Bay 12 Games Forum

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

Author Topic: An average elf has... how many bones?  (Read 1037 times)

Sean Mirrsen

  • Bay Watcher
  • Bearer of the Psionic Flame
    • View Profile
An average elf has... how many bones?
« on: November 05, 2007, 03:06:00 pm »

I forgot to take a screenshot, but there was this occasion.

I assaulted a migrant group of elves in AM, violently killed a few, and one of them was thrown away a hit a tree. He landed next to two trees at once, so I ignited them both (for an experiment's sake), stepped away and went to sleep. After I was done sleeping, the fire has spread quite a bit, but I found my way through the smoke to look at where the elf was. I saw a total of fourteen bones (2x7), and two skulls. I doubt the elves are any kin to ettins, so this must be a bug. I haven't tried natural decomposition yet, nor simply reproducing this, just encountered it once.

On a side note, I almost witnessed (it was logged, so must have been within earshot) the death of the elven Druid at the hands (hoofs, and horn) of a rogue unicorn, as well as quite a large number of other elves, which resulted in there being no capital for that elven civ. A fairly major event, I think. Yet it did not record in Legends. Nor did the unicorn's death, although he was named, and an elven guard killed him about two tiles away before I could join in.

Logged
Multiworld Madness Archive:
Game One, Discontinued at World 3.
Game Two, Discontinued at World 1.

"Europe has to grow out of the mindset that Europe's problems are the world's problems, but the world's problems are not Europe's problems."
- Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, India

termitehead

  • Bay Watcher
    • View Profile
Re: An average elf has... how many bones?
« Reply #1 on: November 05, 2007, 04:36:00 pm »

you killed a pregnant elf!

Mephisto

  • Bay Watcher
    • View Profile
Re: An average elf has... how many bones?
« Reply #2 on: November 05, 2007, 08:23:00 pm »

I may be wrong, but just from observation, I think all corpses (besides halves) are whole. You could lop off a head and an arm. The head and arm would produce a skull and a stack of bones. The corpse would produce another skull and more bones.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong. As I've said, it's just from my observation.

Logged

Stromko

  • Bay Watcher
    • View Profile
Re: An average elf has... how many bones?
« Reply #3 on: November 05, 2007, 09:03:00 pm »

Well I know it doesn't work that way in Fortress mode. I get single-stack bone piles all the time from limbs being chopped off by traps and the like.   :) At least, I remember numerous times this happening in old DF, it was predictable enough that I'd set up tons of giant axe-blade traps so I could get lots of small stacks of batman and goblin bones (each stack or every two stacks could make some bone armor, and I wanted my dwarves to be nice and menacing). It might have changed in new DF, but I don't think so, I seem to recall several incidents where incomplete bone portions have been produced by dismemberment.

How does the original poster know a new elf didn't come along and get burnt up?  ;) Only one set of equipment?

[ November 05, 2007: Message edited by: Stromko ]

Logged

Mephisto

  • Bay Watcher
    • View Profile
Re: An average elf has... how many bones?
« Reply #4 on: November 05, 2007, 09:31:00 pm »

I believe my post was worded wrong. Let's just say an arm produces one bone and a complete corpse produces five for this "demonstration." If an arm is lopped off and the creature is later killed, from what I've seen, a stack of one and a stack of five + a skull will be produced.

From current experimentation (single kobold thieves getting hands ripped off), it seems that not all parts produce bones.

Ah, I belatedly realize that I am the one who misread your post. My findings may be true for times when the lopped off limb and corpse don't land on the same tile, though.

[ November 05, 2007: Message edited by: Mephisto ]

Logged