I'm still new to Dwarf Fortress, but I suppose everyone's a little bit newer with the 2010 version still fresh. Like many players, I have big dreams. In my case, I'm thinking of building some giant clear glass hourglasses. The primary hindrance I face is not being sure how to get everything up and running. So, I'm trying to get some solid advice.Location, location, location:
As much as I'd like to have those hourglasses standing in a nice flat, sandy desert, that'd probably be too much of a challenge for a beginner like me: Clear glass need pearlash, which needs wood. Unless I get lucky and find a desert adjacent to a forest (or a cavern where I can grow tower caps), I'd be in short supply. A sandy marsh might be better for that.
Rivers: Do I really need one? An everlasting supply of water would be nice, since you have to muddy underground farms now. Rain's probably another option if I can make some sort of collection spot.
Magma: The new version is supposed to have magma pools everywhere if you just dig deep enough. Since you can't search for magma pipes anymore, I'd need a bit of luck for mass production of obsidian, if I felt like making the mega hourglass out of volcanic glass.
Starting Dorfs:
I'm still not sure what starting skills I should go for. I read one suggestion now removed from the DFwiki that involved a Leader with all the doctor skills, who'd quietly build up his mining skill until he's needed at the hospital or trade depot. I also wonder if I should start with a proficient glassmaker who gets to work once I get a magma kiln.
Here's something of a first draft:
1) Medic Leader: One point in all the medical skills, with appraise, negotiator, and judge of intent. Spends the rest of his time as a secondary miner.
2) Outdoorsman: Woodcutter, Herbalist, Axeman, maybe hunter.
3) Farmer/Cook/Brewer
4) Mason/Stone Crafter/Building Designer
5) Carpenter/Glassmaker
6) Mechanic/Weaponsmith/Armorsmith
7) Miner/?
Early Building:
I'm still trying to figure out everything I'll need early on.
1. Food storage: Get everything out of the wagon so it won't rot in the wagon and that my dwarves won't need to go outside for a bite to eat.
2. Wood/Stone/Furniture storage: Keep supplies near the workshops.
3. First farm: Can muddy an area by digging into the side of a murky pool.
4. Workshops: Carpenter, Mason, Still, Kitchen, Craftsdwarf shop, Butcher shop, Leatherworks. For the latter two, I could use some advice on how to make sure my hunters don't leave their catch to just rot.
5. Barracks: Dwarves have to sleep. I neglected one on my last game, jumping a bit too directly to individual rooms.
6. Meeting room: Outside the main entrance, so that my dogs will gather there and spot thieves.
Magma workshops:
I plan to dig down until I reach magma so that I can build a workshop level with all the magma-powered sorts. Since I don't want to be overrun by fire imps and the like, I'd appreciate suggestions on how to safely go about this. One idea is to build an exploratory vertical shaft that I can block off with a locked door. Once I know what level the magma's at, I can build workshops with imp-blocking grates in the floor.
Lesser dreams:
Greenhouses: Some farms for above ground crops covered by green glass ceilings, safely below the surface.
Guard towers: Shaped like hourglasses, for the overall aesthetic.
A road paved with glass.
An overly organized 'garden' sort of look for the entire surface of my area. More "rock garden" than lines of trees or hedge mazes.
The big dreams:
Hourglass Megastructure: I'm still trying to think about the shape of my hourglass tower(s), since round isn't the easiest thing to do. The first idea is probably the simplest: A pyramid with an inverted pyramid on top. The other is similar, though with some straight vertical sections. I'd like some ideas for what to fill them with. Probably include some wood bases for the top and bottom.
Raised River: A six-tile wide river on a raised platform. The supports will be smaller versions of the hourglass tower, possibly doubling as guard towers. If I get a magma pipe, I may try another of magma that ends up forming obsidian where the two meet. I could probably use some help figuring out how to handle the pumps to get the water up there.
So, chime in with whatever.
5 comments:
I like to start with
Miner/Mason
Miner/Architect
Carpenter/Woodcutter
Farmer/Plant Gatherer
Brewer/Cook
Stonecarver/Mechanic
Leader/Doctor
But I usually start someplace that's not actively hostile, and had lots of plants to gather.
I've gotten glassmakers regularly in my immigration waves.
I haven't gotten far enough with any one fortress yet to even bother with digging down to the magma, but it's apparently pretty far down, and might require a pump tower to bring it up to a more useful level.
For early stages of a fort, I don't establish central Mason and Craftsdwarf workshops, I just move them around to where the big concentrations of loose stone are.
Turn the bottom of your hourglass into a dining or meeting hall, and fill the top bulb with water.
If something seems impossible, just remember what can be done with enough perseverance.
http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?t=511061
Never multitask your miners! Mining is something you should be doing at all times, and you shouldn't need to choose between mining and something else.
Mechanisms are a wonderful trade good, with a high weight-value ratio and both skill and material modifiers. I usually start with one dwarf that does nothing but make mechanisms.
Sorry for the somewhat generic advice, I haven't tried to build crazy things like this yet.
If you wanna talk about new, let me bust out some ignorance.
What's Dwarf Fortress? Video game or online deal? Sounds cool.
DF is a roguelike fortress simulator (though it does have an adventure mode I know nothing about) of absurd detail. It won't tax your graphics card, but it sure as hell will eat up processor power, especially if you've got a catsplosion population bomb.
The game's strictly local, but has a strong online following and even a wiki that's currently being updated for the new version.
You dig into the ground to build a fortress and make trade goods to attract migrants and weapons and traps to keep out invaders. The mega constructions I'm describing are mostly for ego purposes.
Though be careful digging too far down. You could end up discovering a [redacted] built by the [clowns] who might invade your fortress if released. Or you could find veins of valuable *shiny* and dig out the wrong tile, opening a portal to [The circus], sending in the [clowns]. If either of those happen, you'll likely end up ~having fun~.
Great reading your bllog
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