Dwarf Fortress: One Dwarf, One Dream

[Destro_Yersul]

The wagons pulled up on the edge of a hill, and the seven dwarves looked across at the mountain ahead of them. Their leader, a dwarf named Zasit Regdakost, smiled. "My friends!" He said, his voice booming, "Here is where we will found our settlement, for the glory of us all. I shall go on ahead and start digging out our rooms. The rest of you, unload the wagons." He took his pick in hand and started off down the hill, the others looking about nervously.

"So, how do we tell him?" That was Urist, a dwarf well-known for worrying about everything. Ever since some other dwarf with the same name had gone bonkers and started killing everyone who so much as tried to visit her fortress, Urist had been on the receiving end of more funny looks than he was comfortable with.

"I suppose we'll just have to do it." Minkot spared a glance inside the wagon, hoping there would be something there. But as before, the only thing left inside was an anvil. "All the things we brought, though.. what happened to them?"

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n199/ArtemistheHunter/Dwarf%20Fortress/Startingstuff.png?t=1257161944

"Armok take me if I know," Urist sighed and walked off down the hill. Zasit was at the bottom chipping inexpertly at the wall of rock. "Zasit? The wagons are, er, empty."

"What!? What happened to our supplies?"

"I don't know." Urist replied miserably. "Maybe they fell off?"

"Maybe... we came from the north. Take the others and go looking, and don't come back till you have everything!"

***

"We never should have come here."

"Quit your worrying, Urist. I'm sure the supplies are just over the crest here." Lorbam was a cheerful dwarf, more optimistic than most of her race. Their party of six crested the hill, and looked down at the flats beyond. "Oh." Her face fell slightly. There was still no sign of the supplies.

"Hey, are those statues?" Minkot was staring west, at a trio of what appeared to be very ugly statues.

"Looks like it." Urist agreed.

"Oh, we should go get them! Maybe they were left behind by an ancient civilization, and Zasit will be so pleased to see them that he'll forget about the supplies!"

"I don't..." But Lorbam had already run off, and the others had no choice but to follow her.

Suddenly, one of the statues looked up. It spread its wings and took flight, the other two close behind it. Lorbam screamed and turned to run, but the things swept down and tore her apart as if she were a wooden toy soldier.

"Oh Armok! I told you! I told you we shouldn't have come!" Urist's world filled with screaming and pain, the winged horrors making short work of his friends.

***

Zasit smiled to himself as the screaming reached his ears. It had been so easy to convince those fools to come along with him. The idiot king back at the mountainhall wouldn't approve single dwarves for expeditions, so Zasit had needed to find some willing lackeys. And with a few lies and a few more carefully chosen words, he had found them.

Of course, now that he was here, he didn't need their help. He had his cat, he had his wits, and he would build a fortress from which he could rule this world. A fortress many stories tall, from which he could look out over his domain and laugh. Any who didn't bow to him would fall, and any who did bow... well, he could find uses for them.

The traps, after all, would need testing.

[Celesyne]

Just dropping a line to let you know I will be reading this if you continue on with it. and to give it a little bumperoo to keep it on the main page.

(by the way, nice writing, definately has good character voice.)

[Bouregard]

One Dwarf. So what do you do as soon as he dies from old age?
Should be pretty cool.

[Arachu]

Well, obviously there shall be an apprentice. Same as there will inevitably need to be another cat...

You're going without an axe? :smalleek:
This is gonna be fun :smallbiggrin:

I suggest disarming and personally killing anything and everything you catch in a cage trap, so you can get a ridiculously oversized title :emoticon:(:smalltongue:)

(should've broken my lurking streak and posted first day -.-)

[Destro_Yersul]

Thanks for the comments, guys. Writers feed on comments, you know. They sustain us. Without comments, I do not write, because I dislike double posting >.> And yes, no axe. He won't really need one, if I am not mistaken. Can't remember if there's magma or not. And anyways, he can always make himself one using the wood from the wagon.

[hr]

It didn't take Zasit long to carve himself out a small cave in the mountain. This, he told himself, was just the beginning. The next step was getting what supplies he had into the cave and away from prying eyes. It wouldn't do for anyone to discover him before he was ready. He walked back to the wagon and systematically dismantled it, carrying the logs carefully back to his cave. The anvil came next, though that took longer, because it was heavier.

By then his tomach was rumbling, and he eyed the animals they had brought with them. Then he took some of the logs and set up a simple butcher's shop.

They never saw it coming.

The edible bits were carefully stored in his cave, which, he noted, was unfortunately open to the elements. Well, he could fix that. A hammer here, some nails there, and it wasn't long before he had the butcher's re purposed to a masonry. Some stones left over from mining out the cave were chiseled into rough doors and set in place. They weren't very good doors, Zasit thought. He'd have to get better ones for his true fortress. No matter, though. Good doors would come with time. These ones would serve to keep him and his cat safe from the...

his cat. Where was his cat? Zasit searched frantically, calling its name, promising it a treat if it came back to him. Then he heard a horrible feline screech, and rushed over the hill.

Below, one of the winged statues was chasing the cat across the field. Zasit could only watch as it descended, took the tiny creature in its talons, and dashed it against the stones. He choked back a cry and fled, eager to avoid the same fate.

They had killed his cat. He would get another cat, yes, but that had been his cat. And they had killed it.

They would be the first to pay.

But... he was tired. Even through his rage, Zasit could tell that he needed to sleep soon. He hammered some more logs together, and then dragged the last pile out of the cave and started to fashion a bed. Once he had an axe, he would be able to cut more logs. But to get an axe, he would need the two sets he was currently using for workshops for fuel.

He could not afford to use them up. He could feel himself drifting off just as he put the finishing touches on the bed. He collapsed into it, sleep taking him, without even bothering to drag it out of the shop.

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n199/ArtemistheHunter/Dwarf%20Fortress/Thebeginning.png?t=1257436051

[TheSummoner]

Dude... what the hell is wrong with you?

You do NOT let the cat die!

[Destro_Yersul]

It's not my fault. Darn thing wandered off before I could lock it inside, and I couldn't exactly chase the gargoyle away.

[ObadiahtheSlim]

Vermin hunters are very hard to lock in your fort.

[Lunix Vandal]

Eh. In my experience, all it takes is an indoor food stockpile, with a dwarf stationed nearby. This (seems to) cause the vermin attracted to said pile to become (more) visible, drawing cats in. Once they're all safely inside, set all the doors to Not Pet Passable, or raise the Dwarven Atom Smasher (bridge, set to raise rather than retract) you've cleverly disguised as the fort's main-slash-only entrance. Of course, that still leaves the small issue of getting the doors/DAS set up before the cats decide to become gargoyle/harpy/carp/ogre/whathaveyou bait.

Side note: if the hides from the butcherfest haven't spoiled by the time Zasit wakes up, you might want to have him tan them for some basic armor or bags (for storage).

[Arachu]

The cat is dead.

They broke your cat.

You must end them. :miko:

I suggest sacrificing them to the imps of the magma you may or may not have.

... Assuming they're the "things made of stone" type and not the "spirits of fire trapped in stone" type...

At any rate, they have the potential to be some big guard dogs if it comes to that.

Search your heart, you know it to be true -.-

[TheSummoner]

Teach them to fear cats. Tame some lions or something.

[Bouregard]

Just curious but shouldn't your single dwarf throw a tantrum now? I mean he lost all his fellow assistant who helped pushing the car and now the pet *sniff*


On the other hand it would be pretty easy to cater to the needs of a single dwarf. I just hope for you a archer didn't get lucky later.

[TheSummoner]

I dunno... considering that one dwarf has to provide for that one dwarf's needs entirely by himself using skills that he knows himself, it might not be as easy as you think.

[Bouregard]

Oh no. Don't let it die. I really want to see how Urist declares war to the lefen race and fends of a siege single handed *hrhr*

[Myshlaevsky]

Don't give up, Zasit! The Dwarven gods smile on doomed ambition.

(Or: I'm reading with interest. I hope it goes well. Please continue.)

[Arachu]

You cannot die. Not until you burn the heretics. FEEL THE HATRED!

Besides, your cat's still miffed about being dead, and you need to avenge him.

Crush smash crush kill crush destroy revenge crush clinch...

[Destro_Yersul]

Sorry! I promise I haven't forgotten about this. Just been busy with work. New update, though!

[hr]

Immediately upon waking up, Zasit was thirsty. He regretted the need to dump the booze with the other supplies, but there was no way he was going to go looking for it now. It would have to be water for him. He took a short walk over to the river, and noticed the flying statues hovering a short distance away.

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n199/ArtemistheHunter/Dwarf%20Fortress/Gargoyles.png

They would pay. They would pay for the loss of his cat.

But he could not do that work himself, not yet, and so the first order of business was to move everything he could inside. Zasit was confident that statues couldn't open doors.

He busied himself carving out a series of workshop sized rooms and setting up some basic shops. The mason's and carpenter's were finished first, and he quickly disassembled the wooden ones outside, carting the logs inside to put in a stockpile. With that done, he also set up a wood furnace and a kitchen. There were things that would need cooking, and of course he would have to get himself a hatchet before long.

Four shops were enough for now. Next order of business was digging himself out a bedroom. He made it large, but not too ostentatious. This was, after all, only for now. The true bedroom would be much nicer. After a seconds though he added himself a dining room as well. He could make chairs and tables for it later.

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n199/ArtemistheHunter/Dwarf%20Fortress/Thefort1.png

He would also need to make himself a well. Drinking from the river was no good. Couldn't do that just yet, but he could at least channel the water over so he'd be ready when he could. He picked a likely spot and started digging.

The tunnel proceeded smoothly, until he struck a point where the walls were filled with little chunks of ore.

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n199/ArtemistheHunter/Dwarf%20Fortress/Welltunnel.png

Magnetite! And he was sure that the stone he had dug the shops out of was chalk. He had everything here to make steel! The other dwarves would surely bow before his rule now. It was a shame that he had no magma, but then one could not have everything. There were plenty of trees, in any case. He would need to see about setting up a tree farm outside, so that the flying statues couldn't get him while he chopped them down.

Fortunately, the were still hovering south of him, not coming any closer. He felt safe enough to try gathering some more food, and so he made one last trip outside to strip some bushes for edible things. The trip wasn't fruitful, but he did at least find a handful of olives.

He'd have to add a small farm plot to that tree farm. Tomorrow, though. Right now, he was tired, and he had much to plan...

[Ilena]

This is deeply interesting .... i wonder how well one dwarf will survive .. i look forward to seeing more :P

[druid91]

this is awesome. though you should probably have a ready supply of shells and other random supplys in case of moods.

[Mewtarthio]

You can't get moods with a single dwarf. I think the cutoff is around twenty or so before they start.

[Zeful]

You don't start getting moods until 20 dwarves.

@Destro:
Are you going to be killing the caravans?

[TheSummoner]

I'd like to see a source for that, I smell shenanegans.

[Zeful]

I'd like to see a source for that, I smell shenanegans.

At least 20 active dwarves. (http://www.dwarffortresswiki.net/index.php/Moods#Conditions)

[TheSummoner]

I see. Then my claim of shenanegans was unfounded.

[ObadiahtheSlim]

At least 20 active dwarves. (http://www.dwarffortresswiki.net/index.php/Moods#Conditions)

It isn't active dwarves, it is 20 moodable dwarves. If you get 20 dwarves, 1 of them is a champion, then you only got 19 moodable dwarves. If the dungeon master then shows up, you got 21 dwarves, but only 19 moodable ones.

[Destro_Yersul]

@Destro:
Are you going to be killing the caravans?

At this point it's really a toss up between 'kill' and 'I didn't build a trade depot so maybe they'll just go away' and 'I hope the gargoyles get them so I can swipe some of their goodies'

Only way I'd really have to kill them anyways is an atom smasher or a drowning chamber. Might set up a drowning chamber at some point, actually. I think I even have a chasm to drain it into. Farms first, though. Farms, then booze, then axe, then industry, then elaborate deathtraps, then giant fortress of doom, then ultimate revenge on all who so much as looked at me funny.

[Bouregard]

So? What happend to our BBED? (Big Bad Evil Dwarf)?

[Destro_Yersul]

I had some computer trouble, and only recently got the bloody thing fixed. Haven't had much time to play as such, but I'll do some more shortly.