You might want to consider giving many of your blob and slime creatures the [CURIOUSBEAST_GUZZLER] token. I say this because
beer is a rich source of dietary silicon. So dwarves have another reason to fear these creatures!
And I hereby
propose that the only type of gem that blobs, slimes, jellies and the like can naturally produce is opal. My reasoning:
* There are 27 different types of opal in Dwarf Fortress. (Yes I counted them!) And they come in a variety of colors. See my color list below.
* Most opals have a material value of either 10 or 20. The exception is black opal, with a material value of 30. I'd say that either 10 or 20 is far better than the 2 which a lot of low-value gems have, but it's still a far cry from the 60 that diamonds and star rubies/sapphires have. It seems like a happy medium.
* Precious opal is composed of microscopic silica spheres in a close-packed lattice. It is an amorphous form of silicon dioxide. Cementing together microscopic silica spheres sounds like something that could be produced by a silicon lifeform at near room temperature. (Creating other types of gems in real life requires high temperatures and/or enormous pressure.)
* Opal is a
mineraloid, meaning it is a non-crystaline mineral-like substance. Several types of mineraloids are produced in nature by or from living things, including pearls, amber (fossilized tree resin), lignite (fossilized wood), and petroleum.
* Opal's structure is amorphous (shapeless). What could be a more fitting gem for an amorphous creature?
* Chemically, opal is hydrated silica, meaning the stone contains a significant amount of water. I would imagine that gelatinous blobs, slimes and jellies would be made up of mostly water - much like any lifeform on Earth is mostly water.
Trivia: Obsidian glass is mostly amorphous silicon dioxide, too. But glass is a solid solution, not a mineraloid.Aside from dropping opals, I think the dwarven workshop you mentioned should allow dwarves to obtain other silicon-based gems. Dwarves seem highly innovative and the high temperatures from their furnaces and magma forges might be enough to grow synthetic gemstones from silicon-based goo.
Here's my updateded color chart proposal:
Light Gray = Malt (like malted barley hops) or Sweet CreamOpals:
bone opal; value=10
shell opal; value=10
(Note: This creature should have the [BONECARN] token so it seeks out bones and other remains to consume. Mineral-wise, bones are
not silicon-based. However, they probably need to supplement their nutrition. Also, bones and other organs contain
orthosilicic acid, which a silicon-based lifeform might find appetizing.)
Other silicon-based gems:
clear garnet; value=20
gray chalcedony; value=2
dendritic agate; value=2
Dark Gray = ChocolateOpals:
onyx opal; value=10
Other silicon-based gems:
black zircon; value=20
black pyrope; value=20
melanite; value=15
onyx; value=2
morion; value=2
schorl; value=2
Red = StrawberryOpals:
red flash opal; value=20
cherry opal; value=10
Other silicon-based gems:
red beryl; value=20
red pyrope; value=20
red grossular; value=20
red zircon; value=20
red tourmaline; value=15
carnelian; value=2
Maroon = CinnamonOpals:
jelly opal; value=15
(Note: What could be more fitting to drop from a slime or jelly? In RL, jelly opals come in a wide variety of colors. But some resemble cinnamon.)
Other silicon-based gems:
cinnamon grossular; value=20
almandine; value=20
brown zircon; value=20
bloodstone; value=2
sard; value=2
sardonyx; value=2
fire agate; value=2
Orange = OrangeOpals:
precious fire opal; value=20
fire opal; value=15
wax opal; value=10
Other silicon-based gems:
topazolite; value=20
honey yellow beryl; value=20
sunstone; value=2
banded agate; value=2
Yellow = BananaOpals:
levin opal; value=20
gold opal; value=10
resin opal; value=10
Other silicon-based gems:
yellow zircon; value=20
yellow grossular; value=20
yellow spessartine; value=20
topaz; value=20
golden beryl; value=20
yellow jasper; value=2
citrine; value=2
Green = LimeOpals:
pineapple opal; value=10
(Note: Pineapple opal may appear white in-game. But in real life it tends to have a whitish, light green or green-yellow tint.)
Other silicon-based gems:
emerald; value=40
demantoid; value=30
tsavorite; value=30
green tourmaline; value=20
peridot; value=20
chrysoprase; value=2
green jade; value=2
Teal = SpearmintOpals:
prase opal; value=10
Other silicon-based gems:
green zircon; value=20
adventurine; value=3
moss agate; value=2
prase; value=2
Light Blue = MentholOpals:
white opal; value=20
milk opal; value=10
(Note: Claro opal was only one type of opal in DF that appears blue in-game and it was used for
dark blue. However, my idea for light blue blobs and slimes is to be frost-based. White is fitting for a frost-based creature. Besides, "white opal" and "milk opal" can sparkle like newly fallen snow and several examples have a slight bluish tint.)
Other silicon-based gems:
clear zircon; value=25
goshenite; value=20
clear tourmaline; value=10
white chalcedony; value=2
white jade; value=2
moonstone; value=2
Aqua Blue = WintergreenOpals:
crystal opal; value=20
Other silicon-based gems:
aquamarine; value=20
lace agate; value=2
blue jade; value=2
crysocolla; value=2
Dark Blue = BlueberryOpals:
claro opal; value=20
Other silicon-based gems:
blue garnet; value=30
indigo tourmaline; value=25
lapis lazuli; value=2
Purple = GrapeOpals:
black opal; value=30
(Note:
Black opal may appear
dark gray in-game. But this term is applied to
*any* dark colored opal that is considered "precious" (i.e.; exhibits lots of multicoloured flashes of light). [On Earth,
black opal can fetch over US $30,000 per carat!] I considered listing it under the
dark blue or
dark gray category, but
purple needed a type of opal. Magenta opals can sometimes be found and I figured a dark magenta is basically purple.)
Other silicon-based gems:
violet spessartine; value=20
amethyst; value=20
tanzanite; value=20
rhodolite; value=20
kunzite; value=20
Trivia: The needle in the mouth of a female mosquito is made of silica.Yes, I actually spent several
hours searching on Wikipedia and Google to make sure all those gems in the "other silicon-based gems" were silicon-based and that the gem's color matched the category. (For instance,
diamond is carbon-based and has no silicon. And
ruby has no silicon, either.)
What I'm proposing is that the slimes, blobs, and/or jellies will drop an opal on death (instead of bone) and it would also be obtainable from the butcher shop. If more than one opal is listed for a given color, you choose. And for the custom workshop you are planning on, I'd say there should be options to obtain more than one type of gem from my "Other silicon-based gems" list. Ether that, or perhaps there's a way to make the output of a reaction random?
The thing is, though, the player will have to choose whether to process the goo from slimes/blobs/jellies in the workshop to obtain gems, or store it as food. Correct? And that means the player would have to decide what his/her dwarves need more: food or gems.