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[avdpos]

I have found out that in most of my more mineralrich (have lotīs of iron) fortresses I have made tha caravan have been of nearly no use.
And with no use of caravan, and reason to make tradegoods I have stopped playing and started again.

And then I begun a fort without iron and I have  much more fun trading for iron in all itīs forms to melt down (without selling extremely valuable food).

So now I trade for iron.

What do you buy from the caravans?

[WanderingKid]

Seeds, bags, rare animals, early glass blocks for moods, cloth, leather, thread, logs (depending on biome), coal/lignite, anvils, cured meats.

After the first few caravans I don't usually need them anymore.

[DS]

I usually buy up all the wood under most any circumstance. Even in a biome with plentiful wood, it still saves my dwarves the trouble of woodcutting and hauling, which can be disastrous if an ambush shows up.

Besides that, food in the early years when the fortress is still getting its footing. Steel, particularly if I've got a coal-run metal industry. Rock nuts for oil, just because.

[weenog]

From the dwarfs: Livestock, silk and wool thread for moods, steel-making components if necessary, seeds, and anything I might need that I can't easily produce on site.
From the humans: Usually not much, though they sometimes bring me very nice exotic weapons.
From the elves: Rope reed seeds (I don't like my clothing industry to be seasonal), exotic booze and the plants/seeds to make more of my own, useful or delicious-looking animals if they happen to bring any.  In Safetyglove I might start buying wood from them once I can get them in alive; the only wood I have access to is blood thorn and that stuff's annoyingly heavy.

[_Ivan_]

Food, wood, and booze. If I need it. Once I have a number of dwarves and can set enough haulers I can produce those with little troubles but early on they are in need. After that I will trade with the dwarves for steel items for melting and plaster bags for the hospital. Occasionally the caravan (of any race) will bring a likeable vermin for my zoo so I grab that. I would buy leather but nobody will bring it to me. Leather hoods, cloaks and mittens are wanted but very rare. There is also the rare platinum piece so I will grab that up too and I'm still waiting for a piece of adamantium but no luck yet.

[weenog]

Nobody's going to bring you adamantine, you have to go get it for yourself.

Make sure your dwarf in charge (expedition leader, mayor or whatever) has an office, and no job keeping him busy when the mountainhome liason shows up.  You want him to be able to conduct a meeting successfully.  You can request that the dwarfs bring you leather next year.  If you ask for every type of leather they can bring, at maximum priority, next year you will be drowning in leather if you can afford it all.

[human_dictionary]

cheeses, booze, plump helmets for days, plump helmet spawn for days, cloth, leather, rare metals and anvils.

sometimes though its best not to buy anything form the caravans, if some environmentalists show up, just kill them, they never have any guards or diplomats, so you cannot be at war against the elves, and i imagine once they add magic, they will bring enchanted gear as well

[Cheimon]

Cloth and leather (can't be bothered to make any, as so much is available this way), every interesting metal (in case of mandates), sometimes the gems (can't have too many of those), cheese (haven't investigated the milking/cheesemaking industry yet), types of booze I don't have (stops them being tired of drinking the same old) and anything else that takes my fancy (lesser-spotted octopus blood, horrendously decorated steel spiked ball, etc etc).

[SixOfSpades]

Wood, of course
The types of stone from which I'm building my megaproject
Bars of all the pure metals (no alloys)
All of the Miscellaneous section (the potash is for clear glass)
All non-native plants for eating & brewing
Some milks every now & then (cheese + free barrels)
Sometimes some fish
Sometimes 3 of every type of cloth, to make sure I've got a good supply for moods.

That's the long answer. The short answer is "Whatever will make room for all the stuff that I want to sell to the caravan." Buy my bone crafts. PLEASE!

[Larix]

Dwarfs: whatever i ordered, usually leather, cloth, wood, small gems and various types of stone not present on site.
Humans: meat and fish
Elves: fancy animals

The main purpose of all caravans past year five or so is getting rid of worn-out clothes. Buying up many small stacks of meat and fish from the humans makes it easier to gift them with more dirty socks.

[itg]

First year or two only:
leather
cloth
food
booze
seeds
maybe a few weapons and pieces of armor

Any time:
wood (until the caravans stop bringing it)
gypsum plaster
rare animals
small gemstones
metal bars
anvils (to melt)

[Grey Goo]

Usually cloths and booze ingredients. However that I sell is more interesting...
For dwarves I usually sell large cut gems and other valuable items.
For humans usually stone- and gold crafts.
For elves goes all my dirty socks and pants.
I have exported over 1.2 million dwarf bucks of wealth. What's 15% from wealth of my fortress. I have imported only 68k from outside. Yes, I have seen many ecstasic traders. Poor things don't realize one day when I am ready to dive they will start dying...

[Oaktree]

Booze, cloth, wood, leather, certain ores, iron and steel initially.

Switches over to barrels, wood, exotic pets, and anything that catches my fancy.  At this points caravans are mainly serving as a dump for getting rid of worn  clothes, excess bags and quivers (decorated with cloth), and vials of golden salve.

[RLS0812]

cloth
all types of thread
all ropes
all leather
cheese
all booze
seeds
cats

if I am running low on fish, I buy meat

 All this I buy with rock crafts.

[PDF urist master]

wood
sand bags
leather bins
anything cheap made of iron, steel or bronze, just because.
barrels and booze
silver crossbows and whips
elven exotic items
any platinum, gold, steel, iron, bronze or tin bars.