User:Jfredett/Endokodshith Log

Year 201

Summary

Arrived in the location, sited a fortress location, begun building. This year has been marked by repeated injury due to the incompetence of the miners. I hope they never see these logs, I fear they would be hurt -- possibly become murderous -- over what I'm about to say. They simply do not understand that sometimes they must wait for me to inspect and ensure that an area is secure before digging away. We lost one dwarf to this negligence, I hope that the next year brings more experience and attentiveness to the miners.

Expeditioner's Logs

1 Granite

Started scouting around for a dig site, there is a large river snaking through this area, I've heard stories of underground volcanoes and rivers. I hope they're not just fables.

We appear to be in a ravine, I think we'll need to climb to a higher location.

I sited a location for the new fortress, started draining a couple pools that were in the way. We are a little close to the mouth of the volcano, we will need to set up appropriate defenses quickly.

14 Slate

The digging is going well, the pools are almost drained. I hope to have workshops and furnaces going in in short order.

2 Felsite

I am planning a two-wall system for Endokodshith, It's designed to prevent any extended destruction from possible volcano eruptions -- at least until I get the main outer walls built. The plan is something like this:

Not to scale.

#    : a rock wall
|, - : built walls.
.    : empty space
b    : a bridge, raises if direction is given
                ...main fort...
_    : ground 1 z-level lower

#####################.....#######################
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#...............................................#
#--------------------bbbbb----------------------#
|....................bb^bb......................|
|....................bb|bb......................|
|....................bbbbb......................|
|...............................................|
|...............................................|
|...............................................|
|...............................................|
|...............................................|
---------------------bbbbb----------------------|
_____________________bb^bb_______________________
_____________________bb|bb_______________________
_____________________bbbbb_______________________
_____________________....._______________________

This way, in the event of a seige, we simply raise the outer bridge, the inner area is inside, so it will be safe. In the event of an eruption, we simply raise the inner bridge, which allows us to prevent the majority of the fort from being destroyed. After the outer walls are completed (they will be 3 levels high), that should protect us nicely from any ill that comes our way.

27 Hematite

The furnaces are being dug out, Stinthadning was hurt in a cave in, and Tathurkbuk is pissed about the same. Hopefully will finish the crafting area by the end of summer, planning to tap the underground river I stumbled upon soon, for now, the overground river will do fine.

23 Malachite

There was a cave in, Zulbanakur broke his head, and was severely wounded in several of his extremities. I do not think that he will survive. I hope I'm wrong about this.

14 Galena

Finally finished offloading the wagon, with two miner's down, the digging of... everything... is going slow. Hopefully the apartments will get dug out soon, and I'll be able to assign quarters...

Supplemental

Just finished the quarter's, starting to build the apartments proper and soon (hopefully) will be quartering the dwarves.

19 Galena

Stinthadning's Left Arm is healed up nicely, he still has a broken hip and femur, I suspect he'll be back on his feet in a few more months.

2 Limestone

Zulbanakur's head has healed, it was a medical miracle. I expected he would have contracted encephalitis or something, but thankfully he did not. Stinthadning is still on bedrest, but hopefully he will be better soon.

11 Sandstone

Some mountain gnomes made the mistake of trying to poke around our fortress, they met our woodcutter's blade, it was glorious. Some trader's from the mountainhomes came, I had nothing available to trade, but they said that Endokodshith is a fine fortress and that they imagine migrants will flock to us after they hear about our home. I hope so- our workforce is far too small right now, I hope to have 100 dwarves by the end of the year 203, but perhaps this is just a pipe dream.

Supplemental

Another small section of the overhang collapse. Two of the dwarves misunderstood my orders, cut out a support before it was suppose to be cut, thankfully no one was hurt by their gross incompetence.

3 Timber

The apartments have started being built, I've ordered construction of a still, and the farmer has been taken off mining duty to concentrate on his food related work. The dwarves, upon hearing my ordering of the construction of said still, threw a small party in the dining room. Apparently all one needs to inspire rejoicing amongst the dwarves is the announcement of a booze-source.

Besides that, I've started the planning for the construction of a small power plant and cistern system. Hopefully we'll be able to build a well in short order, except that we need first to acquire a mechanic to construct the system...

Also- the furnaces have been put on hold for the short-term, the removal of the overhang is higher priority for the time being.

Finally, I've ordered the construction of a butcher/tanner/leatherworking center, I've got too many animals, some of them will be added to the food stocks...

1 Moonstone

Winter has started, I can taste the chill in the air.

8 Moonstone

It is with great sadness that I must report, the woodworker, Ingizenseb, was crushed in a collapse due to yet another miscommunication with the dwarves working on the overhang. I have ordered the construction of a tomb for him. If only I could have stopped it somehow... I only hope that his friends, Udarkol and Tathurkubuk (both miners) will be able to handle his loss... I fear for the state of Tath, he was the one working on the overhang during the collapse. How he must feel, I could not bear it -- how can he?

17 Moonstone

Udarkol was wounded, a small rockslide mangled his left arm and right hand. All of these accidents, I'm beginning to believe this place is cursed...

Year 202

Summary

This year was marked by the arrival of many immigrants, the completion of the outer wall, the removal of the overhang, the finishing of the furnace room, and the construction of the main bridge. It was also marked by the death of several of our dwarves. Udarkol is still hurt, though she's healing. Plans for this next year include becoming water independent, to this end we have begun construction of a large cistern/pumping project. I hope to have this finished by the end of the year, as well as a keep, and the second level of walls.

Expeditioner's Logs

1 Granite

Ah, a new year, new challenges, I'm still short two dwarves, though the doctor's say that Stinthadning's broken bones have healed, he still needs to be on restricted duty till his bones rebuild some of their lost mass.

1 Slate

Migrants and an Elven Caravan arrived, I've traded a few things with them for some booze and foodstuffs. Damn pointy ears haven't got anything worth trading for... The migrants will be of help though, we desperately needed the extra manpower.

9 Slate

One of the Metalsmiths started dancing around, said something about some "brilliant idea" he had and how he just had to have a Forge all to himself for a while. This is unfortunate, because the forges haven't been finished yet. Hopefully they'll be finished soon and he will stop his now incessant whining.

I've ordered the construction of new beds and quarters for the new immigrants, our population is now about 28. I've ordered two, two-man teams to be formed, wrestlers and marksdwarves, to help in defense. I imagine that -- if these dwarves found out about the riches of Endokodshith, so must have the goblins, kobolds, and every other unsavory kimek under Armok's gaze.

One of the dwarves also suggested I appoint someone to keep the law around here, make sure no one gets out of hand. As such, I've ordered the construction of some office/sleeping space for this "Sher Riff" should I decide he's needed. Worst case, it would be a nice new room for me...

22 Felsite

Unfortunately, the metalsmith went insane, he now only speaks of how his life is for naught now. Sad really. One of the soldiers has become a great champion, his relentless training and determination shall forever be remembered by this log.

9 Hematite

I've just finished signing the quartering documents, everyone has now been assigned quarters, I have room for another 22 dwarves in the halls. I've also assigned someone to smooth over the walls and engrave them with images of the history of the world. It will be a glorious hall.

19 Malachite

One of the woodworkers was possessed now, I have no idea what he wants, he just ran off and started whining about something... More migrants arrived too, which means the couple of people who have gone or will be going bonkers will be easily replaced.

25 Malachite

Turned out the woodworker wanted to build a crossbow of some kind, I set up a makeshift shop for him and now he seems much happier.

2 Galena

The Woodworker finished his project, turned out to be a blowgun, with some nice bands of maple and oak. He is quite proud of the thing. I have ordered the contstruction of two bowyeries near the carpenter's shops, it was a minor oversight, now resolved.

16 Galena

Another small collapse, one dwarf hurt, injuries minor. The overhang is almost removed. The furnace project is back underway. We will need to purchase an anvil soon, but I don't suspect it will be a problem, we have produced many valuable craftworks.

21 Galena

Tunuvar was caught in a horrible accident, while walking back from the overhang worksite, a careless stroke of a tree-cutter's axe felled a tree, which felled him. So many deaths due to so small a place. I only hope that this is the last overhang-related accident we will see.

15 Limestone

Trader's from the mountainhomes came, I purchased an anvil, foodstuffs, and booze from them. Hopefully the food will be enough to put us through the winter.

8 Sandstone

The overhang has been removed, I've started work removing the outer outcropping, my plan (listed above) will effectively turn most of it into a moat, spanned by a large granite bridge (I will, of course, be replacing the current rough bridge with a nicer model (Gold? Marble? Adamantium? If only we were so lucky...), but for now, the intention is practicality, rather than beauty. Future plans for the next year include raising the wall, Taking over the current roof of the inner fortress and building some more farms above ground. The dwarves are howling for human beer, I gave them a taste of one just once, and now it is all they can talk about. Beyond that, I've found some curious mushrooms -- they are massive -- I believe we could use their trunks as we would tree trunks. If I can secure an internal source of water and wood, we would be completely self sufficient in the event of a long siege.

Also, I hope to build up a strong glass-making industry, sand is abundant here, so I may as well make use of it. I believe we could even make some trap components out of it, saving our metal for weapons of war.

The furnace area is almost done, I'm currently building the filters and preparing to turn on the flow of magma. It should fill quickly, there is not much space to fill. Each section of the forgery can house four magma-powered building each. Enough for a smelter, forge, kiln, and glass furnace. I'll build an ashery and wood furnace for the glass working industry there too. The forgery is also conveniently located near sand, so it shouldn't be too much of a trip to gather the needed components.

Finally, among my plans for defense are to construct several large towers, accessible by tunnels underground, so that, in the event of a siege, my marksdwarves can attack the enemy from all sides, as they are entering my domain, and as they are leaving it... None shall escape the fury of my marksdwarves.

None.

7 Timber

Some migrants have arrived, increasing our population by ten dwarves. I've assigned most of them to defense, hauling, and a few to mining.

4 Moonstone

I've started filling the magma pits, in short order we will have furnaces up and running, smelters smelting, etc. The main gate is nearing completion, all that needs to be finished in the main entry bridge, as well as removing the land-bridge currently underneath it. We also need to finish the first level of the wall. After that, we will be moving the barracks to the outer area, I intend to construct a small keep at the front of the fortress, to defend the main gate. After that, we will begin work on constructing the second level of walls, and building the battlements. I hope to be done by next year. Our population is currently 41 dwarves.

On a side note, one of the mechanics suggested creating some traps out near the front gate, in the event of the occasional thief. I told him I would take it under advisement, and then he showed me the most maniacal thing I have seen yet. It was a host of metal spikes which shot up out of the ground at the press of a lever. I ordered him to continue his research into these "traps", especially automated versions. I think they could be useful.

Also- a longer term plan includes diverting the above-ground river to block access to the western side of the fortress, though this would also require deepening the river, since it is only chest deep.

Editor's note, chest deep on a dwarf is on the order of thigh deep on a human

6 Opal

One of the peasants came bursting into my office, screaming about some brilliant idea he had. He said he just needed some rock and a craft shop, I told him to take the second one and quit whining. He later presented me with a pair of earrings, encircled with bands of maple and oak, with a dwarf drawn on it. It was fairly good work, actually. He's been praised as a woodcrafter by the other dwarves, but he still needs to remain a peasant, for the good of Endokodshith.

8 Obsidian

I've ordered the construction of a cistern system. For sake of record keeping, I've recorded sketches of the system and the organization of the levers.

Level n

   #############
   #_X.........#
   #_X.........#
   ###.........#
####.Z.........#
#x.#.#..####Y#.#
#y...####_SS.#.#
#z.#....##|###.#
#######...|##..#
####/.....|##..#
##########|#####
         #GG#

Level n+1

   #############
   #_X.........#
   #_X.........#
   ###.........#
####.Z.........#
#x.#.#..#Y####.#
#y...####.SS_#.#
#z.#....###|##.#
#######....|#..#
####/......|#..# 
###########|####
         #GG#

Where

S     : Pump (pumps from the side with the channel)
X,Y,Z : Floodgates with designation X,Y, and Z.
x,y,z : Switches which control floodgates with designations X, Y, and Z.
/     : Stairs
G     : Gear assembly
_     : Channel
.     : empty space
#     : walls

This system can store 280u of water per level, and requires 30u of power per level, after 16 levels of pumping (maybe 20 at the most) will be a total of 480u of power (600u at the most), and it will store 4480u of water (5600u at most). The bottom most level, however, is just a fill level, so the power requirements should be a bit lower than that. As it stands, I don't plan a back-fill level just yet. I should be able to tack that on by building over the second lowest level by the X gates and extend that into a backfill chamber, I can then channel that back into the main fill chamber and cut flow to from the intake. It's somewhat complicated, but I think the design should be extensible enough to remain useful in the future.

After that, I just need to design an area for a well, and build the underground flood-farming area. Then we'll be self-sufficient.

Year 203

Summary

This year was marked by the destruction of some macaques, followed by the deaths of two soldiers, the third was wounded. We reached a population of 60 dwarves this year.

Expeditioner's Log

1 Granite

Nothing new to report, beyond the new year. See the summary for year 202 above.

22 Granite

Some elves showed up, with nothing more than cloth fabric... PAH! Everyone knows that dwarves wear leather or metal, none of this foolish "cloth"! How stupid do they think we are? What if a stray bolt hit us? Would this flimsy "cloth" turn it? No- it would sail right through, peircing you, you stupid pointy eared bastards.

27 Granite

Some migrants have arrived, I haven't counted them yet, but I imagine our number surpasses fifty or even fifty five now.

Supplemental

Some Rhesus Macaques showed up at the main gate, I ordered the military to dispatch with the little bastards.

Supplemental

The Macaques are dead.

21 Slate

Began construction of the Jail, finished the construction of the new apartments, building a new apartment for the mayor. He's yelling about Iron items, We haven't any iron ores right now, but soon enough we should be building some. One of the miner's went and claimed a mason's shop, he's clammering for "thread" -- what the hell is "thread"? Pah, he may lose his mind, I've disarmed him, for the time being, hopefully we'll come across some "thread" in the future.

11 Felsite

Construction continues on the cisterns, I've ordered some ore veins to be mined out. Our booze reserves are running a bit low, I hope to replace the current barracks and dining room and turn that area into more farmland. The construction of the new barracks continues.

22 Felsite

Gim, the miner who claimed the mason's shop, came sulking into my office. He was sobbing, told me that he would never finish his project, because we could not find his thread. I tried to explain that dwarves have no use for such things, and maybe he should make something else, but he just burst into tears at the thought, and sauntered off. Later, his body was found hanging from the front wall. A sad end for a good miner.

16 Hematite

A human caravan has arrived, hopefully they will have better goods than that foolish group of elves from last spring.

Supplemental

I cleaned out most of the caravan, sent them off with some very nice jewelry and baubles, it was a steal, I've more than tripled my booze and food stocks. I'll have the kitchens working overtime to prepare the food to a more shelf-stable form. I also bought some rope and chain, lots of leather and cloth in the event of needing some more crafting material. I need to plan out a trapping system, to start a normal income for leather production.

21 Hematite

During a changing of the guards, a kidnapper came and stole away one of the children. He will be brought to justice.

This makes apparent the need for the "traps" the mechanic suggested early last winter. As such, I called him into my office, he showed me a project which he has codenamed Indiana[1]. This project requires large, serrated glass discs to be placed in such a way that it will dismember any adversarial passerby. He has told me that the trap is designed to work with three such discs, tripling it's effective damage capability. He also told me the design is extensible to 30 such discs.

I smiled, and ordered the immediate construction of as many said discs as we have sand and pearlash to make. I intend to have the whole of the main bridge landing area fully stocked with traps. That, in addition to the presence of fortifications and marksdwarves, ought to leave Endokodshith quite nicely defended.

[1] Some silly human name, from what I understand. There was apparently some archaeologist/adventurer who went by that name, and encountered a trap not unlike this one

8 Malachite

Mengerar, one of our champions, died today in a goblin ambush. The marksdwarves could not get to his aid in time. I have decided to enact a temporary trap barrier while the main traps are being built, my hope is that this will deter any invaders from continued attack. Alas for Mengerar, he fell too soon.

1 Limestone

The rest of the summer passed uneventfully. The barracks construction proceeds slowly, the upper level preparation is near done. Initial plans for the upper wall has been laid out. I've also ordered the construction of second level battlements over the main gate, I intend to also place third (maybe fourth?) level siege weapon keeps over the main gate as well.

12 Limestone

A Caravan of traders from the mountainhomes have arrived. I bought most of their stock of gems and foodstuffs, plenty of booze. The kitchens will not have rest just yet.

22 Limestone

One of the woodworkers has started working on something in the bowyery. He won't talk to anyone, no one knows what he's doing. I, for one, just hope he's not working on something frilly.

24 Sandstone

A pair of migrants arrived, I put them in the military to bolster our defense. They're being outfitted with hammer's and platemail. They'll teach those damn goblins a thing or two...

22 Limestone

One of the woodworkers has started working on something in the bowyery. He won't talk to anyone, no one knows what he's doing. I, for one, just hope he's not working on something frilly.

24 Sandstone

A pair of migrants arrived, I put them in the military to bolster our defense. They're being outfitted with hammer's and platemail. They'll teach those damn goblins a thing or two...

16 Timber

I've restarted construction of the water pumping tower. The front trap system is finished, it still needs the more advanced traps, but what we have ought to repel any goblin ambush. I've ordered the stand down of the guard, they could use the training time after a long deployment like that.

3 Moonstone

Winter has come.

3 Opal

I began construction of the community well area. The pumping structure still needs to be finished, and the control structure for the wells needs to be worked out. However, I think that this will be a good addition to the fortress. Food and booze stocks remain high through this midwinter, I think we will be quite okay all the way through till spring.

The Levers in the Well Room have the following semantics. The NW Lever releases the drainage valve, the NE lever releases the fill valve.

7 Opal

The miner's discovered a large vein of Tetrahidrite and Gold, I've ordered it's excavation.

10 Opal

It has come to my attention that we have an extreme surplus of food, so much that it is becoming difficult to store it all. What a problem to have!

Year 204

Goals

Goals for this year include:

• Finishing the Water Pumps
• Building the underground tree farm
• Becoming fully self-sufficient

Expeditioner's Log

1 Granite

I have ordered a halt on any new immigrants till the water pumps are finished, I hope to have them fully operational in six months.