v0.31:Quickstart guide

v50.14 · v0.47 · v0.34 · v0.31.25 · v0.28 · v0.23 This article is about an older version of DF. More Info · V

xTATTEREDx  · +FINE+  · *SUPERIOR*  · ≡EXCEPTIONAL≡  · ☼MASTERWORK☼

Much of the information in the guide for the previous version still applies. However, the save game is no longer of use and information on the military and healthcare, as well as almost everything to do with the underground is most likely to be deprecated. Farming, for example, has been changed significantly since the last version. In order to construct a subterranean farm (the type required to grow the crops that you embark with), in addition to a dwarf with the Farming (Fields) labor enabled, the farm plot must be placed on muddied tiles. This makes it quite a bit harder to get started with a new fortress as food and alcohol are two of the primary concerns for a budding fortress, and both of them rely on farms to be produced. Keep this in mind when starting a new fortress.

One noteworthy change is that Anvils now only cost 100 (one-tenth of the old cost), and battle axes on the embark screen can be made of copper rather than steel (cheaper but slower, and less useful as weapons).

So, you want to play Dwarf Fortress, but you have no idea what to do. That's understandable, in Dwarf Fortress you can really do anything you like. It is a huge, complex, and totally open-ended game. But in order to do anything, first you need a sustainable fortress. It turns out, that is not so hard to do! Here you will find some advice on how to set up a functioning fortress that will let you focus on doing the things you want to, whether that is killing Goblins, creating mega-projects, or just keeping your dwarfs happy and alive.

Pre Embark

Choosing a good embark site is crucial for beginners. Advanced players can create a functional fortress on a glacier, but for now, lets stick to dwarf (and newbie) friendly environments. You will want to look for certain features in your initial embark site that will make your first fort much easier to manage.

Finding a good site

For your first site, I recommend a site with sedimentary stone. You will only find coal in sedimentary stone. Even when you find magma to power your forges and smelters, you will need coal (or charcoal from wood) to forge steel. Sedimentary stone layers also have more iron deposits. Ideally, you want a site with chalk, limestone, or dolomite, which are not only sedimentary stones, but flux stones as well. Flux is used to remove carbon during the steel-making process, while coke and charcoal put it back in. The end result is steel: iron with just the right amount of carbon in it.

You will want to avoid sites with aquifers, as these can be incredibly difficult to dig through, leaving you without stone of any sort until you manage it. Look for sites near mountains and hills, as these tend to have better drainage. Also, you will want to avoid sites that have no trees. Dwarfs like to sleep in beds, and beds are only made from wood. After the first Dwarven trade caravan arrives, you can tell them you would like a lot of wood, and the next time they show up, they will bring it. But that will be a year and a half after you first arrive, a long time to wait for beds. You could dig down to the first cavern level and chop down giant mushrooms for wood, but even the uppermost cavern level often contains far more [fun] than a newbie can handle.

Having a river on your site will make things much easier. It isn't a necessity, there are other sources of water on most maps, but only oceans, lakes, rivers, streams and brooks contain unlimited quantities of the stuff. Speaking of water, take a look at the climate. In temperate or colder climes, above ground water will freeze during the colder months. This can be anything from a minor inconvenience to a major pain, depending on circumstances. Just be aware that it is one more thing you will have to deal with, and choose your climate accordingly.

While searching your map for a good site, hit the 'Tab' key to change the display. You will notice that there are several informative screens besides the default screen showing the biomes and stone layers. One screen shows the relative distance to different races' civilizations. If "Goblins" are close by, you WILL suffer ambushes by your second spring. As a newbie, these Goblins will very likely destroy you. If you like seeing dead dwarfs and blood all over the map, go right ahead and pick a site next to a Goblin fortress. If you do, you will need to focus on defense immediately before doing nearly anything else.

You can set up your fortress to keep the Goblins out, or kill them with traps, but do not expect your militia to fight off these first waves. They will die. And remember, keeping Goblins out means keeping traders out (or worse, stuck inside, wanting to get out.) Goblins will attack trade caravans, and YOU will be blamed if the caravans die. As a newbie, you may want to opt for a site far from Goblins. If you choose an island site, you will notice that no other races are listed. Only dwarfs will come to trade with you, but you won't be attacked by Goblins, or anyone else for that matter.

Finally, you really, really do not want your first site to be in a sinister, haunted, or terrifying biome. As you might imagine, zombie whales can be difficult for even seasoned warrior dwarfs to handle.

Okay, you've found a site with sedimentary flux stone, good drainage, a warm climate, some trees, a water source, and possibly far from Goblins. Now it is time to pick your Dwarfs!

Choosing your Dwarfs and equipment

Since we know certain things about our first site, we can choose our Dwarfs and equipment knowing what to expect. Metal will be our primary industry. We won't be hit too hard by enemies right off the bat, so we can concentrate on civilian Dwarfs and supplies. Our starting location will have wood, so we don't need to bring a bunch with us. What should we bring, and what sorts of Dwarfs should we choose? Well, first we will need something to chop down trees, and something to dig with: picks and axes. We will need enough food and drink to see us through until we are producing our own, and to produce our own vegetables, we will need seeds. Ropes are useful to have, you need them to make a well and you can't produce your own until your have either metalworking or pig-tail farming and processing set up. They are also useful for chaining animals up near your entrance as a warning system. I recommend bringing an anvil, to set up your first forge. You could wait until the first caravan shows up, they will almost always bring one in the first fall, but that can be a long time to wait to start producing metal.

Sixty drinks and forty food should be enough to see you through until you can produce your own, even if you get large waves of immigrants right off the bat. Skip dwarven wine, that is the very first sort of alcohol you will be producing, from plump helmets, and you will be making a lot of it. Five to ten of each sort of seed will be enough to start you off farming, though you may want additional plump helmet spawn. One copper axe, and two copper picks should suffice to start. You want three ropes, one for a well and two for chaining up animals. As for medical supplies, you can easily make your own crutches and splints, but you may want to bring along a small amount of fiber, cloth, and plaster powder for stitching up Dwarfs and making casts, as these are more difficult to produce initially. You also might want to take two or three dogs and a breeding pair of cats. The dogs can help you hunt and fight if you train them, and the cats catch vermin. Both make good pets which help keep Dwarfs happy. And in a pinch, they can both make a tasty snack.

As for Dwarves, choosing certain skills will make your life much, much easier starting off. I recommend the following skills as essential to starting a fort: carpentry, masonry, architecture, mechanics, farming, cooking, and brewing. As most maps have tons of gems, the gem cutting skill can be an easy and quick source of early trade goods. If you chose a site with flowing water, fishing can help keep your fort fed early on. If not, hunting can do the same, but keep in mind that safe hunting requires a lot of micromanagement. Your hunters will happily stalk and attack elephants, cougars, and other dangerous animals before they have the skills necessary to deal with them. Fisherdwarfs, on the other hand, really only need to worry about alligators and crocodiles. Leatherworking can be another useful skill, especially if you hunt or raise animals. If not, your first caravan will likely show up with tons of cheap leather. Leather makes good armor for your marksdwarfs, as it is light weight and won't slow them down too much. Finally, as your economy will be centered around metals, you should choose a metalworking skill, probably armor working but weapon making is also a good choice. Some people say the best defense is a good offense, but dead Dwarfs won't fight, so I usually pick armoring as my first metalworking skill. You really don't need to pick mining as a skill, it is very easy to train up quickly if you have any kind of soil rather than just rock. Digging in soil trains up mining very, very quickly.

And So It Begins

Okay, so you have a site picked out, you have chosen your dwarfs and equipment, and you have embarked. You will see your dwarfs clustered around your wagon full of supplies somewhere near the center of your map, with the game paused. Do not unpause the game just yet. Take a look around. Look up and down a few z-levels. Notice the terrain features, the vegetation, and any minerals visible. If you chose a site with flowing water, where is it? What about pools of water? The more carefully you examine your site, the better off you will be. Remember that this is more of a simulation than a game, it is not 'play balanced,' and you can very easily find yourself in impossible situations. That is all part of the [fun] because even when you lose, you create an interesting story. But you don't want too much fun yet, do you? So, open up the unit screen and look at what other critters share the map with you. Your wagon functions as your initial meeting areas until you designate another, so if your wagon is parked next to a river full of crocodiles, or near other dangerous animals, you may want to designate another meeting area immediately.

First Steps

Generally, you will want to get all your Dwarfs and supplies inside a protected area as quickly as possible. Getting your farming area constructed is your next priority, as you will need to flood it and then wait for it to dry. Next you will want to set up crucial industries such as masonry, carpentry, and mechanics. Then you can start making some traps to protect your entrance. After this, focus on creating some nice living quarters, a dining room, and kitchen complex. Next, you will want to set up your metal industry and begin mining for coal and metal ore. Finally, you will want a military. Even if you chose a site without enemies, it is good practice, and eventually you will need them to protect you from giant monsters.

If your wagon is near a cliff, you can tunnel into the cliff to create an entryway. If you are on flat land, dig channels down and then tunnel over to create your entry. Your entryway defines the boundary between your safe and protected inner fort, and the big bad outside world. You may be tempted to make a short entry hall, so your dwarfs don't have to walk as far to get outside. Bad idea. You may also think it clever to have several entrances. It is not clever.

Think about the difference between inside and outside. Outside does not necessarily mean outdoors, and inside does not mean underground. Outside means undefended. Inside means defended. You can have multiple entrances, for instance, as long as they all lead to the same well defended gateway. But if you have an undefended back door, that is where you will be attacked. Make sure that to get inside, into the defended areas of your fort, enemies must pass through your defenses. Initially, you will not have the resources to defend more than one entrance.

Here is a list of first steps:

• Find a nearby murky pool. Count the number of squares it takes up. Multiply this number by seven. Dig stairs down next to the pool, and dig out a room with at least that number of squares in it. You should not dig out the walls of the pool from inside the room, your dwarf might drown. Rather, after the room is dug out, channel away the wall of the pool from above, letting the water in without the risk of drowned dwarfs.
• Next to this farming area, dig a separate hallway three tiles wide and at least fifteen long. This will be your entryway. At the end of the hall, dig a five by five room for your trade depot, a stairwell, and a storage area at least ten by ten tiles. Designate this as a storage area that will accept any and all items you brought with you. Using the 'q' key, set your wagon to be deconstructed.
• Dig down one level and off the stairwell create four five by five rooms. These will hold your mechanics, masons, carpenters, and jewelry workshops.