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[Micro102]

I was reading up how vampires/werebeasts were stronger and faster then normal dwarves, and was wondering if it would be possible to seal them off in a barracks and let them lose when invaders come, and to have them move back after the slaughter.

[Innocent Dave]

It's been done, so it's definitely an option.  I think werebeasts are slightly harder because they only get the buffs at certain times, but with vampires the only issue is keeping them well away from anyone they can drink (unless you also need a method of population control...).  They also respond to squad orders, train normally, and so on.

However, a werebeast based defense would be infinitely funnier.  You could make a corridor that traps invaders until the full moon, then unleash the beasts upon them.  It may even be possible to have a setup where the trap corridor then becomes the holding cell for the werebeasts, and vice versa.

[Bumber]

The issue with werebeasts is that they can't wear armor, making them possibly more vulnerable than regular soldiers. (Also, I think they drop their weapons and won't think to re-equip them.) They're also building destroyers. Do werebeasts still get the attribute bonuses while untransformed?

The problem with vampires is that they slow down from never being able to drink booze. You'll have to mod a syndrome that removes the relevant tag when they become infected.

[weenog]

Booze deprivation slowdown makes the vampires much, much slower than normal dwarfs, even if their agility is very high.

I've tried it.  It was a lot like Resident Evil in the execution and the inevitable results, got completely out of control and did more harm than good to my own objectives.  I might try it again, for the entire fortress, if I can get a vampire in my Terrifying embark location.  Reanimating biome, husking clouds, and necromancers as neighbors, it would take a lot of the heat off me if undead critters ignored my dorfs, even if they were slow as hell and hard to please.

[Panando]

I think the real advantage of werebeasts is that they heal all injuries with the full moon, so unless your dwarves sustain lethal injuries (which is quite difficult with good body armour), they will basically remain fully operational until old age kills them off. You could also use these to make total cripples useful members of the fortress again. For this kind of thing a weaker werebeast might be more desirable, like a wererabbit or something.

[Innocent Dave]

IIRC, the transformation doesn't just heal completely, it also re-rolls all of their stats, including age, so a werebeast is practically immortal.

[Deus Asmoth]

I think that were beasts just get the maxage tag removed rather than having their age randomised. It'll only re roll their stats the first time they transform and their original stats will still apply to their dwarf form. There's also. The unfortunate downside of them stripping naked and dropping their weapons and shields upon transformation, so were beasts are actually far less effective in combat than you'd hope unless you train them in wrestling and striking or kicking. If you can manage to get some were elephants your army would be the most effective, but they'll also spend like five days a month picking up their clothes and stuff again.

Vampires are probably more useful if you're looking for efficiency and the speed boost tends to offset the booze deprivation unless you're dealing with a dwarf who's already very slow. The second to last save in the Steelhold succession game has a ready made, fully vampirised fortress if you want to get an impression of what it's like before you try make one yourself.

[Bumber]

Vampires are probably more useful if you're looking for efficiency and the speed boost tends to offset the booze deprivation unless you're dealing with a dwarf who's already very slow.

Doesn't the muscle mass increase from their strength boost somewhat counteract that, or something?

[TomIrony]

I once managed to get a squad of Were-lizards segregated from the general populace. In order to keep them happy, I built them their own little "retreat" with a waterfall, statues and furniture. Unfortunately, they destroyed most of it when they transformed, and I rarely got ambushed or sieged right when they transformed. In the end, it was more trouble than it was worth, but I did get some pretty amazing stories out of it.

[Urist Da Vinci]

With vampires, there is a reliable method of granting vampirism to soldiers via a contaminated well. You can even avoid the alcohol problems at least once by converting a squad just before the expected deployment.

Infecting soldiers with were-curses is risky (you could fail and lose the soldier or the "source" were-creature). I prefer to use were-creatures as clocks, as their monthly change is announced.

[Archereon]

I once managed to get a squad of Were-lizards segregated from the general populace. In order to keep them happy, I built them their own little "retreat" with a waterfall, statues and furniture. Unfortunately, they destroyed most of it when they transformed, and I rarely got ambushed or sieged right when they transformed. In the end, it was more trouble than it was worth, but I did get some pretty amazing stories out of it.

You could potentially use artifact furniture for that...