War

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

v50.14 · v0.47.05 This article is about the current version of DF. Note that some content may still need to be updated. More Info · V

"War" in other Languages Dwarven: alnis Elven: athama Goblin: aslez Human: ashro

War is a state of conflict between two civilizations. During fortress mode, it's a bottomless pit of fun. Wars are tracked at the civilization level; each site inherits the conflicts of its parent civilization.

World generation

War is common during world gen; civilizations will attack each other's settlements, occasionally destroying a site or taking it over. This also happens outside of worldgen, due to world activation.

Fortress mode

"Battle at the Gates"
Art by Shabzik

In fortress mode, war will cause sieges to arrive and bring you fun and presents.

The hostile nation may attack very occasionally or every year, so be well prepared. Civilizations whom you are at war with may occasionally send a diplomat to try and end the war; you will have the option to agree to the peace treaty, or dismiss the diplomat and continue the war. You can see if you are at war with a civilization on the c World Info civilization screen. Wars may also begin without the player's knowledge or intervention.

During a war, you will not receive caravans, visitors, or tributes from warring civilizations. A "civil war" with your parent civilization will block standard immigration as well. Additionally, migrants arriving during and after a war are more likely to have experience in general military skills and a random combat skill.^[Verify]

Not being at war with an already-hostile civilization, such as goblins, does not mean you won't get sieges from them. You will always get goblin sieges as long as they are not extinct, but being at war with the goblins does mean that the sieges will begin sooner, and will be bigger.

At embark

When embarking, one can check to see which races their civilization is at war with. Different civilizations may be at war with different races. Goblins are considered to be in a constant state of minor conflict with everyone else, instead of a real war; an open war with them may still break out, however.

Causes of war

The following events will make a civilization unhappy, eventually leading to war:

• The death of a diplomat while visiting your fortress (regardless of the cause of death).
• Failing to keep to the harvesting limit that the elves set, if any.
• Seizing caravan goods.
• Annoying traders (such as offering the hippies elves wood products repeatedly) or slaughtering them.
• May be declared "off-screen" during gameplay.
• Attempting to raid another civilization for any reason.^v0.44.01
• Refusing to give them a legendary artifact when petitioned.^v0.44.01

Civil war

It is possible for two sites belonging to the same civilization to declare war on each other, which, due to the way conflicts are tracked, registers as the civilization declaring war on itself.^Bug:10878 All of that civilization's sites inherit this war, making each site hostile to all others. It is not currently known if your parent civilization can sue for peace, but it is possible to end a civil war using DFHack.