Dwarf Fortress Wiki - User contributions [en]

40d:Fortification

2008-08-16T10:02:46Z

Naero:

'''Fortifications''' are arrow slits used in the defense of your fortress. They are probably most commonly used along the outside walls of your fortress and on the upper levels of constructed watchtowers so that [[Marksdwarf|marksdwarves]] and [[siege engine]]s can fire at enemies from within your walls. Much like real world embrasures on battlements, their utility is limited if the enemy is close and at the same height; their true power lies in shooting from above and at distance, as it is possible to shoot at targets on other z-levels.

Fortifications allow ranged attacks (including [[siege weapon]]s), fireballs/breath, [[water]], [[magma]], [[steam]], etc. to pass through. Archers firing through fortifications must pass a skill test of some sort if they are not standing directly next to the fortification.{{verify}} This test is more difficult from further distances.{{verify}}

==Building fortifications==
Fortifications can be [[Carve fortifications|carved]] from wood or stone walls or built like any other [[construction]].

=== Carving ===
Once you have chosen the wall you want to carve, smooth the stone along its length using {{K|d}} -> {{K|s}}. After it has been smoothed, re-designate the same wall for fortifications using {{K|d}} -> {{K|a}}. Stone smoothing and fortification require a dwarf with the [[Engraver]] labor.

Built walls do not require smoothing before carving fortifications, regardless if they are smooth block walls (built from stone blocks) or rough block walls (build from raw stone).

Damaged rock cannot be used for fortifications.

=== Construction ===
Fortifications can also be constructed from [[metal]], [[wood]], or [[stone]] (in lump or block form) using {{K|b}} -> {{K|C}} -> {{K|F}}. Construction of wooden fortifications require the [[Carpenter|Carpentry]] skill, fortifications made of stone require the [[Mason|Masonry]] skill, and those made of metal require [[Metalsmith|Metalsmithing]].

As of version 38c, building fortifications does not include the floor on the level above. Constructing a wall and carving fortifications out of it does, however.

==Uses and strategies==
Fortifications are designed to allow your marksdwarves to make pincushions of your enemies without exposing themselves to the dangers of melee, and providing them with cover from return fire. Obviously, their utility is derived entirely from their placement. It's a good idea to place fortifications above the Z-level that they will be defending, because otherwise ranged enemies could conceivably stand directly outside them and receive no penalty from them. Raising them above ground makes them inaccessible to enemies.

It's helpful to make the room that the fortifications look out of a [[barracks]] or [[archery range]], along with an [[ammo]] [[stockpile]], to ensure that there are always military dwarves milling about at all times, ready to fire upon any attackers that threaten the fortress.

{{Buildings}}

[[Category:Military]]
[[Category:Fortress defense]]

40d:Siege

2007-12-30T13:33:14Z

Naero:

A siege is a special time in Fortress mode when an army attempts to attack and kill all of your dwarves. It is at this time you should activate your military, raise the draw bridges and pray you've enough food stocks to last the winter.

During a siege, the option on the main menu 'Abandon Fortress' changes to 'Succumb to the Invasion'.

<blockquote>
Note: As of v0.27.169.33f, sieges are kind of functioning. The siege groups now perform a suicidal rush.
</blockquote>

== Siegers ==

=== Goblins ===

[[Goblins]] will send kidnappers once your fort's population or wealth reaches a certain amount, and will start sieging once your population reaches 80. Sieges will increase in intensity depending only on how many previous sieges you have survived - a population higher than 80 does not increase the number of goblin siegers.

They arrive in squads of about 15 goblins each, frequently led by individual goblin weapon masters (or even evil human mercenaries) and sometimes mounted on beak dogs, and occasionally accompanied by up to 3 squads of 5-8 trolls. They frequently are split into separate squads placed on different map edges. The first siege you see with a given fort might consist of as little as a single unmounted squad with no trolls, but the goblin forces will escalate in size as the game progresses. Later on you may be seeing 100 or more goblins show up in a single siege, all mounted, with 10 to 20 trolls.

[[Troll]]s are the goblin "siege engines". They are faster than beak dogs, and will make for buildings and start demolishing. Locked doors will keep the goblins out, but can be demolished by trolls.

If you deflect enough sieges, the ruler of the goblin nation may lead a squad. He's equipped with extra-good quality equipment.

=== Humans ===

Unknown if humans still siege this version, someone confirm.

=== Elves ===

Unknown if elves still siege this version, someone confirm.

=== Kobolds ===

Similiar to [[Goblins]], [[Kobolds]] will first send thieves dependant on your fort's population or wealth. Kobold archers will begin to arrive if the Kobold thieves successfully steal any items - the number of successive archers and thieves who arrive will depend on how many items were stolen previously.

Kobold archers tend not to directly siege your fort, but prefer to pick off individual Dwarves who may be working in the surrounding wilderness. They will leave once their arrows have been exhausted.

== Tips ==
{{old|0.23.130.23a}}
===Active Defense===
*Put your entire [[military]] on duty. With luck, most of them are not sleeping, eating, or drinking. If a [[squad]] leader is is doing anything of that sort, replace him with a more alert squad member (the squad always clusters about the leader. If the leader's eating, the squad will guard the table). Place melee units at major choke points, so they can meet the enemy head on, but try to keep them out of direct fire from enemy missile users. Place your own marksdwarves where they can rain death down on the enemies. (This is why you build [[fortifications]].)

*[[War dog]]s are valuable, but shouldn't be the first line of defense, because the enemy bowmen will quickly take care of them. Assign them to your military dwarves, or cage them before the siege, and [[Release the Hounds!|release]] them via lever/pressure plate as the enemy is rounding a blind corner. They're also useful for clearing the field once the siege ends.

*[[Siege weapon]]s, catapults and ballistae, can be effective during a siege, but can also be entirely useless. They don't have a wide field of fire, so you'll need to design your fortress ahead of time to funnel your attackers into the weapons' field of fire and then delay them with winding passages while in range. To use them effectively, you really need trained Siege Operators for the task, since siege weapons take up to three real-time minutes for inexperienced operators to load, and the weapons cannot be fired at a precise time; they will fire whenever the operator shows up. Fire early and often: siege operators are civilians, and will run away once the oncoming hordes get too close.

===Passive Defense===
*If you have no trust in your military's power, keep all the dwarves inside and pull the siegers into corridors with [[traps]]. Stone-fall traps are cheap and easy, but are one-shot traps with a long reload time; weapon traps require weapons, but reload themselves after a few seconds, until they eventually get stuck. A 10-square-long entry hall filled with weapons traps will break most [[goblin]] sieges without any help. (How boring!)

*A moat may provide a decent defense when combined with a drawbridge to either keep the goblins from entering, or to drop them right into the water. Substitute magma for some far more lethal results. Even not filled 1-tile wide channel is a fast and effective way to stop siegers or to guide them into areas you want.

=== Civilians ===

* Your normal dwarves will still attempt to do their jobs during a siege. The [[Options]]->Dwarves Stay Inside option will prevent them from going outside, but only after walking to the entrance. Since many of your major defenses will be inside the fortress, this is only somewhat useful. Dwarves will run from invaders, but only ''after'' getting within crossbow-range, so their self-preservation skills are lackluster when the enemy has ranged weapons. Therefore, your best bet is to draft the dwarves in question (or simply all civilians) into one citizen-squad and station them somewhere out of harm's way. However, if any of your citizens are set to carry weapons or armor, they may decide to go collect equipment from slain [[goblins]]/dwarves during the siege, which means they'll run out into the fray. Keep an eye on this, and turn off their [[weapons]]/[[armor]] accordingly.

* Providing indoor pastimes (like [[sculpture garden]], [[zoo]], [[meeting hall]], or a meeting area zone) will make dwarves spend their break time in the fortress rather than outside. This will typically stop all dwarves from hanging around outside. Hunters, woodcutters, haulers and other dwarves who have business outside will still be at risk.

[[Category:World]]
[[Category:Military]]
[[Category:Fortress Defense]]

40d:Human

2007-12-19T00:44:16Z

Naero:

'''Humans''' are intelligent [[humanoid]] [[creatures]] that live in cities on the plains. They are a one of the races playable in [[Adventure Mode]]. Their buildings are made entirely of [[wood]], and usually include several houses and [[shop]]s, and a tavern. They are primarily interested in trade, and generally send large [[caravan]]s in [[Calendar|summer]]. They will [[siege]] any fortress that lets harm come to their caravans.{{ver|0.23.130.23a}}

== Humans in Fortress Mode ==

{{old|0.23.130.23a}}

The first human [[caravan]] will arrive in the summer of your second year, provided a human [[civilization]] has access to your site. The caravan will have wagons, which are slow but carry lots of goods.

Humans may also send a Representative, and having more skilled trading nobles will upgrade him to a Merchant Baron or Merchant Prince, who have larger caravans. The Representative will set up [[Trade agreement]]s with your trading noble, which lets you order the goods you want the next caravan to bring. Humans value weapons, and will usually negotiate to pay more for them in their trade agreements.

If enough humans are killed while visiting your area, their civilization will invade and try very hard to obliterate your fortress. This can be viewed as either something to avoid, or a chance to test your network of fortress defenses. This can be especially tricky if a human noble has been to your fortress. All traps that she observed while walking inside will be essentially inactive for any invading humans.

If you succeed in defeating a human siege, they may send a diplomat to make an offer of peace, which you can accept or reject.

=== Living among them ===

Creating a settlement underneath a human town confers a number advantages. The human [[soldier]]s and [[guard]]s, in the process of protecting their town, also protect your fortress. In addition, all the objects present in the town are assumed to be your property, which provides your fortress with a huge starting value boost. You may also [[reclaim]] the items present inside the various buildings, giving you a nice early cache of weapons, trade objects and [[furniture]]. Finally, the wood from the buildings may be acquired by deconstructing them, or [[cave-ins|undermining]] the structure.

== Humans in Adventure Mode ==

Human towns usually have many different shops. They typically have swordsmen and plenty of [[Drunk|drunks]] to recruit. The leader and quest giver of a city is called the mayor, who can generally be found in the tavern in the center of town.

Humans characters are, in every way, the middle road between dwarves and elves. Their starting equipment is [[metal]], but the type of metal depends on how advanced that particular Human civilization is. Humans might have [[copper]], [[bronze]], or [[iron]] equipment. Humans may start with skill in any [[weapon]] (as opposed to the more limited lists that [[elves]] and [[dwarves]] use). Humans lack the special damage resistance of [[dwarves]] and the raw speed of [[elves]], but they are one size category larger than [[dwarves]]. This makes them hit harder and absorb more damage (though it may not make up for their lack of damage resistance). Another downside for humans is that they have a life expectancy of 60-120 years, which is a lot shorter than dwarves and especially elves, but this is unlikely to affect anyone except a serious [[Fortress Mode]] addict.

They may buy both [[armor]] and weapons at human towns, and may scavenge dwarven weapons from abandoned fortresses. Masterpiece armor is extremely rare in human [[shop]]s, but exceptional equipment is common, and temples contain abundant loot, so a human adventurer can easily pick up a set of exceptional gear.

== Playing as Humans in Fortress Mode ==
To start a "Human fort" (or, alternately, an Elven retreat or Goblin tower) one need only add the tag [CIV_CONTROLLABLE] to the entity_default.txt file in the /raw/objects folder, under whichever race you wish to play. You should only do this after having already generated a world, otherwise you may encounter bugs. It's also advisable to only have one race playable at a time by removing the [CIV_CONTROLLABLE] tag from all but the race you wish to play, for similar reasons.

Gameplay adapts remarkably well, as if Toady intended us to do this, although there are a few bugs mostly relating to traders from certain races not arriving at your fort. The Elves can carry with them many different pets upon embarking, and the races will start with the appropriate food and plants (for example, humans have prickle berries instead of plump helmets by default).

{{Creatures}}
[[Category:Races]]

40d:Human

2007-12-19T00:43:35Z

Naero:

'''Humans''' are intelligent [[humanoid]] [[creatures]] that live in cities on the plains. They are a one of the races playable in [[Adventure Mode]]. Their buildings are made entirely of [[wood]], and usually include several houses and [[shop]]s, and a tavern. They are primarily interested in trade, and generally send large [[caravan]]s in [[Calendar|summer]]. They will [[siege]] any fortress that lets harm come to their caravans.{{ver|0.23.130.23a}}

== Humans in Fortress Mode ==

{{old|0.23.130.23a}}

The first human [[caravan]] will arrive in the summer of your second year, provided a human [[civilization]] has access to your site. The caravan will have wagons, which are slow but carry lots of goods.

Humans may also send a Representative, and having more skilled trading nobles will upgrade him to a Merchant Baron or Merchant Prince, who have larger caravans. The Representative will set up [[Trade agreement]]s with your trading noble, which lets you order the goods you want the next caravan to bring. Humans value weapons, and will usually negotiate to pay more for them in their trade agreements.

If enough humans are killed while visiting your area, their civilization will invade and try very hard to obliterate your fortress. This can be viewed as either something to avoid, or a chance to test your network of fortress defenses. This can be especially tricky if a human noble has been to your fortress. All traps that she observed while walking inside will be essentially inactive for any invading humans.

If you succeed in defeating a human siege, they may send a diplomat to make an offer of peace, which you can accept or reject.

=== Living among them ===

Creating a settlement underneath a human town confers a number advantages. The human [[soldier]]s and [[guard]]s, in the process of protecting their town, also protect your fortress. In addition, all the objects present in the town are assumed to be your property, which provides your fortress with a huge starting value boost. You may also [[reclaim]] the items present inside the various buildings, giving you a nice early cache of weapons, trade objects and [[furniture]]. Finally, the wood from the buildings may be acquired by deconstructing them, or [[cave-ins|undermining]] the structure.

== Humans in Adventure Mode ==

Human towns usually have many different shops. They typically have swordsmen and plenty of [[Drunk|drunks]] to recruit. The leader and quest giver of a city is called the mayor, who can generally be found in the tavern in the center of town.

Humans characters are, in every way, the middle road between dwarves and elves. Their starting equipment is [[metal]], but the type of metal depends on how advanced that particular Human civilization is. Humans might have [[copper]], [[bronze]], or [[iron]] equipment. Humans may start with skill in any [[weapon]] (as opposed to the more limited lists that [[elves]] and [[dwarves]] use). Humans lack the special damage resistance of [[dwarves]] and the raw speed of [[elves]], but they are one size category larger than [[dwarves]]. This makes them hit harder and absorb more damage (though it may not make up for their lack of damage resistance). Another downside for humans is that they have a life expectancy of 60-120 years, which is a lot shorter than dwarves and especially elves, but this is unlikely to affect anyone except a serious [[Fortress Mode]] addict.

They may buy both [[armor]] and weapons at human towns, and may scavenge dwarven weapons from abandoned fortresses. Masterpiece armor is extremely rare in human [[shop]]s, but exceptional equipment is common, and temples contain abundant loot, so a human adventurer can easily pick up a set of exceptional gear.

== Playing as Humans in Fortress Mode ==
To start a "Human fort" (or, alternately, an Elven retreat or Goblin tower) one need only add the tag [CIV_CONTROLLABLE] to the entity_default.txt file in the /raw/objects folder, under whichever race you wish to play. You should only do this after having already generated a world, otherwise you may encounter bugs. It's also advisable to only have one race playable at a time (by removing the [CIV_CONTROLLABLE] tag from all but the race you wish to play), for similar reasons.

Gameplay adapts remarkably well, as if Toady intended us to do this, although there are a few bugs mostly relating to traders from certain races not arriving at your fort. The Elves can carry with them many different pets upon embarking, and the races will start with the appropriate food and plants (for example, humans have prickle berries instead of plump helmets by default).

{{Creatures}}
[[Category:Races]]

40d:Siege

2007-12-17T09:48:43Z

Naero:

A siege is a special time in Fortress mode when an army attempts to attack and kill all of your dwarves. It is at this time you should activate your military, raise the draw bridges and pray you've enough food stocks to last the winter.

During a siege, the option on the main menu 'Abandon Fortress' changes to 'Succumb to the Invasion'.

<blockquote>
Note: As of v0.27.169.33f, sieges are kind of functioning. The siege groups now perform a suicidal rush.
</blockquote>

== Siegers ==

=== Goblins ===

[[Goblins]] will attack whenever they feel like it, after your fortress reaches a certain point. Possibly triggered by fortress wealth now rather than nobles. Sometimes they will even attack when a caravan arrives.

They arrive in squads of about 15 goblins each, frequently led by individual goblin weapon masters (or even evil human mercenaries) and sometimes mounted on beak dogs, and occasionally accompanied by up to 3 squads of 5-8 trolls. They frequently are split into separate squads placed on different map edges. The first siege you see with a given fort might consist of as little as a single unmounted squad with no trolls, but the goblin forces will escalate in size as the game progresses. Later on you may be seeing 100 or more goblins show up in a single siege, all mounted, with 10 to 20 trolls.

[[Troll]]s are the goblin "siege engines". They are faster than beak dogs, and will make for buildings and start demolishing. Locked doors will keep the goblins out, but can be demolished by trolls.

If you deflect enough sieges, the ruler of the goblin nation may lead a squad. He's equipped with extra-good quality equipment.

=== Humans ===

Unknown if humans still siege this version, someone confirm.

=== Elves ===

Unknown if elves still siege this version, someone confirm.

=== Kobolds ===

[[Kobolds]] seem to arrive in small archer squads, and will pick off solitary [[hunter]]s, [[herbalist]]s, and [[woodcutter]]s foolish enough to work alone. They appear to function similarly to the elven sieges in the previous version. When they expend all their ammunition, they will retreat off the edge of the map. It's unknown what exactly causes [[kobolds]] to attack, although killing a [[kobold]] master [[thief]] may cause an attack.

== Tips ==
{{old|0.23.130.23a}}
===Active Defense===
*Put your entire [[military]] on duty. With luck, most of them are not sleeping, eating, or drinking. If a [[squad]] leader is is doing anything of that sort, replace him with a more alert squad member (the squad always clusters about the leader. If the leader's eating, the squad will guard the table). Place melee units at major choke points, so they can meet the enemy head on, but try to keep them out of direct fire from enemy missile users. Place your own marksdwarves where they can rain death down on the enemies. (This is why you build [[fortifications]].)

*[[War dog]]s are valuable, but shouldn't be the first line of defense, because the enemy bowmen will quickly take care of them. Assign them to your military dwarves, or cage them before the siege, and [[Release the Hounds!|release]] them via lever/pressure plate as the enemy is rounding a blind corner. They're also useful for clearing the field once the siege ends.

*[[Siege weapon]]s, catapults and ballistae, can be effective during a siege, but can also be entirely useless. They don't have a wide field of fire, so you'll need to design your fortress ahead of time to funnel your attackers into the weapons' field of fire and then delay them with winding passages while in range. To use them effectively, you really need trained Siege Operators for the task, since siege weapons take up to three real-time minutes for inexperienced operators to load, and the weapons cannot be fired at a precise time; they will fire whenever the operator shows up. Fire early and often: siege operators are civilians, and will run away once the oncoming hordes get too close.

===Passive Defense===
*If you have no trust in your military's power, keep all the dwarves inside and pull the siegers into corridors with [[traps]]. Stone-fall traps are cheap and easy, but are one-shot traps with a long reload time; weapon traps require weapons, but reload themselves after a few seconds, until they eventually get stuck. A 10-square-long entry hall filled with weapons traps will break most [[goblin]] sieges without any help. (How boring!)

*A moat may provide a decent defense when combined with a drawbridge to either keep the goblins from entering, or to drop them right into the water. Substitute magma for some far more lethal results. Even not filled 1-tile wide channel is a fast and effective way to stop siegers or to guide them into areas you want.

=== Civilians ===

* Your normal dwarves will still attempt to do their jobs during a siege. The [[Options]]->Dwarves Stay Inside option will prevent them from going outside, but only after walking to the entrance. Since many of your major defenses will be inside the fortress, this is only somewhat useful. Dwarves will run from invaders, but only ''after'' getting within crossbow-range, so their self-preservation skills are lackluster when the enemy has ranged weapons. Therefore, your best bet is to draft the dwarves in question (or simply all civilians) into one citizen-squad and station them somewhere out of harm's way. However, if any of your citizens are set to carry weapons or armor, they may decide to go collect equipment from slain [[goblins]]/dwarves during the siege, which means they'll run out into the fray. Keep an eye on this, and turn off their [[weapons]]/[[armor]] accordingly.

* Providing indoor pastimes (like [[sculpture garden]], [[zoo]], [[meeting hall]], or a meeting area zone) will make dwarves spend their break time in the fortress rather than outside. This will typically stop all dwarves from hanging around outside. Hunters, woodcutters, haulers and other dwarves who have business outside will still be at risk.

[[Category:World]]
[[Category:Military]]
[[Category:Fortress Defense]]