first fortress

2008-10-03T00:05:45Z

Bitbandiot: /* Items */ fucking liar drowned my fortress in cat fur

This is a guide to help new players get started on their first [[fortress]] and teach them the basics of keeping their [[dwarves]] alive. If you have unanswered questions or find given details confusing, please tell us so on the [[Talk:Your_first_fortress|discussion page]]! Above all else, always remember the [[Dwarf Fortress]] motto: "Losing is fun!"

We discuss generating a world, choosing a fortress location, buying [[skill]]s and items, and playing the first month or so. Setting game initialization options is covered in [[technical tricks]]. The advice here is biased for safety; with a little experience you'll do better with strategies customized for your play style and preferred start locations. It is also deliberately terse. For more extended treatment of particular subjects, consult the linked pages or the rest of the Dwarf Fortress Wiki.

== Generating a world ==

The first thing you'll want to do when starting Dwarf Fortress is [[World generation |create a world]]. You have two options: Create a fractally-generated random world or re-create one of the [[pregenerated worlds]] using a specific seed.

However, for new players it is recommended that you create a random world using the '''STANDARD''' template, so just hit {{k|Enter}} to continue. The engine will then start to create a random world for you. You might notice that worlds are rejected before the engine continues with rivers and lakes. The rejections are normal engine behaviour, since it rejects the random generated world if it doesn't meet certain criteria.

Generating a random world with the standard template may take a long time on most machines. If you want to jump right into playing, you should probably choose Design New World with Parameters instead of Create New World Now! and pick a small or pocket-sized world instead of a standard-sized world.

(Once you've gotten down the basics, you can return to the world generation screen and experiment with all of the options and create a world using one of the other techniques mentioned above.)

See the article on [[world generation]] for a complete guide to the world generation screen.

== Choosing a location ==

=== The interface ===

If you have at least one world without an active fortress, you will be able to choose "Start Playing" from the main menu. Chose "Dwarf Fortress" and you'll see a four-section window looking something like:

[[Image:FortressLocation_fd2f10.png | caption | This picture is shown with the default tileset. Other [[tilesets]] are available]]

You can move around the region map with {{k|←}}{{k|↑}}{{k|→}}{{k|↓}}, or at 10x speed with {{k|Shift}}+{{k|←}}{{k|↑}}{{k|→}}{{k|↓}}. The region map is immense, at the default size, so there is also a world map that shows you where you are in the world.

Your next goal will be choosing the starting location for your fortress.

=== Your surroundings ===

You can discern a lot of information by scrolling through the various modes. The interface has five modes which you cycle through by pressing {{k|TAB}}. In turn, they display:

# [[Temperature]], amount of [[tree]]s, amount of [[plant]]s, and a hint at the sort of [[Animal|wildlife]] at the center of the selection rectangle.
#* Look at the example picture again. Notice that you are told that you'll see no trees or plants here ([[mountain]]s being too high for either to grow), but that's only true for the exact center of the local area.
#* You'll notice that the local area includes some trees and plants on the edges, which is often all you need.
#* To get more information about the non-mountain areas you can press {{k|F1}} {{k|F2}} {{k|F3}} or {{k|F4}} to view the different types of [[biomes]].
# Nearby [[civilization]]s that are capable of interacting with you. Other settlements are shown with various symbols on the regional map.
#* You will want to be in contact with dwarves to get [[immigrant]]s and a dwarven trading caravan. However, dwarves are, sometimes seemingly magically, everywhere - it is impossible to settle anywhere <i>without</i> dwarves (assuming there is at least one surviving dwarf civilization).
#*You'll want to trade with [[human]]s and [[elves]] if possible.
#*[[Goblin]]s mean trouble, but it's hard to avoid them without hiding on an island and you will be attacked by Goblins some point in the game anyway. Just don't set up your first fortress right on top of a goblin fort.
# Your dwarven civilization. Your choice of civilization will affect what goods are available for [[trade]]. However, all civilizations will offer a full range of essential goods, so you can ignore this for now.
# Relative [[elevation]]. This is a normal topographic map that you're used to from real-life maps.
# [[Slope]] steepness. This shows you where large cliffs are.
# These final two modes let you guess at the shape of the land. Try to avoid [[cliff]]s of 4 or more, as the taller maps take a lot more computer power to run. On the other hand, flat areas are boring - a good elevation map contains lots of low elevation changes ranging from 1 to 4.

==== Location, Location, Location ====

For your first fortress, it's not entirely important. However, there are some general guidelines that can help you decide:

* Lots of trees and vegetation are good for producing food and lumber for your fortress.
* Running water = permanent source of water. Lakes and pools have a finite amount of water and may dry out.
* A temperate climate is one that experiences all four seasons. '''Scorching''' and '''Freezing''' climates take those temperatures to the extreme. Just like in the real world, it is more difficult to sustain life (and therefore, your fortress) in these conditions.

* Try to stay away from locations that are labeled "terrifying." Also, starting out in the middle of a goblin fortress is not a good idea.
* Magma is nice, but not necessary. And with magma comes Magma men and other such frightful creatures.
* Areas with [[Aquifers]] require some engineering to get to rock. You'll be warned if you chose an area with an aquifer. When in doubt, don't try it.
* Who cares? If you like what you see, go for it. You can always start over. And remember the DF motto: Losing is fun!

The following are things you'll probably want to ensure you have access to for a mature fortress:

* A [[Sedimentary layer]] - lets face it, a dwarven fortress without iron is going to have it pretty rough if it intends to make a military. And while hematite can occur in some igneous layers, magnetite and limonite only occur in sedimentary, and magnetite occurs in much greater quantities than the other two. Further, you will have no access to coal without sedimentary rocks, and if you chose a site without magma you will need coal to have a smoothly running metal industry - burning trees for fuel is less efficient and while manageable if you have lots of wood, it is more burdensome.
* [[Flux]] - marble, dolomite, limestone, and chalk are all layer forming stones and will show up on the embark screen as a stone layer. The last 3 are also sedimentary - nifty! Calcite, the only other flux stone, only appears within other flux stones. If you don't see one of these layers, you won't have flux, and your ability to produce steel will be extremely limited.
* [[Sand]] - you'll need it to make glass. You cannot trade for sand, nor can you trade for raw glass. Sand also means you have soil, which removes the need for irrigation to start farming.

==== Fortress size ====

Once you've decided on location, you need to decide the size of your fortress area. Advantages of requesting a large local area include more raw materials, greater diversity of [[rock]]s and special underground features, and the ability to include desired terrain (such as a river, a forest, or a magma vent). Disadvantages include slower game performance, higher likelihood of merchants failing to reach your [[trade depot]] before they run out of time, and more risk of losing immigrants as they struggle to your front [[gate]]. (Note that you can [[mine]] many levels deep into the ground, and even a 3x3 area generally contains more raw materials than you're ever likely to need.)

You can adjust the size of your fort's area by using {{k|SHIFT}} + the {{k|h}} {{k|k}} {{k|u}} or {{k|m}}keys.

=== Embark ===

When done, hit {{k|e}} to embark. A warning may appear if you've chosen a challenging site.

== Buying skills and items ==

You'll now have the choice of playing with the default setup or of preparing for the journey carefully. We're going to do the latter, because we'd like to stay alive.

Here, presumably, you are the dwarf determining who will go and what they will take. You have a total of 2060☼ to spend in two categories: Skilled dwarves and items. Some items have already been selected for you, but you probably won't want most of these.

There are as many possible ways to approach setting up as there are fortress locations. The [[starting builds]] page offers several possibilities, if you don't like the one here.

=== Skills ===

First, remove all the items in the items screen, so you'll have enough starting points to spend on skilled dwarves. You need to press the {{k|-}} key on the numpad to sell items. Likewise you use the {{k|+}} key on the numpad to buy more of an item. {{k|+}} and {{k|-}} on the regular keyboard will not work.

* Proficient [[Miner]]/Novice [[Judge of intent]]/Novice [[Appraiser]]/Competent [[Gem setter]]. This dwarf will tend to be chosen as leader (who is also a counselor of sorts) and will also be your trader, manager and bookkeeper. Whenever he has time, he will also work as miner, and later on he will decorate your goods with gems.
* Proficient [[Miner]]/Proficient [[Mason]]
* Proficient [[Woodcutter]]/Proficient [[Carpenter]]
* Proficient [[Grower]]/Proficient [[Herbalist]]. If you know how underground farming works, you might want to combine a Proficient [[Grower]] with a [[Craftsdwarf|stonecrafter]], [[bone carver]], [[glassmaker]] or [[clothier]] instead to produce items of value for trade. A herbalist is useful for acquiring above ground seeds mostly and food output from farming is more than generous.
* Proficient [[Building designer]]/Proficient [[Mechanic]]
* Proficient [[Weaponsmith]]/Proficient [[Armorsmith]]. If you ever plan to equip dwarves with weapons and armor, you'll need a dwarf skilled at these.
* Proficient [[Brewer]]/Proficient [[Cook]]. A skilled cook makes high quality food. High quality food keeps your dwarves happy, which makes the game a lot easier.

The total cost of the skills above is 480☼, but it is worth the cost: Once you start the fortress, skills will be much more difficult to get than valuable goods.

Here's a suggestion of what skills to take. For food safety one may prefer a [[fisherdwarf]]/[[fish cleaner]] to the [[weaponsmith]]/[[armorsmith]], but it's hardly necessary. You can also chose a lesser degree of skill for the building designer, as this skill only improves work speed and isn't as necessary in the long run.

=== Items ===

You have 1580☼ to spend on items to take along if you've taken the skills recommended above. If some of these things aren't available, skip over them for now and get the rest. We'll take care of them later.

If an item is not on the list, you will need to add it to the list by pressing {{k|n}}, finding the desired item, and pressing {{k|Enter}}.

* You'll need two [[copper]] [[pick]]s, which cost 20☼ each (40☼ total), for your miners. The material doesn't affect mining speed.
* Also, a [[battle axe]] will be needed for woodcutting. Since the only possible metal for it is [[steel]], it costs 300☼.
** Optionally, you can smelt your axe when you get there. You'll need to bring along plenty of fuel, a few pieces of copper ore, and three units of fire-safe material of some sort, though. For more info, try the pages on [[Weaponsmith]]ing, [[Smelting]], [[metalsmith's forge]]s, [[smelters]], and optionally, should you choose to take wood logs as your fuel, the [[Wood burner]] and the [[wood furnace]]. Note that the total at the end of this list does NOT account for this route. You will require an anvil to do this, though.
* You'll need food. We recommend the following:
** 100 pieces of any variety of [[meat]] worth 2☼ apiece. Take at least one meat from each type of 2☼ meat, as you will get more [[barrel]]s that way. (200☼ total)
*** If you bring Turtle or any other fish, you will get bones and shells when they are consumed, though you won't if you cook them.
** 100 drinks of [[alcohol]], which will be stored in 20 [[barrel]]s free of charge. Alcohol stacks 5 drinks per barrel, so stack sizes ending in 1 or 6 earn you a cheap barrel. (200☼ total)
*** If you bring all the types available it will help keep the dwarves happy, since a given dwarf might have a preference as to what kind of booze he drinks, and his favorite one will make him happier. Don't worry about this too much.
* You need [[seed]]s, which are 1☼ each:
** 25 [[plump helmet spawn]]. Plump helmets will likely be your main crop, as they are easy to grow, and, if you brew them then cook the wine, they give as much food as anything else. However, many players consider this cheating. Real dwarves don't eat biscuits made only out of wine.
** 10 [[pig tail]] seeds
** 10 [[rock nut]]s, which are the most difficult crop to use but the one that gives the most food, bar [[cheating]]
* You may wish to bring [[animal]]s:
** Two [[dog]]s, at 16☼ each (32☼ total). Gender alternates, so you will get one male and one female if you bring two. Dogs are excellent early defense systems and can be easily trained into war dogs, which do not run from danger and do twice as much damage.
** [[Cat]]s have advantages and disadvantages that the player must weigh carefully. They cost 11☼ each.
***Cats are by far the most effective way of killing [[vermin]], preventing unhappy [[thought]]s. However, they will leave vermin corpses lying around your fortress which can produce clouds of [[miasma]]. This can be controlled if the user simply sets up the [[refuse]] [[stockpile]] in a room with a [[door]].
***Cats cannot be assigned owners. They will choose an owner randomly. A cat with an owner cannot be killed without the owner throwing a [[tantrum]]. This is especially troublesome as the cat population escalates.
***Cats breed quickly with several offspring. One solution is to kill all female cats before they select an owner. This is not as easy as it sounds for a novice player, and it may also necessitate killing immigrants that arrive with a female cat to prevent a tantrum. A perhaps more productive solution is to take advantage of their multiplication, putting kittens into a [[cage]] quickly after birth and [[butchering]] them as needed to feed the dwarves.
***You may wish to take one cat on your first fortress, to ease vermin problems while you get used to the game. Do not take one cat and one kitten, they will breed once the kitten grows up.
* If you have followed the above exactly, you'll have 763☼ left. Spend this on whatever you like. If the area where you are has little wood, like a [[desert]] or mountains, you may wish to bring a few hundred [[logs]], which cost 3☼ each. You could also bring more [[food]]. You may wish to not take the expensive axe and take an anvil instead, which would leave you with 63☼. You can request an axe from the caravan or [[forge]] it yourself.
* If you plan on raising animals as a food source you could take two cows or depending on where you start or what civilization you select 2 horses or camels to breed.

While you need an anvil for metalsmithing, you don't have to take it here, since the dwarven [[caravan]] may bring one in [[autumn]] of the first year, and you'll easily be able to make 1000☼ in trade goods before then. If they don't have one, you can request it for next year, or wait for the humans to arrive and buy or order one from them.

==== What if something's not on the list? ====

Since some civilizations don't have certain materials or items, some things may not be available. If so, any food and drink will do. You can survive with only plump helmets and what you gather, so it's not critical to get certain kinds of seeds. Just grab a few of whatever's available in case you want to use them. In the case of picks, any material will do, just get the cheapest available. If picks or axes are missing completely, you can simply make them from raw materials when you arrive.

In order to do this, you'll need a bar of metal (preferably copper or iron), and a block of any material. You'll also need an [[iron]] [[anvil]], which costs 1000☼ to take. You can use these along with the starting wood to make a [[wood furnace]], turn your wood into coal, then deconstruct the wood furnace and make a [[forge]]. Make a pick at the forge, and use it to mine some ore. Deconstruct the forge to make a [[smelter]] and smelt the ore into a bar. Then build the forge once more and make your axe, which you can use to get more wood. Of course, you can simplify the process by just taking a second bar of metal with you.

If not even an anvil is available, you'll have to wait for the human [[caravan]] to bring one. If they don't have it the first time they come, be sure to request anvils so they'll bring one next year.

=== [[Fortress name|Naming]] ===

You can also name your fortress and starting group. This doesn't affect the game any, except in that if you don't, you could end up with a name like "The Bloody Anus of Angels." And we hope you don't want that.

== Beginning the fortress ==

When you reach the site of your new fortress, the first things you want to do are:

* Dig secure lodgings.
* Create [[stockpile]]s.
* Build basic [[workshop]]s.
* Set up a [[dining room]] and a [[bedroom]].
* Construct a [[Farming|farm]].

Sounds simple, right? It doesn't? Learning the basics of the game can take some time, but soon enough you'll be customizing stockpiles like a pro!

=== Basics ===

* First off, pause the game by pressing {{k|space}}. You can do this at any time to figure out what's going on at your leisure.

* To move the view around, use the arrow keys. To move the view around at a faster pace, hold down the {{k|shift}} key, but if using the numpad keys make sure {{k|numlock}} is off. To view different elevations, or "[[Z]]-levels," use the {{k|<}} and {{k|>}} keys ({{k|shift}} + {{k|,}} or {{k|.}}).

* To examine the contents of a square, press {{k|k}} and move the cursor over the square you want to examine. If you get lost and can't find your way back to your dwarves, press {{k|F1}} to center the camera back on the starting position. Check out more information on [[hotkeys]] to find out how to change that location.

* You need to know how to change what jobs your dwarves will do. Press {{k|v}} and then move the cursor over a dwarf. It will display information about him/her. Go to the dwarf's {{k|p}}references, then the {{k|l}}abor submenu, and scroll the list with {{k|+}} and {{k|-}} on the number pad ({{k|*}} and {{k|/}} will scroll through the list at a faster pace). The highlighted jobs are the ones this dwarf is allowed to do. Your starting dwarves should have the jobs that you gave them skills in enabled, but any dwarf can do any job, even if they have no skill in it yet. This is important to know so you can make the dwarves do the jobs you need done instead of just whatever their default jobs are. You should probably turn off all types of [[hauling]] for one of the miners so they get right to work [[digging]] and don't get distracted by [[hauling]] commands. The {{k|Enter}} key toggles whether a dwarf will perform the given task or not.

=== Digging ===

* To start [[digging]] out your fortress, press {{k|d}} to open the designation menu. Here you can select the tiles for your miners to dig, or tell them to create [[stair]]s and [[ramp]]s and various other things. Press {{k|d}} again to make sure you're creating digging designations, then press {{k|Enter}} to start marking where to dig. You need to hit enter twice, to mark two corners of a rectangular area.

* Start digging out a room as the start of your fortress. If you don't like the area the [[wagon]] starts in, choose a different place on the map. Try to keep a 1 tile wide chokepoint or hallway leading into it which you can block with a door. If you are in an area covered with sand, [[loam]], or [[clay]], you won't have rocks cluttering the room, so it may be easier to make your rooms there. Oddly, sand walls are just as hard as granite ones.

* You will need rock for construction, though, so if you don't mine your rooms out of stone, you'll need to create a mining area elsewhere to get stone.

* <del>Dwarves</del> Sane dwarves live underground, of course, so digging the start of your fortress requires you to understand the lay of the land. Likely, your fortress will be located in one of two types of areas, either near a preexisting steep slope you can dig into the side of, or in an area where you will have to dig [[stairs]] to get below the surface first. Examine the land using the {{k|k}} view command mentioned previously to determine which method you need to use. Open space means the land drops below your current Z-level.

* To dig down with stairs, designate a [[downward stairway]] on the surface, then move the view down one level ({{k|>}}) and designate an [[upward stairway]] on the tile directly beneath the downwards stairs. An [[up/down stairway]] works like both types of stairways in one tile. [[Stair]]s can go as deep as you want in a stack if you keep making [[up/down stairway]]s on top of each other. You can continue stairs from both the top and the bottom of [[up/down stairway]]s, but only from the bottom of [[downward stairway]]s, and only from the top of [[upward stairway]]s so only use the [[upward stairway]] or [[downward stairway]] when you're not planning to ever go further that direction. Keep in mind that you can only dig [[upward stairway]]s and [[up/down stairway]]s in squares that have not already been dug out, since you are carving the stairs out of the earth that's there.

=== Creating [[stockpile]]s ===

* Outdoors, by the fortress entrance, create a [[refuse stockpile]], a [[wood stockpile]], a [[furniture stockpile]], and a [[food stockpile]] to get your supplies out of the wagon and delay the [[Wear|rotting]] of food. Don't create a [[stone stockpile]] yet, as this will cause your dwarves to get bogged down with hauling. To make a stockpile, press {{k|p}}, press the letter corresponding to the type of stockpile you want, then press enter and drag the selection box over the area you want, and press enter again to create it.

* Move all stockpiles inside as soon as possible for most things will eventually [[rot]] outside but never inside. Make sure your refuse stockpile is then separated by a door or even an airlock-like double door (-->[[Miasma]]).

* You'll need to make many different stockpiles throughout the game.

=== Building workshops ===

* Disassemble the wagon for [[wood]], by "destroying it", by pressing {{k|q}}, moving the cursor over the wagon, and pressing {{k|x}}. Your carpenter should then disassemble it into three logs (This is the same process to disassemble most any building).

* Create a [[mason's workshop]], a [[carpenter's workshop]], and a [[mechanic's workshop]] with the stones your miners should be producing as they dig tunnels through the rock. To build things, press {{k|b}}, then for workshops, press {{k|w}}. Scroll to the type you want with {{k|+}} and {{k|-}} and press enter. You should next see a screen with the list of all the available materials you can use to build the workshop. Select any type of stone and the dwarves will get started. '''However''', if the stone available to you has some [[economic stone|economic value]], such as [[limestone]] or [[marble]], you must press {{k|z}} to open the general status screen, go to the Stones submenu, then find the stone type in the list and press {{k|enter}} to allow your dwarves to use it for mundane tasks like constructing buildings and furniture.

* In order to get the worshops actually built, the Mason must do his job. If he's also miner (as proposed above), it's necessary to switch off "Mining" for him, else he won't build something and instead continue mining.

* Your [[fisherdwarf]] has likely run off to a body of water to start fishing. Raw fish is inedible, and rots if left alone too long, so you need to build a [[fishery]] to process it. You build the fishery in the same way you built the other workshops. After it's built, select it with {{k|q}}, press {{k|a}}, select "Process Raw Fish" and press enter. Then press {{k|r}} to make that order repeat until it runs out of fish to process.
** The answer to the question, "is fishing high priority," (which was asked here) depends on what kind of priority you mean. If you mean "do dwarves fish instead of other tasks," yes, fishing is very high priority.

* At the [[mason's workshop]], order a [[door]] by selecting the workshop with {{k|q}}, pressing {{k|a}}, then scrolling to "door" on the list with {{k|+}} and {{k|-}} and pressing enter. Stone is more common than wood, so you want to make everything you can out of stone rather than wood. The only important items you can't make out of stone that you can make out of wood are [[bed]]s, [[bucket]]s, [[bin]]s, [[barrel]]s, and [[charcoal]] for fueling your [[forge]]s.

* Once the door is finished, place the door in the entrance of your fort by pressing {{k|b}}uild, then {{k|d}}oor, then selecting the space you want it to go in and pressing {{k|Enter}}. If trouble shows up, you can lock the door by pressing {{k|q}}, highlighting it and pressing {{k|l}} once. Pressing it again unlocks it.

* At the [[carpenter's workshop]], first order a [[bed]] and a [[bucket]] to be made out of some of your wood. These are needed to heal any injured dwarf.

* Once the bed is complete, {{k|b}}uild it in the same manner you built the door, and place it in your entrance hall. Once it's placed, you should make it into a communal sleeping hall by selecting the bed with {{k|q}}, pressing {{k|r}} and using the {{k|+}} and {{k|-}} keys to cover the area of the hall, pressing {{k|Enter}}, then pressing {{k|b}} to make it a [[barracks]]. Making it a barracks means that it is a public sleeping area, and dwarves without their own rooms will sleep there, on the floor if there aren't enough beds. You may prefer to make a separate room for it, though this is not necessary.


* You should designate some trees to be cut down for more logs. Press {{k|d}}, then {{k|t}}. Find an area with trees, then press enter and highlight some trees by dragging the selection area over them and pressing enter again.
* To build some [[trap]]s to defend your front door, order some [[mechanism]]s to be built at the [[mechanic's workshop]]. After they are made, go to the {{k|b}}uild menu, and select the "Traps/Levers" category using {{k|+}} and {{k|-}}. Select the [[Trap#Stone-fall trap|stone-fall trap]], select the materials to use, then place it in a choke point leading into your fortress, like in front of or behind the front door.
* Mine a new room that will be used as a dining hall, and build four or five stone [[table]]s and stone [[throne]]s for it. Build some more doors to section off new rooms properly, as dwarves dislike rooms that aren't enclosed on all sides by walls or doors. Place the tables and thrones like you did the doors, and put one throne adjacent to each table. Once a table is placed in the room, select it with {{k|q}} and use it to define the area as a dining room, like you did with the bed for the sleeping hall. You only need to use one table to define the room, and the rest of the tables in it are automatically considered part of the dining room.
* Mine a few more rooms to be used as storage areas, remove the furniture and food stockpiles outside, and make new ones in these new storage rooms.
* You can also move your workshops indoors. They should not be built in the vicinity of the sleeping hall, as the noise will bother people. You can remove the workshops aboveground the same way you dismantled the wagon: press {{k|q}}, highlight the workshop, then press {{k|x}}.

=== Farming ===

Next you'll set up [[farming]]. You first need to dig a farm room underground. Dwarven crops won't grow on the surface. (You ''can'' retrieve some surface-grown plants using the [[gather plants]] designation liberally.)

If there are enough layers of [[soil]] covering the rock, you can carve out a farm room inside the soil and start farming without having to [[irrigate]] the ground. This is recommended for beginning players if possible. However, if you want to make a farm room with a rock floor, you will need to get the floor wet first. When water covers a rock cavern floor, it becomes muddy, which allows you to build farm plots on it. For more information about how to do that, read up on [[irrigation]].

Once you have suitable ground for planting, go to the {{k|b}}uild menu, find "Farm Plot" or press {{k|p}}, then use the {{k|u}} {{k|m}} {{k|h}} {{k|k}} keys to resize it, and press enter to place it. A 5x5 field should be plenty to last you through winter. After it's placed, your growers will come clear the site and prepare it for planting.

Now that the field is ready, select it with {{k|q}}, and set the crop you want to be grown on it. You have to set this manually for each season. Press {{k|a}} for spring, {{k|b}} for summer, {{k|c}} for fall, and {{k|d}} for winter. Not every crop can be grown in every season, although [[plump helmet]]s can be grown all year. You probably want to grow plump helmets exclusively at first, as they are the easiest crop to grow and use. Dwarves can eat them raw, cooked, or brew them into alcohol.

=== Trading ===

A dwarven caravan will drop by in the Autumn of the first year. You need to have an accessible [[Trade depot]] to trade, though if you don't have one when they arrive the dwarf merchants will wait at the map edge for one to be built. Your outpost leader will meet with the [[liaison]] and discuss what to bring for the next year. This meeting can take place anywhere on the map, but the office seems to be preferred. Traders with horses or camels and the like can reach pretty much any place that hasn't been locked or isn't up or down stairs. Dwarven and human wagons are a little more tricky sometimes, they need a 3 tile path. Once a trade depot is built, you can press {{k|D}} (shift-d) to check wagon access. The green "W" squares show where a wagon can go; if the screen says "Depot accessible", then wagons will be able to reach your depot.

You may be a bit light on things to trade. If you have any leftover [[mechanism]]s, send 'em in; they're worth a good penny, especially if they're of better quality. You can also build a [[Craftsdwarf's workshop]] and make stone crafts for trading if you brought a skilled stonecrafter with you. If you have any high quality cooked meals and feel that you are well stocked on food you may consider selling that, but don't underestimate the first wave of [[immigrant]]s.

If you have managed to kill any invaders, many of them wear silk clothes that don't fit dwarves. These can be worth hauling long distances - one pair of "Giant cave spider" socks, or the like can pay for an anvil

In order to trade, you'll need to use {{k|q}} on the trade depot. Pressing {{k|r}} will put a "Trade at depot" job on the queue (make sure your broker's not off hauling stone or something). While you're doing this, you'll need to move the things you want to trade away to the depot: The {{k|g}} key lets you pick from your stores. Once the broker and the items are in place, use {{k|t}} to initiate the trade.

If the broker doesn't have enough skill at Appraising, you won't be able to see item prices - only weights (marked with the gamma symbol on the standard font) and some guesswork might be needed to find out what will be accepted for what.

What to buy? An anvil if you don't have one. Logs, crops, booze, cheap meat, cheap raw materials you can process. Any general, cheap supplies you need. Do not buy cheese or giant cave spider silk for now - they're very expensive and not worth the bother. However, if you are in an area that cannot produce steel, and you can pay for it, you may wish to start ordering [[steel]] and/or steel ingredients now.

Each level of asking for an item increases the prices by 20%, on average, so while if you pay the max amount you will almost certainly get the item, and lots of it, you'll be paying twice the normal value.

== What next? ==

At this point your little fort should be mostly self-sufficient, barring animal attacks, mining accidents, psychotic outbreaks, or invasion. You can now invest some time in luxuries, such as making private rooms for each dwarf, crafting valuable trade goods, crazy engineering projects, and brewing more beer.

Here's some ideas for what to do next:
* Make an underground [[well]] that won't freeze over in winter, by draining a surface pool or diverting a river.
* Build a [[craftdwarf's workshop]] and start making some trade goods.
* Start [[smelting]] the ore you've mined if you have dwarves with the right skills.
* Set up a [[still]] to brew more drinks for your thirsty dwarves. They'll drink water if they have to, but they are much happier and work faster if they are full of alcohol.
* Make individual rooms for each dwarf, with a bed and maybe a rock coffer and rock cabinet in each one.
* Use [[zone]]s to set up a meeting hall, and designate which water sources you want your dwarves to use for [[fishing]] and drinking.
* Expand your farm, dining room, and living quarters in anticipation of the massive wave of 10-30 immigrants that will likely show up sometime in the next year.
* Start making [[bin]]s and [[barrel]]s to consolidate items and food taking up space in your stockpiles so things are more organized, and so you have more barrels to brew drinks with.
* Set up an indoor [[refuse stockpile]] so your dwarves don't have to carry their trash as far, and so you can start building up a useful supply of bones and shells.
* Plant some [[pigtail]]s to make [[cloth]]. You'll need a [[farmer's workshop]], a [[loom]], and a [[clothier's shop]].
* Draft a couple dwarves, and start a fortress [[military]].
* Hunt for iron, gold, and gems with some [[exploratory mining]].

And when you start feeling more confident with your DF-knowledge, you can try to set some [[Game goals|crazy goals]] for yourself for a challenge, or just enjoy the game in the way '''you''' fashion at your own pace. But most importantly to remember, '''Losing is fun!'''

[[Category:Guides]]

{{Starting FAQ}}

40d:Defense guide

2008-09-29T04:32:20Z

Bitbandiot: /* Guard animals */

Protecting your fortress from intruders is a complex task. There's a variety of threats to consider, and many ways to counter them.

=General Guidelines=

* '''Minimize fortress entrances:''' Have a strong distinction between inside and outside. This usually corresponds to underground and surface, but not always. Each point of contact needs to be hardened against attack. Don't make more entrances than necessary. If there is a useless opening, wall it off.

* '''Concentric circles:''' One wall may not be enough. With the existence of door-destroying and bow-wielding attackers, a double wall between the inside and the outside is essential to fend off the worst assaults. The choke points between the circles are where you build traps and doors. Station troops between the walls.

* '''Assume the worst:''' Build up your defenses ''before'' the enemy shows up. Plan on being [[siege]]d by hordes of [[goblin]] archers, [[troll]]s, [[kobold]] master thieves, [[giant eagle]]s, angry [[elephants]], and a [[bronze colossus]] all at once. Hopefully, you will never have to face that kind of threat, but being ready for anything is the best bet.

=Threats=

==Wild animals==
The first, and easiest, threat you will have to deal with is the local wildlife. [[Animal]]s are easily excluded by the humble [[door]] or [[hatch]], even if it's not [[forbidden]]. [[Elephant]]s are not nearly as aggressive as they were in the days of [[Boatmurdered]]. The main threat from animals are those that steal items, like [[raccoon]]s or eat your food, like [[bear]]s.

With [[cage]] [[trap]]s and an [[animal trainer]] (or [[Dungeon master]]) animals can be useful. Dwarves love [[zoo]]s, merchants will gladly take your caged animals, and they provide a [[food]] source in times of need.

==Thieves & snatchers==
Any creature with a career title of [[thief]] or master thief has a few nasty abilities. First, they are invisible until spotted by your dwarves or tame [[animal]]s. When spotted, there's an [[alert]] message, either "Protect the hoard!" or "Protect the children!" depending on the type of thief. Second, they can open [[forbidden]] [[door]]s. Not just for themselves either, the door stays open until a military dwarf "secures" the door, allowing any random creature to walk in. This can be a nasty surprise for players who aren't expecting it. Third, they bypass your [[trap]]s. Thankfully, they don't disarm them the way they neutralize doors. This trap avoidance isn't perfect, there's some element of luck involved, and kobold thieves seem to be a lot better at it than goblins. A thief caught in a cage trap will be revealed automatically, even if no dwarf is in sight of the trap. Last of all, they make dangerous prisoners. Unlike military captives, thieves will break free and attack if you attempt to transfer or [[pit]] them.

==Ambushes==
An [[ambush]] is a small number of enemies (less than ten) that are invisible until spotted, like thieves, but somewhat easier to detect. The alert message is "An ambush! Curse them!" They skulk around the outside of your fortress, looking for a target of opportunity. They will often attack [[caravan]]s as they move to your depot. Ambushers have random weapons, and typically have a leader (with a career title of "guard") with a different weapon from the rest.

If you have [[woodcutter]]s or [[hunter]]s roaming the surface, they are likely to be the first to encounter the ambush. This can provide a kind of early alert system, but you'll lose a few of them.

==Sieges==
''See [[Siege]]''

A siege is a large number of attackers that are announced as soon as they appear on the map. The alert message is "A vile force of darkness has arrived!" While siegers are on the map, the word "SIEGE" appears in the top corners of the screen. Siegers are organized into a number of squads, each squad having a different weapon choice. A siege can be led by a leader figure, often a master warrior. Goblin siegers sometimes bring along creatures such as [[troll]]s or [[beak dog]]s.

==Enemy archers==
Attackers with [[bow]]s or [[crossbow]]s are much, much more threatening than those with melee weapons. Out-shooting them with your marksdwarves is risky, and charging them with melee fighters is even worse. Advanced techniques are needed to shield your dwarves from the deadly rain of arrows.

==Building destroyers==
Some creatures have BUILDINGDESTROYER [[creature tokens]] in the data files. This gives them the fearful capacity of tearing apart your doors and bridges (and floodgates?). Trolls have this ability, as do some megabeasts. This doesn't allow creatures to knock down constructed walls.

==Flying animals==
Currently, the only flying creatures are wild animals, like the [[giant eagle]]. Be aware.

==Megabeasts==
A [[megabeast]] appears alone, with an alert message that mentions the beast by name. These creature are quite powerful. Approach with caution.

==Death from below==
There are threats below the surface as well as above. If you breach a [[chasm]], underground [[river]] or lake, wild [[animal]]s and hostile [[humanoid]]s will occasionally emerge to attack your dwarves. They rarely attack in numbers, and can usually be defeated by ordinary traps and doors.

Underground threats may be more common in future versions. Underground roads may allow other [[civilization]]s to siege you from below. {{version|0.28.181.39c}}

=Elements=

==Soldiers==
The core of any defense plan is the soldiers. A [[sparring|trained]], [[weapon|armed]], and [[armor]]ed [[military]] is the only way to bring the fight to the enemy. Keeping them in position is the tricky part.

===Roughing it===
Always have your soldiers carry food. They will each need a [[backpack]] to carry it. This keeps your soldiers from wandering off to eat. You can also have them carry [[water]] in [[waterskin]]s or [[flask]]s, but this isn't recommended for the long term, as it keeps your soldiers from drinking [[alcohol]]. For an around the clock guard, have them sleep on the ground while on duty. Hopefully the sounds of combat will wake them up before they get killed. Sleeping on the floor causes unhappy [[thought]]s.

===Daylight training room===
Put a [[weapon rack]] on the surface near your entrance and make it a training room. Training dwarves will be in position if there's trouble. This also helps prevent [[cave adaption]] in your military. You can use an [[archery target]] this way, too.

==Doors and hatches==
The most obvious way to keep any enemy out is with a [[door]]. You can [[forbid]] doors to keep [[humanoid]] enemies out, and your dwarves in. Outer doors can be closed against animals, to keep beloved [[pet]]s from wandering into enemy fire. A [[floor hatch]] is just a vertical door.

==Walls==
Constructing walls around your entrance is an essential part of fortress defense. Currently, no creature can knock down a wall. Not only does it keep enemies out, your archers can stand on top of the wall and fire down. Keep in mind that this makes them vulnerable to enemy fire. To protect against that, build fortifications.

==Fortifications==
Fortifications block movement, and allow some missiles to pass through. Projectiles have a chance of being blocked, based on the firer's skill and distance to the fortification. There's no miss chance if the firer is adjacent to the fortification. Keep your marksdwarves close and keep enemies away. Build fortified firing platforms above ground level and put a nice wide moat between the wall and the enemy.

==Moats and bridges==
A retractable [[bridge]] over a [[moat]] is an almost airtight defense. The moat keeps building-destroyers away from the bridge, and the raised bridge blocks arrow fire. There are two important things to remember: Always build the bridge to raise towards the ''inside''. The [[lever]] has to be pulled by a civilian, not a soldier.

The moat doesn't have to be filled with water or magma. Arguably, a dry moat is a better defense. If you want to build an escape rout out of your moat, make sure is leads to the outside, and is barred by a door (at least).

A moat with a non-retractable bridge is still potentially useful: It keeps enemy archers away from your fortifications, and it channels enemies into a narrow area.

A drawbridge without a moat is just a big remote control door. This doesn't work with retracting bridges!

==Remote control doors==
If you link a [[lever]] to a door, it becomes impossible for your dwarves to open and close it normally. Pulling the lever is the only way to open it. This keeps your dwarves locked in as well as keeping enemies out. It's unknown if thieves can open a door once it's linked.

A [[floodgate]] can be used just like a door, with two differences: A floodgate can be placed next to another floodgate, unlike a door, which needs to be adjacent to a wall. A floodgate is closed by default, and can only be opened with a lever. Be careful not to trap your dwarves.

A [[hatch cover]] can also be used this way.

As mentioned, a drawbridge works as a door

You can use automate a door by using a [[pressure plate]] instead of a lever, but there are many complications there.

==Traps==
The most reliable way to stop intruders is lots of [[trap]]s. A thief's trap avoidance is subject to chance. A line of traps can wipe out an ambushes entirely, and inflict a lot of damage on a siege.

===Stone fall trap===
This is the easiest trap to build, so you can easily build them in large numbers. Building lots of them is an easy way to earn experience for your [[mechanic]], and add to your fort's defenses at the same time. Surround every intersection and stairway.

===Cage trap===
A very strong type of trap. Maybe even too strong. Currently, even a wooden or glass [[cage]] can hold indefinitely any creature, even trolls and megabeasts. Also, a cage trap never fails. A large creature can shrug off damage from a stone or weapon trap, but nothing can escape from a cage. Use cage traps as your outermost traps to catch the occasional wandering animal. A wounded [[elephant]] or [[unicorn]] in your front courtyard is not good at all.

===Weapon trap===
The gold standard of traps. This is the only simple trap that works repeatedly without reloading. They do get jammed, however. View the trap with the '''items in room''' {{key|t}} mode, and if there's a corpse inside the trap, it's jammed. None of the weapons on a jammed trap will function. It may be wiser to have several weapon traps with fewer weapons, rather than a smaller number of ten-weapon traps.

Using [[crossbow]]s in weapon traps avoids the problem of jamming, but they must be kept loaded with [[ammo]].

==Guard animals==
[[Chain]]ed animals are sentries, not fighters. Most animals aren't strong enough to take more than one goblin warrior. Enemies with bows are even worse. The real purpose of guard animals is to spot thieves. Anything will do here, a cat is fine too. Don't use something useful, like a war dog. Put animals in narrow corridors, in places where enemy archers can't see them.

===Meeting hall as defense===
You can use a meeting hall [[zone]] to attract animals to a given area. This makes a pretty poor defense in general, but in the very early game, it's a way to defend your wagon and stockpiles from thieving animals. Remove the zone later, or it attracts idle dwarves and children.

===Bait animals===
Most enemies will go after your animals just as blindly as they attack your dwarves. An expendable chained animal can bait enemies into dangerous passages, even into places unconnected to your fortress.

==Siege engines==
[[Siege engine]]s are not very useful in the current version. Catapults are only useful for training and stone disposal. Ballistas are deadly, but fire expensive ammunition, and hit both friend and foe alike.

Remember that [[siege operator]]s are civilians. Fortunately, siege engines can fire through fortifications, just like normal projectiles.

==Pillboxes and turrets==
Build a [[tower]] specifically to post archers on. This lets you open fire before the enemy approaches your gates. A pillbox can be attached to your walls, or separate, so that the only access is from tunnels below. Carve fortifications on the second or third floor, so your dwarves can fire out. For extra usefulness, build a [[barracks]], [[archery target]], [[food]] [[stockpile]], and [[dining room]] in or near the tower.

===Siege engine turrets===
If it's big enough, build a [[siege engine]] inside a pillbox. The device needs to be on ground level. Only a single tile of fortifications is needed to fire through the wall. You may want to build a moat or secondary wall to keep enemies at a distance. Position the tower to fire where invaders tend to congregate. Since [[siege operator]]s are civilians, the "dwarves stay underground" order must be off.

=Considerations=

==Civilians stay underground==
This setting, in the [[orders and options]] menu is the easiest way to keep your non-military dwarves out of sight of the enemy. It is far from perfect, as dwarves will do the "entrance dance." They will attempt to leave the fortress, and only cancel jobs once they reach the surface.

It takes a truly airtight fortress to turn this setting off while there are still enemies outside. It's only safe to turn this setting off once the drawbridges and such have sealed off your fortress entirely. If there's even one exit, your dwarves will use it. Try testing this while it's safe: Raise the bridges, just like you would in a siege, and designate some trees for cutting. If there's a way out, your woodcutters will find it.

* '''Screen the entrance.''' Build a simple wall around your entryway. This will keep your dwarves safe from enemy fire while doing the entrance dance.

* '''Seal the entrance.''' Prevents the entry dance, but also blocks your soldiers, which can trap them underground.

* '''Forbid dropped equipment and corpses.''' Mark every item on the battlefield as [[forbidden]]. This includes any items dropped by dead merchants or scuttled wagons.

* '''Delete stockpiles and turn off tombs.''' As a preemptive measure, you can delete your stockpiles. Dwarves don't haul things if there's no [[stockpile]] to place them in. Turning off or removing [[coffin]]s stops burials as well.

* '''Keep them busy.''' Make a bunch of busy-work for your dwarves, just to keep them underground. It's not perfect but it helps. Time to re-organize your stockpiles.

==Lever room==
Be careful where you place the [[lever]]s controlling your drawbridge. Or any lever at all, for that matter. Make sure that the entire path to each lever is [[underground]] or your dwarves might keep canceling the "pull lever" job. You can test this during peacetime, too. Try putting all your defense-related levers in a single room, and put a door on the entrance. Then you can lock your lever-puller inside to ensure rapid response time.

Another solution to the problem of rapid response time is to make your lever room double as a [[Screw pump|pump]] room. Pumping is a good way to build up your dwarves' [[Attribute|attributes]] regardless of whether the pump is doing work or not. If you want a dedicated lever operator or three, turn off all their labors except pumping, and set the pumps up so that they can be operated exclusively by your dedicated lever operators. Rotate these positions every so often so the attribute gain will be distributed among multiple dwarves.

For the truly ambitious, the lever room could be spread over multiple levels, and the pumps could work together to power one or more artificial [[Waterfall|waterfalls]]. (Waterfalls work well in this case because their operation is not fortress-critical, and your dwarves like the mist they produce.)

==Trade depot==
Factoring in access to the [[trade depot]] adds a layer of complexity. Letting merchants in while keeping enemies out requires a careful balance. The merchants do reveal ambushes, and they can arrive in the middle of a [[siege]].

[[Wagon]]s need a three tile wide path to the depot. You will probably want to build the depot underground, so civilian dwarves can access the depot. Wagons can't use stairs, so you need a three-tile [[ramp]], unless you can dig into the face of a cliff.

==Airlock defenses/buffer zone==
Build two walls, each with a drawbridge. Build the trade depot in the buffer zone between them. Keep the outer bridge open, and the inner one closed. When the merchants appear, put crossbows on the walls to guard their approach. Once all the merchants are safely inside, close the outer bridge. Once there's no enemies left in the buffer zone, open the inner bridge so your civilians can start loading up the depot.

The airlock pattern can be useful even without putting the depot there. Let a few siegers in at a time, and crush them. Reset the traps, Rest up the soldiers, and repeat.

==Civilians trapped outdoors==
Anything that blocks intruders will also block your dwarves. This can cause the problem of dwarves being trapped outside with the enemy. Having more than one entrance can be useful here. If you make these entrances accessible by drawbridge only, and keep the drawbridge up most of the time, having lots of entrances shouldn't be too much of a problem.

==Branching corridors==
Enemies will take the most direct path to your fortress. You can use this to your advantage. Have two paths to the fortress: a long, twisting, three-wide road, and a shorter, one tile wide, trap-filled passage. Attackers will usually prefer the short and deadly path. This makes a good line of fire for a ballista, too.

This isn't a perfectly reliable method, but surprisingly effective.

===AI abuse===
Taking advantage of pathfinding AI is a whole guide in itself. Try leaving a door un-forbidden during an attack. When the bad guys approach the door, forbid it, and the enemy will wander off. Unlock it again, and they turn around and head back towards the door again. You can get enemies to march back and forth over a set of traps this way. This might count as an [[exploit]].

===Roach motel===
Build a long, narrow, and twisty passage, accessible from the outside, but unconnected to your fortress. Build as many traps as you like. Place a bait animal inside. Enemy attackers walk right in, and get torn apart by the traps. If any manage to make it to the end, and kill the useless animal, they're surrounded by traps, and no closer to your fortress.

If the roach motel is deep enough underground, you can build a tunnel above it, channel down, and mark the channel a [[pit]]/pond. That way, you can "reload" a new bait animal.

==Water sources==
Access to [[water]] can be important. Wounded dwarves need water, so if there's not an underground water source, you'll lose valuable soldiers to thirst. Try to have a [[well]] or cistern your dwarves can use safely. Remember to keep an extra [[bucket]] or two available.

=Examples=

==3 Bridges==

[[Image:defense_3bridges.png|thumb|right]]
An example of some advanced defensive construction tactics to deal with vile forces of "any" size. (See picture).

*'''Bridge 1''' seals off the entire base
*'''Bridge 2''' forces everyone to take the long, winding, heavily trapped path of death.
*'''Bridge 3''' seals the inside of the fortress

Clever triggering of the bridges allows you to break the hostile forces into smaller chunks to be trapped in the courtyard while being caught in traps and a crossfire of arrows from the fortifications around.

[[Category:Guides]]