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[assasin]

I am starting to get very bored having to build up everything when starting a fortress. I am starting to think I should get a save off the internet as a starting platform and carry on from there. Do any of you think its a bad idea. If you don't what sorts of things do you think are nessesary for a basic fortress and what sorts of things should I try and keep out. Just having a fully built fortress in a fortress building game is a bit pointless, but theres a wide spectrum of half built. which part of the spectrum do you think is a good place to start.

[kuki]

I started using macros for this reason. Now I have three one-z-level fortress schematic macros, one for a city level, one for a workshops level and one for a storage level. I also use macros to configure my stockpiles and order run of the mill things from the dwarven caravan. The starting fortress designs I use are pretty minimal and extendable/modifiable.

Macros can reduce the amount of human effort required in your first year massively, and can be applied to any embark location, where a save will have you playing the same square over and over..

[MasterShizzle]

Of course, if you get an extremely good/dangerous/!!Fun!! embark, then playing it over and over again might be a good thing.

[vanatteveldt]

Personally (as a beginning player) I think the initial part (finding the embark, making a general fortress plan, deciding where to start digging, etc) is the most fun part of DF. I agree that some parts are tedious (carving out bedrooms, setting up stockpiles) and it would be interesting to see if macros can help there, although for things like setting up stockpiles I never do them quite the same based on local geography (especially the questions of how much space there is, where the soil is for farming, and where features like rivers and volcanos/magma pipes are).

What does surprise me is that there are relatively little save files attached here. For a game like Civ, the forums are full of peoples saves, either for comparison, for advise, or as a "here look at this cool start how would you play it?". Maybe it is because taking over a fortress is quite difficult as there are many things like stockpile settings and jobs that are difficult to see without spending a lot of time.

BTW, is there an easier way to save a backup than save -> quit > copy/zip the data/save/regionX folder ?

[katwithk]

Its not a bad idea if hats what your going for, but I personally don't thing I could stand to work like that.

Constructing my fort is a point of pride for me

[kuki]

Constructing my fort is a point of pride for me

For me too... but I think of the use of digging blueprint macros as being sort of like, allowing at least part of my design to stay with me from one fortress to the next. I also like the initial part of DF the best... which is why I wanted to streamline it for myself, to some extent. The main motivator for me was finding that as I built forts on the fly I would inevitably forget to leave room for some vital thing (a control room or armory near the main staircase for instance) and that each time I embarked, I spent more and more mental effort trying to figure out the best place to put things. Once I realized I could save a design across forts, I was actually able to spend more time, and take more pride, in optimizing and simplifying it.

The other thing is, it just makes sense to have some sort of blueprint mechanic. The dwarves would have plenty of time on the journey from the mountainhome to discuss what sort of place they'd like to build when they get to their destination. So, it doesn't bother me to designate a reasonably-sized finished structure for digging as soon as they arrive.

[greycat]

What does surprise me is that there are relatively little save files attached here. For a game like Civ, the forums are full of peoples saves, either for comparison, for advise, or as a "here look at this cool start how would you play it?".

That sort of thing is more common over in the Community Games & Stories forum.  Not so much as a request for advice, but as part of a shared game.

Part of the reason may be the extremely large size of DF saves (20 MB and up, compressed).

[AutomataKittay]

What does surprise me is that there are relatively little save files attached here. For a game like Civ, the forums are full of peoples saves, either for comparison, for advise, or as a "here look at this cool start how would you play it?".

That sort of thing is more common over in the Community Games & Stories forum.  Not so much as a request for advice, but as part of a shared game.

Part of the reason may be the extremely large size of DF saves (20 MB and up, compressed).

Doesn't helps that fortresses tend to end up too complicated for others to figure things out themselves, as many succession games can verify over in that board

There're DF map archives, it's also mostly used over there, there're occasional threads here for fortress designs, but that's pretty infrequent for actual maps to be shared since fortresses can get pretty confusing to explain. Tilesets can be a bit confusing for someone used to ASCII, same as other way around!

Though, here http://mkv25.net/dfma/index.php
The map archive that's most commonly used!

[Rude]

If I make a fort and put it on hold for a month, then I have no idea what is going on when I restart the fort. For example, there is only one way to figure out what a lever is attached to -- I hope it isn't the fortress' "magma powered self destruct."

It would be far more difficult to figure out how someone else' fort functions. Especially because there are plenty of different philosophies on how to make just about anything work (much more than just where things go) At least in my own forts, I know how I do things (or used to do things)

[darknessofthenight]

[N]otes are your friend

[knutor]

I agree.  It takes me 5 to 10 minutes to configure DF, after embarking.  I agree it would be nice if we had a file that stored global settings from the Order menu, to be used inbetween fortresses.  Ya know, for example, a file to remember, if the player prefered Cooking Workshops Automated, Vermin Collected and Corpses Forbidden.

To alleviate this, I've streamlined my use of Therapist, saving lots of titles and profiles for 'types' of multiskilled dwarfs. 

I've also started designing more vertically instead of horizontally styled room layouts, that heavily rely on my modified world generation parameters to ease into it, well easier.  Guaranteed cavern water, helps me.  Sincerely, Knutor

[knutor]

BTW, is there an easier way to save a backup than save -> quit > copy/zip the data/save/regionX folder ?

I don't think rogue video game genre is designed to be saved, much less backed up...  This is one of the last havens for the politically incorrect permadeath player.  It could be why the feature isn't as rich as what is found in a RTS game.  Not sure, however.  I know of no other way.  Except for maybe saving the worldgem parameters and worldgen seed somewhere, all by themselves.

[SauliusTheBlack]

I like that part most of all though.
I do have a routine, but it changes locations every time. Farm first, then some basic workshops(carpenter, crafter, mason)

then bedrooms.
storage when required.

[vanatteveldt]

BTW, is there an easier way to save a backup than save -> quit > copy/zip the data/save/regionX folder ?

I don't think rogue video game genre is designed to be saved, much less backed up...  This is one of the last havens for the politically incorrect permadeath player.  It could be why the feature isn't as rich as what is found in a RTS game.  Not sure, however.  I know of no other way.  Except for maybe saving the worldgem parameters and worldgen seed somewhere, all by themselves.

Rogue didn't quite have this learning curve :-). Also, DF mode is not in the rogue genre I think, more in the empire building / simulation / simcity genre with roguelike graphics :-)

I actually agree with the iron man principle, but for learning certain things, especially connected with lava or magma, it is a lot easier to practice with a backup. Also, I've heard reports of savegame problems after computer crashes, which would be a valid reason for backing up.

[i2amroy]

What does surprise me is that there are relatively little save files attached here. For a game like Civ, the forums are full of peoples saves, either for comparison, for advise, or as a "here look at this cool start how would you play it?".

That sort of thing is more common over in the Community Games & Stories forum.  Not so much as a request for advice, but as part of a shared game.

Part of the reason may be the extremely large size of DF saves (20 MB and up, compressed).

There's also the Dwarf Fortress File Depot as well, where a lot of the community saves store their stuff.