User:Fish

A place for links I look at often, and logs of interesting events that my fortresses have.

Fortress History:

1. My first fortress

• Learned that dwarves can't sleep if trees are being chopped one tile above them. Read about noise. This made my fortress design somewhat fatal.

• Had my first dwarf die. An immigrant, killed in a hunting accident. Had no friends or family. Learned how to bury dwarves.

2. My second fortress

• Had my first upset dwarf... I think. A female dwarf from the second immigration wave was assigned to hunting (so that I could draft her into the military). Any time I looked at her, she was content. A msg flashed on the screen that she had gone berserk while hunting. By the time I found her, she was content, with no wounds and no animals nearby. I can only imagine that she was sick of this job, all this time in the sun, these stupid f***ing trees, and all the cultural differences between her and the first wave immigration dwarves, couldn't take it anymore, screamed all her problems out in the woods where no one could hear or see her, and then came back pretending to be happy and never letting anyone know her problems.

• fortress layout was bad. Learned that miasma is very hard to control. Decided to try method 'airlock' in a new fortress.

• My rocking huntress had both eyes gouged out by something. learned about 'severed' wounds and learned about organs. Was sad.

• learned that I can't make soap without sand. As making soap was my master plan, I quit.

3. My third fortress

• picked out a site with some goddamn sand, and lots of trees, and a brook, and some hills, and a mirthful atmosphere.

• RUN!!!:

I have a little brook, and its pretty warm, so I figure I won't need a well. Then, around early winter, there is a little freeze. Ok, I think, Lets try to make a well later, by digging a channel to the water while its ice. yes.

It turns out, freezes on my map are very short lived. I only had to dig 1 tile, and put a door in it, because I'd dug the rest out in the fall. So, as my dwarf goes calmly to put the door in ... suddenly! It all melts! He tries a few times to put up the door, but the water keeps pushing him and it back. "F*** this shit!" he screams, and ruuuunnnnss towards the emergency door I'd thankfully put up earlier too. The door floats, unhinged in the 7/7 water channel, which for the next year wiggles bitterly. Watching. Trying to get out into my stockpiles. I forbid the backup door, and make sure pets can't go through.

• Airlock is mixed success. While there is never miasma in the hallway, dwarves still walk into the stinky room to drop off chunks and vermin. Learn what chunks are. So, I build a 'vent' -- a little tower around my technically not indoors anymore chunks pit. The tower is 3 high, and there's no good way to fall in it, I think. rotting stuff is "outside", but safe. Its working pretty well, except that I didn't make it big enough. I need to learn how to use this in conjunction with barrels or bins.

• Finally learn how to make dwarves spar. Apparently it takes two! ... duh I guess.

• learn about path planning, and why my baby trees are dying. Stay off my baby trees, you damn kids!!

• learned that dwarves will fall in these stupid ponds all over my map and drown. stupid dwarves. stupid ponds. So, on my second winter, when the (very brief) yearly freeze starts, I have my miners dig as many ramps as they can around the edges. This is great, cause now when I see "Dangerous terrain" and I go look, the little guy is always getting out. I start to notice a LOT of "Dangerous Terrain" spam though... waaaaiiitt... its like they're TRYING to go in the ponds so they can cancel their work!!!

In about a season I remember the path planning thing. I've restricted a lot of areas with trees, so they're trying to swim their way to their logging sites. Oh god. I go and "low" all the trees and "forbid" all the ponds and this works a little. After "high"ing the path I actually want, things are mostly fine again. UGH. At least they're starting to learn to swim.

• Am reminded that new dwarves will *try* to be useful almost immediately. And so, now Otella of the third immigration has some crappy pictures forever on my dinning room wall. But, I learn how to assign shops to dwarves, and so I can now have +cook and -cook, one to make meals and one to render fat. This makes me really happy.

• A hunting accident:

While hunting, the remarkably tough, strong, agile, and probably sexy first generation dwarf Eric was swiped in the head by cougar. I go watch in horror as the cougar ... flees?? Yeah, she's running away from the now unconcious yellow head wound Eric!! Eric gets back up in a second, now with out wounds, and shoots the cougar, then chases her and wrestles her to death. His amazing deed is never known by the lazy butcher and tanner, who almost let the kill rot.

• Learn that if I just let two dwarves wrestle for a season, they won't work anymore. Debate never putting a dwarf into the military again. I can't do much about it now though. I can't figure out how to change their weapons for a while, so I just let them wrestle into legends.

• Goblin siege oh no!:

I have my first ever seige in my second winter. I learn about the power of ctrl-alt-del.

When I finally figure how to tell my 2 wrestlers and archer to go places, things go better.

While coming into my base, the goblins are first seen by the woodcutters, 3rd immigration Thane and 2nd immigration Gotta. I order all non military dwarves indoors. Thane, the obedient coward he is, high tails it home. Gotta looks a the door home, and then at the goblins, and decides she can't make it. She heads for the hills, the goblins following behind. She bravely distracts the entire goblin army while my wrestlers get into position gaurding the main gate.

Gotta now only has the fastest goblin on her tail. She runs all the way around the edge of the map, and is eventually close to home. While she's got a good lead on him, she still doesn't think she can make it to the back door. She tries and then changes her mind. So, she goes towards the side door.

No, she just can't bare to lead the scum to her very home. And the archer at the top of my walls can't get a good shot. With Gotta about to head for the hills again, I draft her. Quick to anger, she walks up to the one goblin, and lopps off his head. Then I turn her into a civvy again and she goes straight home.

Meanwhile, the goblin army of about 7 are standing in front of my walls, about 40 squares away, occasionally looking towards the 2 big wrestlers with their arms crossed. They mumble to each other. "Do you really think we can take them?" They get a little too close... and are slaughtered by the 2 wrestlers. One swordsman gets away.

I decide that its o.k. that the champions can't work. They've earned their keep. Because of them, I import terror, but export revenge!

Gotta has only minor trauma from the experience, and is wood cutting the next day.

My first artifact was an iron braclet with spikes, Imkethcugga'n, The Just Sands". I figure, gothy kid with no inspiration. My second artifact was Kobemnoran Tunomkol, Troublerelieved the Mortal Wheel, a lace agate table. Just the title describes how I felt about the war. This lace agate table, encrusted with lace agate and sapphire, is adoned wtih hanging rings of wolf leather. On the item in goblin bone is an image of dwarves laboring. Inspiration. Pure genius. The symbolism is unmistakable. And, its a useful table. I am thrilled.

The engraver is inspired too. Until now, she's drawn dwarves "travelling" "laboring", and occasionally holding a masterwork item or the iron bracelet. Mostly though (and by mostly, I mean 25%), a picture of an eagle and a human, and the eagle is striking down the human. Did I mention the human traders come through these walls?

But now, we've got a handful of engravings kicking some goblin tush. Its a good day.

• learned that when wiki suggests "leave room for expansion later with workshops" that they rather mean it. Spent 2 seasons & 4 days in real life moving shops down to make room for more, lost my best mason for this time, to the task of architecting the new furnaces. But hey, 69 dwarves (the most I've ever had), and usually no idlers. So, I guess its worth it.

• 20th Limestone, 203: All those cage traps have finally been put to good use. I decided to lock my pets in the outdoor courtyard. While trying to do so, I found that some of my doors were being used by intruders! But, I couldn't see any intruders. Moments later, I caught a goblin child snatcher before he could get in. The kobold theif he was working with did manage to get past my locked doors, but was promptly seen by the army of haulers bringing goods to the depot. (The traders have been bringing less and less goods -- perhaps because what they do bring is so heavy? And now the traders seem to be bringing theives!!). Some of my military was not asleep, and Bob crushed the puny kobold, while my haulers went and stripped the goblin naked. But, now I have this stupid goblin, sitting in my cage trap (which I want back), and I don't know what to do with him! But, hey -- first horrible event when I was prepared/knowledgable enough that I didn't need to hit reset. I might be getting closer to being able to play a 'real' game.

• 23 Limestone, 203: Those ___ing traders brought in a whole seige!! I think the siege only killed a war dog. Then they left, looking for something else to kill. Fearing the dwarven traders, and finding the fortress locked down, they decided to go kick the dead dog in the head. Now, they are all in cage traps, the ones surrounding the dog. Stupid stupid goblins!!! While trying to run this war, the dwarven trader keeps wanting to talk shop. Doesn't he notice there are threats out there?? (Note: learned how to tell what day it is)

• 27 Limestone, 203: Well, I've placed the goblin cages in a little room, d-b-d'ed their gear, make a little garbage zone next to them, and now a civilan army is stripping them down. When I've taken their gear out of the room, I'll build a wall around them and lock them in forever.
• 5 Sandstone, 203: Project lock-7-naked-goblins-in-cages-sealed-in-a-2x4-room-with-no-exits (a.k.a LSNGIAR) is a success! If they escape, they'll still be trapped! No idiot dwarves can accidentally let them out! This lets me see if they starve, or live forever! Its all good. Aside from them killin' my dog (which no one will butcher or bury).
• While talking with a friend, I finally figured out what my win condition could be -- all dwarves legendary or noble, to avoid the economy. So far, of 69 dwarves I have 9 legendary ones. Lets see how far I can get!
• Late Autumn, 203: I now have 80 dwarves, since 2 baby boys were born. I've started trying to make a waterfall. I was reminded that J-pipes cause water to go UP due to water pressure (darnit!), and I learned that pump operators do not generate power (whaaat??!). So, I've accidentally built a giant, splashy gym. But, I've learned a lot about pumps at least. Now, if I can just learn about windmills, I can have a waterfall.
• Late Autumn, 203: In the bustle to get a working waterfall (which we didn't get), one of our mechanics started to feel strange. Fey type strange. Cecila of the 5th wave of immigrants creaded a legendary Chromite Mechanisms, "Silentworks". Perhaps a hint about all the noise this waterfall work is generating? We're now up to 11 legendary dwarves.
• Early Winter, 22 Moonstone 203: Wow. Just wow. Cecila is off, cranking out masterwork mechanisms. I've stopped her cause I'm running out of places to put them. Meanwhile, my watermill plan is stuck, waiting for the architect, who is off partying with the Mayor and some other inital settlers. Then -- boom! Goblin seige. 'Cause an ambush last season wasn't enough. The seige strips partly naked before coming down the mountain, takes a LONG time to come down (its like they're afraid), starts to chop ANOTHER dog in half (what is their problem with dogs??), and then 9 of them are killed by a wrestler. The other 4 or 6 or so flee, and 2 become more POW. Before the blood dries on the ground, a kobold is found hanging out in a local muddy pool of water, apparently unable to path plan out before getting killed. His buddy decides to flee. No more dwarven caravans. They're leading in too much rifraff. I wonder if all my hostages are prompting more attacks, and I should just kill them...
• My poor doggy's pancreas is better, but I don't know how to help the other wounds heal. I've her in a cage, to stop all the other dwarves from stepping on her. (edit: a season later, and the dog isn't any better. Do dogs not heal?)
• Infinite waterfall is a go, without a power unit to spare. score! I understand pumps, gear assemblies, and watermills a lot better.
• 14 legendary dwarves of 80, 2nd Opal, 203
• Ahh! I just learned on the wiki that seiges will get worse and worse forever! With trolls! Build another outer wall, my little army of haulers! We'll put a bridge over it, and some ramps. Archers! Train harder! More goblin bone bolts! I feel its a little buggy that goblins have infinite power resources. But, its also buggy that no one can get through walls, ever.