v0.34:Relationship

This article is about an older version of DF. More Info · V

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

Dwarves have relationships amongst each other. These can be seen in detail by going to the dwarf's profile and then pressing r to take you to their relationships screen. Relationships are usually formed by spending time with another dwarf. Often, the strongest relationship are between dwarves from the same migrant wave, despite time spent with dwarves from other waves. Relationships are important because their presence or absence has an important effect on the dwarf in question. Note that when it comes to familial relationships, the dwarves in question do not have to be in your fortress.

Making and talking to friends gives happy thoughts while the death of a pet, friend, child or spouse gives unhappy ones. A network of friends and families are happier then individual dwarves, but are more likely to throw parties and make children, and will be much harder-hit when a familiar dwarf dies in an ambush or whatnot. Getting haunted by a familiar dwarf produces a strong negative thought as well.

Types

The following is a list of known relationships, listed in the order they will appear on the screen (and thus their importance):

• Spouse - Married dwarves are spouses of one another, and will share a bed and produce children (the happier the couple, the more children). Dwarves only ever marry once.
• Lover - Lovers are basically dwarven pairs, unmarried but getting there. Like spouses, dwarves will only ever have one lover, and do not switch lovers (at least, not so long as the other dwarf is alive). Happy lovers will try to get married, at which point they will switch over to one bed for two and start producing children.
• Child - Any children that the dwarf parents are the object of their attention. Babies are absolutely useless in fortresses (and a burden if the dwarf in question is a good candidate for the draft), and children do little besides throw parties and distract their parents, but their death causes a very strong bad thought. Note that adult children are still children in the eyes of their parents, and that children do not necessarily appear in your fortress.
• Sibling - If the dwarf in question has siblings, they will appear here. Like children, they do not necessarily have to be in the fortress.
• Deity - Ye old dwarven gods are the most important non-familial relationships for a dwarf. Worship is currently a mostly unimplemented feature; although dwarves can have different levels of worship ("faithful", "casual", and "dubious"), they do not have much effect on the dwarves in question, as such things as temples and priests are non-existent (in Fortress mode), limiting their appearances to fine artwork produced by the dwarf in question (and only a small part of the time at that). Note that cursed creatures are always dubious worshipers of their deities, making this relationship an important sign of a vampire.
• Object of Worship - Dwarves tend to worship megabeasts that have attacked a settlement, most likely out of fear. This relationship is for now only aesthetic purposes, and does not seem to change the behavior of the dwarf and the megabeast if the worshipper meets the worshipped.
• Friend - Dwarves that idle near other dwarves and/or have high social skills tend to develop friends. Making a friend takes some effort on the part of the dwarf, and happens most often within individual waves. Personality play a part as well. Making friends causes a happy thought, as can be expected, and the death of friends causes unhappy ones. Lovers develop from a dwarf's pool of friends.
• Grudge - Grudges are the opposite of friendships, and tend to develop between dwarves of conflicting personality traits. Sometimes it is possible to have your starting dwarves form grudges even before they arrive at the new fortress location. Making a grudge causes an unhappy thought, but ironically, the death of a grudgee actually causes a bad thought as well.
• Long-term Acquaintance - Long-term acquaintances are dwarves that are familiar with one another, but not yet friends. It is unknown if the death of an acquaintance makes a dwarf any sadder.
• Passing Acquaintance - Passing acquaintances are dwarves that are familiar with one another, but just barely. It is unknown if the death of an acquaintance makes a dwarf any sadder. If an acquaintance does not make contact with the dwarf over a time, they will be forgotten, absent from the relationships screen.

Royalty

There are several additional special relationship listed for the king/queen and their consorts. The dwarves listed in these relationships are all familial and generally not present in the fortress. These are the Uncle/Aunt, Cousin, and Paternal & Maternal Grandparents.

Influences

It is unknown how much of a role social skills such as conversationalist, intimidator, pacifier, comedian, negotiator, flatterer, consoler, persuader, or judge of intent play a role in relationships, but dwarves with vastly different personalities (such as a confident, selfless person vs a nervous-but-arrogant one) tend to form grudges, while dwarves with similar personalities will form friendships, or even become lovers. In tests, idling dwarves with high social skills made friends (and grudges) a good deal quicker than unskilled dwarves.