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[Sirbug]

I was recently experimenting on training recruits on captured goblins. I was chaining goblin bowmen in 3x3 rooms and sent a recruit to kill them. It seems to be relatively quick, but painful (and not too reliable - goblins are fragile creatures too) way to elevate recruits to novice weapon users.

Average fight consist of endless blocking by bowman, until trainee catch an arrow. One nice thing is that bowmen are passive - they are not eager attack dwarfs and let them regain consciousness in peace, crawl away if unfit to keep fighting or even be snatched by civilians with "recover wounded" task. Meelee goblins are far more aggressive and murderous.

Over the course not a single trainee died. I'm not sure if it worth it, but it was pretty amusing experience.

[blue emu]

Why not disarm the Goblin while it's still in the cage? Leave him the armor and shield, just take the weapons.

[☼!!Troll Fur Sock!!☼]

You might want to take away his shield too, though. Getting bashed in the head with 3-7 kg of steel doesn't seem to help with training.

[Drazinononda]

If your recruits are using spears, swords or axes, you can send them in with training versions to increase the longevity of your training dummies.

And yes, I would recommend disarming the goblins before you send in recruits. Bolts and arrows are often lethal, if not by headshot then by bleeding out, in my experience.

[dermal_plating]

This thread makes me want to start a new fort to rebuild the gladiator pit with glass ceiling and dining room observatory I made a few years back. Does anyone else find organising military training kind of frustrating in this version? It seemed much simpler and easier back in 40d.

[Sirbug]

I knew about disarming, but not only I thought it's too much hassle, I also felt that subjecting self to life threatening event to acquire some experience is very dwarven thing to do.

I've got a question though - will chained troll break free by demolishing restraint?

[BoredVirulence]

I haven't done it, but I don't think building destroyers destroy restraints.
Might still break free though. It seems not.

Hostile creatures on restraints will no longer be aggressive to dwarves, which means semi-megabeasts (giants, cyclops, ettins) bronze colossi, and even forgotten beasts can be chained up where a guard is needed as these will still draw aggression from invaders and undead, and will fight back when possible (within range of being restrained).

[Aspgren]

I've got a question though - will chained troll break free by demolishing restraint?

I don't think they can demolish their own restraint. but I've experienced, when I've placed prisoners in chains close to eachother, that a tantruming prisoner can destroy his inmates chain.

Which in turn means that there's a jailbreak and the sheriff promptly beats the freed prisoner into the ground.

Not that it matters since I can't fathom a dwarf suicidal enough to chain a troll where a live troll can reach him.

[BoredVirulence]

I've got a question though - will chained troll break free by demolishing restraint?

I don't think they can demolish their own restraint. but I've experienced, when I've placed prisoners in chains close to eachother, that a tantruming prisoner can destroy his inmates chain.

I think that has more to do with tantruming dwarves behavior, such a level pulling. But I could be wrong.
From what I read, which could easily be wrong, its perfectly safe to have a troll chained in the caverns, potentially fighting previous troll brothers.

I have a troll on a restraint at my main entrance. The troll is happily sitting on the ground awaiting thieving scum, as my dwarves mill about, mocking it with their freedom. Sitting in a pool of its own blood. Human caravan didn't like it...

[Mr S]

One caveat.  I believe that restrained creatures can dodge out of their restraint if attacked.  It may be advisable to put them in a dodge-resistant corridor for such circumstances.

[BoredVirulence]

One caveat.  I believe that restrained creatures can dodge out of their restraint if attacked.  It may be advisable to put them in a dodge-resistant corridor for such circumstances.

They can dodge out. Or be knocked out. Although, I would assume their movement is still restricted.
Restraints just stop them from walking too far away.

[Mr S]

The SCIENCE, at least up through the previous version, was that if they were made to go outside of the mind-control radius of 1 tile (in 3 dimensions) from the restraint, they were effectively free of it.  What this meant in practice is that if you opened a bridge/hatch underneath a restrained creature, and the fall was greater than 1z, then they would fall the rest of the way and be free to move as normal (see also: kitten pillows). 

Thus ended the experiment into Goblin Piņatas as an effective training dummy.  Sad.

[BoredVirulence]

The SCIENCE, at least up through the previous version, was that if they were made to go outside of the mind-control radius of 1 tile (in 3 dimensions) from the restraint, they were effectively free of it.  What this meant in practice is that if you opened a bridge/hatch underneath a restrained creature, and the fall was greater than 1z, then they would fall the rest of the way and be free to move as normal (see also: kitten pillows). 

Thus ended the experiment into Goblin Piņatas as an effective training dummy.  Sad.

Were they still assigned to the restraint? Would dwarves try and put them back? And if they broke free, did the rope stay attached like if it were deconstructed?

[Button]

I've killed at least 200 chained enemies over the course of my last 3 forts (goblins, trolls, ogres, undead, cyclopes, minotaurs, giants, beak dogs, jabberers, giant olms, giant toads, devourers, remora, gorlaks, flesh balls), and I've never had anything dodge outside of the radius of the chain. If they dodge, they dodge to another square in chain-radius.

My training rooms are flat though so it's possible the chain could snap on a slope.

PS. Even a chained enemy can be deadly, especially undead and jabberers. Make sure your dwarves are wearing helmets before fighting anything that can throw. And frankly, just kill the jabberers from a distance. It's not worth it. (Undead are still worth it because they help Harden your soldiers!)

PPS. Chain material doesn't matter unless the creature can destroy it accidentally.

[ORCACommander]

why do i have the urge to make a prisoner danger room that opens into a gladiator pit for my military dwarves?