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Editing v0.34:Siege engine

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Unlike what the name may imply, siege engines are only deployed defensively, and no [[siege]] will use them against you (although the use of siege engines against your fort is [http://bay12games.com/dwarves/dev.html planned for future versions]).
 
Unlike what the name may imply, siege engines are only deployed defensively, and no [[siege]] will use them against you (although the use of siege engines against your fort is [http://bay12games.com/dwarves/dev.html planned for future versions]).
  
Siege engines can be made to face in any of the four cardinal directions, but they cannot be moved after placement.  They can, however, be rotated, or deconstructed back into their 3 parts (with {{k|q}}-{{k|x}}), to be moved elsewhere.  Both the construction of siege equipment and the engine itself require a dwarf with the "[[Siege engineering]]" [[labor]] designated, which uses the "[[Siege engineer]]" [[skill]].   
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Siege engines can be made to face in any of the four cardinal directions, but they cannot be moved after placement.  They can, however, be rotated, or deconstructed back into their 3 parts (with {{k|q}}-{{k|x}}), to be moved elsewhere.  Both the construction of siege equipment and the engine itself require a dwarf with the "[[Siege Engineering]]" [[labor]] designated, which uses the "[[Siege_engineer|Siege Engineer]]" [[skill]].   
  
 
The player determines when (or if) each engine is actively firing or not; when active, a single engine is crewed by a single [[siege operator]].   
 
The player determines when (or if) each engine is actively firing or not; when active, a single engine is crewed by a single [[siege operator]].   
  
Ballistae require specially made [[ammo]] — [[ballista arrow]]s, made from [[wood]]en [[log]]s at the [[siege workshop]] (and optionally tipped with [[metal]] [[ballista arrowhead]]s that have been made at a [[forge]] by a [[weaponsmith]]). Catapults use simple [[stone]] as ammunition. Catapults respect [[economic stone]] restrictions and cannot fire [[clay]] at all.
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Ballistae require specially made [[ammo]] — [[ballista arrow]]s, made from [[wood]]en [[log]]s at the [[siege workshop]] (and optionally tipped with [[metal]] [[ballista arrowhead]]s that have been made at a [[forge]] by a [[weaponsmith]]). Catapults use simple [[stone]] as ammunition.
  
 
==Building Siege Engines==
 
==Building Siege Engines==
 
{{key|b}}-{{key|i}}
 
{{key|b}}-{{key|i}}
  
In order to build a siege engine, you first need to produce (at least) three catapult or ballista parts in the [[siege workshop]]; catapults are made from any 3 '''catapult parts''', and ballistae are made from any 3 '''ballista parts'''. All parts are made from any type of wood at the siege workshop. Beyond that, "parts" are generic - there are no particular "sub-types" of parts beyond the distinction between those for the two different engine types. The quality of the parts determines the overall rate of fire and accuracy of the engine - the best are made with 3 masterwork parts{{verify}}. This won't make up for an untrained siege operator, but every little bit helps.
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In order to build a siege engine, you first need to produce (at least) three catapult or ballista parts in the [[siege workshop]]; catapults are made from any 3 '''catapult parts''', and ballistae are made from any 3 '''ballista parts'''. All parts are made from any type of wood at the siege workshop. Beyond that, "parts" are generic - there are no particular "sub-types" of parts beyond the distinction between those for the two different engine types. The quality of the parts determines the overall rate of fire and accuracy of the engine - the best are made with 3 masterwork parts. This won't make up for an untrained siege operator, but every little bit helps.
  
Once you have the parts, you may then build the respective siege engine like any other building, selecting the parts that you wish to construct that particular engine with.  It is not known whether the skill of the dwarf assembling the siege engine has any effect, but the quality of the parts certainly has: siege engines put together from [[quality|masterwork]] parts have a much higher rate of fire and accuracy.{{verify}}
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Once you have the parts, you may then build the respective siege engine like any other building, selecting the parts that you wish to construct that particular engine with.  It is not known whether the skill of the dwarf assembling the siege engine has any effect, but the quality of the parts certainly has: siege engines put together from [[quality|masterwork]] parts have a much higher rate of fire and accuracy.
  
 
The assembled siege engine is, effectively, a 3x3 building. It cannot be moved about other than by taking it down and re-assembling it at the new site. Siege engines do not impede movement, though, so you don't have to worry about building them in a corridor.
 
The assembled siege engine is, effectively, a 3x3 building. It cannot be moved about other than by taking it down and re-assembling it at the new site. Siege engines do not impede movement, though, so you don't have to worry about building them in a corridor.
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==Special considerations==
 
==Special considerations==
  
* Both catapults and ballistae have narrow fields of fire - they will only shoot at creatures directly "in front" of them, and so cannot target anything off at an angle.  They can be turned 90 degrees, but that often will not solve the problem. Unskilled operators have trouble aiming perfectly straight, and their shots will randomly veer off to either side, resulting in a field of fire roughly 19 degrees across. Highly skilled operators are supposed to fire perfectly straight; due to a bug, however, this does not happen.
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* Both catapults and ballistae have narrow fields of fire - they will only shoot at creatures basically "in front" of them, and so cannot target anything off at an angle.  They can be turned 90 degrees, but that often will not solve the problem. (The field of fire is perhaps only 10-20  degrees wide. Wild shots may go (well) beyond this, but those are not aimed.)
 
* Both catapults and ballistae aim and fire only along one z-level.  While ammo from both may drop down z-levels, they do no damage to creatures there. This also means that no "head room" is necessary - ammo just flies out, never up.
 
* Both catapults and ballistae aim and fire only along one z-level.  While ammo from both may drop down z-levels, they do no damage to creatures there. This also means that no "head room" is necessary - ammo just flies out, never up.
 
* Catapults have a minimum range - at least 30 tiles.
 
* Catapults have a minimum range - at least 30 tiles.
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Siege engines can shoot through [[fortification]]s, just like any other projectile weapon. As fortifications appear to provide some protection against incoming [[bolt]]s and [[arrow]]s, it's usually a good idea to protect the siege engine in that way. The siege engine only needs a one tile wide fortification to shoot out.
 
Siege engines can shoot through [[fortification]]s, just like any other projectile weapon. As fortifications appear to provide some protection against incoming [[bolt]]s and [[arrow]]s, it's usually a good idea to protect the siege engine in that way. The siege engine only needs a one tile wide fortification to shoot out.
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===Directing Fire===
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Where a Ballista shoots and its field of fire can be seen with {{k|q}} (with ballista highlighted), {{k|alt+a}} good with conjuncture of a pit to conserve pricey ballistic arrows and order it to attack invading troops.
  
 
===Skill and Quality===
 
===Skill and Quality===
  
The quality of the siege engine parts affects the engine's accuracy and reload time.{{verify}} It is not known whether the siege engine itself also can be of a certain quality. The quality and material of the ammunition (in case of ballista arrows) affects the damage and possibly accuracy as well.
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The quality of the siege engine parts affects the engine's accuracy and reload time. It is not known whether the siege engine itself also can be of a certain quality. The quality and material of the ammunition (in case of ballista arrows) affects the damage and possibly accuracy as well.
  
 
The only way of obtaining high-quality siege engine parts is to have them made by a trained engineer; the only way to train an engineer is to make parts or ammunition. Assembling and disassembling siege engines does not train the [[siege engineer]] skill. Dwarves will occasionally produce masterpieces long before reaching [[Legendary]] skill level, but be prepared to waste hundreds of logs until you have three masterpiece parts. Bringing an engineer to [[Experience|Proficient]] level (the highest you could buy when starting a new fortress) will take about 120 logs. Becoming Legendary requires the wood of 600 trees.
 
The only way of obtaining high-quality siege engine parts is to have them made by a trained engineer; the only way to train an engineer is to make parts or ammunition. Assembling and disassembling siege engines does not train the [[siege engineer]] skill. Dwarves will occasionally produce masterpieces long before reaching [[Legendary]] skill level, but be prepared to waste hundreds of logs until you have three masterpiece parts. Bringing an engineer to [[Experience|Proficient]] level (the highest you could buy when starting a new fortress) will take about 120 logs. Becoming Legendary requires the wood of 600 trees.
  
The operator skill certainly affects reload time. It will take a whole month for an unskilled dwarf to load a catapult; a Legendary operator with nearby ammo will get several shots at a running enemy. Operator skill is intended to improve accuracy as well, but does not.{{bug|6483}}
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The operator skill certainly affects reload time. It will take a whole month for an unskilled dwarf to load a catapult; a Legendary operator with nearby ammo will get several shots at a running enemy. Operator skill has little or no effect on accuracy.
  
 
Operators are best trained on catapults, as these require nothing but cheap stone for ammo. It is recommended to have a number of dedicated operators that will follow no other line of work, and enough catapults for all of them to play with. As they're often going for a drink or sleep, you may get along with three catapults for four operators, and even two pieces would go a long way. Since the dwarf must hold the heavy stone in his inventory during the entire loading procedure, dwarves that have increased their strength statistic load catapults much more rapidly than others, making them good candidates for operator duty. You should start training early: it can take one year for an operator to become Proficient, and two more years until he finally reaches Legendary level; by then he will have spent 300 rounds.  
 
Operators are best trained on catapults, as these require nothing but cheap stone for ammo. It is recommended to have a number of dedicated operators that will follow no other line of work, and enough catapults for all of them to play with. As they're often going for a drink or sleep, you may get along with three catapults for four operators, and even two pieces would go a long way. Since the dwarf must hold the heavy stone in his inventory during the entire loading procedure, dwarves that have increased their strength statistic load catapults much more rapidly than others, making them good candidates for operator duty. You should start training early: it can take one year for an operator to become Proficient, and two more years until he finally reaches Legendary level; by then he will have spent 300 rounds.  
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Loading ballista arrows seems to be much faster than loading catapults, probably due to the much lighter weight of the projectile.
 
Loading ballista arrows seems to be much faster than loading catapults, probably due to the much lighter weight of the projectile.
  
An alternative approach is cross-training any highly skilled dwarves who aren't doing anything useful at the moment.  With a couple levels each in strength and agility, a decent-quality catapult, and an ample supply of ammunition nearby, a dwarf can become a Legendary siege operator within a few seasons at most, giving more flexibility in defense and several more levels for the fortunate dwarf.  [[Cross-training|Rotating]] Legendary [[miner]]s out to siege-operation and then to stone-hauling duties sets up an efficient cycle.
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An alternative approach is cross-training any highly-skilled dwarves who aren't doing anything useful at the moment.  With a couple levels each in strength and agility, a decent-quality catapult, and an ample supply of ammunition nearby, a dwarf can become a Legendary siege operator within a few seasons at most, giving more flexibility in defense and several more levels for the fortunate dwarf.  [[Cross-training|Rotating]] Legendary [[miner]]s out to siege-operation and then to stone-hauling duties sets up an efficient cycle.
  
 
===In Battle===
 
===In Battle===
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Ammo storage can be on the same level, or via [[stair]]s or [[ramp]]s on another [[z-level]]. Expand the room as desired for more storage.  Also note that ballista arrows are stored in [[Stockpile#Furniture_Storage|furniture stockpiles]], not ammo stockpiles.
 
Ammo storage can be on the same level, or via [[stair]]s or [[ramp]]s on another [[z-level]]. Expand the room as desired for more storage.  Also note that ballista arrows are stored in [[Stockpile#Furniture_Storage|furniture stockpiles]], not ammo stockpiles.
  
An alternate strategy could be to place a [[floodgate]] or retracting [[bridge]] in the center of the 3x3 hallway, and activate it during times of crisis so that the Goblins are forced to fight in two separate 1x1 corridors rather than a single 3x3 corridor. If the corridors are further lined with spike traps and weapon traps, this combined defense can assure your dwarves that any attempts to assault your base will be very, very bloody.
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An alternate strategy could be to place a [[floodgate]] or retracting [[bridge]] in the center of the 3x3 hallway, and activate it during times of crisis so that the Goblins are forced to fight in two separate 1x1 corridors rather than a single 3x3 corridor. If the corridors are further lined with spike traps and weapon traps, this combined defense can assure your dwarfs that any attempts to assault your base will be very, very bloody.
  
A drawbridge can be combined with the channeled area to provide a practice area, as discussed above.  The channels would be accessible from the battery area via a staircase, keeping the dwarves below/behind the lines of fire at all times.
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A drawbridge can be combined with the channeled area to provide a practice area, as discussed above.  The channels would be accessible from the battery area via a staircase, keeping the dwarfs below/behind the lines of fire at all times.
  
 
==Catapults as stone movers==
 
==Catapults as stone movers==

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