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Stupid dwarf trick

2022-11-18T20:51:08Z

Khargas: removed unrelated vandalism

{{Quality|Masterwork|19:26, 25 August 2020 (UTC)}}
{{av}}

{{D for Dwarf}}

A '''stupid dwarf trick''' is any project that requires a large amount of time and/or effort. They may provide a practical benefit, but are frequently done for the sake of doing them; they exist primarily as a [[challenge]] for experienced players.

==Adventure mode fortress==


Build a fortress specifically for exploring in [[adventure mode]]. You can either make a nasty monster-filled challenge, or a smörgåsbord of masterpiece adamantine weapons and armor. Possibly both. Breaching the [[caverns]] or [[hidden fun stuff]] should ensure the fortress is occupied. Building a fortress is now possible ''inside'' of adventure mode as of DF v0.43.

'''Difficulty:''' The sky's the limit.

'''Usefulness:''' None for fortress mode, but filling it with high-quality equipment can certainly be useful for adventure mode.

==Alarm clock==
Are your soldiers all sound asleep while blood soaks the walls? No need to deconstruct their beds one by one, ''if'' you bought the Dwarf Wakey 3000! Simply a solitary floor tile balanced on a support, one or more can be toppled with the pull of a lever to produce an earth-shaking racket that'll have them leaping for their axes!

'''Difficulty:''' Low.

'''Usefulness:''' Limited. They'll sleep through <s>'''anything'''</s> the noise. Although they have been known to awaken when drenched in water, possibly due to thinking it's alcohol, making an alarm clock is not impossible, if carefully prepared.

==Alphabet cages==
[[Image:Cage.gif|right]]
Use captured monsters in cages to spell messages.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium. Vowels are hard to come by.

'''Usefulness:''' Absolutely none whatsoever. (Easy reminders in case you're too lazy to use notes?)

==Altar of Armok==

Build a large altar made out of adamantine, clear glass, magma, and obsidian. The main altar should be hollow adamantine with clear glass "windows." It should have magma inside. The altar should be adorned with large obsidian spikes, as it pleases Armok.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium, raising with the amount (and respective difficulty) of bonuses you add.

'''Usefulness:''' Low to medium. If the chamber containing the altar is consecrated as a [[temple]], dwarves will go there to pray, and may gain additional happy thoughts for admiring the altar's materials and craftsdwarfship.

*Bonus: Guard the altar with a megabeast.
*Bonus: Cover the altar with blood of a Titan.
**MegaBonus: Cover the altar with blood of a denizen of the HFS.
***ArmokBonus: Build the altar in the HFS.
*MegaBonus: Cover the altar in a temporarily lasting strength inducing extract.
*BerserkBonus: Cover the altar in a nausea-inducing extract.
*BloodBonus: Also cover the altar in an extract inducing slow death.
**SychronizationBonus: Make it so that a dwarf that goes into contact with the altar dies the moment the strength runs out.
*SacrificialBonus: Sacrifice a dwarf to the altar every day.
**MegaSacrificialBonus: Sacrifice an elf to the altar every day.
**HistorySacrificialBonus: Sacrifice a human to the altar every day
***MegaArmokBonus: Sacrifice all three species to the altar every day!
*MonarchBonus: Build the altar in the monarch's throne room! Yes, this stacks with the ArmokBonus up above.

==Aqueduct power==
If your river's a long way away from your fortress, building a trans-map axle may be less efficient than building an aqueduct and pump stack driven by waterwheels in the river. The pump stack raises it to the height of your fort, where it flows through the long, long aqueduct and drives waterwheels on the other end. Getting the water pressure just right so it powers your waterwheel without flooding the fort can be [[Fun]]. Diagonal channels make good pressure reducers.

'''Difficulty:''' High. Lots of stone, lots of engineering, lots of dangerous outdoor work, lots of trial-and-error for the receiving waterwheels. Aquifers will absorb any amount of water at any rate. Using an aquifer as drain for the reservoir will nullify the risk of flooding the fortress due to the drain not keeping up with the supply.

'''Usefulness:''' High. As much water and power as you want, wherever you want, whenever you want.

==Aquifer power==
Aquifers can be a resource of immense power. If you have two levels of aquifer, you can generate a continuous flow by draining one level of aquifer into another and plant waterwheels above it. One stream can power a lot of wheels.

'''Difficulty:''' High. Anything to do with draining aquifers is very [[Fun]]. It is now very rare to find a powerful enough aquifer.

'''Usefulness:''' High.

==Archaeological excavation==
A Fortress in the Caverns, built by the first dwarf tribes. Build the Fortress however you see fit for those prehistoric Dwarves (i.e. only primitive metals, elaborate tombs for the chieftains with burial objects, cave art, etc.) and abandon it. Then, embark with modern Dwarves, and excavate the ancient Fortress. Sort of like the Adventure Fortress above, only for Reclaim Mode

'''Difficulty:''' As High as you want.

'''Usefulness:''' Variable. Carving a premade fort or building controlled access to caverns can potentially be useful for a Reclaim effort, effectively making the first wave dispoable setup so your would-be archologists to dig up and exploit their new home. The more Fun you leave behind, the harder it will be for your second wave to repurpose the place.

*Bonus: A museum detailing the lives of those early dwarves.
*Bonus: Create a save with your First Tribe fort collapsed/flooded/etc, for other users to explore. Leave them some Fun what-does-this-lever-do problems to solve.
*EncinoDwarfBonus: Some of those early dwarves frozen in a block of ice.
*FunBonus: Breach the HFS.
**MegaBonus: Do a cave in to the HFS after fighting it leaving multiple signs of battle in the fortress, to be dug by your modern dwarves.

==Artificial waterfall==
{{main|Waterfall}}
To keep the waterfall going, you need a [[pump]] stack, preferably powered by a [[windmill]] or [[water wheel]]. Alternatively, an [[aquifer]], or other limitless water source, makes for a waterfall entirely underground.

'''Difficulty:''' Moderate (Low if there is an aquifer above pouring down).

'''Usefulness:''' Dwarves love [[waterfall]]s. Putting a waterfall in your [[meeting hall]] will give your dwarves good [[thought]]s, although it can significantly lower frame rate.

*Bonus: Build it in a "Warm" or hotter [[climate]] so it does not freeze.
*DwarfBonus: Build it in a freezing/cold/temperate climate and keep it going entire year!
*MegaDwarfBonus: Use [[magma]]. It does not freeze, even in a freezing climate!
*MegaDwarfBonusEXTREME+: Use magma and water in the same waterfall. The results will enshrine you in dwarf history! Possibly permanently.

==Ballista battery==
{{main|Ballista}}
Overlap a few ballistas to completely cover a narrow corridor. There is an unavoidable risk of your operators wandering into the line of fire.

'''Difficulty:''' Low. If you insist on highly trained operators with high-quality ballistas, it gets harder.

'''Usefulness:''' A complicated and dangerous way to defend a single corridor. Ultimately extremely effective. Sometimes.

==Bastion==
Construct an isolated burrow containing a farmer and some labourers, containing at least an uncontaminated well (an [[aquifer]] is great for this) and some farms. Use whatever elaborate mechanism you wish to seal it off from the rest of the fortress. Congratulations; your bastioned dwarves and their descendants will keep your fortress alive forever until one of them goes nuts.

* Bonus: Build your bastion at least in part in a clay or sand layer, add a little magma, and continue manufacturing useless crap even as the world crumbles around you!
** StonksBonus: Rig a way for your bastion to transfer supplies to the outside world without exposing themselves to danger, so they can be somewhat useful to the rest of your fort before their inevitable downfall. Doubles as a way to restock the bastion with fresh supplies and/or bodies, or a way to let the apocalypse in a little at a time if your survivors get too comfortable.
* Bonus: Build it on top of a tower outside, and then deconstruct the stairs up.
* Bonus: Fill it exclusively with vampires, to avoid having to worry about food, children, and aging.
* MegaDwarfBonus: Hollow out a shell around your bastion, connecting it to the rest of the cavern by a single 1x1 adamantine support, and flood the shell with magma.

'''Difficulty:''' Low.

'''Usefulness:''' High. If your bastioned dwarves have high enough quality living space and few enough nonbastioned friends, it makes the fortress functionally immortal.

==Bathtub==
Stop dwarves from hauling in tons of exotic, poisonous sludge into your fortress by creating a tub filled with 3/7 water that everyone has to get through to enter the fortress. Include a system to change the water, so that they don't bathe in grime.

'''Difficulty:''' Moderate

'''Usefulness:''' Low in most cases. High in some evil areas.

* DwarfBonus: Make it drain and refill itself with clean water automatically once in a year.
* MegaDwarfBonus: Clean it with magma.
* *MegaDwarfBonus*: Have an alternative bathtub-buffered entrance next to the main one, which opens automatically when sanitizing the main one and closes and sanitizes itself when it is no longer needed, so that no jobs are canceled during cleansing cycle.
* ≡MegaDwarfBonus≡ : Make it clean itself with magma automatically once in a year, but make it wait for the moment when it's unused, so that no dwarves or pets are incinerated.
* ☼MegaDwarfBonus☼: All of the above, plus make it detect when there should be no dwarves or pets around, but invaders are in it, so that the cleansing cycle can be started prematurely.

==Boat==
In intermittently freezing biomes, [[ice]] may be used to create actual floating boats, submarines, or other floating objects/forts; as constructions built on top of ice do not collapse when the ice thaws.

'''Difficulty:''' High. Needs an intermittently freezing biome, construction is limited to frozen periods, and there's a substantial risk of flooding, drowning and being encased in ice.

'''Usefulness:''' Low. Forts within boats are protected from invaders while the water is unfrozen, but they're also trapped within the confines of the boat.

Note: You'll probably want to limit your saves to the colder months.

* DwarfBonus: Have the dwarves live on the boat.
* MegaDwarfBonus: Make miscreants/nobles walk the plank.
* *MegaDwarfBonus*: Bury your treasure on shore.
* ≡MegaDwarfBonus≡ : Have a pet [[kea]] for each of your dwarves.
* ☼MegaDwarfBonus☼: Build it on top of an ice tower.

==Bolt splitting operation==
One curious property of Dwarven physics is that a bar of metal makes 25 bolts, but if each of those 25 bolts is melted separately, they will become 2.5 bars, generating metal from nothing. Prior to the update that allowed splitting stacks at the [[trade depot]], the difficult part was separating the stacks of bolts into individual bolts without destroying them. EliDupree originally discovered this trick:
{{diagram|spaces=yes|color=#888|\
∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙
∙++++[#05F]☻∙+++++++++
∙+∙∙∙[#0A0]┼∙+++++++++++++[#BBB]╬[#BBB]╬
∙+∙[#F00]g∙[#0A0]┼∙+++++++++++++[#BBB]╬[#FF0]@
∙+∙∙∙[#0A0]┼∙+++++++++++++[#BBB]╬[#BBB]╬
∙+++++∙+++++++++
∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙∙
}}

The yellow @ at the right is a stack of marksdwarves (all in different squads so that they'll stand on the same tile) equipped with [[adamantine]] bolts, standing on top of a stairway surrounded by [[fortification]]s. The blue ☻ at the left is a single [[Attributes#Agility|Perfectly Agile]] soldier with orders to patrol up and down the line of green doors, with little delays at the top and bottom. (The doors are free-standing; they were built attached to a wall, then the wall was removed.) The "g" at the left is a goblin standing on a pillar (pitted from the z-level above).

When the dwarf at the left runs up or down the line of doors, it opens all of them, and some of the marksdwarves loose their bolts. By the time the bolts get there, the doors have closed, so they hit the doors and fall into the channel, where they can be collected and melted separately. (That distance is exact, by the way. Any less and they sometimes get shots through the doors, which kills your goblin. Also, with less-skilled marksdwarves, some of the bolts will stray and land on the floors, but that isn't enough to worry about even with mere dabblers.) Naturally, this is also an excellent way to train marksdwarves.

Another design resembles a tower where marksdwarves shoot from the top, with the following setup: (click then press '<' and '>' to go through different z-levels)
<diagram>
<frame type="level" level=0>
[#7:0]
[%201][%205][%203][%203][%205][%187]
[%186]<[%204][%185][#5:1]g[#7:0][%186]
[%200][%205][%202][%202][%205][%188]

< 01
</frame>
<frame type="level" level=1>
[#7:0]
[%201][%205][%203][%203][%205][%187]
[%186]X[%204][%185][#7:1]O[#7:0][%186]
[%200][%205][%202][%202][%205][%188]

< 02 >
</frame>
<frame type="level" level=2>
[#7:0]
[%201][%205][%205][%205][%205][%187]
[%186]X+[#3:1]/[#7:0].[%186]
[%200][%205][%205][%205][%205][%188]

< 03 >
</frame>
<frame type="level" level=3>
[#7:0]
[%201][%205][%203][%205][%187]+
[%186]X[%186].[%186]+
[%200][%205][%202][%205][%188]+

< 04 >
</frame>
<frame type="level" level=4>
[#7:0]
[%201][%205][%203][%205][%187].
[%186]X[%186].[%186].
[%200][%205][%202][%205][%188].

< 05 >
</frame>
<frame type="level" level=5>
[#7:0]
[%201][%205][%205][%205][%187]
[%186]>+[#6:1]@[#7:0][%186]
[%200][%205][%205][%205][%188]

06 >
</frame>
</diagram>
The '@' is any number of marksdwarves standing on a down stair. You may want to use a defend burrow order to restrict them to that tile. The 'g' is a goblin or any other creature your marksdwarves will normally fire at upon encounter (pitted from 2 z-levels above). The 'O' is a well, which is suspected to be preventing dwarves from plunging in and starting brawling with the creature. Marksdwarves will be able to see the goblin or whatever creature below and will loose all bolts in their quivers on them. Curiously, nearly all the bolts will fail to cross the bend in the middle and will fall onto the tile '/' where they can be collected. This disregards crossbow and archery skills and the only difference they make is the speed at which the bolts are split. This design has the advantage of taking less space and being easier to set up, however it is reported that sometimes the dwarves will not miss some of the bolts. If you are only stationing one marksdwarf in the tower, stationing another one may help the first one miss all of his bolts, even after the newly added one is then removed. Sometimes dwarves will spam job cancellation on the bolt collection level, and it is also reported that sometimes some dwarves will start firing when they are on the bolt collection level. In such cases you may want to seal the collection level off and open it once in a while to retrieve the bolts.

'''Difficulty:''' Moderate. The hardest part is keeping the system running reliably.

'''Usefulness:''' Moderate. While there are certainly [[Exploit#Infinite metal|easier ways to generate adamantine]], this is perhaps the most dwarfy.

*Bonus: Build a [[repeater]] to open and close the doors automatically.

==Break the dam (release the river!)==
Dam a river (or brook) using something non-permanent (floodgates, drawbridges) and build your fortress entrance in the now dry river bed, make sure you can seal it off nicely (floodgates anyone?) then wait till the first Goblin siege, let them get to your entrance floodgates, seal them, open the dam and laugh maniacally.

'''Difficulty:''' Low

'''Usefulness:''' Instantaneous death to all sieges

*DwarfBonus: Use magma.

==Bridge-a-pult==
A bridge that raises under its victims' feet, flinging enemies away.

Bridges don't fling creatures in any specific direction, apart from "up". So it's more of a spring-board than a catapult. If there's a lot of open space above the bridge, creatures can get flung very high - ten z-levels and more - and take appropriate falling damage. Most of them will land atop the bridge, and bringing the same bridge down will simply crush them.

'''Difficulty:''' Fairly easy. Getting the timing right promises to be the biggest challenge.

'''Usefulness:''' There are far more effective ways to defend a fortress, but few are as entertaining.

===Cat-a-pult===
Essentially a Bridge-a-pult with specific ammo.

'''Difficulty''': Very easy, given that you have live cats in your fortress.

'''Usefulness''': Can be used as a way to stop a [[catsplosion]] if used with male cats. [[Unfortunate accident|Cats can also be replaced with elite citizens of your fortress.]] 

==Corpse processing facility==
WARNING: The system can freely jam on any body parts, besides hands and heads, without killing undead.
With the help of a necromancer, corpses your dwarves refuse to butcher can be brought back to life and re-killed to yield bones and skulls for your bonecarvers if they are mushed up enough.

1. The simplest way to do this is with the help of height. A 1x1 pit with a minecart stop that dumps corpses down the chute, and several alternating [[floor hatch]]es that close and open (linked to a repeater) with necromancers behind windows overlooking each layer of hatches to revive the bits of corpses. 2 windows with a mechanism controlled door in between, in front of each necromancer group can be used to control vision; but the system can only be stopped by unlinking the minecart dump to the refuse pile in your routes. Note: when I built this I had 3 hatches with 6 necromancers overlooking each (I had plenty of them since I embarked close to 4 towers). Revived corpses drop to their death and explode onto a tile with unright spikes linked (note that some of them will survive, so you need the spikes with a repeater or lever). The corpses that explode from the impact of height (or from other body parts/undead crashing into them) will hopefully yield bones. You make choose to re-haul up the body parts for another round, but only body parts still attached to a grasping part or the head will be revived, and this system isn't very efficient in the first place, so it may not be worth the trouble. Note that whole corpses usually yield 5-8 bones upon death (avg 6), arms only yield 1-4 (avg 2). You may also use this system with or without necromancers and pit live [[goblin]]s into it, they usually yield 6 bones and some body parts.

2. The second way is much more efficient than the first, but requires 1 or more [[artifact]] [[mechanisms]] to make it work. Instead of using height to kill the corpses, a weapon trap with an artifact mechanism and 10 serrated blades of any material can be used instead (since artifact mechanisms never jam). Only 1 necromancer is needed for this method, and is positioned 3 tiles away from the weapon trap, overlooking it behind 2 glass windows with a mechanism [[door]] in between to control its vision. Your 1x1 pit should still be 5 tiles deep at least though, to prevent dwarves being spooked by the revived corpses. When you're ready, link up the route to the minecart and watch body parts revive and slowly get mowed down. It's recommended you have more than 1 of these small pits set up so you can grind more corpses and clear out 1 pit at a time while the others keep grinding.

Note: To clear out pits, turn off all refuse stockpiles that accept anything other than bones and skulls by turning on "accept from links only" so your dwarves only haul out the bones and not the trash.

Note: Try to use raising bridges as the door for each pit, kobold body parts tend to get mixed into the grinders which can lock-pick its way out of doors and result in doors with "door taken by intruder" and a couple hundred zombie body parts overrunning your fortress from the inside (a.k.a fun).

Note: I didn't try this with many building destroyers, but I'm pretty sure the glass windows are safe. Fortifications are not usable since corpses and body parts tend to get tangled up in them and are hard to get out, and spook dwarves trying to clean out the pits.

*Bonus: Use water to clean out the contents of the pits and wash them onto a 1x1 refuse stockpile.

'''Difficulty:''' Hard

'''Usefulness:''' High, and becomes higher the more corpses you have; especially useful for getting something more out of necromancer sieges than just useless corpses. Can also be used to recycle dead stray animals and your own dwarves that your dwarves refuse to butcher (don't forget slabs).

NOTE: necromancer siege's corpses now drop clothes and gear.

==Crocodile farm==
They're a thing in real life, and you can make them a thing in-game too! Use cage traps to capture multiple breeding pairs of [[alligator]]s, [[cave crocodile]]s or [[saltwater crocodile]]s, [[Animal trainer|train]] them, then create an area to store them with [[nest box]]es. Breed them so you have more crocodilians to keep laying eggs, rinse and repeat.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium, somewhat dependent on RNG - you need to find someplace with available crocs, you want said crocs to actually spawn and you want said crocs to actually get caught in the traps. <s>May</s> Will also lead to an explosive and FPS-shattering [[Catsplosion#Crocsplosion|crocsplosion]] sooner or later.

'''Usefulness:''' Very high, you'll never have to worry about food again simply from cooking the eggs, and that's not counting butchering the crocs when they're adults.

*Bonus: Have alligators, cave crocs and saltwater crocs '''all''' present in the farm.
*SwampBonus: Have your croc farm submerged in anywhere between 1/7 to 3/7 [[water]]. You gotta keep your crocs healthy and wet! But make sure not to submerge the nest boxes!
*SavageBonus: Have [[giant alligator]]s or/and [[giant saltwater crocodile]]s as part of your farm.
*TrainerBonus: Have your dwarves become Expert alligator/cave croc/saltwater croc trainers.
**SteveIrwinBonus: Have your dwarves become Expert trainers of all croc species.
*HungryHungryCrocBonus: Build your farm in such a way that [[siege]]s have to go through it to reach your fortress.
*UltraCrocBonus: Have [[Alligator man|alligator men]] or/and [[Saltwater crocodile man|saltwater crocodile men]] inhabiting your fortress and helping train the croc farm.
**UltraArmokCrocBonus: Have an entire fortress of croc men handling a croc farm. You're dwarves in spirit.

==Dam==
{{main|Dam}}
Build a wall across a riverbed to stop the flow of water. Floodgates optional.

'''Difficulty:''' On a map that freezes in the winter, or an aquifer located below the river, this is easy. Otherwise, very difficult. (See [[dam]], or Moses effect, below. But with the bonuses it gets a bit harder.)

'''Usefulness:''' Depends on how many bonuses you fulfill. The power station is obvious, and with the control room you could build up a nice defense system.

*Bonus: Excavate a reservoir and a lower river valley. 
*Bonus: Build a control center to control the water flow. 
*Bonus: Draw your entire energy from a power station within. 
*MegaDwarfBonus: Use screw pumps and another dam to replace the water with magma.

==Danger room==
{{main|Danger room}}
A room full of upright spear traps linked to a lever or pressure plate. Teach your dwarves to dodge the pointy sticks!

'''Difficulty''': Low to Medium, depending on how you activate the traps.

'''Usefulness''': Low. While this used to be a very effecting training method in past versions, the combat changes in 0.43.04 has made them much more deadly, even for militia dwarves. They also wear down your dwarves' armor and shields quickly, making them harmful for your long term survival even if your militia dwarves manage to survive the room itself.

'''Downside''': Civilians and pets that wander into the danger room will inevitably get killed, even if you use low quality training spears.

*MegaDwarfBonus: Menacing spikes greatly increase the danger, and may help train your medical team (and/or your coffin construction crew).
*UltraDwarfBonus: Use [[adamantine]] spikes! On the plus side, you have a thriving coffin industry going now.

==Day care==
A room where you put all your dwarf children so they cannot be kidnapped by snatchers. Make a room with beds and tables and stuff, then turn it into a burrow, then add all your children to it. Remember to include a food chute to quantum stockpile a huge amount of food and alcohol on a 1x1 stockpile (so it doesn't rot) in the room. High quality food, furniture, and socializing should keep them happy. Note that the children will no longer be able to perform certain useful tasks like crop harvesting and deconstruction, and will not level up their skill in various professions like an otherwise vulnerable child, but this is a small trade-off if they usually get kidnapped before maturing anyway. This is probably obvious, but make sure this room is guarded, otherwise it will turn into a Dwarf Orphanage (Dorfanage) (with Goblins and Minotaurs welcome!)

'''Difficulty:''' Low. With the invention of burrows, you can designate the Day Care to contain all children, so it is unnecessary to use suicide-booth-micromanagement to contain the children.

'''Usefulness:''' Low. Think of the children, they will grow up and enter adult Dwarf life completely unprepared for the [[Fun|things]] [[Dragon|that]] [[Hell|await]] them, having spent their entire lives coddled in a safe room. They might make good nobles however.

*Bonus: Add dogs and/or other creatures on lashes to constantly bite and scratch the children, so their attributes will raise due to constant fighting and dodging. When they come of ages, you will have incredibly tough, strong and agile dwarves, but covered in scars and psychologically traumatized.
*DwarfBonus: Add a small amount of magma mist to mentioned above, that'll burn the fat and make them fireproof.
*ArmokBonus: Combine this with danger room.

==Doberman bomb==
Whenever a dog or cat gives birth, stuff all the kittens and puppies in one cage in your entryway. Link this cage to a pressure plate beside it. Should your last lines of defense be breached, goblins will step on it and in the next instant be torn apart by dozens of goblin-seeking hostiles and distracted by dozens of surplus targets. The trap actually going off will probably be very bad for your frame rate.

'''Difficulty:''' Low to high, depending on the animal you use

'''Usefulness:''' Medium to very high, potentially fortress-saving

*Bonus: Train the dogs inside as war dogs
**DwarfBonus: Use [[giant badger]]s, [[tiger]]s, [[alligator]]s, bears, or anything big and aggressive when tamed
***MegaDwarfBonus: Use [[giant cave spider]]s, [[cave dragon]]s, [[blind cave ogre]]s, crossbow-wielding [[giant desert scorpion]]s, [[jabberer]]s or something really dangerous and rare.
****UltraMagmaArmokBonus: Use one (or more!) of the following list: [[dragon]](s), a [[bronze colossus]](es), a [[forgotten beast]](s) (bonus points for flesh-melting secretions), an [[undead]] [[giant sponge]], or [[Hidden Fun Stuff|Clowns of Hidden Funland]].

==Drophole==
Imagine an execution tower, for rocks and pants. It's nothing but a very deep 1x1 up-down staircase for express service to the depths. Designate a garbage dump beside the top and dwarves will pitch anything marked for [[Dumping]] into it.

'''Difficulty:''' Harder than it sounds, there's always snags along the way. Surprise caverns can cost you miners and tools. Hitting water can be vexing. Dumping and reclaiming things can be a chore. It may serve as an unintended highway for Fun of any liquid or airborne variety

'''Usefulness:''' It's '''far''' easier to drop ore 100 z-levels to the magma sea than carry it. You can use this to transfer items between burrows.

*Bonus: Minecarts can make this semi-automatic, fed from a stockpile.

==Drowning chamber==
{{main|Drowning chamber}}
'''Difficulty:''' Moderate.

'''Usefulness:''' You can kill prisoners, useless peasants, irate nobles, hammerers, untamable animals, or anything else. Just be ready for something that knows how to swim. Also useful for catching fishies.

*Bonus: Utilize lava.
*Bonus: Utilize trained fish.
*MegaDwarfBonus: Edit the raws and do both.

==Dwarfputer complex==
{{main|Computing}}
A big mess of [[fluid logic|fluid]], [[machine logic|machine]], and/or [[creature logic|creature]] logic full of hatches, floodgates, gears, pumps, etc. and powered by waterwheels, windmills, or useless idle dwarves. Hook it up to doors, bridges, and traps.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium to high, depending on what you want to build. You'll want to build for very high water flow if you have more than a few fluid gates.

'''Usefulness:''' Your mechanics and architects will level up very fast. Manual pumps give something for your haulers to do. Try and make a clock to trigger different mechanisms in different seasons. See if enemies actually blunder into your intricate traps. Watch all hell break loose as water freezes and building destroyers enter your computer.
*Bonus: Use lava.
**Doombonus: Use lava ''and'' build it so that building destroyers that enter the complex get killed by the mechanisms they destroy.
***SelfRepairingbonus: Use both lava and water and implement the building destroyer killing system, but modify it so it's self-repairing, filling up broken spaces with obsidian.

==Dwarven apartment complex==
Essentially, one of the many possible [[megaprojects]] dedicated to providing dwarves with rooms so high above the ground they get vertigo. Every floor must have plenty of rooms of at least 2x3 squares, with walls and a door surrounding this. Oh, and it has to go up as many Z-levels as possible. For extra credit, decide on what the top story will be (i.e. as many levels up as you deem possible, minus one so you can build a roof) and turn this into a Royal bedroom for a [[noble]], complete with gem windows, artifact/masterwork components, and untold numbers of armour stands and weapon racks. And then build some shorter but wider apartment buildings nearby to turn your fortress into essentially a giant fist with extended middle finger. Extra points for adding extra useless things for luxury, such as a magma-based heating system, fireplaces in rooms, and a lock-down lever in case of goblin attack. (or a self-destruct lever connected to the main supports, in case your dwarfish tenants are unsatisfied with your ☼5-star service☼).

'''Difficulty:''' Low, although the walls around the rooms can be a bit fiddly due to the impossibility of building walls on constructed floors (yes, an extra credit challenge is to do this without using Remove Construction).

'''Usefulness:''' Limited, because you could just dig the things underground and save yourself the hassle. However it is much harder to flood a tower than a cave, in case you're prone to [[Losing|fun]] by water. Additionally, if you have the time and resources to train a sizable force of marksdwarves, placing a few "security rooms" (with barracks, ammunition store, ration cache, armory, etc.) at appropriate floors, complete with fortified balconies, will allow you to take advantage of the higher vantage point.

*MegaDwarfBonus: Extend the tower to have levels below ground as well as above.
*MegaOrwellBonus: Make the whole construction out of clear glass. (privacy? Whatever for?)

==Dwarven courtyards==
Dig large shafts [first dig the staircase to the desired depth, digging out the size you want the shaft to be on all layers. Channel the outer later, then install supports on the base floor. Link the support to a trigger, clear everyone out, destroy the remaining staircase and pull the trigger] then cover them in glass, creating an indoor but light area that will keep dwarves from being irritated and nauseated by the sun, also improving general happiness and allowing close proximity to caverns and magma.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium, make sure not to mess up or you will lose your miners

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. creates vertical circulation and brings light to lower levels.

*Bonus: Punch a large shaft through a multi-level aquifer (hint: punch through the aquifer from below).
*MegaDwarfBonus: Create a network of self-sufficient communities per shaft, allowing them to be sectioned off in case of disaster. (I plan on colonizing HFS eventually on this paradigm, creating a mining team of soldiers to extract, manufacture and ultimately use adamantine products without being connected to the main colony in order to take on the [[Demon|clowns]] while keeping the rest of the burrow safe.)

==Dwarven disco ball==
Why waste all those cut gems on things that only some selfish noble will enjoy? Create as large a wall-less sphere as you can, then cover it in Gem Windows of 3 different-colored gems to make it shine! The bigger, and more valuable gems involved (e.g., [[ruby|rubies]], [[sapphire]]s, and [[emerald]]s, or colored diamonds if you're really masochistic), the dwarfier.

'''Difficulty:''' Constructing a sphere is very hard, especially the larger you make one. Gathering enough differently colored gems can also be very hard, depending on stone layers. Trading helps a lot.

'''Usefulness:''' Negative. More value can be created by encrusting furniture, and Gem Windows lack quality.

*Bonus: Alternating [[alunite]] and [[obsidian]] tiles to make a 'dance floor'.
*MegaDwarfBonus: Use lava contained in glass for illumination.
*UltraDwarfBonus: Caged "[[Elf|dancers]]".

==Dwarven labor camp (aka Dwalag)==
Create an aboveground walled fortress in a freezing climate with guard towers, barracks, housing, and armories. Dig a long ramp downward and add a large mining network below the surface. Make some small military squads to guard the camp. Designate the lower levels as workshops, and when migrants arrive, assign them to the mines. Give the workers minimal food and only water (no booze, booze is for the hypocritical decadence of Dwarkuta's leaders). Have them haul the stone and metal they mine back to the surface and ship the raw materials off to the Motherland. Import only food, booze, weapons, fuel, and other necessities.

*Bonus: Build the giant digging machines. They don't actually have to dig anything.
*Bonus: Go into the raws and rename the beverage of your choice to "Dwarven Vodka", and drink to the glory of the Motherland!
*MegaBonus: Escape. Wait for a goblin siege, then get everyone underground and block the entrance. Let the goblins in. Wait a few months. The goblins are now the guards you must kill.

Step 1. Secure the keys: Make improvised weapons. If you have obsidian at your disposal, make rock short swords.

Step 2. Ascend from darkness: Get your dwarves out of the mines and into the camp.

Step 3. Rain fire: Use your imagination. Try using magma, if possible.

Step 4. Unleash the horde: Attack!

Step 5. Skewer the winged beast: If the goblins brought a giant bat or other flying creature, kill it.

*Bonus: Use a ballista.

Step 6. Wield a fist of iron: Break open the armory and equip your rebels with armor and weapons.

Step 7. Raise hell: Exactly what it says on the tin.

Step 8. Freedom!

*MegaDwarfBonus: In Adventure mode, try (and probably fail) to lead the prisoners to freedom.

==Dwarven refrigerator==
Dig down to the 3rd cavern layer and harvest as many [[nether-cap]]s as you can. Make them all into barrels! Nether caps have the unique property of being 10000° Urist, which is 32°F or 0°C. Now your dwarves can enjoy their favorite alcohol, cheese, and plump helmets chilled to perfection! If you've set your population cap very low in the INIT files, caverns aren't extremely dangerous, but you should still be on the lookout for nasties down there. Remember to wall off your entrance to the cavern once you're finished.

'''Difficulty:''' Low to Medium

'''Usefulness:''' Low. Booze stored inside will not perish due to heat if say, [[magma]] is dumped on it.

Bonus: Also use nether-cap wood to build the walls, floor, ceiling, and door.

Bonus: While we are at it make all your coffins out of it. 'Cryogenically' freeze those corpses!

==Dwarven machine gun==
Build a high fire rate, minecart firing machine gun. Must be fully automatic, capable of reloading itself, and should not jam due to minecarts being disrupted by collisions or derailments.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium to high, depending on fire rate, reload downtime, and whether or not minecarts are filled with [[magma]].

'''Usefulness:''' High. A sophisticated minecart trap can keep out even the most persistent invaders.

*Bonus: Automatically reload minecarts with [[magma]].
*MegaDwarfBonus: Integrate the trap with a dwarfputer so that it can automatically send minecarts to where they are needed most.

==Emergency destruct stairs==
A tall column of stairs plunging all the way down into the underdark, with a one-tile wide area of thin destructible floor all around it. In case of subterranean invasion, a thrown switch drops a stone O straight down, ringing the staircase and neatly severing all inter-level connections at a blow. Does with one lever and one support what would take dozens of bridges or hundreds of retracting grates.

'''Difficulty:''' Harder than it sounds.

'''Usefulness:''' Sometimes... sometimes they fly.

==Execution tower==
Just a tall tower to chuck your captives to their deaths.

'''Difficulty:''' Easy.

'''Usefulness:''' Lets you dispose of prisoners, and claim expensive silk, meltable iron, and (eventually) useful bones. Also highly amusing.

*MegaDwarfBonus: Send prisoners straight to hell. May make retrieving items difficult, however.

==Flak==
If flying enemies circumventing your walls and causing mayhem inside your fortress is a problem, don't use marksdwarves, just make some flak! Simply cover a series of drawbridges in rocks, and when fliers come by pull the lever.

'''Difficulty:''' Easy

'''Usefulness:''' Low, contrary to the description, marksdwarves are more accurate, versatile, and just better. However, if you manage to hit something with this there's a large chance of it getting stunned and crashing to the ground.

*Bonus: Use minecarts and pressure plates to make it fully automatic.
*SuperBonus: Make it closer to real world flak by using burning lignite bins.
*EfficiencyBonus: Use goblins as ammo
*AlternateBonus: Instead of drawbridges and stone, use jets of water to stun flyers, and then release the dogs. Alternatively, burn them in midair with lava.
*FunBonus: Use the above method with lava, except use the lava as a propellent to throw the circus at the local crow population.
*ArmokBonus: Use all of the above to emulate what happens when you drift into American airspace.

==Flamethrower bunker==
If your fortress happens to be visited by a [[dragon]], capture it in a [[cage trap]], then release it into a sealed bunker with [[fortification]]s around the edge. When invaders arrive, watch them get roasted.

'''Difficulty:''' Low, but requires a fair bit of luck - a dragon (or fire-breathing forgotten beast) needs to survive worldgen, then it needs to attack your fortress (instead of a giant/minotaur/ettin/cyclops or other megabeast), and finally it needs to make it to your cage trap without being killed by something else.

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. [[Dragonfire]] can kill almost anything, but will be blocked by a [[shield]] greater than 99% of the time. Adding a combustible floor (such as a paved [[lignite]] [[road]]) will significantly increase lethality for shield-toting targets. Also, any protective bridges in front of the fortifications may melt under sustained fire, leaving you with a bunker that ''nobody'' can safely approach; ensuring the bridge center tile isn't near the fire, or building the bridges (and mechanisms) from [[ash]], dragon [[soap]], [[divine metal|divine]]{{version|0.43.03}} [[metal]] (or [[slade]]) will make them immune to the fire. Additionally, a skilled enemy archer can easily kill your dragon with a lucky shot, if line-of-sight access is available.

*Bonus: Capture a fire-breathing [[titan]] or [[forgotten beast]] and use it.
*MegaDwarfBonus: Release the denizens of the hidden fun stuff and use them.

==Flood the world==
'''Difficulty:''' High danger. Will kill your frame rate unless you sink the world below water level (river or ocean).

'''Usefulness:''' Will prevent any sieges, at least. Or anything else, save for the occasional invasion of sociopathic [[giant sponge]].

*Bonus: Use magma, just like [[Main:Boatmurdered|Boatmurdered]].
*MegaDwarfBonus: Use trained fish to kill off all creatures not of your colony.
*MegaArmokBonus: Mod the game and do both.

==Gladiator arena==
{{main|Live training}}
Station some soldiers at the bottom of a shallow [[Activity_zone#Pit/Pond|pit]] and dump your captives in. You can also use dangerous animals instead of soldiers. For extra points, put the prisoners in cages connected to ramps underneath the arena floor. One lever will open both the cage and a hatch above the ramp. Variant: build prisoner cages inside the arena, link to a lever outside the arena, lock the soldiers in, and then open the cages. Keep in mind that you can't actually make your dwarves "watch" the battles like an actual gladiator arena, as civilians will flee in fear at the sight of non-restrained hostile creatures, even if they're in a pit and not actively attacking them.

'''Difficulty:''' Low, but time consuming. Some danger depending on the relative skill of your soldiers and the danger of the captive. (If the prisoners have weapons, you can remove them by using {{k|d}}-{{k|b}}-{{k|d}} to dump the cage and its contents, then looking at and undumping the cages themselves with {{k|k}}-{{k|d}}).

'''Usefulness:''' Low to High, depending on how long your soldiers can draw out the execution. Equipping your soldiers with wooden training weapons can greatly increase the fun (and/or [[Fun]] if their armor isn't as good as you thought).

*Bonus: Losers get incinerated by Magma.
*DwarfBonus: Winners also get incinerated by Magma.
*MegaDwarfBonus: Use your arena as a "trial by fire" for migrants.

==Grazer reanimation facility==
Just as stables, but without grass, and on a reanimating biome. Pasture every grazer in a separate box, and build [[cage trap]]s to recapture the animal after it joins [[undead|the Dark Side]]. Make sure to forbid the area after you finish setting things up, because you don't want your dwarves getting <s>killed</s> caught instead.

'''Difficulty:''' Low. You always get some grazing animals to start with.

'''Usefulness:''' You get a decent supply of zombies to use in your [[trap design|cunning traps]]. Depending on your style of play, this may prove to be worth the effort.

* DwarfBonus: Use war [[elephant]]s, or any other giant [[:Category:DF2014:Grazer|grazing animal]] you <s>bought</s> seized from elves.
** MegaDwarfBonus: Use [[giant elephant]]s.
*** BoatMurderedBonus: Release them all simultaneously to challenge your militia/play out a [[fun|!fun!]] scenario for your fort.
* MenagerieBonus: Create a zoo using only undead grazers.
** DwarvenMenagerieBonus: Combine this with the [[DF2014:Stupid_dwarf_trick#Zombie_thunderdome|Zombie Thunderdome]] and have a rotation of undead cows fighting in the arena only to be re-caged when they try to leave.
*** ChampionBonus: Give each grazer rooming in the zoo according to their kills, with the champion having the most luxurious room.
**** AltarBonus: Turn the champion's room into an [[DF2014:Stupid_dwarf_trick#Altar_of_Armok|Altar of Armok]].
**** FreedomBonus: Let the champion and higher-ranking zombies roam freely in their rooms, having to be re-captured for each battle.
***** !FreedomBonus!: Release the champion into your fort.
* HolyGrailBonus: Use white [[bunny|bunnies]].

==Greenhouse==
A [[farming|greenhouse]] is just a farm with the ceiling channeled out from above. This lets you grow outdoor plants without venturing above ground. For maximum style, build the greenhouse above ground and cover it with a glass roof to keep your farmers safe.

'''Difficulty:''' Low.

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. Surface plants can be grown at any time of the year, and some are more useful than those available underground - for example, [[sun berry|sun berries]] can be brewed into valuable [[Sunshine]], and [[whip vine]]s can be milled into superior quality flour. Having greater food and booze diversity can also keep your dwarves happier.

*Bonus: Give it a glass floor to allow surface plants even lower down.
**DwarfBonus: Utilize [[obsidian|volcanic glass]].

==Hammer of [[main:armok|Armok]]==
A gigantic hammer made out of pure steel and/or valuables looming over your fortress entrance ready to smite those foolish enough to lay a siege on you. Also gives you a psychological advantage over the traders who unload their goods under it. Attach to a lever-linked support for quick-smiting.

'''Difficulty:''' Low. Depends on size and materials, though. Make it a gold hammer menacing with adamantine spikes, if you're going for high quality.

'''Usefulness:''' Low-medium. 10x10 size is minimum for practical effectiveness. 30x30 attached to a handle extending from your entrance actually works against sieges.

* Bonus: Cover it with blood.
* MegaDwarfBonus: Make it hollow and fill it with Magma
* ArmoksMachineHammerBonus: Set up an automated system that allows you to reset it quickly. Obsidianizers and the magma sea will be your friends here.

==Human Fortress==
Instead of digging a fortress, build above-ground houses. Create walls to keep the nasties out. The only thing you may have underground are mines and stockpiles. Create a huge stone fort for your nobles.

'''Difficulty:''' High. Building stuff will cost you resources instead of gaining them and flyers can be a real pain. Keep several Marksdwarfs handy!

'''Usefulness:''' N/A. (No cave adaptation)

*Bonus: Pave the roads between houses.
*HumanBonus: Dig a moat around your castle.
*MegaHumanBonus: Fill the moat with lava.
*MegaHumanBonusPlus: Designate multiple dumping spots into the lava moat.
*SurfaceDwellerBonus: Get the stone for your constructions entirely from open-pit quarries, i.e. by c[h]annelling instead of [d]igging.
*MegaSurfaceDwellerBonus: Never use picks at all, all stone and metal must come from caravans or embark.
*WhereTheBeardedLadiesAtBonus: Enforce as many <s>pointless</s> quaint human quirks as feasible, for instance: nominating officials per wealth/popularity/relationships instead of merit and suitedness, coddling Nobles, burrowing farmers, miners, brewers, craftsdwarves and other backbones of society into the most tattered ridings, enforcing a specific religion upon the populace, and so forth.

==Ice tower==

Building a huge tower is easy. To make things more [[fun]], make one out of some exotic material, like [[glass]], [[ice]], [[gold]], or [[soap]].

'''Difficulty:''' Low. You need to be on a freezing map to pull off an ice tower.

'''Usefulness:''' Depends entirely on you.

* BabelBonus: Use [[DFHack]]'s <code>infiniteSky</code> and build to the heavens themselves.

==Journey to the Center of the Earth==

Construct a sturdy vessel hanging over the top of a magma pipe or volcano, outfitted with everything your intrepid crew might need for their journey of exploration - food, booze, sleeping quarters and a bridge are a must, but depending on the amount of effort it can include other items such as a recreation deck, water reservoir and trade depot for dealing with the natives. When all is ready, lock the explorers inside and send them on their way. Bonus points if you can detach it from inside so you can use it in Adventure mode later.

'''Difficulty:''' Moderate to High, depending on the size of the ship. For bonus points, carve the entire thing out of existing rock overhanging a magma pipe and engrave it with messages. Burrows help to get the whole crew inside at the same time.

'''Usefulness:''' [[Cave-in|Negative]]. For some reason, no explorers have returned. Of course, if you select only the [[Nobles|Best and Brightest]] for the ship's crew...

*Bonus: Drop the vessel into a deep cavern
*SuperBonus: Make the outer walls, roof and ground floor completely out of glass, so that the explorers can watch everything around them.
*VampireBonus: Send a vampire with the crew!
*MegaDwarfBonus: Drop the vessel into a halfway-empty adamantine vein
*YouHorribleEvilDwarfBonus: Drop the vessel into the [[Hidden Fun Stuff]]!
*YouHorribleInsaneDwarfBonus: Drop the vessel into a glowing chasm.
*OhMyArmokBonus: When you arrive to the bottom of the magma sea, excavate and then create a new community under it!
**OhMyF****ingArmokBonus: Send supplies every year!
**IsThatEvenPossibleBonus: Send a piece of an aquifer down there to provide water! (Mine around a water-producing tile, build the ship around it, then send it!)
**≡MegaDwarfBonus≡: create a high enough tower and drop it into the magma sea to connect the surface and the undersea community!
***☼MegaDwarfBonus☼: create ''two'' towers and use one to send water down there!

==Single-lever emergency lockdown (LEL)==

The only real requirement is that you need a fort based around a central stairwell. All you need to do is leave space for and eventually build the same number of bridges (that raise!) as your stairway is tall on each side of your stairwell on every level, and then link them all to the same lever. Friends get through all your best traps and champions? Simply pull the lever, and they're trapped in the central stairwell forever! Remember to roof off the entrance if your fort is situated on flat land otherwise the bonuses become much less useful. Also important is to ensure that you either wall off access or include sealable bridges or doors (linked to the same lever of course) for any inter-level paths that bypass the main stairwell, like vertical axles running out of centralised power generators.

3*3 stairwell setup:

{{diagram|1=
O[#6ff]╞[#6ff]═[#6ff]╡O
[#6ff]╥XXX[#6ff]╥
[#6ff]║XXX[#6ff]║
[#6ff]╨XXX[#6ff]╨
O[#6ff]╞[#6ff]═[#6ff]╡O
}}

'''Difficulty:''' Medium to High, depending on whether you use the MegaDwarfBonus below or not and how much you spread your fortress over the layers - although more spread means more usefulness. Extremely time-consuming, and requires architects, masons, and mechanics, as well as a lot of mechanisms (2 per bridge, ~4 bridges per level)

'''Usefulness:''' Medium to High, also depending on whether you use the Bonuses. With all bonuses applied it becomes a guaranteed last resort way of destroying the toughest enemies with minimal dwarven casualties; without the bonuses it's still a damn sight better than letting temporarily victorious enemies run freely about your fortress.

*DwarfBonus: Connect your cistern to the stairwell (remember to put a floodgate in too). Once the impossible-to-defeat enemies are safely trapped inside, Pull lever number 2 and watch them slowly, slowly, drown (VERY IMPORTANT: have the level of the cistern input at at least the same height as the level of the stairwell, else there won't be enough pressure to properly flood the stairwell, meaning nasties WILL survive).
*MegaDwarfBonus: Connect your MAGMA cistern to the stairwell. Laugh maniacally. (Remember to build your bridges and floodgates out of magma-safe material or a lot of !!FUN!! will be had)
*MegaArmokEntombmentBonus: Do both and cast your enemies in obsidian and boil the survivors in steam as a semi-permanent testament to their foolhardiness. This also means that you will have stairs cut out of lovely obsidian once your miners are finished making your stairwell usable again.
*MegaArmokEntombmentEXTREME+Bonus: "Forget" to pull the lockdown lever before you pull lever number 2.
*MegaArmokEntombment<s>'''Bait&Switch'''</s>Diplomatic+Bonus: Set the highest level up on another switch, with a particularly <s>'''demanding and annoying noble'''</s> skilled diplomatic representative is waiting at the very bottom to <s>'''lure'''</s> invite them all down for a nice meal on <s>'''his flesh'''</s> the stockpile of food and booze that's keep him ever so happy. Then you can wait for the entire army to flow into the stairwell before flipping the switches. Don't forget to carve a statue out of the block of the noble! What noble doesn't want their grand <s>'''sacrificial defense'''</s> grand diplomatic skills to be immortalized in volcanic glass!!!
**UltraArmokBonus: Defeat all your invasions this way, and build a temple to Armok full of the once noble, now obsidian statues, only the highest of quality (and value) memorial slabs.

==Magma Lock System==
This system is a little more complicated than the LEL system described above, and requires that you space out all of your floors so that there's a 'plumbing floor' between each level. From there you set up tons and tons of magma proof floodgates and hatches. Each 'area' you wish to be self-contained from one another needs at least a 3x2 hallway separating it from the other areas. 4 of these will contain flood gates, and the other two must remain bare. Above one of the two bare points you need to have a hollowed out space, and connecting into it from one side you need to have a hatch leading to your water plumbing system, to the other, a hatch to your lava plumbing system. You need two levers for controlling this, one lever is connected to all of the lower floodgates, the other to the upper floodgates. Pull the first hatch to lock in the flood gates just in case, the second to the upper flood gates to begin pouring in water and magma and have them make obsidian filling the entire hallway, sterilizing it of literally anything that could have contaminated it. You do this instead of hatches so they'll drop in properly and mix with no risk of only one side or the other of the hallway turning to obsidian and resulting in a dangerous leak. Throw the first switch again to open up the floodgates and begin mining to access the old chambers again. Whatever was invading your fortress, whether plague, necromancer, clowns, or forgotten beast, will be safely locked away, and unable to break back out whether or not it possesses building destroyer or not. Then you just have to wait for your miners to dig their way out. You can simply avoid the chambers that still have FUN inside, and any the purity of magma and obsidian will have utterly obliterated any traces of contaminants between containment zones.

'''Difficulty''': Medium to High. While not dealing with anything overtly hostile, this process more or less demands that you plan your fortress from the start for this specific system and deal with lots and lots of moving parts, mechanisms, and similar, plus the power necessary to pump magma and water into this network in a timely manner.. If you screw up part of it then it's very easy to end up with your entire fortress flooded with water or magma. Build it on small and give it a test run then expand it once you've gotten the process working for a single chamber, such as the chamber leading to your cavern layer.

'''Usefulness''': High. Depending on how you prepare things (See the bonuses below) the necessary set up for all of this will result in a network of magma and water pipes in every single level of your fortress, powering forges, wells, baths, showers, and defenses of all sorts. Then when things are at their worst, throw a switch and barring one or two (or many depending on how many dwarves are transitioning between containment areas) horribly swift deaths, your entire fortress is safe from any possible threats. You can also prepare chambers ahead of time for other activities and use this to trap enemies in them for later usage.

*DwarfBonus: Put a stockpile of food, drink, and pickaxes in each containment area.
*MegaDwarfBonus: Put a lever in every zone connected just to their own, so your dwarves can heroically seal off an entire section by themselves if necessary.
*UltraDwarfBonus: Extend the hallways, and make the water half of them use grates and constant water falls to give good thoughts while traversing between zones. Change up your levers to shut off the water for when digging begins again.

==Maze==

A maze of twisty little passages, all alike. [[Trap]]s and dangerous animals are essential. You can have a retracting bridge drop invaders in, or just have a labyrinth as a back door.

'''Difficulty:''' It's a lot of mining. Having a bridge drop invaders inside is more difficult, but more useful. You can also use the free maze-generating program Daedalus, available [http://www.astrolog.org/labyrnth/daedalus.htm here] if you're too lazy to come up with your own.

'''Usefulness:''' It makes a nice element of fortress defense, and you can dump your prisoners inside it. Also makes a great place to explore in [[adventure mode]].

*Bonus: Generate a world with large mountain [[cave]]s. Instead of using the labyrinth as your backdoor, use it as your fortress.
*Filodorima: Release a live caged [[minotaur]] into the maze.
*MegaBonus: Make it three-dimensional and [http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/maze/design/index.htm#uni unicursal].
*MemorialBonus: Capture the Goblin King and make him fight the Minotaur.

==Magma chamber==
'''Difficulty:''' Dangerous as any magma project.

'''Usefulness:''' It's like a drowning chamber, but any non-iron items carried by the victim will be destroyed. Depending on your style of play, this may be a good thing.

==Magma cannon==
[http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=33837 It can be done!] It uses a row of pumps to pressurize the magma in a chamber with only one exit. When the floodgate opens, the magma flies out a short distance.

'''Difficulty:''' Very high. You need [[metal]] (or [[glass]]) [[screw pump]]s to make it work, [[magma-safe]] floodgates and mechanisms, plus a big above-ground construction.

'''Usefulness:''' Marginal. But very cool.

==Magma access early==
ASAP from embark, dig down to the magma 
make 2 magma proof pumps 
make a small (5x5?) room that you can pump magma into and out of 
make a stockpile for only iron & steel minecarts in the room 
make enough minecarts to fill the room 
Once room is full of minecarts, seal room and pump full of magma 
then pump magma out 
delete stockpile 
make a new stockpile near your forge/smelt/glass/kiln area 
haul minecarts by hand (or magma proof wheelbarrow) 
use tracks and stops to dump 4 deep magma into shallow pits 
2 minecart loads per pit 

'''Difficulty:''' Low. 
'''Usefulness:''' Very High. 
*Bonus: !!Magma Economy By Autumn!!

==Magma highway==
Magma moves across the map annoyingly slowly, due to its thickness and lack of pressure. But a tunnel several Z-levels high, with magma entering at the top, will flow much faster because the magma's '''falling''' in, not flowing in, and can expand on either Z-level before falling down.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium. Not hard to make, but cutting open a multi-Z magmafall is [[fun]].

'''Usefulness:''' Medium.

==Magma mausoleum==
This trick involves dripping water on to the middle of a magma pool until you have a column of obsidian, then channeling down into the obsidian ''more than'' one Z level, and putting a burial receptacle there. This probably won't work in magma tubes or Volcanos since the created obsidian would fall into the bottomless pit. The trick is getting the water to fall onto the magma in a controlled manner.

'''Difficulty:''' High. Requires certain resources from the start, plus lots of setup. And your dwarves tend to erupt into dwarf steam occasionally.

'''Usefulness:''' None, since an obsidian lined room with exactly the same furniture somewhere else will please your nobles just as much.

*Bonus: Put the coffin at least 20 floors down.
*MegaBonus: Build it in a volcano if possible, and put the coffin at the very bottom of the map

==Magma sea colony==

If you cast obsidian around the edges of the magma sea, it is possible to pump out the magma and build a colony in the empty space. Once the colony is built, you can destroy the obsidian walls and refill the magma sea. Note: you cannot cast obsidian on the bottom layer of the magma sea, so building a colony on this layer is nearly, but not quite, impossible (see below).

'''Difficulty:''' High. You need to get water down to each edge of the magma sea, and you need a pump stack to get rid of the magma.

'''Usefulness:''' None.

*☼MegaDwarfBonus☼: Build your colony on the floor of the magma sea. This will require draining the sea to the next-to-bottom layer as described above, then dumping enormous amounts of water into the bottom layer to crowd out the magma while simultaneously draining the magma from holes poked in the magma sea floor. Constructions can be built at the border between the water and the magma. See [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=128226.0 This forum post] for full, detailed instructions.
* Bonus: Obsidianize the entire magma sea, leaving a single spot to use as a source for pumps. Then proceed to carve your new fortress subsection out of this bounty.

'''Difficulty:''' Insane. The project will take at least ten years of dwarf time and claim many lives.

'''Usefulness:''' Low. You can finally get the last bit of adamantine when you drain the magma sea, and the magma sea floor has a cool twinkly effect.

==<s>Magma</s> Lava sprinkler==
Build a twisting <s>magma</s> lava aqueduct above the entrance to your fortress. Leave a few thin (diagonal) holes in it, so that lava can seep out of it. When invaders arrive, pump magma into the sprinkler. Diagonal holes will limit the rate at which the fluid flows out of them, ensuring a nice steady lava rain rather than a big wave.

'''Difficulty:''' High. Similar to magma canon, except with a bit more engineering, but less pumps and smaller reservoir needed (due to less magma being required for the same effect).

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. Like magma cannon it can obliterate a siege, but this time you can have a bit more control over how it happens. Lava rain doesn't depend on ground structure (your entrance doesn't need to be in a valley for it to work well) and leaves less magma to evaporate.

*Bonus: Cover the holes with floodgates or hatches and keep the lavaduct filled with lava rather than filling it only when using it.
*Bonus+1: Build the lavaduct in such a way that it starts raining on the outermost part of the area first, then goes inwards, to ensure that invaders who start burning can't escape.

==Mass cage recycling system==
{{main|Mass pitting}}
Build a [[mass pitting]] system to recycle your cage trap cages quickly.

'''Difficulty:''' Very easy. Requires basic digging and very little time.

'''Usefulness:''' Very. Keeps you from having to build cages before releasing monsters from them. With six hatches you can safely empty out 48 cages very quickly. You can build lots of cage traps without having to worry about emptying each cage individually.

*Bonus: Cover the floor of your pit with cage traps, creating a neverending cycle and giving your dwarves something to do during the long harsh summer when going outside is overly taxing on their stomachs.
*ConcentrationCampBonus: Combine with Pit of Doom below.

==Mega/Water drowning trap-thing==
{{main|Drowning chamber}}
This is basically a channel above some pressurized water with a short tunnel leading to a door. The door needs to be connected to a lever somewhere in a safe part of the fortress. Position the door facing the main stairs into your fortress (for multiple stairs use multiple traps). When enemies come down the stairs, pull the lever and make them drown. (It helps to seal off the rooms).

'''Difficulty:''' Medium. Needs flowing water under pressure and levers.

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. Depends on the size of your fortress/defences/amount of attackers. Works well with fire creatures to create a sauna.

==Monumental statue==
'''Difficulty:''' Depends on how big you want the statue to be. If you are feeling really masochistic, cast it out of obsidian using magma and water.

'''Usefulness:''' None.

*Bonus: Make the statue hollow and have dwarves live inside it.
*BestWayToGetRidOfStoneBonus: Make one for every dead dwarf.
**UberTombBonus: Use the statue as a tomb and put their coffins in it.
*Dwarfbonus: Give the statue magma eyes.
**HellNo,DwarfsYesBonus: Combine the magma eyes idea with the magma cannon idea above and place the statue just behind (and above) the entrance to your fortress.

==Moses effect==
With enough pumps, you can pull water out of a square faster than it flows in. This can create a reverse waterfall, or a dry spot in the middle of a flowing river. The effect is like Moses parting the Red Sea.

'''Difficulty:''' Surprisingly easy.

'''Usefulness:''' You can use this trick to create a waterfall or drowning chamber. It is also important if you want to pass through an [[Aquifer]], although that is far more difficult. The same trick can be used in lieu of a drawbridge, although its practicality as compared to the drawbridge is highly questionable.

*Bonus: Use the Moses effect to make doors from water, which are opened/closed using a lever.
*TechBonus: Automatize the doors so that they open (only!) when a dwarf is near.

==Never-ending shower==
{{main|Waterfall}}
Don't you get angry when your dwarves carry enough grime on them to dirty the entire fortress? And how they get infected because of that griminess? Suffer no more! With the Never Ending Shower (NES for short), dwarves will be able to stay (relatively) clean without having to take the time to run for a bath or dirtying your drinking water!

It is easy to understand: use the same instructions as in the Artificial Waterfall, but make it so that the waterfall is somewhere where the dwarves will be going through almost daily--a central stairway works well. It cleans them and gives them happy [[thought]]s for the same price!

'''Difficulty:''' Moderate to high. You do have to make sure that dwarves don't try anything funny, and create a drain to draw the dirty water out.

'''Usefulness:''' Incredibly high. Reduces risk of infection and keeps your dwarves happy.

*Bonus: Use an aquifer to get clean water AND drain dirty water.
*Bonus: Use levers to control the NES.
*SuperBonus: Make it work as a trap!
*SuperDuperBonus: Make it work as a trap AND as a recovery system!
*ArmokBonus: Make it so that magma can be poured down, too!

==Nuclear Fallout Bunker==
Build a mini fortress with everything your dwarves could need deep underground. Stock it with enough food, drinks, and materials to last your small band of survivors for years or alternatively make it self-sufficient with its own food production. Lastly, add a bridge that allows you to seal off the bunker from the rest of the world.

'''Difficulty:''' Easy-Medium depending on the relative luxury of the bunker and how many dwarves you intend to shelter from the apocalypse.

'''Usefulness:''' High. If your fort is threatened by some particularly nasty disaster (be it zombie goblin horde or Bronze Colossus) simply rush your best and brightest dwarves down to the Nuclear Fallout Bunker and raise the bridge, sealing it off from the rest of the world.
*MutallyAssuredDestructionBonus: Have a self-destruct lever in the bunker that is pulled once everyone is safely inside.

==Obsidian factory==
{{main|Obsidian farming}}
You need one reservoir of water, and one of magma. Mix, cool, mine, and repeat as necessary.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium.

'''Usefulness:''' Obsidian is 50% more valuable than [[flux]] and 3 times as valuable as ordinary stone, making it ideal for your [[mason]]s and [[stone crafter]]s. Done properly, it can also serve as a magma chamber, a drowning chamber and even an obsidianizing chamber that can kill any creature that gets in (except [[ghost]]s and possibly [[vermin]]).

* MegaDwarfBonus: Make the system fully automated using [[computing]] principles.

==Pit o' doom==
Combine with an Execution Tower for maximum z-level executions! Traps which menace with spikes are a must.

'''Difficulty:''' Low. You want it nice and deep though.

'''Usefulness:''' Dispose of prisoners, execute nobles, gruesome fatal injuries, laugh maniacally. If high enough, you may be able to recover [[bone]]s from creatures your dwarves refuse to [[butcher]].

* Bonus: Link the spikes to a lever so you can proceed to make swiss cheese of whatever didn't die from the fall.

==Pixel art stockpiles==
Arrange several stockpiles of similar items of different colors (gems work well for this) so the different colors make some sort of picture. Don't forget to set "max bins" to 0 on all the stockpiles so you can actually see the items!

It's probably also a good idea to forbid the items once they're in place, to prevent them from being moved later (and allow you to remove the stockpiles if you want.)

'''Difficulty:''' Medium; only tricky parts are (potentially) finding enough items of different colors, and keeping track of which colors are where before the hauling is done.

'''Usefulness:''' Negative

==Pressure washer==
A huge tower with floodgates at the bottom on one side. When opened, the pressurized water fires out and pushes anything in the way of the flow away. Depending on size, can be surprisingly powerful. You can see an example tower [http://mkv25.net/dfma/map-7485-griffonwind here.]

'''Difficulty:''' Medium, construction technique takes some consideration.

'''Usefulness:''' Medium-High. Tested in version 0.28.181.40d with 50 recruits standing in front of it when the floodgates opened, killed 46 of them, including ones not pushed into the pit.

* Bonus: Fill it with Magma instead (though Magma doesn't pressurize).

==Quantum Blizzard Cannon==

Do you need to kill something? Is atom-smashing no longer a viable option? Do you wish to bring glory to Armok? Do not fear, the QBC is here! By creating individual stops to fill minecarts with projectiles of your choosing, then loading up to 12 filled minecarts into a final “Launcher” minecart (using a stop designated to fill the "launcher" with minecarts), you can effectively fire as many items as you would like at your foe using a standard minecart shotgun. It is also possible to fill this with fluids, to great effect (and risk of crashing the game). This can often have interesting effects because hitting a goblin with 996 bars of lead at extreme speeds is not good for the squishy bits. The cannon gains its name from its creator.

''' Difficulty:''' excessive, lots of time in menus and loading per shot, but really ((Fun))

''' Usefulness:''' medium to low. The same trick can be used to move large amounts of items via minecart, but ultimately the QBC is excessive for even the HFS.

==Redesign the fortress==
And when we say "redesign", we mean completely replanning and rebuilding the entire fortress, from scratch. Ever thought about a cool thing that you could add to your fortress, but can't because a critical area(such as the dining room, general-purpose stockpile, central workshop area etc.) are in the way? Did you start the fortress by building the most critical areas in the first available spot? Well, now is a good time to get rid of that! For added effects, put the sleeping areas especially close to the booze stockpile so that dwarves are always happy!

'''Difficulty:''' Varies depending on the size of the fortress.

'''Usefulness:''' Varies depending on how you carry it out, a.k.a. the efficiency of the new organization.

==Rehabilitation centre==
Had any problems with dwarves charging brainlessly towards the enemy, getting slaughtered, and then starting a tantrum spiral that will destroy your fortress? Turn your prison into a luxurious room full of things that make dwarves happy. Add artifact furniture, beds, a booze stockpile, chains made of gold (or anything valuable,) a waterfall, creatures in cages, etc. Hopefully they will return to society as a happy, productive dwarf.

'''Difficulty:''' Low-Medium. Acquiring valuable items and setting up the waterfall can be annoying sometimes. Also you need guards to actually put them in jail. And it can be a real pain when those ungrateful sobs destroy the nice furniture you give them.

'''Usefulness:''' High. A tantrum spiral can quickly turn a productive fort of 200+ dwarves into a rioting fortress inhabited by a bunch of insane, miserable dwarves who spend their time punching people and breaking furniture. Don't let it happen to you.

* MegaDwarfBonus: Points for making every other dwarf drink water and sleep on cheap beds.

==Road of the damned==
Create a giant channel filled with spike traps, 10 tiles wide and going all the way from your fort to the map edge. Pave it over with crystal glass so traders can get that foreboding feeling that'll make them seal the deal without bargaining too hard!

'''Difficulty:''' Low-mid, depending on the rarity of crystal glass.

'''Usefulness:'''Low. The same as a normal road.

* Bonus: Spike a goblin on every trap!
* Megabonus: Spike traders who annoy you on the traps!

==Roof of the world==
Sick of having your dwarves vomit all the time when they go out to retrieve loot or lumber? Despair no more! Build an almost-infinitely tall tower, and then put a floor on the highest level, spanning the entire map. For extra kicks, make a mechanism that will crash the entire thing upon the heads of the one goblin horde that manages to get through all your other deathtraps.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium. Very grueling.

'''Usefulness:''' Low, but potentially fortress-saving. (see above)

==Sectorized world==
Divide the world edges into multiple sectors and then gate access to each one separately. This allows you to protect your fortress from sieges whilst keeping access to most of the outside world and allowing most traders into and out of the fortress (those unfortunate enough to enter the world from the same direction as the siegers may be screwed, of course). For bonus points, build separate gateable access routes for each sector. For further bonus points, design your fortress so that you can simultaneously allow access to traders ''at the same time'' as siegers are exposed to your defensive mechanisms.

'''Difficulty:''' Low, unless you allow separate access routes for each sector in which case high.

'''Usefulness:''' Moderate, increasing with each bonus you fill. Mostly for those who want to build the best possible defenses. Can also double as a means of easily trapping wild animals.

==Self-contained vampire-based factory==
Take advantage of the independence of vampires by building a self-contained factory. The best industries are those that require no special raw materials-- a factory containing both a magma glass furnace and a sand tile, for instance, would work well, as would a clay industry, but if you're feeling ambitious, consider building a vampire into your [[giant cave spider|GCS]] [[silk farm]]-- if you happen to have scored an [[undead]] GCS, your vampire won't even spook! You can treat your factory as a piggy bank to be broken into as needed, or for perfect fire-and-forget action, build a dropping [[User:Vasiln/Undump|undump]] into the factory, and the vampire will deliver the output to your front door.

'''Difficulty:''' The only hard part is getting yourself a [[vampire]].

'''Usefulness:''' Depends on how many green glass blocks you plan on using.

==Sapient zoo==
Start by creating a [[zoo]] containing at least one of every [INTELLIGENT] and [CAN_SPEAK] creature
including [[humans]], [[elves]], [[goblin]]s and [[kobold]]s.

*Bonus: include a berserk dwarf in cage

'''Difficulty:''' Easy for some, Hard for others

'''Usefulness:''' None, really, a place for dwarves to throw a [[party]].

==Self-destruct lever==
A mechanism that, for example, could flood your fort with magma, or release a trapped megabeast. For bonus points, build the whole fort on a single [[support]].

'''Difficulty:''' Very high. Extremely fun.

'''Usefulness:''' Could serve as kind of a last revenge on a goblin siege, but also highly amusing. If done properly it can make reclaim easier.

* DorfBonus: Make it have a timer before your fortress self-destructs. You can do this with a water channel, or if you're particularly technical, make a [[Computing|seven segment display]].
** For bonus Dwarfy-ness, make the timer be the depth number of the magma or water that will actually trigger your fortress' destruction.
* Bonus: Build your fortress high above ground, connect the fortress to a roof through just one support and have the system, when activated, drop the whole construction into the magma sea, destroying the whole thing permanently.
* FunBonus: use the lever to drop the fortress off a pillar while simultaneously opening the [[hidden fun stuff]], preferably in a whole lot of places.
*ExtraFunBonus: do as may of these bonuses as you please (as long as they still function together) AND unleash a whole lot of dwarves throwing tantrums near the lever when you wish to set the fun things off.

==Shark catcher==
Capture of [[Bull shark|sharks]] or [[Carp|other]], [[Sturgeon|dangerous fish]] achieved by making an artificial bay, filling it with [[Cage trap|cage traps]], opening the floodgate to the sea or river and some sort of drainage system, likely pumps and/or floodgates.

'''Difficulty''': Low to Medium as drowning while setting up is very possible with bad planning.

'''Usefulness''': Low, purely aesthetic, but very cool to have a shark infested moat (Potentially kills invaders).

==Silk farming==
{{main|Silk farming}}
Capture a web-slinger (generally a [[giant cave spider]]) and build a farm to efficiently harvest its [[silk]].

'''Difficulty''': Low to Medium; the hardest part is generally catching the web-spinner.

'''Usefulness''': Medium to High. Provides an endless supply of potentially-valuable [[silk]] cloth and rapidly [[cross-training|cross-trains]] [[weaver]]s.

==Steamed vegetables==
Make a pot and drop <s>elves</s> vegetables in from about three levels up. This makes it so the vegetables do not <s>run</s> get overcooked. Proceed to bask the vegetables in [[steam]].

'''Difficulty''': Medium. Can be annoying to boil some water.

'''Usefulness''': Great way to make friends with the merchants.

*MegaDwarfBonus: Add <s>goblins</s> seasoning.
*ArmokDoubleBonus: Use [[magma mist]].
*DwarfBonus: feed any vegetables you did not steam to your dear friends, the [[Demon|clowns]].

==Swimming pool==
{{main|Swimming#Learning/Teaching swimming|l1=Swimming § Learning/Teaching swimming}}
It's a reservoir that fills to 4/7 exactly. Station soldiers inside, lock them in, and fill. This way they gain [[swimming]] skill.

'''Difficulty:''' Low. It's just a pair of reservoirs.

'''Usefulness:''' The swimming skill is only slightly useful. This is most useful if the entrance to your fort has narrow walkways/moats surrounded by water, and you station your soldiers there. It does help gain attributes though. Though if you utilize a '''H'''ydraulic '''E'''levation and '''L'''owering '''P'''latform, this is a priceless necessity.

==Swimming track==
{{main|Swimming#Minecart_training|l1=Swimming § Minecart_training}}

[[Image:Swim track 0.png|thumb|right|250px|A large swimming track]]

A [[minecart]] ride that trains [[swimming]] safely and automatically.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium. Minecart tracks can be fiddly, and adding a non-traversable depth of water makes any mistakes more difficult to fix.

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. The swimming skill is only slightly useful, but it does provide [[cross-training]] for attribute gains.

==Tower of Death-Struction==

Have you ever wondered, "What would it take to make my [[Siege|friends]] all [[Gravity|fall]] at once into a pit of [[Trap|fun times]] while also not risking failure?" Elementary, my aspiring architect -- [[Fun|THE TOWER OF DEATH-STRUCTION]]!

Step 1: Build a tower with a [[bridge]], to allow for non-lethal access to the fortress. Build the tower roughly 25-30 blocks high, though higher towers tend to result in roughly equivalent amounts of [[Fun]]. The access bridge should be linked to a lever, to close it like a standard gate.

Step 2: Build a thinner tower 20 blocks away, for maximum bridge length. Any number of middle towers can be constructed, though one is recommended.

Step 3: Build another tower, one that can be ascended by [[Goblin|curious friends]]. Fill it with cage traps, to thin out the number of [[Troll|friends]] to take up space on the bridge.

Step 4: Build two bridges on either side of the skybridge, to trap attackers on the skybridge.

Step 5: Hook up the skybridges to one lever, and the trap bridge to another.

Once this is done, just wait for a [[Siege|surprise party]] to be thrown for you. Close the access bridge, forcing the [[Goblin|visitors]] to path onto it. Trap them, and when the time looks right...

'''Pull the lever, Kronk!'''

'''Difficulty:''' Moderate to hard. If all of your dwarves have cave adaptation, the construction might take a lot longer to complete. As well, the cost of floors and traps alone will mean that just acquiring the materials will need its own stupid dwarf trick.

'''Usefulness:''' Low to high, depending on how well you use it. If you forget to open the access gate, you might find your dwarves trapped inside the tower, or even worse, they may run up to the bridge to fight and meet a [[Gravity|bad time]]. Also, the goblin corpses piling up in the spike pit might cause extra [[Miasma|fun]] depending on how regularly you take care of it. If done correctly, this tower might become the most efficient and effective defence against all problems that one could possibly ask for.

*Bonus: Build enough middle towers to build a bridge path long enough to trap an entire siege and drop them onto spikes below.
*SuperBonus: Build the towers above a river.
*MegaDwarfBonus: Build the towers above a lava pit.
*SuperMegaDwarfBonus: Build the towers above a ticket straight to [[HFS|the circus]].
*ArmokBonus: Build the towers out of [[Slade]] (Note: This should be impossible, so if you do it...))
*SuperMegaUltraHardcoreDwarvenMasterpieceArtifactBonus: Build the fortress at the top of the tower that the goblins have to try to get to.

==Underground forest==
{{main|Tree farming}}
Break into an underground cavern, make some muddy floors over a big area and wait.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium - need to dig out a suitably large area, then find a way of introducing water to the area and subsequently draining or evaporating it.

'''Usefulness:''' Depends on size (bigger is better) as well as proximity to wood stockpiles. A tree farm outside the caverns can grow trees from all 3 layers, and you'll never have to worry about hostile creatures threatening your wood cutters.

==Underground perpetual motion power plant==
Combine with a use for the power and you either have an awesome setup, or a ticking time bomb.

'''Difficulty:''' High. Maintaining the correct water level is annoying difficult at times. Note: Incredibly easy with an aquifer.

'''Usefulness:''' Depends on size of plant and what it's connected to. Also useful as a puzzle for adventurers.

==Underwater statue room==
A simple room filled with statues that just also happens to be flooded. Simply dig a room near to a water source smooth and engrave the walls and floors then fill with statues. Dig a tunnel to the water source and a separate escape route. seal both off with floodgates pull the levers in the right order and bam! underwater statue room. For added effect make the meeting room a room directly above with a glass floor.

'''Difficulty:''' Low.

'''Usefulness:''' Absolutely positively none.

*Bonus: Build it on area with trees and shrubs; make walls from ice or use windows; fill it with fish and merfolk; now you'll get a big aquarium
*Note: It doesn't count if you accidentally flood your fortress and wind up with one of these. It does count if one of your nobles has an unfortunate accident in their sculpture garden.

==U.R.I.S.T. artificial intelligence==
Basically, a dwarf in a bunker that controls your fortress. Being that there are no supercomputers in DF at the moment, we'll have to use the closest substitute, a dwarf. Seal your dwarf in a room full of levers that activate various floodgates, bridges, doors, hatch covers, traps, etc. Make sure this room has no exits or entrances, but it needs a luxurious bedroom and dining area, and you must include a chute for dropping in <s>food</s> biomass and <s>alcohol</s> coolant fluid. Profile the levers so that they can only be used by the A.I. dwarf.

It would be a good idea to make the system into two rooms. The food/drink/bed room and the lever room. Should you need to add more levers, you can lock the A.I. dwarf outside the lever room and have your mechanics set up more levers without interacting with or releasing the A.I.

You can make the lodging room suited for the particular dwarf by adding furniture made from their favorite materials, and smoothing and engraving everything. Use quantum stockpiling to give them 10+ years of food and drink. Make sure the A.I. is unable to communicate with other dwarves. His/her mood must not be affected by the deaths of the walking meat-bags who tried to befriend him/her.

In order to ensure that your A.I. doesn't find sleep interfering with crucial lever pulling, you might consider incorporating an alarm clock. If a goblin siege turns up on your doorstep, a single external lever to dump 7/7 of water on the sleeping A.I. might well save your fortress (and is so much cooler than having backup levers in your meeting hall).

You must also make a snazzy/lame acronym name for your AI, here are some examples:
*A.R.M.O.K. - '''A'''ll-'''R'''eaching '''M'''achine '''O'''f '''K'''illing
*A.S.S. - '''A'''lmost-autonomous '''S'''ystems '''S'''elector
*C.A.T. - '''C'''reepy '''A'''utonomous '''T'''echnology
*D.E.E.P.E.R. - '''D'''warf of '''E'''ngineering the '''E'''ldritch and '''P'''ractical '''E'''xploitation of '''R'''esources''
*D.I.E.D. - '''D'''edicated '''I'''rrigation and '''E'''verything else '''D'''warf(s)
*D.O.M.E.S. - '''D'''warf '''O'''perated '''M'''echanics and '''E'''ngineering '''S'''ystem
*D.O.R.F. - '''D'''oes '''O'''rders '''R'''ather '''F'''ast
*D.O.S. - '''D'''warf '''O'''perating '''S'''ystem
*D.W.A.R.F. - '''D'''rains '''W'''ater '''A'''nd '''R'''ecruits '''F'''armers
*G.L.A.D.O.S. - '''G'''enetic '''L'''ifeform '''A'''nd '''D'''warf '''O'''perating '''S'''ystem
*H.A.L. - '''H'''airy '''A'''lternate '''L'''ifeform
*M.A.G.M.A. - '''M'''assively '''A'''lcoholic '''G'''ear-'''M'''achine '''A'''ssembly
*N.O.B.L.E. - '''N'''arcissistic '''O'''bnoxious '''B'''oastful '''L'''aughable '''E'''xcrement
*P.O.T.A.T.O. - '''P'''ossibly '''O'''rganic '''T'''echnically '''A'''live '''T'''rash '''O'''mitted
*U.R.I.S.T. - '''U'''nderground '''R'''easonably '''I'''ntelligent '''S'''ettlement '''T'''echnologist
*V.A.C.A.T.E.D. - '''V'''ampire '''A'''ssisted '''C'''omputerized '''A'''ssembly '''T'''errorizes '''E'''xtra-'''D'''warves
*V.O.D.A.P.H.O.N.E. - '''V'''ampire '''O'''perated '''D'''efence '''A'''pparatus, '''P'''erpetrating '''H'''arm '''O'''f '''N'''efarious '''E'''ntities (See Bonus for more information)


'''Difficulty:''' Medium. Setting up all the levers and lodgings can be a micromanagement hassle. Further research is required as to how well the A.I. will fit into a dwarven economy.

'''Usefulness:''' High. Having a dwarf dedicated to pulling levers will ensure that they are pulled on time. Additionally, you will have a constantly-ecstatic dwarf who is virtually invulnerable to all threats. Should your fortress be slaughtered by invaders or drowned by flooding or tantrum spiraled, your fortress will be preserved until more migrants arrive, or the AI runs out of food.

Bonus: Make the A.I. dwarf a vampire. Vampires don't need food, alcohol, or sleep and cannot age, which makes them perfect for the job. As an added bonus, keeping a vampire in this way will make your fortress completely indestructible, as sealing him in will prevent the possibility of the vampire of being killed in combat or from a syndrome, while keeping the vampire from making friends he will inevitably outlive will prevent him from going insane. (It also ensures that the bloodsucker won't use any of your dwarves as a midnight snack.) NOTE: Vampires may still go insane without any blood. Might be worth considering adding on a 3rd "feeding chamber" where you assign an unfortunate victim to sleep whenever the vampire gets hungry.

===D.O.S.T.N.G.O.S.P.===

Dwarven Organic Switch Toggle, Neutered Gastrectomied Overpersistent Sober Prisoner. Goblins have several advantages over dwarves in the lever pulling department: they live forever, do not breed or tantrum, and need not eat, drink, or sleep. Seal one or more goblins in your supercomputer complex, and use their predictable pathing in combination with instantly lockable doors and pressure plates to make dwarven lever pulling a thing of an older, less advanced era.

Also known by several product names:
*G.O.B.L.I.N.A.T.O.R. - '''G'''oblin '''O'''perated '''B'''astion of '''L'''ogic to '''I'''nfalliably '''N'''eutralize '''A'''ntiquated '''T'''ypes of '''O'''perational '''R'''egimes
*N.G.O.K.A.N.G. - '''N'''efarious '''G'''oblin '''O'''f '''K'''illing '''A'''nd '''N'''eedless '''G'''riping
*S.T.O.Z.U. - '''S'''ecret '''T'''echnological '''O'''perative who '''Z'''aps '''U'''nruly Nobles

'''Difficulty:''' Medium. While goblin pressure plate runners require more space than dwarven lever pullers, once their room is set up, it's done, and easily copied for the next one. With only one goblin, you'll need a pressure plate for every possible combination of lever states, but it's easy to add more goblins instead.

'''Usefulness:''' High. Instant response time (<50 ticks is possible) can make lever worries a thing of the past. The D.O.S.T.N.G.O.S.P. requires absolutely no maintenance once set up. Unlike with the U.R.I.S.Ts of the previous generation, modern POW-based computing is never held hostage to eating, drinking, or breaks. Stay tuned for the next-generation C.A.C.A.M.E.!

==Vomitorium==
[[Image:Vomit_Trail.png‎|thumb|right|Vomitoria: preventing cave adaptation since [[23a:Vomit|23a]].]]

Prevents [[cave adaptation]]. It's like the greenhouse, only instead of a farm, it's a [[meeting hall]] or [[barracks]]. Since you can't build [[table]]s or [[bed]]s outside, build the room and [[channel]] down to it. Variant: above-ground statue garden or zoo.

'''Difficulty:''' Low.

'''Usefulness:''' Low. Make sure to wall the pit in, or it will become very [[fun]] once [[goblin]] archers become involved.

Bonus: Make an ACTUAL Vomitorium for this - Build a [[meeting hall]] with a [[grate]]d floor. Let [[cave adaptation]] set in, then open the place up for the most extravagant and lavish of parties every 3~4 years! Those will be some Armok grade hangovers though....

==Water tower==
This functions much like real life: Lifting water above ground level creates pressure, allowing buried pipes to deliver water to any elevation below the top of the tower. This is smarter, faster, and cheaper than a map-spanning raised aqueduct. A pump stack at the river, raising water into a sealed, pressurized U-bend, can deliver large volumes of water to whatever level you want, very quickly.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium. No harder than any other pump stack to design, but high pressure can amplify minor errors into abandon-worthy disasters. You could conceivably divert the river into your fort. Be sure to make an off-switch.

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. Once the pump stack is operating, you no longer need to be anywhere near your water source.

==Watervator==
By creating a vertical "'''H'''ydraulic '''E'''levation and '''L'''owering '''P'''latform" chamber, or HELP (so named for the cries of the passenger dwarf) with lever controlled water levels, you can move a dwarf up several z-levels without any stairs. All it takes is the dwarf's ability to swim up to the surface of the water to breathe.

'''Difficulty:''' Medium. Moderate possibility of Fun by way of flooding your fortress. Any dwarves that can't swim will instead experience Fun when using the Watervator. The actual construction time and resource usage is very low. Using the Watervator often leads to unhappy thoughts about drowning

'''Usefulness:''' Low to Medium. The Watervator requires manual micromanaging, while stairs do not. On the other hand, it can be used to create a pathway that most <s>Dwarves</s> enemies will simply be unable to use. Those that can would still be doing so at great risk of drowning or falling to their death. It is recommend that with the exception of the entrance you use stairs.

*Bonus: Utilize vampires (who can't drown).
*MegaDwarfBonus: Utilize trained fish.
*MegaDwarfBonus: Engineer it so that it performs a full cycle on one activation of a pressure plate and include that pressure plate as a part of the patrol route, then create a reverse Watervator and also include it as a part of same patrol route, so that your militia automatically uses it to get in and out the fortress.

==Werewolf clock==
The changing of the werewolf is the most reliable indicator of the passing of seasons. For precisely one day per full moon, he will go berserk and trigger standard pressure plates.

'''Difficulty:''' You will get a were sooner or later. Getting him pitted in the right spot without havoc is the hard part.

'''Usefulness:''' Low.

*Bonus: Make the werewolf do most of the work himself.

==Zombie thunderdome==
Embark in a [[surroundings#Evil|reanimating]] biome in the current version (preferably savage as well), find or dig a deep pit, and dump any unused (non-dorf) corpses and butchery products into it. They will animate and begin to walk around, providing you with the endless entertainment afforded by watching horse hair walk. Make sure the pit is deep enough not to scare your dwarves!

'''Difficulty:''' Low.

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. Keeping your fort safe from the threat of animated beak dog beaks is worth any price. However, [[DF2012:Defense guide|there may be better things]] [[DF2012:Mega construction|to do with your time]].

*Bonus: Set up a series of [[bridge|defenses]] that drop invaders into the pit.
*DwarfBonus: Set up a series of bridges and walls that flings invaders into the pit.
*MegaDwarfBonus: Drop a Megabeast into the pit and watch it do battle with multiple layers of undead.
*CavernFunBonus: Channel the bottom into a cavern and let your zombies hunt [[forgotten beast|the wonderful creatures there]].
**BonusFunBonus: Let them hunt [[Demon|Clowns]] as well.
*ZombieDwarfBonus: Ignore the suggestion above and dump dwarven corpses in anyway.

==Zombie shooting gallery==

In a reanimating biome, build a holding room for your undead, wall it off with fortifications. In the adjacent (accessible) area, build an archery range and order your archery squads to train there. Your marksdwarves will go to their scheduled archery training and whenever a zombie is raised, they'll switch focus from the boring old archery target and instead shoot down the undead. Once the zombies are dead, they'll return to regular shooting practice until the corpses rise again. The raised corpses cannot attack through fortifications and thus cause no unhappy thoughts from seeing them, but will spook haulers trying to collect errant socks from the shooting range.

A viable (if finicky) alternative to a reanimating biome could be a [[necromancer]]. This has the benefit of being more controllable, but comes with the threat of [[intelligent undead]] and their abilities. Most would be relatively harmless or a minor inconvenience, but some are potentially lethal to your dwarves. Whether or not this is a downside depends on how many corpses you have available to restock the gallery.

'''Difficulty:''' Low. The difficulty lies in finding a source of permanent undead, the actual construction is trivial.

'''Usefulness:''' Medium. This setup significantly increases the skill gain from bolts used by training dwarves, since every bolt shot at a zombie counts as combat action, giving much more experience. The scheme works without any supervision once set up.

{{Category|Design}}
[[ru:Stupid dwarf trick]]

DF2014 Talk:List of creatures by adult size

2016-03-16T19:05:28Z

Khargas:

I noticed that the given value for elephant seal on this page is 910,000, whereas the page for [[Elephant seal]] gives a value of 3,000,000. Probably not the only one. [[User:Khargas|Khargas]] ([[User talk:Khargas|talk]]) 19:05, 16 March 2016 (UTC)

DF2014 Talk:List of creatures by adult size

2016-03-16T19:04:50Z

Khargas: Created page with "I noticed that the given value for elephant seal on this page is 910,000, whereas the page for Elephant seal gives a value of 3,000,000. Probably not the only one"

I noticed that the given value for elephant seal on this page is 910,000, whereas the page for [[Elephant seal]] gives a value of 3,000,000. Probably not the only one

Weapon

2016-03-01T07:17:51Z

Khargas: /* Analysis */

{{Quality|Masterwork|16:52, 10 June 2015 (UTC)}}
{{av}}
:''This page deals entirely with manufactured weapons. For natural weapons, see [[Natural weapon]].''

A '''weapon''' in the sense described on this page is any object specifically designed to be wielded in the pursuit of bodily harm to others. In [[fortress mode]], weapons can be made at a [[metalsmith's forge]] (all metal weapons) using a single bar of metal, despite the fact that most weapons in the game (with the exception of swords and maces) would have wooden handles in real life, a [[bowyer's workshop]] (wooden and bone crossbows), or a [[craftsdwarf's workshop]] ([[obsidian]] short swords).

== Basics ==
=== Native vs. foreign ===
Weapons can be split in two categories: those that you can produce, and those that you can't. [[Weaponsmith]]s can produce seven types of native weapons at a [[metalsmith's forge]], but there are also fourteen foreign weapons that can be found in the hands of enemy combatants, or bought from trading caravans (note, however, that due to bugs, several foreign weapons currently are effectively unusable by dwarves). These may use skills your dwarves are unfamiliar with. It is impossible to buy them in bulk, and they are of variable quality and material. Like all weapons they tend to be expensive as trade goods. They may be worth using if you can secure a high-quality specimen (see [[#Quality and strange moods|Quality]] below). Since they are common for other nations, it is important to understand their properties when you have to fight enemies wielding them.

=== Types of weapons ===
{{main|Attack types}}
From another point of view there are four categories: slashing, piercing, crushing, and ranged.

Slashing weapons, like [[short sword]]s and [[battle axe]]s, work by concentrating their force along a sharp edge, allowing them to cut gashes in or to completely sever body parts. Severing is most likely when the body part's thickness is smaller than the weapon's contact edge. They make the quickest work of unarmored opponents who are not tremendously large. They are far less effective against armored targets, however, as armor may prevent the cutting, converting strikes into weaker blunt damage.

Piercing weapons, like [[spear]]s and [[pick]]s, work by concentrating their force at a point, allowing them to punch through armor and damage internal organs. They often get stuck in the opponent, giving their wielder further leverage on the target.

Crushing weapons, like [[war hammer]]s and [[mace]]s, work by concentrating their force behind a large, blunt mass, putting dents in armor and breaking bones beneath their blows. These weapons are slow to kill their targets - dwarves have a habit of breaking every bone in their opponent's body before finally landing a fatal head strike and moving on to the next target - but are the most effective weapons against large and heavily armored foes, and possibly against the [[undead]] as well.

Ranged weapons - [[crossbow]]s, [[bow]]s, and [[blowgun]]s - are effectively piercing weapons which work at a distance. When used in melee combat as a bludgeon, crossbows produce blunt weapon damage instead. Bows used in melee are treated like extremely weak swords.

There exists one more kind of weapon: the so-called training weapon. Training weapons are all wooden, and are all made at the [[carpenter's workshop]]. Training axes, spears, and short swords can be constructed in fortress mode. They do little blunt impact damage, due to the poor [[material science|material properties]] of wood. Their primary purpose in fortress mode is to allow your dwarves to train before you have a working metal industry. They can also be used during live combat exercises (beating upon a disarmed goblin, etc.) to extend the training session's length. Finally, they may be issued to the guards to reduce the lethality of a [[justice|criminal beating]].

=== Types of targets ===
One can divide the types of foes you will meet into three categories. The first is organic and unarmored (or poorly armored) enemies, like [[thief|thieves]], non-sentient [[creature]]s (be it local wildlife or siege mounts), [[semi-megabeast]]s and [[megabeast]]s besides the [[bronze colossus]]. Weapons that deal slashing damage work best and quickest against these types of enemies, severing whole body parts and leaving them severely incapacitated.

The second is organic and armored enemies, like [[ambush]]ers and [[siege]]rs. The way [[armor]] works, slashing blows that are countered by a piece of armor are converted into generally less effective blunt damage; the best damage against these kinds of enemies are piercing weapons, which punch through armor and damage their internal organs, incapacitating them and allowing the wielder to finish them off. Crushing weapons work as well, although they are slower.

The third and most dangerous types of enemies are inorganic enemies (or ones that [[Giant cave spider|don't feel pain]]), which are [[titan]]s, [[forgotten beast]]s, [[bronze colossus]]es, and [[HFS|hidden fun stuff]]. These enemies ''have'' no internal organs, and depending on the material they are made of, may be very difficult to slash at (although a forgotten beast made of, for instance, mud is laughably easy to kill). Against these enemies, crushing weapons are the best, because they can chip at their foes until they collapse from cumulative damage.

=== Weapon skill ===
{{main|Combat skill#Weapon skill}}
Every type of weapon has its own associated [[military]] [[skill]]. The higher a dwarf is in his skill with a weapon, the better he will be able to use it in combat, connecting hammer blows to more advantageous sweet spots and sending spears right through enemy hearts and lungs with greater accuracy. The higher the weapon skill, the better at fighting the dwarf will be.

Once a dwarf has reached "Great" skill in a certain weapon, they become weapon lords for that specific weapon. They are listed as such on the [[status]] screen, will love fighting, and will no longer complain about long patrol duties. Weapon skill is trained in fighting enemies in combat, demonstrations, and combat drills, but if you leave your dwarves shield-less, a [[danger room]] will train their skill very, very quickly. Note that this does not quite work for marksdwarves - danger rooming ranged weapons increases their melee skill, increasing their hammerdwarf skill, although [[Cross-training|this may be the point]].

=== Attachment ===
A dwarf that has used a particular weapon for a long time will grow attached to it, equipping it whenever their uniform allows them to. This is fine if they are wielding a ☼Steel Mace☼, but a major problem if they are wielding what is meant to be a training weapon (be it a wooden axe or a copper spear). You can avoid this pitfall by not using training weapons and not forging weapons until you have real weaponsmithing underway. These events generate [[announcement]]s. If a dwarf does become attached you can easily force him to relinquish the weapon by assigning a 'specific weapon' instead in his equipment view.

In addition, dwarves that reach a certain number or level of kills or train long enough with a weapon will name it. This prompts a major announcement. The weapon in question may have no kills associated with it, legendary dwarves occasionally name their weapons while training with them. Once named, the weapon will appear in the artifact list, albeit in blue. It is unknown if named weapons perform better than unnamed weapons.

Dwarves may also become attached to shields and name them in the same way.

=== Quality and strange moods ===
The [[quality]] of a weapon has a significant (and currently poorly understood) impact on its combat performance, as well as its [[value]].
{{v0.31:Item quality/Table}}

Weaponsmithing is a [[moodable]] profession, which means that you can get [[artifact]] weapons. This is a bit of a mixed bag: while a legendary [[armorsmith]] might be more useful, it's certainly better than a legendary [[tanner]]. Artifact weapons have a 3x combat bonus and can be made out of a wide range of materials; ordinarily a [[rainbow trout]] [[bone]] spear is impossible, but a moody dwarf can create one with a single trout bone. Artifact weapons made of totally inappropriate materials are inferior to regular ones made of weapons-grade metal, although the exact balance is still under discussion.

=== Weapons as tools ===
[[Hunter]]s use crossbows, [[Wood cutter]]s use [[battle axe]]s (or wooden training axes), and [[miner]]s use [[pick]]s. They must be in possession of these items to do their jobs, and it's as simple as that.

Hunters gain [[marksdwarf]] skill from hunting, but wood cutters do not gain [[axedwarf]] weapon skill from cutting trees. Miners gain [[mining]] skill, which is not considered a military skill, but is used as a weapon skill when fighting with a pick. A dwarf using a weapon as a tool will not use the same tool as a military weapon, instead dropping their tool to pick up another for military use.{{bug|1451}} Dwarves may carry only one weapon as a tool at a time; for example, woodcutters/hunters will drop their axes then go and pick up crossbows every time they begin hunting.

=== Ammunition ===
:''Main article: [[Ammunition]]''

[[Crossbow]]s and other ranged weapons require [[ammunition]] (in the case of the crossbow, [[bolt]]s). This ammunition is carried in a [[quiver]] in packs of about 25, and when they run out they will switch to using their ranged weapons as crude hammers. It's often a good idea to try to get them to retreat once they run out of ammo — crossbows are meant for shooting, not bashing.

=== Secondary weapons ===
Although it sounds like a cool idea, equipping a marksdwarf with a backup short sword just in case doesn't often work, as dwarves are just as quick to run up their foes and start bashing them with a crossbow as they are to draw their swords and do it properly.

== Weapons ==
=== Native weapons ===
{| class="wikitable" border="border"
! Type
! Size
! Attack
! [[Attack type]]
! Contact Area
! Penetration
! Velocity
! Skill Used
! Hands Used
! [[Weaponsmith|Metal]]
! [[Bowyer|Wood]]
! [[Bowyer|Bone]]
! [[Stone crafter|Obsidian]]
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| [[battle axe|Battle Axe]]
|rowspan="3"| 800
| Hack || Edge || 40000 || 6000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Axe
|rowspan="3"| Singlegrasp
|rowspan="3"| Yes
|rowspan="3"| No
|rowspan="3"| No
|rowspan="3"| No
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 40000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|-
| [[Crossbow]] (Melee)
| 400
| Bash || Blunt || 10000 || (4000) || 1.25x
| Hammer
| Singlegrasp?
| Yes
| Yes
| Yes
| No
|-
| [[Mace]]
| 800
| Bash || Blunt || 20 || (200) || 2.0x
| Mace
| Singlegrasp
| Yes
| No
| No
| No
|-
| [[Pick]] (foreign)
| 500
| Strike || Edge || 100 || 4000 || 2.0x
| Mining
| Singlegrasp
| Yes
| No
| No
| No
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| [[short sword|Short Sword]]
|rowspan="4"| 300
| Slash || Edge || 20000 || 4000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| [[Sword]]
|rowspan="4"| Singlegrasp
|rowspan="4"| Yes
|rowspan="4"| No
|rowspan="4"| No
|rowspan="4"| Yes
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 2000 || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 20000 || (4000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="2"| [[Spear]]
|rowspan="2"| 400
| Stab || Edge || 20 || 10000 || 1.0x
|rowspan="2"| Spear
|rowspan="2"| Singlegrasp
|rowspan="2"| Yes
|rowspan="2"| No
|rowspan="2"| No
|rowspan="2"| No
|-
| Shaft bash || Blunt || 10000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|-
| [[war hammer|War Hammer]]
| 400
| Bash || Blunt || 10 || (200) || 2.0x
| Hammer
| Singlegrasp
| Yes
| No
| No
| No
|}

Note that although the [[pick]] is a foreign weapon, it can be produced by dwarves and is therefore considered native.

=== Details ===
*If you find your dwarves wearing more than one weapon -- or any unwanted [[armor]], for that matter -- one way to get rid of them is to dump the weapon from their {{k|v}}-{{k|i}} inventory screen. This does not always work, as they might re-equip the item. Another option is to remove any weapons and/or shields listed on their military equip screen. This too does not always work. At least "left-handedness" seems to not pose a problem. If you cancel the work by {{k|v}}-{{k|p}} and selecting a job that needs a tool they will sometimes put it back in the pile. Example: Miners use picks, cancel their mining job and they will put the pick away AFTER you ordered it to be dumped.
* Using weapons is much more effective than unarmed combat -- an untrained swordsdwarf with an [[iron]] weapon can defeat a grand master [[wrestler]], provided neither is wearing armor.
** Larger weapons with more heft tend to do more damage. How damage is calculated is currently not fully understood, and this is an area requiring more research.
* The size for a weapon is its volume in cm3.
* Attacks of type EDGE will either slice or pierce their target, depending on the contact area and penetration depth, while BLUNT attacks tend to damage internal organs without necessarily causing significant damage to outer layers.
* The contact area represents the area of contact of the weapon, and the penetration determines how deep the attack goes (and is apparently ignored entirely for BLUNT attacks -- indicated by numbers in parentheses). Large contact areas combined with low penetration represent slashing attacks, while small contact areas with high penetration behave as piercing attacks.
* The velocity seems to adjust the amount of actual force used during the attack (otherwise based on the size of the weapon, the material from which the weapon is made, and the strength of the wielder) - for example, war hammers have a 2x velocity multiplier, presumably to model the fact that the hammer's mass is concentrated at the tip which, when combined with a long handle, permits swinging it harder than a weapon whose mass is evenly distributed (such as a sword).
* Crossbows can be made of metal, wood, and bone. Metal crossbows are made by a [[weaponsmith]] at a [[forge]], while wood and bone crossbows are made by a [[bowyer]] at a bowyer's workshop. The material of a crossbow does not affect its firing ability, only its melee damage. A dwarf's marksmanship skill is only affected by the core [[item quality|quality]] of the bow. This may be a consideration when deciding which dwarf you want outfitting your marksdwarves: a [[experience|legendary]] bowyer is a better choice than a proficient weaponsmith.
* Dwarves will never select a pick for a weapon if allowed "individual choice." You must specify picks as part of their uniform or on the individual equip screen if you wish to utilize them as weapons.

=== Training weapons ===
All [[training weapon]]s must be made of [[wood]] at the [[carpenter's workshop]].

{| class="wikitable" border="border"
|-
! Type
! Size
! Attack
! [[Attack type]]
! Contact Area
! Penetration
! Velocity
! Skill Used
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| Training Axe
|rowspan="3"| 800
| Hack || Blunt || 30000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Axe
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 30000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| Training Sword
|rowspan="4"| 300
| Slash || Blunt || 20000 || (4000) || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| Sword
|-
| Stab || Blunt || 50 || (2000) || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 20000 || (4000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="2"| Training Spear
|rowspan="2"| 400
| Stab || Blunt || 200 || (10000) || 1.0x
|rowspan="2"| Spear
|-
| Shaft bash || Blunt || 10000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|}

=== Foreign weapons ===
Using any multi-grasp weapon in a single hand (i.e. with a shield in the other hand) gives you a disability to hit. Do not equip two-handed swords with a shield, for instance.

In Adventurer Mode, however, it is possible to wield a two-handed sword, or any multi-grasp weapon in one hand, without penalty (allowing for the simultaneous use of a shield) if your character passes the one-handed check for single-handing a multi-grasp weapon. For example, if you create a Human character, and manage to spawn into a world with a "broad body" or a "tall body" in the character description, you will be able to single-hand any multi-grasp weapon (and will be forced to, much like you are forced to single-hand any single-grasp weapon), which allows for the simultaneous, disability-free use of a shield, thus making your damage and defensive capabilities much higher than they would be with a single-grasp weapon and shield. Note that upping Strength to Superior (and eventually Superhuman) will make all attacks more likely to deal extra damage, making cutting off the limbs of your enemies much easier.

{| class="wikitable" border="border"
|-
! Type
! Size
! Attack
! [[Attack type]]
! Contact Area
! Penetration
! Velocity
! Skill Used
! Used by
! Hands Used
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| [[two-handed sword|2H Sword]]
|rowspan="4"| 900
| Slash || Edge || 100000 || 8000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| Sword
|rowspan="4"| [[Goblin]], [[Human]]
|rowspan="4"| Multi-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 4000 || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 100000 || (8000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
| [[Blowgun]] (Melee)
| 150
| Bash || Blunt || 10000 || (4000) || 1.25x
| Sword
| Subterranean animal peoples
| Single-grasp?
|- valign="top"
| [[Bow]] (Melee)
| 300
| Bash || Blunt || 10000 || (4000) || 1.25x
| Sword
| [[Elf]], Goblin, Human, [[Kobold]]
| Single-grasp?
|- valign="top"
| [[Flail]]
| 500
| Bash || Blunt || 200 || (4000) || 2.5x
| Mace
| Goblin, Human
| Single-grasp
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| [[great axe|Great Axe]]
|rowspan="3"| 1300
| Hack || Edge || 60000 || 8000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Axe
|rowspan="3"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="3"| Multi-grasp
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 60000 || (8000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| [[Halberd]]
|rowspan="3"| 1200
| Slash || Edge || 20000 || 8000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Axe
|rowspan="3"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="3"| Multi-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 2000 || 1.0x
|-
| Shaft bash || Blunt || 20000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| [[Dagger]] (Large)
|rowspan="3"| 200
| Slash || Edge || 1000 || 800 || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Dagger
|rowspan="3"| Goblin, Kobold
|rowspan="3"| Single-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 5 || 1000 || 1.0x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 20 || (600) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| [[long sword|Long Sword]]
|rowspan="4"| 700
| Slash || Edge || 60000 || 6000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| Sword
|rowspan="4"| Elf, Goblin, Human
|rowspan="4"| Single-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 3000 || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 60000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
| [[Maul]]
| 1300
| Bash || Blunt || 100 || (6000) || 2.0x
| Hammer
| Goblin, Human
| Multi-grasp
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="2"| [[Morningstar]]
|rowspan="2"| 500
| Bash || Edge || 10 || 500 || 2.0x
|rowspan="2"| Mace
|rowspan="2"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="2"| Single-grasp
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 50 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="2"| [[pike (weapon)|Pike]]
|rowspan="2"| 800
| Stab || Edge || 20 || 12000 || 1.0x
|rowspan="2"| Pike
|rowspan="2"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="2"| Multigrasp
|-
| Shaft bash || Blunt || 10000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| [[Scimitar]]
|rowspan="4"| 300
| Slash || Edge || 20000 || 4000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| Sword
|rowspan="4"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="4"| Single-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 2000 || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 20000 || (4000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 50 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
| [[Scourge]]
| 300
| Lash || Edge || 10 || 50 || 2.0x
| Whip
| Goblin
| Single-grasp
|- valign="top"
| [[Whip]]
| 100
| Lash || Blunt || 1 || (10) || 5.0x
| Whip
| Goblin, Human
| Single-grasp
|}

== Size==

Weapons have a minimum size to use at all, and a minimum size to use one-handed. Adult dwarves vary in size between 33750 and 93750 (average 60000) based on their height and broadness.

Unfortunately this is currently bugged in Fortress mode.{{Bug|0005812}} 'One-handed' vs. 'two-handed' checks are performed correctly, but 'can wield' vs. 'can't wield' ignores height and broadness modifiers. So Dwarves in Fortress mode will never equip two-handed swords, great axes, halberds, mauls, or pikes. Other weapons have a minimum wielding size of less than 60000, and are wielded one-handed if the individual dwarf is large enough. See [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=119068.msg3790913#msg3790913 this] forum post.

The following table shows approximately how many dwarves ''should be'' able to use each weapon one or two handed (see [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=101379.msg3029579#msg3029579 this forum post] for details), with all fractional numbers being approximate. While there are seven categories each for height and broadness, the number used is chosen randomly from within each category.

Where the size checking bug affects weapon wielding for dwarves, correct approximate figures are given in brackets.
{| class="wikitable" border="border"
|-
! Type
! Min Size
(Two-Handed)
! Min Size
(One-Handed)
! Dwarves
Can't Wield
! Dwarves Wield
Two-Handed
! Dwarves Wield
One-Handed
|- valign="top"
| [[battle axe|Battle Axe]]
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Crossbow]] (Melee)
| 15000
| 0
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Mace]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Pick]]
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[short sword|Short Sword]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Spear]]
| 5000
| 47500
| -
| 11/49
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[war hammer|War Hammer]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| Training Axe
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| Training Sword
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| Training Spear
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[two-handed sword|2H Sword]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Blowgun]] (Melee)
| 15000
| 0
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Bow]] (Melee)
| 15000
| 0
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Flail]]
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[great axe|Great Axe]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Halberd]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Dagger]] (Large)
| 5000
| 27500
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[long sword|Long Sword]]
| 52500
| 57500
| 11/49 (0)
| 7/49 (18/49)
| 31/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Maul]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Morningstar]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| [[pike (weapon)|Pike]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Scimitar]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Scourge]]
| 22500
| 27500
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Whip]]
| 22500
| 27500
| -
| -
| 49/49
|}

==Material==
{{v0.31 material metal table head}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Adamantine|color={{Tile|/|3:1}}3:3:1|source=[[Raw adamantine]]|notes= |soliddensity=0.200|mp=25000|val=300|valinc=+50|impactyield=5000|impactfracture=5000|impactelasticity=0|shearyield=5000|shearfracture=5000|shearelasticity=0
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Divine metal|notes= |soliddensity=1.0|val=300|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=2000|impactelasticity=0|shearyield=1000|shearfracture=2000|shearelasticity=0
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Steel|color={{Tile|/|0:1}}0:7:1|source=[[Iron]] + [[Pig iron]] + [[flux]] stone + [[fuel]] '''!'''|notes= |soliddensity=7.85|val=30|valinc=+20|mp=12718|impactyield=1505|impactfracture=2520|impactelasticity=940|shearyield=430|shearfracture=720|shearelasticity=215
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Bismuth bronze|color={{Tile|/|6:1}}6:6:1|source=2 [[Copper]] + 1 [[Tin]] + 1 [[Bismuth]] '''!'''|notes= |soliddensity=8.25|val=6|valinc=+4|mp=11868|impactyield=602|impactfracture=843|impactelasticity=547|shearyield=172|shearfracture=241|shearelasticity=156
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Bronze|color={{Tile|/|6:0}}6:4:0|source=[[Tin]] + [[Copper]]|notes= |soliddensity=8.25|val=5|valinc=+3|mp=11868|impactyield=602|impactfracture=843|impactelasticity=547|shearyield=172|shearfracture=241|shearelasticity=156
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Iron|color={{Tile|/|0:1}}0:7:1|source=[[Hematite]], [[Limonite]], [[Magnetite]]|notes= |soliddensity=7.85|mp=12768|val=10|valinc=+2|impactyield=542|impactfracture=1080|impactelasticity=319|shearyield=155|shearfracture=310|shearelasticity=189
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Copper|color={{Tile|/|6:0}}6:4:0|source=[[Native copper]], [[Malachite]], [[Tetrahedrite]]|notes= |soliddensity=8.93|mp=11952|val=2|valinc=+0, +0, -1*|impactyield=245|impactfracture=770|impactelasticity=175|shearyield=70|shearfracture=220|shearelasticity=145
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Silver|color={{Tile|/|7:1}}7:7:1|source=[[Native silver]], [[Horn silver]], [[Galena]] (50%), [[Tetrahedrite]] (20%) |notes= |soliddensity=10.49|mp=11731|val=10|valinc=+0, +0, +5*, +7*|impactyield=350|impactfracture=595|impactelasticity=350|shearyield=100|shearfracture=170|shearelasticity=333
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Platinum|color={{Tile|/|7:1}}7:7:1|source=[[Native platinum]]|notes= Only available as Artifact Weapons.|soliddensity=21.4|mp=13182|val=40|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=350|impactfracture=700|impactelasticity=152|shearyield=100|shearfracture=200|shearelasticity=164
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Bone|color={{Tile|/|7:1}}7:7:1|source=Creatures|notes= |soliddensity=0.50|mp=NONE(burn at 10250)|val=1|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=200|impactfracture=200|impactelasticity=100|shearyield=115|shearfracture=130|shearelasticity=100
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Wood|color={{Tile|/|6:0}}7:7:1|source=Trees|notes= |soliddensity=0.50|mp=NONE(burn at 10250)|val=1|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=10|impactfracture=10|impactelasticity=1000|shearyield=40|shearfracture=40|shearelasticity=1000
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Shell|color={{Tile|/|2:0}}7:7:1|source=Creatures|notes= Only available as Artifact Weapons.|soliddensity=0.50|mp=NONE(burn at 10250)|val=1|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=200|impactfracture=200|impactelasticity=100|shearyield=115|shearfracture=130|shearelasticity=100
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Leather|color={{Tile|/|2:0}}7:7:1|source=Creatures|notes= Material data added for comparison.|soliddensity=0.50|mp=NONE(burn at 10250)|val=1|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=10|impactfracture=10|impactelasticity=50000|shearyield=25|shearfracture=25|shearelasticity=50000
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Obsidian|color={{Tile|/|0:1}}7:7:1|source=Lava|notes= Only available for Short Swords.|soliddensity=2.67|mp=13600|val=3|valinc=+0|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=1000|impactelasticity=2222|shearyield=35|shearfracture=35|shearelasticity=114
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Crystal glass|color={{Tile|/|7:1}}7:7:1|source=Sand|notes= Only available as Trap Components.|soliddensity=2.6|mp=13600|val=10|valinc=+0|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=1000|impactelasticity=2222|shearyield=33|shearfracture=33|shearelasticity=113
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Clear glass|color={{Tile|/|3:0}}7:7:1|source=Sand|notes= Only available as Trap Components.|soliddensity=2.6|mp=13600|val=5|valinc=+0|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=1000|impactelasticity=2222|shearyield=33|shearfracture=33|shearelasticity=113
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Green glass|color={{Tile|/|2:0}}7:7:1|source=Sand|notes= Only available as Trap Components.|soliddensity=2.6|mp=13600|val=2|valinc=+0|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=1000|impactelasticity=2222|shearyield=33|shearfracture=33|shearelasticity=113
}}

|}

*''Combat information'' is used internally by the game to determine the combat properties of weapons and armor made from this metal:
**'''Density''': Used in conjunction with other factors - heavier weapons (higher numbers) hit with more force, light weapons tend to have less penetration. Value shown here is g/cm3, which is the raw value divided by 103
**'''Impact yield''': Used for blunt-force combat; ''higher'' is better. This is the raw value divided by 103 (i.e., kPa).
**'''Impact fracture''': Used for blunt-force combat; ''higher'' is better. This is the raw value divided by 103 (i.e., kPa).
**'''Impact elasticity''' (or '''strain at yield'''): Used for blunt-force combat; ''lower'' is better. This is the raw value.
**'''Shear yield''': Used for cutting calculations in combat; ''higher'' is better. This is the raw value divided by 103 (i.e., kPa).
**'''Shear fracture''': Used for cutting calculations in combat; ''higher'' is better. This is the raw value divided by 103 (i.e., kPa).
**'''Shear elasticity''' (or '''strain at yield'''): Used for cutting calculations in combat; ''lower'' is better. This is the raw value.

*General Term Explanations (From Wikipedia)
**'''Yield Strength''' - The stress at which material strain changes from elastic deformation to plastic deformation, causing it to deform permanently.
**'''Fracture Strength''' - The stress coordinate on the stress-strain curve at the point of rupture.
**'''Stress''' - Force per area = F/A
**'''Strain''' - Deformation of a solid due to stress = Stress/Young's Modulus

=== Explanation ===
* '''Yield Strength''' is the amount of stress required to permanently deform (bend) a material (plastic deformation).
* '''Fracture Strength''' is the amount of stress required to permanently break (rupture) a material.
* '''Elasticity''' or '''Strain at yield''' is the amount of deformation (bending) that occurs at the yield point.

=== Implications ===
Yield strength combined with strain at yield can tell what a material will do under stress (be it from a hammer, axe, or arrow); higher yield means that it takes more stress to deform, while lower strain at yield means that it will deform less when stress is applied.

== Combat testing ==
In regards to edged weaponry: [[Adamantine]] and [[steel]] take first and second place respectively, with [[iron]] the third best material in the game, matched by the [[bronze]]s. Beyond that is [[copper]], the second worst material, and [[silver]] is the worst weapon material available (and due to the existence of training weapons, not even useful in that regard).

Additionally, with regards to blunt weapons almost all of the non-adamantine materials perform equally well, with a very slight edge towards steel and silver. Here is the thread with the details: [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=53571.0].

Keep in mind with how unbelievably complicated this system is nothing should be taken as word of law yet.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#999999"
!
! Best
! Better
! Good
! Fair
! Poor
! Terrible
! Notes
|-
| Armor
| Adamantine
| Steel
| Iron
| Bronze, Bismuth Bronze
| Copper
|
|
|-
| Edged Weapons
| Adamantine
| Steel
| Iron
| Bronze, Bismuth Bronze
| Copper
| Silver
| For piercing iron armor, copper is better than bronze. For piercing copper or bronze armor, bronze is better than copper.
|-
| Ammunition
| Steel, Iron, Bronze, Bismuth Bronze, Copper, Silver
|
| Adamantine
|
|
|
| Adamantine bolts deflect off of adamantine armor, but otherwise their performance is on par with bolts made out of other metals.
|-
| Blunt Weapons
| Platinum
| Steel, Silver
| Copper, Bismuth Bronze, Bronze, Iron
|
|
| Adamantine
| All six standard weapon metals perform nearly identically. Steel has a slightly higher rate of critical wounds, while silver is slightly more likely to penetrate armor. Platinum (only available as [[artifact]] weapons) has twice the density of silver and several other improved properties, making it the best metal for impact weapons, though very limited in production. Adamantine's light weight makes it a terrible choice for blunt weapons, roughly the same as making a weapon out of [[featherwood]] or cork.
|}

Cross referencing this table with the table at the top of this section seems to indicate that low densities, high impact fractures, and high shear fractures contribute to the killing power of edged weapons.

===Analysis===

Testing of weapons (15 dwarves vs. 15 dwarves combats) in the [[object testing arena]] shows that the best dwarven-made weapon against unarmored humanoids is the battle axe, while the war hammer performs the best against armored targets. {{version|0.31.12}}.

Even in 15×(steel armor+silver war hammer) versus 15×(adamantine armor+adamantine battle axe) matches, hammerdwarves won with less than 50% casualties (mostly one-strike kills). However, when the dwarves in question were without armor or only wearing leather/cloth, the result was inverted — axedwarves won with less than 50% casualties. In battles against megabeasts, 6 silver hammerdwarves were barely able to scratch a [[bronze colossus]] (attacks were glancing away) due to bronze being a better "weapon" material.

This is because silver has the highest solid density of all materials that can regularly be made into weapons by dwarves. Tests show that indeed [[gold]] and [[platinum]] (increasingly dense) do increasing amounts of damage, and that war hammers remain the tool of choice, however they can only be produced by a moody dwarf (and a very lucky one at that).

For more on ranged ammunition see the forum thread [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=116151.0 Dwarven Research: A Comparison Study on the Effectiveness of Bolts vs Armors].

More arena tests are available in the [[Main:Military testing|Military testing]] article.

There is a bug with melee weapon momentum that causes certain weapons to swing faster than they should do, giving them greater performance. This bug is based on the weight of the weapon, with weapons weighing just under a whole number getting the greatest benefit. Two major beneficiaries of this weight bug are copper whips and iron or steel picks.

==Bugs==
*Equipping weapons/armor on military is erratic{{Bug|535}}
*'One-handed' vs. 'two-handed' checks are performed correctly, but 'can wield' vs. 'can't wield' ignores height and broadness modifiers, so dwarves in Fortress mode cannot equip two-handed swords, great axes, halberds, mauls, or pikes.{{bug|5812}}

==See also==
* [[User:Shinziril#Weapons_and_Armor|Outstanding research]] on weapons and armor by Shinziril

{{Weapons}}
{{Industry}}
{{Category|Weapons}}

Weapon

2016-03-01T07:17:22Z

Khargas: /* Analysis */

{{Quality|Masterwork|16:52, 10 June 2015 (UTC)}}
{{av}}
:''This page deals entirely with manufactured weapons. For natural weapons, see [[Natural weapon]].''

A '''weapon''' in the sense described on this page is any object specifically designed to be wielded in the pursuit of bodily harm to others. In [[fortress mode]], weapons can be made at a [[metalsmith's forge]] (all metal weapons) using a single bar of metal, despite the fact that most weapons in the game (with the exception of swords and maces) would have wooden handles in real life, a [[bowyer's workshop]] (wooden and bone crossbows), or a [[craftsdwarf's workshop]] ([[obsidian]] short swords).

== Basics ==
=== Native vs. foreign ===
Weapons can be split in two categories: those that you can produce, and those that you can't. [[Weaponsmith]]s can produce seven types of native weapons at a [[metalsmith's forge]], but there are also fourteen foreign weapons that can be found in the hands of enemy combatants, or bought from trading caravans (note, however, that due to bugs, several foreign weapons currently are effectively unusable by dwarves). These may use skills your dwarves are unfamiliar with. It is impossible to buy them in bulk, and they are of variable quality and material. Like all weapons they tend to be expensive as trade goods. They may be worth using if you can secure a high-quality specimen (see [[#Quality and strange moods|Quality]] below). Since they are common for other nations, it is important to understand their properties when you have to fight enemies wielding them.

=== Types of weapons ===
{{main|Attack types}}
From another point of view there are four categories: slashing, piercing, crushing, and ranged.

Slashing weapons, like [[short sword]]s and [[battle axe]]s, work by concentrating their force along a sharp edge, allowing them to cut gashes in or to completely sever body parts. Severing is most likely when the body part's thickness is smaller than the weapon's contact edge. They make the quickest work of unarmored opponents who are not tremendously large. They are far less effective against armored targets, however, as armor may prevent the cutting, converting strikes into weaker blunt damage.

Piercing weapons, like [[spear]]s and [[pick]]s, work by concentrating their force at a point, allowing them to punch through armor and damage internal organs. They often get stuck in the opponent, giving their wielder further leverage on the target.

Crushing weapons, like [[war hammer]]s and [[mace]]s, work by concentrating their force behind a large, blunt mass, putting dents in armor and breaking bones beneath their blows. These weapons are slow to kill their targets - dwarves have a habit of breaking every bone in their opponent's body before finally landing a fatal head strike and moving on to the next target - but are the most effective weapons against large and heavily armored foes, and possibly against the [[undead]] as well.

Ranged weapons - [[crossbow]]s, [[bow]]s, and [[blowgun]]s - are effectively piercing weapons which work at a distance. When used in melee combat as a bludgeon, crossbows produce blunt weapon damage instead. Bows used in melee are treated like extremely weak swords.

There exists one more kind of weapon: the so-called training weapon. Training weapons are all wooden, and are all made at the [[carpenter's workshop]]. Training axes, spears, and short swords can be constructed in fortress mode. They do little blunt impact damage, due to the poor [[material science|material properties]] of wood. Their primary purpose in fortress mode is to allow your dwarves to train before you have a working metal industry. They can also be used during live combat exercises (beating upon a disarmed goblin, etc.) to extend the training session's length. Finally, they may be issued to the guards to reduce the lethality of a [[justice|criminal beating]].

=== Types of targets ===
One can divide the types of foes you will meet into three categories. The first is organic and unarmored (or poorly armored) enemies, like [[thief|thieves]], non-sentient [[creature]]s (be it local wildlife or siege mounts), [[semi-megabeast]]s and [[megabeast]]s besides the [[bronze colossus]]. Weapons that deal slashing damage work best and quickest against these types of enemies, severing whole body parts and leaving them severely incapacitated.

The second is organic and armored enemies, like [[ambush]]ers and [[siege]]rs. The way [[armor]] works, slashing blows that are countered by a piece of armor are converted into generally less effective blunt damage; the best damage against these kinds of enemies are piercing weapons, which punch through armor and damage their internal organs, incapacitating them and allowing the wielder to finish them off. Crushing weapons work as well, although they are slower.

The third and most dangerous types of enemies are inorganic enemies (or ones that [[Giant cave spider|don't feel pain]]), which are [[titan]]s, [[forgotten beast]]s, [[bronze colossus]]es, and [[HFS|hidden fun stuff]]. These enemies ''have'' no internal organs, and depending on the material they are made of, may be very difficult to slash at (although a forgotten beast made of, for instance, mud is laughably easy to kill). Against these enemies, crushing weapons are the best, because they can chip at their foes until they collapse from cumulative damage.

=== Weapon skill ===
{{main|Combat skill#Weapon skill}}
Every type of weapon has its own associated [[military]] [[skill]]. The higher a dwarf is in his skill with a weapon, the better he will be able to use it in combat, connecting hammer blows to more advantageous sweet spots and sending spears right through enemy hearts and lungs with greater accuracy. The higher the weapon skill, the better at fighting the dwarf will be.

Once a dwarf has reached "Great" skill in a certain weapon, they become weapon lords for that specific weapon. They are listed as such on the [[status]] screen, will love fighting, and will no longer complain about long patrol duties. Weapon skill is trained in fighting enemies in combat, demonstrations, and combat drills, but if you leave your dwarves shield-less, a [[danger room]] will train their skill very, very quickly. Note that this does not quite work for marksdwarves - danger rooming ranged weapons increases their melee skill, increasing their hammerdwarf skill, although [[Cross-training|this may be the point]].

=== Attachment ===
A dwarf that has used a particular weapon for a long time will grow attached to it, equipping it whenever their uniform allows them to. This is fine if they are wielding a ☼Steel Mace☼, but a major problem if they are wielding what is meant to be a training weapon (be it a wooden axe or a copper spear). You can avoid this pitfall by not using training weapons and not forging weapons until you have real weaponsmithing underway. These events generate [[announcement]]s. If a dwarf does become attached you can easily force him to relinquish the weapon by assigning a 'specific weapon' instead in his equipment view.

In addition, dwarves that reach a certain number or level of kills or train long enough with a weapon will name it. This prompts a major announcement. The weapon in question may have no kills associated with it, legendary dwarves occasionally name their weapons while training with them. Once named, the weapon will appear in the artifact list, albeit in blue. It is unknown if named weapons perform better than unnamed weapons.

Dwarves may also become attached to shields and name them in the same way.

=== Quality and strange moods ===
The [[quality]] of a weapon has a significant (and currently poorly understood) impact on its combat performance, as well as its [[value]].
{{v0.31:Item quality/Table}}

Weaponsmithing is a [[moodable]] profession, which means that you can get [[artifact]] weapons. This is a bit of a mixed bag: while a legendary [[armorsmith]] might be more useful, it's certainly better than a legendary [[tanner]]. Artifact weapons have a 3x combat bonus and can be made out of a wide range of materials; ordinarily a [[rainbow trout]] [[bone]] spear is impossible, but a moody dwarf can create one with a single trout bone. Artifact weapons made of totally inappropriate materials are inferior to regular ones made of weapons-grade metal, although the exact balance is still under discussion.

=== Weapons as tools ===
[[Hunter]]s use crossbows, [[Wood cutter]]s use [[battle axe]]s (or wooden training axes), and [[miner]]s use [[pick]]s. They must be in possession of these items to do their jobs, and it's as simple as that.

Hunters gain [[marksdwarf]] skill from hunting, but wood cutters do not gain [[axedwarf]] weapon skill from cutting trees. Miners gain [[mining]] skill, which is not considered a military skill, but is used as a weapon skill when fighting with a pick. A dwarf using a weapon as a tool will not use the same tool as a military weapon, instead dropping their tool to pick up another for military use.{{bug|1451}} Dwarves may carry only one weapon as a tool at a time; for example, woodcutters/hunters will drop their axes then go and pick up crossbows every time they begin hunting.

=== Ammunition ===
:''Main article: [[Ammunition]]''

[[Crossbow]]s and other ranged weapons require [[ammunition]] (in the case of the crossbow, [[bolt]]s). This ammunition is carried in a [[quiver]] in packs of about 25, and when they run out they will switch to using their ranged weapons as crude hammers. It's often a good idea to try to get them to retreat once they run out of ammo — crossbows are meant for shooting, not bashing.

=== Secondary weapons ===
Although it sounds like a cool idea, equipping a marksdwarf with a backup short sword just in case doesn't often work, as dwarves are just as quick to run up their foes and start bashing them with a crossbow as they are to draw their swords and do it properly.

== Weapons ==
=== Native weapons ===
{| class="wikitable" border="border"
! Type
! Size
! Attack
! [[Attack type]]
! Contact Area
! Penetration
! Velocity
! Skill Used
! Hands Used
! [[Weaponsmith|Metal]]
! [[Bowyer|Wood]]
! [[Bowyer|Bone]]
! [[Stone crafter|Obsidian]]
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| [[battle axe|Battle Axe]]
|rowspan="3"| 800
| Hack || Edge || 40000 || 6000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Axe
|rowspan="3"| Singlegrasp
|rowspan="3"| Yes
|rowspan="3"| No
|rowspan="3"| No
|rowspan="3"| No
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 40000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|-
| [[Crossbow]] (Melee)
| 400
| Bash || Blunt || 10000 || (4000) || 1.25x
| Hammer
| Singlegrasp?
| Yes
| Yes
| Yes
| No
|-
| [[Mace]]
| 800
| Bash || Blunt || 20 || (200) || 2.0x
| Mace
| Singlegrasp
| Yes
| No
| No
| No
|-
| [[Pick]] (foreign)
| 500
| Strike || Edge || 100 || 4000 || 2.0x
| Mining
| Singlegrasp
| Yes
| No
| No
| No
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| [[short sword|Short Sword]]
|rowspan="4"| 300
| Slash || Edge || 20000 || 4000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| [[Sword]]
|rowspan="4"| Singlegrasp
|rowspan="4"| Yes
|rowspan="4"| No
|rowspan="4"| No
|rowspan="4"| Yes
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 2000 || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 20000 || (4000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="2"| [[Spear]]
|rowspan="2"| 400
| Stab || Edge || 20 || 10000 || 1.0x
|rowspan="2"| Spear
|rowspan="2"| Singlegrasp
|rowspan="2"| Yes
|rowspan="2"| No
|rowspan="2"| No
|rowspan="2"| No
|-
| Shaft bash || Blunt || 10000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|-
| [[war hammer|War Hammer]]
| 400
| Bash || Blunt || 10 || (200) || 2.0x
| Hammer
| Singlegrasp
| Yes
| No
| No
| No
|}

Note that although the [[pick]] is a foreign weapon, it can be produced by dwarves and is therefore considered native.

=== Details ===
*If you find your dwarves wearing more than one weapon -- or any unwanted [[armor]], for that matter -- one way to get rid of them is to dump the weapon from their {{k|v}}-{{k|i}} inventory screen. This does not always work, as they might re-equip the item. Another option is to remove any weapons and/or shields listed on their military equip screen. This too does not always work. At least "left-handedness" seems to not pose a problem. If you cancel the work by {{k|v}}-{{k|p}} and selecting a job that needs a tool they will sometimes put it back in the pile. Example: Miners use picks, cancel their mining job and they will put the pick away AFTER you ordered it to be dumped.
* Using weapons is much more effective than unarmed combat -- an untrained swordsdwarf with an [[iron]] weapon can defeat a grand master [[wrestler]], provided neither is wearing armor.
** Larger weapons with more heft tend to do more damage. How damage is calculated is currently not fully understood, and this is an area requiring more research.
* The size for a weapon is its volume in cm3.
* Attacks of type EDGE will either slice or pierce their target, depending on the contact area and penetration depth, while BLUNT attacks tend to damage internal organs without necessarily causing significant damage to outer layers.
* The contact area represents the area of contact of the weapon, and the penetration determines how deep the attack goes (and is apparently ignored entirely for BLUNT attacks -- indicated by numbers in parentheses). Large contact areas combined with low penetration represent slashing attacks, while small contact areas with high penetration behave as piercing attacks.
* The velocity seems to adjust the amount of actual force used during the attack (otherwise based on the size of the weapon, the material from which the weapon is made, and the strength of the wielder) - for example, war hammers have a 2x velocity multiplier, presumably to model the fact that the hammer's mass is concentrated at the tip which, when combined with a long handle, permits swinging it harder than a weapon whose mass is evenly distributed (such as a sword).
* Crossbows can be made of metal, wood, and bone. Metal crossbows are made by a [[weaponsmith]] at a [[forge]], while wood and bone crossbows are made by a [[bowyer]] at a bowyer's workshop. The material of a crossbow does not affect its firing ability, only its melee damage. A dwarf's marksmanship skill is only affected by the core [[item quality|quality]] of the bow. This may be a consideration when deciding which dwarf you want outfitting your marksdwarves: a [[experience|legendary]] bowyer is a better choice than a proficient weaponsmith.
* Dwarves will never select a pick for a weapon if allowed "individual choice." You must specify picks as part of their uniform or on the individual equip screen if you wish to utilize them as weapons.

=== Training weapons ===
All [[training weapon]]s must be made of [[wood]] at the [[carpenter's workshop]].

{| class="wikitable" border="border"
|-
! Type
! Size
! Attack
! [[Attack type]]
! Contact Area
! Penetration
! Velocity
! Skill Used
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| Training Axe
|rowspan="3"| 800
| Hack || Blunt || 30000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Axe
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 30000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| Training Sword
|rowspan="4"| 300
| Slash || Blunt || 20000 || (4000) || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| Sword
|-
| Stab || Blunt || 50 || (2000) || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 20000 || (4000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="2"| Training Spear
|rowspan="2"| 400
| Stab || Blunt || 200 || (10000) || 1.0x
|rowspan="2"| Spear
|-
| Shaft bash || Blunt || 10000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|}

=== Foreign weapons ===
Using any multi-grasp weapon in a single hand (i.e. with a shield in the other hand) gives you a disability to hit. Do not equip two-handed swords with a shield, for instance.

In Adventurer Mode, however, it is possible to wield a two-handed sword, or any multi-grasp weapon in one hand, without penalty (allowing for the simultaneous use of a shield) if your character passes the one-handed check for single-handing a multi-grasp weapon. For example, if you create a Human character, and manage to spawn into a world with a "broad body" or a "tall body" in the character description, you will be able to single-hand any multi-grasp weapon (and will be forced to, much like you are forced to single-hand any single-grasp weapon), which allows for the simultaneous, disability-free use of a shield, thus making your damage and defensive capabilities much higher than they would be with a single-grasp weapon and shield. Note that upping Strength to Superior (and eventually Superhuman) will make all attacks more likely to deal extra damage, making cutting off the limbs of your enemies much easier.

{| class="wikitable" border="border"
|-
! Type
! Size
! Attack
! [[Attack type]]
! Contact Area
! Penetration
! Velocity
! Skill Used
! Used by
! Hands Used
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| [[two-handed sword|2H Sword]]
|rowspan="4"| 900
| Slash || Edge || 100000 || 8000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| Sword
|rowspan="4"| [[Goblin]], [[Human]]
|rowspan="4"| Multi-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 4000 || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 100000 || (8000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
| [[Blowgun]] (Melee)
| 150
| Bash || Blunt || 10000 || (4000) || 1.25x
| Sword
| Subterranean animal peoples
| Single-grasp?
|- valign="top"
| [[Bow]] (Melee)
| 300
| Bash || Blunt || 10000 || (4000) || 1.25x
| Sword
| [[Elf]], Goblin, Human, [[Kobold]]
| Single-grasp?
|- valign="top"
| [[Flail]]
| 500
| Bash || Blunt || 200 || (4000) || 2.5x
| Mace
| Goblin, Human
| Single-grasp
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| [[great axe|Great Axe]]
|rowspan="3"| 1300
| Hack || Edge || 60000 || 8000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Axe
|rowspan="3"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="3"| Multi-grasp
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 60000 || (8000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| [[Halberd]]
|rowspan="3"| 1200
| Slash || Edge || 20000 || 8000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Axe
|rowspan="3"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="3"| Multi-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 2000 || 1.0x
|-
| Shaft bash || Blunt || 20000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="3"| [[Dagger]] (Large)
|rowspan="3"| 200
| Slash || Edge || 1000 || 800 || 1.25x
|rowspan="3"| Dagger
|rowspan="3"| Goblin, Kobold
|rowspan="3"| Single-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 5 || 1000 || 1.0x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 20 || (600) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| [[long sword|Long Sword]]
|rowspan="4"| 700
| Slash || Edge || 60000 || 6000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| Sword
|rowspan="4"| Elf, Goblin, Human
|rowspan="4"| Single-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 3000 || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 60000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 100 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
| [[Maul]]
| 1300
| Bash || Blunt || 100 || (6000) || 2.0x
| Hammer
| Goblin, Human
| Multi-grasp
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="2"| [[Morningstar]]
|rowspan="2"| 500
| Bash || Edge || 10 || 500 || 2.0x
|rowspan="2"| Mace
|rowspan="2"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="2"| Single-grasp
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 50 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="2"| [[pike (weapon)|Pike]]
|rowspan="2"| 800
| Stab || Edge || 20 || 12000 || 1.0x
|rowspan="2"| Pike
|rowspan="2"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="2"| Multigrasp
|-
| Shaft bash || Blunt || 10000 || (6000) || 1.25x
|- valign="top"
|rowspan="4"| [[Scimitar]]
|rowspan="4"| 300
| Slash || Edge || 20000 || 4000 || 1.25x
|rowspan="4"| Sword
|rowspan="4"| Goblin, Human
|rowspan="4"| Single-grasp
|-
| Stab || Edge || 50 || 2000 || 1.0x
|-
| Flat slap || Blunt || 20000 || (4000) || 1.25x
|-
| Pommel strike || Blunt || 50 || (1000) || 1.0x
|- valign="top"
| [[Scourge]]
| 300
| Lash || Edge || 10 || 50 || 2.0x
| Whip
| Goblin
| Single-grasp
|- valign="top"
| [[Whip]]
| 100
| Lash || Blunt || 1 || (10) || 5.0x
| Whip
| Goblin, Human
| Single-grasp
|}

== Size==

Weapons have a minimum size to use at all, and a minimum size to use one-handed. Adult dwarves vary in size between 33750 and 93750 (average 60000) based on their height and broadness.

Unfortunately this is currently bugged in Fortress mode.{{Bug|0005812}} 'One-handed' vs. 'two-handed' checks are performed correctly, but 'can wield' vs. 'can't wield' ignores height and broadness modifiers. So Dwarves in Fortress mode will never equip two-handed swords, great axes, halberds, mauls, or pikes. Other weapons have a minimum wielding size of less than 60000, and are wielded one-handed if the individual dwarf is large enough. See [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=119068.msg3790913#msg3790913 this] forum post.

The following table shows approximately how many dwarves ''should be'' able to use each weapon one or two handed (see [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=101379.msg3029579#msg3029579 this forum post] for details), with all fractional numbers being approximate. While there are seven categories each for height and broadness, the number used is chosen randomly from within each category.

Where the size checking bug affects weapon wielding for dwarves, correct approximate figures are given in brackets.
{| class="wikitable" border="border"
|-
! Type
! Min Size
(Two-Handed)
! Min Size
(One-Handed)
! Dwarves
Can't Wield
! Dwarves Wield
Two-Handed
! Dwarves Wield
One-Handed
|- valign="top"
| [[battle axe|Battle Axe]]
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Crossbow]] (Melee)
| 15000
| 0
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Mace]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Pick]]
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[short sword|Short Sword]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Spear]]
| 5000
| 47500
| -
| 11/49
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[war hammer|War Hammer]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| Training Axe
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| Training Sword
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| Training Spear
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[two-handed sword|2H Sword]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Blowgun]] (Melee)
| 15000
| 0
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Bow]] (Melee)
| 15000
| 0
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Flail]]
| 42500
| 47500
| 1/49 (0)
| 10/49 (11/49)
| 38/49
|- valign="top"
| [[great axe|Great Axe]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Halberd]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Dagger]] (Large)
| 5000
| 27500
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[long sword|Long Sword]]
| 52500
| 57500
| 11/49 (0)
| 7/49 (18/49)
| 31/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Maul]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Morningstar]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| [[pike (weapon)|Pike]]
| 62500
| 77500
| 32/49 (ALL)
| 14/49 (0)
| 3/49 (0)
|- valign="top"
| [[Scimitar]]
| 32500
| 37500
| -
| 1/49
| 48/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Scourge]]
| 22500
| 27500
| -
| -
| 49/49
|- valign="top"
| [[Whip]]
| 22500
| 27500
| -
| -
| 49/49
|}

==Material==
{{v0.31 material metal table head}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Adamantine|color={{Tile|/|3:1}}3:3:1|source=[[Raw adamantine]]|notes= |soliddensity=0.200|mp=25000|val=300|valinc=+50|impactyield=5000|impactfracture=5000|impactelasticity=0|shearyield=5000|shearfracture=5000|shearelasticity=0
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Divine metal|notes= |soliddensity=1.0|val=300|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=2000|impactelasticity=0|shearyield=1000|shearfracture=2000|shearelasticity=0
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Steel|color={{Tile|/|0:1}}0:7:1|source=[[Iron]] + [[Pig iron]] + [[flux]] stone + [[fuel]] '''!'''|notes= |soliddensity=7.85|val=30|valinc=+20|mp=12718|impactyield=1505|impactfracture=2520|impactelasticity=940|shearyield=430|shearfracture=720|shearelasticity=215
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Bismuth bronze|color={{Tile|/|6:1}}6:6:1|source=2 [[Copper]] + 1 [[Tin]] + 1 [[Bismuth]] '''!'''|notes= |soliddensity=8.25|val=6|valinc=+4|mp=11868|impactyield=602|impactfracture=843|impactelasticity=547|shearyield=172|shearfracture=241|shearelasticity=156
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Bronze|color={{Tile|/|6:0}}6:4:0|source=[[Tin]] + [[Copper]]|notes= |soliddensity=8.25|val=5|valinc=+3|mp=11868|impactyield=602|impactfracture=843|impactelasticity=547|shearyield=172|shearfracture=241|shearelasticity=156
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Iron|color={{Tile|/|0:1}}0:7:1|source=[[Hematite]], [[Limonite]], [[Magnetite]]|notes= |soliddensity=7.85|mp=12768|val=10|valinc=+2|impactyield=542|impactfracture=1080|impactelasticity=319|shearyield=155|shearfracture=310|shearelasticity=189
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Copper|color={{Tile|/|6:0}}6:4:0|source=[[Native copper]], [[Malachite]], [[Tetrahedrite]]|notes= |soliddensity=8.93|mp=11952|val=2|valinc=+0, +0, -1*|impactyield=245|impactfracture=770|impactelasticity=175|shearyield=70|shearfracture=220|shearelasticity=145
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Silver|color={{Tile|/|7:1}}7:7:1|source=[[Native silver]], [[Horn silver]], [[Galena]] (50%), [[Tetrahedrite]] (20%) |notes= |soliddensity=10.49|mp=11731|val=10|valinc=+0, +0, +5*, +7*|impactyield=350|impactfracture=595|impactelasticity=350|shearyield=100|shearfracture=170|shearelasticity=333
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Platinum|color={{Tile|/|7:1}}7:7:1|source=[[Native platinum]]|notes= Only available as Artifact Weapons.|soliddensity=21.4|mp=13182|val=40|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=350|impactfracture=700|impactelasticity=152|shearyield=100|shearfracture=200|shearelasticity=164
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Bone|color={{Tile|/|7:1}}7:7:1|source=Creatures|notes= |soliddensity=0.50|mp=NONE(burn at 10250)|val=1|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=200|impactfracture=200|impactelasticity=100|shearyield=115|shearfracture=130|shearelasticity=100
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Wood|color={{Tile|/|6:0}}7:7:1|source=Trees|notes= |soliddensity=0.50|mp=NONE(burn at 10250)|val=1|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=10|impactfracture=10|impactelasticity=1000|shearyield=40|shearfracture=40|shearelasticity=1000
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Shell|color={{Tile|/|2:0}}7:7:1|source=Creatures|notes= Only available as Artifact Weapons.|soliddensity=0.50|mp=NONE(burn at 10250)|val=1|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=200|impactfracture=200|impactelasticity=100|shearyield=115|shearfracture=130|shearelasticity=100
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Leather|color={{Tile|/|2:0}}7:7:1|source=Creatures|notes= Material data added for comparison.|soliddensity=0.50|mp=NONE(burn at 10250)|val=1|valinc=+?, +?, +?, +?|impactyield=10|impactfracture=10|impactelasticity=50000|shearyield=25|shearfracture=25|shearelasticity=50000
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Obsidian|color={{Tile|/|0:1}}7:7:1|source=Lava|notes= Only available for Short Swords.|soliddensity=2.67|mp=13600|val=3|valinc=+0|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=1000|impactelasticity=2222|shearyield=35|shearfracture=35|shearelasticity=114
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Crystal glass|color={{Tile|/|7:1}}7:7:1|source=Sand|notes= Only available as Trap Components.|soliddensity=2.6|mp=13600|val=10|valinc=+0|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=1000|impactelasticity=2222|shearyield=33|shearfracture=33|shearelasticity=113
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Clear glass|color={{Tile|/|3:0}}7:7:1|source=Sand|notes= Only available as Trap Components.|soliddensity=2.6|mp=13600|val=5|valinc=+0|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=1000|impactelasticity=2222|shearyield=33|shearfracture=33|shearelasticity=113
}}

{{v0.31 material metal table row|name=Green glass|color={{Tile|/|2:0}}7:7:1|source=Sand|notes= Only available as Trap Components.|soliddensity=2.6|mp=13600|val=2|valinc=+0|impactyield=1000|impactfracture=1000|impactelasticity=2222|shearyield=33|shearfracture=33|shearelasticity=113
}}

|}

*''Combat information'' is used internally by the game to determine the combat properties of weapons and armor made from this metal:
**'''Density''': Used in conjunction with other factors - heavier weapons (higher numbers) hit with more force, light weapons tend to have less penetration. Value shown here is g/cm3, which is the raw value divided by 103
**'''Impact yield''': Used for blunt-force combat; ''higher'' is better. This is the raw value divided by 103 (i.e., kPa).
**'''Impact fracture''': Used for blunt-force combat; ''higher'' is better. This is the raw value divided by 103 (i.e., kPa).
**'''Impact elasticity''' (or '''strain at yield'''): Used for blunt-force combat; ''lower'' is better. This is the raw value.
**'''Shear yield''': Used for cutting calculations in combat; ''higher'' is better. This is the raw value divided by 103 (i.e., kPa).
**'''Shear fracture''': Used for cutting calculations in combat; ''higher'' is better. This is the raw value divided by 103 (i.e., kPa).
**'''Shear elasticity''' (or '''strain at yield'''): Used for cutting calculations in combat; ''lower'' is better. This is the raw value.

*General Term Explanations (From Wikipedia)
**'''Yield Strength''' - The stress at which material strain changes from elastic deformation to plastic deformation, causing it to deform permanently.
**'''Fracture Strength''' - The stress coordinate on the stress-strain curve at the point of rupture.
**'''Stress''' - Force per area = F/A
**'''Strain''' - Deformation of a solid due to stress = Stress/Young's Modulus

=== Explanation ===
* '''Yield Strength''' is the amount of stress required to permanently deform (bend) a material (plastic deformation).
* '''Fracture Strength''' is the amount of stress required to permanently break (rupture) a material.
* '''Elasticity''' or '''Strain at yield''' is the amount of deformation (bending) that occurs at the yield point.

=== Implications ===
Yield strength combined with strain at yield can tell what a material will do under stress (be it from a hammer, axe, or arrow); higher yield means that it takes more stress to deform, while lower strain at yield means that it will deform less when stress is applied.

== Combat testing ==
In regards to edged weaponry: [[Adamantine]] and [[steel]] take first and second place respectively, with [[iron]] the third best material in the game, matched by the [[bronze]]s. Beyond that is [[copper]], the second worst material, and [[silver]] is the worst weapon material available (and due to the existence of training weapons, not even useful in that regard).

Additionally, with regards to blunt weapons almost all of the non-adamantine materials perform equally well, with a very slight edge towards steel and silver. Here is the thread with the details: [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=53571.0].

Keep in mind with how unbelievably complicated this system is nothing should be taken as word of law yet.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#999999"
!
! Best
! Better
! Good
! Fair
! Poor
! Terrible
! Notes
|-
| Armor
| Adamantine
| Steel
| Iron
| Bronze, Bismuth Bronze
| Copper
|
|
|-
| Edged Weapons
| Adamantine
| Steel
| Iron
| Bronze, Bismuth Bronze
| Copper
| Silver
| For piercing iron armor, copper is better than bronze. For piercing copper or bronze armor, bronze is better than copper.
|-
| Ammunition
| Steel, Iron, Bronze, Bismuth Bronze, Copper, Silver
|
| Adamantine
|
|
|
| Adamantine bolts deflect off of adamantine armor, but otherwise their performance is on par with bolts made out of other metals.
|-
| Blunt Weapons
| Platinum
| Steel, Silver
| Copper, Bismuth Bronze, Bronze, Iron
|
|
| Adamantine
| All six standard weapon metals perform nearly identically. Steel has a slightly higher rate of critical wounds, while silver is slightly more likely to penetrate armor. Platinum (only available as [[artifact]] weapons) has twice the density of silver and several other improved properties, making it the best metal for impact weapons, though very limited in production. Adamantine's light weight makes it a terrible choice for blunt weapons, roughly the same as making a weapon out of [[featherwood]] or cork.
|}

Cross referencing this table with the table at the top of this section seems to indicate that low densities, high impact fractures, and high shear fractures contribute to the killing power of edged weapons.

===Analysis===

Testing of weapons (15 dwarves vs. 15 dwarves combats) in the [[object testing arena]] shows that the best dwarven-made weapon against unarmored humanoids is the battle axe, while the silver war hammer performs the best against armored targets. {{version|0.31.12}}.

Even in 15×(steel armor+silver war hammer) versus 15×(adamantine armor+adamantine battle axe) matches, hammerdwarves won with less than 50% casualties (mostly one-strike kills). However, when the dwarves in question were without armor or only wearing leather/cloth, the result was inverted — axedwarves won with less than 50% casualties. In battles against megabeasts, 6 silver hammerdwarves were barely able to scratch a [[bronze colossus]] (attacks were glancing away) due to bronze being a better "weapon" material.

This is because silver has the highest solid density of all materials that can regularly be made into weapons by dwarves. Tests show that indeed [[gold]] and [[platinum]] (increasingly dense) do increasing amounts of damage, and that war hammers remain the tool of choice, however they can only be produced by a moody dwarf (and a very lucky one at that).

For more on ranged ammunition see the forum thread [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=116151.0 Dwarven Research: A Comparison Study on the Effectiveness of Bolts vs Armors].

More arena tests are available in the [[Main:Military testing|Military testing]] article.

There is a bug with melee weapon momentum that causes certain weapons to swing faster than they should do, giving them greater performance. This bug is based on the weight of the weapon, with weapons weighing just under a whole number getting the greatest benefit. Two major beneficiaries of this weight bug are copper whips and iron or steel picks.

==Bugs==
*Equipping weapons/armor on military is erratic{{Bug|535}}
*'One-handed' vs. 'two-handed' checks are performed correctly, but 'can wield' vs. 'can't wield' ignores height and broadness modifiers, so dwarves in Fortress mode cannot equip two-handed swords, great axes, halberds, mauls, or pikes.{{bug|5812}}

==See also==
* [[User:Shinziril#Weapons_and_Armor|Outstanding research]] on weapons and armor by Shinziril

{{Weapons}}
{{Industry}}
{{Category|Weapons}}

Milkfish

2014-08-25T03:25:00Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Exceptional" to "Superior" using the rating script

{{Quality|Superior|03:24, 25 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Migrated_article}}

{{Creaturelookup/0
|contrib=no
|heart=1
|intestine=1
|liver=1
|tripe=1
|sweetbread=1
|spleen=1
|kidney=2
|fat=8
|meat=8
|bone=6
|brain=1
|skull=1
|skin=none
|wiki=yes
}}
{{av}}
{{creaturedesc}}

'''Milkfish''' are very common, small (about 10 kilo) tropical fish. Although they appear harmless, they greatly enjoy luring dwarves to a watery death via drowning, and produce little food when [[Meat industry|butchered]]. Unlike many other aquatic {{Catlink|Animals|animals}} they produce [[bones]] but no [[skin]].

Despite their name, milkfish can not be milked.

{{gamedata}}
{{Creatures}}
{{Category|Creatures}}

Floodgate

2014-08-25T03:06:38Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Exceptional" using the rating script

{{Quality|Exceptional|03:06, 25 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Migrated_article}}
{{av}}
A '''floodgate''' is a gate which allows the control of the flow of liquids such as [[water]] or [[magma]]. They are operated by [[mechanism]]s such as [[lever]]s or [[pressure plate]]s which open and close them. When closed they behave like walls, but allow liquids, objects, and [[creatures]] to pass over them when opened.

They can be manufactured from [[stone]] (at a [[mason's workshop]]), [[wood]] (at a [[carpenter's workshop]]), [[metal]] (at a [[metalsmith's forge]]), or [[glass]] (at a [[glass furnace]]). Once manufactured, they are built in the desired location using the keys {{k|b}}, {{k|x}}.

In most situations, simply using a [[door]] or raising [[bridge]] can be used in place of a floodgate, and provides a number of [[bridge#Floodgates|significant advantages]].

[[image:Colossus_in_Arena.png|thumb|right| 
'''Colossus in Arena''' This image depicts some orthodox and unorthodox uses of floodgates to control the mixing of creatures and liquids in this arena. The gates, shown in-game as X, act as liquid stoppers and [[jail]] doors.]]

==Uses==

Floodgates are used to control the flow of liquid. Because of the [[water|usefulness]] of certain liquids and the [[magma|danger]] posed by others, floodgates have a wide range of applications in any dwarven settlement.

They are instrumental in controlled [[irrigation]] for [[farm]]ing, or controlled [[flood]]ing for [[Trap_design#Water_traps|drowning]] [[elf|annoying]] [[goblin|visitors]].

Floodgates also block the flow of liquid on the Z-axis as it is considered a wall when closed. This can be quite useful when built directly below a [[floor_grate| floor grate]] as this will allow you to quickly empty the liquid from the floor above without the danger of its [[goblin|precious content]] rummaging through your sewer system.

A [[pressure plate]] on a lower level connected to a floodgate between your main water supply and your other water controls can act as an automated safety valve to help prevent [[Pressure|massive flooding]] of your lower fort. Set the pressure plate to activate (open the floodgate) when 0-1 water, which allows using the water supply. When flooding starts, the pressure plate deactivates, attempting to close the floodgate. Beware of linking multiple controllers to this floodgate, as another controller may activate opening the floodgate before this pressure resets.

==Placement==

Floodgates are constructed [[orthogonal]]ly on a solid, '''''[[water depth|unflooded]]''''' floor in the 'closed' position (note that this means it is possible for careless dwarves to trap themselves on the wrong side of the gate). Adjacent walls are not necessary. A [[mechanic]] must then link up a [[lever]] or other triggering mechanism to the floodgate. This requires two [[mechanism]]s; the mechanic will haul one mechanism to the floodgate, work for a while, and then haul the other mechanism to the trigger to complete the task.

To avoid trapping a dwarf on the wrong side of the floodgate it is building, build walls in the spaces you don’t want the dwarf in ({{k|b}}, {{k|C}}, {{k|w}}). Then suspend the build order on those walls. Once the floodgate is built, you can cancel the walls.

You can build a floodgate over empty space, e.g. controlling water in a vertical path. First build a floor ({{k|b}}, {{k|C}}, {{k|f}}), after it is complete mark it for removal ({{k|d}}, {{k|n}}) and immediately designate your floodgate ({{k|b}}, {{k|x}}). You don't have to suspend either of these tasks to get both to complete. You may want to remove the stone or block left by removing the floor or it may be washed down to lower levels, possibly clogging another floodgate that is built on a floor or [[door]].

==Activation==

Once the lever is pulled, with a [[Trigger#On.2FOff_states|delay]], the floodgate will open. When the lever is pulled again, the floodgate will close, after same delay. This will destroy (not displace) any liquid occupying the same tile as the floodgate. Objects on the floodgate's tile, however, cannot be destroyed this way - in fact, the floodgate will refuse to close. Any object, everything from [[sword]]s to [[sock]]s to [[stone]]s to scorpion [[corpse]]s, can jam the floodgate this way. Once the object is removed, however, the floodgate will grind shut by itself.

==Magma control==

Floodgates will resist magma when closed, just as a constructed [[wall]] would, but when opened will be destroyed if they are not made from [[magma-safe|magma-safe materials]]. The mechanisms used in the construction of the floodgate must also be magma-safe to prevent this.

==Bugs==

* Floodgates built on a constructed wall remain standing (and functional) even after that wall is removed, leading to an exploitable, free-floating building. {{Bug|0377}}

{{buildings}}

Gypsum plaster

2014-08-25T00:32:05Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Superior" using the rating script

{{Quality|Superior|00:32, 25 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Migrated_article}}

{{av}}

[[File:Gypsum Only.jpg|Thumb|right|350px]]
Gypsum plaster powder is produced at a [[kiln]] or [[magma kiln]] from [[gypsum]], [[alabaster]], [[selenite]], or [[satinspar]] (but '''not''' [[anhydrite]]) and an empty [[bag]]. The production of gypsum plaster powder requires the [[Furnace operating]] skill. It is used in the production of [[plaster cast]]s, an item used by [[bone doctor]]s to immobilize the broken bones of injured dwarves.

No [[stockpile]] options exist for controlling the storage of gypsum plaster - it is listed under the "Stone/Clay" material groups for Furniture, Blocks, and Finished Goods, but these settings have no effect because such objects will never actually be made '''of''' gypsum plaster; gypsum plaster bags are always stockpiled as if they are empty.

Bags of plaster powder are automatically stored in [[container]]s located in [[hospital]] zones, provided there is room.

At a kiln, if the option to produce it is unavailable despite meeting all requirements, the command "make plaster powder" in the manager menu should be used.

{{gamedata}}

{{Category|Healthcare}}

Garbage dump

2014-08-24T23:47:52Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Superior" to "Exceptional" using the rating script

{{Quality|Exceptional|23:47, 24 August 2014 (UTC)}}
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[[File:Stockpile.png|thumb|350px|right|Garbage dumps are used most often for clearing out large areas of leftover stone - for instance, when constructing a [[stockpile]].]]

'''Garbage dumps''' are [[activity zone]]s in which dwarves will throw items marked for dumping - either with by using {{k|k}}-{{k|d}} (one item at a time), or {{k|d}}-{{k|b}}-{{k|d}} (bulk dumping; note that this designates ''all'' items on the tiles for dumping, even built [[furniture]] and items inside [[container]]s). Garbage dumps are ''not'' the same as [[Refuse#Refuse|refuse]] stockpiles, which can be designated to accept specific type(s) of refuse, such as animal [[corpse]]s or [[bones]], and then are automatically filled by haulers whenever the items appear on the map. Despite the name, garbage dump zones are useful for many things beyond [[garbage disposal]]; they can create [[quantum stockpile]]s, transport materials to a job site, send items to the [[trade depot]] when no caravan is present, [[trap design#Falling_debris_trap|drop rocks]] on enemies below, and numerous other uses.

The garbage dump may be inappropriately named, as it's more of a matter compression zone. The specifics are beyond human understanding; however, dwarves are in fact capable of compressing an infinite amount of matter into only one tile, as long as it is specified as a garbage dump. If for some reason [[Main:Urist|Urist]] is yet again incapable of locating his favorite pair of cave troll leather socks, he should think to look among the black hole of matter that is the nearest garbage dump, as they could be snugly lodged between a few billion rocks.

Garbage dumps only accept items that have been marked for dumping, require dwarves to have [[refuse hauling]] [[labor]] enabled, and are subject to refuse [[standing orders]] ({{k|o}}-{{k|r}}). Most notably, dwarves will ''not'' dump items that are in a tile marked "Above Ground" unless you allow them to ({{k|o}}->{{k|r}}->{{k|o}}). To place a garbage dump, trace a zone on either a relatively empty plot of land or adjacent to a cliff face or hole. If a garbage zone is designated beside a [[cliff]] or hole (both natural or dwarf made) garbage will be thrown off/in the z-space. Each ground tile within that zone is considered a garbage dump tile; thus, if you want to place a single-tile zone, place the zone onto a ground tile (optionally adjacent to a cliff or [[pit]]), not onto an [[open space]]. Items dumped into [[magma]] that are not [[magma safe]] will permanently disappear, which is useful for disposing of clutter and increasing [[FPS]]. Otherwise a single tile (either a dump zone, or the ground below the open space) will hold any number of dumped objects. Dumping items into [[magma]] can be [[fun|dangerous]] due to the [[magma mist]] generated when objects fall into magma. It is advised to dump items into magma from a hole several z-levels up to avoid [[Fire|!!Dwarves!!]] running around the fortress.

Dumped items are automatically marked as [[forbid]]den, preventing dwarves from touching them. If you wish to use dumped items, you need to reclaim them. Press {{k|k}} to view the item and {{k|f}} to toggle forbid status. You may also use the reclaim [[designation]] to reclaim simultaneously all of the items dumped by using {{k|d}}-{{k|b}}-{{k|c}} and tracing the designation over the objects in question. If you designate items for dumping, but forget to mark an active garbage dump, your dwarves will continue hauling / using the item, until an active garbage dump is marked.

If a garbage dump is located next to open space, dwarves will always stand on a garbage dump square when throwing ''into'' that open space, even if it could potentially be done more efficiently. If a garbage dump is located next to multiple tiles of open space, they seem to prefer the one farthest to the northwest. If a tile to the north and a tile to the west are the only tiles available, they will throw to the west. Such garbage dumps can be a very efficient method of moving materials to the lower levels of your fortress. However care must be taken to prevent dwarves and livestock from being struck by falling objects, perhaps with [[traffic]] designations and [[pasture]]s. Dwarves usually throw dumped items in the nearest available garbage dump, although this is not an ironclad rule. If a nearer zone becomes available after they have already started the job they will ignore it. They also have a preference for open space dumps.

Probably due to a bug, dwarves occasionally ignore items that are meant to be dumped; viewing the item by pressing {{k|k}} then toggling forbid and dump status on, then off again ({{k|f}}-{{k|f}}-{{k|d}}-{{k|d}}) seems to correct this problem. Dumping items requires the 'refuse hauling' labor; items located in a tile "Above Ground" will not be moved unless 'gather refuse from outside' is enabled in your [[standing order]]s.{{bug|1140}}

Garbage dumps are great space savers because they can hold an infinite number of items on one tile; with some micromanagement they can even compress large, one-item-per-tile [[stockpile]]s into single-tile [[quantum stockpile]]s (although this requires additional work and is usually considered an [[exploit]]). The most common use for garbage dumps is for cleaning away loose stones left in your fortress by your [[miner]]s: mark them for dumping, wait for the jobs to be completed, and then reclaim them ({{k|d}}-{{k|b}}-{{k|c}}) for use by your stonemasons; bonus points if you do this next to a stoneworking workshop and then re-designate the tile as a stone stockpile. If the dump is designated inside a workshop, the workshop will not become cluttered. However, if you put a garbage dump inside a magma workshop with the intent of dumping ores there, make sure the zone does not overlap any open pits of magma you may have carelessly left around, or as per intended behavior, items will be dumped into the magma.

{{Category|Designations}}

Building

2014-08-24T23:43:13Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Superior" using the rating script

{{Quality|Superior|23:43, 24 August 2014 (UTC)}}
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[[Image:Build_Menu.gif|right|frame|The Build Menu]]

The '''Building menu''' can be accessed from the main menu by pressing the {{k|b}} key. This allows your dwarves to build anything listed within the menu, provided you have access to the proper materials. This list also contains several sub-menus which expand to show further building options.

Any item within this list, once built, can then be interacted with using the {{k|q}}:Set Building Tasks/Prefs key. All buildings can be disassembled into their original parts and removed using the {{k|x}} key while within the {{k|q}} menu. You can also use {{k|t}}:View Items in Buildings to look at the items currently stored within an individual building as well as which items were used to construct that particular building.

The exception to this rule are items located under the {{k|C}}:Walls/Stairs/Floors sub-menu. These items are considered {{k|C}}onstructions, and as such, have no interactions available. These items are removed using the {{k|d}}:Designations-{{k|n}}:Remove Construction key. For more detail on how buildings and constructions interact, please see the [[Constructions]] article.

==Notes==
* When a building gets designated for construction, the items designated to be used in the construction will be reserved for that building, meaning that other dwarves will not use that specific item for something else.

==List of buildings==

{{DF2012_buildings}}

Herring

2014-08-24T01:28:29Z

Khargas: Cleaned up and migrated tag removed.

{{Quality|Superior|23:32, 9 June 2010 (UTC)}}
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[[File:Vermin-Herring.jpg|thumb|left|Admired for its massive schools.]]

'''Herring''' are a type of [[vermin]] [[fish]]. They are found in [[biome|arctic]] and [[temperate]] [[ocean|oceans]], and are a ready source of [[food]] when [[fish cleaning|cleaned]] at a [[fishery]].
 
{{D for Dwarf}}
Unfortunately, herring are not a suitable replacement for a battle axe for performing the woodcutting labor. Despite what strange knights state, some [[Quarry bush|shrubberies]] will suffice.

{{gamedata}}
{{Vermin}}

Make your own weapons

2014-08-23T18:57:08Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Superior" to "Exceptional" using the rating script

{{Quality|Exceptional|18:57, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
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'''Making your own weapons''' on [[embark]] can save embark points and kick-start your [[metal industry]]. It can also serve as a minimalist embark and add an early-game challenge for advanced players. Just keep in mind, that you'll need time to forge your axes and picks, potentially leaving your [[wood cutter]] and [[miner]] standing around waiting. Also, you'll probably have other concerns during your first year; choose wisely.

Nevertheless, making your own weapons is quite easy. Currently a [[wood]]en training axe created at a [[carpenter's workshop]] is capable of [[wood cutting|felling trees]], which is by far the least expensive option for your fortress's early woodcutting (requiring no embark supplies). Picks are slightly more complicated, requiring [[metal]], an [[anvil]], and [[fuel]].

The embark savings can be quite considerable, allowing you to concentrate points on other skills or supplies, or even an early steel-equipped military. Occasionally a [[civilization]] may not have access to an iron anvil but curiously has access to a steel one which cost 300 points; any savings are much harder to obtain with such a large expenditure up-front. Copper is the cheapest material for creating mining [[pick]] axes and a metal battle axe provides a [[wood cutter]] with a better weapon to defend themselves from dangerous wildlife. However, Bronze is a better material for creating [[military]] grade weapons and armor if your [[civilization]] has access to it.

==Crude copper supplies==
The basic item selection in "Prepare for the journey carefully" comes with two [[copper]] [[pick]]s (at 44 points each), two copper [[battle axe]]s (68 points each), and an iron anvil (100 points). Since copper ores (except [[tetrahedrite]]) cost 6 points each, and bituminous coal costs 3 points each (and you already have an anvil included), you can carry the supplies necessary to create FOUR copper items for less than a third of the cost of ONE copper battle axe:
* 1 copper ore ([[native copper]] or [[malachite]]): 6 points
* 1 [[wood]] (for [[charcoal]] to smelt the coal): 3 points
* 1 [[bituminous coal]] (for 9 fuel to create weapons): 3 points
* 2 stone (for fire safe buildings): 6 points
* Total points: 18

Once embarked you must build a [[wood furnace]] to make a bar of charcoal, once done disassemble the furnace. Build a [[smelter]] and process your bituminous coal to fuel. Smelt the copper ore into 4 copper bars. Build a [[metalsmith's forge]] and start creating copper equipment. Battle axes and picks cost 1 bar each so you can create 2 of each with 1 bar. If you plan to bring more than one copper ore, consider upgrading to bronze instead.

Note: if your embark has trees you can avoid spending points on fuel or wood. Deconstruct your wagon to yield 3 logs, build a [[carpenter's workshop]], create a [[wood]]en training axe, and cut wood and process to [[charcoal]] as necessary for fuel. This process requires more effort and takes a little longer but it saves a few more points.

Note: [[Ash]] counts as a "fire-safe bar" and can be used to construct the [[smelter]] and [[metalsmith's forge]].

==Better bronze supplies==
For a minimal increase in costs you can upgrade to [[bronze]] equipment. An additional 6 points will provide up to EIGHT bronze items:
* 1 copper ore (native copper or malachite): 6 points
* 1 [[cassiterite]]: 6 points
* 1 [[wood]] (for [[charcoal]] to smelt the coal): 3 points
* 1 [[bituminous coal]] (for 9 fuel): 3 points
* 2 stone: 6 points
* Total: 24 points

Build a wood furnace, make a bar of charcoal, then disassemble the furnace. Build a smelter and process your bituminous coal to fuel. Smelt the ores into 8 bronze bars. Build a forge and start creating bronze equipment.

==Superior steel supplies==
Unfortunately, iron ores will cost you 24 points each, and steel-making requires an equal investment in flux stone, so if you're hoping to go directly for [[steel]] equipment you'll need:
* 1 iron ore (any type): 24 points
* 4 [[flux]] (any type): 24 points
* 1 [[wood]] (for [[charcoal]] to smelt the coal): 3 points
* 2 [[bituminous coal]] (for 17 fuel): 6 points
* 2 stone: 6 points
* Total: 63 points

Build a wood furnace, make a bar of charcoal, then disassemble the furnace. Build a smelter and process your bituminous coal to fuel. Smelt the iron ore into 4 iron bars. Smelt two iron bars into pig iron. Smelt the pig iron into steel. Build a forge and start creating steel equipment.

== Minimalist challenge ==

For the hardcore survivalist dwarves only.

Start out with ''only''
:* 1 [[iron]] [[anvil]]
:* 1 [[copper]] [[ore]].

And figure it out from there. Real dwarves (or real DF players) won't need to peek.

{{Spoil small|
* Deconstruct the initial wagon for the 3 wood it provides.
* Build a wood furnace with the copper nugget.
* Make 1 ash and 2 charcoal from the wood.
* Deconstruct the wood furnace.
* Build a smelter with the ash ''(a fire-safe "bar")''.
* Smelt the copper ore into 4 copper bars.
* Deconstruct the smelter.
* Build a metalsmith's forge with the anvil and ash bar.
* Forge a copper battle axe.
* Chop down 2 trees.
* Build a wood furnace with a copper bar.
* Make 2 charcoal.
* Forge 2 copper picks.
... and proceed as normal.
''(this procedure can be shortened considerably if you are willing to cut down trees with a training axe)''
|Step-by-step}}

User:Khargas

2014-08-23T18:35:56Z

Khargas:

Hi. I'm a clinical research nurse and I play Dwarf Fort.

 

I'm currently in the process of checking migrated articles against the release notes to ensure that they are up to date, as well as assessing unrated articles.

Walnut

2014-08-23T18:34:05Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Fine" using the rating script

{{Quality|Fine|18:34, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Treelookup/0}}
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'''Walnut''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, walnut [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

{{gamedata}}
{{Plants}}
{{Category|Surface trees}}

Undead

2014-08-23T18:33:57Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Superior" using the rating script

{{Quality|Superior|18:33, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Migrated_article}}

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The '''animated dead''' (or '''undead''') {{Tile|Ñ|3:0}} are the bodies of formerly living creatures animated through fell magic. These [[night creature|night creatures]] can be created intentionally by a [[necromancer]] to serve him, or arise naturally from the dark energies of [[surroundings|evil regions]].

==What is an undead?==
An undead may be formed of either the rotting husk or the bones and shell of a being. The former is considered a zombie, and the latter a skeleton. Although [[vampire]]s are no longer performing the bodily functions of a living being, they are not considered the "animated dead", this term being reserved for a corpse which has begun to move and act on its own or by the will of another, but lacking any form of intelligence beyond a primitive urge to hunt and kill any living thing it can find. Where zombies and skeletons cannot think or behave in any sophisticated manner beyond "kill everything", vampires are willful beings, generally indistinguishable from living persons (and capable of great deception to ensure that nobody learns about their condition). [[Ghost]]s are called Undead in-game, but they are also not considered animated dead (as they lack a corporeal form).

As long as the remains of a creature contain a body part capable of grasping, be it a hand or head or the entire upper half, those remains can be animated. This can lead to animated hands and heads, which seems comical until you consider the implications of a swarm of such monstrosities and the havoc that they might wreak. Even some parts of creatures which should be incapable of autonomous movement can be raised, such as the hair or skin. They are, however, predictably nonlethal, mostly serving as a B-movie terror monster to scare your dwarves into running around. A body part can be resurrected as a zombie even if it has already done so and been de-animated again. However, collapsing, pulping or goring the head, lower body, or upper body, ensures that the zombie cannot rise up again, as does damage from extreme heat. Likewise, destroying the structural integrity of an animate body-part will stop its reanimation.

==Traits==
Upon animation, an undead gains a [[syndrome]] that fundamentally changes its physical characteristics and behaviour. Some of the traits they generally possess are:
*Severely increased [[attribute|strength and toughness]] and reduced [[speed]];
*Opposition to life;
*Lack of emotion, pain, thought, or need for sustenance or breath;
*Undead status (NOT_LIVING), sterility, and inability to attribute rust or gain.

Undead retain the wounds that killed them in life, as well as any they have sustained since or from a temporary de-animation. Undead vary in levels of strength depending on their form. Certain types of animal are likely the most dangerous that it is common to encounter, and can have dangerous strength, speed, aggression, and piercing attacks. The undead of butcherable creatures can still be butchered once de-animated, as long as they have not rotted; doing so will prevent them from re-animating again, though their untanned skins and hair can potentially become undead.

Larger undead with the BUILDINGDESTROYER tag can still destroy buildings, though undead with special attacks like webbing will not be able to use them. Undead thieves can still pick locks, but will not path to a locked door unless in pursuit of the living. If found underground, undead will usually path into a fort if they can.

Undead from [[necromancer]] [[tower]]s are reported to carry ''[[armor]] and [[weapon]]s'', giving the terror of the announcement ''"The dead walk! Hide while you can!"'' far more weight than before.

===Thralls, Husks, and Zombies===
Certain kinds of evil [[weather]] can instantly turn any [[syndrome]]-vulnerable creature into a bloodthirsty undead killer, opposed to all life. These creatures are referred to be the sort of weather that transformed them, an identifier as a thrall, husk, or zombie, and their original creature name-- for example, a ''stray guineahen unholy gloom husk''. The specific procedurally generated syndromes of thralling evil clouds are functionally identical to that of animate dead, with the same extreme gains in physical stats, lack of pain or breath, etc.

Because the interaction can happen without first killing the target, thrall-like creatures retain any armor or weapons they were carrying. Perhaps worst of all, they may still be contaminated with the material leading to the transformation, infecting those with whom they wrestle.

==Destruction==
[[Morale]] is possibly the biggest obstacle to directly confronting a zombie horde. Without enough [[discipline]], a troop sent to fight them may instead decide to flee in terror from such abominations of nature. As you may imagine, this can lead to endless amounts of [[Fun]], for unlike your dwarves, the undead cannot feel fear or any other emotion, and any dead dwarves may in turn rise up into more zombies. It is important that any undead-fighting squad consists of severely hardened and disciplined soldiers. Any soldiers you bring to embark on an evil biome should have ''at least'' two points in [[discipline]], as morale is currently buggy and leads to ordinary dwarves fleeing even from living wildlife{{bug|7161}}. This may also be worked around with a little [[modding]], by adding at least [NATURAL_SKILL:DISCIPLINE:1] to all civilised races and trainable pets.

The combat itself can also be quite [[fun]]. They are far greater in strength and durability than the living, feel no pain, and have no useful articulations to damage. You would not wish to attempt to kill them with puncture wounds for this reason, and likewise, choking is ineffective against their lack of breath. They can only be killed by tearing them asunder (bisection), beheading, or pulping an important structural body-part. Blunt weapons are effective weapons to use for animate corpses, for they are not only less likely to sever off parts for further reanimation, but are likely to inflict pulping damage, mangling the zombies so badly that they cannot rise up again. Of those available to dwarves, maces are more efficient at pulping than warhammers. Flails are better still, if one can acquire them. Axes and swords can cut apart the physical form of the undead; this, however, may be dangerous if the source of reanimation is still active and present, as the more body parts are about, the more fodder for animation is present. In this case, it is wiser to either butcher the corpses (if they can be butchered), throw them into [[magma]], or [[dwarven atom smasher|pulverise them with a drawbridge]], which will destroy the bodies so thoroughly that they cannot be reanimated again. A thrall may be "safely" fought with cutting weapons however, as long as there is no risk of infection at hand. Undead animals can be disposed of by cage-trapping them and trading them away to passing <s>merchants</s> [[Elves]].

Undead from necromancer sieges should be treated with far more caution, as they can carry equipment. These are exceedingly dangerous, for their already heightened strength and toughness are further augmented by weapons-grade metal. You may want to eschew direct combat altogether in this situation, especially as necromancer sieges already tend to summon the walking dead in pages of a hundred, and one is enough to rout an entire squad.

[[Evil weather]] thralls may also require utmost caution. Any thrall carrying a melee weapon or armour can dispatch a full squad in short order even with average combat skills, making direct confrontation an unwise choice. A particularly dire possibility is that, if the responsible evil cloud is in dust form, the thrall is still contaminated with whatever substance transformed it. If this is the case, any dwarves sent to fight the thrall will become thralls themselves if the thrall tries to wrestle them. From there, the new thralls might spread the contaminant further still, which can easily lead to a [[Fun|full-fledged zombie apocalypse]].

In these and other dire cases, it is often better to not fight them directly at all, instead resorting to traps, [[dwarven atom smasher|atom smashers]] and other indirect ways to neutralise them. [[Magma]], that classic solution to all dwarven problems, is another effective weapon, as is fire in general. The sheer heat of magma will eventually destroy the corpse, rendering it unable to rise again. Magma kills zombies fairly slowly though.

Reports have been made of zombies animated by the ambient evil of a region deanimating on their own when wandering away from such a vile place.

==Undead Fun Facts==

* Undead can animate from hauled corpses.
* Undead will not attack vampires.
* Undead will not attack inorganic enemies like the [[bronze colossus]].
* Undead risen from starved animals in cages are not caged.
* Undead attack all organic megabeasts as well as invaders, except necromancers (as their sorcery allows them to control undead easily).
* Creatures capable of evading traps or bypassing locked doors retain that ability as undead.
* Enthralled dwarves from your fortress are not affected by traps.
* Dwarves who like an animal will also enjoy that undead animal.

==Bugs==
Dwarves will not report someone missing as dead even if the corpse is gnawing on their ear.

Animated creatures can somehow become stuck in mid-air, and will not move at all, even if killed. Spatters of blood from the animated party also float in this manner. This has been known to occur in cases ranging from a deer's animated head to a goblin's partial skeleton.

{{category|Creatures}}

Trade depot

2014-08-23T18:33:41Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Superior" using the rating script

{{Quality|Superior|18:33, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Migrated_article}}

{{Building|name=Trade depot|key=D
|job=
* [[Broker]] noble (optional)
|construction=
* 3 [[Building material]]s (non-[[economic]])
|construction_job=
* [[Architecture]]
* and 1 of:
** [[Metalsmithing]]
** [[Masonry]]
** [[Carpentry]]
|purpose=
Trade goods with [[caravan|merchants]].
}}{{av}}{{buggy}}

A '''Trade Depot''' allows you to trade with [[caravan]]s that arrive at your fortress. Trade depots can be created from almost any building material, and construction requires the [[Architecture]] skill along with the appropriate craft labor ([[Carpentry]], [[Masonry]], or [[Metalsmithing]]). Three materials must be used to build the Trade Depot, with the oldest material chosen serving as the main material.{{cite forum|134816/4867108}} There must be at least 10 spaces between the Depot and the edge of the map. They can be built on top of [[construction|constructed]] floors and walls, allowing you to make a trade depot which is elevated above the surrounding land.

== Depot accessibility ==

Hitting {{K|D}} will tell you if the depot is accessible via a [[wagon]], which requires a three tile wide path from the depot to the edge of the map. Note that this path is measured outward from the depot, so it requires a functional depot to display. ''Warning:'' If the map has an extremely large amount of [[tree]]s (Heavily Forested) there may not be any way for the caravan to get to your depot, unless you chop down a path for the wagons.

Also note that [[trap]]s will block [[wagon]] access (although not merchants with pack animals), so you cannot easily use them to defend your depot.

[[Boulder]]s (the natural kind) and [[minecart|track]]s also block wagons. Boulders can be removed by [[engraving|smooth]]ing ({{k|d}}-{{k|s}}) or constructing and removing a [[wall]]. [[Bridge]]s can serve as an alternative for tracks.

== Depot building options ==

Press {{K|b}}-{{K|D}} to build a depot. Depots occupy a 5x5 area. Once built, press {{K|q}} and move your cursor over the depot to gain access to the following options:

=== Move Goods to/from Depot ===
{{K|g}}: This command becomes active when a caravan arrives on your map. This screen menu is similar to the [[stocks]] menu ({{K|z}} - Stocks). This is where you select what items you want to trade with the caravan. If you have particular items you want to sell to the caravan, you can {{K|s}}earch for it. This is convenient if you want to export all your prepared meals or finished goods. Also shown is the culling on {{K|m}}andate option. The move to depot screen will not show things that violate an export [[mandate]]. By pressing {{K|m}}, it will change to Ignoring {{K|m}}andates, and you can select banned items for export. For example, if your [[mayor]] has a mandate banning the export of iron, this screen will hide bins that contain iron items. By changing this option, all iron items will be shown.

After selecting items and exiting the screen, [[job]]s will be queued to move the items to the depot. All dwarves, regardless of [[labor]] settings, can move goods to the depot. Items that have not been moved will show [PENDING], while those that have been brought to the depot and are ready for trade and will be marked as [TRADING].

Items selected for trading will remain at the depot until the caravan leaves. Alternatively you can select the item again. Once no longer required at the depot, items will be available for use or hauling to stockpiles as normal. If you don't want all the items to be returned to their stockpiles, you can optionally {{K|f}}orbid them by looking at the [[Controls_guide#View_items_in_buildings.2C_t|i{{K|t}}ems]] in the depot.

=== No trader needed at depot or Trader requested at depot ===
{{K|r}}: This requests a dwarf to come to the depot. To conduct trades with caravans, a trader must be present at the Trade Depot. Once requested, a job will be created for a dwarf to make their way to the depot and remain there until released with this setting, or the job is interrupted, such as by the dwarf deciding to drink, sleep, or eat. The Trade at Depot job is fairly low-priority, so [[labor]]s may have to be disabled in order to get the broker to begin the job, or the broker can be temporarily added to a burrow which covers only the depot.

=== Only broker may trade or Anyone may trade ===
{{K|b}}: This setting determines who will perform the trade. If '''Only broker may trade''' is active, then only the [[Broker]] [[noble]] will respond to the trader request. This can become a problem when the broker is sleeping or otherwise occupied, but dwarves with low [[Broker skills]] will receive poorer deals when trading. If anyone may trade is selected, and someone other than the broker becomes a better [[appraiser]] than the broker, the broker's appraisal skill is still used.

=== Trade ===
{{K|t}}: This option becomes available once the caravan and your trader are both at the depot. It begins trading. If more than one set of merchants is using the trade depot, you will be given the option of who you want to trade with.

== Bugs ==
* Setting a meeting area over a depot, then removing it, will cause dwarves to act as though it were still a meeting area. This is irreversible.

* Merchants in a trade depot who are accosted by hostile creatures may then refuse to trade. If any merchant is unable to make it to the depot, all the other merchants will similarly refuse to trade.

* Dumping items belonging to the merchants will result in the depot thinking merchants are gone but the merchants hanging around

* [[Forbid]]ding a depot, or slating it for removal immediately after causing the caravan trader to be unwilling to do business with your dwarves (e.g. trading wood to the elves) will cause the caravan to leave all their items and embark on their journey, leaving you to claim the items for yourself. Be warned that this will almost definitely strain relations with the trading civilization...

* The game behaves poorly when multiple trade depots are available. Merchants with wagons may path to one depot, while those with pack animals path to the other; then both groups will insist on waiting for the rest of their party to arrive.

* Large gems, once selected to be traded, will remain at the Depot forever. This bug occurs because no stockpile accepts large gems, and is not specific to the Depot.
* If you slate a depot for removal while merchants are in the process of leaving, the wagons will never leave and eventually the animals and remaining traders will go mad.

{{Buildings}}

Tea

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'''Tea''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, tea [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

{{gamedata}}
{{Plants}}
{{Category|Surface trees}}

Surroundings

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'''Surroundings''' affect the types of [[crop|plant]] life, wild [[animal]]s and [[creatures]] which will appear in play within a given [[biome]]. It is possible to start a [[fortress]] that overlaps multiple alignment types (for example a terrifying [[forest]] and a calm [[shrubland]]). Some players consider this desirable, as it provides diversity in your little corner of the world, but it also has its dangers in the form of more ferocious wildlife.

Some plants and animals are unique to a certain type of surroundings and will only be found if those surroundings are present on the map. Note that most creatures also require a specific [[climate]] to spawn in. Again, it's important to check the specific biomes making up your site. Once a [[creature]] spawns on the map, it is under no compulsion to stay in its own biome and can roam as it pleases. Because of this, the specifics of what means what can be difficult to pin down sometimes.

== Combinations of surroundings ==

{| {{prettytable}}
|-style="background:#dddddd"
|style="background:#aaaaaa"| ||'''Benign'''||'''Neutral'''||'''Savage'''
|-
|style="background:#dddddd"|'''Good'''||Serene||Mirthful||Joyous Wilds
|-
|style="background:#dddddd"|'''Neutral'''||Calm||Wilderness||Untamed Wilds
|-
|style="background:#dddddd"|'''Evil'''||Sinister||Haunted||Terrifying
|}

===Neutral===

:Including {{DFtext|Calm|7:0}}, {{DFtext|Wilderness|2:0}} and {{DFtext|Untamed wilds|6:1}}

'''Neutral''' regions are the easiest to understand. They generally mimic the real world, with recognizable wildlife. They can be quite dangerous depending on the region, holding anything from generally non-aggressive but physically powerful enemies such as [[gorilla]]s and [[elephant]]s to the very aggressive and very dangerous [[giant eagle]]s. As one might expect, ''Benign Neutral'' zones are really very safe, while ''Savage Neutral'' areas can pose some major difficulties, depending on the dominating climate and landforms. You'll find most of the standard aboveground plants in these alignments, such as [[prickle berry|prickle berries]], [[rope reed]], [[wild strawberry|wild strawberries]] and the like.

===Good===

:Including {{DFtext|Serene|1:1}}, {{DFtext|Mirthful|2:1}} and {{DFtext|Joyous Wilds|3:1}}

'''Good''' biomes tend to have less aggressive and weaker [[creatures]], except for the [[unicorn]]. Good regions also support the wild [[sun berry]], which makes the best [[alcohol]] in the game. There are generally slight changes between ''Benign Good'' and ''Savage Good''.

====Distinctive flora & fauna====
* Animals: [[mountain gnome]], [[satyr]], [[unicorn]], [[merperson]], [[gorlak]]
* Plants: [[sun berry]], [[bubble bulb]], [[downy grass]]
* Trees: [[feather tree]]
* Vermin: [[fluffy wambler]], [[fairy]], [[pixie]]

===Evil===

:Including {{DFtext|Sinister|5:0}}, {{DFtext|Haunted|5:1}} and {{DFtext|Terrifying|5:1}}

'''Evil''' regions are much more <s>dangerous</s> [[fun]] than their ''Neutral'' and ''Good'' counterparts across the board. At their root, ''Evil'' regions are modified ''Neutral'' regions. In addition to a pack of other [[creatures]] that are nasty, dangerous, and spiteful such as [[beak dog]]s, [[harpy|harpies]], and [[ogre]]s, ''Evil'' regions may modify their ''Neutral'' base by infecting many (but not all) of the indigenous [[creatures]] with various forms of [[undead|undeath]].

The [[undead]] cannot be killed through conventional means; dismemberment reanimates the individual body parts, creating even more enemies than before. They must be either butchered and tanned, exposed to magma, [[Dwarven atom smasher|smashed under a drawbridge]], or repeatedly pulped with blunt damage, in order to kill them permanently in certain (always evil) reanimating biomes. Any non-undead creature that dies in such a biome will reanimate as an undead creature after it is killed, including sentient beings, and any severed body parts and loose skin will also come to life as an individual enemy. Clearly, hunting undead animals for food is pointless, and finding kills in a place where things won't stay dead is suicidal. Furthermore, there is a good chance that even soldier dwarves will flee in terror from such abominations, a bad sign when the undead feel no emotion or fear. Sea Creatures will be able to come ashore in their undead forms, so expect to deal with that if you choose such a location for embark. The trees at embark may all be dead, and though they can be harvested, will not regrow. Undead shrubs are useless for gathering, too.

Even the [[weather]] is dangerous; clouds of creeping murk can inflict various syndromes on par with those of [[forgotten beast]]s, or instantly transform creatures into freakishly powerful thralls. Evil rains may also inflict random syndromes, albeit less severe ones, and always cause strong unhappy [[thought]]s and a desire to wash. Evil rain won't refill pools, but a single biome may have both evil and regular rain, even at the same time.

Because of the inhospitability of evil regions, even ''Benign Evil'' is very difficult for beginning players to earn a niche to work in, so it should be reserved for a challenge play only.

====Distinctive flora & fauna====
* Animals: [[ogre]], [[dark gnome]], [[beak dog]], [[foul blendec]], [[grimeling]], [[harpy]], [[troll]], [[strangler]], [[nightwing]], [[ice wolf]], [[blizzard man]], [[sea monster]], [[manera]]
* Plants: [[sliver barb]], [[staring eyeball]], [[wormy tendril]]
* Trees: [[glumprong]]
* Vermin: [[demon rat]], [[blood gnat]], [[knuckle worm]], [[phantom spider]]

===Savage===
: Including {{DFtext|Untamed Wilds|6:1}}, {{DFtext|Joyous Wilds|3:1}} and {{DFtext|Terrifying|5:1}}
'''Savage''' surroundings are typically more dangerous than their Neutral or Benign counterparts, due to the "wildlife" (naturally occurring creatures) found therein. Savage regions contain many giant versions of normal wildlife, as well as sentient humanoid versions. A "Savage Good" region is called Joyous Wilds, a "Savage Neutral" region is called Untamed Wilds, and a "Savage Evil" region is called Terrifying (and is the most dangerous alignment by far, if you couldn't tell by the name).

====Distinctive flora & fauna====
* Animals: [[giant eagle]], [[giant cheetah]], [[giant leopard]], [[giant jaguar]], [[giant tiger]], [[giant lion]], [[tigerman]], [[slug man]], [[snail man]], [[leech man]], [[giant desert scorpion]], [[sasquatch]], [[sea serpent]]
* Plants: [[whip vine]]
* Trees: [[highwood]]
* Vermin: [[two-legged rhino lizard]], [[moghopper]], [[fox squirrel]], [[acorn fly]]

{{World}}

Struck down

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When the message "x has been struck down" appears, some dwarf has received an immediately fatal injury in [[combat]], namely : the [[brain]] being damaged, the [[head]] being chopped off or the lower/upper body being cut in two. Too much of this message and your fort may experience [[tantrum spiral|large amounts of fun]].

Since 0.34.01, it is also noticeable that if a dwarf is not seen dying by another dwarf, they will be no announcement of the dwarf dying.

More specific death messages for other scenarios include the following: [[bow|shot]] [[crossbow|and]] [[magma crab|killed]], [[fire|burned]] [[magma|to]] [[fire imp|death]], [[water|drowned]], [[ice|encased in ice]], [[obsidian|encased in obsidian]], [[dragon|melted]], [[dwarven atom smasher|crushed by a drawbridge]], [[Hell|fell into a deep chasm]], crushed by a [[cave-in]], died after colliding with an obstacle, and (most commonly among [[noble]]s,) [[trap|killed by a spike]].

{{Category|Fortress mode}}
{{Category|Interface}}

Squad

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A '''squad''' is a group of [[military]] dwarves who share the same [[scheduling|schedule]] and active military orders. Squads are a fundamental part of your fortress' military — they are the units who carry out all the orders you give them. Your ability to manage these iron-blooded dwarves could spell the difference between a healthy fort's life and death.

For quick reference: from the main menu the '''military''' screen is accessible through the {{k|m}} key and the '''squads''' screen is accessible through the {{k|s}} key. The military screen and all its tabs are mouse-compatible, and can be navigated through mouse clicks rather than strictly keys (when in windowed mode).

For a simple, ''very'' basic, unarmed/unarmoured "How to attack a creature", see [[attack]].

==Forming Squads==

Before you can do anything with your military you may want to go into the [[noble]]s screen ({{k|n}}) and designate a '''[[militia commander]]'''. Your fortress can only have one militia commander, who acts as the commander-in-chief of all squads. The militia commander also serves as the leader of your first squad.

Each squad after the first will have its own [[captain]], who reports to the militia commander. Squad captains can be designated through the nobles screen, or by creating a new squad on the {{k|m}}ilitary screen and then assigning a dwarf to the first position of that squad.

When you have designated a commander or captain, going to the military screen will show that dwarf under the "Squads/Leaders" heading and you'll notice an option to create a new squad. You can also create a new squad before you designate your militia commander; the first dwarf you choose will automatically be assigned that position.

When you create a squad, you will be asked what uniform to give them. The game creates three uniforms by default; if you aren't sure what to use, or if you want to customize their uniform, choose ''No uniform''. (See [[#Equipping Soldiers|Equipping Soldiers]], below, for details.)

Once the first squad has been created, you can then fill out the squad with any military-capable dwarves in your fort. No more than ten dwarves can be assigned to any one squad. When you add a dwarf to one squad they will be removed from another; for this reason you will always see the majority of your dwarves in the rightmost pane. Dwarves that are already in a military squad will have the name of that squad in the uppermost box, allowing you to skip them over if necessary.

==Equipping Soldiers==

In the military screen, press {{k|n}} to open the '''uniforms''' tab. Each listing under the 'Uniforms' header is essentially a pre-designed set of equipment that you can quickly apply to any individual soldier or entire squad, much like a template. You can create new uniforms if you want, and add or remove items from any uniform (even the standard ones). Uniforms are only ''created'' or ''modified'' in this tab, not applied.

While still in the military screen, press {{k|e}} to open the '''equipment''' tab. The default sub-tab, {{k|V}}iew/Customize, will be open. We'll come back to that in a moment. To apply one of your uniform templates, press {{k|U}} to open the Assign Uniforms sub-tab. Make sure the squad you want is highlighted under Squads/Leaders and then move the selector to the Position Uniform header. Pressing {{k|enter}} will apply the selected uniform to the individual dwarf of your choosing, and {{k|shift}}+{{k|enter}} will apply the selected uniform to the entire squad. If you edit a uniform after this, you will need to reapply the uniform for the dwarves to recognize the changes.

In the {{k|V}}iew/Customize sub-tab, you can select individual dwarves (technically squad positions) and apply individual pieces of equipment to them - {{k|A}}rmor, {{k|L}}eggings, {{k|H}}elms, {{k|G}}loves, {{k|B}}oots, {{k|S}}hields, and {{k|W}}eapons. You can also specify {{k|M}}aterial and {{k|C}}olor depending on the piece of equipment highlighted. Finally, there are two settings that can be toggled for each dwarf: ''Ove{{k|r}} clothing'' and ''Partial {{k|m}}atches''. These are both on (highlighted) by default. ''Over clothing'' means the dwarf will do his best to wear his uniform in addition to his civilian [[clothing]]; if toggled, it becomes ''Replace clothing'', and the dwarf will strip naked before donning his military gear. ''Partial matches'' means that if a dwarf cannot satisfy an equipment assignment, he'll substitute something close; if toggled to ''Exact matches'', he'll go without rather than making do with a substitute.

To select a specific piece of equipment (such as an artifact), select 'specific _____' under that equipment type (e.g. 'specific armor' in the Armor field); for your convenience, highest-quality equipment is listed first.

You have the option to wear equipment over clothing or to replace clothing using the {{k|r}} key on the equipment screen. Wearing armor over clothing can cause problems as some civilian clothing (caps, gloves, and shoes) will conflict with their military counterparts (helms, gauntlets, and boots). Even though the '''equipment''' tab will show that these items have been assigned to a solider they will not actually wear them. To avoid this use the ''Replace clothing'' option. As armor counts as clothing, dwarves will not get bad thoughts if only wearing armor.

For ranged soldiers, open the '''ammunition''' tab ({{k|f}}) to assign [[ammunition]] to your dwarves. If you chose the ''Archer'' uniform when you created the squad, then the game has already assigned 250 bolts to this squad. Otherwise, you must assign them some ammo (Important: The assigned amount of ammunition refers to the total amount which is carried by the whole squad--you'll generally want about 30 bolts per soldier). If you don't care what type of bolts they use, just pick "bolts" and they will use any bolts they can find. Also note that [[quiver]]s must be available for marksdwarves to equip bolts/arrows. They are not assigned under the '''equipment''' tab and are automatically retrieved by dwarves that require them.

If you want them to train at an [[archery target]], you may want to assign lower-quality [[wood]] or [[bone]] bolts for training use. While this prevents your dwarves from wasting high-quality bolts, it can cause problems when training or combat bolts become "stuck" in inventory{{bug|4530}}. By default, both training and combat use are allowed for all assigned ammunition; use {{k|C}} and {{k|T}} to toggle these settings. If the letter is present next to the ammunition the use is turned on.

Soldiers who have more than one item to put on will not use distance to determine which of the remaining items will be equipped next. Therefore it is best to keep all dwarf-usable equipment within a small area, ideally near your [[barracks]].

The {{k|m}}ilitary-{{k|e}}quipment screen can also be used to ''see'' what equipment has been assigned, without changing it. A green checkmark will appear next to each equipment that has successfully been assigned to a dwarf (which doesn't necessarily mean the dwarf has actually picked it up yet). For example, if your 9th and 10th squad members don't have a checkmark next to their gauntlets, then you may want to make some more. Pressing {{k|P}} lets you see ''precisely'' what items the dwarf has been assigned.

Dwarves do not share weapons and armor even if in the same squad and even if the equipment is currently unused by another squadmate who is off duty. This means, for example, that you cannot have one set of armor for a squad of four dwarves who share guard duty one at a time. When one dwarf is relieved from duty, he may take off his armor (if set to wear civilian clothes) but the new dwarf going on duty will not then pick it up and wear it. Each dwarf in a squad needs his own uniform.

===Changing Equipment===
Let's suppose you started with the ''Leather armor '' uniform and then smithed some metal armor, and now you want to change your squads to the metal armor. From the military screen {{k|m}}, access the '''equipment''' view {{k|e}}. Then open the uniforms sub-view {{k|U}} which will show the standard Leather, Metal, and Archer uniforms on the right (if you haven't deleted them). To change a full squad, select the squad on the left, then select the uniform (metal) on the right, and hit {{k|shift}}-{{k|enter}} (if you only hit {{k|enter}} it will only apply the change to the lone selected squad member). Just hope you have enough metal armor and that Urist goes and picks it up!

Dwarves will not always pick up their military equipment immediately. An off-duty dwarf will sometimes prefer to perform one of his civilian jobs rather than putting on armor. Giving squads an [[#Orders|order]] will put them on duty and force them to gather their equipment with a bit more hustle.

===Equipping Bone and Shell Armor===
One peculiarity for equipping [[bone]] and [[shell]] armor is that, for the purposes of the '''equipment''' and '''uniforms''' tabs, bone and shell are white. Further, they are not explicitly listed in the {{k|M}}aterial of the {{k|V}}iew/Customize sub-tab. A workaround for this problem is that bone and shell are the only materials that are white colored and can be used to make armor by default. So, to add bone or shell armor items to a preset uniform template, you need to add a specific type of armor (a helm, for instance) with the modifiers of {{k|C}}olour "white (dye)" (thus, a "white helm"). This workaround is ONLY effective if you also have no unique artifact armor made out of a white metal (such as an Aluminum Breastplate, Platinum Helm, or Silver Low Boot). It also requires that the armor template be for "Exact matches" (not "Partial matches") using the {{k|m}} in the Uniforms tab.

===Equipping Leather Shields===
[[Leather]] is not a selectable material in the uniform screen. However, its uniformly brown colour means that you can order dwarves to use only brown-coloured [[shield]]s and be reasonably confident that they will choose only leather shields. Leather and wood are quite similar as shield materials, but if your leatherworkers make better shields than your carpenters you may want to use their products instead. [[Highwood]] shields are also an option with this uniform setting, and will be chosen if their value is appropriately high.

==Orders==

Getting your military to actually ''do'' something is the second step. Squads receive '''passive orders''' through [[scheduling]], and you can give '''direct orders''' to '''attack''' one or more specific targets or to '''move''' to a specific location at will through the {{k|s}}quads menu.

Passive orders are programming that a squad will follow in the absence of direct orders. Passive orders are typically used for training and defense, while direct orders are used for taking the fight to the enemy. The ''squads'' menu is predominantly used for direct orders, and the ''Alerts'' and ''Schedule'' tabs of the ''military'' menu are used for passive orders. This article will focus on active commands; for more information on passive orders, see [[scheduling]].

A squad that is following a direct command is free to go wherever it is ordered to go, unhindered by any [[burrow]] restrictions.

===Selecting Squads/Soldiers===

When needed, soldiers can be sent to do specific tasks to <strike>satiate the blood god</strike> defend your fortress. Once these orders have been canceled, your dwarves will return to their passive orders (if on duty), or their civilian lives (if off duty). Note, however, that your dwarves may continue to move towards their prior objective and mill about for some time afterwards. For this reason (and because canceling orders causes your dwarves to immediately drop any [[wear|worn-out]] clothing) it is best to order your dwarves back to a safe area '''before''' canceling their orders.

In the {{k|s}}quad menu, you can press {{k|a}}/{{k|b}}/{{k|c}}/etc to select the squad that will execute an order, or hold {{k|shift}} to select multiple at once. You may press {{k|p}} if you want to toggle between having an individual dwarf or the squad perform the order.

If a squad is off duty when you give them an order, they will switch to on-duty status before carrying out the order. This may mean they need to pick up new equipment before they will carry out their orders.

There are two types of active orders that can be given to your dwarves: a move order or an attack order.

===Nobles in Squads ===
Here's a link to the DF forum, with some not always correct speculation on if you should put any nobles in the military:
http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=113639.msg3467517#msg3467517

====Move Order====

From the {{k|s}}quad menu, a '''move order''' (also known as a ''Station'' order) is issued by selecting a squad, pressing {{k|m}}, choosing an area, and pressing {{k|enter}}.

Each dwarf in the squad will select a random (reachable) point within 3 tiles of the spot you specify, and will move directly to that point. He will stand there until you cancel the order, or until he is overcome by [[hunger]], [[thirst]], or [[exhaustion]].

On-duty soldiers will pursue and attack any hostile targets they see, either en route to their station point, or after arriving. Hostile targets may include certain wild animals that are deemed dangerous. If the dwarf loses sight of the enemy, he will return to his chosen station point.

====Attack Order====

The '''attack order''', sometimes referenced to as the '''kill command''', instructs your squad to pursue and attack one or more specific targets. It is a very unsubtle way of beating into your dwarves' booze-addled minds that they are to kill your target or be killed in the attempt. A kill order can be used to chase a kobold thief or goblin snatcher who is running away with your precious loot, or it may very well be your last command to your dwarves if things are getting desperate.

After selecting which squad will execute the kill order, press {{k|k}} to Attack. You now have several options: you can move the cursor to what you want to attack and press {{k|enter}}, press {{k|l}}ist and select what you want to attack from a list, or {{k|r}}ectangle to select an area of things you want dead. Upon pressing {{k|enter}} your dwarves will happily run off to execute the order by executing the target.

Each dwarf in the squad will attempt to move toward the target until he is within striking distance. Ranged attackers will not do anything clever like climbing up to the top of your archery tower. If you want them to fire from a specific position, use a move order instead. If they're already somewhere they can fire from safely, one can also cut off access to the intended targets and THEN issue a kill order. If they're stationed in an archery tower and ordered to kill something they can path to, they might charge the enemy even if they have a clear shot from their current position.

This order will remain after the intended victim is killed (fixed in some of 34.* - in 34.11 they will cancel order when target is terminated), leaving your squad standing over the corpse of their slain enemy waiting for new orders. Similar behavior will emerge if the intended target is caught in a [[trap|cage trap]]; when the caged target is hauled to the animal stockpile, the dwarves given the orders to kill it will follow the cage as it is hauled and wait around it once it is stockpiled until the kill order is canceled.

Dwarves go about this with a little more vigor than required and will also attack any other creatures nearby. As a result it is very difficult to attack members of an enemy group with any sort of precision, and if your dwarves cannot take down their target there is no real way to get them out of combat; it's do-or-die. It is unknown whether this is a bug or a feature {{version|0.34.07}}.

====Cancelling Orders====

Pressing the {{k|o}} key in the {{k|s}}quad screen will '''cancel''' the selected dwarves' active orders, sending them back to their civilian or pre-scheduled military lives. It appears that this does not always work properly; as a result, your over-eager dwarves may get themselves into some trouble. Take caution when sending them deep into unfamiliar territory.

==Order Scheduling==

''Full article: [[Scheduling]]''

From the squad menu you can cycle through any alerts you have defined quite quickly by pressing {{k|t}}. This will set the order schedule for the entire squad even if you only have a single dwarf selected.

To edit an existing order schedule or create a new one you need to visit the military schedule screen. This can be done directly from the squad menu by pressing {{k|s}} or alternatively you can back out of the squad menu and use {{k|m}}-{{k|s}} to get to the schedule page from the military screen. The details of setting up an order schedule are described on the [[scheduling]] page.

==Bugs==
* When selecting new dwarves to place in a squad the cursor always returns to the first available dwarf instead of remaining where it is.
* Dwarves handle equipment conflicts poorly, often resulting in an ill-equipped military.{{bug|535}}
* Military dwarves may constantly perform "pickup equipment" jobs {{Bug|2687}}
* Military equipment interferes with civilian equipment (picks/axes/crossbows/quivers).{{bug|1451}}
* Training or Combat bolts become stuck in inventory, preventing acquisition of combat or training bolts respectively.{{bug|4530}}
* "Long Patrol" negative [[thought]]s seem to escalate, even with long break.{{bug|3190}}

{{Military}}

Serpentine

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'''Serpentine''' is a non-economic green stone found within clusters of [[olivine]]. Unlike olivine, it is not fire- or [[magma-safe]].

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Round lime

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'''Round lime''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, round lime [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Rambutan

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'''Rambutan''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, rambutan [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Pomelo

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'''Pomelo''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, pomelo [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Pear

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'''Pear''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, pear [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Peach

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'''Peach''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, peach [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Paradise nut

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'''Paradise nut''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, paradise nut [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Papaya

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'''Papaya''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, papaya [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Orange

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'''Orange''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Contrary to its name, orange [[wood]] is in fact brown, and produces brown products.

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Lever

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A '''lever''' is a building constructed from one [[mechanism]] on an empty tile. It can be built with {{k|b}},{{k|T}},{{k|l}}. Once in place, it can be linked to one or more devices such as [[door]]s, [[bridge]]s or [[support]]s, permitting you to control these other devices remotely. Order the lever to be pulled through its {{k|q}} menu. A dwarf with the Lever Operation Labor will get assigned the job of pulling the lever. This dwarf might be a long way away, and the delay in pulling the lever can result in [[Fun]]. Levers also make good furniture choices when constructed with high-quality mechanisms.

[[Pressure plate]]s are like levers, but are triggered by creatures or fluids directly rather than by giving an order to a dwarf. If levers are too much [[fun]], a pressure plate may be a better choice. There is more information on trap design [[trap design|here]].

==Activation of the devices==
When a lever is pulled, the connected device(s) activates. What happens during activation depends on the linked device:

* [[Door]]s and [[Hatch]]es open and close.
* [[Support]]s collapse, potentially causing a cave-in (pulling the lever again won't re-assemble the support, cave-in or not).
* [[Bridge]]s raise and lower, or retract and extend, depending on the type of bridge.
* [[Floodgate]]s open and close.
* [[Gear assembly|Gear assemblies]] toggle between engaged and disengaged (disengaged assemblies can't support other machinery).
* [[Restraint]]s release the creature assigned to them (leaving the restraint attached to the creature and, at present, unrecoverable).
* [[Cage]]s are deconstructed, releasing their occupants (needless to say, this is irreversible!)
* [[Spike]]s raise and lower.

Different objects take different amounts of time to respond to activation; generally this is only a brief pause but it can be enough for a charging [[goblin]] to cover more than a few tiles.

==Linking==
One [[mechanism]] is required to construct a lever, and then two more are required to '''link''' the lever with a device. The link is made by selecting the lever with {{k|q}}, choosing the type of object you want to link the lever to, and then using {{k|-}} and {{k|+}} to choose the particular object. The list is chronological by order of construction, most recently designated last, and the map will recenter on each object as you scroll through the list.

Then you can choose what specific mechanisms you want to use to connect the device to the lever. The quality of a mechanism affects the accuracy of traps, but not the speed of activation. The first mechanism you choose is for the device end, the second for the lever end. This is important when working with [[magma]].

A lever can be linked to any number of objects, and each object can have any number of levers controlling it.

There is no way to de-link an object without disassembling either object or lever. When using a lever for a single-use purpose (cages or supports), the mechanism in the lever will remain in the lever, but the object and its mechanism will deconstruct. In this manner, a single lever might accumulate many mechanisms. Deconstructing the lever will free all these mechanisms and allow their reuse - keep your permanent and one-time linkages to separate levers.

In contrast with [[pressure plate]]s, build order does not affect the timing of levers whatsoever. In any given tick, any levers will send their signals before any furniture receives those signals, so it as if levers are always considered to be built after the furniture they link to. In rare cases, it is possible for the order of arrival of the dwarf pulling the lever to affect the precise timing of lever-linked devices, as when using a hatch to drop a dwarf-- if the falling dwarf arrived later than the lever pulling dwarf, the dropping dwarf will take an extra tick to fall.

{{minorspoiler}}

When attempting to link a lever to upright spears/spikes, it will occasionally list the "upright weapon" related to [[hidden fun stuff]].

==On/Off vs Open/Close==
Levers normally have an "on" and an "off" state, seen as whether the small tag at the top of the lever is to the left ("off" state) or the right ("on" state). Upon being pulled, the state of the lever changes, and everything they're connected to updates to the ''corresponding'' state of that lever, and does not just ''change'' states ("toggle"). This becomes important if you have several levers attached to the same device, or one trigger attached to several systems.
:Example: 2 levers (both in "off" position) are connected to a drawbridge. After pulling the first lever, the bridge will lift. Pulling the second lever tells the bridge to "open", which it already has done - no visible effect. When it is pulled a second time it will let the bridge down. This in turn requires the ''first'' lever (still in "open/lift" position) to be pulled twice to trigger a change (lift again), and so on.

"On" and "off" state is fixed and dependent on the lever, not the object that lever is linked to:

* "dash to the right" ( '''ó''' ) is '''on'''
* "dash to the left" ( '''ò''' ) is '''off'''

Note, however, that gear assemblies are ''the sole exception'' to this: Instead of On/Off triggers, they indeed '''do''' toggle.

Several devices, such as [[floodgate]]s and [[bridge]]s, have a delayed response to all incoming signals, and will not respond to subsequent signals until the first has taken effect. For instance, if you pull a lever attached to a floodgate on then off in rapid succession, the floodgate will only respond to the first signal, independent of the position the lever rests in eventually.

In the unusual case that a device receives both an on and an off trigger in exactly the same tick, the device will change states-- an open device will close, and a closed device will open.

==On/Off states==
Objects that can be controlled by levers include:

===== Multiple Uses =====

A "step" is not a step that a dwarf makes, and not based on [[Frames per second|FPS]]. It's one "step" that the game advances. When paused (via {{k|spacebar}} ), you can manually advance the game "1 step" by hitting the period ( {{k|.}} ) key.

* [[Bridge]] – Activates 100 steps after being triggered (see [[#Bugs|bug]] below)
** '''On:''' Turns the bridge into either a raised drawbridge, or a retracted bridge, depending on which option was chosen when the bridge was constructed.
** '''Off:''' Returns the bridge to normal.

* [[Door]] – Activates instantly. Note that once you connect a door, it is either completely open or sealed shut. There is no "''closed, but can be opened by a dwarf''" state anymore.
** '''On:''' Opens the door.
** '''Off:''' Closes the door.

* [[Floodgate]] – Activates 100 steps after being triggered.
** '''On:''' Opens the floodgate.
** '''Off:''' Closes the floodgate.

* [[Floor hatch]] – Activates instantly. Note that, like doors, once you connect a hatch, it is either completely open or sealed shut.
** '''On:''' Opens the hatch.
** '''Off:''' Closes the hatch.

* [[Grate]] – Activates 100 steps after being triggered. When it is open, it just disappears. Liquids go through it just the same, but it will no longer function as a floor/wall (depending on its orientation).
** '''On:''' Opens the grate.
** '''Off:''' Closes the grate.

* [[Bars]] – Activates 100 steps after being triggered. When it is open, it just disappears. Liquids go through it just the same, but it will no longer function as a floor/wall (depending on its orientation).
** '''On:''' Opens the bars.
** '''Off:''' Closes the bars.

* [[Trap|Upright Spear/Spikes]] – Activates 40 steps after being triggered.
** '''On:''' Retracts spears/spikes.
** '''Off:''' Extends spears/spikes.

* [[Gear assembly]] – Activates instantly. When it is disengaged, no power goes through it and anything that is being kept up by its presence (like a [[windmill]] right on top of it) falls down.
** '''On:''' Toggles gear state.
** '''Off:''' Toggles gear state.

* [[Minecart|Track stop]] – Activates 40 steps after being triggered. When disabled, trackstops behave like the track (or floor) underneath them, and minecarts occupying the tile will not auto-dump or experience friction.
** '''On:''' Disables the track stop.
** '''Off:''' Enables the track stop.

===== One-Shot =====

These items, when activated, deconstruct, and/or cannot be triggered again until re-linked.

* [[Cage]] – Deconstructs the cage and releases all of its contents. The cage and its attached mechanism will be left on the floor nearby; you recover the [[mechanism]] used on the cage but you do not recover the mechanism used in the lever until you deconstruct the lever itself.
* [[Restraint]] – Deconstructs the [[Restraint|chain/rope]] and releases whatever creature it held. The restraint's mechanism will be left on the floor nearby, and the restraint itself will remain attached to the creature's neck; again, you recover the [[mechanism]] used on the restraint but you do not recover the mechanism used in the lever until deconstructing the lever itself.
* [[Support]] – Deconstructs the support, ideally without a dwarf next to it. Most commonly used to cause controlled [[cave-in]]s. The support's building material and its attached mechanism can both be recovered (unless they happen to get destroyed in said cave-in).

==Labeling==
There is no built-in indication of what a lever does, and pulling them to see what will happen can be immensely [[fun]]. Using the [[note]] function is the most foolproof way of labeling levers; color-coding of levers can give some indication too.

However, it is possible to ascertain whether or not a building has been linked to a lever by finding the building under {{k|R}} "View Rooms/Buildings" and then selecting {{k|t}} "Zoom to building items". A device that is actuated by a lever not only lists the components of the building but will also include a mechanism item. Viewing the lever itself this way will display one mechanism for each building the lever is linked to (plus one mechanism from the construction of the lever itself).

There is way to ascertain which lever is linked to what, but it becomes very hard when you have many linkable items. Find the lever, use "q" and then select "add new task". Try for every linkable thing in your fortress, to link the lever to it. If an object isn't available for linking, that's because it is already linked. Though this method isn't very usable to find the single linked item in all of them, it is useful when you forgot whether the left or the right lever was linked to the support.

Finally, the utility [[Utility:DFHack|DFHack]] provides a new GUI command "gui/mechanisms" which allows you to list and navigate mechanical connections from inside the game itself. This is by far the easiest and least tedious method to review your levers.

==Toggling Passages==

Since all activatable devices apart from gear assemblies have predefined "on" and "off" states, you cannot directly link a lever to two doors in such a way that a single lever flip opens one and closes the other. You can, however, make use of the differences between different linkable devices:

- while doors and floodgates prevent passage when "off" and allow passage when "on", a bridge prevents passage by raising or retracting upon receiving an "on" signal and returns to its passable state when "off".

- hatches, floor bars and floor grates can be placed over a channelled-out tile creating a gap in a passage. When closed (switched "off"), those structures now provide a path across the gap, but block passage when switched "on" and opening. Hatches, like doors, react immediately to signals, which makes them particularly useful for this purpose.

So, to "switch" between paths with a single lever, you could connect functionally different devices to it, e.g. a floodgate in one passage and a raising bridge in another. Whenever the lever is switched now, it will send the necessary signals to open one path and at the same time close the other.

If you want to "toggle" two buildings which follow the same switching rules, you will probably need to build a [[Computing|Logic device]] to do the job.

==Bugs==

* Linked devices that were prevented from operating on a previous trigger may engage immediately on the next trigger.

{{buildings}}

Great horned owl man

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Guava

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'''Guava''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, guava [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Gray langur man

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The larger, anthropomorphic version of the [[Gray langur]], '''Gray Langur Men''' and '''Women''' retain the thieving nature of their smaller cousins, even stealing the weapons and clothing off the backs of invading [[goblin]]s.

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Giant cave spider

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'''Giant cave spiders''' (also known as GCS) are far different from your regular [[cave spider]]s; those are just treats for your [[cat]]. Giant cave spiders are as big as [[grizzly bear]]s and will make treats ''of'' dwarves, pets, and the occasional careless adventurer. You can find giant cave spiders in, obviously, caves, caverns and most underground areas. They are '''the''' most dangerous creature in the caverns, excluding some [[forgotten beast]]s, as they feel no pain, cannot be stunned, can [[syndrome|poison]] creatures and have the ability to shoot [[web]]bing to ensnare their prey.

They do not pose a big threat to a fortress when undisturbed, but when a dwarf ''does'' disturb one, Armok bless the soul of the unlucky dwarf.

Giant cave spiders are not a rarity with dozens present in the underground caverns, deep below the surface. They can be extremely hard to kill. On occasion, however, a lucky dwarf might pound one to death within a few attacks by punching its skull into its brain, which can be a godsend after an unfortunate cavern breaching exercise.

Webs are quite useful when they aren't being used in an attack against you. Giant cave spider [[silk]] is worth twice as much as plant-derived textile and, given the [[silk farming|proper setup]] and victims, can be produced in endless amounts.

If you see a giant cave spider in adventurer mode, an announcement, "You've spotted a Giant Cave Spider!" will appear.

==Fighting==
Giant cave spiders should not be engaged in melee by a lone dwarf, especially if its armor is lacking. Even if the attacked dwarf is fully armored it will eventually die of hunger or thirst due to being webbed. Even a legendary axedwarf will be unable to do anything, due to the immobilizing webs and subsequent deadly bite. You may attempt to flank a giant cave spider with two melee dwarves, one serving as bait and the other killing the giant cave spider, but it is not a foolproof tactic and you will probably lose one or two dwarves. Marksdwarves, cage traps, and weapon traps are a better solution.

To give you a feeling of how deadly they are in melee, a lone giant cave spider can take on and completely incapacitate any of the semimegabeasts, is ''the'' most dangerous predator of the caverns competing with the cave dragon, and fight equally with the weakest megabeasts like rocs or hydras.

Giant cave spider venom appears to be a neurotoxin which causes progressive [[syndrome|paralysis]] and is ultimately fatal due to suffocation as the victim's diaphragm succumbs and ceases to function. The poison's effects set in relatively quickly, with complete paralysis after 720 seconds (10 [[time|time units]]) and with death usually occurring after 1300 seconds. In terms of Fortress mode, and depending on the speed of the victim, the venom will paralyze an infected dwarf within two steps and they will die of suffocation soon after.

Giant cave spider venom is only deadly on relatively small creatures, unlike [[giant desert scorpion]] venom. It only tends to induce mild paralysis of members on large things such as giants.

Due to the spider only attacking the head of a webbed dwarf, a pair of dwarves with steel helmets and weapons is more than a match for a lone GCS. The coding for all creatures sets headshots as the number one priority if possible, and the web ensures that a headshot is indeed always possible. You may want to avoid using untrained dwarves for this though, because the spider will still counterattack if the dwarf misses, potentially landing a blow on an unprotected area of the dwarf.

Fortunately (or unfortunately...), giant cave spiders tend to take time to kill their prey, giving you time to kill the GCS and save the dwarf, if you are similarly inclined of course. You may however not be able to save the dwarf from the GCS poison.

==Capturing==
Due to the considerable value of giant cave spider silk, many players attempt to capture a live spider and set up a silk farm to boost their fortress's economy. While simply opening a path to the [[cavern]]s and lining it with cage traps may eventually work, a much more effective method is to take advantage of one peculiar behavior of [[building destroyer]]s: simply build a '''[[wood]]en''' [[door]] within the caverns and surround it with cage traps (to a distance of at least 2 tiles), and any giant cave spider (or [[giant toad]], [[giant olm]], [[cave crocodile]], etc.) that wanders relatively close enough to the door will immediately charge toward it and be captured. Or, if you have enough mechanisms, cages and dwarfpower to spare, cage trap all of the cavern exits. If you are extremely lucky, a migrant will arrive with an already tamed GCS.

==Farming Silk==
{{main|Silk farming}}

Giant cave spiders can be a very lucrative and nearly-inexhaustible source of [[silk]] [[thread]] for your [[weaver]]s. The general idea is to expose the spider to a target, causing it to spew [[web]]s which can later be collected. Well-designed silk farms can maximize safety and production, and greatly increase fortress [[wealth]].

==Live training==
:{{main|Live training}}

Pit an entirely metal-armored dwarf (the metal used seems to be unimportant) against a wild giant cave spider. Enjoy as the dwarf gets webbed, then the GCS attempts to bite the dwarf, but fails due to armor.

As it will never attempt any other attack, the GCS will keep biting metal, fail to injure the dwarf, and each attack will train your dwarf in armor using far faster than training or sparring.

As you probably don't want to kill something as rare and precious as a giant cave spider for just training armor user on a dwarf, you may want to set the training area on a lever-linked bridge, then pull the lever and fling/let fall the GCS on cage traps, therefore separating harmlessly the dwarf and the GCS.

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[[ru:Giant Cave Spider]]

Giant harp seal

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Ginkgo

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'''Ginkgo''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, ginkgo [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

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Furniture

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The game definition of '''furniture''' differs somewhat from what one might expect or is used to from the real world. The most blunt definition is "anything that goes on a furniture pile". Elaborating from that, furniture is something that

*a building or construction can be made of: ([[quern]]s, [[grate]]s, [[mechanism]]s..)
*is part of a building (mostly [[workshop]]s, but also e.g. a [[well]]): ([[bucket]]s, [[barrel]]s, [[anvil]]s..)
*can be "built" from the {{k|b}} menu (and thus be placed in your fortress), including most "proper" furniture like [[bed]]s, [[table]]s, and [[chair]]s, but also [[window]]s, [[millstone]]s and [[coffin]]s, among others (including gem windows).

For completeness, and to further complicate matters, there are also a few items that are made from the furniture submenu of the [[metalsmith's forge]], but don't go on a furniture stockpile:

* [[chain]]s
* [[cage]]s
* [[pipe section]]s
* [[animal trap]]s
* [[block]]s

Several furniture items have additional functions, like buckets (transporting [[water]]) and barrels (containing [[booze]] and [[food]]).

An important exception from the above is [[bin]]s whose sole (but much needed) purpose is to increase the capacity of [[stockpile]]s, reducing [[clutter]] and hauling.

== Creation ==
Furniture can be created at a variety of [[workshop]]s. All furniture has a practical use in your fortress, though it is sometimes limited to looking nice ([[statue]]s). Dwarves get good [[thoughts]] when admiring high [[quality]] furniture.

When starting a fortress most furniture will usually be made in your [[Mason's workshop]] and [[Carpenter's workshop]], depending on the materials used. You can also make furniture out of [[metal]] at a [[Metalsmith's forge]], but this consumes more valuable and potentially rare materials. Some furniture can only be made from certain materials. For example, [[bed]]s can only be made of [[wood]]. A few unusual types of furniture are made elsewhere, like [[mechanism]]s, [[traction bench]]es, [[siege engine]] parts and [[ammo]], or [[glass]] furniture.

Furniture is produced at a workshop through its {{key|q}} (view building) menu.

The function {{k|b}}uild is not only used for building workshops and the like, but also for ''placing'' items like beds, tables and chairs in your fortress. Most furniture must be placed before it can be used, but a few (like [[bin]]s and [[barrel]]s) are moved around as needed by your dwarves. [[Bag]]s can serve either role: placing a bag turns it into a dwarf's personal storage, but bags for [[agriculture]], [[clothing industry]] and [[glassmaking]] will be taken from the pool of bags that haven't been placed by the player.

When you try to build a bed/door/chair and it says 'needs bed/door/chair', that means none is currently available, not that there has been a problem with producing one. Usually, brand new items are not immediately available because some dwarf has expressed the intent of carrying them to their corresponding [[stockpile]].

== Building a door from scratch ==
# Go to your [[Mason's workshop]] and select it in view room ({{key|q}}) mode and "{{k|a}}dd task".
# Select "{{k|d}} build rock door".
# Wait for a dwarf to fetch some [[stone]] and carve it into a door. You need at least one dwarf with the [[Masonry]] [[labor]] enabled. The higher the Dwarf's [[mason]] [[skill]], the faster the door will be built (it will also be of better [[quality]]).
# Once the door is finished, then go to the space you want to build the door and press "{{key|b}}uild".
# Select "{{key|d}}oor".
# Move the cursor to precisely where you want the door to be, and press {{k|Enter}}.
# If it says 'needs door', that means that the door you made is in the process of being stored in your furniture [[stockpile]] and that no other door is available: you have to wait a bit.
# Select which type of door to put there, and press {{k|Enter}}. The doors are listed in order of distance.
# Wait for a dwarf (with the Furniture Hauling [[labor]] enabled) to come and put the door where you want it.

With the exception of [[mechanisms]] and [[traction bench]]es, every other piece of stone furniture is built the same way: [[table]]s, [[chair]]s, [[cabinet]]s and so on.

== Building a bed from scratch ==
# Go to your [[Carpenter's workshop]] and select it in view room ({{key|q}}) mode then "{{k|a}}dd task".
# Select "{{k|b}} Construct wooden bed".
# Wait for a dwarf to get some wood and build the bed out of it. You need at least one dwarf with the [[Carpentry]] [[labor]] enabled. The higher the Dwarf's [[carpenter]] skill, the better.
# Once the bed has been constructed, then go to the space you want to place the bed and press "{{key|b}}uild".
# Select "{{key|b}}ed".
# Move the cursor to precisely where you want the bed to be, and press {{k|Enter}}.
# If it says 'needs bed', that means that the bed you made is in the process of being stored in your furniture [[stockpile]] and that no other bed is available: you have to wait a bit.
# Select which particular preconstructed bed to put there, and press {{k|Enter}}.
# Wait for a dwarf (with the Furniture Hauling [[labor]] enabled) to come and put the bed where you want it.

Every other piece of wooden furniture is built the same way. [[Barrel]]s and [[bin]]s, in particular are useful to a growing fortress. Keeping an extra [[bucket]] around is a good idea.

== Material requirements ==
* Stone and wood furniture is made from 1 stone or log.
* Most metal furniture requires 3 bars to forge (including pipe sections), except for chains, animal traps, buckets, and blocks, which require 1.
* Glass furniture requires one bag of sand for green glass, one bag of sand plus one unit of pearlash for clear glass, and one unit of rough rock crystal plus one unit of pearlash for crystal glass.

== How do I move furniture? ==
Moving a piece of furniture is as easy as positioning it in the first place.
# {{k|q}}uery the piece of furniture.
# Press {{k|x}} to designate it for removal.
# Unpause the game, and wait for a dwarf with the Furniture Hauling labor to pull it loose.
# Choose to {{k|b}}uild the furniture in its new location. You may have to wait for it to be hauled away and into a stockpile before you can do so.
# Wait for a Furniture Hauling dwarf to install the furniture once again.

== List of furniture, siege ammo, and other items used in buildings ==

{| cellspacing=5 cellpadding=10
|-
!colspan=3|Furniture/Siege ammo
!
:Other items used in {{k|b}}uildings
|-
|valign=top|
:[[Anvil]]
:[[Armor stand]]
:[[Ballista arrowhead]]
:[[Ballista arrow]]
:[[Siege engine|Ballista part]]s
:[[Barrel]]
:[[Bed]]
:[[Bin]]
:[[Bucket]]

|valign=top|
:[[Cabinet]]
:[[Siege engine|Catapult part]]s
:[[Chair]] / [[Throne]]
:[[Chest]] / [[Container|Box]] / [[Bag]]
:[[Coffin]]
:[[Door]]
:[[Floodgate]]
:[[Grate]]
:[[Hatch cover]]

|valign=top|
:[[Mechanism]]
:[[Millstone]]
:[[Pipe section]]
:[[Quern]]
:[[Statue]]
:[[Table]]
:[[Traction bench]]
:[[Weapon rack]]
:[[Window]]

|valign=top|
:[[Animal trap]]
:[[Block]]s
:[[Bars]]
:[[Cage]]
:[[Restraint|Ropes & Chains]]
:[[Trap component|Enormous corkscrew]]
:[[Log]]s
:[[Stone]]s
:[[Glass]]
:[[Gem]]s
|}

== Furniture types with multiple names ==

Some types of furniture are given distinct names depending upon the material used. All such items are treated equivalently--they are built using the same menu, and they fulfill the same room requirements. For instance, a [[noble]] that requires two chests will be perfectly content with any combination of chests, coffers, boxes, and bags, all of which are "Containers" in the build menu but are counted as "boxes and bags" in the [[stocks]] screen.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!rowspan=2| Build menu
!rowspan=2| Build key
!rowspan=2| Stocks screen
!colspan=6| Names
|-
! [[Wood]]
! [[Metal]]
! [[Stone]]
! [[Glass]]
! [[Cloth]]
! [[Ceramic]]
|-
| Container
| {{k|h}}
| Boxes and Bags
| Chest || Chest || Coffer || Box || Bag || -
|-
| Seat
| {{k|c}}
| Thrones
| Chair || Throne || Throne || Throne || - || -
|-
| Burial Receptacle
| {{k|n}}
| Coffins
| Casket || Sarcophagus || Coffin || Coffin || - || -
|-
| Door
| {{k|d}}
| Doors
| Door || Door || Door || Portal || - || -
|-
| Cage
| {{k|j}}
| Cages
| Cage || Cage || - || Terrarium || - || -
|-
| Restraint
| {{k|v}}
| Chains
| - || Chain || - || - || Rope || -
|-
|
|
| Pipe section
| Pipe section || Pipe section || - || Tube || - || -
|-
|
|
| Blocks
| Blocks || Blocks || Blocks || Blocks || - || Bricks
|}



{{Buildings FAQ}}

{{Category|Furniture| }}

Finger lime

2014-08-23T18:28:06Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Fine" to "Superior" using the rating script

{{Quality|Superior|18:28, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Treelookup/0}}
{{av}}

'''Finger lime''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, finger lime [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

{{gamedata}}
{{Plants}}
{{Category|Surface trees}}

Finger lime

2014-08-23T18:27:55Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Fine" using the rating script

{{Quality|Fine|18:27, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Treelookup/0}}
{{av}}

'''Finger lime''' is one of the many genera of trees found above ground. Like the vast majority of above ground trees, finger lime [[wood]] is brown and produces brown products.

{{gamedata}}
{{Plants}}
{{Category|Surface trees}}

Domestic animal

2014-08-23T18:27:40Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Superior" using the rating script

{{Quality|Superior|18:27, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Migrated_article}}
{{av}}

'''Domestic animals''' are creatures that can be used by dwarves one way or another without taming or training, usually for security or food. Distinguished by having the [COMMON_DOMESTIC] tag in the [[raw file|raws]], they can be bought at [[embark]] or [[trade]]d for with [[caravan]]s. Wild versions of domesticated [[animals]] (horses, muskoxen, etc.) can be [[tame]]d and used normally.

Every embark starts with two free domestic '''draft animals''' which pull the [[Wagon (embark)|wagon]] to the fortress site. These can be any of the animals in the list below with the [WAGON_PULLER] tag (Horses, Yaks and Water Buffalos) which are available at embark. Note, the two animals may not be from the same species. Embarking with a sufficient quantity of goods can result in multiple wagons, each of which comes with another two animals. A fortress has no use for wagons after embark except to be deconstructed for [[wood]], so these animals can be slaughtered or kept for breeding and making your dwarves [[preferences|happy]] as pets.

With the exception of the two free draft animals, the player may choose which gender of animals purchased at embark. Only one male is necessary for breeding. [[cat|Depending on the animal]], you may wish to limit breeding altogether.

== Comparison of domestic mammals ==
When butchered, all adult domestic mammals yield one [[skull]] and one [[leather|raw hide]]. All milkable mammals give the same value [[milk]] and appear to be milkable at the same frequency. The embark costs shown apply to both adults and juveniles of either sex. All domestic mammals reach adolescence at 1 year and adulthood at 2 years, except cavies, which take half as long. All grazing animals require a [[pasture]]; the lower the 'grazer' value, the larger the size of the required pasture.

{| border="1px #AAA solid;" style="text-align:center;" class="wikitable sortable"

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Animal
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Embark cost
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Pet value
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Size when full-grown*
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Total edible†‡
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Bones‡
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Horns + hooves
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Milkable?
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Shearable?
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Grazer§
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;"| Notes
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Alpaca]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|101
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|70,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|35
|style="padding:0.2em;"|16
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|857
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Cavy]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|2
|style="padding:0.2em;"|3
|style="padding:0.2em;"|800
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|75,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Commonly called ''guinea pigs''
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Cat]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|11
|style="padding:0.2em;"|20
|style="padding:0.2em;"|5,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|14
|style="padding:0.2em;"|4
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Adopts owners. Hunts [[vermin]]. Beware [[Catsplosion]]!
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Cow]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|151
|style="padding:0.2em;"|300
|style="padding:0.2em;"|600,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|37
|style="padding:0.2em;"|15
|style="padding:0.2em;"|6
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|100
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Dog]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|16
|style="padding:0.2em;"|30
|style="padding:0.2em;"|30,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|37
|style="padding:0.2em;"|11
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Kennel|Trainable]] as war dogs or hunting dogs, which can also be bought for 31☼
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Donkey]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|101
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|300,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|30
|style="padding:0.2em;"|13
|style="padding:0.2em;"|4
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Goat]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|26
|style="padding:0.2em;"|50
|style="padding:0.2em;"|50,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|27
|style="padding:0.2em;"|10
|style="padding:0.2em;"|6
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|1,200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Horse]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|101
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|500,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|32
|style="padding:0.2em;"|13
|style="padding:0.2em;"|4
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|120
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Llama]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|101
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|180,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|36
|style="padding:0.2em;"|18
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|333
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Mule]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|101
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|400,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|34
|style="padding:0.2em;"|13
|style="padding:0.2em;"|4
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|150
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Sterile in real life; all male in Dwarf Fortress
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Pig]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|51
|style="padding:0.2em;"|100
|style="padding:0.2em;"|60,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|17
|style="padding:0.2em;"|8
|style="padding:0.2em;"|4
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Sheep]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|51
|style="padding:0.2em;"|100
|style="padding:0.2em;"|50,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|27
|style="padding:0.2em;"|8 or 10¶
|style="padding:0.2em;"|4 or 6¶
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|1,200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Rabbit]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|2
|style="padding:0.2em;"|3
|style="padding:0.2em;"|500
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|120,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Reindeer]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|101
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|130,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|28
|style="padding:0.2em;"|16
|style="padding:0.2em;"|6
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|461
|style="padding:0.2em;"|
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[water_buffalo|Water Buffalo]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|101
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|1,000,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|70
|style="padding:0.2em;"|20
|style="padding:0.2em;"|6
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|60
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Extreme grazing requirements. Difficult (impossible?) to keep alive while tame.
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;"|[[Yak]]
|style="padding:0.2em;"|101
|style="padding:0.2em;"|200
|style="padding:0.2em;"|700,000
|style="padding:0.2em;"|42
|style="padding:0.2em;"|16
|style="padding:0.2em;"|6
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Yes
|style="padding:0.2em;"|No
|style="padding:0.2em;"|86
|style="padding:0.2em;"|Extreme grazing requirements. Difficult to keep alive while tame.
|}

:<nowiki>*</nowiki> Gives a crude estimate of ability in combat, and thus danger to hunters. This number comes from the raws, so it might also be a better estimate of butchering results than the dodgy numbers from this wiki. 
:† Total of meat, fat, and offal. 
:‡ Maximum reported in infoboxes in this wiki, April 2011. Strongly influenced by individual attributes, especially for larger animals. Use with caution! 
:<nowiki>§</nowiki> A lower number means the animal needs to graze more often, and will thus need a larger [[pasture]]. Cats and dogs have the [CARNIVORE] tag and do not graze or require pasture. 
:¶ The higher number is for rams.

== Comparison of domestic poultry == 
All domestic poultry have a [[pet]] value of 10 and cost 6[[currency|☼]] at embark. Blue peafowl, geese, and guineafowl reach adolescence at six months and are full-grown after one year; ducks, chickens and turkeys reach adolescence at one year and are full-grown after two years. When butchered, all full-grown poultry yield one [[skull]]; those that yield bones also yield a [[leather|raw hide]]. However, domestic poultry are much more efficient when used for [[egg production]] than as a meat source; over the lifetime of an average hen, many more meals can be produced from the eggs. This is especially true for ducks and guineafowl.

{| border="1px #AAA solid;" style="text-align:center;" class="wikitable sortable"

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Animal
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Min. [[egg]]s
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Max. eggs
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Avg. eggs*
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Egg size‖
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Years til full-grown
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Max Age
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Size when full-grown
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Total edible†‡
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;background:#DDD;text-align:center;"| Bones‡
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|[[Blue peafowl]]
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|6
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|8
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|7
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|102
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|1
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|15-30
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|4000
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|17
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|6
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|[[Chicken]]
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|4
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|15
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|9.5
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|62
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|2
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|7-15
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|3000
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|13
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|4
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|[[Duck]]
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|8
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|13
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|10.5
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|52
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|2
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|7-9
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|1000
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|0
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|0
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|[[Goose]]
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|3
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|8
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|5.5
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|152
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|1
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|10-24
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|4500
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|17-18
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|6
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|[[Guineafowl]]
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|4
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|15
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|9.5
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|42
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|1
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|10-15
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|1500
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|0§
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|0
|-
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|[[Turkey]]
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|10
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|14
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|12
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|87
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|2
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|7-10
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|5000
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|19
|style="padding:0.2em;text-align:center;"|6
|}
:<nowiki>*</nowiki> Estimate based on mean of minimum and maximum clutch sizes. 
:† Total of meat, fat, and intestines. 
:‡ Reported in infoboxes in this wiki, April 2011. Might be influenced by individual attributes. Use with caution! 
:§ A yield of 2 meat, 2 fat, a skin, and a skull has been reported for butchering a guineafowl. This seems to be rare. 
:‖ Egg size does not currently affect food quantity
{{Category|Creature attributes}}

Crundle

2014-08-23T18:27:06Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Superior" using the rating script

{{Quality|Superior|18:27, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{Migrated_article}}

{{Creaturelookup/0
|wiki=no
|contrib=no
|bone=2-4
|meat=2-6
|fat=2-6
|skull=1
|intestine=1
|skin=scale
}}
{{av}}
{{creaturedesc}}

[[Image:Crundles.png|thumb|left|Crundles should present no problems to an experienced adventurer.]]

While weak individually, crundles often move in large packs and can pose a substantial [[Fun|danger]] to workers, [[weaver]]s, [[farmer]]s or [[Ambusher|hunters]] that might be wandering through [[caverns|the underground]]. However, they tend to scatter when [[combat|confronted]] with well-armed [[soldier]]s, and so pose little threat to any [[military|troops]] you send to take care of them.

If you rely on traps to defend your fortress, it should be noted that [[trap design|pit traps]] are fairly ineffective against crundles. They don't hit the ground hard enough. Unless, of course, the ground is flooded with [[syndrome|poison]], [[Trap#Upright_Spear.2FSpike|spikes]], or best of all, [[magma]].

They can be [[tame]]d by an [[animal trainer]], and while they are small and offer fairly few edible parts, their [[egg|eggs]] are a good and plentiful source of food. However, [[Meat_industry#Breeding|raising]] them for [[meat]] requires many breeding crundles to be viable. Their weakness in [[combat]] makes them poor war animals, though they do have a semi-respectable [[pet]] value of 50.

Overall, the crundle's use is to harass and annoy your cavern dwelling dwarves, and they should generally be used as target practice for military purposes.

{{gamedata}}
{{Creatures}}
{{Category|Animals}}

Crossbow

2014-08-23T18:26:45Z

Khargas: Changed quality rating from "Unrated" to "Exceptional" using the rating script

{{Quality|Exceptional|18:26, 23 August 2014 (UTC)}}
{{av}}

:''See [[Weapon]] for a general overview of weapons and related information.''
[[File:DaVinci Crossbow.JPG|thumb|220px|Sketch by Leonardo da Vinci, c. 1500]]
'''Crossbows''' are the only native ranged [[weapon]] available to dwarves (although one can also acquire blowguns and bows through trading or looting of failed [[siege]]s). While more difficult to set up than melee weapons, crossbows have the distinct advantage of allowing dwarves to fight at range, often killing enemies before they can enter melee distance. They are thus an excellent support weapon, especially if you have already filled out your <s>meat shields</s> melee squad(s).

== Production ==
Crossbows can be made from a variety of materials, be they [[wood]], [[bone]] or [[metal]]. Wooden and bone crossbows are made at a dedicated [[bowyer's workshop]] using the [[bowyer]] skill, whereas metal crossbows are made at a [[metalsmith's forge]] using the [[weaponsmithing]] skill. Making a crossbow from bone takes only one bone off a stack.

Crossbows shoot [[bolt]]s, which are made in [[stack]]s of 25 (for wood and metal) or 5 (for bones); wooden and bone bolts are made at a [[craftsdwarf's workshop]], metal bolts are made at a metalsmith's forge.

== Ranged combat ==
Crossbows shoot [[bolt]]s as their [[ammunition]], and will engage targets up to 20 tiles away, including shooting down z-levels. Shot bolts may miss the target and fly a bit further than intended, potentially striking another foe (but '''never''' a friendly soldier on the other side).

The material that the crossbows are made of are irrelevant to ranged combat, where the [[quality]] of the craftsmanship and [[skill]] of the marksdwarf determine accuracy, and the quality and material of the [[bolt]]s themselves (metal being better than bone being better than wood) determines damage. If you are confident your melee soldiers can keep your marksdwarves safe from melee engagements and have a skilled [[bowyer]], then easily-produced, high-quality wooden or bone crossbows are excellent equipment for your marksdwarves.

As can be expected, targets that are stationary are much easier to hit then those that are moving. Since marksdwarves can down targets at range, they do a much better job taking down fleeing thieves and goblin ambushes that your regular soldiers might not be able to catch.

== Melee combat ==
Nonetheless, marksdwarves that are approached by enemies will engage in melee combat with them, using the butt of their crossbows like [[Hammerman|hammers]]. Because of this it is useful to [[cross-training|cross-train]] your dwarves with hammering skill, so that they will be better able to stand their ground in a fight, but a marksdwarf fighting a similarly armed and armored enemy with a melee weapon will usually lose either way. Focusing their training in defensive skills such as Blocking and Dodging is much more convenient, since it lets them at least hold off the enemy long enough to give a soldier more suited for melee combat a chance to surprise the enemy and dispatch them quickly.

The denser the material, the more damage a crossbow butt-strike will do in melee combat. Metal, specifically copper with its SOLID_DENSITY of 8930, performs the best and [[feather tree]] wood the worst. Equipping your [[fortress guard]] with light wooden crossbows will reduce the severity of the [[Justice#Punishments|beatings]] they deliver while still allowing them to pincushion enemy soldiers with masterwork steel bolts.

== Logistics ==
Crossbows require bolts to fire, otherwise they are tantamount to useless. Bolts are typically carried in [[Equipment#Quivers|quivers]], which can be made of leather from [[leatherworking]], obtained from [[caravan|caravans]], or as [[goblinite]].

When shot, one of two things will happen: either the bolt will shatter on impact with the ground or the target, or it will stay whole and, when all's said and done, be retrievable. This is a bit difficult, however, as shot bolts are automatically [[forbidden]] by default; in the [[orders]] screen, under [F]orbid, you can change it so that shot ammunition is automatically claimed. Otherwise, the easiest way to reclaim spent ammunition is to find them in the [[stocks]] screen and unforbid them.

Military barracks for [[Soldier#Marksdwarves|marksdwarves]] require [[archery target]]s for training. [[Bolt]]s will be a constant demand from a training marksdwarf squad. While you can theoretically create a large stock of wooden bolts for training purposes and reserve metal bolts for actual combat use, this will likely cause problems.{{bug|4530}}

== Hunting ==
[[Ambusher|Hunters]] use crossbows when hunting; [[migrant]] hunters automatically arrive with a free crossbow and a small number of bolts, and hunters will automatically pick one up from your ammunition stockpile when they go hunting, as well as the necessary [[quiver]] and [[bolt]]s. Hunters have a special [[Military_interface#Ammunition|section]] in the military screen, from which you can modify their ammunition allotment. Disabling the hunting labor will cause them to drop their weapon and equipment at the nearest applicable stockpile, and is absolutely necessary if you have embarked in a particularly [[evil|fun]] location. Hunters usually give up on hunting if they run out of carried ammunition.

== Forging and Melting ==
* Metal crossbows cost '''one''' [[metal]] bar to [[forge]], or '''three''' [[adamantine]] wafers.
* When a non-adamantine metal crossbow is [[melt|melted down]], it will return '''0.9''' metal bars, for an '''efficiency of 90%'''.
* When an adamantine crossbow is melted down, it will produce '''0.9''' wafers, for an '''efficiency of 30%'''

==Bugs==
* If squad is assigned multiple ammo types, dwarves with "individual choice ranged" carry wrong ammo{{bug|1374}}.
* Crossbows can regularly pierce even adamantine armor with wooden bolts. Copper and other low-grade metals can do so virtually every time.{{bug|5516}}

==See Also==
[[Crossbowman]] 
[[Archery]]

{{gamedata|{{raw|DF2014:item_weapon.txt|ITEM_WEAPON|ITEM_WEAPON_CROSSBOW}}}}
{{Weapons}}
{{Category|Weapons}}
{{Category|Military}}

Corpse

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A '''corpse''' is what is left of a creature once dead. The corpses of vermin are called '''remains'''.

A corpse has several levels of decay, it will begin as "(creature or name) corpse", progress to "rotten (creature or name) corpse", "(creature or name) partially decayed corpse", and then to "(creature or name) skeleton", and will remain a skeleton indefinitely. If the creature had had parts ripped or cut off before death, the corpse will be described as "mutilated corpse" and "partial skeleton" in respective descriptions, and the parts (if still on the map) will decay into a type of bone depending on the part. A creature with parts that were pulped (i.e. exploded into gore, cloven asunder, torn into shreds, etc.) before death will be described as a "mangled corpse".

Letting corpses naturally rot is the only way to get usable bones from creatures that dwarves refuse to butcher (such as [[goblin|goblins]], [[elves]], and other [[DF2012:Learns|sentient]] creatures), according to their ethics (unless you modded the ethics). Cutting a live goblin up using serrated blade traps or throwing them down extreme heights (such they explode) will generate usable goblin bones and skulls. Already-dead corpses can be reanimated with the help of a [[necromancer]], or naturally if you are in any type of evil embark, and then dissected. Remains of vermin, however, simply progress from "(vermin) remains" to "rotten (vermin) remains" before simply vanishing.

[[Butcher]]ing a corpse produces quantities of [[meat]], [[prepared organs]], [[bone|bones]], a [[skull]], [[skin]], and nails/hoofs, as well as cartilage, nervous tissue, and other byproducts. Body parts can be butchered, presumably for whatever tissues/organs were in the part. "Butchering" a skeleton produces only a skull, bones, cartilage and other non-decaying tissues. The corpses of very small animals, such as of [[raven]]s, currently cannot be butchered. Also, corpses of tamed (not stray) animals can't be butchered.

Rotting corpses will produce [[miasma]] in subterranean areas, but not above ground.

If a corpse of a dwarf is left unburied, it will cause unhappy [[thought]]s in surviving family and friends. The soul of a dwarf that has not been properly put to rest may [[ghost|return for vengeance]], which can lead to even more [[Tantrum spiral|Fun]].

Corpses can be [[Undead|raised from the dead]]. This will occur in some [[Surroundings#Evil|evil]] biomes if the creature is killed inside an evil biome. On an embark location between an evil and a non-evil biome, corpses killed on the non-evil side will not rise. Corpses may also be raised by a [[necromancer]] into a slave, or resurrect themselves as [[mummy|mummies]] and themselves gain the power to raise corpses, though mummies will only be encountered in [[tomb]]s in adventure mode. Mangled corpses with pulped heads or upper bodies will never become undead. Severed body parts will be able to rise if they have either a grasp tag (hands and possibly other body parts) or if they still have a head attached, so it may be advisable to kill risen corpses with blunt weaponry to avoid swarms of body parts and to permanently pulp them to death. Corpses and severed body parts will not rise again if they have been [[butcher]]ed, their skin [[tanner|tanned]] and their hair [[spinner|spun into thread]], or if they have been exposed to [[magma]]. The zombies themselves will also be destroyed by magma.

Cave wheat

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{{plantlookup/0|uses=
* [[Food]]
* [[Alcohol]]
|other_products=
* [[Flour|Dwarven wheat flour]] (Mill)}}
{{av}}

'''Cave wheat''' is an [[underground]] [[crop]]. It can either be [[milling|milled]] into [[flour|Dwarven wheat flour]] or [[brewing|brewed]] into [[Dwarven beer]].

Cave wheat [[seed|seeds]] can be brought as an [[embark]] item and imported from [[Trading|dwarven caravans]]. They are planted in the summer or autumn seasons and require about 42 days to grow.

{{gamedata}}
{{Plants}}

Bow

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:''For a comparison of different weapons, see [[Weapon]].''

A '''bow''' (not to be confused with a dwarven [[crossbow]]) is a ranged [[weapon]] that fires projectiles called [[arrow]]s. Bows behave similarly to crossbows for the most part, though they seem to be preferred by [[elf|elves]] and [[goblin]]s.

As ranged weapons, bows use and train the [[bowman]] (bowdwarf) skill; as melee weapons bows use and train the [[swordsman]] (swordsdwarf) skill instead. Dwarves cannot [[forge]] bows nor [[arrow]]s, limiting supply to artifacts, and whatever low-[[quality]] specimens can be traded from elven [[caravan]]s and scavenged from invaders. Due to their marked similarity to native weapons, your dwarves would likely be better served in battle with high-quality crossbows and bolts than inferior imported bows and arrows. All dwarves can equip bows.

==Bugs==
* If squad is assigned multiple ammo types, dwarves with "individual choice ranged" may carry wrong ammo{{bug|1374}}.

{{gamedata|{{raw|DF2014:item_weapon.txt|ITEM_WEAPON|ITEM_WEAPON_BOW}}}}
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{{Category|Weapons}}

Blowgun

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:''For a comparison of different weapons, see [[Weapon]].''

[[Image:Yahua Blowgun Amazon Iquitos Peru.jpg|right|thumb|200px|''A Yagua (Yahua) tribeman demonstrating the use of a '''blowgun''''']]
A '''blowgun''' is a ranged [[weapon]] that fires projectiles called [[blowdart]]s. Blowguns are relatively rare, being used primarily by certain bands of [[animal people]]. Currently it is not possible for your dwarves to add a poison or toxin to a weapon without significant workarounds (and a bit of luck), making blowguns even more underwhelming.

As ranged weapons, blowguns use and train the [[blowgunner]] skill; as melee weapons blowguns use and train the [[swordsdwarf]] skill instead. Dwarves cannot normally [[forge]] blowguns nor darts, limiting supply to whatever low-[[quality]] specimens can be wrested from indigenous populations. During a [[strange mood]], however, an aspiring yet misguided [[bowyer]] may create an [[artifact]] blowgun at a [[bowyer's workshop]]. Even if you do manage to get your hands on a blowgun, the severe lack of ammunition will make it nearly impossible to field an effective blowgun-dwarf. All dwarves can equip blowguns.

==Bugs==
* If squad is assigned multiple ammo types, dwarves with "individual choice ranged" may carry wrong ammo{{bug|1374}}.

{{gamedata|{{raw|DF2014:item_weapon.txt|ITEM_WEAPON|ITEM_WEAPON_BLOWGUN}}}}
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{{Category|Weapons}}

Blowdart

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A '''blowdart''' is a pointed projectile designed to be fired from a [[blowgun]]. They consist of a wooden, bone, or metal spine, generally with some sort of plug to build pressure (Unlike real life, blowdarts are made from only one material). Blowguns are very difficult to acquire in fortress mode since dwarves cannot normally manufacture them, and none of the standard [[trade|trading]] races produce them. If your dwarves do manage to procure a blowgun (as the result of a [[strange mood]], or looted from indigenous [[animal people]]) they will find blowdarts even more difficult to obtain. Blowdarts can also be [[thrower|thrown]] or used in melee, though there are much better weapons.

As if blowdarts weren't handicapped enough, their reduced size, penetration, and speed make them strictly inferior to other projectiles, and the lack of any way to apply [[syndrome|poison]] makes them even more underwhelming.

==Creating blowdarts==
While blowdarts are nearly impossible to obtain in a standard game, the [[Utility:DFHack|DFHack]] command "changeitem s ITEM_AMMO_BLOWDARTS" can be used to turn a selected stack of [[bolt]]s into blowdarts. These blowdarts can then be exposed to a [[syndrome]]-causing contaminant to simulate poison.

==Bugs==
*If squad is assigned multiple ammo types, dwarves with "individual choice ranged" carry wrong ammo{{bug|1374}}.

{{gamedata|{{raw|DF2014:item_ammo.txt|ITEM_AMMO|ITEM_AMMO_BLOWDARTS}}}}
{{Weapons}}

Bar

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{{quality|Exceptional}}{{av}}
:''For built horizontal and vertical bars, see [[Bars]].''

A '''bar''' is a sub-type of building material (interchangeable with a [[block]] for that purpose), and is the base individual unit of [[metal]], [[charcoal]], [[coke]], [[potash]], [[ash]], [[pearlash]], and [[soap]]. All [[metal]]s are created as bars at a [[smelter]], whether processed from [[ore]]s, [[alloy]]ed with other metals, or [[melt]]ed down from existing metal items.

With the exception of non-[[fire-safe]] materials, all bars are as durable as others - a wall made from bars of ash, charcoal or soap will last as long one made from bars of [[steel]]. Bars are a storage unit and not an end product in of themselves, being used for various other tasks:

{| class="wikitable"
! Bar !! Used for
|-
| [[ash]] || making [[lye]] or [[potash]]
|-
| [[fuel|charcoal or coke]]|| powering standard [[forge]]s, [[smelter]]s, [[kiln]]s, and [[glass furnace]]s, and making [[pig iron]] and [[steel]]
|-
| [[metal]] || [[blacksmith|smithing]]ing
|-
| [[pearlash]] || making clear or crystal [[glass]]
|-
| [[potash]] || [[potash|fertilizing]] [[farming|farm]]s or making [[pearlash]]
|-
| [[soap]] || [[health care]] and [[cleaning|cleaning self]]
|-
|}

All bars are 600 cm3 in [[size]], which means up to 10 will fit into a [[Container#Quick_Reference|6000-capacity bin]]. The only exception to this 600 cm3 size are possibly partially-used soap bars. In the real world, a [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/Gold_bullion_2.jpg 400-tr.oz. bar of gold] is approximately the same size, at 645 cm3.

All types of bars can also be used to build [[workshop]]s, [[road]]s, [[bridge]]s, and other [[construction]]s. Different bars require different [[labor]]s in their construction: [[smith]]ing is used for metal bars and [[mason]]ry for all others (including bars of soap).

"Bars" of [[adamantine]] metal are referred to as "wafers", but when used as building material they function the same as any other bars.

==See also==
* [[Block]]
* [[Stack]]

{{Category|Materials}}

Arrow

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{{Buggy}}
An '''arrow''' is a pointed projectile designed to be fired from a [[bow]]. They consist of a wooden, bone, or metal shaft topped with a pointed head (Unlike real life, arrows are made from only one [[material]]). Arrows are only suitable for use with bows; they cannot be fired from crossbows. Bows aren't used much (if at all) in fortress mode since higher-[[quality]] native [[crossbow]]s and [[bolt]]s perform comparably or better. Therefore, arrows are of limited use, though they can serve as ammunition for bow-filled [[Trap#Weapon Trap|weapon traps]]. Arrows can also be [[thrower|thrown]] or used in melee, although there are better weapons. Dwarves cannot craft arrows, leaving potential bowdwarves no choice but to scrounge low-[[quality]] arrows from [[invader]]s and [[caravan]]s.

As with all projectiles, arrows pierce nearly any material, and are pretty dangerous in almost any circumstance. If it doesn't break on impact, an arrow can be recovered from the ground, or the body of whatever unfortunate creature happened to make a worthwhile target.

In adventure mode, elf and human players can wield bows (and therefore use arrows), while dwarven players cannot.

==Bugs==
*If squad is assigned multiple ammo types, dwarves with "individual choice ranged" carry wrong ammo{{bug|1374}}.

{{gamedata|{{raw|DF2014:item_ammo.txt|ITEM_AMMO|ITEM_AMMO_ARROWS}}}}
{{Weapons}}

Advanced world generation

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:''This article contains information on advanced world generation. For information on basic world generation, see [[World generation]].''
:''See [[World token]] to more easily find information by the names used in the world_gen.txt file.''
:''See [[World rejection]] for information on solving problems related to worlds always being rejected.''
:''See [[Worldgen examples]] for example worlds.''

When you want more control of what your world looks like, it's time for '''advanced world generation'''. A detailed reference with advice is provided below. This article assumes that you are already familiar with [[World generation|'''basic''' world generation]]. If you are not then please read about that first.

Once you select {{DFtext|Design New World With Advanced Parameters}} from the main menu, a screen that looks something like this will appear:

[[File:AdvancedWorldGen.png‎]]

This screen is relatively intuitive but some parts could use some explanation.

== Parameter sets ==

The list of already defined parameter sets is in the upper right corner. You can select the current set that you want to work with using the up and down directional keys.

Hitting {{K|a}} will add a new set to the end of the list. You can also {{K|c}}opy an existing set to a new one allowing you to base a new set on an existing one. Using {{K|t}} you can change the name of the parameter set but note that this will not affect the name of the world that is generated.

Parameter sets are stored in the <tt>data/init/world_gen.txt</tt> file in the main DF directory. The {{K|F1}} and {{K|F6}} keys will load and save '''all''' of the parameter sets to this file. You will need to save the world gen parameters to this file before you hit {{K|Enter}} to generate the world.

The <tt>world_gen.txt</tt> file can also be edited with a text editor. This is particularly useful because people will often post their parameter sets on the forum or wiki in text form. (See below for more info.) The {{K|F1}} key comes in handy when editing this file while the game is still running.

The tokens used in <tt>world_gen.txt</tt> are at the bottom of each parameter description. Here's the one for title.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[TITLE: <name>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[TITLE:MEDIUM ISLAND]</nowiki></tt>
| Required
|}

== World name ==

As previously mentioned, the title of the parameter set doesn't affect the name of the world. You can force a particular name for your world using {{K|n}} or set it back to the default random setting using {{K|N}}.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CUSTOM_NAME: <name>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CUSTOM_NAME:Realm of Cheese Engravings]</nowiki></tt>
| For a random name, simply don't use this token.
|}

== World dimensions ==

The size of the map to be generated can be selected with {{K|u}} {{K|i}} {{K|o}} {{K|p}}. Larger maps take longer to generate and may limit [[Frames per second|FPS]] in game.

Changing the dimensions of the world will reset the parameters because many of them have different defaults depending on the surface area available.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[DIM:<width>:<height>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[DIM:129:129]</nowiki></tt>
| Valid values are 17,33,65,129, and 257. Others may not work.
|}

== Seed values ==

The world generation process uses a PRNG (Pseudo Random Number Generator) algorithm. A PRNG will produce a sequence of numbers that "looks" random even though the actual sequence of numbers will always be the same if the PRNG is started with the same seed value. Basically this means that if you run world generation with a certain seed value on your computer, and someone else runs world generation with the same seed value on their computer, the same sequence of random numbers will be generated on both computers. The practical impact of this is that someone else can generate exactly the same world that you generated by entering the same seed value that you used.

A specific seed value can be entered with {{K|s}}. This will change '''all''' of the seed values to the value you enter. If you need to enter different seed values for each type of seed, use {{K|e}}.

In order to find out what seed values were used for the last world you generated you can look at this screen. If you want to be able to tell someone else how to generate exactly the same world that you just generated, they will need all of the seed value listed under Last Param Set.

When generating a world using a seed, the way that the world is generated is also based at least in part on certain world tokens. As such you cannot for example change the minimum and maximum rainfall and get the same world but drier or wetter, instead a different world is generated. Saying that, it would also seem that certain small changes to these world tokens can occasionally generate a very similar world, however other tokens are more sensitive. For more information see the forum thread [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=112132.msg3404199#msg3404199 here].

The following are tokens which appear to be involved in the implementation of the seed and are not safe to change:

* [DIM:X:X]
* [ELEVATION:X:X:X:X]
* [RAINFALL:X:X:X:X]
* [TEMPERATURE:X:X:X:X]
* [DRAINAGE:X:X:X:X]
* [VOLCANISM:X:X:X:X]
* [SAVAGERY:X:X:X:X]
* [ELEVATION_FREQUENCY:X:X:X:X:X:X]
* [RAIN_FREQUENCY:X:X:X:X:X:X]
* [DRAINAGE_FREQUENCY:X:X:X:X:X:X]
* [TEMPERATURE_FREQUENCY:X:X:X:X:X:X]
* [SAVAGERY_FREQUENCY:X:X:X:X:X:X]
* [VOLCANISM_FREQUENCY:X:X:X:X:X:X]
* [PARTIAL_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:X]
* [COMPLETE_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:X]
* [HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_1:X]
* [MINERAL_SCARCITY:X] {{cite talk/this|Mineral scarcity}}

Many other world parameters such as end year and embark points can however be changed without it having any effect on the geography of the world generated from the seed values.

Normally you don't enter these seed values and the world generation process comes up with seed values based on some sort of "true" random information from things like random values in uninitialized memory, the current date/time, etc. If you have entered a seed value you can revert to all seeds being random using {{K|S}}.

== Generating a world ==

Unless you're using an already defined parameter set you will probably want to {{K|e}}dit the parameters. Select the set you want to edit using the up/down directional keys and press {{K|e}}. Information about each parameter is documented below.

Once you are happy with the parameters you have set, hit {{K|Esc}} to get back to this screen, hit {{K|F6}} to save the values you just edited, and hit {{K|Enter}} to start. The rest of the process is the same as basic [[World generation]].

The phases of the world generation process are (this order is not completely correct):
* Preparing elevation...
* Setting temperature...
* Running rivers...
* Forming lakes and minerals...
* Growing vegetation...
* Verifying terrain...
* Importing wildlife...
* Recounting legends...
* Placing civilizations...
* Making cave civilizations...
* Making cave pops...
* Placing other beasts...
* Placing megabeasts...
* Placing good/evil...
* Placing caves...
* Prehistory generation
* Finalizing civ mats...
* Finalizing art...
* Finalizing uniforms...
* Finalizing sites...

== World painter ==
:''Main article: [[World painter]]
The '''world painter''' tool allows you to paint features onto a map that is then used when generating a world. It is very difficult to use properly, and tends to result in endless rejected worlds, unless you loosen or remove the restrictions placed on biomes and civilizations in the advanced settings. That being said it is also a very powerful tool, and allows you to generate worlds more to your liking.

To access the world painter, hit {{k|e}} to start editing the advanced parameters and finally hit {{k|p}} to open world painter. How to use the world painter is not entirely obvious so please check out the [[World painter]] documentation to avoid frustration. (Losing may be fun, but frustration is not.)

== Editing the parameters init file ==

Parameter sets are stored in ''world_gen.txt'' in the ''\data\init'' folder, using [[world token]]. You can copy and paste other player's sets of parameters into your ''world_gen.txt'' to use their parameter sets, and some are provided at [[Main:Pregenerated worlds|Pregenerated worlds]]. Another place to find parameter sets is the [http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=20638.0 Worldgen cookbook] thread on the official forums.

== Advanced parameters ==

To access advanced parameters, press {{key|e}} when at the screen for creating new worlds with parameters screen. This will bring you to an editable list of various guidelines the world-gen process will use when creating your new world.

The parameters are described below in the order that they appear in the list in the UI, not necessarily the other they appear in the configuration file. See [[world token]] for an index that will help you look things up by token name.

There are essentially 4 types of controls for the generation of the surface map;

Terrain Parameters, as described below, these 5 variables define the basic background world, how hot or cold it is, how much rainfall, how high the mountains are. The world automatically goes through the temperature range along the Y axis although sometimes it will be hotter in the north, other times in the south. Minima and maxima and X,Y variance can drastically alter the world.

Weighted Meshes, these are a way to fine tune the amount of the 5 basic variables on the map. It can be used to set the specific distribution of different elevations or rainfall areas for example.

Rejection Parameters, Dwarf Fortress has a belt and braces approach to world generation. The above controls allow you to shape the world then the rejection parameters throw it out if it isn't right! There are a number of rejection parameters for the number and degree of the 5 basic variables, for biome types etc. If the world does not meet the requirements of any one rejection parameter the world is rejected an re-randomised. Also see [http://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/DF2012:World_rejection World Rejection]

The are also the feature placing options such as rivers, mountain peaks, volcanoes and oceans. These can cause rejections if the terrain parameters don't allow enough suitable locations for the features to be placed.

If you are experimenting with world design, one method would be to disable the rejection parameters and use the first two control types. Otherwise any significant change will likely result in endless rejections.

=== Seed values ===

Here you can enter specific seed values for different parts of the world generation process. Different sequences of pseudorandom numbers are used for different parts, so you can use this to reproduce only the particular part of world generation from some previously generated world if you want.

Normally you will want to leave all of these set to Random unless you're specifically trying to reproduce the results of another world generation run.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SEED:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SEED:31337]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="4" |
For each of these not in the config file, a random seed will be used.
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[HISTORY_SEED:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[HISTORY_SEED:31337]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[NAME_SEED:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[NAME_SEED:31337]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CREATURE_SEED:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CREATURE_SEED:31337]</nowiki></tt>
|}

=== Embark Points ===

This controls the number of points that you have for skills and equipment when you embark in fortress mode. Turning this value up will allow games started in this world to start with more skilled dwarves with better equipment. Normally you can do just fine by leaving this value set to default, but you might want to up it for experimental/testing purposes or to help dwarves survive in a particularly evil world.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[EMBARK_POINTS:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[EMBARK_POINTS:1274]</nowiki></tt>
| Required
|}

=== End year ===

This is how many years of history are generated for the world. This is basically the same as the History parameter in basic world gen, except that you can enter an exact value for number of years. See [[World_generation#History|History]] for more info.

History is divided into "ages" which are determined by the ''percentage'' of megabeasts and semi-megabeasts killed at various points. One can attempt to make a world go through the ages more quickly by pumping up the ratio of semimegabeast to megabeast caves, the former of which are usually more killable than the regular megabeasts. This will net you more "Age of Legends", "Age of Heroes", etc.

For more information on the history aspect of the game, see [[Legends]] and [[Calendar#Ages|Ages]].

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[END_YEAR:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[END_YEAR:1050]</nowiki></tt>
| Required
|}

=== Population cap after civ creation ===

This determines the maximum possible population of civilization member historical figures alive at a given time during worldgen. Not all members of a civilization are historical figures. This tag does not directly influence the total population of civilized beings as it once did when populations were all historical figures, so the description is a bit confusing. You can enter -1 to make the historical population unlimited.

Each race may have up to 100 civilizations each, and each civilization a maximum population of 10,000. Civilizations, known as ''entities'' in the [[Raw file|raw files]], have 3 or 4 basic variables that will greatly affect their final placement on the world map. See [[Entity_token#Population|Population (Entity Token)]] for more information on interpreting/editing the raws if you need more precise control of civilization placement and total population numbers.

Huge historical figure populations can cause the size of history data to explode, cause history generation to take forever, lower FPS, and generally slow down the game.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[TOTAL_CIV_POPULATION:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[TOTAL_CIV_POPULATION:15000]</nowiki></tt>
| Required
|}

=== Site cap after civ creation ===

This controls the maximum number of towns and similar sites on the entire map. Raising the number will allow for more towns, etc. though the number of sites will ultimately still be limited by things like space, terrain, and population cap.

Note that '''this parameter controls only "civilization" sites''' like towns. Other sites such as lairs will be added on to this maximum. After civilizations reach this cap, they will not spread out anymore to place new cities.

By default, the raws limit each civilization site to a population of 120 regardless of the race of the civilization. Therefore, without editing the raws, the total population on the map can't go above site cap x 120.

Increasing this too high can slow worldgen down by a lot, beware.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SITE_CAP:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SITE_CAP:1040]</nowiki></tt>
| Required
|}

=== Beast control ===

These parameters don't usually matter too much, but may matter for small numbers of beasts.

==== Percentage of Megabeasts and Titans Dead for Stoppage ====

The world starts out with a certain number of powerful megabeast and titan entities in existence. If a percentage of the megabeast and titan population dies out during history generation, then history generation will stop early. For example, if the elimination value is 80%, and the generated history starts with 200 entities and 160 of those 200 entities are eliminated by historical events before the End Year is reached, history generation will stop early.

==== Year to Begin Checking Megabeast Percentage ====

The percentage of dead megabeasts and titans for stoppage will not be checked until this year is reached in history generation. This can be used to ensure that a world reaches a certain year even if all of the megabeasts in the world are slain earlier.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[BEAST_END_YEAR:<year>:<percentage or -1>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[BEAST_END_YEAR:200:80]</nowiki></tt>
| Use -1 as percentage to disable. Year must still be at least 2.
|}

=== Cull Unimportant Historical Figures ===

Whether or not the game ignores unimportant figures in history generation. The culling is many CPU-intensive steps in history generation but it saves memory and will speed up loading/saving games a bit. This does mean that the "unimportant" figures will not appear in Legends mode or in things like dwarf engravings, but they might not appear in engravings anyway.

Unimportant figures are people or creatures who suffer early deaths, never having offspring or killing anything named during history generation. For example, residents of goblin towers may get murdered by demons at a young age. After culling unimportant figures, Legends mode would say something like the demon has killed "a creature at Eviltower in the year 102."

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CULL_HISTORICAL_FIGURES:<0 or 1>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CULL_HISTORICAL_FIGURES:0]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 = No, 1 = Yes
|}

=== Reveal All Historical Events ===

Setting this to Yes will allow access to all information about the history of the world in Legends mode. If set to No, then you will have to discover historical information in adventure mode or by instructing dwarves to make engravings.{{Verify}}

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REVEAL_ALL_HISTORY:<0 or 1>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REVEAL_ALL_HISTORY::1]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 = No, 1 = Yes
|}

=== Terrain Parameters ===

These determine how random values for terrain elevation, rainfall, temperature, drainage, volcanism, and savagery are generated. What biomes exist are then determined by how these factors overlap with each other.

==== Minima and Maxima ====

These are the absolute minimum and maximum values that can ever be generated for a particular map square characteristic. Changing these can cause the occurrence of certain [[Biome|biomes]] to become impossible, so modify these with care. Because of this problem, you may want to use [[#Weighted Ranges|Weighted Ranges]] instead.

By ''subtly'' tweaking the min and max values, vastly different maps can be made.

==== X and Y Variance ====

These control how wildly things like elevation and rainfall can vary between adjacent map squares. For example, if these values are set to the maximum of 3,200 for elevation then you will end up with more very low areas right next to very high areas. The number for X determines the east-west variance and the number for Y determines the north-south variance. By setting only one of these to a high value you can, for example, create horizontal or vertical bands of areas which are more similar to each other.

Generally speaking, raising both of these values will create a more random "patchwork" of many small biomes while setting both x and y values to 0 will cause every square on the map to use a single random value for the given characteristic.

For "patchwork" worlds to avoid being rejected, [[#Maximum_Number_of_Subregions|Maximum Number of Subregions]] will probably need to be increased from the default.

==== Elevation ====

This controls the range of terrain elevations that can occur in the world.

Usually you just want to leave the min/max values alone. Raising the minimum elevation can, for example, make it impossible for oceans to exist. This does '''not''' directly control the number of available Z-levels at a particular site, though high maximum values may contribute to peaks which can raise the number of above ground Z-levels. In other words, a maximum elevation of 400 and minimum of 1 does not mean you get 400 Z-levels but it might increase the number of Z-levels somewhat in some regions compared to others.

Raising the variance will result in a more bumpy uneven landscape.

Some biomes/features that are impacted by elevation:
* A high minimum (above 99) means no oceans as they need elevations below 100.
* A low maximum (below 300) means no mountains as mountains need elevations above 300.
* River start locations need a minimum elevation of 300. Therefore, a world with a maximum elevation of 299 everywhere prevents river generation, but rivers can still occur if maximum elevation is set to 300.
*Mountain peaks can only form in squares with an elevation of 400.

==== Rainfall ====

Controls the amount of rainfall in each map square/area. Setting the minimum too high or the maximum too low can make the formation of certain biomes impossible. Rainfall causes it to [[Rain]] more in a given area, which can have various effects.

Also makes more rivers appear on the world map.

Note that if [[#Do Orographic Precipitation and Rain Shadows|orographic precipitation and rain shadows]] is on then mountains will cause additional variance in rainfall, so (for example) rainfall below the specified minimum can occur in the shadow of a mountain. If you want the minimum and maximum for this parameter to be absolutely respected you must turn off the orographic precipitation option.

==== Temperature ====

These parameters control how hot or cold various areas will be. If you lower the minimum and maximum values, the world will be colder overall, for example. As with the others, changing these values too much could make it impossible for certain biomes to exist. See [[Climate]] for more info.

[[Temperature]] appears to always be a vertical gradient of some sort no matter how these parameters are set, but if the values are lower, then the gradient could be from "cold" to "colder" rather than from "warm" to "cold" for example. Dwarf Fortress automatically applies temperature variations for latitude and elevation.

So, the value from the temperature rolling process is ''not the absolute temperature value the region will get, but rather local variation.'' The "base" temperature for an area is derived from its latitude and elevation, and then the random value determined by these parameters are applied to it to make it vary a bit. The local variation is fairly small compared to the base temperature, which appears to be hard coded.

==== Drainage ====

Changing drainage parameters will change the way water-affected biomes are formed. Low drainage will contribute to the formation of [[Lake|lakes]], [[River|rivers]], and [[Swamp|swamps]]. High drainage will cause water to sink into the ground rather than sit on the surface, which is important for forming hills.

Lower drainage values have been reported to contribute to the formation of thicker soil layers though it is currently unknown exactly how other factors (such as elevation or perhaps rain) impact soil formation.

==== Volcanism ====

Volcanism controls the occurrence of Igneous [[Layer|Layers]], and the formation of volcanoes. For a volcano to form, a square must have a volcanism value of 100 so reducing the maximum from 100 will make volcanoes impossible. Raising the minimum will increase the rarity of non-igneous layers.

Setting minimum to high value is not a good way to produce multiple volcanoes as you are likely to get a "Volcanism not evenly distributed" rejection. Instead use the Minimum Number of Volcanoes parameter and possibly adjust the weighted ranges for volcanism as described below.

==== Savagery ====

These parameters control the level of [[Surroundings#Savage|savagery]] on the map. Raising the minimum savagery too high may make it impossible for certain races to exist, and similarly lowering the maximum too far can make it impossible for certain creatures to exist. The largest chance of having unusable maps comes from too high of a savagery value.

==== Configuration Tokens ====

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[ELEVATION:<min>:<max>:<x variance>:<y variance>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[ELEVATION:1:400:401:401]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 400 Maximum of 400 required for mountain peaks. Variance range: 0-3200
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[RAINFALL:<min>:<max>:<x variance>:<y variance>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[RAINFALL:0:100:200:200]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 100 Variance range: 0-3200
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[TEMPERATURE:<min>:<max>:<x variance>:<y variance>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[TEMPERATURE:25:75:200:200]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: -1000 to 1000 Variance range: 0-3200
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[DRAINAGE:<min>:<max>:<x variance>:<y variance>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[DRAINAGE:0:100:200:200]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 100 Variance range: 0-3200
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[VOLCANISM:<min>:<max>:<x variance>:<y variance>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[VOLCANISM:1:100:200:200]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 100 Maximum of 100 required for volcanoes. Variance range: 0-3200
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SAVAGERY:<min>:<max>:<x variance>:<y variance>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SAVAGERY:1:100:200:200]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 100 Variance range: 0-3200
|}

=== Terrain Mesh Sizes and Weights ===

These parameters make it possible to influence the number of squares in a particular range without making conditions outside of that range impossible. For example, you can make it possible for many more low elevation squares to exist without making it impossible for high elevations to form. Changing these parameters is often preferable to simply changing the min/max values.

The basic steps of applying weighted ranges are as follows:

# Create a grid with 2''MeshSize'' - 1 tiles in both X and Y direction.
# Set the intersection points of the grid lines to a random value according to the weighted ranges.
# Smooth out the area between the intersection points.
# Add noise according to the variance parameters.

Where ''MeshSize'' is the raw parameter value found in the world_gen.txt. See the image on the right for an example.

[[File:World_map-large-32x32-elevation-mesh.png|thumb|300px|A large world generated with an Elevation Mesh Size of 32x32 and range weights set to 1:0:0:0:1 (i.e., only extreme high and low elevations). Note how the grid intersections are either set very high or very low and the space between them is smoothed out.]]

==== Mesh Size ====

Mesh size determines how many grid tiles there will be. Setting this to Ignore will cause the weighted range settings to be ignored for that terrain characteristic. As an example, setting it to 2x2 means the grid will be 2 times 2 tiles large and there will be 3 times 3 for a total of 9 intersection points. On a pocket world this means one grid tile will be 8 * 8 world tiles large whereas on a large world one grid tile will be 128 * 128 world tiles. Note that the highest possible value for a given world size will always make the grid tiles 8 * 8 world tiles large.

==== Weighted Ranges ====

If mesh size is set to something other than Ignore, these weights will be applied at the granularity of the selected mesh size for purposes of generating random values in each range. This allows random number generation to be non-linear for the given terrain characteristic.

For example, if the Elevation Weighted Range parameters were set to (starting with the 0-20 range) 60:10:10:10:10 (these values do not have to add up to any particular number) and elevation min and max are set to 1 and 400 respectively then about 60% of the grid line intersection points (on average) will be set to an elevation in the range of 1-80 (0% to 20%), and the other ranges will be represented by around 10% of the intersection points each. The exact distribution is still left up to chance though ''on average'' it will be close to this specification.

Weighted ranges do not make rejection checks, although they can be responsible for many rejections if you neglect to adjust or disable some of the [[#Minimum Number of Mid/Low/High Characteristic Squares|Minimum Number of Mid/Low/High Characteristic Squares]] for example.

==== Interaction between Mesh Size and Variance ====

The end result can vary greatly depending on how the corresponding [[#X_and_Y_Variance|X and Y Variance]] parameters are set. First of all, if the variance is too large the noise it adds can completely negate the effect of the weighted ranges. For instance, with a 2x2 mesh, the default variance parameters are high enough that usually the mesh grid can hardly be recognized. How strong the variance's effect is is also dependent on the mesh size. Having a larger mesh size (i.e. smaller grid tiles) means the variance also has to be higher for a visible effect. For instance, with a variance of 400, the effects are clearly visible with a 2x2 mesh and barely visible at all with a 8x8 mesh. Note that this effect is directly dependent on the mesh size and not, as one might expect on the actual size of the grid tiles. This means, that a large world with a 2x2 mesh will look essentially the same as a pocket world with a 2x2 mesh, only stretched to 256 times the size.

Also see this [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=139916.0 forum post] for more details.

==== Configuration Tokens ====

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[ELEVATION_FREQUENCY:<mesh>:<0-20 weight>:<20-40 weight>:<40-60 weight>:<60-80 weight>:<80-100 weight>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[ELEVATION_FREQUENCY:2:1:2:3:4:5]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="6" | Valid mesh values:

1 = Ignore

2 = 2x2

3 = 4x4

4 = 8x8

5 = 16x16

6 = 32x32

(limited by world size)
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[RAIN_FREQUENCY:<mesh>:<0-20 weight>:<20-40 weight>:<40-60 weight>:<60-80 weight>:<80-100 weight>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[RAIN_FREQUENCY:3:1:2:3:4:5]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[DRAINAGE_FREQUENCY:<mesh>:<0-20 weight>:<20-40 weight>:<40-60 weight>:<60-80 weight>:<80-100 weight>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[DRAINAGE_FREQUENCY:4:1:2:3:4:5]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[TEMPERATURE_FREQUENCY:<mesh>:<0-20 weight>:<20-40 weight>:<40-60 weight>:<60-80 weight>:<80-100 weight>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[TEMPERATURE_FREQUENCY:1:1:1:1:1:1]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SAVAGERY_FREQUENCY:<mesh>:<0-20 weight>:<20-40 weight>:<40-60 weight>:<60-80 weight>:<80-100 weight>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SAVAGERY_FREQUENCY:5:1:2:3:4:5]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[VOLCANISM_FREQUENCY:<mesh>:<0-20 weight>:<20-40 weight>:<40-60 weight>:<60-80 weight>:<80-100 weight>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[VOLCANISM_FREQUENCY:1:1:1:1:1:1]</nowiki></tt>
|}

=== Minimum Mountain Peak Number ===

This will cause the world to be rejected if fewer than this many peaks (based on elevation) are present on the map. Elevations of 400 must be possible for mountain peaks to occur. If set to zero then worlds will not be rejected based on number of peaks.

You may need to adjust elevation parameters, such as the highest weighted range, in order to get the desired number of elevation 400 squares needed for larger numbers of peaks. Like volcanoes, mountain peaks can make embark zones more interesting but other than that they don't appear to "do" anything special. Reportedly they do increase the highest Z-level above ground in all embark zones in the same region even if the selected embark zone does not include the peak.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[PEAK_NUMBER_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[PEAK_NUMBER_MIN:20]</nowiki></tt>
| Elevations of 400 must occur for peaks to form.
|}

=== Minimum Partial Edge Oceans ===

This will cause a world to be rejected unless there are at least this many oceans touching an edge of the map. If set to zero then worlds will not be rejected based on this criterion. Setting both this parameter and Minimum Complete Edge Oceans to values that total more than 4 when added together may cause all worlds to be rejected as you can't have both a partial and complete edge ocean on a given edge.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[PARTIAL_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[PARTIAL_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:2]</nowiki></tt>
| Maximum of 4
|}

=== Minimum Complete Edge Oceans ===

This will cause a world to be rejected unless there are at least this many oceans which completely cover an edge of the map. Since a square map only has 4 edges, the maximum value possible is 4. If set to zero then worlds will not be rejected based on this criterion but still might end up with complete edge oceans by chance.

Note that the ability for this many edge oceans to exist will be limited by elevation. Therefore to actually create large oceans you will probably need to change things like the Elevation Mesh Size and Weighted Ranges to increase the number and distribution of very low elevation squares on the map.

Given appropriate weight, range, and variance values for things like elevation, a setting of:
*1 results in a world that seems like a chunk of coastline. One edge of the map will be completely underwater and there will be ocean taking up much of the map on that side. Think the east or west coast of the United States, the north coast of Canada, or southern Europe. If your edge ocean happens to pick your world's frozen side most of it will be glacier.
*2 results in another coastline along with the first one. The map could end up looking something like Panama if the oceans pick opposite sides of the map.
*3 results in a peninsula, like Florida in the US. There will be oceans surrounding 3 sides of the map, and land touching only one side of the map.
*4 results in one or more island(s) depending on things like elevation variance and weights. Regardless of whether you get one island or multiple islands, the entire map will be surrounded by water.
Unfortunately there's no easy way to control which oceans end up on which edges, except perhaps setting X and Y variance to different values.

Edge oceans will take up part of the other edges too. For example a full edge ocean on the east side will have part of the north and south sides underwater, but that does ''not'' add to the ''partial'' edge oceans count.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[COMPLETE_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[COMPLETE_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:0]</nowiki></tt>
| Maximum of 4
|}

=== Minimum Volcano Number ===

Worlds with less than this number of volcanoes will be rejected. Note that this will not just create this many volcanoes at random; there must be at least this many squares with a Volcanism of 100. Therefore adjusting Weighted Range for 80-100 to some higher value is recommended if you want to facilitate a large number of volcanoes. In addition, Maximum Volcanism must be set to 100 or squares with volcanism of 100 will be impossible making volcanoes impossible.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[VOLCANO_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[VOLCANO_MIN:15]</nowiki></tt>
| Volcanoes require a volcanism of 100 to occur.
|}

=== Mineral Scarcity ===

Controls the frequency at which minerals occur. Setting this value lower will increase the amount of ore present on a map, the number of different types of ore, and the number/types of gems. The default value will result in a maximum of 2-4 metal ores per map (assuming you choose a good embark location) which may be limiting until the economy is fully implemented and desired metals can be traded for.

The options "Very Rare", "Rare", "Sparse", "Frequent", and "Everywhere" in the [[World_generation#Basic_World_Generation_Menu|basic world generation menu]] use the values 50000, 10000, 2500, 500 and 100 respectively.

According to [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=79018.msg2063804#msg2063804 research] by Shandra in v0.31.25, this is the relationship between the value of this setting and the approximate number of gems and ore:

[[File:MineralSetting_v25_limit10k.png]]

This is for the same 8x8 embark region in a world which is otherwise the same except for the mineral scarcity parameter (although most of the detailed information comes from experiments with previous versions).

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[MINERAL_SCARCITY:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[MINERAL_SCARCITY:2500]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 100 to 100,000

|}
'''Note:''' as of v0.34, low mineral scarcity settings do not cause rejections.

=== Max Megabeasts Caves ===

This is the number of megabeasts placed at the beginning of history. Megabeasts are hydras, bronze colossuses, rocs and dragons which are all placed in equal proportions [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=112465.msg3415177#msg3415177 data].

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[MEGABEAST_CAP:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[MEGABEAST_CAP:75]</nowiki></tt>
| Megabeasts count towards BEAST_END_YEAR calculation.
|}

=== Max Semi-Megabeast Caves ===

This is the number of semi-megabeasts placed at the beginning of history. Semi-megabeasts are giants, ettins, minotaurs, and cyclopes, which are placed in equal proportions [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=112465.msg3415188#msg3415188 data].

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SEMIMEGABEAST_CAP:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SEMIMEGABEAST_CAP:150]</nowiki></tt>
| Semimegabeasts do not count towards BEAST_END_YEAR calculation.
|}

=== Titan Parameters ===

==== Number ====

This controls the number of titans that exist at the beginning of history[http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=112465.msg3415203#msg3415203 data]. The number of forgotten beasts is unaffected by this parameter [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=112465.msg3415155#msg3415155 data].

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[TITAN_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[TITAN_NUMBER:33]</nowiki></tt>
| Titans count towards BEAST_END_YEAR calculation.
|}

==== Attack Population Requirement ====

Megabeasts will begin to attack your fort once at least this many dwarves inhabit it, regardless of whether any other attack criteria have been met. This number defaults to 80 which isn't usually too difficult to deal with.

==== Exported Wealth Requirement ====

Megabeasts will begin to attack your fort once you have exported at least this many [[Currency|dwarfbucks]] worth of merchandise, regardless of whether or not any other criteria have been met. This parameter defaults to None (disabled).

==== Created Wealth Requirement ====

Megabeasts will begin to attack your fort once the fort's total wealth has reached this many [[Currency|dwarfbucks]] in value. This happens regardless of whether any of the other criteria, such as population, have been met; therefore, even with 1 dwarf, a fort could be attacked if the fort were worth at least this value.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[TITAN_ATTACK_TRIGGER:<population>:<exp wealth>:<created wealth>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[TITAN_ATTACK_TRIGGER:80:0:100000]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 = None (disabled). Only one requirement must be met for an attack.
|}

=== Number of Demon Types ===

[[Demon|Demons]] are similar to titans and forgotten beasts in that they are procedurally generated, but unlike titans they are not unique. Thus many different types of demons will exist in the world but there will be many members of each type. Setting this to zero means no demons will exist, limiting the amount of fun you can have.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[DEMON_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[DEMON_NUMBER:52]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Night Troll Types ===

The number of different [[Night troll|night trolls]] that will exist in the world. These are also procedurally generated. Setting this to zero means that the world will have no night trolls.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[NIGHT_TROLL_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[NIGHT_TROLL_NUMBER:77]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Bogeyman Types ===

The number of different [[Bogeyman|bogeyman]] forms that will exist in the world. Bogeyman are procedurally generated, though their forms do not vary by much. Setting this to zero, means that the world will have no bogeyman. Additionally setting this to zero will not allow custom bogeymen to appear in the world.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[BOGEYMAN_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[BOGEYMAN_NUMBER:27]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Vampire Curse Types ===

The number of different [[Vampire|vampires]] that will exist in the world. Although they too are generated at the start of a new world, they generally no different from one another, with the biggest difference being what stat bonuses their vampirism gives {{verify}}. Setting this to zero means no vampires will exist.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[VAMPIRE_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[VAMPIRE_NUMBER:72]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Werebeast Curse Types ===

The number of different [[Werebeast|werebeasts]] that can exist in the world. It is common for werebeasts, unlike vampires, to assume many different forms and variations, the most well known of these amount as different species of animal beasts. From lizards, to wolves, to maybe even bears. Setting this to zero means no werebeasts will exist.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[WEREBEAST_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[WEREBEAST_NUMBER:58]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Secret Types ===

The number of secrets that exist in the world. Currently, all secrets are secrets of life and death, and the ones holding these secrets are necromancers. Setting this to zero means that no [[necromancer]]s will appear.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SECRET_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SECRET_NUMBER:44]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Regional Interaction Types ===

The number of interactions that can be caused in regions, which may incorporate evil rain and cloud types. Currently, only evil region interactions are generated this way.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGIONAL_INTERACTION_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGIONAL_INTERACTION_NUMBER:20]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Disturbance Interaction Types ===

The number of different [[Mummy|disturbed dead]] {{verify}} that can exist in the world. Setting this to zero, while being as pointless as is, (since you're never forced to enter a tomb anyway), will most likely prevent any toilet roll spooks from appearing, but it may or may not also prevent the existence of the pyramids which house them too.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[DISTURBANCE_INTERACTION_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[DISTURBANCE_INTERACTION_NUMBER:10]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Evil Cloud Types ===

This number specifies [[Weather#Evil weather|the total amount of various face-melting, eye-boiling, and zombifyingly-fun]] clouds of pure evil may appear in your world. Setting this to zero means you no longer will ever have to deal with encroaching dust walls of doom in that world. I'd keep this value low...

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[EVIL_CLOUD_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[EVIL_CLOUD_NUMBER:45]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Number of Evil Rain Types ===

The lesser of a relatively large group of evils... evil rain. This number states how many different types of green-ooze drenchers, disconcerting blood-showers, and sickly yellow slime-baths can occur in your world. Compared to evil clouds though, this one hardly is worth stressing out about, usually.... Setting this to zero means the only semi-solid to fully liquid liquids to fall from the sky will be pure H2O.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[EVIL_RAIN_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[EVIL_RAIN_NUMBER:352]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 to 1000
|}

=== Generate Divine Materials ===

This turns the generation of [[Divine_metal|divine metals]] on or off. It does not influence the creation of vaults.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[GENERATE_DIVINE_MATERIALS:<1 or 0>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[GENERATE_DIVINE_MATERIALS:1]</nowiki></tt>
| 1/0 = Yes/No
|}

=== Desired Good/Evil Square Counts ===

These values change the amount of [[Surroundings#Good|good or evil]] tiles on the map, depending on the size of the region they are being considered for.

The exact size of small, medium, and large are: small is 1-24, medium is 25-99, and large is 100+, for any map size. The counts used here will always be restricted to regions of the given size no matter how large the number. Also, the count is more of a goal than a minimum or maximum. As a result you can end up with many more or many fewer than the requested number of squares in some situations.

In particular, if you have something like a case where only 3 large regions exists in a world, and you request "1 evil square" in large regions, you will end up with one of the large regions being ''entirely evil''. So any non-zero value in one of these settings essentially means "force at least one region of this size to be all good/evil."

Note that the "evilness" of evil biomes is also impacted by savagery.

Certain civilizations can not exist in good and/or evil squares, so too many of one or the other may limit the size of certain types of civilizations. Dwarves, for example, need non-aligned biomes.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[GOOD_SQ_COUNTS::<med region>:<lg region>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[GOOD_SQ_COUNTS:100:1000:2000]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="2" | Set count to zero to disable for that region size.
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[EVIL_SQ_COUNTS::<med region>:<lg region>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[EVIL_SQ_COUNTS:100:1000:2000]</nowiki></tt>
|}

=== Minimum Biome Square Counts ===

These numbers control whether or not a world will be rejected based on a lack of different [[biome|biomes]]. Raising these numbers will '''not''' automatically generate the given number of squares of the given biome! For a biome to exist, certain conditions like elevation and rainfall must exist.

These parameters simply filter out worlds that (for example) randomly fail to have enough high elevation squares to support a given number of mountains, etc. Some settings may cause worlds to always be rejected. For example, if for some reason the maximum elevation parameter is set to a value below what will support mountain biomes, it will be impossible to satisfy a non-zero requirement for mountain squares. The same principle goes for other conditions and biomes such as low elevations and oceans, etc.

Certain civilizations require different biomes to exist (such as dwarves and mountains), so eliminating certain biomes will make it impossible for certain civilizations to form.

These parameters often result in infinite world rejection problems. See [[World rejection]] for information on solving problems related to worlds always being rejected due to one or more of these parameters.

0 means no minimum for rejection. Setting to 0 does not guarantee 0 squares of that biome.

==== Biome Type Requirement Table ====

Terrain requirements for various biomes are described below.{{Verify}} Note that some of the exact ranges are unknown.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! rowspan="2" | Biome
! colspan="4" | Terrain Requirement
|-
! Elevation
! Rainfall
! Temperature
! Drainage
|-
| Swamp/Marsh
| 100-299
| 33-100
| Non-Freezing
| 0-32
|-
| Desert/Badland
| 100-299
| 0-9
| non-freezing
| note1
|-
| Forest
| 100-299
| 66-100
| non-freezing
| 66-100
|-
| Mountains
| 300-400
| N/A
| N/A
| N/A
|-
| Ocean
| 0-99
| N/A
| N/A
| N/A
|-
| Glacier
| 100-299
| N/A
| Freezing
| 80(?)-100
|-
| Tundra
| 100-299
| N/A
| Freezing
| 0-66
|-
| Grassland
| 100-299
| 0-66
| Non-Freezing
| 0-66
|-
| Hills
| 100-299
| 0-66
| Non-Freezing
| 66-100
|}
note1 drainage: 00-32 sand desert, 33-49 rocky wasteland, 50-65 rocky wasteland but different characters/appearance, 66-100 badlands

==== Minimum Initial Square Count ====

This is the minimum number of squares of the given biome that must exist before things like erosion take place.

One thing to keep in mind is the maximum number of squares on a map of a given size. If the total number of squares on a map is lower than the sum of all square count parameters then you will get infinite world rejection.

To determine the number of squares on a map, just multiply the dimensions. In practice these parameters will need to sum to lower than the maximum because some space is needed for "slack".

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Map Size
! Number of Squares
|-
| 17x17
| 289
|-
| 33x33
| 1089
|-
| 65x65
| 4225
|-
| 129x129
| 16614
|-
| 257x257
| 66049
|}

==== Minimum Initial Region Count ====

This is the minimum number of regions of contiguous biome squares that must exist before other processes such as erosion take place.

==== Minimum Final Region Count ====

This many regions of the given biome must exist after erosion and similar phases of generation have been completed.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:SWAMP:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:SWAMP:1032:7:6]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:DESERT:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:DESERT:1032:7:6]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:FOREST:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:FOREST:4128:13:12]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:MOUNTAINS:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:MOUNTAINS:8256:9:9]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:OCEAN:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:OCEAN:8256:7:6]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:GLACIER:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:GLACIER:0:0:0]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:TUNDRA:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:TUNDRA:0:0:0]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:GRASSLAND:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:GRASSLAND:8256:13:12]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:HILLS:<init sq>:<init rg>:<final rg>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[REGION_COUNTS:HILLS:8256:13:12]</nowiki></tt>
|}

=== Erosion Cycle Count ===

Tells the world-generator how long the world has to erode its tall peaks down to mountainsides during the 'running rivers...' stage of world creation. The higher this number, the less jagged the world will be, and the more wide the major rivers will be. If you use the maximum number, your mountains will dissolve before your eyes into plains which can lead to rejections if there aren't enough mountains to use for river start points and dwarven civilization origin points.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[EROSION_CYCLE_COUNT:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[EROSION_CYCLE_COUNT:250]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 1000
|}

=== Minimum/Desired River Start Locations ===

This is the minimum number of riverheads that must exist before and after erosion takes place. Worlds will be rejected if they fail to meet these numbers. As with minimum biome counts, raising this number doesn't automatically create this many riverheads. Other conditions like terrain and rainfall must exist for rivers to form.

Extremely high pre-erosion values speed erosion greatly, while low post erosion values are useful for limiting rejects due to lack of river origin points. One can try the 800 value to get more lakes.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[RIVER_MINS:<min pre-erosion>:<des post-erosion>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[RIVER_MINS:200:400]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 800
|}

=== Periodically Erode Extreme Cliffs ===

If enabled, makes every impassable rock wall into a series of ramps. Some prefer to pump up erosion to about 250, and turn the "Desired pre-erosion river count" to 0 for good erosion and no extra canyons.

Normally this is set to Yes (1).

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[PERIODICALLY_ERODE_EXTREMES:<1 or 0>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[PERIODICALLY_ERODE_EXTREMES:1]</nowiki></tt>
| 1/0 = Yes/No
|}

=== Do Orographic Precipitation and Rain Shadows ===

Toggle that allows terrain height to affect rainfall. For example, moist air coming from the ocean blows over the land. As the terrain gets higher, it forces the moist air up, causing it to rain on the seaward side of a mountain. Eventually, all the rain has fallen if the mountain is tall enough. So, when the breeze goes over the top, there's no moisture left to fall on the other side, creating a rain-shadow. In the current version regions where drainage is above 50 will also create rain shadows, regardless of the underlying biome and elevation.{{cite forum|140685/5484064}} The rain shadows will always be created as if the wind is blowing from west to east.

Turning this on should create a tendency for more extreme rainfall in regions, creating more forests, deserts, marshlands, and grasslands. Also note that it can create rainfall outside of min-max rainfall settings, so even in a world with a 0 max rainfall you may get rainfall biomes. Turning it off should result in more controllable, less complex rainfall conditions based on rainfall parameters as it adds a random element which can distort or otherwise mess up the climates on a pregenerated map.

This should be disabled if you're importing a map or using a preset map file that has weather.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[OROGRAPHIC_PRECIPITATION:<1 or 0>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[OROGRAPHIC_PRECIPITATION:1]</nowiki></tt>
| 1/0 = Yes/No
|}

=== Maximum Number of Subregions ===

This is the number of separate biomes (the flashing regions you see on embark when you hit F1, F2, etc. when there's more than one biome on the embark location) that are allowed to exist on the entire map.

Setting this to very low values will result in numerous rejections depending on [[#X and Y Variance|variance parameters]]. If variance values are set to high numbers, many small biomes will be created causing rejection if this parameter value is not increased beyond the default.

Increasing the value of this tag is often a must when generating "patchwork" worlds with lots of biome variance, but simply increasing it without increasing variance parameters will not guarantee more biomes.

It is also interesting to note that the maximum subregions is 5000 which is more than the total number of squares for a pocket or small map. However for a medium or large map (16641 or 66049 squares) it quickly becomes a mere fraction of the total number of possible subregions. In fact it would be quite easy on a large map to end up with far too many subregions and get endless rejections of this type.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SUBREGION_MAX:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SUBREGION_MAX:2750]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 1 to 5000
|}

=== Cavern Parameters ===
[[Caverns]] are the hollow areas underground which dwarves tend to encounter when they're digging around.

==== Cavern Layer Number ====

This parameter determines how many cavern systems will be generated, not including the Magma layer or the Bottom layer. Defaults to three. Setting it to lower values could help FPS.

'''Warnings:'''
*Disabling caverns by setting this to 0 will make it impossible to grow any underground plants, as none will exist for your civilization to cultivate. (Underground plants will not be available on embark.)
*Setting this property lower than the default of 3 will make it impossible to find certain [[Demonic_fortress|Fun features]] ([http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=111527.0 Source])

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_COUNT:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_COUNT:3]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 3
|}

==== Cavern Layout Parameters ====

Open caverns and dense passageways are not mutually exclusive. When both are raised, bizarre results can occur, such as layers showing a combination of open caverns, a cluster of network passages, and natural walls sprinkling the inside of an otherwise open cavern. [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=76355.msg1936859#msg1936859 Reference]

If you want the largest open spaces possible, then decrease the density and increase the openness. If you want a labyrinth of passageways, lower the openness and raise the passage density.

Another interesting note about the cavern layers is that the seed and number of demon types affect the layout of the caverns.

<gallery widths=200 heights=200 perrow=2>
File:Open00Density100.jpg|Cavern slice with Openness of 0 and Density of 100
File:Open100Density00.jpg|Cavern slice with Openness of 100 and Density of 0
File:Open100Density100.jpg|Cavern slice with Openness of 100 and Density of 100
File:Open50Density50.jpg|Cavern slice with Openness of 50 and Density of 50
</gallery>

===== Layer Openness Min/Max =====

Dictates the size of cavern passages. When Passage Density (see below) is set to minimum (0), caverns will be open expanses. Raising the maximum will increase the size of the caverns.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MIN:0]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="2" | Range: 0 to 100
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MAX:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MAX:100]</nowiki></tt>
|}

===== Layer Passage Density Min/Max =====

This determines how many passages form the cavern. If openness (see above) is set to minimum and density increased then you will get a maze like network of small criss-crossing passages. Raising the values further increases the number of the maze-like passages.

Caverns will be large, open spaces at 0, and comprised of many small vertical shafts of rock at 100. Setting both values to be the same results in a uniform look for the caverns.{{Verify}}

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MIN:0]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="2" | Range: 0 to 100
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MAX:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MAX:100]</nowiki></tt>
|}

See [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=76355.0 this forum thread] for more information on openness and density including many more images.

===== Layer Water min\max =====

Determines how many caverns will have water at the bottom. Note that, even at 100, there will be some amount of ground in caverns, but each cavern 'bubble' will contain some amount of water.

At 0, there will be no water in your caverns. This may impact future underground plant growth, although maps will still start with underground flora.{{Verify}}

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MIN:0]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="2" | Range: 0 to 100
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MAX:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MAX:100]</nowiki></tt>
|}

==== Magma Layer ====

This parameter controls whether the [[magma sea]] exists.

Setting 1/Yes causes the magma layer to exist, value 0/No prevents it. Appears not have impact on volcanoes, nor volcanism, so even if 0/No there will still be embark locations with magma. If a [[volcano]] exists, it appears to always tap the magma sea, but the magma sea will not be revealed by revealing the volcano.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_1:<1 or 0>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_1:1]</nowiki></tt>
|}

==== Bottom Layer ====

Determines if the space below the magma sea exists. If Yes the "HFS" layer is always present. Normally you want to leave this set to Yes for maximum fun.

If enabled, this will force the magma layer above it. (Unknown whether this has any impact on occurrence of HFS "temple".){{Verify}}

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_2:<1 or 0>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_2:1]</nowiki></tt>
|}

=== Z Levels (Depth) Settings ===

These parameters control the "thickness" of various "layers" on the map. Note that a "layer" in this case does not refer to one Z-level, but refers to a number of related Z-levels such as "levels above ground".

The following table assumes that you have 3 cavern layers. The Levels Above Layer settings control how many Z-Levels are above each layer. A layer may itself consist of multiple Z-Levels (and almost always does).

{|style="margin:1em 1em 1em 0;background:#F9F9F9;border:1px #AAA solid;border-collapse:collapse;" class="wikitable"
|-style="background:#F2F2F2;text-align:center;"
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;" width="120"|Setting Name
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;" width="200"|Token
!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Description
|-
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Above Ground
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| <nowiki>[LEVELS_ABOVE_GROUND:<number>]</nowiki>
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| The number of Z-Levels of air above the highest surface level. Has no impact on how many Z-levels deep the surface layer is.
|-
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Above layer 1
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| <nowiki>[LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_1:<number>]</nowiki>
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Z-Levels of stone above the first cavern layer. Making this higher will guarantee ''at least'' this many levels to build your fortress, but will have no impact on how many z-levels thick the surface layer is. Also, the top of a cavern may be higher than the rest of a cavern, so in practice there will be more "solid" levels than this above the cavern.
As for version 0.31.25 this setting is inaccurate. The actual number of z-levels may vary in a range of approx. ±5, which may result in non-existence of any solid z-levels between a surface layer and first cavern layer.
|-
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Above Layer 2
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| <nowiki>[LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_2:<number>]</nowiki>
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Z-levels of earth between very top of second cavern and very bottom of first cavern.
|-
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Above Layer 3
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| <nowiki>[LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_3:<number>]</nowiki>
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Z-levels of earth between very top of third cavern and very bottom of second cavern.
|-
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Above Layer 4
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| <nowiki>[LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_4:<number>]</nowiki>
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Z-Levels of earth between very highest magma and very bottom of third cavern. Spoiler Hidden (select invisible text to read): Making this high will give a large area for HFS veins, so that it never touches caverns, giving more to mine '''if''' it was impacting the cavern previously.
|-
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Above Layer 5
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| <nowiki>[LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_5:<number>]</nowiki>
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Uncertain. May control the number of levels of "Semi Molten Rock" between HFS and Magma, may control number of levels of magma, may impact both. In experimentation, the overall depth of all magma sea and semi-molten rock levels appears to increase, but not consistent enough to say for certain. Only valid if Magma Layer present. Spoiler Hidden:Often the HFS vein will only extend as high as the highest magma, making this the only guaranteed way to increase amount of HFS to mine, but unfortunately also creating enormous useless semi-molten z-levels
|-
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| At Bottom
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| <nowiki>[LEVELS_AT_BOTTOM:<number>]</nowiki>
|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"| Appears to be number of levels of HFS chamber. Only valid if Bottom Layer present. Often has no impact. Values larger than default results in strange things.
|}

Some implications:
* The number of surface layers (e.g. soil), at this time, can not be controlled. For example, on a map with 1 layer of Peat, then a layer of Silt, then a layer of Obsidian, there is no control to let you increase either one to be, say, 20 z-levels. (though you may get lucky with the Obsidian).
* There can be multiple stone layers between the cavern and the surface. So increasing Levels Above Layer 1 may give you more Conglomerate, or more Granite, and you have no control over which stone layer spans those Z-Levels.
* The layers shown on embark span across the cavern layers in an unknown and inconsistent way. Sometimes those 10 different layers of stone are evenly distributed over your 400 z-level deep map, sometimes the first 9 get 1 z-level each and the last gets the other 391 levels. No way to control found yet.
* The HFS temple, if present, will always extend into the rock layers, and appears to always make contact with the bottom cave. Large values for levels above layer 5 and layer 4 can result in enormous temples, but the number of levels at the top (the part with undead) appears to be unaffected.
* Unconfirmed whether number of levels between caverns has any impact on cavern height. There will be connecting ramps and/or shafts between cavern layers no matter how many levels are between them.
* '''Very Important''': These values appear to apply across a whole 16x16 Region, not just embark areas. That means that if a 16x16 region is completely flat, but has one tall mountain in one far corner, even if you set Levels Above Ground low (e.g. 2 z-levels) you still have all the empty air of the highest mountain in every embark tile (e.g. 200 z-levels). Also can happen to the semi-molten layer, and can lead to unexpected behavior.
* Very large values can cause strange things to happen. Even more true for small values.

=== Cave Parameters ===

Caves are sort of like caverns except that they have a passage to the surface and are generally much smaller. Caves can connect to caverns if they are sufficiently deep.

==== Minimum/Maximum Natural Cave Size ====

These parameters appear to control the length and depth of caves.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVE_MIN_SIZE:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVE_MIN_SIZE:5]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="2" | Range: 1 to 500
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVE_MAX_SIZE:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[CAVE_MAX_SIZE:25]</nowiki></tt>
|}

==== Number of (Non-)Mountain Caves ====

The number of caves that will be generated. Lurking kobolds set up shop in caves and store stolen items here. A setting of 0 in both will stop kobold civilizations from appearing. Special note: a cave is not a lair.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:100]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="2" | Range: 0 to 800
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[NON_MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[NON_MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:200]</nowiki></tt>
|}

==== Make Caves Visible ====

If set to no (default) then the location of caves will not be marked on the map. If set to yes, caves will appear on the map as {{Raw Tile|•|#808080|#00DD00}} symbols so that they may be sought out or avoided as desired.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[ALL_CAVES_VISIBLE:<1 or 0>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[ALL_CAVES_VISIBLE:0]</nowiki></tt>
| 1/0 = Yes/No
|}

=== Allow Init Options to Show Tunnels ===

This parameter doesn't do anything.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SHOW_EMBARK_TUNNEL:<0-2>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SHOW_EMBARK_TUNNEL:2]</nowiki></tt>
| 0 = No 1 = Only in Finder 2 = Always
|}

=== Number of Civilizations ===

This number of civilizations will be placed on the map before history generation begins. These civilizations may later die out due to historical events. The five races are dwarf, elf, human, goblin, and kobold; they will be placed in equal numbers until the quota has been reached. If there is an odd number of civs (not divisible by 5), then the remainder is distributed randomly. Kobold civs require caves to be placed; if no caves exist, then kobolds are skipped and will not appear. This does not cause rejections [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=112465.msg3415125#msg3415125 data].

Note that a high value here can cause lots of map rejections, particularly on smaller maps as there simply isn't enough room or regions to put them all in.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[TOTAL_CIV_NUMBER:<number>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[TOTAL_CIV_NUMBER:40]</nowiki></tt>
| Range: 0 to 300
|}

=== Playable Civilization Required ===

If this is set to yes (default) then worlds will be rejected if no civilization with [[Entity token|CIV_CONTROLLABLE]] can be placed. In an unmodded game, only the dwarves have this token.

If set to no, the result may be a world that cannot be played in Fortress Mode.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[PLAYABLE_CIVILIZATION_REQUIRED:<1 or 0>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[PLAYABLE_CIVILIZATION_REQUIRED:1]</nowiki></tt>
| 1/0 = Yes/No
|}

=== Minimum Number of Mid/Low/High Characteristic Squares ===

Sets the minimum possible number of squares of certain ranges of each of the region qualities, such as elevation, rain, drainage, volcanism, savagery, and temperature. These need to be changed to reflect your regional meshes and weights. These are responsible for a HUGE number of map rejections. These values can all be set to 0 for much fewer map rejections, particularly in the case of more wacky, non-standard maps.

These values will cause worlds to be rejected unless at least the given number of squares of the given type are randomly generated. Setting these values too high could result in worlds always being rejected if other parameters such as the maximum/minimums for elevation, etc., don't allow enough of those squares to get generated.

{| {{prettytable}}
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
! Token
! Example
! Notes
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[ELEVATION_RANGES:<low sq>:<mid sq>:<high sq>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[ELEVATION_RANGES:8256:16512:8256]</nowiki></tt>
| rowspan="5" | Minimum number of squares that must have low, medium, and high amounts of the given attribute. 
0 = No minimum
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[RAIN_RANGES:<low sq>:<mid sq>:<high sq>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[RAIN_RANGES:8256:16512:8256]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[DRAINAGE_RANGES:<low sq>:<mid sq>:<high sq>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[DRAINAGE_RANGES:8256:16512:8256]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[SAVAGERY_RANGES:<low sq>:<mid sq>:<high sq>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[SAVAGERY_RANGES:8256:16512:8256]</nowiki></tt>
|-
| <tt><nowiki>[VOLCANISM_RANGES:<low sq>:<mid sq>:<high sq>]</nowiki></tt>
| <tt><nowiki>[VOLCANISM_RANGES:8256:16512:8256]</nowiki></tt>
|}

==World rejection==

:''Main article [[World rejection]]''

If you are having the common problem of your generated worlds always being rejected by the world generator, see [[v0.31:World rejection|Solving World Rejection Problems (v0.31 page)]] as it contains many detailed suggestions on how to troubleshoot and solve these issues.

== Default Worldgen Parameters ==

There is no single default for each parameter. Several advanced world generation profiles come with the game by default. See [[world_gen.txt|Default world_gen.txt]] to take a look at this file.

== Parameter Set Examples ==

If you're trying to do something specific then the [[Worldgen examples|Worldgen examples]] might be helpful. These are complete parameter sets that can be copied directly into your ''world_gen.txt'' file and customized as desired.
If they have nothing for you try [[Worldgen Tricks|Worldgen Tricks]], for known tricks and tips on making a world just right for you.

For many many more examples see:
* [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=101280 v0.34 WorldGen "Cookbook" Thread]

{{World}}