Fortress Update #5 - Defensive blundering part 2

So I f-ed up my moat by making it dig into my entrance tunnel.  So I decided to make a bigger wall and then make a moat around then.  Nothing can go wrong right?

Only that I dug into my underground farm now!  So now I made same mistake again only this time on a bigger scale.  I also had completely walled off my fort only to make another entrance OUTSIDE my wall.

I'm retarded.

A nice big wall with a moat around

Oops, I did it again (see red dotted line)

Fortress Update #4 - Defensive blundering

Quick update this time.  First of all, I've not started a military yet.  This is mostly due to my unknowing effort to inject some FUN into my fortress.

As mentioned before I wanted to build a wall around my fortress entrance and then possibly build a moat around it.  So I started construction on a wall and since the last migrants arrived I have plenty of labor around to get anything finished quickly.  So building the wall was the easy part.

Onto the moat then.  I channeled around my wall.  No problem there.  It started raining and some of the moat filled up.  I then noticed how suddenly there was also water in my access tunnel on the level below.

It was then I realised that by channeling the moat I had dug into the tunnel below.  And it wasn't before long that the dwarves noticed the shortcut and cheerfully started walking in and out of my fortress via the 'moat'.

Instead of creating a first line of defence I had achieved the exact opposite and created an extra route to get inside my fortress.

After some deliberation on how to fix this it seemed the best way was to create floors over the channeled parts.  Fortunately with all the migrants the amount of dwarves I have available at any one time ensures that any task (except mining due to lack of extra picks) is done within minutes.

The 'moat' around my wall now covered with a wooden floor

 The red dotted line indicates where I inadvertently created extra entrances into my fortress

So now it's back to the drawing board although the only way seems to build a bigger wall and creating a moat around that.  Because whatever happens....I want my MOAT!

Fortress Update #3 - Up and running!

After the dwarfs of Ilasavuz decided to settle in this particular area there was only promise of a great Fortress.  A year has passed since then.

In that first year a solid start has been made.  The fort is self-sufficient in a very basic way.  The dwarfs are mostly eating egg based meals washed down with dwarven wine made of plump helmets.   But at least no one is hungry or thirsty and the stocks are such that we can last some time if we had to.  And if boredom with the current offering of food and drink is the only real worry, I am a happy dwarf.

The first two migration waves didn't bring many new souls but the third one brought 26 adventure (or desperate more likely!) dwarves to our budding fortress.  They were welcomed with open arms.  Most were put straight to the task of beautifying the fortress by polishing the walls.  The effect of this can be heard when in the dining hall as people express pleasure at admiring all these fine walls around them.  And every dwarf or couple has a bedroom to themselves so life is good in Bimkutam.

Stocks and number of dwarves with their professions

But of course there are dangers lurking behind the horizon. Something that has to be prepared for as the fort is defenseless.  Three thieving kobolds have so far proven that not every visitor is there to help out and become a member of this growing society.

A wall and drawbridge has to be priority.  After that I will make a start with creating some sort of military, a venture I have never undertaken.  Once I have started with that I will report back again.

Fortress Design Update

Before I give a general update I would like to share what the initial designs have developed into after the fortress has gone live.  This will be the last update about design for a while as I can imagine they are really really boring :-)

Workshops (updated)

Food workshops at bottom with food stockpile below it.

Stockpiles (Moved to another z-level)

Nice large area which should take some time before being filled.  Notice there are four access stairs making sure the traffic will be dispersed.

Dining Hall (new)

Not really happy with how the dining hall turned out.  It just looks like a bit on the side of a hallway.  The dwarfs however think it's legendary so who am I to complain then!

Bedrooms (new)

The bedrooms are perfect: easy replicable and expandable.  Notice I left room for doors so I can make their bedrooms even better. They'll get made when the mason or carpenter got some free time.

In terms of z-levels, it looks like this now:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ground level

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Entrance tunnel with Trade Depot and Farm

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Entrance hallway

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Workshops

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Stockpiles

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dining Hall

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bedrooms

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Workshops Update

So far the dwarfs have built a Carpenter, Masonrym Craftdwarfman Shop, Still and a Fishery is waiting to be built.

The still has produced dwarven wine already from the plump helmets they brought with them and the farm is almost completed and in operation so drinkwise we look OK right now.

Foodwise I will depend on fish and eggs for now.  Nest boxes are being built as we speak and hopefully the Fishery will be up and running soon.

Once this is up and running immediate survival has been assured and it will then be time to built bedrooms and a dining hall as I am sure the dwarfs are getting fed up with sleeping on the floor.

Bimkutam Update #2 - Humble Beginnings

The dwarfs have begun with the construction of the first rooms and z levels and after making rough sketches I wanted to show what it is starting to look like in real dwarf life.

 This is the first z level where the entrance to the fortress is.  The trade depot is located here as expected.  A temporary meeting room has also been designated in this tunnel.  Next to but not connected to this entrance tunnel is space for farming plots.  This is accessible via 3^rd z-level but needs to be on this level as it’s the only one with earth. 

This is the main entrance hall with serves as a temporary storage place for all goods and where staircases will lead to different part of the fortress.  For now only top-left stairs (to entrance tunnel) and middle-top stairs (to farm) are connected.  The bit extending tot the right will lead to right side of work shop space.

Workshops are and will be located here.  I hope that with this lay-out, where 4 workshops are wedged between two tunnels, will allow for both easy access and for traffic to this level to be spread out.  In between the rows of workshops there is possibility to reserve space to create Stockpiles.  One is being created at the bottom now for food storage.

Fortress Design

As any good dwarf will know, starting a new Fortress is all about design and planning for the future.  The expedition leader, Bomred Nishosod, made some crude drawings where the early design of a beginning Fortress can be seen.

Above ground entrance design

The main entrance hall below ground

Rough lay-out design of workshops

The z level design Bimkutam

Bimkutam Update #1 - Strike the Earth!

This blog will tell the story of the dwarfs of the Ilusavuz civilisation who left the comfort of their home to establish another dwarven fortress soon to be known as the fortress Bimkutan.  As we begin our story the dwarfs of Ilusavuz have just arrived at the place they will try to make their home.

The place where the Ilusavuz dwarfs have decided to embark

With them the dwarfs have brought mainly basic stuff to get them started such as picks, axes and containers. The only 'advanced' taken was an anvil. Animals taken were cats, dogs and a hen and six chickens.  The focus here is on early survival by bringing lots of food and alcohol.

Hopefully this will be enough for the Ilusavuz dwarfs to get a fortress up and running and producing food and drink before it runs out.  Time will tell if this was a wise choice...