I've seen people make forts. I've seen them show off their amazing architecture and the finished project. The problem is, they're finished and there's not much to do if you go poking at the savegame.
So I made something different. A reclaim designed to be played.
That alone isn't fun though. Anyone can make a basic fort and share it.
So I did something different. I combined several things I'd learned from dwarf fortress mechanics and physics to create something special - The Spire of Armok.
A fort suspended in a carved-out square chasm that is 22z tall. Within are bedrooms, barracks, workshops, a hospital, mechanical power, even automated running water and the startings of the same for magma. There are deluxe rooms for Nobles and dwarves you think excel, as well as a golden throneroom should the king arrive. There's also a layer of underground soil with farms, as well as an enclosed layer of surface trees should you want a safe supply of wood (the local goblins are quite regular visitors).
All good things, however, are not without their price. The Spire is connected to a rather fun little project called...
The Doom Clock!!On the Control Level, along with a basic map of the Spire (because why not?) and the levers to several drainage methods and bridge controls, is a counter.
Should this so-called Doom Counter hit ten, the fort will collapse into the chasm and the cavern beneath. It roughly takes about a year-and-a-half for it to fill fully.
I suppose you must be wondering. "ThatAussieGuy, you evil, evil, man; How can I avert this fort's destruction?" The answer is simple. Sacrifice one of the fort's dwarves.
To reset The Doom Clock, simply send one of your dwarves (be it nobleman, craftsdwarf, or one of those damn fisherdwarves that keep turning up) out onto the Bridge of Death and watch them plummet. The Doom Clock will return to 1 and the fort can continue on in peace.
For those cunningly thinking "Surely the clock could be stopped....", well, you'd be wrong. For starters, I hid it. You won't see it on the map, you won't find it by looking. It is there, somewhere, and ticking away towards the fort's doom constantly without mercy.
(And for those thinking of just anchoring it the wall with floors or something, give me a little creative licensing here... >.>)
I will post pictures in due time, but for the first little while, I think just finding and exploring it yourself would be part of the fun. The Spire lies at the site of Mebtobul, otherwise known as the City of Inchcanyon, in the reclaim screen. Play it, break it, have fun with the place however you please.
Strike the Earth! (52MB)
Oh, and, uh... sorry about the mess. A few Trade Caravans had accidents and left their goods on the fort's doorstep.
edit: Forgot to say, this was originally played with the graphics pack Ironhand 0.68, so adjust your raws accordingly.
And now, because I bloody-well forgot to do this sooner, pictures of The Spire of Armok!
It starts on Level 3 because the only non-reclaim backup save I could find was just before the two upper-levels were finished. They're left empty for storage. These go level-by-level downwards, for reference.
For your King or favourite dwarf of choice
The Map (sorry it's semi-finished in this picture), the Doom Counter, and the controls for the magma weapons and emergency drains. Pull the lever with the asterisk around it to start the power, then switch it back off once the power starts to stabilize it at maximum output. The power does NOT turn off once started.
In the actual savegame, there are six ballistae for xXFunXx against the local goblins. The bridge on the north side is the fort's sacrificial bridge - Send a dwarf over the pressure plate onto it and watch him drop faster than the clock resets.
A safe enclosed area for surface wood and crops
Soil layer for farming caves. Feel free to excavate as-necessary
These three levels are identical in layout. The four corner rooms on each floor are for Nobles. Bedroom, table and chair, anything else they want goes in these.
There are wells in the dining hall that draw from The Spire's automated water tank below. The fort-side bridges have their levers beside them. The chasm-side ones are controlled from the Control Level as part of the Magma Weapons.
The Water Tank will self-fill as long as The Spire has power.
Hospital to the north, barracks all around, large workshops to the right (Siege, etc), along with rooms for armor and weapon storage
You may notice several of these workshops have holes in the floor. These are for the few (currently) workshops that need power and have an active gearbox below
The main axle and gearbox that runs power through the fort's internal needs. Do _NOT_ touch the gearbox on the far left. It's rigged as part of the self-destruct. Lever the one to the right of it if you want to disable the internal power at-will.
The holes are placed for magma smelting/metalsmithing from the magma tank below. The room on the right is for raw material and/or bar storage. Note that these may be disabled while the magma defense weapons are in-use if you do not disable the weaponry tank's pump (lever's marked on the Control Deck and has a display on the appropriate spot on The Map near it)
The highest level and the pump that draws magma for the Weapon Tank near the top of The Spire
Slims down near the bottom of the fort with one of the pressure plates rigged to The Map on the control deck to display the current levels in the Magma Tank
The lowest level of The Spire of Armok. That hatch in the center of the staircase is The Spire's emergence drain should you flood the fort, or use the Magma Weapon Tank to flood the staircase on-purpose for defense. The lever that controls it is marked on the Control Level
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Topic: An AussieGuy Megaproject - The Spire of Armok (Now with pictures!) (Read 60982 times)