Bay 12 Games Forum

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

Author Topic: Recurring foes.  (Read 784 times)

Freki

  • Bay Watcher
    • View Profile
Recurring foes.
« on: July 18, 2009, 09:28:13 pm »

In one of my first Orc sieges, a particularly fast Mace Lord managed to dart across my bridge before I had a chance to retract it - seizing the door to my fort and proceeding to beat the crap out of my melee recruits and several civilians (a bunch of who are now invalids for life). Eventually his squad was cut down around him and he retreated - but a marksdwarf got a good shot in and took out his left eye, with the bolt lodging in the wound.

Every siege since then he's shown up with a squad - he must be particularly lucky, as my marksdwarves have shot down local leader swordmasters, master lashers and other sorts but he's repeatedly escaped with his life. The amusing part is ... he shows up every time with a metal crossbow bolt sticking out of his head! :D I knew that severed body parts would show up with recurring siegers, but I've never a multi-siege crossbow bolt.

Anyone else have fun experiences with returning siegers?
Logged

durt101

  • Bay Watcher
    • View Profile
Re: Recurring foes.
« Reply #1 on: July 19, 2009, 01:36:23 am »

Nope, because I set up a chokepoint which they must pass through. This chokepoint is 3 tiles wide. I have 3 ballistae set up at the far end, for an obvious purpose.
Seriously dude you have TRAPS so that people can't rush you.
Logged

milaga

  • Bay Watcher
  • No Job
    • View Profile
Re: Recurring foes.
« Reply #2 on: July 19, 2009, 03:17:00 am »

Yes.

Atu Snataru. An elite bowgoblin. In the spring of '48 he was a mere Lieutenant to the goblin spearmaster Zolok. However, he proved himself quite worthy. During a siege of about 30 foes he lead a squad of bowgoblins. They crept towards the front gate of my above-ground fort, hugging the wall for cover. He fired up through a fortification and killed a gate marksdwarf guard. I pulled all my marksdwarves back to defend the main gate. He and his squad stopped just short of our traps, two z-levels down and a good 10 squares away and peppered the main gate towers. Of the eight marksdwarves stationed in the main towers, four lost their lives and two had to retire from service.

From what I now understand of ranged combat mechanics, those kills and wounds were all almost certainly from the elite.

They were so close to breaking through, but a group of wrestlers tried to rush past them and got cut down. Having taken enough casualties they gave up. Their leader retreated without ever seeing battle. Then in the winter of '48 Atu was back, only this time there were almost three times as many goblins. And Atu was their leader! I think there were about 10 bowgoblins but around 20 crossbowgoblins. The ranged firepower was truly terrifying, so the drawbridge was raised until a plan could be formulated.

The dwarves fell back inside and carved fortifications out of the walls behind the main corridor. The new trade path would travel underneath the fortifications via ramps. All the marksdwarves stood behind the fortifications, ready to riddle anything that survived the traps with arrows.

The first squad of wrestlers fell to the traps and a hail of bolts. And this is what I think turned the tide ... their ammunition used up, the marksdwarves reached behind them to an ammo stockpile and grabbed steel bolts! By the time Atu's squad reached the gates, the steel bolts were loaded ... no more wussy bone bolts. Despite the fact that most of the stonefall traps had been triggered, the bowgoblin squad made no progress and they were all cut down.Atu survived three (!!!) stonefall trap hits and a hail of bolts before retreating out of range. I had to send some axedwarves after him to finish the job, and he managed to take out one of their eyes with a bolt before falling.

I don't think there is any way to examine the kills of enemies, but I am pretty certain he killed at least five of my dwarves.

Alas, none of Tradesnarl's artifacts depict this battle. Most depict mundane things like the first dwarf to fall into the chasm or a swallowman that stumbled apon a kobold thief and was subsequently killed.

EDIT: Before the first battle with Atu I had never lost a marksdwarf that was behind a fortification. And he slaughtered my militia like they were standing in the open. I have a new found respect for elite ranged units.
« Last Edit: July 19, 2009, 03:21:40 am by milaga »
Logged
Thanks for that...  now I have the image of Urist McBooger walking up to me with a creepy smile and asking me if I want a "dwarven shower".

Rowanas

  • Bay Watcher
  • I must be going senile.
    • View Profile
Re: Recurring foes.
« Reply #3 on: July 19, 2009, 07:06:21 am »

That's why I only use fortifications inside my outer wall. Things first have to breach and capture my outer walls in order to even get a shot off, which gives my melee force a short distance to walk in order to attack.
Logged
I agree with Urist. Steampunk is like Darth Vader winning Holland's Next Top Model. It would be awesome but not something I'd like in this game.
Unfortunately dying involves the amputation of the entire body from the dwarf.

Elliott_Thinas

  • Bay Watcher
    • View Profile
Re: Recurring foes.
« Reply #4 on: July 19, 2009, 10:30:50 am »

Nope, because I set up a chokepoint which they must pass through. This chokepoint is 3 tiles wide. I have 3 ballistae set up at the far end, for an obvious purpose.
Seriously dude you have TRAPS so that people can't rush you.
I'm sure that would be the easiest thing to do but using traps and choke points is boring for me. I like to use dwarven soldiers to battle my orcan enemies, with the occasional magma trap or cage trap to generate a few prisoners.
Logged
I got me a breeding pair of Han Solos.

Rowanas

  • Bay Watcher
  • I must be going senile.
    • View Profile
Re: Recurring foes.
« Reply #5 on: July 19, 2009, 03:22:09 pm »

the way you phrased that it sounded like you were using magma traps to get prisoners. Magma leaves no prisoners unless you're going han solo on them :D
Logged
I agree with Urist. Steampunk is like Darth Vader winning Holland's Next Top Model. It would be awesome but not something I'd like in this game.
Unfortunately dying involves the amputation of the entire body from the dwarf.

kilakan

  • Bay Watcher
    • View Profile
Re: Recurring foes.
« Reply #6 on: July 19, 2009, 08:01:33 pm »

I had a troll that came with the goblins which got a iron bolt stuck in each limb and has come back every siege since. Finally I captured him and got my bolts back via wrestling dwarf twisting squad. ;D
Logged
Nom nom nom