v0.31 Talk:Textile industry

Raw silk is harvested from spider webs created by phantom spiders, cave spiders, and giant cave spiders. Unsure if phantom spiders and cave spiders can coexist.

Cloth item values

I think there should be some discussion of the values of cloth items. I gather the valuation of cloth items in the current version isn't well-understood yet, but there are a few points that can be made:

- unlike metal, wood, and other raw materials, the value of a cloth item may be -less- than the value of the cloth it is made from. (I've got an undecorated, undyed "pig tail fiber bag" that's worth 20, while ordinary, undyed "pig tail fiber cloth" is worth 34. So if someone is working on maximizing fortress value, it's worth knowing that their unskilled clothiers can actually be detrimental to created wealth, unless care is taken with the items ordered.)

- the quality of a piece of cloth affects the value of an item made from it, however in the current version (.31.16) the quality of a cloth item's raw material is not displayed in the description. (I have another undecorated, undyed PTF bag that has value 60, so I'm assuming it was made with "fine" (x3) quality cloth while the first was made with "standard" (x1) cloth. Or.. hang on, the Item value page says that the base cloth (and dye) are treated as decorations, which would imply that their values are added, rather than multiplying. Anyone know for sure exactly how that works?)

- dye quality also affects item value, in a similar way to cloth quality. The fact that an item's base cloth is dyed is mentioned in its description, but the quality of the dye is not.

- traders may bring both dyed and undyed cloth and thread, but cloth items that they bring seem to me to be mostly undyed. Is this always true?

- there seems to be no way to dye already-sewn cloth items, so if you want to maximize value, you must ensure the cloth (or thread) is dyed before being sewn into an item. Note there's presently no way to separate dyed and undyed cloth using stockpiles. (hmm.. do clothiers prefer dyed cloth over undyed, or do they just pick up the closest piece? Science, anyone?..). One solution is to dye all available cloth, then halt cloth production while sewing all the existing stock up into items.

   In the "o -> W"-menue you can choose which cloth your sewers use, dyed only or both.

202.156.10.234 06:37, 12 October 2010 (UTC)