Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Mazonas]

Latest version.

Got an archery range set up, with targets set up with correct directions and the one marksdwarf squad set to train in there.  A channel has been dug in front of the targets to catch stray bolts.

Got a separate barracks made from an armour stand, containing a couple of weapon racks.  Barracks is set to train only, no sleep or equipment storage.  This barracks is designated for use only by my melee dwarves, NOT my marksdwarves..

Marksdwarf equipment/uniform is custom.  All copper armour uniform, with copper crossbows, using copper bolts set up for training only.  I previously tried setting copper bolts up for training and combat but that didn't work either.

Unit is set to active/training and has training time arranged on their schedule.

We have enough armour, crossbows and quivers to equip all members of the squad, and indeed they are all wandering around with full uniforms, bolts in quivers.

Despite all the above, none of my marksdwarves will enter the archery range to train.  I have no idea what I could have missed, and couldn't find any bug reports mentioning this for the current version.  Does anyone have any idea why my dwarves won't train?

[Patroclus]

If you have N marksdwarfs in your squad, set up at least N archery targets.

Make each one into a separate archery range (they can overlap), and assign it to your marksdwarf squad.

Do NOT assign your archer squad ANY other barracks!  Otherwise they will stand around watching dodging demonstrations, instead of learning how to put bolts in goblins from across a room.

Make sure your marksdwarf squad is active (m-a and set them to "Active/Training") and that it has the order "Train (10 minimum)".

Make sure your marksdwarf squad has been assigned crossbows. The default Archer costume works, although I use the following setup:
Leather Helm
Hood
Leather Armor
Leather Leggings
Cloak
Leather Gloves
Leather High Boots
Copper Shield
Copper Buckler
Crossbow

Again, if you have N dwarves make sure you have at least N of all these, along with quivers and waterskins.

For bolts, the default "Bolts[250] CT" works.  Make sure you have at least that many bolts in your fortress, and preferably many more; I turn on the Weaponsmith labor for every immigrant without a moodable skill, and have them turn out a stack of copper bolts before turning off the labor. (That way if they get a mood, they will hopefully turn out an artifact weapon instead of stupid bone crafts.  I have a magma forge filled with Craft Copper Bolts labors on repeat, and the Profile set for max skill to be "novice".)

You should get dwarves plunking away at the targets in short order.

Oh, I noticed you dug channels -- that screws things up pretty badly in my experience.  They need to be able to path to the archery target or they won't shoot.  I haven't played around with it in the newest version, maybe something like this would work:

Code: [Select]

#_.
#X_
#_.
#X_
#_.
#X_
#_.

Where # is a wall, X is an archery target, _ is a channeled space, and . is normal floor.  Obviously these would be set to shoot right to left. That way dwarves can path diagonally to the target, but if they hit it (or miss to either side) the bolt will fall into the channel.  Then set a ammo stockpile at the bottom of each channel.

[verdigriss]

Oh, I noticed you dug channels -- that screws things up pretty badly in my experience.  They need to be able to path to the archery target or they won't shoot.

THIS.  I think you need a straight line of walkable tiles between target and dwarf.  Channels and pits can save bolts, but I don't think you can do this for training, unless perhaps you have a bridge retract while the bolt is in flight or something.

[Mazonas]

Hi dude, thanks for the advice, but if you read my post above, I listed that I'd already done all of that already.  The channels shouldn't be messing up pathing, should they?  I didn't remove the ramps from the channel, and there's some rocks just behind the targets, and other dwarves are happily wandering over the channels to get to them.  So there is still a walkable path from dwarf to target.

I've played this game for a few years and it's only recently I've started having issues getting them to train with archery.  It doesn't make any sense to me.

[GhostDwemer]

Don't use channels or any sort of bolt recovery. Just don't, unless you plan on remelting all those bolts. Your entire fort will be doing nothing but storing bolts, your marksdwarves will be doing nothing but collecting bolts. I'm pretty sure you DO need a straight line path from archer to target with no intervening channels. Why would you have a channel between your target and marksdwarf anyhow? It wouldn't do anything. Bolts that hit the target break. If you are doing the bolt recovery thing (WHY?!? For Armok's sake, why?) you want channels on either side of the target, not in between archer and target!

[Rude]

In my experience:

#X_....

Does NOT work. They won't train. You could put channels on either side and that would work. (or put it on top of a tower and see how far bolts go...)

I don't know if this would work:

#X_
#_.
#X_
#_.

 Also, there is some wonkiness about archers training and sometimes it just doesn't seem to work.

And I have to agree with GhostDwemer: bolt recovery will ruin your hauling industry. And if your hunters make a mess chasing rabbits, please resist the urge to mass reclaim 2 years worth of unbroken bolts. I can pretty much guarantee you the next goblin seige will arrive before you are done recollecting them even if you have more haulers than the world cat population and then you will probably not resist the urge to reclaim the poor dead bolt chasers' socks... And 3 stacks of 1 bolt each in a quiver is mostly useless anyways.

[lemmily]

I don't know if this has been mentioned i didn't read all of the replies but;

channelling in FRONT of the target doesn't work in my experience. channelling a row behind works well though  and make sure the direction on the archery target is right too!

[Mazonas]

Heh

Thanks guys, guess it must be the channels, then! I'll remove them and just deal with losing the odd bolts. 

[GhostDwemer]

Bolt recovery is the biggest waste of time, ever. People do bolt recovery and then ask "Why won't my marksdwarves train?" Uhm, maybe because they are spending all their time picking up 25 individual stacks of one bolt instead of training? I mean, do you think they are going to get all 25 stacks from the same stockpile? Hahaha, you wish. Also, you think that when a bolt drops on a stockpile, it is stored? Hahaha, you wish. Every single bolt will be picked up and placed somewhere else.

Just say no to bolt recovery unless you are doing the candy factory thing.

[masquerine]

When I was testing out the archery range, I tried it with and without channels. As the others have mentioned, the dwarf that uses the range must have a clear, flat path to the target or it'll refuse to use it. You can put channels behind, beside and on the diagonals of the target but must keep the path to the target.

If you wanted to save bolts, this would work (shooting from right to left)
^=ramp, X=target, _=floor tile
^^^^^^
^X_____
^^^^^^
Personally though, I prefer to just keep my marksdwarves in a military squad but NOT set to train. Whenever anything hostile remotely comes close to the fort entrance maze (made of fortifications and bridges to seal enemies in), I station them above and let them rain bolts on the enemy. I've only lost a few in a couple years early on  to some goblin ambushers, but it has produced legendary marksdwarves without having to worry about archery targets.

On the plus side, you can do this for any dwarf and they will remain in uniform. They will also fight enemies that they would normally be afraid of when carrying out tasks (as they are already in a military squad, are in uniform and can fight back without having to issue a station or kill order). They won't chase enemies across the map, but they'll attack enough to make them flee or leave the desired work area.

Having everyone in a military uniform gives them at least a chance of fighting back instead of running and letting the enemies kill them for free. As long as you don't issue a station order they shouldn't complain about being drafted I don't think, and don't set them to train. My stationed squad complained about being drafted from time to time, but they got over it quickly.

As for the killing field, I put the ammo stockpile below the roof in a sealed area so they can restock without being seen. Seemed to work fine and dwarves would grab enough loose bolts to make a complete stack before going back to the roof.

[RAKninja]

the draft thought is caused by not having a skill high enough to be anything other than "recruit", much the same as the "relieved of duty" bad thought only applies when the dwarf in question has no skills and is a peasant.

you may have known this, but your tone suggested otherwise.