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Difference between revisions of "v0.31:Military"

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{{Quality|Exceptional}}{{av}}
  
  
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The '''military''' is one of the most important aspects of a successful fortress. Even with many {{l|traps}}, {{l|drawbridge}}s and {{l|magma|other defenses}}, your military will still need to fend off {{l|goblin}} {{l|siege}}s, {{l|megabeast}}s, {{l|titan}}s, and fiendish {{l|Giant cave spider|underground}} {{l|Forgotten beast|beasties}}. Turning your dwarves from useless migrants into bloodthirsty killing machines never hurts (unless you're the enemy).
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<div style="float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-top:1em;">__TOC__</div>
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The '''military''' is one of the most important aspects of a successful fortress. Even with many [[trap]]s, [[bridge|drawbridges]] and [[magma|other defenses]], your military will still need to fend off [[goblin]] [[siege]]s, [[megabeast]]s, [[titan]]s, and fiendish [[Giant cave spider|underground]] [[Forgotten beast|beasties]]. Using a combination of [[squads|squad orders]] and [[scheduling]], you can set up an elaborate offensive, defensive, or balanced military structure for your [[equipment|well-equipped]] [[soldier]]s to follow. Turning your dwarves from [[immigration|useless migrants]] into bloodthirsty killing machines never hurts (unless you're the enemy).
  
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''See also:''
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The military system is rather extensive and complex, and there is a lot of documentation. Here is a list of key documents categorized by expertise level:
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* A '''{{L|Military/Guide|quickstart guide}}''' to the military interface.<!--probably outdated, I incorporated all that info into this page ~Retro -->
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* '''Beginner:'''
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* For a general overview of threats and considerations for fortress defense, see the {{l|Defense Guide}}
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** [[Attack]] is a ''very'' simple "How to attack a target" guide. This is useful if you don't know anything about the military and just want to order some (untrained) dwarves to (suicide) attack something ''now''.
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* For specific suggestions on the physical defenses that will defend your military, see {{l|Defense Design}}.
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** [[Military quickstart]] will teach you to set up and train your very first properly organized squad.
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* For complex traps that are not a minor/optional part of a larger defensive plan (but might be adapted or plugged into one), see {{l|Trap Design}}.  
 
  
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=Creating a Military=
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* '''Intermediate:'''
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** [[Squads]] helps you understand everything about squads.
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** [[Military interface]] contains mostly complete documentation on the ''military screen''.
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** [[Scheduling]] describes the squad scheduling system in more detail.
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** [[Military F.A.Q.]] is a list of frequently asked questions.
  
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While far more confusing than before, the new military system makes up for its initial impenetrability with a huge increase in versatility. Squads can be assigned, reordered and restructured at will, dwarves can be set to equip a highly-specified uniform along with the rest of their squad or stand out and equip something unique, and you can give incredibly detailed commands and programming to your squads to follow out based on time of year, circumstance, location, and user convenience. That being said, there's a lot to be learned.
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* '''Advanced:'''
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** [[Sparring]] will give you insights about combat training.
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** [[military design|Military Design]] provides specific advice on how to get your soldiers prepared for any threat.
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** [[Security design|Security Design]] will give you specific suggestions on the physical defenses that will defend your military.
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** [[Defense guide|Defense Guide]] is a general overview of threats and considerations for fortress defense.
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** [[Trap design|Trap Design]] contains information on complex traps that are not a minor/optional part of a larger defensive plan (but might be adapted or plugged into one).
  
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For quick reference: from the main menu the '''military''' screen is accessible through the {{k|m}} key, the '''squads''' screen is accessible through the {{k|s}} key, the '''points/routes/notes''' screen is accessible through the {{k|N}} key, and the '''{{l|burrows}}''' screen is accessible through the {{k|w}} key.
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The rest of this guide contains an overview of military features (with links to associated sections of other documents).
  
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==Forming Squads==
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==Quick Reference==  
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From the main menu:
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*The '''[[Military interface|military]]''' screen is accessible through the {{k|m}} key.
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*The '''[[squads]]''' screen is accessible through the {{k|s}} key.
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*The '''[[Note|points/routes/notes]]''' screen is accessible through the {{k|N}} key.
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*The '''[[burrow]]s''' screen is accessible through the {{k|w}} key.
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The military screen and all its tabs are mouse-compatible, and can be navigated through mouse clicks rather than strictly keys (when in windowed mode).
  
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Before you can do anything with your military you will want to go into the '''noble''' screen ({{k|n}}) and designate a '''{{l|militia commander}}'''. Subsequent squad leaders can also be designated through the nobles screen; once you designate a militia commander it will open up a slot for a '''{{l|militia captain}}''', and once you designate one of those it opens another captain slot, etc. These roles are all functionally equivalent.
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==Creating a Military==
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While it may be confusing to a new player, the military system makes up for its initial impenetrability with its versatility. Using the [[military interface]], squads can be assigned, reordered and restructured at will, dwarves can be set to equip a highly-specified uniform along with the rest of their squad or stand out and equip something unique, and you can give incredibly detailed commands and programming to your squads to follow out based on time of year, circumstance, location, and user convenience. That being said, there's a lot to be learned.
  
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When you have designated a commander/captain, going to the military screen will show that dwarf under the "Squads/Leaders" heading and you'll notice an option to create a new squad. You can also create a new squad before you designate your militia commander; the first dwarf you choose will automatically be thrust into the position. Creating the squad moves the the display of the dwarf from the civilian heading to the squad heading. You can then fill out the squad with any civilian in the fort. It appears that no more than ten dwarves can be assigned to any one squad<!--CONFIRM?-->. No dwarves can be assigned under your militia commander; he is a squad of his own.
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This article is about the general aspects of what a military comprises. For more detailed information including specific key commands, see the associated article expanding on a subject. In particular you may want to check out the [[military interface]] article since the interface is one of the most confusing aspects.
  
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==Equipment and Uniforms==
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===Squads===
  
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In the military screen, press {{k|u}} to open the '''uniforms''' tab. Each listing under the 'Uniforms' header is essentially a pre-designed set of equipment that you can quickly apply to any individual soldier or entire squad, much like a template. You can create new uniforms if you want and add or remove items from any uniform set by navigating this menu. Uniform templates are only created in this tab, not applied.
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''Full article: [[Squads]]''
  
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While still in the military screen, press {{k|e}} to open the '''equipment''' tab. The default sub-tab, '{{k|V}}iew/Customize will be open. In this screen you can select individual dwarves and apply individual pieces of equipment to them, from {{k|A}}rmor, {{k|L}}eggings, {{k|H}}elms, {{k|G}}loves, {{k|B}}oots, {{k|S}}hields, and {{k|W}}eapons, as well as {{k|M}}aterial and {{k|C}}olor depending on the piece of equipment highlighted.<!--WHAT DOES 'r' FOR 'over clothing' DO? AND 'partial matches'?--> To select a specific piece of equipment (such as an artifact), select 'specific _____' under that equipment type (eg. 'specific armor' in the Armor field); for your convenience highest-quality equipment is listed first.
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'''Squads''' are the groups of soldiers that make up your military. Your military is now led by the appointed '''[[militia commander]]''' and has many other squads led by '''militia captains''' under him. Creating a squad in the military screen is one of the first things you should do when starting your military.
  
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To apply your preset uniform templates, press {{k|U}} in the equipment tab to open the Assign Uniforms sub-tab and move the selector to the Position Uniform header. Pressing {{k|enter}} will apply the selected uniform to the individual dwarf of your choosing, and {{k|shift}}+{{k|enter}} will apply the selected uniform to the entire squad.
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===Equipping Soldiers===
  
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For ranged soldiers, open the '''ammunition''' ({{k|f}}) tab and assign them something from there. If you don't care what they use, you still need to give them ammo - just pick 'bolts' and it will default to any bolts they can find.
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''Full article: [[Squads#Equipping Soldiers]]''
  
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In the early stages of your fort your dwarves will equip themselves, but once enough migrants have arrived your fortress will require an '''{{l|arsenal dwarf}}''' (designated in the nobles screen) to manage your armory. The arsenal dwarf serves the role of quartermaster; without him your dwarves will be unable to change their equipment. Once you have a dwarf selected, make sure to give him an office - like a {{l|manager}}, an arsenal dwarf will need to sign off on equipment changes before they can be made.
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Rather than simply pick a level of equipment and hope your dwarves pick up the right stuff, you can select what your dwarf will wear by item type or specific item, or create a new uniform template and apply it to a dwarf or entire squad all at once. Even the material and color of your soldiers' uniform is configurable. You can create identical armored units with intimidating red cloaks or just slap something together based on need and circumstance. Even artifact weapons/armor are now selectable - luck and micro-management have been removed from the equation.
  
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Note that if you don't have an option for arsenal dwarf, it just means your fort isn't big enough to need one yet. Dwarves will equip themselves until your fortress grows too large - just keep an eye on the nobles screen every time you get migrants, and assign an arsenal dwarf when you need one.
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<!-- Please reenable when added back
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====Arsenal Dwarf====
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The Arsenal Dwarf was removed in version 0.31.09 but may be re-introduced in a later version.  The rest of this section is only applicable if you are playing an older version.
  
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=Directing Squads=
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In the early stages of your fort your dwarves will equip themselves, but once enough migrants (13, making your population 20+ dwarves) have arrived your fortress will require an '''[[Arsenal_dwarf|Arsenal Dwarf]]''' (designated in the nobles screen) to manage your armory. The Arsenal Dwarf serves the role of quartermaster; without him your dwarves will be unable to change their equipment. Once you have a dwarf selected, make sure to give him an office - like a [[manager]], an Arsenal Dwarf will need to sign off on equipment changes before they can be made.
  
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Getting your military to actually ''do'' something is a lot more difficult than it once was; gone are the days of simply designating a barracks and letting your recruits have at it. It is now possible to give your squads different monthly '''schedules''', create different '''alert levels''' which will cause squads to follow out new user-programmed instructions depending on circumstance, give '''kill orders''' to attack one or more specific targets, or follow '''patrol routes''' and '''stations''' with greater accuracy.
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Note that if you don't have an option for an Arsenal Dwarf, it just means your fort isn't big enough to need one yet. Dwarves will equip themselves until your fortress grows too large - just keep an eye on the nobles screen every time you get migrants, and assign an Arsenal Dwarf when you need one.
  
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==Alert levels==
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*If your Expedition Leader/Mayor is killed it can cause all unassigned nobles to vanish from the nobles screen. This could cause your arsenal dwarf position (among others) to be unavailable. A new expedition leader should eventually arrive, although this may take several years.
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*There have been reports of the Arsenal Dwarf not appearing despite the population criteria being fulfilled. This is likely caused by your Expedition leader/Mayor being absent.
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-->
  
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The '''alert level''' is a fundamental concept of military management. In each alert level, you can program instructions for your military and/or civilian dwarves to follow. The game contains two alert levels by default - 'Inactive' and 'Active/Train'. In 'Inactive', all squads are assigned no orders. In 'Active/Train', all squads are assigned to train the entire year. By default, your squads will all be set to 'Inactive' and will do nothing unless you cycle their alert to 'Active/Train'. You will need to make more alerts if you want them to do anything more complicated than this.
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==Directing Soldiers==
  
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Your entire fortress is always set to exactly one ''civilian alert level''. This restricts where civilians, any non-military dwarf in the entire fort, may go. To define the restriction area, you must first create a {{l|burrow}} encompassing the area you want to restrict your civilians to. Then, go to the alert screen ({{k|a}} in the {{k|m}}ilitary screen), {{k|c}}reate a new alert level (you can {{k|N}}ame it something like 'Danger'), highlight it in the left pane, then press enter on the correct burrow in the rightmost pane. Multiple burrows may be selected.
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Getting your military to actually ''do'' something is a lot more difficult than it once was; gone are the days of simply designating a barracks and letting your recruits have at it. It is now possible to give your squads different monthly '''schedules''', create different '''alert levels''' which will cause squads to follow out new user-programmed instructions depending on circumstance, give '''direct orders''' to '''attack''' one or more specific targets or '''move''' to a specific location, or follow '''patrol routes''' and '''stations''' with greater accuracy.
  
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Individual squads can be set to a certain alert by highlighting the appropriate alert level, then selecting the correct squad in the central pane and pressing {{k|enter}}. You can also select a squad's alert level by pressing {{k|s}} to open the squads menu, {{k|a}} to select a squad, and {{k|t}} to scroll through alerts. You can change the currently active civilian alert level by pressing {{k|enter}} while the correct alert level is highlighted. Squads and civilians can only be set to one alert level at a time, so selecting one alert level for a group removes them from the former alert.
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There is now a clear discrepancy between ''active'' orders and ''passive'' orders-- the latter is programming that a dwarf will follow to the letter and acts more as a defense method, and the former is used for taking the fight to the enemy. The ''squads'' menu is predominantly used for active commands, and the ''alert'' and ''scheduling'' menus are used for passive commands.
  
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==Scheduling==
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===Active Command===
  
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Each squad can be given a '''schedule''' to follow for an entire year, broken up by month. Each squad has a separate schedule for each alert level; it can be swapped between these schedules with the procedure outlined in the previous section. The scheduling screen can be accessed by pressing {{k|s}} in the military screen.
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''Full article: [[Squads#Direct_Commands|Squads#Direct Commands]]''
  
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On the main scheduling page you will see a list of months on the left side and a list of all of the squads in your fortress along the top edge. Scheduling is done separately for each alert level; to switch between alert levels use the secondary page up/down keys (by default {{k|/}} and {{k|*}}). You can use the secondary up/down keys (by default {{k|+}} and {{k|-}}) to scroll through the squads at the top if you have more than will fit on one screen. Use the up/down arrow keys to navigate the month list, and the left/right arrow keys to navigate between squads.  The orders in the currently selected cell are displayed in blue towards the bottom of the screen.
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In the new military, soldiers operate much more like part-time militiamen than full-time warriors. When soldiers are not passively doing their civilian duties or following their schedule programming, they can be actively sent to do small tasks to aggressively defend your fortress. After these orders have been carried out or cancelled, your dwarves will happily return to their passive programming as if they were never interrupted. It is possible to select multiple squads or specific dwarves to carry out these orders.
  
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When you've highlighted a cell, press {{k|tab}} to switch focus to this '''order list'''. From here, you can press {{k|e}} to edit the standing orders or {{k|o}} to give a new one. Both will open to the Give Orders screen. Pressing {{k|o}} will scroll through and change the order type. This cycles between 'Train', 'Defend Burrow', 'Patrol Route', and 'Station'. To use any of the orders other than Train, you will first need to set up the appropriate {{L|burrow}}, station, or route. When you cycle to the order you want, highlight the burrow, station, or route you want the order to go to (in the left pane) and press {{k|enter}}. It should now be highlighted in green.
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Your forces can be commanded to carry out two types of orders: '''Move''' orders and '''Attack''' (or '''kill''') orders. Move orders are much like the 'station squad' command in previous versions; your selected dwarves will run to wherever you've sent them. Similarly, attack orders will select an enemy (by location on screen, general area on screen, or list) and send your dwarves charging off that way.
  
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Orders have a soldier-based criteria that must be filled for the order to take effect. Using the secondary up/down keys you can choose how many soldiers must be in a squad minimum for the order to activate; by default this number is ten. You can also select specific positions within the squad in the right pane to set those positions as 'preferred' - the order will try and apply when the dwarves in those positions are active<!--CONFIRM?-->. When you are done, press {{k|shift}}+{{k|enter}} to save the order and return to the schedule screen. If desired, multiple order criteria can be set for each month.
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Soldiers following orders will attack any hostiles they encounter on their way to their destination as well as wild animals and whatever other creatures they might encounter, whether you like it or not. As a result it is very difficult to attack members of an enemy group with any sort of precision, and if your dwarves cannot take down their target there is no real way to get them out of combat; it's do-or-die. It is unknown whether this is a bug or a feature.
  
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Note that the text displayed on each cell (like 'Train') is a completely customized text; it does NOT reflect the actual orders in the cell! When you have a cell highlighted, you can press 'n' to edit the label. Don't be confused by the fact that when you edit the orders in a cell, the label does not change to reflect your changes. You need to update the cell text yourself to be consistent with the orders.
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Orders can be cancelled through the squads screen, but your dwarves tend to be so enthusiastic that they'll just ignore you in their bloodlust. This is likely a bug.
  
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To eliminate some of the tedium in scheduling many months, you can copy-paste orders from one cell to another with the {{k|c}} and {{k|p}} keys. Press {{k|c}} in the cell you want to copy from, then go to the cells you want to paste to and press {{k|p}} in each one.
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===Passive Command===
  
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By pressing {{k|shift}}+{{k|tab}} in the scheduling screen, you can flip the display of the rows and columns in the main grid. This allows you to see more squads, but fewer months. This can be useful if you want to see all your squads at the cost of not seeing the entire year's schedule. This change is cosmetic only; the tools still work the same way.
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''Full article: [[Scheduling]]''
  
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'''Warning:''' Dwarves who are permanently on-duty with no downtime have been observed to begin to starve themselves keeping to the rigorous schedule, and thus grow unhappy. Do you really want to find out how much damage that practice spear can do? To allow some of your dwarves to go sleeping when they need, you need to lower the minimum number of dwarves of the squad that need to follow the current order at any time in the order criteria as listed above. You want the criteria to be at least 1 or 2 dwarves less than the current number of dwarves in your squad. This will change the limit for the current month only, so use the copy/paste feature to update every month.
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The new '''alert level''' and '''scheduling''' system is a new feature that is both incredibly versatile... and, initially, completely impenetrable. Once you learn the system, though, you will find that you barely need to manage your military at all. Effectively, a schedule is programming for a squad to follow within an alert, broken up by month, and alerts can be quickly and easily swapped in order to apply different schedules of your choosing to different squads of your choosing. Without scheduling, alert levels would do nothing; without alert levels scheduling would be horribly inefficient; the two functions co-exist and rely on each other.
  
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The orders are listed below as follows:
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It is now possible to give your squads different monthly schedules, create different alert levels which will cause squads to follow out new user-programmed instructions depending on circumstance, give direct orders to attack one or more specific targets or move to a specific location, or follow patrol routes and stations with greater accuracy. The entire system (including alert names) is completely configurable, and in time you will find yourself using complicated scheduling to rotate squads between training and defending/patrolling specified areas over the course of a year without any user input, or to start defending the fort entrance or trader route with a few easy key presses.
  
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===Inactive===
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Civilian alert levels are also possible - civilians can be restricted by '''[[burrow]]''' to where they can roam should the need to tuck them away into a panic room arise. The 'entrance dance' bug of the previous version has also been removed - if a dwarf restricted to a burrow is not there, he will do his best to make the journey.
  
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When dwarves are in the military but not on active duty, dwarves with good self-discipline will visit the barracks and train themselves in their spare time - if you see a dwarf doing "Individual training" when you have them off-duty, that's what's happening.
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The scheduling screen is broken up into a list of squads, months, alert types and '''order criteria'''. Each order (applied to one month; multiple orders can be stacked on one month as well) can be given criteria to define how many dwarves within a squad will follow its programming at once, allowing you to make a few dwarves out of the squad active at a time while the rest go about their business or to make the entire squad always active for a matter of the utmost importance, foregoing food, sleep, and booze. You can also choose which positions in a squad the order will prefer to utilize when forcing a squad to follow it.
  
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===Training===
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Four types of orders can be given (as well as the 'inactive' command), defining different types of patrolling or stationary defending. Squads can spar and be given combat demonstrations in the '''[[barracks]]''', defend a '''[[burrow]]''', patrol a '''route''', or defend a single '''station'''. The monthly schedules can be named so as to better suit your needs, and a new (if still a bit buggy) copy/paste system has been introduced to eliminate some of the tedium in creating fancy scheduling for many months. The display can also be flipped around.
  
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For your dwarves to train a '''{{l|barracks}}''' must be designated. This can be done through using {{k|q}} to examine an appropriate building and assigning it as a barracks. Previously only beds, armor stands, and weapon racks could be designated as barracks, but many storage objects are now eligible. There is a new 'Position' option that allows you to assign specific beds/storage to specific dwarves. If dwarves aren't assigned anything in particular they'll just use whatever they feel like, as per normal.
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Barracks can now serve the needs of multiple specific squads at once. A barracks can be defined as a place to train, sleep, store squad equipment, store individual equipment, or any combination of the above, in any weird overlapping combination of barracks you like. Barracks are necessary for training.
  
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When being viewed, barracks can now be {{k|n}}amed, used for {{k|s}}leeping, {{k|t}}raining, or {{k|i}}ndiv eq. and {{k|s}}quad eq<!--WHAT ON EARTH DO THE LAST TWO MEAN-->. You can choose if a squad trains in one place and sleeps in another, or in multiple, and so on. Multiple squads can overlap with one barracks.
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When dwarves are being ordered to train, squad leaders will set up training classes for particular skills, or they will have dwarves spar. Any dwarves in the squad that don't qualify for these will default to individual training. In the current release, training classes are bugged where if a squad leader sets up a training class, he will wait forever (Or until you change his orders) for students, even if nobody shows up. Likewise, if students decide to request a class and the squad leader is doing individual training, they will wait for him to finish, even if they start starving. Thus, at the moment it's best to alternate your forced training schedules with downtime so the longest a dwarf will be stuck waiting is a game month (which isn't long enough to die), or just leave them off duty all the time and have them do individual training only, at least until this issue is fixed.
  
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To get marksdwarves to train in any way other then bashing each other with their crossbows, they must have quivers and an archery range. Archers will no longer fire bolts without a quiver to store them in (ie. they will not hold a single stack in their hand). The archery range that is set up for the squad via building an archery target and listing it as a {{k|t}}raining area for that squad.
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==Frequently Asked Questions==
  
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When dwarves are being ordered to train, squad leaders will set up training classes for particular skills, or they will have dwarves spar. Any dwarves in the squad that don't qualify for these will default to individual training. In the current release, training classes are bugged where if a squad leader sets up a training class, he will wait forever (Or until you change his orders) for students, even if nobody shows up. Likewise, if students decide to request a class and the squad leader is doing individual training, they will wait for him to finish, even if they start starving. Thus, at the moment it's best to alternate your forced training schedules with downtime so the longest a dwarf will be stuck waiting is a game month (Which isn't long enough to die), or just leave them off duty all the time and have them do individual training only, at least until this issue is fixed.
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''Full article: [[Military F.A.Q.]]''
  
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===Defend Burrows===
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==Current Reported Military-Related Bugs==
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* When selecting new dwarves to place in a squad the cursor always returns to the first available dwarf instead of remaining where it is.
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* Soldiers who have completed a kill task do not cancel their kill task. This may be intentional.
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* There are still various problems with dwarves not equipping what they should; most notably, dwarves will try to equip two left gauntlets or two right gauntlets rather than one of each. This happens if there are an odd number of gauntlets of any quality level; the dwarves try to equip two gauntlets of the highest quality level, regardless of whether they are left or right. A solution is to make sure every quality level accounts for one right gauntlet for each left gauntlet.
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*Dwarves who become lords automatically disable all their civilian jobs. When they come off duty and back on duty they lose experience as well.
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*Military dwarves in squads that are assigned to a schedule may get increasingly angry about long patrol duties, even if they were not on duty the past 12 months.
  
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After a {{l|burrow}} has been created in the {{k|w}} menu, you can order your dwarves to defend it. If an enemy enters the burrow (and is not hiding) the assigned squads will be alerted and attack it. It is unknown if a soldier defending a burrow is limited to his line-of-sight or is simply aware that an enemy is present. <!--COULD USE MORE DETAIL + CONFIRMATION-->
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{{Military}}
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{{Category|Military| }}
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===Stations===
 
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Stations are set in the {{k|N}}otes menu. Simply {{k|p}}lace a point where you want a squad to stand, give it a {{k|n}}ame if you want to be able to find it quickly, then open the scheduling menu and set your chosen squad to be Stationed and select the station you want.
 
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===Routes===
 
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Routes are made by combining stations. Once you have stations set along your desired route (at least two stations are necessary), hit {{k|r}}outes while in the {{k|N}}otes menu. {{k|a}}dd a route, {{k|n}}ame it something appropriate, then {{k|e}}dit its waypoints. You need to {{k|a}}dd the points in the same order you want the dwarves to follow. They'll loop back to the initial point when they reach the last one. Waypoints can no longer be arbitrarily made; only stations can be selected as waypoints.
 
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==Direct Command (Kill Orders)==
 
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The '''kill command''' allows your military to focus their attack on one or more specific targets. It is a very unsubtle way of beating into your dwarves' booze addled minds that they are to kill your target or be killed in the attempt. It may very well be your last command to your dwarves if things are getting desperate.
 
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In the {{k|s}}quad menu, you can press either {{k|a}}/{{k|b}}/{{k|c}}/etc to select the squad that will execute the kill order, or hold {{k|shift}} to select multiple at once. You may press {{k|p}} if you want to toggle between having an individual dwarf or the squad perform the kill order. After selecting your dwarves will execute the kill order, press {{k|k}} to "Attack".
 
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Now you have several options: you can move the cursor to what you want to attack and press {{k|enter}}, press {{k|l}}ist and select what you want to attack from a list, or {{k|r}}ectangle to select an area of things you want dead. Upon pressing {{k|enter}} your dwarves will happily run off to execute the order by executing the target. To cancel this order, press {{k|o}} while in the squad screen and selecting the appropriate squad/order.<!--DIDN'T ACTUALLY WORK FOR ME; CONFIRM?-->
 

Latest revision as of 23:30, 21 June 2024

xTATTEREDx  · +FINE+  · *SUPERIOR*  · ≡EXCEPTIONAL≡  · ☼MASTERWORK☼
v50.14 · v0.47 · v0.34 · v0.31.25 · v0.28 · v0.23
This article is about an older version of DF.


The military is one of the most important aspects of a successful fortress. Even with many traps, drawbridges and other defenses, your military will still need to fend off goblin sieges, megabeasts, titans, and fiendish underground beasties. Using a combination of squad orders and scheduling, you can set up an elaborate offensive, defensive, or balanced military structure for your well-equipped soldiers to follow. Turning your dwarves from useless migrants into bloodthirsty killing machines never hurts (unless you're the enemy).

The military system is rather extensive and complex, and there is a lot of documentation. Here is a list of key documents categorized by expertise level:

  • Beginner:
    • Attack is a very simple "How to attack a target" guide. This is useful if you don't know anything about the military and just want to order some (untrained) dwarves to (suicide) attack something now.
    • Military quickstart will teach you to set up and train your very first properly organized squad.
  • Intermediate:
    • Squads helps you understand everything about squads.
    • Military interface contains mostly complete documentation on the military screen.
    • Scheduling describes the squad scheduling system in more detail.
    • Military F.A.Q. is a list of frequently asked questions.
  • Advanced:
    • Sparring will give you insights about combat training.
    • Military Design provides specific advice on how to get your soldiers prepared for any threat.
    • Security Design will give you specific suggestions on the physical defenses that will defend your military.
    • Defense Guide is a general overview of threats and considerations for fortress defense.
    • Trap Design contains information on complex traps that are not a minor/optional part of a larger defensive plan (but might be adapted or plugged into one).

The rest of this guide contains an overview of military features (with links to associated sections of other documents).

Quick Reference[edit]

From the main menu:

  • The military screen is accessible through the m key.
  • The squads screen is accessible through the s key.
  • The points/routes/notes screen is accessible through the N key.
  • The burrows screen is accessible through the w key.

The military screen and all its tabs are mouse-compatible, and can be navigated through mouse clicks rather than strictly keys (when in windowed mode).

Creating a Military[edit]

While it may be confusing to a new player, the military system makes up for its initial impenetrability with its versatility. Using the military interface, squads can be assigned, reordered and restructured at will, dwarves can be set to equip a highly-specified uniform along with the rest of their squad or stand out and equip something unique, and you can give incredibly detailed commands and programming to your squads to follow out based on time of year, circumstance, location, and user convenience. That being said, there's a lot to be learned.

This article is about the general aspects of what a military comprises. For more detailed information including specific key commands, see the associated article expanding on a subject. In particular you may want to check out the military interface article since the interface is one of the most confusing aspects.

Squads[edit]

Full article: Squads

Squads are the groups of soldiers that make up your military. Your military is now led by the appointed militia commander and has many other squads led by militia captains under him. Creating a squad in the military screen is one of the first things you should do when starting your military.

Equipping Soldiers[edit]

Full article: Squads#Equipping Soldiers

Rather than simply pick a level of equipment and hope your dwarves pick up the right stuff, you can select what your dwarf will wear by item type or specific item, or create a new uniform template and apply it to a dwarf or entire squad all at once. Even the material and color of your soldiers' uniform is configurable. You can create identical armored units with intimidating red cloaks or just slap something together based on need and circumstance. Even artifact weapons/armor are now selectable - luck and micro-management have been removed from the equation.


Directing Soldiers[edit]

Getting your military to actually do something is a lot more difficult than it once was; gone are the days of simply designating a barracks and letting your recruits have at it. It is now possible to give your squads different monthly schedules, create different alert levels which will cause squads to follow out new user-programmed instructions depending on circumstance, give direct orders to attack one or more specific targets or move to a specific location, or follow patrol routes and stations with greater accuracy.

There is now a clear discrepancy between active orders and passive orders-- the latter is programming that a dwarf will follow to the letter and acts more as a defense method, and the former is used for taking the fight to the enemy. The squads menu is predominantly used for active commands, and the alert and scheduling menus are used for passive commands.

Active Command[edit]

Full article: Squads#Direct Commands

In the new military, soldiers operate much more like part-time militiamen than full-time warriors. When soldiers are not passively doing their civilian duties or following their schedule programming, they can be actively sent to do small tasks to aggressively defend your fortress. After these orders have been carried out or cancelled, your dwarves will happily return to their passive programming as if they were never interrupted. It is possible to select multiple squads or specific dwarves to carry out these orders.

Your forces can be commanded to carry out two types of orders: Move orders and Attack (or kill) orders. Move orders are much like the 'station squad' command in previous versions; your selected dwarves will run to wherever you've sent them. Similarly, attack orders will select an enemy (by location on screen, general area on screen, or list) and send your dwarves charging off that way.

Soldiers following orders will attack any hostiles they encounter on their way to their destination as well as wild animals and whatever other creatures they might encounter, whether you like it or not. As a result it is very difficult to attack members of an enemy group with any sort of precision, and if your dwarves cannot take down their target there is no real way to get them out of combat; it's do-or-die. It is unknown whether this is a bug or a feature.

Orders can be cancelled through the squads screen, but your dwarves tend to be so enthusiastic that they'll just ignore you in their bloodlust. This is likely a bug.

Passive Command[edit]

Full article: Scheduling

The new alert level and scheduling system is a new feature that is both incredibly versatile... and, initially, completely impenetrable. Once you learn the system, though, you will find that you barely need to manage your military at all. Effectively, a schedule is programming for a squad to follow within an alert, broken up by month, and alerts can be quickly and easily swapped in order to apply different schedules of your choosing to different squads of your choosing. Without scheduling, alert levels would do nothing; without alert levels scheduling would be horribly inefficient; the two functions co-exist and rely on each other.

It is now possible to give your squads different monthly schedules, create different alert levels which will cause squads to follow out new user-programmed instructions depending on circumstance, give direct orders to attack one or more specific targets or move to a specific location, or follow patrol routes and stations with greater accuracy. The entire system (including alert names) is completely configurable, and in time you will find yourself using complicated scheduling to rotate squads between training and defending/patrolling specified areas over the course of a year without any user input, or to start defending the fort entrance or trader route with a few easy key presses.

Civilian alert levels are also possible - civilians can be restricted by burrow to where they can roam should the need to tuck them away into a panic room arise. The 'entrance dance' bug of the previous version has also been removed - if a dwarf restricted to a burrow is not there, he will do his best to make the journey.

The scheduling screen is broken up into a list of squads, months, alert types and order criteria. Each order (applied to one month; multiple orders can be stacked on one month as well) can be given criteria to define how many dwarves within a squad will follow its programming at once, allowing you to make a few dwarves out of the squad active at a time while the rest go about their business or to make the entire squad always active for a matter of the utmost importance, foregoing food, sleep, and booze. You can also choose which positions in a squad the order will prefer to utilize when forcing a squad to follow it.

Four types of orders can be given (as well as the 'inactive' command), defining different types of patrolling or stationary defending. Squads can spar and be given combat demonstrations in the barracks, defend a burrow, patrol a route, or defend a single station. The monthly schedules can be named so as to better suit your needs, and a new (if still a bit buggy) copy/paste system has been introduced to eliminate some of the tedium in creating fancy scheduling for many months. The display can also be flipped around.

Barracks can now serve the needs of multiple specific squads at once. A barracks can be defined as a place to train, sleep, store squad equipment, store individual equipment, or any combination of the above, in any weird overlapping combination of barracks you like. Barracks are necessary for training.

When dwarves are being ordered to train, squad leaders will set up training classes for particular skills, or they will have dwarves spar. Any dwarves in the squad that don't qualify for these will default to individual training. In the current release, training classes are bugged where if a squad leader sets up a training class, he will wait forever (Or until you change his orders) for students, even if nobody shows up. Likewise, if students decide to request a class and the squad leader is doing individual training, they will wait for him to finish, even if they start starving. Thus, at the moment it's best to alternate your forced training schedules with downtime so the longest a dwarf will be stuck waiting is a game month (which isn't long enough to die), or just leave them off duty all the time and have them do individual training only, at least until this issue is fixed.

Frequently Asked Questions[edit]

Full article: Military F.A.Q.

Current Reported Military-Related Bugs[edit]

  • When selecting new dwarves to place in a squad the cursor always returns to the first available dwarf instead of remaining where it is.
  • Soldiers who have completed a kill task do not cancel their kill task. This may be intentional.
  • There are still various problems with dwarves not equipping what they should; most notably, dwarves will try to equip two left gauntlets or two right gauntlets rather than one of each. This happens if there are an odd number of gauntlets of any quality level; the dwarves try to equip two gauntlets of the highest quality level, regardless of whether they are left or right. A solution is to make sure every quality level accounts for one right gauntlet for each left gauntlet.
  • Dwarves who become lords automatically disable all their civilian jobs. When they come off duty and back on duty they lose experience as well.
  • Military dwarves in squads that are assigned to a schedule may get increasingly angry about long patrol duties, even if they were not on duty the past 12 months.
V · T · E
Military and defense
F.A.Q.
Guides
Managing soldiers
Design tips
Invaders
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