Dwarf Fortress Wiki - User contributions [en]

v0.31:Utilities

2010-05-15T19:40:08Z

PurelyAtomic: /* dfreveal */ linked hidden fun stuff

{{AV}}
{{Quality|Exceptional}}
Please only list utilities that are known to work with the newest version here.

Here are third party applications useful for Dwarf Fortress.
__TOC__
== [http://dffd.wimbli.com/ Dwarf Fortress File Depot] ==
The Dwarf Fortress File Upload Service - an excellent place to store mods, community games, tilesets and other files. Courtesy of [[User:Janus|Janus]]; for files related to Dwarf Fortress only.

== 3D Visualizers ==

=== [[Utility:Stonesense|Stonesense]] by Jonask, Solifuge and Kaypy ===
[[File:stonesense.jpg|208px|thumb|right|Stonesense Screenshot]]

Stonesense is a third party real-time visualizer that lets you view your Dwarf Fortress world in a classic isometric perspective.

More information is available in [http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=43260.0 this forum thread].

Stonesense Slate now supports v0.31.03 - [http://stonesense.googlecode.com/files/Stonesense_Slate_RC1.rar get it here]

== [http://dffd.wimbli.com/file.php?id=645 Reveal] ==

Reveal (or Reveal.exe as it is commonly referred to) is a program that runs alongside Dwarf Fortress and shows all "unexplored" or "undug" tiles of the map (in fortress mode). To reveal entire map designate the entire bottom level to be mined and then remove designation before running reveal (Not required in the latest version using the parameters below, simply start the .exe file.). Playing on revealed map might ''(read "will")'' cause some bugs (like not being able to build magma buildings or a tower-cap farm, losing all plants/trees on the map, and a lot more). '''Using Reveal has been known to corrupt saved game folders.''' and, as such, it is highly recommended to only use Reveal to preview a biome's layout and then restart without running Reveal.

There are two versions of Reveal, one for Vista and newer, one for XP and older.

The new version of Reveal.exe (Reveal2) is in public beta, you can find it here [http://dffd.wimbli.com/file.php?id=1044 Reveal2]. Please report problems in [[User_talk:0x517A5D|0x517A5D's Talk page]].

Pasting the following code into reveal2.ini makes it work for the newest (DF2010) version of Dwarf Fortress:

<pre>
;; DF2010 31.02
[4BBDF378]
map_data=0x016ad718
map_x_count=0x016ad738
map_y_count=0x016ad73c
map_z_count=0x016ad740
</pre>
[4BB45F99] can be substituted in for 31.01.

For 31.03, the following works:
<pre>
; .31.03
[4BC3C470]
dwarf_fortress=0x00A5ED94
map_data=0x016AE760
map_x_count=0x016AE780
map_y_count=0x016AE784
map_z_count=0x016AE788
map_data_designation_offset=0x29C
</pre>

However, do '''not''' save your game, it can mess up many things including civilizations (Giant Toad and Cave Crocodile civilizations, you will also embark with those if it should occur.)

==[http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=39229 Dwarf Therapist]==

Dwarf Therapist gives you an advanced GUI to manage and check dwarf job allocations, military assignments (40d), statistics (such as attributes, personality traits and happiness), plus sort dwarves by various criteria (eg. profession, migration wave etc.) and generally manage the Dwarven Resources of your fortress in a very convenient way.

Version 5.1 is out (4/24/10). This version supports DF build 3.01.03.

New dedicated support forum: http://code.google.com/p/dwarftherapist/

==[http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=50643.0 Dfterm]==

Dfterm is a tool to run dwarf fortress via terminals remotely. multiple people can connect and watch or join in.

Main article here: [[Dfterm]].

== [http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=41916.0 DFHack] ==

DFHack is a Dwarf Fortress memory access library and a set of basic tools using this library. The library is a work in progress, so things might change as more tools are written for it. The current (0.3.1.4) release only supports the new DF 0.31.01, 0.31.02 and 0.31.03 versions. It consists of some of the more useful DFHack tools.

Code and binary releases are available from the [http://github.com/peterix/dfhack/downloads Github site].

=== DFhack tools for DF 2010 ===
==== dfcleanmap ====
Cleans all the bloodsmears that get scattered all over the map.
==== dfliquids ====
Allows creating liquids (water and magma), making them flow or preventing them from flowing. Newly also allows making obsidian walls. It's a command-prompt style utility where you type in very simple commands. Replaces the older magma_create tool.

==== dfprospector ====
Lists all available minerals on the map and how much of them there is.
==== dfreveal ====
Reveals the whole map. Newly can also hide what it revealed. Use with caution, releases [[HFS]]! Same warnings as to the original Reveal tool apply.

==== dfvdig ====
Designates a whole vein for digging. When using the '-x' option, it will dig stairs into other z-levels. Point the cursor at a vein and run this thing :)

== DF Map Compressor / DF Map Archive ==

*[http://shadowlord13.googlepages.com/dfmap-index.html SL's DF Map Compressor - Website]
*[http://mkv25.net/dfma/ Dwarf Fortress Map Archive]

The DF Map Compressor encodes multiple bitmaps exported from Dwarf Fortress into a single, very compressed, .fdf-map file. The fdf-map file can then be shared with your friends by uploading to the DF Map Archive that features an online viewer (written in Flash).

The map compressor was created by Shadowlord in May 2007. Extract from the website :
:"The '''DF Map Compressor''' is a program I made to encode Dwarf Fortress fortress or world map images into a much smaller format than is possible with normal image formats. Here's a quick summary of how it works: It determines the size of your tiles from your DF font file (or asks you), splits the map up into tiles, identifies duplicate tiles, writes out every unique tile image, and then writes out a list of ID#s for each tile position which points to the tile image for that tile. What it outputs is piped through the LZMA compressor (the one used in 7-zip), to compress it further. The .df-map file which it writes out is usually less than 100 KB in size. (By comparison, a PNG of the same map can exceed 2 megabytes, depending on how well you compress it, whether you change the color depth, and whether you are using a graphical tileset or detailed font)."

Read more about the [[User:Markavian/DF_Map_Archive|DF Map Archive]] on Markavian's User page.

== [[User:Soundandfury/DF_Designer|DF Designer]] ==
DF Designer, by [[User:Soundandfury|soundnfury]] is a fort layout planning tool. It enables you to work out your designs before you start to build, and even see how they look in 3-D.
It's written in C with SDL, and both Linux and Windows builds are available. The source code is freely available under the GPL.
Since DF Designer does not 'talk to' Dwarf Fortress, it is version-independent.

== Raw tile tools ==
=== [http://dffd.wimbli.com/file.php?id=2113 Raw tile selector] ===
Provides an easy to use graphical interface to select which tiles and colors should be displayed for plants, stones and small creatures.

Made to ease the job of creators of tilesets with edited raws. It will also be useful for users that dislike decisions made by tileset creators or users that could not find the edited raws for a tileset.

Currently for windows only.

=== [http://dffd.wimbli.com/file.php?id=2178 Raw tile merger] ===
Provides an easy to use interface to change the tile and color data of raws to match the data of another set of raw files.

Made to ease the job of creators of tilesets with edited raws when new versions of df are released. The edited raws for your tileset for a new df version can now be created with a few clicks.

== [http://winmerge.org/ WinMerge] ==
Winmerge allows you to compare the contents of folders or files. It highlights any differences between files and allows you to merge them. It is most useful for modders or users of mods. If you compare modified raw files with unmodified ones you can quickly see any differences.

v0.31:Technical tricks

2010-05-15T19:27:09Z

PurelyAtomic:

v0.31:Challenges

2010-05-15T18:58:06Z

PurelyAtomic: I think that the page has reached exceptional quality. feel free to change if you disagree.

{{av}}
{{Quality|Exceptional}}
==Utter Dwarfiness==
Need new ways to behave or new techniques to dip your toes into? Give any or all of your starting 7 some quirks to live up to. Want to try making your Boss a hell-bent, paranoid despot? Or establish a routine mass murder of small animals to provide your fort with raw meat by a vaguely intimidating, estranged butcher?

===Bandit Camp===
* Three or more Marksdwarves (perhaps with {{L|Ambusher|ambushing}})
* Embark site featuring places to hide

Attack and loot every enemy sentient creature you can find, such as goblins & kobolds. Develop sneaky and even horrific methods of trapping and 'processing' friendly sentients (merchants, diplomats, and even migrants). Take no prisoners and leave no evidence of foul play.

===City-States===
* All dwarves embark as peasants
* 7 or multiple of 7 of everything you bring (especially picks and axes)

At the start your dwarves split everything equally and move to 7 different locales that are not interconnected. They have to mine their own rooms, plant their own crops, use their own craft piles. This will probably require a bit of cross-fertilization until you get {{L|door}}s and can lock everyone in, but after that it is every dwarf for him/herself!

Burrows are very useful for this.

===Dwarftopia===
*Embark only with dwarves that have max skills, with no more than one miner; but bring extra copper picks.
*Separate the fortress into 2 parts: a vibrant city above, and a depressed slum below.
**BONUS: Reverse the order; elite dwarves get to live underground, while the poor have to scratch a living off the surface.
*Throw all low-skill immigrants into the pits, where they will spend the rest of their lives (unless called up for the draft).
*'''DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES''' let said immigrants socialize whatsoever with the Elite; so nobody (who matters) will be upset when they die.
**BONUS: Make it impossible for anybody to escape by using trapdoors to drop them in and bridge-a-paults for sending goods out (preferably with a carp-based sterilization system).
***MEGADWARFBONUS: Set it all up so that none of the 'elite' have to do any work; all their needs are met by the laborers. Watch what happens and laugh as the laborers die out and high society breaks down.

===Equaland===
* No embark requirements
* Construct a successful fortress
* All dwarves are given equal attention regarding quarters, dining, armament and burial
* One dwarf elected to be "The Leader" commands a lever system capable of killing a single dwarf of your choice in their room, however you wish
* Allow the Leader (your id) free reign on his power, enforcing impossible and unannounced criteria on your other dwarves with death being the only punishment

===Hermit===
* Spend points ONLY on ONE {{L|Pick}}

A well known and popular challenge. Kill off 6 starting dwarves and any {{L|immigrant|immigrants}} as they arrive, and try to make a living for the last dwarf. Turn away merchants. If they don't leave, kill them.

'''Variants'''
To moderate difficulty, feel free to allow these exceptions:
* Keep one male and one female dwarf as the Dwarven Adam and Eve.
* Keep your starting seven, but no immigrants.
* Selectively admit dwarves based on name, profession, etc.
* Embark with an anvil as well.

===Hunting Party===
* One Marksman+Ambusher
* One Cook+Farmer
* One Brewer+Farmer
* Four exclusively social dwarves
* Embark with no anvil, many hunting dogs, into a challenging biome (terrifying areas may have no supply of wood)

===Immigration and customs enforcement===
* One miner/mason/architect
* One woodcutter/carpenter/architect
* Five military dwarves
* Embark into a canyon or on a road
* Don't embark with an anvil

Spend the first year building fortifications to interdict traffic. Immigrants can build a town around you, but your original seven dwarves remain dedicated to their mission (purely military in purpose).

==="Let Loose the Dogs of War"===
* No military Dwarves are permitted, including Fortress Guard.
* No weapons or armor may be forged, and any obtained from looting must be melted down.
* War dogs must be your only form of attack and defense.
** Bonus : No traps or defense mechanisms of any kind may be utilized, only dogs.

===28 Days Later===

*Embark at a terrifying biome(Scary Biome), make sure there are zombie somethings. Set up a five thick wall around your camp. Never leave the perimeters. All migrants would be wandering survivors, let them in or don't, as they might be infected.
*Bonus: If you have "reason" to believe the migrants are infected, sacrifice them to the Blood God. Remember, he loves Magma!
*Bonus: Only Marksdwarves for defense, You shouldn't get near the zombies, as they bite.If they are wounded, they must be quarantined, and shall therefore die.
*AdvancedPlay: Add zombie to the creatures list and set them as [EVIL].
**Bonus: Send one heroic guy to save the migrants from the zombies, like in 28 days later.
**Elf skin clothing anyone?
*Keep a diary from one of the characters perspectives, to be read when the world is repopulated.

===Master Of One===
Pre-Embark:
* All starting dwarves must have only one skill

Post-Embark:
* No changes are allowed on any dwarf's labor screen, except to ''disable'' hauling labors (enabling hauling is forbidden)
* All immigrants must stay with the profession(s) they arrive with
* All peasants must be activated into the military

'''Variant:'''
*Only allow one dwarf for each skill to remain in your fort (1 mason, 1 miner, 1 farmer, etc.). Slaughter or draft all other dwarves.

===Monarch with a grudge===
* Forbid any and all use of stone and metal
* No exposed tile may be labeled "Underground"
* Artifacts containing stone and metal are to be destroyed '''utterly''' (magma or the {{L|Dwarven atom smasher|DAS}})

"Nay, no ponderous stone doors or shining silver arcades, not while I live!"
The new king has decided rocks and metals can no longer be used in construction. He'll be overthrown shortly, but in the meantime construct your fortress without them.

'''Variants'''
* Embark with no construction materials, into an area devoid of trees.
* Construct a fortress made entirely out of glass. Try not using magma or limit yourself only to clear and crystal glass.
* Build with soap bars. Show those elven traders just how much you despise their philosophies by building with stuff derived from dead trees ''and'' dead animals. Cats are an excellent source of tallow.
* Choose one type of rock, one type of metal, one type of gem, one type of wood, and optionally one type of glass. All constructions can only use those types in their construction. An easy way to enforce this with stone is to mark all but your choice "Economical".
* Bonus points: Stone is forbidden along with digging

===Noblesse requiro===
* Construct a fortress only to please nobles (who, for the sake of this challenge, are all criminally psychotic)
* Criminals who deserve justice should be incarcerated, tortured, and executed for ''any'' offense. Use your imagination for every step of the process. Remember, there is no right to a fair and speedy trial in Armok's eyes.
* All Nobles must be treated to the highest quality living conditions
* All others must be treated to the bare minimum needed to physically keep them alive
* Elected nobles are to be treated as regular dwarves, but mandates hold equal sway regarding justice

===Santa Urist===
* Embark in a glacier biome
* Take at least 3 craftsdwarves to serve as Santa's Elves.
* Export as many toys as possible. These can be your only trade good.
* Bonus: Use this user's Christmas-themed tileset: [[User:Sphr]]

===Sitting on trees===
* Construct a wooden "tree" or several, spanning many (a dozen or so) z-levels
* Establish a successful fortress not inside, but around, these constructed trees

===The Mad Butcher===
* One dedicated Butcher+Tanner
* Minimal supplies and skills, so you can bring...
* As many puppies and kittens you can afford
* All food-gathering skills (except your Butcher+Tanner and Brewing) are forbidden

Caging your animals will increase performance to prepare a suitable butchery. Construct a wide, deep shaft to be zoned as an animal pit. At the bottom, outfit an isolation chamber complete with food and alcohol stockpiles, a bed, a butchery and a tanner's workshop. An active well will prevent mishaps. You should include during the construction either an airlock chamber (to enable the butcher to pass on food) or a second pit where the butcher dumps his created food. After construction, seal your butcher+tanner inside and live only off of his work.

===The World is Flat===
* No pre-embark requirements
* You'll probably want a region with lots of hills/mountains.
* You may only work/build/live on the original Z level where your wagon was
* No moats allowed, as this requires a channel, which goes below your z-level

===Hunter and Gatherer===
Pre-Embark (World-Gen)
* Try creating a world in year 1 (optional)
Post-Embark
* Everything allowed except Farming.
Bonus
* Embark in a desert, so only hunting and (aquifier) fishing.
** Extra Points: Dont fish in the aquifier. How could the turtles get there anyway?
** Create a huge pyramid and sacrifice living beings or valuables to Armok for rain by dropping it in the hollow inaccessible pyramid from the top.
*** Extended version: Fill the pyramid with magma!
** Create lines like the Nazca to honour Armok, so he will send some rain (maybe).

===Cave Men===
Pre-Embark
An Overworld acessable cave

Post-embark
Go into the cave with all your dwarves, and try to survive the harsh enviorments of the new cave systems.
You cant use items from ground zero, all wood must be harvested in the caves, along with food.

*Bonus* no trading, who wants to enter that creepy cave anyways?
*MEGA BONUS* No dogs and no warrior dwarves.

===Fort wars!===

*The initial 7 create 2 forts on opposite sides of a map.

*After the initial 7, 1/2 of all immigrants get assigned to a burrow that encompasses one of the forts. New children get assigned to their parents fort. Each fort is self sustaining and produces their own goods. Then it turns into a competition to see which fort can produce the most wealth.
* Nobles are given free reign and will be quartered in the winning fort.
* Make a giant wall separating the forts above ground. On one side of the wall is an artificial lake made of water and on the other, one made of magma. Call forts Reliable.Excavation.Demolition and Builders.League.United.

===Deep dwarfs===
Following the embark, lock yourself up under the ground.
Don't let any of your dwarfs go outside. Let invaders into your underground maze of doom!

*BONUS: Dig deeper and deeper, abandoning the upper levels and rebuilding your fortress as you get more
deep.
*MEGA BONUS: create a caste of deep dwarfs (nobles?), who will only live on the bottommost levels.

===Earth Mover===
*Do what you need to get a huge guild of miners
*Dig every square in the map.
**Hint: you might want to turn cave-in on
**Another hint: Do you really want to put your castle up there, when your dwarfs are digging down there?

===Oh, The Humanity!===
*Live like humans do.
*Make about half of your buildings out of wood- structures that serve no defensive purpose, such as workshops, meeting halls, dining halls, the homes of the serfs and peasants etc should be wooden. You can also divide a large building up as sensible- you might make the main structure of a castle or wall out of stone for strength, then make the interior detailing, shacks, and other "addon" buildings out of wood. The important thing to keep in mind is that for humans, drafty, damp stone buildings are sometimes a functional necessity, not something they prefer.
*Build an aboveground outer wall of wood to start- you can replace it with stone once you reach fifty individuals.
*Underground areas are ONLY for mining shafts, root cellars, plumbing/mechanics, and perhaps a secret passage for your nobles to take in emergencies. No workshops, living spaces, or large-scale storage allowed.
*Most of your mining for ore and minerals should be done quarry-style, as humans are not well-suited to long-term underground life. A quarry should be a big, wide-open pit, shaped like an inverted pyramid, with a ramp leading out, so you don't feel boxed in and claustrophobic. Don't worry about the ecological impact of your surface strip mining.
*An exception to the mining rule is excavation for purposes of putting up outdoor buildings- so you can carve away a cliff wall to make room for a building, but you can't actually build *into* the wall like a dwarf would, so channel that natural dirt/stone roof out!
*All farming must be done with surface plants. No underground plants.
*Humans need several pubs so they can go bar hopping in their free time- they get bored with just one. Make sure you have a separate pub for every 15 individuals.
*Unlike dwarves, few humans have enough beard to hide their naughty bits when they run around naked. Make sure your humans have enough clothing to wear at all times.
*Finally, you need an aboveground castle. Early on, a small building will suffice but by the time royalty arrives, you'll need to have at least begun constructing a castle worthy of their station.

*BONUS: Humans enjoy bathing. If there is no pond inside your walls, build a channel to carry fresh water to an artificial pond so your people have a place to cleanse themselves. Build a 1-level waterfall in it so they can shower, and stock soap nearby.
*BONUS: Humans, as opposed to the elves reverence for nature and the dwarves utter disregard for it, actually believe it is their duty to pollute and destroy nature.
**Designate large refuse stockpiles and garbage dumps in the wilderness, and fill them.
**Chop down enough trees to piss off the elves every once in a while.
**Fill the map with paved roads. Pavement rules!

*MEGABONUS: The ultimate in human engineering. Build a 5-level above-ground mega-mall displaying all your salable wares. Build various stores for your goods, back room storage, a wishing pool for the main atrium, a food court with several "restaurants" specializing in specific foods and meals, a hair salon, a bank, and a security office staffed with rent-a-cops. Come up with more if you feel like it.
**UBER-ULTRA-BONUS: Give all the mall's stores security doors that can be controlled from the security office, for instant lockdown in case of a shoplifter. Can't have too much security!

=== Dwarfen Prison ===
Faced with raising criminal rates the king has decided to go for a zero-tolerance policy. He sent out seven dwarfs to build and manage a prison to hold the worst of the worst criminals of dwarfenkind.

* Only your initial 7 dwarfs may do any work
* All immigrants are treated as inmates sentenced to life-long prison sentences. Yes, even the children. Don't ask, you are just doing your job and who are you to criticize the dwarfen justice system?
* Every inmate is locked up in solitary confinement within his/her own <strike>bedroom</strike> cell with only a bed and a forbidden metal door. Metal bars instead of walls are optional.
* Inmates have to be kept alive in their cells, but don't pamper them: Make them live on a diet of water and raw plump helmets. Feed them by dumping the plump helmets through holes in the cell ceilings or using an airlock system. Water can be provided through a water hole in the floor leading to a sewer system.
* Should an inmate [[tantrum|start to rebel]] the <strike>[[sheriff]]</strike> chief warden should restore discipline with an iron hand.
* It won't take long until a few inmates start to [[strange_mood|go insane]] from sensory deprivation. Too bad for them.

40d:Challenges

2010-05-15T17:22:39Z

PurelyAtomic: /* Underwater fortress */

{{av}}
:''Part of this article was originally taken from the DF forums thread [http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=466.0 "Goal-Based Dwarf Fortress"].''

The general goal of {{L|Fortress Mode}} is to survive, acquire wealth, defend your stronghold, and become the capital of your civilization. However, many players find that fighting off repeated {{L|siege|sieges}}, keeping their people alive, and expanding just aren't enough anymore. They begin to experiment with different sets of starting builds, arbitrary requirements and restrictions, and even feats of construction to appease Armok, in search of more difficulty and {{L|fun}}. These are some goals to attempt or use as inspiration.

==Pre-Embark Build Ideas==
Before you embark, you can optimize or sabotage your fortress from the very start, depending on how you distribute your points. After a few years, a well-developing fortress may or may not stabilize (depending on your idea of {{L|fun}}), leaving you to other challenges.

=== Diplomacy ===
* Six dwarves with only social {{L|skill}}s
* One skilled dwarf

Six courtiers of the king's court made some ill-advised remarks within earshot of the king, and as a result have been ordered to go found an outpost. They've hired you to make sure they survive. The six nobles only have social skills and refuse to do any work that is beneath them.

=== Minimalist/Survivalist build===

* 1 anvil
* 2 copper ore

Nothing else. From that alone, forge your pick and axe. (Figure it out yourself, or see the {{L|DIY#Minimalist_challenge_build|Do it Yourself}} article for a step-by-step "how to".)

===Peasantry===
* Spend 0 Points on embark

This challenge is moderately to very difficult, depending on the wildlife and outdoor food sources. Note that the three logs from the wagon are just enough to build a trade depot.

=== Stranded Scout Squad ===
* Military skills
* Weapons, ammunition, armor, war dogs
* Picks are not weapons

Your civilian 'friends' promised a caravan in the fall as they left, laughing. Hopefully, you can survive until then with your forward scouts.

==Races==
Pretend to be another race! You can mod the game or just pretend that Elves have hair. It doesn't matter what you look like, just what you build, with what materials, and what's for lunch after we build it.

===Elves - The Ultimate Hippy Challenge===
Peace, man.
* Don't gather plants except those you plant yourself.
* Don't gather wood nor trade for it with humans or dwarves.
* Trade for plants and wood only with the elves; they understand your environmental code.
* Don't burn any {{L|fuel|coal}}. Do you know what that does to the environment, man?
**Magma-smelting is an option, but steel can't be had.
* Don't cause any creature's death, except in self-defense.
**No military, induced submerging, or lethal implementation of corkscrews.
* Only use cage traps, and either tame the creatures you catch, or release them back into the wild.
* {{L|Elf|Hippies}} prefer sunlight and wooded areas, with minimal use of rock (digging and building).

For an extra challenge try this in an area with a cave.

===Humans - Living Large and Standing Tall===
Pretend you're a filthy above-ground dwelling {{L|Human|human}}.
* Build a town wall.
** Only hovels and farms outside the town walls.
* House your dwarves in small town homes
** 5-10 dwarves per house (they had pretty big families back in the day)
** Upstairs bedrooms, small dining room, maybe a single level basement.
* House your workshops according to profession, not convenience.
* Build warehouses for stockpiles, and set guards outside them.
* Create a keep, with its own wall, barracks, treasury, etc.
** House your nobles within the keep.
* Create a market square.
* Create a main street from the town wall to the market square and/or keep. Well-paved blocks, statues and decorative shubbery are a must.
* No underground connections between different areas.
* For obtaining stone, metal, etc. a mine may be built, but must have separate entrance from other buildings. It can be outside the fortress, but must not connect to the interior, or vice versa.
** If you create a side hill mine, only carve large (at least 2 tiles) tunnels, and create shaft to the surface to allow air circulation.
** Or better than that, create an open pit mine / quarry, with ramps to access lower floors.
* BONUS: Miniproject: Build a large, multiple-z-level fountain complete with decorations.
* BONUS: Miniproject: Human Inn, containing your only booze stockpile and should be party-oriented.
* BONUS: Miniproject: Farm simulation, complete with crops and free-range livestock, etc.
* BONUS: Easy Play: Embark on top of a Human Town.
* BONUS: Advanced Play: Modify the raws and actually use humans to make the fort.
* MEGABONUS: Build your entire fortress as {{L|mega constructions|one huge arcology}}.
* MEGABONUS: Build your City in a giant, artificial cave.

===Luddite===
Shun technology and contraptions. Who can really trust them, with those {{L|Gremlin|gremlins}} around. This may be challenging, as it forbids easy isolation/defense from attacks, all traps and wells. Irrigation is reduced to solid elbow grease and maybe a bucket or two. This challenge may be even harder combined with another challenge.
* No mechanics or {{L|mechanism}}s
* No {{L|machine}}s

===Earthworms===
Live constantly tunneling. Churn up the soil as you go and visit the surface only rarely to collect the stuff you need..
* Create one long tunnel. Dig forward at one end whilst sealing off (collapsing, building walls across) the other end.
* Workshops should be built directly behind the row of miners. When they reach the point where they would be destroyed, take them apart and rebuild back by the miners again.
* To make it easier, you can come up to the surface now and then.
* Try to keep the tunnel as short as possible.
* Like this: ||||||||==========> (| is walled off end section, = is tunnel and > is the miners.
* BONUS: Leave those pesky nobles walled in as you tunnel away from them!
* BONUS: Leave stockpiles of armour and weapons for any future diggers to find!
* MEGABONUS: Surprise a goblin siege by tunneling up underneath them!

==Utter Dwarfiness==
Need new ways to behave or new techniques to dip your toes into? Give any or all of your starting 7 some quirks to live up to. Want to try making your Boss a hell-bent, paranoid despot? Or establish a routine mass murder of small animals to provide your fort with raw meat by a vaguely intimidating, estranged butcher?

===Bandit Camp===
* Three or more Marksdwarves (perhaps with {{L|Ambush|ambushing}})
* Embark site featuring places to hide

Attack and loot every enemy sentient creature you can find, such as goblins & kobolds. Develop sneaky and even horrific methods of trapping and 'processing' friendly sentients (merchants, diplomats, and even migrants). Take no prisoners and leave no evidence of foul play.

===City-States===
* All dwarves embark as peasants
* 7 or multiple of 7 of everything you bring (especially picks and axes)

At the start your dwarves split everything equally and move to 7 different locales that are not interconnected. They have to mine their own rooms, plant their own crops, use their own craft piles. This will probably require a bit of cross-fertilization until you get {{L|door}}s and can lock everyone in, but after that it is every dwarf for him/herself!

This challenge may be easier to perform after Burrows are implemented.

===Dwarftopia===
*Find a place that has at least magma, preferably with and underground river and/or chasm too; everything a fully self-sufficient underground city need.
*Embark only with dwarves that have max skills, with no more than one miner; but bring extra copper picks.
*Separate the fortress into 2 parts: a vibrant city above, and a depressed slum below.
**BONUS: Reverse the order; elite dwarves get to live underground, while the poor have to scratch a living off the surface.
*Throw all low-skill immigrants into the pits, where they will spend the rest of their lives (unless called up for the draft).
*'''DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES''' let said immigrants socialize whatsoever with the Elite; so nobody (who matters) will be upset when they die.
**BONUS: Make it impossible for anybody to escape by using trapdoors to drop them in and bridge-a-paults for sending goods out (preferably with a carp-based sterilization system).
***MEGADWARFBONUS: Set it all up so that none of the 'elite' have to do any work; all their needs are met by the laborers. Watch what happens and laugh as the laborers die out and high society breaks down.

===Equaland===
* No embark requirements
* Construct a successful fortress
* All dwarves are given equal attention regarding quarters, dining, armament and burial
* One dwarf elected to be "The Leader" commands a lever system capable of killing a single dwarf of your choice in their room, however you wish
* Allow the Leader (your id) free reign on his power, enforcing impossible and unannounced criteria on your other dwarves with death being the only punishment

===Hermit===
* Spend points ONLY on ONE {{L|Pick}}

A well known and popular challenge. Kill off 6 starting dwarves and any {{L|immigrants}} as they arrive, and try to make a living for the last dwarf. Turn away merchants. If they don't leave, kill them.

'''Variants'''
To moderate difficulty, feel free to allow these exceptions:
* Keep one male and one female dwarf as the Dwarven Adam and Eve.
* Keep your starting seven, but no immigrants.
* Selectively admit dwarves based on name, profession, etc.
* Embark with an anvil as well.

===Hunting Party===
* One Marksman+Ambusher
* One Cook+Farmer
* One Brewer+Farmer
* Four exclusively social dwarves
* Embark with no anvil, many hunting dogs, into a challenging biome (terrifying areas may have no supply of wood)

===Immigration and customs enforcement===
* One miner/mason/architect
* One woodcutter/carpenter/architect
* Five military dwarves
* Embark into a canyon or on a road
* Don't embark with an anvil

Spend the first year building fortifications to interdict traffic. Immigrants can build a town around you, but your original seven dwarves remain dedicated to their mission (purely military in purpose).

==="Let Loose the Dogs of War"===
* No military Dwarves are permitted, including Fortress Guard.
* No weapons or armor may be forged, and any obtained from looting must be melted down.
* War dogs must be your only form of attack and defense.
** Bonus : No traps or defense mechanisms of any kind may be utilized, only dogs.

===28 Days Later===

*Embark at a terrifying biome(Scary Biome), make sure there are zombie somethings. Set up a five thick wall around your camp. Never leave the perimeters. All migrants would be wandering survivors, let them in or don't, as they might be infected.
*Bonus: If you have "reason" to believe the migrants are infected, sacrifice them to the Blood God. Remember he loves Magma.
*Bonus: Only Marksdwarves for defence, You shouldn't get near the zombies, as they bite.If they are wounded, they must be quarantined, and shall therefore die.
*AdvancedPlay: Add zombie to the creatures list and set them as [EVIL].
**Bonus: Send one heroic guy to save the migrants from the zombies, like in 28 days later.
Remember Elves can not be trusted and should be treated as infectees, and should be Dwarven atom smashed(Magma and Chasms work equally well).(Note this is also true for normal Dwarf Fortress).
**Elf skin clothing anyone?
*Keep a diary from one of the characters perspectives, to be read when the world is repopulated.

===Master Of One===
Pre-Embark:
* All starting dwarves must have only one skill

Post-Embark:
* No changes are allowed on any dwarf's labor screen, except to ''disable'' hauling labors (enabling hauling is forbidden)
* All immigrants must stay with the profession(s) they arrive with
* All peasants must be activated into the military

'''Variant:'''
*Only allow one dwarf for each skill to remain in your fort (1 mason, 1 miner, 1 farmer, etc.). Slaughter or draft all other dwarves.

===Monarch with a grudge===
* Forbid any and all use of stone and metal
* No exposed tile may be labeled "Underground"
* Artifacts containing stone and metal are to be destroyed '''utterly''' (magma or the {{L|Dwarven_Atom_Smasher|DAS}})

"Nay, no ponderous stone doors or shining silver arcades, not while I live!"
The new king has decided rocks and metals can no longer be used in construction. He'll be overthrown shortly, but in the meantime construct your fortress without them.

'''Variants'''
* Embark with no construction materials, into an area devoid of trees.
* Construct a fortress made entirely out of glass. Try not using magma or limit yourself only to clear and crystal glass.
* Build with soap bars. Show those elven traders just how much you despise their philosophies by building with stuff derived from dead trees ''and'' dead animals. Cats are an excellent source of tallow.
* Choose one type of rock, one type of metal, one type of gem, one type of wood, and optionally one type of glass. All constructions can only use those types in their construction. An easy way to enforce this with stone is to mark all but your choice "Economical".
* Bonus points: Stone is forbidden along with digging

===Noblesse requiro===
* Construct a fortress only to please nobles (who, for the sake of this challenge, are all criminally psychotic)
* Criminals who deserve justice should be incarcerated, tortured, and executed for ''any'' offense. Use your imagination for every step of the process. Remember, there is no right to a fair and speedy trial in Armok's eyes.
* All Nobles must be treated to the highest quality living conditions
* All others must be treated to the bare minimum needed to physically keep them alive
* Elected nobles are to be treated as regular dwarves, but mandates hold equal sway regarding justice

===Sitting on trees===
* Construct a wooden "tree" or several, spanning many (a dozen or so) z-levels
* Establish a successful fortress not inside, but around, these constructed trees

===Stop, Hey, What's that Sound===
* (Optionally) Generate a world with abundant cave systems
* Establish a fort near a very large cave
* Imitate the role of "Angband", leading small parties inside on military excursions
* No more than 3 dwarves can enter at a time
* Siege equipment and other weapons (or dangerous contraptions) that a dwarf can't carry on him is forbidden when cave-exploring

'''Variants'''
* Only solo adventurers are allowed to enter the dungeon
* Only use 'Thieves' to steal loot and create traps inside the dungeon

===The Mad Butcher===
* One dedicated Butcher+Tanner
* Minimal supplies and skills, so you can bring...
* As many puppies and kittens you can afford
* All food-gathering skills (except your Butcher+Tanner and Brewing) are forbidden

Caging your animals will increase performance to prepare a suitable butchery. Construct a wide, deep shaft to be zoned as an animal pit. At the bottom, outfit an isolation chamber complete with food and alcohol stockpiles, a bed, a butchery and a tanner's workshop. An active well will prevent mishaps. You should include during the construction either an airlock chamber (to enable the butcher to pass on food) or a second pit where the butcher dumps his created food. After construction, seal your butcher+tanner inside and live only off of his work.

===The World is Flat===
* No pre-embark requirements
* You'll probably want a region with lots of hills/mountains.
* You may only work/build/live on the original Z level where your wagon was
* No moats allowed, as this requires a channel, which goes below your z-level

===Hunter and Gatherer===
Pre-Embark (World-Gen)
* Try creating a world in year 1 (optional)
Post-Embark
* Everything allowed except Farming.
Bonus
* Embark in a desert, so only hunting and (aquifier) fishing.
** Extra Points: Dont fish in the aquifier. How could the turtles get there anyway?
** Create a huge pyramid and sacrifice living beings or valuables to Armok for rain by dropping it in the hollow inaccessible pyramid from the top.
*** Extended version: Fill the pyramid with magma!
** Create lines like the Nazca to honour Armok, so he will send some rain (maybe).

==Arbitrary Law==
Rule your fortress with a Soapen Fist! Or see how far you get until a (voluntary) significant flaw sends you into an inevitable sadness spiral. Whatever it is, be sure to stick by it or you'll be meeting the Hammerer.

===ASPCA===
* {{L|Animals}} are forbidden from the fortress
* Animals following immigrants cannot enter the fortress
* Lethal traps forbidden, caged non-sentients must be immediately released
* Butchery is forbidden, but leatherworking is allowed

Rather than forbidding immigrant pets from entering, you can choose to deal with the owner of that pet instead for a more sadistic challenge.

===Commune===
* After embarking, enable all labors on all dwarves (including immigrants)
* Beds can only be designated as barracks, and no dwarf can be assigned to a bed (even nobles)
* Coins are forbidden
* Be aware that nobles are to be considered part of the "bourgeoisie" and {{L|Unfortunate accident|dealt with}} immeadiatly

===Couples only===
* As soon as a married couple exists in your fortress:
** Kill all single dwarves (or put them in a meeting area for a year to find a lover. Kill the rest)
** Kill all incoming single dwarves
** Try to save children, until they are adult and single

===Dieting Dwarves===
* Exclusively dine on a food type of your choice (meat, fish, plants, alcohol)
* Optionally, forbid alcohol consumption to limit carbohydrate intake
**Note: forbidding alcohol permanently is as good as accepting a slow but continuous fortress death

===Dwarf Liberation Movement===
* Nobles are worthless scum, we give them nothing!
* As soon as possible, cage your expedition leader.
* Never appoint any dwarf into becoming a noble.
* Cage any dwarf that appears on the nobles and administrators screen.
* When your population elects a new mayor, release your old one and cage the new one.
** Bonus : Cage the king and all of his escorts!
** Extra Bonus : Once you have caged all nobles, administrators, the king and his advisor; you must unleash the Dwarf Atom-Smasher upon them.

===Fight for your name===
* Before embarking, randomly generate a fortress name and be sure to know its English translation
* Do the same with your group name
* Creatively designate a serious goal for your fortress, based on these names
* Fanatically reach your goal

===Fort Geneva===
* Lethal traps are forbidden
* Caged sentient creatures are to be considered prisoners of war and treated humanely

Suggested provisions for prisoners: a bed, a personal cell, a commons area, aboveground exercise yard, and the clothes the creature was wearing when captured. For more inspiration, go to: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventions Geneva Conventions]

===Government in Exile===
* Only Military and Social skills can be purchased and enabled in your entire fortress

All dwarves are either nobles or in the military. The only useful dwarves you'll have will be your broker, manager, mayor, bookkeeper, and dungeon master. If you can survive until the sheriff arrives, transfer your entire military into the fortress guard. With a little luck, and a lot of exported roasts, you too can rule without proletarian interference.

===Hardcore Altruism===
* Do not allow the death of any Dwarf

Though not viscerally entertaining, an incredible challenge. All strange moods must be given what they crave. All medical attention must be done ASAP. Mining, fishing and hunting must be done with much care. Sadness must be met with excellent social skills and quality furniture.

===Industrial Plant===
* Choose one industry that produces commercial goods
* No other industries permitted, only imported

===Johannesfort===
* Find a starting location with a lot of gabbro, containing Kimberlite
* Mine and cut all the diamonds on the map
* Only gems can be traded.

===Sexist Segregation===
* Establish two functioning and stable fortress
* One must be entirely male, the other entirely female
* Married couples are to be processed

===THIS! IS! SPARTAAAA!===
* Change your population cap to 300.
* At least half of your fortress population must be active in the military.
* Crossbows and traps are forbidden.
* Only spears, swords, wrestling, helmets (helms) and shields may be equipped by military and used to fight.
** BONUS: All weapons and armour must be made from bronze.
* Civilian dwarves have all labors enabled.
** If ever activated, cannot use quality weapons or armor.
* Maimed dwarves (perceived to be) incapable of being fully healed must be killed. (This includes incurable spinal injuries in military dwarves!)
* Devise methods of dropping Liaisons down pits during meetings. Yell, "THIS IS SPAARRTAAAAA..." at your monitor.
* Demand goods be turned over from all caravans.
* Recreation is forbidden, as well as any 'improving' action, such as smoothing/engraving, or constructing things out of metals what can be done with rock and wood (besides spears, swords and shields).

Note that the above suggestions are modeled on the popular movie [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/300_(film) 300], an adaption of the visual novel [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/300_(comics) 300], both of which historically inaccurate. For a more "realistic dwarven Sparta", try reading the Wikipedia article on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparta#Society Spartan society].

===Mesoamerican Dwarfs===
* All food must be grown above ground, on small plots, surrounded by canals (chinampas)
** BONUS: Flood the farms annually.
* All buildings must be above ground.
* Capture as many of your enemies as possible.
* Build a massive step pyramid at the center of your fortress. Appoint one dwarf high priest and have him kill the prisoners at the top.
** BONUS: Build it upside-down.
*** MEGABONUS: Build the entire city on top of the upside-down pyramid, with another pyramid-temple in the middle.
* Surround your fortress with an artificial lake.
** BONUS: Build it in the middle of a natural lake.
* Use only copper or bronze metal (except for iron anvils).
* Soldiers can only use obsidian short swords. Axes are only for wood cutting.
* No armor except leather and only let champions use it. All others must fight unarmored.
** BONUS: Divide your soldiers into "Jaguar[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_warrior]" and "Eagle[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle_warrior]" warrior societies and outfit them with leather armor made from their respective animals.
* Demand that all non-dwarf caravans surrender their goods as tribute.
* Build a giant, multistory building for holding skulls.

==Megaprojects==
Instead of deliberately inhibiting yourself, create a wonder of the dwarven world that would make the Mountainhomes proud. Be sure to upload it to the [http://mkv25.net/dfma/ Dwarf Fortress Map Archive] when it's finished. More projects can be found where {{L|Stupid_dwarf_trick|stupid dwarves try crazy tricks}}. {{L|Mega construction|Incredible feats of construction}} are usually very {{L|Fun|fun}} so you'll see many different (and probably similar) constructions across the Wiki. Use whatever ideas you think are ingenious.

===Aqueducts===
For some reason, a noble was harmlessly pulling a lever when suddenly, magma flooded the river and exploded the booze! The king requires your band of seven to build a great aqueduct to bring water to the capital. Start with supports, and build up your aqueduct until it is 10 z-levels high!

BONUS: Start over a human town, build a wall around it, pump water through the aqueduct and into it!

===Biodome===
All material, seeds, food, tools, and dwarves must be in the fortress within one year. Then, seal up the entrance. Any new immigrants... well, they might be in trouble. Survive for as long as possible!

No chasms/underground rivers/magma vents allowed.

===Casting===
Who needs to construct giant statues?! We need ours made from natural walls, however, we want it above ground level as well. For casting your goal is to create some giant structure out of natural obsidian walls through the use of an extremely elaborate scaffold of lava and water pools and screw pumps. When you are finished, just deconstruct the scaffolding and smooth/engrave the statue as you go. Just imagine the bridge over that chasm, now complete with two giant dwarf statues on either side to strike fear into all who enter and to show them the power of your fortress.

BONUS: Make the statues spit lava.

===Castle===
Build a castle, greater than anything built by human, elf or dwarf. This is highly time
consuming if you want it to be a good castle. There must be floor indoors, and no underground
constructions except for mining operations and cellars. For an even greater challenge, build
a gigantic tower in the middle, where the nobles stay.

===Ceremonial Sacrifices===
Build an amazingly complex or spectacular killing device. A shaft that extends across the entire Z-plane is a good start. A constantly shifting maze of atomsmasher drawbridges is another. For the minimalist, a very confined space where you will drop a dwarf wrestler along with the gobbos once in a while. Perhaps a waterslide that carries your prisoner all the way down into a chasm? Whatever your idea, build it and dedicate your fort to the construction, maintenance and improvement of your device.

Do not kill any of your invaders. Capture them using cage traps, and them set them off in your device. Keep a record of the number of victims you drop into it.

BONUS: Create a statue garden to memorialize your victims, with one statue per victim. Structure your fortress such that sacrificial victims have to pass through the garden on the way to their demise.

===Computing===
Can your dwarves build the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antikythera_mechanism Antikythera mechanism]? Can you program the fortress to play tic-tac-toe? More details at {{L|computing}}.

===Colosseum===
Build a pit, around it on steps lots of Thrones, make the whole thing a meeting area, train Gladiators, capture goblins, leave them their weapons and let them fight against your gladiators. If they win, let them go.

===Crematory Fortress===
* Requires a {{L|magma pipe}} and {{L|bauxite}}.

Build a temple structure above a {{L|magma pipe}} and {{L|engrave}} every available surface. The temple should be as opulent as possible. In the temple, build a retracting {{L|bridge}} over a hole in the floor, and designate a {{L|coffin}} {{L|stockpile}} on it. Whenever a dwarf dies, build a {{L|bauxite}} or other {{L|magma-proof}} {{L|coffin}} for him, place it on the {{L|bridge}}, and retract it, committing his body to the {{L|magma|fiery blood of the mountain}}.

::Note: Since coffins are unassigned and emptied when deconstructed and cannot be constructed on top of a bridge, this will not actually work. An alternative would be to place the coffins in individual chambers which can then be flooded with magma afterwards.

::: You could expose the magma pipe, build a one-tile wide floor span across it, and then above that build a support that holds up your temple floor on the z-level above. The temple floor would be separated from the walls of the temple and would be connected for walking access diagonally. The support holds it up. You would have to construct the coffins in the temple, then when someone gets buried you pull the lever attached to the support. You then rebuild the narrow span below, the temple floor, and the support, then link the lever to the new support.
::: You can do this without scaffolding if you build the temple floor access straight in, and then the span below and the support, then once the support is in place you destroy the straight temple access leaving only a diagonal temple access.

===Doomsday Clock===
Build a water or mechanical clock whose final state triggers the support which holds your fortress up or a megabeast out.
See how much wealth you can achieve before the clock runs out.
*Bonus: Create something that resets itself, as well as purging the map, so that you can reuse the same fortress over and over.
*Super-Bonus: Create something that involves pressure plates and a small kitten, when the pressure plates are hit in the right order, your map ends. Toss the kitten in and hope for the best. Alternatively, make the sequence quite unlikely, but add 2 kittens; breeding introduces a probability of doomsday that is a function of time (depending on the mechanisms involved)
*Super-Bonus: Create the super-bonus above, but place the kitten on the lowest Z-level and never return to either look at it or see how many of the conditions for the doomsday device have been met. This way, the kitty mimicks Schrodinger's cat: we cannot observe the state of the kitty, but we can infer it from the state of the world (spin-pairs effectively).

===Dwarf like an Egyptian===
*Build a pyramid of epic proportion.

Build a legendary dwarven pyramid, with a corridor running to a central tomb for your favourite noble. Then construct lots of different {{L|traps}} in it to avoid grave robbery. Perhaps build it entirely out of glass? Or try to make the top twist in a bit of a swirl. Alternatively, make your entire fortress inside a pyramid, which stretches below the ground.

*Build rows of Obelisks

Build a double row of Obelisks before the Pyramid, and engrave the sides. Build ramps on the tops.

*Build the whole thing upside down.
** And then another one on the upside-down one.

*When the time has come, or when your fortress is about to be destroyed by a siege etc perform the ceremony to translate the mortal form of the noble to the underworld. Give him a ritual death, and make sure you kill his servants as well. If the tomb is built for your king make every dwarf die but one, who inters everyone into their resting place. His final act will be to pull a lever that seals the tomb as well as kills him. Then enjoy going back and reclaiming your fortress to observe your efforts.

===Graveyard Master===
Every dwarf deserves a decent resting place:
*Build a tomb for every dwarf that dies, the more dwarves you manage to bury the better.
*Tombs must be rooms with exactly 5x5 of size and 1 of height, with only one entrance tile that must be closed by a door.
*Tombs must have all its surfaces engraved.
*Tomb must contain at least 4 statues.
*Once complete, the door must be locked and the tomb must not be ever entered again.

===How high can you go?===
Construction, construction, construction! Just how big a tower can you build? Out of glass maybe, clear glass? Steel? Pump water to the top? Make your tower a ''pinnacle'' of achievement and stun humans, elves and goblins alike - for they know nothing of construction and engineering like dwarves do!

===Land battleship===
Turn your mountain into a huge battle-station, complete with crew quarters, decks, command centre, cantina, and a large collection of deadly weapons : Batteries of marksdwarves, ballista cannons, catapults, boarding bridges and -teams, but also lava projector or remote explosive devices (ie cave-ins in a part of the map triggered by a lever). Make sure it ends up looking like a real battleship, with nothing but plains surrounding it (you could build it on an actual plain, or destroy a mountain, choice is yours). The battleship has to be autonomous, and dwarves shouldn't wander outside it.

*Bonus: The weaponry covers every tile of the map (i.e., everything that enters the map can be shot)
*Bonus: Build several other ships, maybe dedicated to a specific product (food, ammo etc.)
**Bonus: Find a way to let them fight each other in a naval battle
*Bonus: Each crew member has a civil and military formation, and when the enemy arrives, stop every economic activity. All hands to quarters !
*Mega Bonus: After building your Ship(s), flood the surrounding countryside.

===Moria===
Build a huge hall - at least 3 z-levels high. Leave few pillars symmetrically placed in the hall (don't build them, carve them out). Smooth and possibly engrave everything (not only the lowest z-level!). Then build thin bridge (not the bridge building, just a thin piece of rock to walk on) above magma - support it with bauxite supports connected to a lever (bauxite mechanisms needed in support). Destroy stone holding it at the both ends and replace it with floor hatches (so when you pull the lever it all goes down). After that build a bridge above the chasm.
When it's all done seal your dwarves deep inside in safe place and get invaded by goblins. At the same time dig out HFS. Lead the HFS across the both bridges and then collapse the second one when one of the champions clashes with it (it doesn't matter that the champion has killed the HFS with one hit).

===Mountain audit/core sample===
Start in a mountainous area and strip mine everything down, down, down to ground level. Stockpile everything, and calculate the mountain's composition. For kicks, try not excavating one tile on each z-level. You'll be left with one enormous core sample.

===Project Mayhem===

*You do not talk about project Mayhem
*Build a series of towers, at least 10 z-levels high, of different size and shape. They must be supported by a series of supports linked to a lever.
*Store all your riches in the towers : crafts, precious metal bars, gems, artifacts, everything. You may also want to house your nobles on top of the towers.
*Pull the lever and watch the collapse of financial history.

Bonus : make the towers' walls out of glass!

Bonus : Make soap! And remember, human fat is ideal...

Extra Bonus: Make one large tower, and make it collapse onto a smaller tower, filled with all your artifacts/engravings. (Essentially, you only get the extra bonus if you've read the book)

===Santa Claus===
Get ten thousand toys built and offered to caravans yearly. Optionally, build ten thousand toys, fetch them in adventure mode and deliver them to every single city of the world.

===Skull collector===
What proves the might of a civilization better than a hall full of skulls?
*Try to collect as many skulls as you can during your fortress life, and put then in a special skulls-only storage. The more skulls the better.

BONUS: Cover all the skulls in blood, and make the stockpile also a throne room.
SUPERBONUS: Also fill the throne room with kittens.

===Space Ship===
Create a giant space ship fit for space travel. It should be able to hold about 100 dwarves for at least 2 years.

*BONUS: Use exploding {{L|booze}} as ignitable fuel.
*BONUS: Make a removable {{L|ramp}} for boarding.
*BONUS: Make the {{L|water}} for the 2 years be on the ship using removable pumps.
*BONUS+: Make it totally self sufficient. (Make an internal system which pumps the {{L|water}} supply through a room every few years to muddy the floor. Plant {{L|seed|seeds}} in the {{L|mud}} that's now on the floor. Manage your consumption to maintain self sufficiency.)
*Modding BONUS: Mod the game so that merchants can fly their new wagonships into your docking bays. ''(If possible)''
*BONUS+: Make it all out of {{L|steel}}.
*[[fun|FUN]]: Let it be held by a single {{L|support}}, ignite the {{L|booze}}, remove the support an let it "fly".
*EVEN BETTER: Drop it down a chasm.
*More [[fun|FUN]]: Set up a mining operation on the surface and dig into the HFS. Watch the alien creatures take over your ship and hunt down your dwarves. Form a squad of heroes to overload the booze reactor to prevent the aliens from reaching earth. (See [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Space_%28video_game%29 Dead Space] and/or [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_%28film%29 the Alien series])

===Swiss Precision===
Build a working clock. The clock should accurately track DF days, months, and years.

Bonus Points:
*If the clock has a mechanical effect in the fortress proper to announce new days
*If the clock creates seasonally appropriate effects at the change of months and/or seasons.
*If the clock is used to aid in the operation of the fortress in addition to its role as a clock (automatically controls farmland irrigation at particular times, automatically opens the <s>blast doors</s> <s>floodgates</s> Magma Channels in time for merchants, etc...).
*If the clock governs the schedule of a working rail station (which is always on time). (Definitions of 'working' and 'rail station' are subject to player imagination).
*If the clock takes measures to protect itself. ''"I can't let you do that, Urist."''

But don't worry about the bonus points, a precision time device should be hard enough.

===Temple===
Designing a temple to Armok. Aesthetics count - the god will be very angry if there are no stained-glass windows and domed ceilings carved with frescoes. To gain more favor, make regular sacrifices and keep the fountains and rivers red with {{L|blood}}.

===The cube===
Play a fort as usual, but emphasize catching goblins in cages to support and fill this construction:
Construct a series of rooms in a symmetrical fashion, all connected to each other with appropriate doors. Of course, enough rooms to make a maze-like structure, and if you feel like it, an exit that is hard to reach. Fill a bunch of the rooms with traps and pressureplates. Then fill one room with 4-6 goblins (preferably in cages, opened by an outside lever), release them and watch them randomly walk around the rooms dying to traps and whatnots.

*Bonus: Do multiple story maze (3d-maze)
*Bonus: Use pressureplates to open/close the exit randomly; otherwise, all the goblins will just follow the shortest route to the exit.

===The great brewery===
Disaster has struck the kingdom. A strangely glowing {{L|Fire|‼peasant‼}} visited the greatest brewery of the empire, and as a result the whole thing exploded. No time for weeping — create its successor, a fort dedicated to alcohol production, and get the alcohol supplies flowing! Try to make the widest variety possible, and give or trade it to the dwarven {{L|caravan}} each year.

===The Great Wall of Urist===
Build a dwarven great wall of china that splits the map in half. Must be at least 10 tiles thick and reach the highest z-level.
* BONUS: Make it block the <s>mongols</s> goblins out of your half of the map.
* BONUS: Make it out of obsidian.
**BONUS+: Embark on a map without obsidian.
* BONUS: Find a way to make it touch the boundaries.
* BONUS: Build one gate
* BONUS: Arm it with ballistas.

===The Monolith===
As the inevitability of a fortress-wide mental breakdown looms over every single fortress why not have something that alludes to that precipice of [[insanity]]. Like the book and feature film, 2001: A Space Odyssey you must have a Monolith. This has to be made from [[obsidian]] and have a completely smooth surface (You cannot build it from blocks) You can have it be any size as long as it is outside, at least 2 tiles thick to ensure there are no pillar tiles, and has about the same ratio of width to height as it does in the movie (1:4:9) to make it as close to the real thing as possible. It would be preferable to make it large so that it seems to be dominating the landscape and your dwarves' psyche. The bigger the better.

*If the rock obsidian strata isn't deep enough in parts to make a monolith feasible consider casting a monolith with a large rectangular block in the exact same dimensional criteria as above.

===Statue of greatness===
Build a giant statue, spanning 10-20 z-levels and make it in the shape of say, a dwarf you like or an animal you like.
* Bonus: make it in the shape of a teapot that has a working boiling system and a spout that water can come out of.

===Underwater fortress===
Encase your entire fortress in [[water]]! Your fortress should be watersealed: surrounded by water against all {{L|wall}}s and the top of the fortress.
* Bonus: Build all water-touching walls/roof in clear glass!
* Bonus: Use {{L|magma}} instead of water (warning: will almost certainly lead to [[fun]])!
* Bonus: Build it in the {{L|ocean}} or a non-freezing lake
* Bonus: Build large glass domes that encase the fortress. A dome 20 tiles wide should be 10 z-levels tall (creating a hemi-sphere). Which may be hard to cover in water.
* Bonus: Have a mechanism for dropping your enemies into the water to drown! Or fill the water with carp.
* Mod: Make your dwarves amphibious and include airlocks between the wet fortress and the dry.
* Remake: Make Rapture city from [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioshock Bioshock]

===Wealth===
The kingdom's coffers need lining, so hop to! Found a fort and start accumulating wealth as fast as possible. Attain as high a fortress value as possible, and make most of your wealth into coins for the vault. Try to beat your record for one year, two years, or five years.

===World Domination===
Pretend you are an evil mastermind. Now come up with some device or machine to render the world (or at least your portion of the map) totally unlivable, aside from, of course, your hidden lair.

You will receive bonus points for making a more realistic World Domination setup. Some suggestions:

* Make one dwarf the evil mastermind. The evil mastermind will have no empathy whatsoever, and they will hate all other races, and put no value on the lives of his minions. Protect him at all cost. If he should die, switch his position to his oldest child (who will avenge his father, because insanity is hereditary.) or the most insane, diabolical dwarf in your fort.
* Impractical, overkill solutions to everyday problems ("Sir, the dungeon master wants a better room" "Well then turn his room into a tomb and flood it with magma, and do not bother me with such trivial matters again or I will have you shot.")
* Give the evil mastermind a pet to obsess over. Give it a name like Mr. Bigglesworth or Snuggles.
* Have a science lab. Use living creatures and people as test subjects.

Doomsday device suggestions:
* Flood the map with water/magma (may require building walls around the edge of the map)
**BONUS: the water has carp in it.
***BONUSMOD: Carp with laser beams attached to their heads.
* Build an "Earthquake Machine" (the entire map is supported by a single support, which is connected to a lever)
* Build an extensive holding cell network for "scientific purposes". Fill it with megabeasts and <s>elephants</s> <s>unicorns,</s> skeletal carp in secret. Have a lever that lets everything free to feed on the general population.
* Embark in an evil area, and capture and tame all those undead animals if possible to create your own undead army
* Bonus: Eliminate the dwarves who constructed your device before you set it off. They must not be allowed to warn the rest of the citizens.
* Build an orbital weapons platform in space (which should be 12-15 stories above the ground, use your imagination), then arm it with magma bombs (droppable tank of magma) to glass the planet, rendering it uninhabitable for a few years.


{{Category|Guides}}

=== The Grand Treasury ===
At first, have the king come to you. Then excavate a laaarge room and fill it with i.e.: Lots of coins, shiny gems, artifacts, golden statues, silver mugs, etc. pp. But the king is still not satisfied with his possessions, so he wants more and more shiny and sparky things.
Of course sooner or later (probably sooner) those filthy kobolds and goblins will come and try to steal this enormous hoard. We must never tolerate this! Turn your treasury into a strongroom like the world has never seen before! Secret doors, traps in abundance, guards at every door, ballistae, guard dogs, the whole program. If anything gets lost, you have proven your incompetence, and the king will have your fortress abandoned and founded another to guard his treasures.

*Bonus: Build up the treasury and raid it successfully in Adventure Mode

=== Heaven ===
Build a dwarven version of heaven. Every dwarf must want to come to you! Important pieces:
# Streets paved with gold.
# The mindless hordes are held back by pearly gates -- or at least a close equivalent. Marble doors with diamond encrustations.
# No dwarves die (except for criminals). Heaven is everlasting.
# All criminals must be cast into the fires of Hell. Ideally, this would either be HFS or the bottom of a magma pipe.
# Nothing is ever stolen. St. Peter doesn't screw up.
# After the King has arrived, any male children he has must be sent out to fight sieges alone.

BONUS: No dwarves are ever unhappy -- no tantrums and no insanity. 
BONUS: When migrants arrive at the pearly gates, view their thoughts and preferences and only allow those with a similar/same Diety as your population. 
BONUS: Make Heaven 10 stories above the ground 
Mod: Make Angel dwarves and a godly being. (suggestions: Cacame, Morul, Ironblood.) 
ULTRABONUS: Make Heaven in the air, an earthly society on the ground (a wooden town perhaps?), and carve the HFS place into Hell, complete with a lake of Magma/fire.Look up the character of every dwarf and send him to the appropriate place. 
MEGABONUS-(Re)Make: The Seven Seals have been broken and the Apocalypse arrives.
# The Sky darkens (an obsidian ceiling spanning over the map).
# Meteors (opened lava tanks and cave-ins) devastate the earth.
# All bodies of water turn bloody.
# Dig into the HFS and have a battle between Heaven and Hell. 

=== City of Ember ===
Show those filthy humans that when dwarves build a secret underground refuge, they build to last! In other words, recreate Ember from the film "City of Ember" (yes, everyone is aware there is a book), but do it right - none of these leaking pipes and crumbling buildings stuff, after only two and a half centuries underground!
# Mine out a massive cavern multiple z-layers high , and build a human-style city underneath it instead of carving out various chambers.
# You must seal it off. How long you wait to do this is up to you, but once it is sealed, you cannot unseal it for at least 200 years (if you decide to play that long). Ideally, use a utility to embark with a full set of dwarves (to represent the immigrating population) and seal the city off within one year of embarking.
# Build individual houses with their own dining rooms and bedrooms. Multiple dwarves can live in one house, but usually only a single family will live in one house.
# Build streets connecting all of the buildings, in the way that in the film, Ember didn't really have any space that wasn't either paved or built on until you got to the outskirts of the city.
# Have a "greenhouse" out on the outskirts for farming.
# You MUST have an underground river and use it for power.
# You MUST have magma and use it for power.
# Build City Hall, where the mayor has his office, with a nice fountain out front that actually works (probably involving water pressure, and as a testament to the fact that dwarves do it better, and their underground refuge isn't running desperately short of food, water, or power).
# No military, because there is simply no need for one, but have a fortress guard (to function as police, basically).
# After 200 or more years, unseal the city and colonize the surface.

BONUS: Instead of building your houses/other structures out of blocks or rocks, plan it all out beforehand and simply don't dig out the tiles that you want to be the walls of buildings, and smooth it all down so it looks the same, but your buildings are actually made out of solid natural rock. 
BONUS: Actually cause some kind of catastrophe on the surface (flood it with magma or something) that makes it uninhabitable, to FORCE yourself to stay underground, but when you unseal the city after 200 years, the surface should have healed and be habitable again. So, don't do something permanent.

40d:Challenges

2010-05-15T16:49:13Z

PurelyAtomic: /* "I guess it's up to us to repopulate the planet..." */ once again blanked, covered under another challenge

{{av}}
:''Part of this article was originally taken from the DF forums thread [http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=466.0 "Goal-Based Dwarf Fortress"].''

The general goal of {{L|Fortress Mode}} is to survive, acquire wealth, defend your stronghold, and become the capital of your civilization. However, many players find that fighting off repeated {{L|siege|sieges}}, keeping their people alive, and expanding just aren't enough anymore. They begin to experiment with different sets of starting builds, arbitrary requirements and restrictions, and even feats of construction to appease Armok, in search of more difficulty and {{L|fun}}. These are some goals to attempt or use as inspiration.

==Pre-Embark Build Ideas==
Before you embark, you can optimize or sabotage your fortress from the very start, depending on how you distribute your points. After a few years, a well-developing fortress may or may not stabilize (depending on your idea of {{L|fun}}), leaving you to other challenges.

=== Diplomacy ===
* Six dwarves with only social {{L|skill}}s
* One skilled dwarf

Six courtiers of the king's court made some ill-advised remarks within earshot of the king, and as a result have been ordered to go found an outpost. They've hired you to make sure they survive. The six nobles only have social skills and refuse to do any work that is beneath them.

=== Minimalist/Survivalist build===

* 1 anvil
* 2 copper ore

Nothing else. From that alone, forge your pick and axe. (Figure it out yourself, or see the {{L|DIY#Minimalist_challenge_build|Do it Yourself}} article for a step-by-step "how to".)

===Peasantry===
* Spend 0 Points on embark

This challenge is moderately to very difficult, depending on the wildlife and outdoor food sources. Note that the three logs from the wagon are just enough to build a trade depot.

=== Stranded Scout Squad ===
* Military skills
* Weapons, ammunition, armor, war dogs
* Picks are not weapons

Your civilian 'friends' promised a caravan in the fall as they left, laughing. Hopefully, you can survive until then with your forward scouts.

==Races==
Pretend to be another race! You can mod the game or just pretend that Elves have hair. It doesn't matter what you look like, just what you build, with what materials, and what's for lunch after we build it.

===Elves - The Ultimate Hippy Challenge===
Peace, man.
* Don't gather plants except those you plant yourself.
* Don't gather wood nor trade for it with humans or dwarves.
* Trade for plants and wood only with the elves; they understand your environmental code.
* Don't burn any {{L|fuel|coal}}. Do you know what that does to the environment, man?
**Magma-smelting is an option, but steel can't be had.
* Don't cause any creature's death, except in self-defense.
**No military, induced submerging, or lethal implementation of corkscrews.
* Only use cage traps, and either tame the creatures you catch, or release them back into the wild.
* {{L|Elf|Hippies}} prefer sunlight and wooded areas, with minimal use of rock (digging and building).

For an extra challenge try this in an area with a cave.

===Humans - Living Large and Standing Tall===
Pretend you're a filthy above-ground dwelling {{L|Human|human}}.
* Build a town wall.
** Only hovels and farms outside the town walls.
* House your dwarves in small town homes
** 5-10 dwarves per house (they had pretty big families back in the day)
** Upstairs bedrooms, small dining room, maybe a single level basement.
* House your workshops according to profession, not convenience.
* Build warehouses for stockpiles, and set guards outside them.
* Create a keep, with its own wall, barracks, treasury, etc.
** House your nobles within the keep.
* Create a market square.
* Create a main street from the town wall to the market square and/or keep. Well-paved blocks, statues and decorative shubbery are a must.
* No underground connections between different areas.
* For obtaining stone, metal, etc. a mine may be built, but must have separate entrance from other buildings. It can be outside the fortress, but must not connect to the interior, or vice versa.
** If you create a side hill mine, only carve large (at least 2 tiles) tunnels, and create shaft to the surface to allow air circulation.
** Or better than that, create an open pit mine / quarry, with ramps to access lower floors.
* BONUS: Miniproject: Build a large, multiple-z-level fountain complete with decorations.
* BONUS: Miniproject: Human Inn, containing your only booze stockpile and should be party-oriented.
* BONUS: Miniproject: Farm simulation, complete with crops and free-range livestock, etc.
* BONUS: Easy Play: Embark on top of a Human Town.
* BONUS: Advanced Play: Modify the raws and actually use humans to make the fort.
* MEGABONUS: Build your entire fortress as {{L|mega constructions|one huge arcology}}.
* MEGABONUS: Build your City in a giant, artificial cave.

===Luddite===
Shun technology and contraptions. Who can really trust them, with those {{L|Gremlin|gremlins}} around. This may be challenging, as it forbids easy isolation/defense from attacks, all traps and wells. Irrigation is reduced to solid elbow grease and maybe a bucket or two. This challenge may be even harder combined with another challenge.
* No mechanics or {{L|mechanism}}s
* No {{L|machine}}s

===Earthworms===
Live constantly tunneling. Churn up the soil as you go and visit the surface only rarely to collect the stuff you need..
* Create one long tunnel. Dig forward at one end whilst sealing off (collapsing, building walls across) the other end.
* Workshops should be built directly behind the row of miners. When they reach the point where they would be destroyed, take them apart and rebuild back by the miners again.
* To make it easier, you can come up to the surface now and then.
* Try to keep the tunnel as short as possible.
* Like this: ||||||||==========> (| is walled off end section, = is tunnel and > is the miners.
* BONUS: Leave those pesky nobles walled in as you tunnel away from them!
* BONUS: Leave stockpiles of armour and weapons for any future diggers to find!
* MEGABONUS: Surprise a goblin siege by tunneling up underneath them!

==Utter Dwarfiness==
Need new ways to behave or new techniques to dip your toes into? Give any or all of your starting 7 some quirks to live up to. Want to try making your Boss a hell-bent, paranoid despot? Or establish a routine mass murder of small animals to provide your fort with raw meat by a vaguely intimidating, estranged butcher?

===Bandit Camp===
* Three or more Marksdwarves (perhaps with {{L|Ambush|ambushing}})
* Embark site featuring places to hide

Attack and loot every enemy sentient creature you can find, such as goblins & kobolds. Develop sneaky and even horrific methods of trapping and 'processing' friendly sentients (merchants, diplomats, and even migrants). Take no prisoners and leave no evidence of foul play.

===City-States===
* All dwarves embark as peasants
* 7 or multiple of 7 of everything you bring (especially picks and axes)

At the start your dwarves split everything equally and move to 7 different locales that are not interconnected. They have to mine their own rooms, plant their own crops, use their own craft piles. This will probably require a bit of cross-fertilization until you get {{L|door}}s and can lock everyone in, but after that it is every dwarf for him/herself!

This challenge may be easier to perform after Burrows are implemented.

===Dwarftopia===
*Find a place that has at least magma, preferably with and underground river and/or chasm too; everything a fully self-sufficient underground city need.
*Embark only with dwarves that have max skills, with no more than one miner; but bring extra copper picks.
*Separate the fortress into 2 parts: a vibrant city above, and a depressed slum below.
**BONUS: Reverse the order; elite dwarves get to live underground, while the poor have to scratch a living off the surface.
*Throw all low-skill immigrants into the pits, where they will spend the rest of their lives (unless called up for the draft).
*'''DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES''' let said immigrants socialize whatsoever with the Elite; so nobody (who matters) will be upset when they die.
**BONUS: Make it impossible for anybody to escape by using trapdoors to drop them in and bridge-a-paults for sending goods out (preferably with a carp-based sterilization system).
***MEGADWARFBONUS: Set it all up so that none of the 'elite' have to do any work; all their needs are met by the laborers. Watch what happens and laugh as the laborers die out and high society breaks down.

===Equaland===
* No embark requirements
* Construct a successful fortress
* All dwarves are given equal attention regarding quarters, dining, armament and burial
* One dwarf elected to be "The Leader" commands a lever system capable of killing a single dwarf of your choice in their room, however you wish
* Allow the Leader (your id) free reign on his power, enforcing impossible and unannounced criteria on your other dwarves with death being the only punishment

===Hermit===
* Spend points ONLY on ONE {{L|Pick}}

A well known and popular challenge. Kill off 6 starting dwarves and any {{L|immigrants}} as they arrive, and try to make a living for the last dwarf. Turn away merchants. If they don't leave, kill them.

'''Variants'''
To moderate difficulty, feel free to allow these exceptions:
* Keep one male and one female dwarf as the Dwarven Adam and Eve.
* Keep your starting seven, but no immigrants.
* Selectively admit dwarves based on name, profession, etc.
* Embark with an anvil as well.

===Hunting Party===
* One Marksman+Ambusher
* One Cook+Farmer
* One Brewer+Farmer
* Four exclusively social dwarves
* Embark with no anvil, many hunting dogs, into a challenging biome (terrifying areas may have no supply of wood)

===Immigration and customs enforcement===
* One miner/mason/architect
* One woodcutter/carpenter/architect
* Five military dwarves
* Embark into a canyon or on a road
* Don't embark with an anvil

Spend the first year building fortifications to interdict traffic. Immigrants can build a town around you, but your original seven dwarves remain dedicated to their mission (purely military in purpose).

==="Let Loose the Dogs of War"===
* No military Dwarves are permitted, including Fortress Guard.
* No weapons or armor may be forged, and any obtained from looting must be melted down.
* War dogs must be your only form of attack and defense.
** Bonus : No traps or defense mechanisms of any kind may be utilized, only dogs.

===28 Days Later===

*Embark at a terrifying biome(Scary Biome), make sure there are zombie somethings. Set up a five thick wall around your camp. Never leave the perimeters. All migrants would be wandering survivors, let them in or don't, as they might be infected.
*Bonus: If you have "reason" to believe the migrants are infected, sacrifice them to the Blood God. Remember he loves Magma.
*Bonus: Only Marksdwarves for defence, You shouldn't get near the zombies, as they bite.If they are wounded, they must be quarantined, and shall therefore die.
*AdvancedPlay: Add zombie to the creatures list and set them as [EVIL].
**Bonus: Send one heroic guy to save the migrants from the zombies, like in 28 days later.
Remember Elves can not be trusted and should be treated as infectees, and should be Dwarven atom smashed(Magma and Chasms work equally well).(Note this is also true for normal Dwarf Fortress).
**Elf skin clothing anyone?
*Keep a diary from one of the characters perspectives, to be read when the world is repopulated.

===Master Of One===
Pre-Embark:
* All starting dwarves must have only one skill

Post-Embark:
* No changes are allowed on any dwarf's labor screen, except to ''disable'' hauling labors (enabling hauling is forbidden)
* All immigrants must stay with the profession(s) they arrive with
* All peasants must be activated into the military

'''Variant:'''
*Only allow one dwarf for each skill to remain in your fort (1 mason, 1 miner, 1 farmer, etc.). Slaughter or draft all other dwarves.

===Monarch with a grudge===
* Forbid any and all use of stone and metal
* No exposed tile may be labeled "Underground"
* Artifacts containing stone and metal are to be destroyed '''utterly''' (magma or the {{L|Dwarven_Atom_Smasher|DAS}})

"Nay, no ponderous stone doors or shining silver arcades, not while I live!"
The new king has decided rocks and metals can no longer be used in construction. He'll be overthrown shortly, but in the meantime construct your fortress without them.

'''Variants'''
* Embark with no construction materials, into an area devoid of trees.
* Construct a fortress made entirely out of glass. Try not using magma or limit yourself only to clear and crystal glass.
* Build with soap bars. Show those elven traders just how much you despise their philosophies by building with stuff derived from dead trees ''and'' dead animals. Cats are an excellent source of tallow.
* Choose one type of rock, one type of metal, one type of gem, one type of wood, and optionally one type of glass. All constructions can only use those types in their construction. An easy way to enforce this with stone is to mark all but your choice "Economical".
* Bonus points: Stone is forbidden along with digging

===Noblesse requiro===
* Construct a fortress only to please nobles (who, for the sake of this challenge, are all criminally psychotic)
* Criminals who deserve justice should be incarcerated, tortured, and executed for ''any'' offense. Use your imagination for every step of the process. Remember, there is no right to a fair and speedy trial in Armok's eyes.
* All Nobles must be treated to the highest quality living conditions
* All others must be treated to the bare minimum needed to physically keep them alive
* Elected nobles are to be treated as regular dwarves, but mandates hold equal sway regarding justice

===Sitting on trees===
* Construct a wooden "tree" or several, spanning many (a dozen or so) z-levels
* Establish a successful fortress not inside, but around, these constructed trees

===Stop, Hey, What's that Sound===
* (Optionally) Generate a world with abundant cave systems
* Establish a fort near a very large cave
* Imitate the role of "Angband", leading small parties inside on military excursions
* No more than 3 dwarves can enter at a time
* Siege equipment and other weapons (or dangerous contraptions) that a dwarf can't carry on him is forbidden when cave-exploring

'''Variants'''
* Only solo adventurers are allowed to enter the dungeon
* Only use 'Thieves' to steal loot and create traps inside the dungeon

===The Mad Butcher===
* One dedicated Butcher+Tanner
* Minimal supplies and skills, so you can bring...
* As many puppies and kittens you can afford
* All food-gathering skills (except your Butcher+Tanner and Brewing) are forbidden

Caging your animals will increase performance to prepare a suitable butchery. Construct a wide, deep shaft to be zoned as an animal pit. At the bottom, outfit an isolation chamber complete with food and alcohol stockpiles, a bed, a butchery and a tanner's workshop. An active well will prevent mishaps. You should include during the construction either an airlock chamber (to enable the butcher to pass on food) or a second pit where the butcher dumps his created food. After construction, seal your butcher+tanner inside and live only off of his work.

===The World is Flat===
* No pre-embark requirements
* You'll probably want a region with lots of hills/mountains.
* You may only work/build/live on the original Z level where your wagon was
* No moats allowed, as this requires a channel, which goes below your z-level

===Hunter and Gatherer===
Pre-Embark (World-Gen)
* Try creating a world in year 1 (optional)
Post-Embark
* Everything allowed except Farming.
Bonus
* Embark in a desert, so only hunting and (aquifier) fishing.
** Extra Points: Dont fish in the aquifier. How could the turtles get there anyway?
** Create a huge pyramid and sacrifice living beings or valuables to Armok for rain by dropping it in the hollow inaccessible pyramid from the top.
*** Extended version: Fill the pyramid with magma!
** Create lines like the Nazca to honour Armok, so he will send some rain (maybe).

==Arbitrary Law==
Rule your fortress with a Soapen Fist! Or see how far you get until a (voluntary) significant flaw sends you into an inevitable sadness spiral. Whatever it is, be sure to stick by it or you'll be meeting the Hammerer.

===ASPCA===
* {{L|Animals}} are forbidden from the fortress
* Animals following immigrants cannot enter the fortress
* Lethal traps forbidden, caged non-sentients must be immediately released
* Butchery is forbidden, but leatherworking is allowed

Rather than forbidding immigrant pets from entering, you can choose to deal with the owner of that pet instead for a more sadistic challenge.

===Commune===
* After embarking, enable all labors on all dwarves (including immigrants)
* Beds can only be designated as barracks, and no dwarf can be assigned to a bed (even nobles)
* Coins are forbidden
* Be aware that nobles are to be considered part of the "bourgeoisie" and {{L|Unfortunate accident|dealt with}} immeadiatly

===Couples only===
* As soon as a married couple exists in your fortress:
** Kill all single dwarves (or put them in a meeting area for a year to find a lover. Kill the rest)
** Kill all incoming single dwarves
** Try to save children, until they are adult and single

===Dieting Dwarves===
* Exclusively dine on a food type of your choice (meat, fish, plants, alcohol)
* Optionally, forbid alcohol consumption to limit carbohydrate intake
**Note: forbidding alcohol permanently is as good as accepting a slow but continuous fortress death

===Dwarf Liberation Movement===
* Nobles are worthless scum, we give them nothing!
* As soon as possible, cage your expedition leader.
* Never appoint any dwarf into becoming a noble.
* Cage any dwarf that appears on the nobles and administrators screen.
* When your population elects a new mayor, release your old one and cage the new one.
** Bonus : Cage the king and all of his escorts!
** Extra Bonus : Once you have caged all nobles, administrators, the king and his advisor; you must unleash the Dwarf Atom-Smasher upon them.

===Fight for your name===
* Before embarking, randomly generate a fortress name and be sure to know its English translation
* Do the same with your group name
* Creatively designate a serious goal for your fortress, based on these names
* Fanatically reach your goal

===Fort Geneva===
* Lethal traps are forbidden
* Caged sentient creatures are to be considered prisoners of war and treated humanely

Suggested provisions for prisoners: a bed, a personal cell, a commons area, aboveground exercise yard, and the clothes the creature was wearing when captured. For more inspiration, go to: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventions Geneva Conventions]

===Government in Exile===
* Only Military and Social skills can be purchased and enabled in your entire fortress

All dwarves are either nobles or in the military. The only useful dwarves you'll have will be your broker, manager, mayor, bookkeeper, and dungeon master. If you can survive until the sheriff arrives, transfer your entire military into the fortress guard. With a little luck, and a lot of exported roasts, you too can rule without proletarian interference.

===Hardcore Altruism===
* Do not allow the death of any Dwarf

Though not viscerally entertaining, an incredible challenge. All strange moods must be given what they crave. All medical attention must be done ASAP. Mining, fishing and hunting must be done with much care. Sadness must be met with excellent social skills and quality furniture.

===Industrial Plant===
* Choose one industry that produces commercial goods
* No other industries permitted, only imported

===Johannesfort===
* Find a starting location with a lot of gabbro, containing Kimberlite
* Mine and cut all the diamonds on the map
* Only gems can be traded.

===Sexist Segregation===
* Establish two functioning and stable fortress
* One must be entirely male, the other entirely female
* Married couples are to be processed

===THIS! IS! SPARTAAAA!===
* Change your population cap to 300.
* At least half of your fortress population must be active in the military.
* Crossbows and traps are forbidden.
* Only spears, swords, wrestling, helmets (helms) and shields may be equipped by military and used to fight.
** BONUS: All weapons and armour must be made from bronze.
* Civilian dwarves have all labors enabled.
** If ever activated, cannot use quality weapons or armor.
* Maimed dwarves (perceived to be) incapable of being fully healed must be killed. (This includes incurable spinal injuries in military dwarves!)
* Devise methods of dropping Liaisons down pits during meetings. Yell, "THIS IS SPAARRTAAAAA..." at your monitor.
* Demand goods be turned over from all caravans.
* Recreation is forbidden, as well as any 'improving' action, such as smoothing/engraving, or constructing things out of metals what can be done with rock and wood (besides spears, swords and shields).

Note that the above suggestions are modeled on the popular movie [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/300_(film) 300], an adaption of the visual novel [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/300_(comics) 300], both of which historically inaccurate. For a more "realistic dwarven Sparta", try reading the Wikipedia article on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparta#Society Spartan society].

===Mesoamerican Dwarfs===
* All food must be grown above ground, on small plots, surrounded by canals (chinampas)
** BONUS: Flood the farms annually.
* All buildings must be above ground.
* Capture as many of your enemies as possible.
* Build a massive step pyramid at the center of your fortress. Appoint one dwarf high priest and have him kill the prisoners at the top.
** BONUS: Build it upside-down.
*** MEGABONUS: Build the entire city on top of the upside-down pyramid, with another pyramid-temple in the middle.
* Surround your fortress with an artificial lake.
** BONUS: Build it in the middle of a natural lake.
* Use only copper or bronze metal (except for iron anvils).
* Soldiers can only use obsidian short swords. Axes are only for wood cutting.
* No armor except leather and only let champions use it. All others must fight unarmored.
** BONUS: Divide your soldiers into "Jaguar[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_warrior]" and "Eagle[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle_warrior]" warrior societies and outfit them with leather armor made from their respective animals.
* Demand that all non-dwarf caravans surrender their goods as tribute.
* Build a giant, multistory building for holding skulls.

==Megaprojects==
Instead of deliberately inhibiting yourself, create a wonder of the dwarven world that would make the Mountainhomes proud. Be sure to upload it to the [http://mkv25.net/dfma/ Dwarf Fortress Map Archive] when it's finished. More projects can be found where {{L|Stupid_dwarf_trick|stupid dwarves try crazy tricks}}. {{L|Mega construction|Incredible feats of construction}} are usually very {{L|Fun|fun}} so you'll see many different (and probably similar) constructions across the Wiki. Use whatever ideas you think are ingenious.

===Aqueducts===
For some reason, a noble was harmlessly pulling a lever when suddenly, magma flooded the river and exploded the booze! The king requires your band of seven to build a great aqueduct to bring water to the capital. Start with supports, and build up your aqueduct until it is 10 z-levels high!

BONUS: Start over a human town, build a wall around it, pump water through the aqueduct and into it!

===Biodome===
All material, seeds, food, tools, and dwarves must be in the fortress within one year. Then, seal up the entrance. Any new immigrants... well, they might be in trouble. Survive for as long as possible!

No chasms/underground rivers/magma vents allowed.

===Casting===
Who needs to construct giant statues?! We need ours made from natural walls, however, we want it above ground level as well. For casting your goal is to create some giant structure out of natural obsidian walls through the use of an extremely elaborate scaffold of lava and water pools and screw pumps. When you are finished, just deconstruct the scaffolding and smooth/engrave the statue as you go. Just imagine the bridge over that chasm, now complete with two giant dwarf statues on either side to strike fear into all who enter and to show them the power of your fortress.

BONUS: Make the statues spit lava.

===Castle===
Build a castle, greater than anything built by human, elf or dwarf. This is highly time
consuming if you want it to be a good castle. There must be floor indoors, and no underground
constructions except for mining operations and cellars. For an even greater challenge, build
a gigantic tower in the middle, where the nobles stay.

===Ceremonial Sacrifices===
Build an amazingly complex or spectacular killing device. A shaft that extends across the entire Z-plane is a good start. A constantly shifting maze of atomsmasher drawbridges is another. For the minimalist, a very confined space where you will drop a dwarf wrestler along with the gobbos once in a while. Perhaps a waterslide that carries your prisoner all the way down into a chasm? Whatever your idea, build it and dedicate your fort to the construction, maintenance and improvement of your device.

Do not kill any of your invaders. Capture them using cage traps, and them set them off in your device. Keep a record of the number of victims you drop into it.

BONUS: Create a statue garden to memorialize your victims, with one statue per victim. Structure your fortress such that sacrificial victims have to pass through the garden on the way to their demise.

===Computing===
Can your dwarves build the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antikythera_mechanism Antikythera mechanism]? Can you program the fortress to play tic-tac-toe? More details at {{L|computing}}.

===Colosseum===
Build a pit, around it on steps lots of Thrones, make the whole thing a meeting area, train Gladiators, capture goblins, leave them their weapons and let them fight against your gladiators. If they win, let them go.

===Crematory Fortress===
* Requires a {{L|magma pipe}} and {{L|bauxite}}.

Build a temple structure above a {{L|magma pipe}} and {{L|engrave}} every available surface. The temple should be as opulent as possible. In the temple, build a retracting {{L|bridge}} over a hole in the floor, and designate a {{L|coffin}} {{L|stockpile}} on it. Whenever a dwarf dies, build a {{L|bauxite}} or other {{L|magma-proof}} {{L|coffin}} for him, place it on the {{L|bridge}}, and retract it, committing his body to the {{L|magma|fiery blood of the mountain}}.

::Note: Since coffins are unassigned and emptied when deconstructed and cannot be constructed on top of a bridge, this will not actually work. An alternative would be to place the coffins in individual chambers which can then be flooded with magma afterwards.

::: You could expose the magma pipe, build a one-tile wide floor span across it, and then above that build a support that holds up your temple floor on the z-level above. The temple floor would be separated from the walls of the temple and would be connected for walking access diagonally. The support holds it up. You would have to construct the coffins in the temple, then when someone gets buried you pull the lever attached to the support. You then rebuild the narrow span below, the temple floor, and the support, then link the lever to the new support.
::: You can do this without scaffolding if you build the temple floor access straight in, and then the span below and the support, then once the support is in place you destroy the straight temple access leaving only a diagonal temple access.

===Doomsday Clock===
Build a water or mechanical clock whose final state triggers the support which holds your fortress up or a megabeast out.
See how much wealth you can achieve before the clock runs out.
*Bonus: Create something that resets itself, as well as purging the map, so that you can reuse the same fortress over and over.
*Super-Bonus: Create something that involves pressure plates and a small kitten, when the pressure plates are hit in the right order, your map ends. Toss the kitten in and hope for the best. Alternatively, make the sequence quite unlikely, but add 2 kittens; breeding introduces a probability of doomsday that is a function of time (depending on the mechanisms involved)
*Super-Bonus: Create the super-bonus above, but place the kitten on the lowest Z-level and never return to either look at it or see how many of the conditions for the doomsday device have been met. This way, the kitty mimicks Schrodinger's cat: we cannot observe the state of the kitty, but we can infer it from the state of the world (spin-pairs effectively).

===Dwarf like an Egyptian===
*Build a pyramid of epic proportion.

Build a legendary dwarven pyramid, with a corridor running to a central tomb for your favourite noble. Then construct lots of different {{L|traps}} in it to avoid grave robbery. Perhaps build it entirely out of glass? Or try to make the top twist in a bit of a swirl. Alternatively, make your entire fortress inside a pyramid, which stretches below the ground.

*Build rows of Obelisks

Build a double row of Obelisks before the Pyramid, and engrave the sides. Build ramps on the tops.

*Build the whole thing upside down.
** And then another one on the upside-down one.

*When the time has come, or when your fortress is about to be destroyed by a siege etc perform the ceremony to translate the mortal form of the noble to the underworld. Give him a ritual death, and make sure you kill his servants as well. If the tomb is built for your king make every dwarf die but one, who inters everyone into their resting place. His final act will be to pull a lever that seals the tomb as well as kills him. Then enjoy going back and reclaiming your fortress to observe your efforts.

===Graveyard Master===
Every dwarf deserves a decent resting place:
*Build a tomb for every dwarf that dies, the more dwarves you manage to bury the better.
*Tombs must be rooms with exactly 5x5 of size and 1 of height, with only one entrance tile that must be closed by a door.
*Tombs must have all its surfaces engraved.
*Tomb must contain at least 4 statues.
*Once complete, the door must be locked and the tomb must not be ever entered again.

===How high can you go?===
Construction, construction, construction! Just how big a tower can you build? Out of glass maybe, clear glass? Steel? Pump water to the top? Make your tower a ''pinnacle'' of achievement and stun humans, elves and goblins alike - for they know nothing of construction and engineering like dwarves do!

===Land battleship===
Turn your mountain into a huge battle-station, complete with crew quarters, decks, command centre, cantina, and a large collection of deadly weapons : Batteries of marksdwarves, ballista cannons, catapults, boarding bridges and -teams, but also lava projector or remote explosive devices (ie cave-ins in a part of the map triggered by a lever). Make sure it ends up looking like a real battleship, with nothing but plains surrounding it (you could build it on an actual plain, or destroy a mountain, choice is yours). The battleship has to be autonomous, and dwarves shouldn't wander outside it.

*Bonus: The weaponry covers every tile of the map (i.e., everything that enters the map can be shot)
*Bonus: Build several other ships, maybe dedicated to a specific product (food, ammo etc.)
**Bonus: Find a way to let them fight each other in a naval battle
*Bonus: Each crew member has a civil and military formation, and when the enemy arrives, stop every economic activity. All hands to quarters !
*Mega Bonus: After building your Ship(s), flood the surrounding countryside.

===Moria===
Build a huge hall - at least 3 z-levels high. Leave few pillars symmetrically placed in the hall (don't build them, carve them out). Smooth and possibly engrave everything (not only the lowest z-level!). Then build thin bridge (not the bridge building, just a thin piece of rock to walk on) above magma - support it with bauxite supports connected to a lever (bauxite mechanisms needed in support). Destroy stone holding it at the both ends and replace it with floor hatches (so when you pull the lever it all goes down). After that build a bridge above the chasm.
When it's all done seal your dwarves deep inside in safe place and get invaded by goblins. At the same time dig out HFS. Lead the HFS across the both bridges and then collapse the second one when one of the champions clashes with it (it doesn't matter that the champion has killed the HFS with one hit).

===Mountain audit/core sample===
Start in a mountainous area and strip mine everything down, down, down to ground level. Stockpile everything, and calculate the mountain's composition. For kicks, try not excavating one tile on each z-level. You'll be left with one enormous core sample.

===Project Mayhem===

*You do not talk about project Mayhem
*Build a series of towers, at least 10 z-levels high, of different size and shape. They must be supported by a series of supports linked to a lever.
*Store all your riches in the towers : crafts, precious metal bars, gems, artifacts, everything. You may also want to house your nobles on top of the towers.
*Pull the lever and watch the collapse of financial history.

Bonus : make the towers' walls out of glass!

Bonus : Make soap! And remember, human fat is ideal...

Extra Bonus: Make one large tower, and make it collapse onto a smaller tower, filled with all your artifacts/engravings. (Essentially, you only get the extra bonus if you've read the book)

===Santa Claus===
Get ten thousand toys built and offered to caravans yearly. Optionally, build ten thousand toys, fetch them in adventure mode and deliver them to every single city of the world.

===Skull collector===
What proves the might of a civilization better than a hall full of skulls?
*Try to collect as many skulls as you can during your fortress life, and put then in a special skulls-only storage. The more skulls the better.

BONUS: Cover all the skulls in blood, and make the stockpile also a throne room.
SUPERBONUS: Also fill the throne room with kittens.

===Space Ship===
Create a giant space ship fit for space travel. It should be able to hold about 100 dwarves for at least 2 years.

*BONUS: Use exploding {{L|booze}} as ignitable fuel.
*BONUS: Make a removable {{L|ramp}} for boarding.
*BONUS: Make the {{L|water}} for the 2 years be on the ship using removable pumps.
*BONUS+: Make it totally self sufficient. (Make an internal system which pumps the {{L|water}} supply through a room every few years to muddy the floor. Plant {{L|seed|seeds}} in the {{L|mud}} that's now on the floor. Manage your consumption to maintain self sufficiency.)
*Modding BONUS: Mod the game so that merchants can fly their new wagonships into your docking bays. ''(If possible)''
*BONUS+: Make it all out of {{L|steel}}.
*[[fun|FUN]]: Let it be held by a single {{L|support}}, ignite the {{L|booze}}, remove the support an let it "fly".
*EVEN BETTER: Drop it down a chasm.
*More [[fun|FUN]]: Set up a mining operation on the surface and dig into the HFS. Watch the alien creatures take over your ship and hunt down your dwarves. Form a squad of heroes to overload the booze reactor to prevent the aliens from reaching earth. (See [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Space_%28video_game%29 Dead Space] and/or [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_%28film%29 the Alien series])

===Swiss Precision===
Build a working clock. The clock should accurately track DF days, months, and years.

Bonus Points:
*If the clock has a mechanical effect in the fortress proper to announce new days
*If the clock creates seasonally appropriate effects at the change of months and/or seasons.
*If the clock is used to aid in the operation of the fortress in addition to its role as a clock (automatically controls farmland irrigation at particular times, automatically opens the <s>blast doors</s> <s>floodgates</s> Magma Channels in time for merchants, etc...).
*If the clock governs the schedule of a working rail station (which is always on time). (Definitions of 'working' and 'rail station' are subject to player imagination).
*If the clock takes measures to protect itself. ''"I can't let you do that, Urist."''

But don't worry about the bonus points, a precision time device should be hard enough.

===Temple===
Designing a temple to Armok. Aesthetics count - the god will be very angry if there are no stained-glass windows and domed ceilings carved with frescoes. To gain more favor, make regular sacrifices and keep the fountains and rivers red with {{L|blood}}.

===The cube===
Play a fort as usual, but emphasize catching goblins in cages to support and fill this construction:
Construct a series of rooms in a symmetrical fashion, all connected to each other with appropriate doors. Of course, enough rooms to make a maze-like structure, and if you feel like it, an exit that is hard to reach. Fill a bunch of the rooms with traps and pressureplates. Then fill one room with 4-6 goblins (preferably in cages, opened by an outside lever), release them and watch them randomly walk around the rooms dying to traps and whatnots.

*Bonus: Do multiple story maze (3d-maze)
*Bonus: Use pressureplates to open/close the exit randomly; otherwise, all the goblins will just follow the shortest route to the exit.

===The great brewery===
Disaster has struck the kingdom. A strangely glowing {{L|Fire|‼peasant‼}} visited the greatest brewery of the empire, and as a result the whole thing exploded. No time for weeping — create its successor, a fort dedicated to alcohol production, and get the alcohol supplies flowing! Try to make the widest variety possible, and give or trade it to the dwarven {{L|caravan}} each year.

===The Great Wall of Urist===
Build a dwarven great wall of china that splits the map in half. Must be at least 10 tiles thick and reach the highest z-level.
* BONUS: Make it block the <s>mongols</s> goblins out of your half of the map.
* BONUS: Make it out of obsidian.
**BONUS+: Embark on a map without obsidian.
* BONUS: Find a way to make it touch the boundaries.
* BONUS: Build one gate
* BONUS: Arm it with ballistas.

===The Monolith===
As the inevitability of a fortress-wide mental breakdown looms over every single fortress why not have something that alludes to that precipice of [[insanity]]. Like the book and feature film, 2001: A Space Odyssey you must have a Monolith. This has to be made from [[obsidian]] and have a completely smooth surface (You cannot build it from blocks) You can have it be any size as long as it is outside, at least 2 tiles thick to ensure there are no pillar tiles, and has about the same ratio of width to height as it does in the movie (1:4:9) to make it as close to the real thing as possible. It would be preferable to make it large so that it seems to be dominating the landscape and your dwarves' psyche. The bigger the better.

*If the rock obsidian strata isn't deep enough in parts to make a monolith feasible consider casting a monolith with a large rectangular block in the exact same dimensional criteria as above.

===Statue of greatness===
Build a giant statue, spanning 10-20 z-levels and make it in the shape of say, a dwarf you like or an animal you like.
* Bonus: make it in the shape of a teapot that has a working boiling system and a spout that water can come out of.

===Underwater fortress===
Encase your entire fortress in [[water]]! Your fortress should be watersealed: surrounded by water against all {{L|wall}}s and the top of the fortress.
* Bonus: Build all water-touching walls/roof in clear glass!
* Bonus: Use {{L|magma}} instead of water!
* Bonus: Build it in the {{L|ocean}} or a non-freezing lake
* Bonus: Build large glass domes that encase the fortress. A dome 20 tiles wide should be 10 z-levels tall (creating a hemi-sphere). Which may be hard to cover in water.
* Bonus: Have a mechanism for dropping your enemies into the water to drown! Or fill the water with carp.
* Mod: Make your dwarves amphibious and include airlocks between the wet fortress and the dry.
* Remake: Make Rapture city from [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioshock Bioshock]

===Wealth===
The kingdom's coffers need lining, so hop to! Found a fort and start accumulating wealth as fast as possible. Attain as high a fortress value as possible, and make most of your wealth into coins for the vault. Try to beat your record for one year, two years, or five years.

===World Domination===
Pretend you are an evil mastermind. Now come up with some device or machine to render the world (or at least your portion of the map) totally unlivable, aside from, of course, your hidden lair.

You will receive bonus points for making a more realistic World Domination setup. Some suggestions:

* Make one dwarf the evil mastermind. The evil mastermind will have no empathy whatsoever, and they will hate all other races, and put no value on the lives of his minions. Protect him at all cost. If he should die, switch his position to his oldest child (who will avenge his father, because insanity is hereditary.) or the most insane, diabolical dwarf in your fort.
* Impractical, overkill solutions to everyday problems ("Sir, the dungeon master wants a better room" "Well then turn his room into a tomb and flood it with magma, and do not bother me with such trivial matters again or I will have you shot.")
* Give the evil mastermind a pet to obsess over. Give it a name like Mr. Bigglesworth or Snuggles.
* Have a science lab. Use living creatures and people as test subjects.

Doomsday device suggestions:
* Flood the map with water/magma (may require building walls around the edge of the map)
**BONUS: the water has carp in it.
***BONUSMOD: Carp with laser beams attached to their heads.
* Build an "Earthquake Machine" (the entire map is supported by a single support, which is connected to a lever)
* Build an extensive holding cell network for "scientific purposes". Fill it with megabeasts and <s>elephants</s> <s>unicorns,</s> skeletal carp in secret. Have a lever that lets everything free to feed on the general population.
* Embark in an evil area, and capture and tame all those undead animals if possible to create your own undead army
* Bonus: Eliminate the dwarves who constructed your device before you set it off. They must not be allowed to warn the rest of the citizens.
* Build an orbital weapons platform in space (which should be 12-15 stories above the ground, use your imagination), then arm it with magma bombs (droppable tank of magma) to glass the planet, rendering it uninhabitable for a few years.


{{Category|Guides}}

=== The Grand Treasury ===
At first, have the king come to you. Then excavate a laaarge room and fill it with i.e.: Lots of coins, shiny gems, artifacts, golden statues, silver mugs, etc. pp. But the king is still not satisfied with his possessions, so he wants more and more shiny and sparky things.
Of course sooner or later (probably sooner) those filthy kobolds and goblins will come and try to steal this enormous hoard. We must never tolerate this! Turn your treasury into a strongroom like the world has never seen before! Secret doors, traps in abundance, guards at every door, ballistae, guard dogs, the whole program. If anything gets lost, you have proven your incompetence, and the king will have your fortress abandoned and founded another to guard his treasures.

*Bonus: Build up the treasury and raid it successfully in Adventure Mode

=== Heaven ===
Build a dwarven version of heaven. Every dwarf must want to come to you! Important pieces:
# Streets paved with gold.
# The mindless hordes are held back by pearly gates -- or at least a close equivalent. Marble doors with diamond encrustations.
# No dwarves die (except for criminals). Heaven is everlasting.
# All criminals must be cast into the fires of Hell. Ideally, this would either be HFS or the bottom of a magma pipe.
# Nothing is ever stolen. St. Peter doesn't screw up.
# After the King has arrived, any male children he has must be sent out to fight sieges alone.

BONUS: No dwarves are ever unhappy -- no tantrums and no insanity. 
BONUS: When migrants arrive at the pearly gates, view their thoughts and preferences and only allow those with a similar/same Diety as your population. 
BONUS: Make Heaven 10 stories above the ground 
Mod: Make Angel dwarves and a godly being. (suggestions: Cacame, Morul, Ironblood.) 
ULTRABONUS: Make Heaven in the air, an earthly society on the ground (a wooden town perhaps?), and carve the HFS place into Hell, complete with a lake of Magma/fire.Look up the character of every dwarf and send him to the appropriate place. 
MEGABONUS-(Re)Make: The Seven Seals have been broken and the Apocalypse arrives.
# The Sky darkens (an obsidian ceiling spanning over the map).
# Meteors (opened lava tanks and cave-ins) devastate the earth.
# All bodies of water turn bloody.
# Dig into the HFS and have a battle between Heaven and Hell. 

=== City of Ember ===
Show those filthy humans that when dwarves build a secret underground refuge, they build to last! In other words, recreate Ember from the film "City of Ember" (yes, everyone is aware there is a book), but do it right - none of these leaking pipes and crumbling buildings stuff, after only two and a half centuries underground!
# Mine out a massive cavern multiple z-layers high , and build a human-style city underneath it instead of carving out various chambers.
# You must seal it off. How long you wait to do this is up to you, but once it is sealed, you cannot unseal it for at least 200 years (if you decide to play that long). Ideally, use a utility to embark with a full set of dwarves (to represent the immigrating population) and seal the city off within one year of embarking.
# Build individual houses with their own dining rooms and bedrooms. Multiple dwarves can live in one house, but usually only a single family will live in one house.
# Build streets connecting all of the buildings, in the way that in the film, Ember didn't really have any space that wasn't either paved or built on until you got to the outskirts of the city.
# Have a "greenhouse" out on the outskirts for farming.
# You MUST have an underground river and use it for power.
# You MUST have magma and use it for power.
# Build City Hall, where the mayor has his office, with a nice fountain out front that actually works (probably involving water pressure, and as a testament to the fact that dwarves do it better, and their underground refuge isn't running desperately short of food, water, or power).
# No military, because there is simply no need for one, but have a fortress guard (to function as police, basically).
# After 200 or more years, unseal the city and colonize the surface.

BONUS: Instead of building your houses/other structures out of blocks or rocks, plan it all out beforehand and simply don't dig out the tiles that you want to be the walls of buildings, and smooth it all down so it looks the same, but your buildings are actually made out of solid natural rock. 
BONUS: Actually cause some kind of catastrophe on the surface (flood it with magma or something) that makes it uninhabitable, to FORCE yourself to stay underground, but when you unseal the city after 200 years, the surface should have healed and be habitable again. So, don't do something permanent.

v0.31:Challenges

2010-05-15T16:47:26Z

PurelyAtomic: /* 28 Days Later */ fixed some grammar & spelling

{{av}}
{{Quality|Fine}}
==Utter Dwarfiness==
Need new ways to behave or new techniques to dip your toes into? Give any or all of your starting 7 some quirks to live up to. Want to try making your Boss a hell-bent, paranoid despot? Or establish a routine mass murder of small animals to provide your fort with raw meat by a vaguely intimidating, estranged butcher?

===Bandit Camp===
* Three or more Marksdwarves (perhaps with {{L|Ambusher|ambushing}})
* Embark site featuring places to hide

Attack and loot every enemy sentient creature you can find, such as goblins & kobolds. Develop sneaky and even horrific methods of trapping and 'processing' friendly sentients (merchants, diplomats, and even migrants). Take no prisoners and leave no evidence of foul play.

===City-States===
* All dwarves embark as peasants
* 7 or multiple of 7 of everything you bring (especially picks and axes)

At the start your dwarves split everything equally and move to 7 different locales that are not interconnected. They have to mine their own rooms, plant their own crops, use their own craft piles. This will probably require a bit of cross-fertilization until you get {{L|door}}s and can lock everyone in, but after that it is every dwarf for him/herself!

Burrows are very useful for this.

===Dwarftopia===
*Embark only with dwarves that have max skills, with no more than one miner; but bring extra copper picks.
*Separate the fortress into 2 parts: a vibrant city above, and a depressed slum below.
**BONUS: Reverse the order; elite dwarves get to live underground, while the poor have to scratch a living off the surface.
*Throw all low-skill immigrants into the pits, where they will spend the rest of their lives (unless called up for the draft).
*'''DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES''' let said immigrants socialize whatsoever with the Elite; so nobody (who matters) will be upset when they die.
**BONUS: Make it impossible for anybody to escape by using trapdoors to drop them in and bridge-a-paults for sending goods out (preferably with a carp-based sterilization system).
***MEGADWARFBONUS: Set it all up so that none of the 'elite' have to do any work; all their needs are met by the laborers. Watch what happens and laugh as the laborers die out and high society breaks down.

===Equaland===
* No embark requirements
* Construct a successful fortress
* All dwarves are given equal attention regarding quarters, dining, armament and burial
* One dwarf elected to be "The Leader" commands a lever system capable of killing a single dwarf of your choice in their room, however you wish
* Allow the Leader (your id) free reign on his power, enforcing impossible and unannounced criteria on your other dwarves with death being the only punishment

===Hermit===
* Spend points ONLY on ONE {{L|Pick}}

A well known and popular challenge. Kill off 6 starting dwarves and any {{L|immigrant|immigrants}} as they arrive, and try to make a living for the last dwarf. Turn away merchants. If they don't leave, kill them.

'''Variants'''
To moderate difficulty, feel free to allow these exceptions:
* Keep one male and one female dwarf as the Dwarven Adam and Eve.
* Keep your starting seven, but no immigrants.
* Selectively admit dwarves based on name, profession, etc.
* Embark with an anvil as well.

===Hunting Party===
* One Marksman+Ambusher
* One Cook+Farmer
* One Brewer+Farmer
* Four exclusively social dwarves
* Embark with no anvil, many hunting dogs, into a challenging biome (terrifying areas may have no supply of wood)

===Immigration and customs enforcement===
* One miner/mason/architect
* One woodcutter/carpenter/architect
* Five military dwarves
* Embark into a canyon or on a road
* Don't embark with an anvil

Spend the first year building fortifications to interdict traffic. Immigrants can build a town around you, but your original seven dwarves remain dedicated to their mission (purely military in purpose).

==="Let Loose the Dogs of War"===
* No military Dwarves are permitted, including Fortress Guard.
* No weapons or armor may be forged, and any obtained from looting must be melted down.
* War dogs must be your only form of attack and defense.
** Bonus : No traps or defense mechanisms of any kind may be utilized, only dogs.

===28 Days Later===

*Embark at a terrifying biome(Scary Biome), make sure there are zombie somethings. Set up a five thick wall around your camp. Never leave the perimeters. All migrants would be wandering survivors, let them in or don't, as they might be infected.
*Bonus: If you have "reason" to believe the migrants are infected, sacrifice them to the Blood God. Remember, he loves Magma!
*Bonus: Only Marksdwarves for defense, You shouldn't get near the zombies, as they bite.If they are wounded, they must be quarantined, and shall therefore die.
*AdvancedPlay: Add zombie to the creatures list and set them as [EVIL].
**Bonus: Send one heroic guy to save the migrants from the zombies, like in 28 days later.
**Elf skin clothing anyone?
*Keep a diary from one of the characters perspectives, to be read when the world is repopulated.

===Master Of One===
Pre-Embark:
* All starting dwarves must have only one skill

Post-Embark:
* No changes are allowed on any dwarf's labor screen, except to ''disable'' hauling labors (enabling hauling is forbidden)
* All immigrants must stay with the profession(s) they arrive with
* All peasants must be activated into the military

'''Variant:'''
*Only allow one dwarf for each skill to remain in your fort (1 mason, 1 miner, 1 farmer, etc.). Slaughter or draft all other dwarves.

===Monarch with a grudge===
* Forbid any and all use of stone and metal
* No exposed tile may be labeled "Underground"
* Artifacts containing stone and metal are to be destroyed '''utterly''' (magma or the {{L|Dwarven atom smasher|DAS}})

"Nay, no ponderous stone doors or shining silver arcades, not while I live!"
The new king has decided rocks and metals can no longer be used in construction. He'll be overthrown shortly, but in the meantime construct your fortress without them.

'''Variants'''
* Embark with no construction materials, into an area devoid of trees.
* Construct a fortress made entirely out of glass. Try not using magma or limit yourself only to clear and crystal glass.
* Build with soap bars. Show those elven traders just how much you despise their philosophies by building with stuff derived from dead trees ''and'' dead animals. Cats are an excellent source of tallow.
* Choose one type of rock, one type of metal, one type of gem, one type of wood, and optionally one type of glass. All constructions can only use those types in their construction. An easy way to enforce this with stone is to mark all but your choice "Economical".
* Bonus points: Stone is forbidden along with digging

===Noblesse requiro===
* Construct a fortress only to please nobles (who, for the sake of this challenge, are all criminally psychotic)
* Criminals who deserve justice should be incarcerated, tortured, and executed for ''any'' offense. Use your imagination for every step of the process. Remember, there is no right to a fair and speedy trial in Armok's eyes.
* All Nobles must be treated to the highest quality living conditions
* All others must be treated to the bare minimum needed to physically keep them alive
* Elected nobles are to be treated as regular dwarves, but mandates hold equal sway regarding justice

===Santa Urist===
* Embark in a glacier biome
* Take at least 3 craftsdwarves to serve as Santa's Elves.
* Export as many toys as possible. These can be your only trade good.
* Bonus: Use this user's Christmas-themed tileset: [[User:Sphr]]

===Sitting on trees===
* Construct a wooden "tree" or several, spanning many (a dozen or so) z-levels
* Establish a successful fortress not inside, but around, these constructed trees

===The Mad Butcher===
* One dedicated Butcher+Tanner
* Minimal supplies and skills, so you can bring...
* As many puppies and kittens you can afford
* All food-gathering skills (except your Butcher+Tanner and Brewing) are forbidden

Caging your animals will increase performance to prepare a suitable butchery. Construct a wide, deep shaft to be zoned as an animal pit. At the bottom, outfit an isolation chamber complete with food and alcohol stockpiles, a bed, a butchery and a tanner's workshop. An active well will prevent mishaps. You should include during the construction either an airlock chamber (to enable the butcher to pass on food) or a second pit where the butcher dumps his created food. After construction, seal your butcher+tanner inside and live only off of his work.

===The World is Flat===
* No pre-embark requirements
* You'll probably want a region with lots of hills/mountains.
* You may only work/build/live on the original Z level where your wagon was
* No moats allowed, as this requires a channel, which goes below your z-level

===Hunter and Gatherer===
Pre-Embark (World-Gen)
* Try creating a world in year 1 (optional)
Post-Embark
* Everything allowed except Farming.
Bonus
* Embark in a desert, so only hunting and (aquifier) fishing.
** Extra Points: Dont fish in the aquifier. How could the turtles get there anyway?
** Create a huge pyramid and sacrifice living beings or valuables to Armok for rain by dropping it in the hollow inaccessible pyramid from the top.
*** Extended version: Fill the pyramid with magma!
** Create lines like the Nazca to honour Armok, so he will send some rain (maybe).

===Cave Men===
Pre-Embark
An Overworld acessable cave

Post-embark
Go into the cave with all your dwarves, and try to survive the harsh enviorments of the new cave systems.
You cant use items from ground zero, all wood must be harvested in the caves, along with food.

*Bonus* no trading, who wants to enter that creepy cave anyways?
*MEGA BONUS* No dogs and no warrior dwarves.

===Fort wars!===

*The initial 7 create 2 forts on opposite sides of a map.

*After the initial 7, 1/2 of all immigrants get assigned to a burrow that encompasses one of the forts. New children get assigned to their parents fort. Each fort is self sustaining and produces their own goods. Then it turns into a competition to see which fort can produce the most wealth.
* Nobles are given free reign and will be quartered in the winning fort.
* Make a giant wall separating the forts above ground. On one side of the wall is an artificial lake made of water and on the other, one made of magma. Call forts Reliable.Excavation.Demolition and Builders.League.United.

===Deep dwarfs===
Following the embark, lock yourself up under the ground.
Don't let any of your dwarfs go outside. Let invaders into your underground maze of doom!

*BONUS: Dig deeper and deeper, abandoning the upper levels and rebuilding your fortress as you get more
deep.
*MEGA BONUS: create a caste of deep dwarfs (nobles?), who will only live on the bottommost levels.

===Earth Mover===
*Do what you need to get a huge guild of miners
*Dig every square in the map.
**Hint: you might want to turn cave-in on
**Another hint: Do you really want to put your castle up there, when your dwarfs are digging down there?

===Oh, The Humanity!===
*Live like humans do.
*Make about half of your buildings out of wood- structures that serve no defensive purpose, such as workshops, meeting halls, dining halls, the homes of the serfs and peasants etc should be wooden. You can also divide a large building up as sensible- you might make the main structure of a castle or wall out of stone for strength, then make the interior detailing, shacks, and other "addon" buildings out of wood. The important thing to keep in mind is that for humans, drafty, damp stone buildings are sometimes a functional necessity, not something they prefer.
*Build an aboveground outer wall of wood to start- you can replace it with stone once you reach fifty individuals.
*Underground areas are ONLY for mining shafts, root cellars, plumbing/mechanics, and perhaps a secret passage for your nobles to take in emergencies. No workshops, living spaces, or large-scale storage allowed.
*Most of your mining for ore and minerals should be done quarry-style, as humans are not well-suited to long-term underground life. A quarry should be a big, wide-open pit, shaped like an inverted pyramid, with a ramp leading out, so you don't feel boxed in and claustrophobic. Don't worry about the ecological impact of your surface strip mining.
*An exception to the mining rule is excavation for purposes of putting up outdoor buildings- so you can carve away a cliff wall to make room for a building, but you can't actually build *into* the wall like a dwarf would, so channel that natural dirt/stone roof out!
*All farming must be done with surface plants. No underground plants.
*Humans need several pubs so they can go bar hopping in their free time- they get bored with just one. Make sure you have a separate pub for every 15 individuals.
*Unlike dwarves, few humans have enough beard to hide their naughty bits when they run around naked. Make sure your humans have enough clothing to wear at all times.
*Finally, you need an aboveground castle. Early on, a small building will suffice but by the time royalty arrives, you'll need to have at least begun constructing a castle worthy of their station.

*BONUS: Humans enjoy bathing. If there is no pond inside your walls, build a channel to carry fresh water to an artificial pond so your people have a place to cleanse themselves. Build a 1-level waterfall in it so they can shower, and stock soap nearby.
*BONUS: Humans, as opposed to the elves reverence for nature and the dwarves utter disregard for it, actually believe it is their duty to pollute and destroy nature.
**Designate large refuse stockpiles and garbage dumps in the wilderness, and fill them.
**Chop down enough trees to piss off the elves every once in a while.
**Fill the map with paved roads. Pavement rules!

*MEGABONUS: The ultimate in human engineering. Build a 5-level above-ground mega-mall displaying all your salable wares. Build various stores for your goods, back room storage, a wishing pool for the main atrium, a food court with several "restaurants" specializing in specific foods and meals, a hair salon, a bank, and a security office staffed with rent-a-cops. Come up with more if you feel like it.
**UBER-ULTRA-BONUS: Give all the mall's stores security doors that can be controlled from the security office, for instant lockdown in case of a shoplifter. Can't have too much security!

=== Dwarfen Prison ===
Faced with raising criminal rates the king has decided to go for a zero-tolerance policy. He sent out seven dwarfs to build and manage a prison to hold the worst of the worst criminals of dwarfenkind.

* Only your initial 7 dwarfs may do any work
* All immigrants are treated as inmates sentenced to life-long prison sentences. Yes, even the children. Don't ask, you are just doing your job and who are you to criticize the dwarfen justice system?
* Every inmate is locked up in solitary confinement within his/her own <strike>bedroom</strike> cell with only a bed and a forbidden metal door. Metal bars instead of walls are optional.
* Inmates have to be kept alive in their cells, but don't pamper them: Make them live on a diet of water and raw plump helmets. Feed them by dumping the plump helmets through holes in the cell ceilings or using an airlock system. Water can be provided through a water hole in the floor leading to a sewer system.
* Should an inmate [[tantrum|start to rebel]] the <strike>[[sheriff]]</strike> chief warden should restore discipline with an iron hand.
* It won't take long until a few inmates start to [[strange_mood|go insane]] from sensory deprivation. Too bad for them.

v0.31:Challenges

2010-05-15T16:46:45Z

PurelyAtomic: /* "I guess it's up to us to repopulate the planet..." */ blanked, this challenge is listed as a bonus in another challenge

{{av}}
{{Quality|Fine}}
==Utter Dwarfiness==
Need new ways to behave or new techniques to dip your toes into? Give any or all of your starting 7 some quirks to live up to. Want to try making your Boss a hell-bent, paranoid despot? Or establish a routine mass murder of small animals to provide your fort with raw meat by a vaguely intimidating, estranged butcher?

===Bandit Camp===
* Three or more Marksdwarves (perhaps with {{L|Ambusher|ambushing}})
* Embark site featuring places to hide

Attack and loot every enemy sentient creature you can find, such as goblins & kobolds. Develop sneaky and even horrific methods of trapping and 'processing' friendly sentients (merchants, diplomats, and even migrants). Take no prisoners and leave no evidence of foul play.

===City-States===
* All dwarves embark as peasants
* 7 or multiple of 7 of everything you bring (especially picks and axes)

At the start your dwarves split everything equally and move to 7 different locales that are not interconnected. They have to mine their own rooms, plant their own crops, use their own craft piles. This will probably require a bit of cross-fertilization until you get {{L|door}}s and can lock everyone in, but after that it is every dwarf for him/herself!

Burrows are very useful for this.

===Dwarftopia===
*Embark only with dwarves that have max skills, with no more than one miner; but bring extra copper picks.
*Separate the fortress into 2 parts: a vibrant city above, and a depressed slum below.
**BONUS: Reverse the order; elite dwarves get to live underground, while the poor have to scratch a living off the surface.
*Throw all low-skill immigrants into the pits, where they will spend the rest of their lives (unless called up for the draft).
*'''DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES''' let said immigrants socialize whatsoever with the Elite; so nobody (who matters) will be upset when they die.
**BONUS: Make it impossible for anybody to escape by using trapdoors to drop them in and bridge-a-paults for sending goods out (preferably with a carp-based sterilization system).
***MEGADWARFBONUS: Set it all up so that none of the 'elite' have to do any work; all their needs are met by the laborers. Watch what happens and laugh as the laborers die out and high society breaks down.

===Equaland===
* No embark requirements
* Construct a successful fortress
* All dwarves are given equal attention regarding quarters, dining, armament and burial
* One dwarf elected to be "The Leader" commands a lever system capable of killing a single dwarf of your choice in their room, however you wish
* Allow the Leader (your id) free reign on his power, enforcing impossible and unannounced criteria on your other dwarves with death being the only punishment

===Hermit===
* Spend points ONLY on ONE {{L|Pick}}

A well known and popular challenge. Kill off 6 starting dwarves and any {{L|immigrant|immigrants}} as they arrive, and try to make a living for the last dwarf. Turn away merchants. If they don't leave, kill them.

'''Variants'''
To moderate difficulty, feel free to allow these exceptions:
* Keep one male and one female dwarf as the Dwarven Adam and Eve.
* Keep your starting seven, but no immigrants.
* Selectively admit dwarves based on name, profession, etc.
* Embark with an anvil as well.

===Hunting Party===
* One Marksman+Ambusher
* One Cook+Farmer
* One Brewer+Farmer
* Four exclusively social dwarves
* Embark with no anvil, many hunting dogs, into a challenging biome (terrifying areas may have no supply of wood)

===Immigration and customs enforcement===
* One miner/mason/architect
* One woodcutter/carpenter/architect
* Five military dwarves
* Embark into a canyon or on a road
* Don't embark with an anvil

Spend the first year building fortifications to interdict traffic. Immigrants can build a town around you, but your original seven dwarves remain dedicated to their mission (purely military in purpose).

==="Let Loose the Dogs of War"===
* No military Dwarves are permitted, including Fortress Guard.
* No weapons or armor may be forged, and any obtained from looting must be melted down.
* War dogs must be your only form of attack and defense.
** Bonus : No traps or defense mechanisms of any kind may be utilized, only dogs.

===28 Days Later===

*Embark at a terrifying biome(Scary Biome), make sure there are zombie somethings. Set up a five thick wall around your camp. Never leave the perimeters. All migrants would be wandering survivors, let them in or don't, as they might be infected.
*Bonus: If you have "reason" to believe the migrants are infected, sacrifice them to the Blood God. Remember he loves Magma.
*Bonus: Only Marksdwarves for defence, You shouldn't get near the zombies, as they bite.If they are wounded, they must be quarantined, and shall therefore die.
*AdvancedPlay: Add zombie to the creatures list and set them as [EVIL].
**Bonus: Send one heroic guy to save the migrants from the zombies, like in 28 days later.
**Elf skin clothing anyone?
*Keep a diary from one of the characters perspectives, to be read when the world is repopulated.

===Master Of One===
Pre-Embark:
* All starting dwarves must have only one skill

Post-Embark:
* No changes are allowed on any dwarf's labor screen, except to ''disable'' hauling labors (enabling hauling is forbidden)
* All immigrants must stay with the profession(s) they arrive with
* All peasants must be activated into the military

'''Variant:'''
*Only allow one dwarf for each skill to remain in your fort (1 mason, 1 miner, 1 farmer, etc.). Slaughter or draft all other dwarves.

===Monarch with a grudge===
* Forbid any and all use of stone and metal
* No exposed tile may be labeled "Underground"
* Artifacts containing stone and metal are to be destroyed '''utterly''' (magma or the {{L|Dwarven atom smasher|DAS}})

"Nay, no ponderous stone doors or shining silver arcades, not while I live!"
The new king has decided rocks and metals can no longer be used in construction. He'll be overthrown shortly, but in the meantime construct your fortress without them.

'''Variants'''
* Embark with no construction materials, into an area devoid of trees.
* Construct a fortress made entirely out of glass. Try not using magma or limit yourself only to clear and crystal glass.
* Build with soap bars. Show those elven traders just how much you despise their philosophies by building with stuff derived from dead trees ''and'' dead animals. Cats are an excellent source of tallow.
* Choose one type of rock, one type of metal, one type of gem, one type of wood, and optionally one type of glass. All constructions can only use those types in their construction. An easy way to enforce this with stone is to mark all but your choice "Economical".
* Bonus points: Stone is forbidden along with digging

===Noblesse requiro===
* Construct a fortress only to please nobles (who, for the sake of this challenge, are all criminally psychotic)
* Criminals who deserve justice should be incarcerated, tortured, and executed for ''any'' offense. Use your imagination for every step of the process. Remember, there is no right to a fair and speedy trial in Armok's eyes.
* All Nobles must be treated to the highest quality living conditions
* All others must be treated to the bare minimum needed to physically keep them alive
* Elected nobles are to be treated as regular dwarves, but mandates hold equal sway regarding justice

===Santa Urist===
* Embark in a glacier biome
* Take at least 3 craftsdwarves to serve as Santa's Elves.
* Export as many toys as possible. These can be your only trade good.
* Bonus: Use this user's Christmas-themed tileset: [[User:Sphr]]

===Sitting on trees===
* Construct a wooden "tree" or several, spanning many (a dozen or so) z-levels
* Establish a successful fortress not inside, but around, these constructed trees

===The Mad Butcher===
* One dedicated Butcher+Tanner
* Minimal supplies and skills, so you can bring...
* As many puppies and kittens you can afford
* All food-gathering skills (except your Butcher+Tanner and Brewing) are forbidden

Caging your animals will increase performance to prepare a suitable butchery. Construct a wide, deep shaft to be zoned as an animal pit. At the bottom, outfit an isolation chamber complete with food and alcohol stockpiles, a bed, a butchery and a tanner's workshop. An active well will prevent mishaps. You should include during the construction either an airlock chamber (to enable the butcher to pass on food) or a second pit where the butcher dumps his created food. After construction, seal your butcher+tanner inside and live only off of his work.

===The World is Flat===
* No pre-embark requirements
* You'll probably want a region with lots of hills/mountains.
* You may only work/build/live on the original Z level where your wagon was
* No moats allowed, as this requires a channel, which goes below your z-level

===Hunter and Gatherer===
Pre-Embark (World-Gen)
* Try creating a world in year 1 (optional)
Post-Embark
* Everything allowed except Farming.
Bonus
* Embark in a desert, so only hunting and (aquifier) fishing.
** Extra Points: Dont fish in the aquifier. How could the turtles get there anyway?
** Create a huge pyramid and sacrifice living beings or valuables to Armok for rain by dropping it in the hollow inaccessible pyramid from the top.
*** Extended version: Fill the pyramid with magma!
** Create lines like the Nazca to honour Armok, so he will send some rain (maybe).

===Cave Men===
Pre-Embark
An Overworld acessable cave

Post-embark
Go into the cave with all your dwarves, and try to survive the harsh enviorments of the new cave systems.
You cant use items from ground zero, all wood must be harvested in the caves, along with food.

*Bonus* no trading, who wants to enter that creepy cave anyways?
*MEGA BONUS* No dogs and no warrior dwarves.

===Fort wars!===

*The initial 7 create 2 forts on opposite sides of a map.

*After the initial 7, 1/2 of all immigrants get assigned to a burrow that encompasses one of the forts. New children get assigned to their parents fort. Each fort is self sustaining and produces their own goods. Then it turns into a competition to see which fort can produce the most wealth.
* Nobles are given free reign and will be quartered in the winning fort.
* Make a giant wall separating the forts above ground. On one side of the wall is an artificial lake made of water and on the other, one made of magma. Call forts Reliable.Excavation.Demolition and Builders.League.United.

===Deep dwarfs===
Following the embark, lock yourself up under the ground.
Don't let any of your dwarfs go outside. Let invaders into your underground maze of doom!

*BONUS: Dig deeper and deeper, abandoning the upper levels and rebuilding your fortress as you get more
deep.
*MEGA BONUS: create a caste of deep dwarfs (nobles?), who will only live on the bottommost levels.

===Earth Mover===
*Do what you need to get a huge guild of miners
*Dig every square in the map.
**Hint: you might want to turn cave-in on
**Another hint: Do you really want to put your castle up there, when your dwarfs are digging down there?

===Oh, The Humanity!===
*Live like humans do.
*Make about half of your buildings out of wood- structures that serve no defensive purpose, such as workshops, meeting halls, dining halls, the homes of the serfs and peasants etc should be wooden. You can also divide a large building up as sensible- you might make the main structure of a castle or wall out of stone for strength, then make the interior detailing, shacks, and other "addon" buildings out of wood. The important thing to keep in mind is that for humans, drafty, damp stone buildings are sometimes a functional necessity, not something they prefer.
*Build an aboveground outer wall of wood to start- you can replace it with stone once you reach fifty individuals.
*Underground areas are ONLY for mining shafts, root cellars, plumbing/mechanics, and perhaps a secret passage for your nobles to take in emergencies. No workshops, living spaces, or large-scale storage allowed.
*Most of your mining for ore and minerals should be done quarry-style, as humans are not well-suited to long-term underground life. A quarry should be a big, wide-open pit, shaped like an inverted pyramid, with a ramp leading out, so you don't feel boxed in and claustrophobic. Don't worry about the ecological impact of your surface strip mining.
*An exception to the mining rule is excavation for purposes of putting up outdoor buildings- so you can carve away a cliff wall to make room for a building, but you can't actually build *into* the wall like a dwarf would, so channel that natural dirt/stone roof out!
*All farming must be done with surface plants. No underground plants.
*Humans need several pubs so they can go bar hopping in their free time- they get bored with just one. Make sure you have a separate pub for every 15 individuals.
*Unlike dwarves, few humans have enough beard to hide their naughty bits when they run around naked. Make sure your humans have enough clothing to wear at all times.
*Finally, you need an aboveground castle. Early on, a small building will suffice but by the time royalty arrives, you'll need to have at least begun constructing a castle worthy of their station.

*BONUS: Humans enjoy bathing. If there is no pond inside your walls, build a channel to carry fresh water to an artificial pond so your people have a place to cleanse themselves. Build a 1-level waterfall in it so they can shower, and stock soap nearby.
*BONUS: Humans, as opposed to the elves reverence for nature and the dwarves utter disregard for it, actually believe it is their duty to pollute and destroy nature.
**Designate large refuse stockpiles and garbage dumps in the wilderness, and fill them.
**Chop down enough trees to piss off the elves every once in a while.
**Fill the map with paved roads. Pavement rules!

*MEGABONUS: The ultimate in human engineering. Build a 5-level above-ground mega-mall displaying all your salable wares. Build various stores for your goods, back room storage, a wishing pool for the main atrium, a food court with several "restaurants" specializing in specific foods and meals, a hair salon, a bank, and a security office staffed with rent-a-cops. Come up with more if you feel like it.
**UBER-ULTRA-BONUS: Give all the mall's stores security doors that can be controlled from the security office, for instant lockdown in case of a shoplifter. Can't have too much security!

=== Dwarfen Prison ===
Faced with raising criminal rates the king has decided to go for a zero-tolerance policy. He sent out seven dwarfs to build and manage a prison to hold the worst of the worst criminals of dwarfenkind.

* Only your initial 7 dwarfs may do any work
* All immigrants are treated as inmates sentenced to life-long prison sentences. Yes, even the children. Don't ask, you are just doing your job and who are you to criticize the dwarfen justice system?
* Every inmate is locked up in solitary confinement within his/her own <strike>bedroom</strike> cell with only a bed and a forbidden metal door. Metal bars instead of walls are optional.
* Inmates have to be kept alive in their cells, but don't pamper them: Make them live on a diet of water and raw plump helmets. Feed them by dumping the plump helmets through holes in the cell ceilings or using an airlock system. Water can be provided through a water hole in the floor leading to a sewer system.
* Should an inmate [[tantrum|start to rebel]] the <strike>[[sheriff]]</strike> chief warden should restore discipline with an iron hand.
* It won't take long until a few inmates start to [[strange_mood|go insane]] from sensory deprivation. Too bad for them.

Dwarf Fortress Wiki talk:Magmawiki

2010-05-13T02:44:01Z

PurelyAtomic:

Post questions or comments about the ongoing Magmawiki project here.

==Question!==
Do crossed out features mean that they have been fully developed, or that they've been scrapped?

User:PurelyAtomic

2010-05-13T02:41:19Z

PurelyAtomic: Created page with 'So, you want to learn more about the enigmatic entity, the man known formally as PurelyAtomic? Well, you've obviously come to the right place. Although right now this is merely…'

So, you want to learn more about the enigmatic entity, the man known formally as PurelyAtomic? Well, you've obviously come to the right place.

Although right now this is merely a placeholder. Oh well~

v0.31:Quickstart guide

2010-05-13T02:38:28Z

PurelyAtomic: added quite a bit of info, mostly about farming

{{av}}
{{Quality|Fine}}
Much of the information in the [[40d:Quickstart_guide|guide for the previous version]] still applies. However, the save game is no longer of use and information on the [[military]] and [[healthcare]], as well as almost everything to do with the underground is most likely to be deprecated. Farming, for example, has been changed significantly since the last version. In order to construct a subterranean farm (the type required to grow the crops that you embark with), in addition to a dwarf with the Farming (Fields) labor enabled, the farm plot must be placed on [[Mud|muddied tiles]]. This makes it quite a bit harder to get started with a new fortress as food and alcohol are two of the primary concerns for a budding fortress, and both of them rely on farms to be produced. Keep this in mind when starting a new fortress.

One noteworthy change is that Anvils now only cost 100 (one-tenth of the old cost), and battle axes on the embark screen can be made of copper rather than steel (cheaper but slower, and less useful as weapons).

v0.31 Talk:Strange mood

2010-05-12T00:57:55Z

PurelyAtomic:

I never had any of the moods that required dwarves to be depressed in 40d but I have a high master milker in a fey mood asking for body parts. will commit Dorfcide for science[[User:Cpad|Cpad]]
:'''''SCIENCE!!!'''''--[[User:Albedo|Albedo]] 01:19, 5 April 2010 (UTC)
man dwarves are hard to shred.killed a bunch of dwarves but the only parts that came off were teeth(Note use more violence next time) and the milker just sat in the craft shop then went beserk.Interestingly a dwarves "z" screen loses all the personality info when they go insane[[User:Cpad|Cpad]]

For what it's worth, I've seen a couple moods, saved to attempt different methods of reacting to them, and have noticed that Fey and Secretive work exactly as they did in 40d, apart from dwarves now requesting more different kinds of things. Perhaps we can update the 2010 page with some of the stuff from the 40d page at this point? --[[User:AzureShadow|AzureShadow]] 02:09, 5 April 2010 (UTC)

according to the bone article bones are now counted as body parts so I'm assuming thats what he was after [[User:Cpad|Cpad]] 13:15, 7 April 2010 (UTC)

A fey dwarf of mine just grabbed a shell that was laying about. So apparently those count too. (NINJAEDIT: Yes, he was screaming for body parts and not specifically shell)[[Special:Contributions/81.225.92.197|81.225.92.197]] 13:44, 10 April 2010 (UTC)
::Yes, bone and shell as category are gone, they are now 'body parts'. Asking for them is common in a fey mood and you won't have to kill a dwarf for that. In fact, it wont even help you satisfy his needs. --[[User:Confused|Confused]]

I think most of my dwarves were unhappy about one of my starting swarves dying, but I didn't check at the time. I've now got someone in a mood who has collected 3 large roach remains, and 1 firefly remains. She's brooding darkly, and the message is "Leave me. I need things... certain things"--[[Special:Contributions/78.151.176.4|78.151.176.4]] 15:59, 10 April 2010 (UTC)

== I think we need to do complete rearrange on mood materials ==

I got fey mood and dorf kept screaming for "rock bars" and logs. He picked up logs, but not rock blocks. This is either bug, or new stuf I haven't figured out yet.
--[[Special:Contributions/94.237.66.205|94.237.66.205]] 08:16, 7 April 2010 (UTC)

Rock bars means metal bars, I think. That what satisfied my fey dorf.

:Are you sure it's not charcoal (edit: I meant coke) that they want? They could easily be considered 'rock' bars. I'm going to see now, I haven't got either now that he's collected my steel bars, so can check what he wants.--[[Special:Contributions/92.29.248.178|92.29.248.178]] 15:12, 11 April 2010 (UTC)

:My fey dwarf was not satisfied by my massive stockpile of metal bars, or the large amounts of (ore and not-ore) uncut stone, or the stone blocks I demanded produced en masse. I think rock bars are actually what he is looking for, and as they cannot be produced, I was forced to lose a metalsmith in a craftsdwarf's to a berserk rage, followed by two wrestlers and a pack of dogs. Tell him that it's a typo. --[[User:Aescula|Aescula]] 03:15, 20 April 2010 (UTC)

Shame. Armoursmith only wanted one bar. If anyone else gets a chance, I'd love to see a charcoal / coke armoured wrestler take on a magma man ;P 92.29.248.178, 18:39, 11 April 2010

I had a strange mood (possessed) with 17 dwarves, so the 'atleast 20 dwarves' condition should be removed. Also, the dwarf was struck with the mood right after he migrated to my fort. Right after, as in he was still 2 tiles away from the edge of the map. 78.23.137.83, 15:32, 20 April 2010 
:So it does appear that mood trigger conditions have changed. I'll try to do some disassembly and report what I find. —[[User:0x517A5D|0x517A5D]] 20:56, 20 April 2010 (UTC)
::(If anyone can find Truth, it's 0x5. He is personally responsible for 75%+ of the 40d info. You da man!)--[[User:Albedo|Albedo]] 21:05, 20 April 2010 (UTC)

== Saving & reloading not changing mood type ==

Thanks to a crash, I had to reload my fortress, saved about a month before a strange mood. It occured at roughly the same time, with the same dwarf, with the same type of mood. The item was different however.-[[User:Studoku|Studoku]] 14:06, 22 April 2010 (UTC)

:I believe that's expected behavior. The mood type, if I recall, is based on happiness of the dwarf, and thus should be consistent over loads. The type of craft is determined by their highest skill, unless they have no quality-based skill, in which case it's a toss up between useless woodcrafting, near-useless stonecrafting, and sweet sweet bonecarving. --[[User:Zombiejustice|Zombiejustice]] 14:20, 22 April 2010 (UTC)
::Mood types are ''generally'' not based on happiness and also not that hardwired to the state of the fort, meaning they are likely to change on reload. There are higher probabilities for some skills to get a mood and that makes it likely the same dwarf is chosen, esp. if the fort is small. There is a chance counter running down, usually resulting in a mood in the same time window on reload. What in fact has changed is that the item produced is determined on completion now, not on start out, allowing for even more <s>exploit</s> tweaking. --[[Special:Contributions/92.202.66.218|92.202.66.218]] 16:03, 28 April 2010 (UTC)

== Body Parts ==

Just got a fey mood dwarf sking for them. -[[User:Studoku|Studoku]] 00:22, 26 April 2010 (UTC)

:He means bones or turtle shells. Get him some. --[[User:Zombiejustice|Zombiejustice]] 02:01, 26 April 2010 (UTC)

:I think the word here is "or", I have a dwarf shouting for body parts while bones pile high around him, so I'm guessing it really is Bones '''or''' shell, not either. -The Anon

== Possible Bug ==

I'm having an issue where occasionally a dwarf won't collect items I'm 100% sure I have available, i.e. he'll get leather and then ask for more even when more is clearly there, he'll ask for bones/wood when there's a stockpile right next to him, etc. I've tried just about everything including manually dumping the needed supplies on the Craftdwarf's workshop. Nothing seems to work and since it's happened to me many times, I'm thinking bug.--[[Special:Contributions/69.149.72.106|69.149.72.106]] 05:45, 28 April 2010 (UTC)

:Dwarves in moods will continue to ask for the same list they started out asking for, regardless of which items they've already collected. They also collect them in order. So if he asks for:

*leather
*body parts
*plant cloth
*rough gems
*leather

:and he already has leather, bones, and plant cloth, he'll keep repeating the same list until rough gems are available, then go get them, then get more leather, then begin a mysterious construction.--[[User:Zombiejustice|Zombiejustice]] 12:19, 28 April 2010 (UTC)

::I may be seeing the same issue as above. I have a dwarf in a possessed mood locked in a workshop looking for:
::*rough...colour
::*stone...rock (has bauxite)
::*gems...shining (has indigo tourmalines)
::*tree...life (has palm logs)
::*bones...yes (has mule bones. I liked that mule)

::I'm unsure of the order they originally came up in, but of course I have uncut gems lying all over the place (including a store pile of cut and uncut gems about ten tiles away.)

::I'm also very new to DF, so I could be missing something. I'm going to save a copy of it as it is currently. [[User:Eddy the lip|Eddy the lip]] 19:25, 30 April 2010 (UTC)

:::He may want rough glass, instead of normal gems. Dwarves can be picky. --[[User:Zombiejustice|Zombiejustice]] 19:27, 30 April 2010 (UTC)
::::If he wanted raw glass, he should've been mumbling "raw... [green/clear/crystal]". It was only in the old 2D version where "rough gems" (and its secretive/possessed equivalents) could occasionally mean "raw glass". --[[User:Quietust|Quietust]] 19:54, 30 April 2010 (UTC)

::::Yeah, rough glass didn't do it. I suppose there's the possibility that he requires a specific kind of rough gem. He has a preference for moss opals (I only have jelly opals.) If I can find some, and that works, I'll post back. Otherwise, I'll have to get work on the catacombs! [[User:Eddy the lip|Eddy the lip]] 20:18, 30 April 2010 (UTC)

::::Burrows also affect moody dwarves. If you have only a rock stockpile designated for the poor guy, he's trying to find bones and gems from within that burrow (stockpile).

== Magma Workshops ==
So, I just a had a Glassmaker be possessed and be unwilling (unable?) to claim a Magma glass furnace. When I built a regular furnace, he claimed it just fine and went on about his business. Not sure if this applies to all other magma disciplines, but if you're having this problem, try building a regular one (then deconstruct it afterwards, I guess). [[User:Rodya mirov|Rodya mirov]]
: A magma forge worked for me. Just make sure it doesn't get unpowered after it has been claimed because the dwarf immediately ran amok when this happened. [[Special:Contributions/84.46.87.224|84.46.87.224]] 11:45, 9 May 2010 (UTC)

== Obsidian Farming SCIENCE ==
Someone needs to figure out definitely whether obsidian farming allows more moods.

== 'Nother Possible Bug ==
Today I was tending the fortress when my bookkeeper went into a secretive mood while on break in the dining hall. He did not claim a workshop, he did not sketch anything. He just sat there, slowly losing his mind until he finally went insane. I'm not sure what I did wrong. Right now the game is paused with the still-insane dwarf just sitting amongst all the others. I'm afraid to unpause it because I really don't want to see what's going to happen to the little bastard. [[User:PurelyAtomic|PurelyAtomic]]

:Later that year a different dwarf, a Stonecrafter, was possessed. He holed himself up in his workshop and made a Claystone scepter called the Stin Shadmal. It's worth a ridiculous amount. [[User:PurelyAtomic|PurelyAtomic]] 00:57, 12 May 2010 (UTC)

v0.31:Sparring

2010-05-11T23:58:15Z

PurelyAtomic: The "Caveats" section, in which it said that a dwarf will halt all civilian work permanently once it has trained in the military, is untrue as of the latest version of DF. just tested it with a miner.

{{av}}
{{Quality|Fine}}
''Note, this is a work in progress, add on and change as you see fit.''

'''Sparring''' is a form of (usually) non-lethal combat led by the squad commander to train {{L|soldier}}s in their combat skills in {{L|fortress mode}}. Sparring takes place at {{L|barracks}}; off-duty soldiers will engage in training activities, such as watching combat demonstrations and individual training drills with other off-duty soldiers.

To assign a soldier to sparring, you must schedule his or her squad to train. This is accomplished by opening the {{key|m}}ilitary screen, selecting the squad from the list, choosing to {{key|a}}lerts the selected squad, then assigning the squad to Active/Training (Or whatever you have named it) You must have at least one assigned training area, beds, weapon racks, and armor stands to name some.

== Equipment ==

When soldiers spar, they practice (and thereby gain experience) with whatever {{L|weapon}} and {{L|armor}} they have been assigned, including {{L|shield}}s. Thus, in order to train {{L|axedwarf|axedwarves}}, it is necessary to assign the recruits axes, and so forth with all other {{L|weapon}}s. The weapon you wish for them to spar with can be chosen through the {{K|m}}ilitary screen, and then the {{K|e}}quip selection.

== Injury ==

During sparring soldiers can get wounded, ranging from minor injuries to loss of ability. This cripples their training time, (Leading to death in real combat) or disables them to fight at all. To avoid injury you can

'''- Equip''' them with training weapons. However, there are only training axes, swords, and spears. Mace and hammer dwarves will have to use real weaponry. And during an ambush, it might be difficult to switch over to effective weapons. Therefore build your weapon stockpile close to the barracks.

'''- Equip''' them with armor, this lowers damage being received and allowing them to train with their armor.

Also note, healing injury caused by sparring is good experience for a new {{L|doctor}}.

== See also==

{{Military FAQ}}

v0.31 Talk:Strange mood

2010-05-11T23:11:23Z

PurelyAtomic: added some notes about a possible bug

v0.31:Ambusher

2010-05-11T17:35:12Z

PurelyAtomic: fixed a typo, 'mlitary' to 'military'

{{Quality|Fine}}
{{av}}
{{buggy|bugsection=Bugs}}
{{Skill
| color = #080
| skill = Ambusher
| specialty = Hunter
| profession = {{L|Ranger}}
| job name = Hunting
| tasks =
* Hunt
}}
{{L|Dwarves}} with the '''hunting''' {{L|labor}} enabled automatically use the '''ambusher''' skill while hunting outside of the fortress, which allows them to sneak up on their prey. The ambusher skill is listed among the 'misc' skills. Dwarves using the ambush skill move more slowly, but, if successful, cannot be seen by enemies. Once close enough, the ambusher skill is no longer relevant, and the hunter will engage in standard {{L|combat}} with their prey using their crossbow.

Since hunting is employed by players with varying success and your military will go after any game that looks at them funny anyway, you might be better off doing the good old 'hunt with your military'. After all, your military can be told to pick a specific target, and, more convenient, to ''stop'', too.

==Caveats==
A dwarf with the hunting labour enabled will sleep outside and drink water{{verify}}, causing unhappy thoughts{{verify}}. It may thus be necessary to watch the mood of a full-time hunter and take him off the job in time.

Animals will appear randomly on the edge of a map, especially once the map is cleared of all wildlife. This can result in your {{L|hoary marmot|marmot}} hunter suddenly having an unpleasant chitchat with an {{L|elephant}}, {{L|giant eagle}}, or worse.

==Adventurer mode {{verify}} ==
In {{L|adventurer mode}}, ambusher skill is gained by moving around while {{key|S}}neaking. This will greatly reduce your speed just as it does in dwarf mode, but will cause hostile {{L|creatures}} to not attack you. Until you un{{key|S}}neak or someone spots you, you will gain a small amount of {{L|experience}} in ambushing with every step. Presently, smashing a creature's skull in with your bare hands does not count as being spotted, so the best way to tell if you're still sneaking is to check your speed in the bottom right of the screen. Ambusher also helps prevent encounters from enemies while travelling on the world map{{verify}}.

== Hunting ==
A hunter picks a mark at random, which he then pursues, ignoring other animals and enemies{{verify}}. Hunters seem to switch marks under certain circumstances. As an ambusher gets closer to his prey, there is a greater and greater chance he or she will be spotted by the animal and stop ambushing. Higher skill allows dwarves to get closer before being spotted, and also increases the speed at which a dwarf can move while sneaking.

Generally, though not always(?), when the dwarf is within shooting range she will move to engage. From there, the ambusher skill has no effect, and only combat skills are used.

Upon killing the prey, a hunter will usually, though not always, carry it home{{verify}} to the {{L|butcher's shop}}{{verify}}. A hunter may kill other {{L|creatures}} that are closer to them than the fleeing mark he is intent on catching{{verify}}. They will ignore the accidental carcass and only bring home a carcass they have marked beforehand{{verify}}. This means that sometimes multiple dead critters per hunt will be lying about and start rotting around the map if you do not set the refuse orders to 'gather refuse from outside' ({{L|corpse}}s count as refuse). If you do this and have a good system of {{L|stockpile}}s, available dwarf haulers and a map free of menacing critters (like with calm {{L|surroundings}}), then you should have the outside of your fort just as tidy as the inside, and will be able to salvage the corpses. If you do that on the wrong map, you will see some dwarf carcasses added instead.

==Postprocessing==
The same caution is advised to the slaughtering process. Hunters will drop carcasses directly into the butchery{{verify}}, which will make it cluttered very fast. Animals upon being butchered explode into many many parts, and the clutter will make the {{L|butcher}} work many times slower. {{L|Stockpiles}} and {{L|haulers}} are required, or your animal corpses will rot even while in the butchery and you will lose the {{L|skin}}, {{L|meat}}, {{L|fat}} and ({{L|food}}). Bones and skulls can be salvaged even from rotting corpses{{verify}}. It can also happen that your butcher is not fast enough and some hauler takes a corpse from the butchery and puts it on a refuse pile{{verify}}. Usually this shouldn't be a problem as your butcher will pick it up from there - if the refuse pile is close by.

If you don't have a good stocking and hauling system, you will not get all of the kill, and the {{L|craftsdwarf}} unfortunate enough to need the bones from the rotted critters will have to go out alone several times to get them every time which places a huge strain on production speed and safety.

==Dogs==
You can assign {{L|Dog#Hunting_Dogs|hunting dog}}s to your {{L|hunter|hunter}}s, which can sneak alongside their masters and attack the hunter's prey. You can also assign {{L|Dog#War_Dogs|War dog}}s, which are much stronger and can help take down bigger game, but cannot sneak and may rush into combat early.

== Weapons and Tactics ==
You should consider training hunters in wrestling in order for them to defend themselves. Wrestling will help them to break the jaw-grips that the enemy critter places on him, and will help the dwarf wrestle on his own and even place his own jaw grips if both of his hands are incapacitated, and is the only option if a weapon is dropped or stuck in the animal. You should also consider training them in the {{L|Weapon skill|hammerdwarf}} skill, as a crossbow is used with this skill if an animal engages in melee against a marksdwarf, and hunters will fight to the death even if they run out of {{L|bolt}}s{{verify}}. Without bolts, he must fight with the butt of the crossbow, which functions similarly to a {{L|Dwarven_weapon#War_hammer|hammer}}.

Using your military to hunt can be safer and more efficient than using hunters, particularly if they are agile enough to simply outrun the creatures.

Be warned that hunters will not stop their current hunt if you disable their hunting labor; hence, your dwarf may end up hunting whatever creatures spawn next, with potentially suicidal results. This may be avoidable by disabling the labor while hunting or returning the kill.

== Free equipment ==
Any dwarf given ambusher skill at Novice level or better before embarking will get a free set of leather armor (leather armor, leather leggings, leather low or high boots, and leather helm or steel cap); a crossbow (made of copper, bronze, bismuth bronze, iron, or steel); and a quiver with 30-40 steel bolts. All of these items will be of ordinary {{L|quality|quality}}.

This equipment will only be given if ambusher is the dwarf's highest skill; a Proficient Ambusher/Proficient Cook will have {{L|farmer}} as a profession, and will not receive any equipment. However, ambushers with other {{L|ranger}} skills, even ones higher than their ambusher skill, will still receive this equipment{{verify}}, as will ambushers with {{L|military}} skills at any level{{verify}}. (Separately, military skills will not influence what equipment is given: speardwarves will arrive at the site carrying nothing, and speardwarf/ambushers will arrive with the crossbow given to all ambushers. {{L|Armor user|Armor user}} and {{L|shield user|shield user}} have no effect either.)

You can also get the freebies by giving a social/administration skilled dwarf a point in ambusher{{verify}}.

Any {{L|immigration|immigrating}} hunters will receive a full set of proper equipment{{verify}}.

A hunter armed with a {{L|crossbow}} will increase both his {{L|Marksman|marksdwarf}} and ambusher {{L|skill}}s.

==Bugs==
As of 31.01 there are several severe bugs logged in the bug tracker associated with the hunting labor.
* Hunters refuse to wear armor [http://bay12games.com/dwarves/mantisbt/view.php?id=76] {{verify}}
* When hunters run out of ammo, they will not re-equip. The hunting labor must be turned off and back on for them to do so [http://bay12games.com/dwarves/mantisbt/view.php?id=76] {{verify}}
* Migrant hunters sometimes arrive with the hunting labor turned off, causing them to drop their equipment at the edge of the map [http://bay12games.com/dwarves/mantisbt/view.php?id=110] {{verify}}

{{Skills}}
{{Category|Skills}}
{{Category|Jobs}}

v0.31:Autumn

2010-05-11T17:23:27Z

PurelyAtomic: added calendar redirect

#REDIRECT [[DF2010:Calendar]]

v0.31:Summer

2010-05-11T17:23:19Z

PurelyAtomic: added calendar redirect

#REDIRECT [[DF2010:Calendar]]

v0.31:Winter

2010-05-11T17:23:08Z

PurelyAtomic: added calendar redirect

#REDIRECT [[DF2010:Calendar]]

v0.31:Spring

2010-05-11T17:20:48Z

PurelyAtomic: added calendar redirect

#REDIRECT [[DF2010:Calendar]]