v0.34:Butcher

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

Skill: Butcher

Association
Profession	Farmer
Job Title	Butcher
Labor	Butchery
Tasks
Butcher animal
Workshop
Butcher's shop
Attributes
Strength Agility Endurance Kinesthetic Sense

v50.14 · v0.47 · v0.34.11 · v0.31 · v0.28 · v0.23 This article is about an older version of DF. More Info · V

Butchers do the dirty job of killing tame animals, processing animal corpses, skeletons and body parts for meat, fat, skin, bones, skull(s) and many other objects at the butcher's shop.

Fortress Mode

To butcher a tame animal either

• go into view mode, place the cursor on the animal, go to the preferences page and press s to flag (or un-flag) the animal for slaughtering

or

• go to the z (Status) screen, then the Animals page, select the animal and press b to flag (or un-flag) for slaughter.

A butcher will then drag the animal to the nearest butcher shop and perform the bloody deed. Butchering living animals is instantaneous - the moment the dwarf sets their foot in the shop, the animal dies and its body is split into individual parts. Note that animals adopted as pets can not be butchered.

Hunters will, once per hunting trip, bring back a corpse to the butchery. If the hunter kills more than one creature on a single hunting trip the rest of the corpses will just be left on the ground; the same is true for creatures killed by traps or the military. To get those corpse butchered you need to put a refuse stockpile next to the butchery and set it to only accept corpses, and then set standing orders to gather outside refuse.

Dwarves will refuse to butcher the corpses of sapient creatures (due to the EAT_SAPIENT_OTHER:UNTHINKABLE ethic).

The type and number of objects produced from butchering a creature varies greatly, since not all creatures have the same parts. See each animal's page for a breakdown of what happens when you break that animal down.

Adventurer Mode

How to butcher in Adventurer mode:

1.If the corpse is in your inventory, drop it or equip it by removing it.
2.If the corpse is on the ground, move onto the same tile as it.
3.Equip a cutting implement or, alternatively, drop it on the same tile as yourself. This can be any object with a sharp edge (i.e.has an EDGE attack type), such as bladed weapons and tools, bolts and sharpened rocks.
4.Press x to open the action menu. Then select "butcher", press → and select the corpse that you want to butcher, press → again and pick the tool that you want to use.

You will then proceed to butcher the corpse, dropping all of the products on the same tile as yourself.

Note that in adventurer mode, you will not be allowed to butcher sapient creatures, being told that You are not that hungry.. This is hardcoded, so modding your race's ethics won't work. You can get around this by not eating anything until you are Starving, at which point you will stop caring about the sapience of your food and will happily butcher any organic creature that you run into, including your own severed body parts! This feature necessary survival mechanism is (sadly enough) only temporary; it will wear off as soon as you stop starving.

Effect of skill

A butcher's skill affects the speed of butchery, which can be important for processing a large number of corpses before they begin to rot. Note that butcher shops can become cluttered quickly, because most animals create a large number of different items of different categories when butchered. So make sure that you have nearby stockpiles for refuse, raw hides, meat, prepared organs and fat. To minimize the amount of miasma created in case the rotting parts are not removed fast enough, a butcher's shop should always be blocked by a door.

Of course, placing the Butchery outside will prevent any and all miasma generated by rotting, but dwarves won't haul the inedible parts away unless the global orders allow to "gather refuse from outside" (o-r-o)

Bugs

• A dead tame animal that was not slaughtered cannot be butchered.^Bug:1180 This includes tame animals killed due to age, starvation or due to goblins.
• Dwarves will not dis-assemble (butcher) skeletons of sentient creatures' for their bones.^Bug:1180

V · T · E Skills
Miner	Miner
Woodworker	Bowyer · Carpenter · Wood cutter
Stoneworker	Engraver · Mason
Ranger	Ambusher · Animal caretaker · Animal dissector · Animal trainer · Trapper
Doctor	Bone doctor · Diagnostician · Surgeon · Suturer · Wound dresser
Farmer	Beekeeper · Brewer · Butcher · Cheese maker · Cook · Dyer · Grower · Herbalist · Lye maker · Milker · Miller · Potash maker · Presser · Shearer · Soaper · Spinner · Tanner · Thresher · Wood burner
Fishery worker	Fish cleaner · Fish dissector · Fisherdwarf
Metalsmith	Armorsmith · Furnace operator · Metal crafter · Blacksmith · Weaponsmith
Jeweler	Gem cutter · Gem setter
Craftsdwarf	Bone carver · Clothier · Glassmaker · Glazer · Leatherworker · Potter · Stone crafter · Strand extractor · Wax worker · Weaver · Wood crafter
Engineer	Mechanic · Pump operator · Siege engineer · Siege operator
Administrator	Appraiser · Building designer · Organizer · Record keeper
Military	General Archer · Armor user · Biter · Dodger · Fighter · Kicker · Shield user · Striker · Wrestler Weapon Axeman · Blowgunner · Bowman · Crossbowman · Hammerman · Knife user · Lasher · Maceman · Misc. object user · Pikeman · Spearman · Swordsman · Thrower Other Leader · Observer · Student · Teacher
Social	Broker Comedian · Conversationalist · Flatterer · Intimidator · Judge of intent · Liar · Negotiator · Persuader Other Concentration · Consoler · Pacifier
Other/Peasant	Alchemist · Crutch-walker · Knapper · Swimmer
Unused	Balance · Coordination · Discipline · Druid · Military tactics · Poet · Reader · Speaker · Tracker · Wordsmith · Writer

See also

• Meat industry