Shell - Revision history

108.85.197.99: /* Uses */ link to Bone#Bone_armor

2026-02-15T00:11:22Z

Uses: link to Bone#Bone_armor

Zippy: Added colored figurine sprites

2026-02-08T22:47:28Z

Added colored figurine sprites

CWillBloom: added wikilinik to creature

2025-03-03T19:09:37Z

added wikilinik to creature

CWillBloom: added wikilink to cage

2025-03-03T18:46:01Z

added wikilink to cage

Silverwing235: /* Adding shells to existing creatures */ not in v50-51.06, they don't

2025-02-27T20:50:32Z

Adding shells to existing creatures: not in v50-51.06, they don't

Jecowa: /* Uses */ wiki linking

2025-02-27T20:34:02Z

Uses: wiki linking

Silverwing235: /* Adding shells to existing creatures */

2025-02-27T19:57:17Z

Adding shells to existing creatures

Quietust: fix awkward grammar - also, they don't "stop trading with you", they just get angry and leave (and will usually still trade with you next year unless you do it multiple years in a row)

2025-02-27T19:07:25Z

fix awkward grammar - also, they don't "stop trading with you", they just get angry and leave (and will usually still trade with you next year unless you do it multiple years in a row)

Silverwing235 at 18:33, 27 February 2025

2025-02-27T18:33:00Z

Silverwing235 at 16:39, 27 February 2025

2025-02-27T16:39:15Z

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 ==Uses==
-Shells can be worked by a dwarf with the [[bone carver]] [[skill]]. They can be used for many of the same purposes as [[bone]], such as in making [[crafts]], [[decoration]]s, and cheap, lightweight, low-defense [[armor]] ([[leggings]] (''or, as some would put it,"[[shleggings]]"''), [[gauntlet]]s, and [[helm]]s only). Notably, unlike bones, they cannot be used to produce [[bolt]]s.
+Shells can be worked by a dwarf with the [[bone carver]] [[skill]]. They can be used for many of the same purposes as [[bone]], such as in making [[crafts]], [[decoration]]s, and cheap, lightweight, (very!) low-defense [[armor]] (limited to [[leggings]] (''or, as some would put it,"[[shleggings]]"''), [[gauntlet]]s, and [[helm]]s only*). Notably, unlike bones, they cannot be used to produce [[bolt]]s.
 Shells can be stored in a [[stockpile#Refuse|refuse stockpile]]. Stored shells will decay over time due to [[vermin]], but even a small fishing industry can produce many shells very quickly. As such, having a bone carver on hand to convert them to trade goods can be an effective way to generate wealth early on; even though shells have a low innate material value, quantity can win out over quality here. Also, shell armor is better than nothing and doesn't slow down your military like metal armor does – consider producing some early on if you can't immediately acquire metal armor.</onlyinclude>

@@ Line 25: / Line 25: @@
 {| class="wikitable" style="border-width: medium; border-collapse:separate;"
 ! Color(s)
 ! Name
 ! Creature(s) with this shell color
 |-
-| bgcolor="#FF0000" | &nbsp; || bgcolor="#F8F9FA" | Solid Red || [[Moon snail|Moon Snail]]
+| bgcolor="#FF0000" | &nbsp; || [[File:figurine_moon_snail.png|center]] || bgcolor="#F8F9FA" | Solid Red || [[Moon snail|Moon Snail]]
 |-
-| bgcolor="#964B00" | &nbsp; || Solid Brown || [[Snail]] and [[Desert tortoise|Desert Tortoise]]
+| bgcolor="#964B00" | &nbsp; || [[File:figurine_snail.png|center]] || Solid Brown || [[Snail]] and [[Desert tortoise|Desert Tortoise]]
 |-
-| bgcolor="#C2B280" | &nbsp; || Solid Ecru || [[Giant tortoise|Giant Tortoise]]
+| bgcolor="#C2B280" | &nbsp; || [[File:figurine_ecru.png|center]] || Solid Ecru || [[Giant tortoise|Giant Tortoise]]
 |-
 | style="padding:0; margin:0; height:100%;" |
@@ Line 38: / Line 39: @@
 | bgcolor="#808080" style="position:relative; width:50%; height:100%;" | &nbsp; || bgcolor="#FFC0CB" style="position:relative; width:50%; height:100%;" | &nbsp;
 |}
-|| Mottled with Gray and Pink || [[Armadillo]]
+|| [[File:figurine_armadillo.png|center]] || Mottled with Gray and Pink || [[Armadillo]]
 |-
 | style="padding:0; margin:0; height:100%;" |
@@ Line 44: / Line 45: @@
 | bgcolor="#964B00" style="position:relative; width:50%; height:100%;" | &nbsp; || bgcolor="#FFFFFF" style="position:relative; width:50%; height:100%;" | &nbsp;
 |}
-|| Stripes of Brown and White || [[Nautilus]]
+|| [[File:figurine_nautilus.png|center]] || Stripes of Brown and White || [[Nautilus]]
 |-
-| bgcolor="#013220" | &nbsp; || Solid Dark Green || [[common snapping turtle|Common Snapping Turtle]], [[Alligator snapping turtle|Alligator Snapping Turtle]] and [[Pond turtle|Pond Turtle]]
+| bgcolor="#013220" | &nbsp; || [[File:figurine_pond.png|center]] || Solid Dark Green || [[common snapping turtle|Common Snapping Turtle]], [[Alligator snapping turtle|Alligator Snapping Turtle]] and [[Pond turtle|Pond Turtle]]
 |-
-| bgcolor="#808080" | &nbsp; || Solid Gray || [[Mussel]] and [[Oyster]]
+| bgcolor="#808080" | &nbsp; || [[File:figurine_sprite.png|center]] || Solid Gray || [[Mussel]] and [[Oyster]]
 |}

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 [[File:shell_preview.png|right]]
-A '''shell''' is a hard external covering used by certain creatures for defense. As obtaining shells implies killing the creature that created it (like [[mussel]]s), [[Elf|elven]] merchants will be greatly offended if you try to give them any items crafted from shells.
+A '''shell''' is a hard external covering used by certain [[creature]]s for defense. As obtaining shells implies killing the creature that created it (like [[mussel]]s), [[Elf|elven]] merchants will be greatly offended if you try to give them any items crafted from shells.
 ==Acquiring shells==

@@ Line 9: / Line 9: @@
 [[File:Shells.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Assorted shells.]]In most cases, they are acquired as part of your [[fishing]] industry: dwarves may catch shelled [[vermin]] critters such as [[turtle]]s, [[oyster]]s, and [[mussel]]s, which produce a shell when processed at a [[fishery]] or if left to rot long enough after being caught, and from [[butcher]]ing a few land animals, such as [[armadillo]]s, [[desert tortoise]]s, [[giant animal|giant]] forms of many shell-bearing vermin, and, with luck, [[forgotten beast|certain]] [[titan|fun]] [[demon|creatures]].
-Be aware that shells cannot easily be acquired via [[trading]] – any non-caged turtles, crustaceans, or shellfish purchased from traders have already been processed, and their shells removed. As a result, fortresses with no naturally occurring above-ground fishing sites can struggle to acquire shells. This can cause problems if a shell-preferring [[strange mood|moody]] dwarf requests shells as a material. To avoid the risk of dwarves attempting to make impossible artifacts, you can catch pond turtles by having [[fisherdwarf|fisherdwarves]] fish in an outdoor [[pond]]. As long as there is a population of pond turtles in the area, your fisherdwarves will eventually catch some, which can be shelled in a [[fishery]]. Alternatively, you may be able to [[animal training|capture]] or trade for tortoises, armadillos, or other '''non-vermin''' shell-bearing creatures for the purposes of animal husbandry. Procedurally-generated creatures that have shells will also provide a stack of shells{{verify}} when butchering - if this is your only source of shells, be sure to save them for strange moods.
+Be aware that shells cannot easily be acquired via [[trading]] – any non-[[cage]]d turtles, crustaceans, or shellfish purchased from traders have already been processed, and their shells removed. As a result, fortresses with no naturally occurring above-ground fishing sites can struggle to acquire shells. This can cause problems if a shell-preferring [[strange mood|moody]] dwarf requests shells as a material. To avoid the risk of dwarves attempting to make impossible artifacts, you can catch pond turtles by having [[fisherdwarf|fisherdwarves]] fish in an outdoor [[pond]]. As long as there is a population of pond turtles in the area, your fisherdwarves will eventually catch some, which can be shelled in a [[fishery]]. Alternatively, you may be able to [[animal training|capture]] or trade for tortoises, armadillos, or other '''non-vermin''' shell-bearing creatures for the purposes of animal husbandry. Procedurally-generated creatures that have shells will also provide a stack of shells{{verify}} when butchering - if this is your only source of shells, be sure to save them for strange moods.
 {{catbox}}
 Whichever process you use will likely take a significant amount of time, so make sure you do it ''before'' the strange mood strikes.

@@ Line 63: / Line 63: @@
 #Add the [USE_TISSUE_TEMPLATE:SHELL:SHELL_TEMPLATE] tag to the [BODY_DETAIL_PLAN:STANDARD_TISSUES] section
 #Add the [BODY_DETAIL_PLAN:SHELL_POSITIONS] tag to the creature
-#If you wish to apply this change to a game in progress, remember to also alter the copy of creature_domestic.txt contained in your saves folder, as each game has its own copies of the raws.
+#If you wish to apply this change to a game in progress, remember to also alter the copy of creature_domestic.txt contained in your saves folder.
 Slaughtering a cow should now produce a "Stray Cow shell" usable by dwarves stuck in strange moods.

@@ Line 66: / Line 66: @@
 Slaughtering a cow should now produce a "Stray Cow shell" usable by dwarves stuck in strange moods.
-Pay attention, that editing creature after creating world may cause later crashes when changing game's version. In fact, after porting the save to the modified version, the game will crash every time your dwarves try picking up the skeleton that previously had shell. It's '''strongly''' recommended to use the second way, as it doesn't add any new body part to creatures, but only adds a new way of using an already existing body part, which is much less crash provoking.
+Pay attention, that editing creature after creating world may cause later crashes when changing game's version. In fact, after porting the save to the modified version, the game will crash every time your dwarves try picking up the skeleton that previously had shell. It's '''strongly''' recommended to use the second way, as it doesn't add any new body part to creatures, but only adds a new way of using an already existing body part, which is much less crash-provoking.
 === Enabling other materials to be used in moods ===