Density - Revision history

108.85.197.99: style, grammar

2026-03-06T02:00:01Z

style, grammar

Quietust: fix formatting correctly

2026-02-20T03:32:16Z

fix formatting correctly

108.85.197.99: /* Density vs. weapon momentum */

2026-02-19T21:21:43Z

Density vs. weapon momentum

108.85.197.99: /* Density vs. weapon momentum */

2026-02-19T21:19:22Z

Density vs. weapon momentum

108.85.197.99: /* Density vs. weapon momentum */

2026-02-19T21:19:03Z

Density vs. weapon momentum

108.85.197.99: /* Density vs. weapon momentum */ arrrrgh! typos ;(

2026-02-19T21:16:31Z

Density vs. weapon momentum: arrrrgh! typos ;(

108.85.197.99: /* Density vs. weapon momentum */

2026-02-19T21:11:59Z

Density vs. weapon momentum

108.85.197.99: /* Density vs. weapon momentum */ format typro

2026-02-19T21:08:56Z

Density vs. weapon momentum: format typro

108.85.197.99: /* Density of some materials */ subsection explaining new "momentum" value

2026-02-19T21:07:39Z

Density of some materials: subsection explaining new "momentum" value

108.85.197.99: see also Material science

2026-02-19T19:26:12Z

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 In previous versions, the denser the material the heavier a weapon was, and the more damage that weapon would do in combat, especially [[Attack_types#Blunt_weapons|blunt]] weapons - simple. However, that difference has been largely limited in the current combat system by determining "momentum", which is {weight x velocity}. Heavier weapons ''tend'' to be swung less quickly, so the old "heavier = more" rule is no longer that simple. There are many variables, significantly including size and strength of the combatant, but "momentum" is now the go-to value for determining "best" metal for blunt attacks.
-And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half'' of one percent. And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive for all but the strongest, most [[Attribute#Endurance|indefatigable]] dwarves.
+And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half'' of one percent. And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is now capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly toward tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive for all but the strongest, most [[Attribute#Endurance|indefatigable]] dwarves.
-Bottom line, against <u>un</u>armored opponents (i.e. most [[creature|animals]], [[Thief#Kobold thieves|kobold thieves]], [[undead]], etc.), any metal is overkill and will merrily break bones and crush skulls with ease. Against armored targets, all metals now works ''about'' the same. You can safely save your steel (and even iron and bronze) and use whatever metal(s) you have in surplus, and you're not hurting your hammer-/mace-dwarves by any amount that anyone would notice in game play; and weaker warriors don't have to lug around silver weapons, fatiguing themselves half-way through an encounter.
+Bottom line, against <u>un</u>armored opponents (i.e. most [[creature|animals]], [[Thief#Kobold thieves|kobold thieves]], simple [[undead]], etc.), any metal bludgeoning weapon is overkill and will merrily break bones and crush skulls with ease. Against armored targets, all metals now work ''about'' the same. You can safely save your steel (and even iron and bronze) and use whatever metal(s) you have in surplus, and you're not hurting your hammer-/mace-dwarves by any amount that anyone would notice in game play; and weaker warriors don't have to lug around silver weapons, fatiguing themselves half-way through an encounter.
 Note that it's been reported that these "maximums" are ''not'' capped in weapons traps which, presumably, have no variable "strength", and so heavier weapon materials, certainly for blunt but also for slashing/piercing attacks, <u>do</u> perform better (accounting for the [[Weapon#Superior_metal_rule|superior metal rule]] for the latter).

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 In previous versions, the denser the material the heavier a weapon was, and the more damage that weapon would do in combat, especially [[Attack_types#Blunt_weapons|blunt]] weapons - simple. However, that difference has been largely limited in the current combat system by determining "momentum", which is {weight x velocity}. Heavier weapons ''tend'' to be swung less quickly, so the old "heavier = more" rule is no longer that simple. There are many variables, significantly including size and strength of the combatant, but "momentum" is now the go-to value for determining "best" metal for blunt attacks.
-And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half' a %''. And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive for all but the strongest, most [[Attribute#Endurance|indefatigable]] dwarves.
+And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half'' of one percent. And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive for all but the strongest, most [[Attribute#Endurance|indefatigable]] dwarves.
 Bottom line, against <u>un</u>armored opponents (i.e. most [[creature|animals]], [[Thief#Kobold thieves|kobold thieves]], [[undead]], etc.), any metal is overkill and will merrily break bones and crush skulls with ease. Against armored targets, all metals now works ''about'' the same. You can safely save your steel (and even iron and bronze) and use whatever metal(s) you have in surplus, and you're not hurting your hammer-/mace-dwarves by any amount that anyone would notice in game play; and weaker warriors don't have to lug around silver weapons, fatiguing themselves half-way through an encounter.

@@ Line 139: / Line 139: @@
 In previous versions, the denser the material the heavier a weapon was, and the more damage that weapon would do in combat, especially [[Attack_types#Blunt_weapons|blunt]] weapons - simple. However, that difference has been largely limited in the current combat system by determining "momentum", which is {weight x velocity}. Heavier weapons ''tend'' to be swung less quickly, so the old "heavier = more" rule is no longer that simple. There are many variables, significantly including size and strength of the combatant, but "momentum" is now the go-to value for determining "best" metal for blunt attacks.
-And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half' a %''. And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive.
+And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half' a %''. And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive for all but the strongest, most [[Attribute#Endurance|indefatigable]] dwarves.
 Bottom line, against <u>un</u>armored opponents (i.e. most [[creature|animals]], [[Thief#Kobold thieves|kobold thieves]], [[undead]], etc.), any metal is overkill and will merrily break bones and crush skulls with ease. Against armored targets, all metals now works ''about'' the same. You can safely save your steel (and even iron and bronze) and use whatever metal(s) you have in surplus, and you're not hurting your hammer-/mace-dwarves by any amount that anyone would notice in game play; and weaker warriors don't have to lug around silver weapons, fatiguing themselves half-way through an encounter.

@@ Line 139: / Line 139: @@
 In previous versions, the denser the material the heavier a weapon was, and the more damage that weapon would do in combat, especially [[Attack_types#Blunt_weapons|blunt]] weapons - simple. However, that difference has been largely limited in the current combat system by determining "momentum", which is {weight x velocity}. Heavier weapons ''tend'' to be swung less quickly, so the old "heavier = more" rule is no longer that simple. There are many variables, significantly including size and strength of the combatant, but "momentum" is now the go-to value for determining "best" metal for blunt attacks.
-And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half' a %''.And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive.
+And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half' a %''. And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive.
 Bottom line, against <u>un</u>armored opponents (i.e. most [[creature|animals]], [[Thief#Kobold thieves|kobold thieves]], [[undead]], etc.), any metal is overkill and will merrily break bones and crush skulls with ease. Against armored targets, all metals now works ''about'' the same. You can safely save your steel (and even iron and bronze) and use whatever metal(s) you have in surplus, and you're not hurting your hammer-/mace-dwarves by any amount that anyone would notice in game play; and weaker warriors don't have to lug around silver weapons, fatiguing themselves half-way through an encounter.

@@ Line 139: / Line 139: @@
 In previous versions, the denser the material the heavier a weapon was, and the more damage that weapon would do in combat, especially [[Attack_types#Blunt_weapons|blunt]] weapons - simple. However, that difference has been largely limited in the current combat system by determining "momentum", which is {weight x velocity}. Heavier weapons ''tend'' to be swung less quickly, so the old "heavier = more" rule is no longer that simple. There are many variables, significantly including size and strength of the combatant, but "momentum" is now the go-to value for determining "best" metal for blunt attacks.
-And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half' a %''. Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. And steel remains the "hardest" material, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive.
+And with a variation for maximum (based on strength/etc) momentum of between 98.125 (iron/steel) to 98.59 (silver), that's a difference of < .005, ''less than half' a %''.And steel remains the "hardest" of the standard metals, which, while a small factor, is enough to offset the weight.  Even platinum, the old, rare [[mood]]y holy grail of blunt weaponry, is capped at a max 99.3%, only a 1.2% increase over steel. Meanwhile, the significant increased weight of such weapons ''does'' count directly at tiring a combatant, making "heavier" weapons even less attractive.
 Bottom line, against <u>un</u>armored opponents (i.e. most [[creature|animals]], [[Thief#Kobold thieves|kobold thieves]], [[undead]], etc.), any metal is overkill and will merrily break bones and crush skulls with ease. Against armored targets, all metals now works ''about'' the same. You can safely save your steel (and even iron and bronze) and use whatever metal(s) you have in surplus, and you're not hurting your hammer-/mace-dwarves by any amount that anyone would notice in game play; and weaker warriors don't have to lug around silver weapons, fatiguing themselves half-way through an encounter.

@@ Line 145: / Line 145: @@
 Note that it's been reported that these "maximums" are ''not'' capped in weapons traps which, presumably, have no variable "strength", and so heavier weapon materials, certainly for blunt but also for slashing/piercing attacks, <u>do</u> perform better (accounting for the [[Weapon#Superior_metal_rule|superior metal rule]] for the latter).
-* See also [[Material science#Attack Momentum for more technical details]]
+* See also [[Material science#Attack Momentum]] for more technical details
 ==See also==

@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 Note that not all forms of items are the same size, and so are not comparable when considering actual [[weight]] for practical applications, such as a [[Trap#Stone-fall_trap|door prize]]. A [[stone]] (including raw ore) has a size of 100,000 cm<sup>3</sup> and a [[log]] of wood 50,000 cm<sup>3</sup>, while a [[bar]] of metal ''(or a block of stone or wood)'' have a size of only 6,000 cm<sup>3</sup>, a difference of ~16.67:1 for stone vs. metals, or ~8.33:1 for wood vs. metals.
 <!-- TABLE NEEDS A NEW COLUMN TO REFLECT THIS. CURRENT DATA IS MISLEADING w/ REGARD TO WEIGHT IN PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS.-->
@@ Line 28: / Line 32: @@
 |[[Candlenut]]||Wood||140||Third least dense wood, found only in tropical biomes
 |-
-|[[Adamantine]]||Metal||200||Least dense metal, light enough that it has much lower momentum in weapon attacks than others (about 57% for a normal dwarf)
+|[[Adamantine]]||Metal||200||Least dense metal, light enough that it has much lower momentum* in weapon attacks than others (about 57% for a normal dwarf)
 |-
 |[[Raw adamantine]]||Stone||200||Least dense stone
@@ Line 52: / Line 56: @@
 |[[Olive]]||Wood||990||Densest "normal" wood, found only in tropical biomes
 |-
-|[[Divine metal]]||Metal||1000||Second least dense metal, about 86.6% momentum on attacks
+|[[Divine metal]]||Metal||1000||Second least dense metal, about 86.6% momentum on attacks*
 |-
 |[[Glumprong]]||Wood||1200||Densest above-ground wood ''(by far)'', found only in evil biomes
@@ Line 106: / Line 110: @@
 |[[Pitchblende]]||Stone||7600||Most dense "magma-safe" non-economic stone, excepting Slade
 |-
-|[[Iron]]||Metal||7850||98.125% max momentum
+|[[Iron]]||Metal||7850||standard [[weapons-grade]] metal, 98.125% max momentum*
 |-
-|[[Steel]]||Metal||7850||98.125% max momentum
+|[[Steel]]||Metal||7850||standard [[weapons-grade]] metal, 98.125% max momentum*
 |-
 |[[Cinnabar]]||Stone||8100||Densest non-economic stone, excepting Slade
 |-
-|[[Bronze]]||Metal||8250||98.2% max momentum
+|[[Bronze]]||Metal||8250||standard [[weapons-grade]] metal, 98.2% max momentum*
 |-
 |[[Nickel]]||Metal||8800||
 |-
-|[[Copper]]||Metal||8930||98.35% max momentum
+|[[Copper]]||Metal||8930||standard [[weapons-grade]] metal, 98.35% max momentum*
 |-
-|[[Silver]]||Metal||10490||98.59% max momentum
+|[[Silver]]||Metal||10490||standard [[weapons-grade]] metal, 98.59% max momentum*
 |-
 |[[Lead]]||Metal||11340||
@@ Line 124: / Line 128: @@
 |[[Gold]]||Metal||19320||
 |-
-|[[Platinum]]||Metal||21400||Densest metal, 99.3% max momentum
+|[[Platinum]]||Metal||21400||Densest metal, 99.3% max momentum*
 |-
 |[[Native platinum]]||Stone||21400||Densest [[economic]] stone (and [[ore]])
@@ Line 131: / Line 135: @@
 |-
 |}
 ==See also==

@@ Line 135: / Line 135: @@
 * [[Size]]
 * [[Weight]]
 {{Category|Physics}}