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Difference between revisions of "v0.34:Size"

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How "big" the [[creature]] is, measured in cubic centimeters (which is roughly equal to one gram of mass for normal body materials).  '''Bodysize''' determines what kind of equipment a creature can wear, how much [[damage]] they can absorb, how much damage they can inflict in melee and how much is yielded from [[butcher]]ing.  Size is inherited through the genetics system. Actual creature sizes go from 1 (small insect vermin) to 200000000 ([[giant sperm whale]], the largest creature in the game).  See [[List of creatures by adult size]] for details.
 
  
The average size set for a dwarf is 3000, 15000, 60000, being the sizes as a baby, child and adult respectively. Modified with height (short to tall) and broadness (thin to fat).
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'''Size''' is a measure of how big a [[creature]] or [[item]] is, measured in cubic centimeters. It is essentially volume, but is called size in creature [[raw file]]s, and is so translated to item definitions as well. Size, along with the underlying [[material]]'s [[density]], is used to calculate an item's [[weight]]:
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:Weight (in Γ) = Density (in kg/m<sup>3</sup>) * Size *10 (in cm<sup>3</sup>) / 1,000,000 (cm<sup>3</sup>/m<sup>3</sup>)
  
Also, '''Size''' for items is also in centimeters cubed and (with [[material]]) determines the weight of items (e.g. iron mace weighs ~ 6.2kg, copper halberd ~ 10.7kg etc.) and, therefore determines inflicted damage.
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Size has a large number of important ramifications on the game, many of them through its affect on overall weight, but as [[material science|material properties]] go, its implementation in the game is somewhat underwhelming - witness the incredible compression of matter, space, and time that is the [[garbage dump]]. This is mostly because when even [[dragon]]s occupy a single square, size becomes a little difficult to contextualize.
  
Changing this too much can lead to [[fun]].
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Size directly affects such things as [[Weapon#Size|which weapons]] your dwarves can equip, [[butcher]]ing returns, and [[combat]] effectiveness, both for creatures ([[elephant]]s are very hard to kill because there's so much tissue to them, but they have a surprisingly hard time landing a hit on, say, [[cavy]]s) and for weapons. Through weight, the size of an item has a large number of further ramifications in the game, such as [[hauling|carry time]], [[pressure plate]] activation, impact momentum, weight restrictions, and so forth. Changing this value too much can lead to [[fun]].
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== Bodysize ==
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Creature-specific size is known internally as '''bodysize'''. When it comes to creatures, size is a rough stand-in for [[weight]]: standard flesh weights one gram per cubic centimeter. However, in the infinite complexity of Dwarf Fortress there are a number of ''other'' [[material]]s animals internalize ([[ivory]], [[hair]], [[horn]], [[shell]], etc.) which have their own densities, shifting a creature's actual weight relative to its size, sometimes significantly (elephant tusks weigh a ''lot''). Bodysize also determines average [[butcher]]ing yields, (along with morphology) how much [[damage]] they can absorb, and (along with morphology and attack definition [[creature token|token]]s) how much damage they can inflict in melee. On <tt>[HUMANOID]</tt> creatures, size also directly determines what kind of equipment a creature can wear: large, small, normal, or none at all.
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The actual size of a creature is the result of three different effects, one basic and two modulatory. First and most basic is the average maintained across an individual species of creature. The second is the [[age]] of the creature: most creatures are not born anywhere near their maximum size, and instead must grow into it; some, like most species of snake, grow through their entire lifetime, and probably will not live long enough to reach it. The third is inheritance: version 0.31.1 introduced [[genetics]], allowing creatures to inherit part of their size from the appearance, specifically the height and girth, of their parents.
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Actual creature sizes go from 1 (small insect [[vermin]]) to 200000000 ([[giant sperm whale]]s, the largest creature in the game).  See [[List of creatures by adult size]] for details. The average size set for a dwarf is 3000, 15000, and 60000, the size of a baby, child and adult respectively.
  
 
{{Category|Modding}}
 
{{Category|Modding}}

Revision as of 01:36, 12 July 2013

This article is about an older version of DF.

Size is a measure of how big a creature or item is, measured in cubic centimeters. It is essentially volume, but is called size in creature raw files, and is so translated to item definitions as well. Size, along with the underlying material's density, is used to calculate an item's weight:

Weight (in Γ) = Density (in kg/m3) * Size *10 (in cm3) / 1,000,000 (cm3/m3)

Size has a large number of important ramifications on the game, many of them through its affect on overall weight, but as material properties go, its implementation in the game is somewhat underwhelming - witness the incredible compression of matter, space, and time that is the garbage dump. This is mostly because when even dragons occupy a single square, size becomes a little difficult to contextualize.

Size directly affects such things as which weapons your dwarves can equip, butchering returns, and combat effectiveness, both for creatures (elephants are very hard to kill because there's so much tissue to them, but they have a surprisingly hard time landing a hit on, say, cavys) and for weapons. Through weight, the size of an item has a large number of further ramifications in the game, such as carry time, pressure plate activation, impact momentum, weight restrictions, and so forth. Changing this value too much can lead to fun.

Bodysize

Creature-specific size is known internally as bodysize. When it comes to creatures, size is a rough stand-in for weight: standard flesh weights one gram per cubic centimeter. However, in the infinite complexity of Dwarf Fortress there are a number of other materials animals internalize (ivory, hair, horn, shell, etc.) which have their own densities, shifting a creature's actual weight relative to its size, sometimes significantly (elephant tusks weigh a lot). Bodysize also determines average butchering yields, (along with morphology) how much damage they can absorb, and (along with morphology and attack definition tokens) how much damage they can inflict in melee. On [HUMANOID] creatures, size also directly determines what kind of equipment a creature can wear: large, small, normal, or none at all.

The actual size of a creature is the result of three different effects, one basic and two modulatory. First and most basic is the average maintained across an individual species of creature. The second is the age of the creature: most creatures are not born anywhere near their maximum size, and instead must grow into it; some, like most species of snake, grow through their entire lifetime, and probably will not live long enough to reach it. The third is inheritance: version 0.31.1 introduced genetics, allowing creatures to inherit part of their size from the appearance, specifically the height and girth, of their parents.

Actual creature sizes go from 1 (small insect vermin) to 200000000 (giant sperm whales, the largest creature in the game). See List of creatures by adult size for details. The average size set for a dwarf is 3000, 15000, and 60000, the size of a baby, child and adult respectively.