40d:Ocean

An ocean is an immense volume of saltwater. There are generally two or three oceans on every generated map. They come in three varieties, based on temperature, which affects the sea life found there: Arctic, Temperate and Tropical. It is not possible to found a fort solely in an oceanic biome, some land is needed.

Geography

Oceans tend to have a heavy effect on the surrounding geography of the generated world. Volcanoes can often be found around the perimeter of the ocean, and this tends to be easiest place to find them. Marshes and swamps also tend to form around oceanic coastlines, especially near rivers. The land surrounding oceans also tends to have a high water table, resulting in aquifers close to the surface.

Survival

Ocean areas will always contain salt water, even in pools that are quite some distance away. They are also rather notorious for containing aquifers of multiple layers. The fishing will usually be good near an ocean, and there won't be as many carp or similar fish to deal with.

Because ocean biomes contain salt water, it will be impossible to give your dwarves water when they are injured, quite possibly leading to their death.

There is a way around this with screw pumps. This method involves pumping water with a screw pump into a completely constructed reservoir. After being pumped, water will become fresh water unless it touches any natural walls or floor in which case it will revert to salt water. This may be an exploit.

Life next to an ocean

Despite the warnings that the fortress selection screen displays, oceanside locations can be quite habitable - provided they are chosen well.

An oceanic shoreline. A wave crashes into the beach causing mist; on the right an exposed vein of Native Platinum is visible through the erosion during world generation. Stacks of driftwood also cover the beaches.

Oceans have a multitude of benefits: they're generally sparsely populated, and usually have an abundance of arable soil. Ocean fish are usually abundant and a good source of food, though some sea creatures can be dangerous, particularly in evil areas. Some oceans have sand beaches, a good resource for glassmaking. Oceans also provide a few unique geographic features, including stacks of driftwood and ocean waves - which crash against the beach to produce mist. The erosion caused by waves also tends to leave numerous exposed mineral veins and gem deposits at sea level, and some minerals like platinum form deposits in alluvial areas.

Despite these benefits, oceanic shorelines provide some challenges, and can be difficult starting areas. It is important to check for some variation in topography when choosing an ocean location, as the ground is almost always water-laden one tile down from sea-level. Even if slightly hilly terrain is found, there is no guarantee that stone will still be accessible. Forests tend to make good biome additions, as they tend to have more varied terrain than marshes and swamps. When picking a forest it is important that the treeline extends at least two tiles away from the shoreline on the Local Map, otherwise you may potentially only have stacks of useless driftwood and no actual trees and shrubs.

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