12th of Granite: In the digging to begin hollowing out our dining hall, we have unearthed both Bauxite, a magma safe sedimentary stone, and Limonite, the ore of iron. This is an auspicious start. A couple minor gem clusters have also been excavated.

19th of Granite: A cloud of "eerie soot" was reported as being spotted across the river from us. I have ordered everyone inside our hole-in-the-ground as a precautionary measure. Who knows what evil haunts these lands?
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21st of Granite: The cloud drifted south along the edge of the brook before dissipating. If we are to ever draw water from the brook, we should take appropriate filtration measures as a precaution.

14th of slate: Several of the workshop spaces have been fully dug out and I wasted no time in establishing the basics of our industry. I have ordered every tree on the surface to be felled and brought inside as expediently as possible to ensure a good lumber supply in the event that we have to wall ourselves in to protect against another evil fog bank. Beds were one of my first priority as nothing is worse than having to sleep in the dirt like some kind of animal. Sohala and turbo are working to dig out the farming plots, and once those are up, we will make our first steps towards self sufficiency.

1st of Hematite: Summer is here, and with it, more soot. I am quite glad that I designed our entrance a little ways away form the creepy eyeball grass that seems to mark the boundaries of where the soot clouds roam. I have seen no sign of ill intent from them, but at the same time, I can't help but be uneasy. In less morbid news, the farms are now up and running as are a still and kitchen, and our miners have started on the magnificent apartment complex that I have designed for us to live in.

19th of Malachite: Calamity has struck! Fully three of the glorious super-apartments designed for our starting seven have at least part of their designated areas located in SOIL. This is intolerable. I have ordered that further digging in that direction be ceased and for the miners to dig down another layer before repeating the apartment complex design so that we may live in proper stone rooms.

27th of Malachite: Another cloud of eerie soot, followed very shortly by migrants! It is a good thing that they arrived after it had dissipated. I shudder to think what would happen to any dwarf caught inside it. The migrants are a bevy of fisherdwarves and farmers, with a single child in tow. A couple of them have rudimentary military experience, and will probably be drafted to serve under Grim Portent. I intend to have the fisherdwarves take up masonry as well. I don't trust the waters of this land enough to eat the fish from them. A lone metalcrafter followed some ways behind the other migrants. I almost missed his presence at first.

21st of Galena: A kobold has tried its luck against the outpost today. This was no ordinary kobold though. Its eyes glowed eerily, and it was covered in the soot of the clouds that sometimes float around here. Although muscular in appearance, it is strangely emaciated. It took a while for our fledgeling militia to destroy it.

18th of Limestone: The digging for the starting apartments is completed, I have reassigned our miners to begin excavating for a stockpile for our goods for the caravans. After that, they can begin work on the pleb housing and fortifications.

17th of Sandstone: More migrants! Unfortunately, they arrived at the same time as an evil cloud of soot. I ordered the "everyone inside" alarm bell pulled immediately in hopes that the migrants would rush in and dodge the cloud of evil.

19th of Sandstone: The alarm bell seems to have done its job and 5 more dwarves have safely arrived and now call Westlances their home. My biggest current concern is that with all these migrants, we are eating through the stores at faster than anticipated rates, and the farms and eggs don't seem to be able to keep up with all the hungry mouths. I only hope the caravan arrives from the mountianhomes soon. Seeds, booze and food will be the greatest priority, to be sure.

9th of Timber: A werelizard has appeared outside the gates of the fortress. I order our paltry militia out to engage the vile beast, only for it to turn back into an elf before their very eyes! Much to my regret, it is able to evade our forces and escape unscathed. Pansy tree-huggers, thinking they can send a were-lizard infiltrator to our lands to try and infect our dwarves with its evil.
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14th of Timber: Praise be to Armok! The caravan has come! Once the merchants are safely inside and unpacking their wares, I order the gates sealed. It is well known what kind of parasites and undesirables follow dwarven caravans to raid the places they stop at along their journey, and I see no reason for us to let them in and make a mess of the place. Better that they be kept outside where they can be slaughtered without putting the civilians at risk. I order the massive piles of mechanisms that I have spent most of the year working on when my designer's eyes weren't needed overseeing blue-prints and drafts.

1st of Moonstone: One of the miners interrupted my negotiations with the merchants to inform me that they had found indications of an aquifer in the area designated for public housing. Damnable water, ruining my beautiful plans. First it was those evil soot clouds, then dirt, and now water. WHAT OTHER FORCES CONSPIRE AGAINST ME? The merchants, already unsettled by the plantlife that they saw on their way here, whisper to each other behind my back. I resolve not to let their weak wills and feeble resolve taint my majestic plans. This fortress WILL be constructed and operational on schedule, or I will feed all of these plebeians to the Armok-forsaken mists!

OOC: ****. Just got a crash to desktop. I think this is all for the moment, I will finish up the year later tonight.