I am typing this as a horde of trolls and goblins pour through the tower gates, and down central chamber into the gilded halls of not-so-glorious Valolarum- oh, there goes a baby, poor thing!- after four years of smooth moving, with thanks due perhaps to my incredible distance from any goblin settlement. Everything began nce and slow, but come this fourth, bloody summer, we saw our first incursion- three ambushes simultaneously. Naturally, my almighty military consist(ed- the commander was beheaded at "incursion") of ten dwarves, seven of whom had been in training for the past three years, and were still utterly incompetent versus anything but the occasional trog. Cage traps worked well for a while, but they just aren't enough for the caravans and I wasn't about to create a mega-wall. That aside, it does get boring after not so long anyways, as well as turning off invasions and choosing peaceful/isolated locales.
What I really want is to rejoice in my own bad-ass band of merry men who can do slightly more than take up hospital beds for an indefinite amount of time.
So, I ask: How does one train and maintain an effective military (I know the basic mechanics, and am curious more about strategies you may have employed effectively)? When should one begin recruiting? What is the optimal number of arms-dwarves?
Thanks.
Ibid