Quickstart guide - Revision history

Ziusudra: /* Options menu */ updated options menu link

2026-09-28T00:59:49Z

Options menu: updated options menu link

GeloMor: /* Checking Supplies */

2026-09-22T05:59:06Z

Checking Supplies

GeloMor: Since the zones overlapping is a thing, never assign a meeting area over a dining hall

2026-09-20T01:58:05Z

Since the zones overlapping is a thing, never assign a meeting area over a dining hall

GeloMor: /* Placing Furniture */

2026-09-20T01:33:25Z

Placing Furniture

GeloMor: /* Dining and Food Prep Area */

2026-09-15T14:55:37Z

Dining and Food Prep Area

GeloMor: /* Furniture */

2026-09-15T14:54:38Z

Furniture

GeloMor: /* Furniture */

2026-09-15T14:51:17Z

Furniture

GeloMor: /* Furniture */

2026-09-15T14:51:00Z

Furniture

GeloMor: /* Building */

2026-09-14T04:02:30Z

Building

GeloMor: /* Bedrooms */ Seems to be up to date

2026-09-14T03:59:49Z

Bedrooms: Seems to be up to date

@@ Line 23: / Line 23: @@
 == Options menu ==
-{{main|Dwarf_fortress_mode#Options_screen|l1=Options screen}}
+{{main|Dwarf_fortress_mode#Options menu|l1=Options menu}}
 Basic game-related tasks (saving, quitting, settings, etc.) are available on the options menu, which can be reached with {{Menu icon|Esc}} from the main screen. {{K|Esc}} again or {{K|right click}} will close the menu. This menu also shows the current or previous music track.

@@ Line 524: / Line 524: @@
 ==Checking Supplies==
-{{TipBox2|float=right|titlebg=#a00|Hostile Wilds|Before turning on either hunting or fishing, examine the {{K|u}}nits screen to see if there are any dangerous critters your hunters/fishers need worry about. With hunting especially, you may need to check this screen frequently.}}
+{{TipBox2|float=right|titlebg=#a00|Hostile Wilds|Before turning on either hunting or fishing, examine the {{menu icon|u}} Units screen to see if there are any dangerous critters your hunters/fishers need worry about. With hunting especially, you may need to check this screen frequently.}}
 Use the [[stocks|stoc{{K|k}}s]] screen to check your stock levels. How much food and booze do you have left? You only have unprepared food at this point, and the booze you brought with you, but soon you will be making more. If you are running low on food, you can designate gathering some [[shrub|outdoor plants]], [[Creatures menu#Pets/Livestock tab|slaughter]] some animals, turn on [[fishing]], or turn on [[hunting]] to tide you over for a bit. Hunting and slaughtering animals both require a butcher's shop.

@@ Line 520: / Line 520: @@
 Use {{Menu icon|b|o|f|k|sep=-}} to build the kitchen in the middle of the 5×5 room. Use {{Menu icon|p|sep=-}} to create food stockpiles in the remaining space around it, as well as the entire food storage room. Go back to your general-purpose stockpile on the top level and change the settings to disable food (click "Food" then click "None" in the center column). This will cause any food in your general purpose stockpile to get moved to your new food-only stockpiles. Hit {{Menu icon|y}} and select ''[[Kitchen]]'' from the top of the screen, then disable all cooking for plants, and enable brewing for them so that they will only be used for brewing. Also disable alcoholic beverages for cooking, otherwise your cooks will waste perfectly good hooch in their cooking. The only time you might want to use alcohol in cooking is when you have lots of booze but are running out of food. If you plan to do any fishing, dig out another area and create a [[Fishery]] on this level so the uncleaned fish your fisherdwarf just caught can be cleaned (gutted) for consumption or cooking. If you plan to do any hunting or [[Creatures menu#Pets/Livestock tab|slaughter]] any animals, create a [[Butcher's shop]] on this level so animal corpses can be butchered. The fishery/butcher's shop can be placed behind the kitchen or the general food stockpile, for example. A door is recommended for the butcher's shop in order to contain [[Miasma]] should something rot, and to otherwise avoid offending squeamish dwarves. Eventually, go check out the subpage on [[/Stockpiles/]] for more information on fine-tuning these stockpiles for maximum efficiency. For now you can safely procrastinate on this and move on to the next section.
-==Placing Furniture==
+===Placing Furniture===
-Once your furnishings are complete, you need to place them in rooms using the build furniture ({{Menu icon|b|f|sep=-}}) command. Put the new {{Menu icon|b|f|r|sep=-|num=1}} chairs and {{Menu icon|b|f|t|sep=-|num=1}} tables in the dining room. If you like, you can add doors for aesthetics (they can be useful in case something starts rotting in your food stockpiles). If you created {{Menu icon|b|f|h|sep=-|num=1}} chests and {{Menu icon|b|f|n|sep=-|num=1}} cabinets, you can add them to each room if you want, but it is not urgent now.
+Once your furnishings are complete, you need to place them in rooms using the build furniture ({{Menu icon|b|f|sep=-}}) command. Put the new {{Menu icon|b|f|r|sep=-|num=1}} chairs and {{Menu icon|b|f|t|sep=-|num=1}} tables in the dining room. If you like, you can add doors for aesthetics (they can be useful in case something starts rotting in your food stockpiles). If you created {{Menu icon|b|f|h|sep=-|num=1}} chests and {{Menu icon|b|f|n|sep=-|num=1}} cabinets, you can add them to the living rooms if you want, but it is not urgent now.
 ==Checking Supplies==

@@ Line 521: / Line 521: @@
 ==Placing Furniture==
-Once your furnishings are complete, you need to place them in rooms using the build furniture ({{Menu icon|b|f|sep=-}}) command. Put the new chai{{K|r}}s and {{k|t}}ables in the dining room. If you like, you can add doors for aesthetics (they can be useful in case something starts rotting in your food stockpiles). If you created chests and cabinets, you can add them to each room if you want, but it is not urgent now.
+Once your furnishings are complete, you need to place them in rooms using the build furniture ({{Menu icon|b|f|sep=-}}) command. Put the new {{Menu icon|b|f|r|sep=-|num=1}} chairs and {{Menu icon|b|f|t|sep=-|num=1}} tables in the dining room. If you like, you can add doors for aesthetics (they can be useful in case something starts rotting in your food stockpiles). If you created {{Menu icon|b|f|h|sep=-|num=1}} chests and {{Menu icon|b|f|n|sep=-|num=1}} cabinets, you can add them to each room if you want, but it is not urgent now.
 ==Meeting Hall==

@@ Line 518: / Line 518: @@
 [[File:DFwikiDiningFoodPrepExample.png|right|thumb|Dining level with dining hall (east), kitchen (north), storage area (west), fishery, butcher's workshop, and tanner's workshop (south).]]
-Use {{Menu icon|b|o|f|k|sep=-}} to build the kitchen in the middle of the 5×5 room. Use {{Menu icon|p|sep=-}} to create food stockpiles in the remaining space around it, as well as the entire food storage room. Go back to your general-purpose stockpile on the top level and change the settings to disable food (click "Food" then click "None" in the center column). This will cause any food in your general purpose stockpile to get moved to your new food-only stockpiles. Hit {{K|y}} and select ''[[Kitchen]]'' from the top of the screen, then disable all cooking for plants, and enable brewing for them so that they will only be used for brewing. Also disable alcoholic beverages for cooking, otherwise your cooks will waste perfectly good hooch in their cooking. The only time you might want to use alcohol in cooking is when you have lots of booze but are running out of food. If you plan to do any fishing, dig out another area and create a [[Fishery]] on this level so the uncleaned fish your fisherdwarf just caught can be cleaned (gutted) for consumption or cooking. If you plan to do any hunting or [[Creatures menu#Pets/Livestock tab|slaughter]] any animals, create a [[Butcher's shop]] on this level so animal corpses can be butchered. The fishery/butcher's shop can be placed behind the kitchen or the general food stockpile, for example. A door is recommended for the butcher's shop in order to contain [[Miasma]] should something rot, and to otherwise avoid offending squeamish dwarves. Eventually, go check out the subpage on [[/Stockpiles/]] for more information on fine-tuning these stockpiles for maximum efficiency. For now you can safely procrastinate on this and move on to the next section.
+Use {{Menu icon|b|o|f|k|sep=-}} to build the kitchen in the middle of the 5×5 room. Use {{Menu icon|p|sep=-}} to create food stockpiles in the remaining space around it, as well as the entire food storage room. Go back to your general-purpose stockpile on the top level and change the settings to disable food (click "Food" then click "None" in the center column). This will cause any food in your general purpose stockpile to get moved to your new food-only stockpiles. Hit {{Menu icon|y}} and select ''[[Kitchen]]'' from the top of the screen, then disable all cooking for plants, and enable brewing for them so that they will only be used for brewing. Also disable alcoholic beverages for cooking, otherwise your cooks will waste perfectly good hooch in their cooking. The only time you might want to use alcohol in cooking is when you have lots of booze but are running out of food. If you plan to do any fishing, dig out another area and create a [[Fishery]] on this level so the uncleaned fish your fisherdwarf just caught can be cleaned (gutted) for consumption or cooking. If you plan to do any hunting or [[Creatures menu#Pets/Livestock tab|slaughter]] any animals, create a [[Butcher's shop]] on this level so animal corpses can be butchered. The fishery/butcher's shop can be placed behind the kitchen or the general food stockpile, for example. A door is recommended for the butcher's shop in order to contain [[Miasma]] should something rot, and to otherwise avoid offending squeamish dwarves. Eventually, go check out the subpage on [[/Stockpiles/]] for more information on fine-tuning these stockpiles for maximum efficiency. For now you can safely procrastinate on this and move on to the next section.
 ==Placing Furniture==

@@ Line 511: / Line 511: @@
 }}
 Now would be a good time to start building some [[furniture]]. You could queue up all these items directly from your workshops, but why not give your new manager a little practice?
-Using the {{menu icon|o}} [[Work order]]s menu, click the clipboard icon in the top right to queue up a new job, and type "[[bed]]", and then select "Make bed." Click the number sign to set the quantity to around 4 (or more, depending on how many beds you need). Next, queue up at least four [[table]]s, eight [[throne]]s/chairs, and four doors. Make sure you select a material you have – rock or wood will both work for all of these (except beds), so use whatever you have in your stockpiles. If you like, you can also queue up a few wooden [[chest]]s or rock coffers and [[cabinet]]s (which can be used in bedrooms, if you set up individual bedrooms). The tables and chairs will go in your [[dining room]], speaking of which...
+Using the {{menu icon|o}} [[Work order]]s menu, click [[File:Button new work order.png]] icon in the top right to queue up a new job, and type "[[bed]]", and then select "Make bed." Click the number sign to set the quantity to around 4 (or more, depending on how many beds you need). Next, queue up at least four [[table]]s, eight [[throne]]s/chairs, and four doors. Make sure you select a material you have – rock or wood will both work for all of these (except beds), so use whatever you have in your stockpiles. If you like, you can also queue up a few wooden [[chest]]s or rock coffers and [[cabinet]]s (which can be used in bedrooms, if you set up individual bedrooms). The tables and chairs will go in your [[dining room]], speaking of which...
 ==Dining and Food Prep Area==

@@ Line 476: / Line 476: @@
 # Open the {{Menu icon|z}} Zone menu, and click on "Bedroom".
 # Click "Multi" (instead of "Paint"), and draw a rectangle containing multiple bedrooms. Each room with a bed, enclosed by a door, will be marked as a bedroom.
-You should see there is be no one to the right of [[File:UI add worker.png]] icon in the menu. A dwarf will eventually get around to claiming the bedroom – you don't need to assign each dwarf to a specific bedroom.
+You should see there is no one to the right of [[File:UI add worker.png]] icon in the menu. A dwarf will eventually get around to claiming the bedroom – you don't need to assign each dwarf to a specific bedroom.
 ==Nobles and Administrators==

@@ Line 438: / Line 438: @@
 Up to this point, your dwarves have probably been sleeping on dirt or rock in your fortress. While this is fine for a short time, your dwarves will gradually become less happy if they are forced to sleep without a bed. Under normal circumstances beds can only be made from wood, so be sure to designate some more trees to be cut down if you're short on logs.
-[[Bedroom design|Designing living quarters]] is largely a matter of personal preference and aesthetic sense. While a few useful designs are discussed here, there are many other options. In general, try to keep the bedrooms close to the stairs, and make your access hallways at least two tiles wide to reduce congestion.
+[[Bedroom design|Designing living quarters]] is largely a matter of personal preference and aesthetic sense. While a few useful designs are discussed here, there are many other options. In general, try to keep the [[bedroom]]s close to the stairs, and make your access hallways at least two tiles wide to reduce congestion.
 === Location ===
 Because noise generated from certain jobs (especially mining and woodcutting) can bother sleeping dwarves, doing these jobs within 8 tiles of a sleeping dwarf should be avoided (see [[noise]] for more information). There are two ways of accomplishing this:
 * Placing bedrooms at the end of a hallway at least 8 tiles long will avoid most noise (as long as you are careful to avoid noisy jobs directly above or below the bedrooms).
@@ Line 462: / Line 461: @@
 === Building ===
-Queue up as many beds as you need in a carpenter's workshop (no more than 3 or 4 should be necessary for a dormitory). Build the beds with {{k-|b|f|b}}. You can check "Keep building after placement" to place multiple beds. (As long as your furniture/general-purpose stockpile isn't full yet, dwarves will store beds in them as they are finished, so there may be a delay before they're available to be built.)
+Queue up as many beds as you need in a carpenter's workshop (no more than 3 or 4 should be necessary for a dormitory). Build the beds with {{Menu icon|b|f|b|sep=-}}. You can check "Keep building after placement" to place multiple beds. (As long as your furniture/general-purpose stockpile isn't full yet, dwarves will store beds in them as they are finished, so there may be a delay before they're available to be built.)
 '''Setting up a dormitory:'''
 # Dig out an empty room in the location you selected.
-# Open the {{K|z}}one menu and click on "Dormitory". Draw a rectangle over the room you dug out.
+# Open the {{Menu icon|z}} Zone menu and click on "Dormitory". Draw a rectangle over the room you dug out.
 # Once you have a bed ready, build it anywhere in your dormitory.
 You can place multiple beds in the dormitory.
@@ Line 475: / Line 474: @@
 # Build each bed {{Menu icon|b|f|b|sep=-}} in a room when ready
 # Make sure each room is enclosed by a door {{Menu icon|b|p|r|sep=-}}. You can make doors at the carpenter's or stoneworker's workshops.
-# Open the {{K|z}}one menu, and click on "Bedroom".
+# Open the {{Menu icon|z}} Zone menu, and click on "Bedroom".
 # Click "Multi" (instead of "Paint"), and draw a rectangle containing multiple bedrooms. Each room with a bed, enclosed by a door, will be marked as a bedroom.
-You should see {{DFtext|Current owner: Nobody}} in the menu. A dwarf will eventually get around to claiming the bedroom – you don't need to assign each dwarf to a specific bedroom.
+You should see there is be no one to the right of [[File:UI add worker.png]] icon in the menu. A dwarf will eventually get around to claiming the bedroom – you don't need to assign each dwarf to a specific bedroom.
 ==Nobles and Administrators==