Dwarf fortress

[Arachu]

Well, I can work skill additions, but I can't figure out what to addition...

Not to mention I don't know what key to type to add items to the supply list...

[Justyn]

Its just not the same... =/

... Well you could always just do what I do and have a simple entrance... guarded by Giant Cave Spiders... that have been modded to be able to breed... and be trained into war Giant Cave Spiders.

It is so to see entire goblin sieges getting torn to bloody ribbons after getting zerged by forty horse-sized spiders.

[TheSummoner]

11. Slate, Year 205.

We've weathered another ambush, minimal injuries. Food stores are beginning to be built up again thanks to a recent caravan from the elves...

No, we didn't have anything to offer them, but I refuse to let my dwarves starve just because some worthless elves are too stubborn to share their berries. Its not as good as real food, but its better than nothing.

I suppose I could turn most of it into cheap booze... thats one good use for elf-food...

[Artanis]

Well, I can work skill additions, but I can't figure out what to addition...

Not to mention I don't know what key to type to add items to the supply list...

I'm fairly sure it says somewhere on the screen which key to type.

At any rate what skills to add depends on your needs. Advice on starting builds can be found at the wiki. As for my personal advice?

You can get dwarves up to proficient in two skills, and among that, my default squad includes two miners, a mason, a wood cutter, a carpenter, a stone carver, a grower, a cook, and a brewer (I'll spoiler my reasoning below). Also, I want one who's at least a novice in Appraiser and Judge of Intent to act as the leader and trader, and I usually finish filling the guy up with some building designer skill.

The others depend on your surroundings. For instance, I like a glassmaker if I have sand, but if you don't have sand, a glassmaker is worthless.

Notes regarding my default setup:

Spoiler

Show

*2 miners because mining is the lifeblood of your fort. Damn well near everything needs the stone, ore, gems, and even just access tunnels dug by your miners. They'll be busy early, often, and forever.
*Mason to build the things you'll need from the stone.
*Carpenter to build things you can't use stone for, like beds and barrels, and a wood cutter to supply him
*Cook, brewer, and grower to keep everybody fed and drunk
*A stone carver for trade goods, though lots of people prefer a mechanic for this.

*succession game stuff*

Uh...Lord Herman made a seperate thread for the succession game.

[TheSummoner]

My post wasnt for the succession game... I'm not even playing that yet. I was giving an update on my fortress...

More on topic, heres my initial setup...

Spoiler

Show

*1 Miner. Theres no need for more. A single miner at expert level will mine more stone than you ever need. You're bound to get more from immigration.
*1 Woodcutter. Unless I'm on a map with no trees, you need one.
*1 Carpenter/Woodcrafter. Beds, barrels, and wooden bolts. I also let him to crossbow making, though I don't invest skill points in it.
*1 Mason/Building Designer. Personally, I like to have stone constructions aboveground as well as mined out rooms underground... Generally I keep my military aboveground in a constructed castle area guarding the subterranean entrance. THe mason does all of that. Even if you don't do that, hes useful for stone furnature. I also give him stonecrafting and stone detailing, although I don't invest points in these.
*1 Planter. Full time food duty. All labor turned off other than planting and food hauling.
*1 Brewer/Mayor/Bookkeeper/etc. I simply find it appropriate that the guy who provides the booze would be the most important dwarf in the community, so I give my brewer social skills... useful ones for trading.
1* Extra. Depending on what you're going for, you can make this guy anything. I usually make him a marksdwarf since crossbows are quick and easy to make, as are wooden bolts, and he can provide initial defence from annoying wild animals and Kobolds. I also sometimes make him a Mechanic so I can set up traps and redirect water/magma sooner.

When immigrants come, I let the ones with useful skills do what they know. The rest are trained military.

[Nano]

Is obsidian actually resistant to magma? It doesn't mention it being so on the wiki, but I figure it has to be... I'd rather ask here before I do anything drastic, though.

[Greep]

My inital changes wildly depending on what I'm up for, and I like to mess around. But usually, on sedimentary forest areas it's:

Spoiler

Show

1 5 Mining and nothing else
1 5Brewing/5Growing (let an immigrant focus on cooking. I usually only do growing after a while if I make clothes).
1 5Woodcutting/5Crapenter
1 5Mason/1Judge intent/1Appraiser/1Bookkeeping/1consoler/1pacifier
1 5Woodburning and nothing else
1 5 Woodburning/5 FurnaceOperator
1 4Weaponsmith/5Armorer/1Mining

Btw are rock nuts really worth it? Sure they provide a lot of food, but it's only food and you need to do a lot of plant processing and bag-making. Making that plant processor/leatherworker another grower sounds like it'd make more food.

Is obsidian actually resistant to magma? It doesn't mention it being so on the wiki, but I figure it has to be... I'd rather ask here before I do anything drastic, though.

Strangely, no lol. Only stone that is magma resistant is bauxite.

[TheSummoner]

However, any and all constructions are magma immune... a wall constructed of ice would hold back all the magma in the world.

[Greep]

I like using doors since it makes it easy to set up. While you're working, the door is open, when it's done, you go out and make it forbidden/non-pet passable.

Btw, how far does magma heat travel? Is it safe to station marksdwarves right next to a volcano?

[TheSummoner]

I'm really not sure... I wouldnt risk it though... keep em a fair distance off.

[Artanis]

Btw are rock nuts really worth it? Sure they provide a lot of food, but it's only food and you need to do a lot of plant processing and bag-making. Making that plant processor/leatherworker another grower sounds like it'd make more food.

Mostly no. They're good for variety, in case some of your dwarves like them (or at the very least to help keep them from getting sick of plump helmets). But it doesn't take a very big farm to keep your pantries overflowing, and there's always Dwarven Syrup (or, if you like using exploits, boozecooking) if you get desperate.

Strangely, no lol. Only stone that is magma resistant is bauxite.

Don't forget raw adamantine

Btw, how far does magma heat travel? Is it safe to station marksdwarves right next to a volcano?

Not very far. Lava pretty much has to be touching the dwarf to hurt him, so keeping him on a different z-level or having a wall/door/whatever between the dwarf and the lava will keep him plenty safe.

[Nano]

Speaking of, is there a way for dwarves to mine warm stone without the magma killing them immediately?

[TheSummoner]

I've never had a problem... you must be doing something wrong =P

The warm stone you want mined... make sure its the only one in the area, and the faster your miner is, the better. Toughness wont hurt him either for that matter... Might make him able to resist the heat better...

[Greep]

Speaking of, is there a way for dwarves to mine warm stone without the magma killing them immediately?

You really wanna channel instead of digging.

[TheSummoner]

If he has an underground tunnel though, it isnt an option.

[Greep]

If he has an underground tunnel though, it isnt an option.

Sure it is, you just need to channel multiple levels before hitting the leak ;) Actually it is pretty complicated if you don't want it to flow over channeled areas, so I wouldn't recommend it until you play with lava in another map first.

[TheSummoner]

Meh, but if you do it like that, it gets ugly...

[Greep]

It's 100% safe once you get it right. Unless you meant aesthetically.

Edit: heh, I'm busy today, but I could make a picture guide to Lava channeling tomorrow :D

[Suicide Junkie]

Don't forget to put all the children to work gathering plants and operating pumps :)

[TheSummoner]

I meant aesthetically ugly. You can replace any number of dwarves who die, but an ugly fortress has to be redone from scratch to fix it =P

[Nano]

I just had an idea for a fortress... Dug straight into the ground rather than into the side of a mountain like I usually do, probably near a river, with a massive, defensible tower on top of the entrance. Sound good?

[TheSummoner]

I think it sounds cool.

Another idea I had...

What if instead of making fortresses, we made dungeons...

Built an ultimate dungeon of ultimate death and then abandoned it, let the creatures of evil move in, and then let others try to either reclaim it or go through it in adventure mode.

[Nano]

Oh no, now I'm having a bunch of ideas that'll never come to fruition... Could pump magma up to the top of the tower from the fortress, and make the tower double as a sort of magma fountain, letting it go down the sides of the tower to pool in a big 'ol trench around it with retractable drawbridges... Gah, this project is too big for me!

[TheSummoner]

An ice citadel in the middle of the frozen wastes... An unimposing building, about 6x4 on a small island in the middle of a frozen lake being the unassuming entrance to a dungeon trapped to hell and back.

[Nano]

Err, how exactly would one -build- a large, 5-8 story tower, anyways? I've never tried actually making buildings before, I've just mined rooms out.

[TheSummoner]

b > C > Chosen thing...

Build it up as constructions instead of mining it out of nothingness.

[Justyn]

Just caught a dragon in a cage trap. I don't know if that says more about the dragon or the dwarves...

Oh, yeah, get this, I got hit with a siege and a megabeast, at the same time.

[Nano]

No, I understand constructions and walls and such, but how do I make it multistory and such? Will I be able to make a set of stairs, say, next to a wall, then start building a floor on the open space there, for my second floor? Will I need support posts for the floors and such?

Edit: And such and such and such.

[Rockphed]

Err, how exactly would one -build- a large, 5-8 story tower, anyways? I've never tried actually making buildings before, I've just mined rooms out.

From the 'b'uild menu, select 'C'onstructions. From there you can build 'w'alls, 'f'loors, 'F'ortifications, 'u'p stairs, 'd'own stairs, and up/down 'x' stairs.

Edit: Aaah. Yes. So long as everything is supported, you don't need supports. By supported I mean connected north, east, south or west to something with support. Walls and stairs transfer support both up and down.

[Artanis]

No, I understand constructions and walls and such, but how do I make it multistory and such? Will I be able to make a set of stairs, say, next to a wall, then start building a floor on the open space there, for my second floor? Will I need support posts for the floors and such?

Edit: And such and such and such.

The Wiki has info about supporting stuff. Basically, if you have constructions that connect back to something solid, it'll stay up.

And yes, that is exactly how you go about making another story