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[Oddible]

So I've tried with both default graphics (using the wiki's map legend), and with Ironhand, and I'm really struggling to figure out how to not embark on an existing stronghold.  This is my 2nd embark.  I'm pretty much resigned that there will be goblins in the area, but I don't want to be right on top of them.  The default ASCII doesn't show anything like the map legend.  However Ironhand at least shows a very square area which looks strongly like it is not natural.  But it doesn't seem to say anything anywhere to indicate this.  Am I just missing something here?

[neblime]

well you can't actually embark ON a goblin strongold, or any other race's site for that matter (including dwarf) but goblin strongholds are quite distinctive as a purple or gray arch in the default ascii graphics and in the embark tile you will see big areas represented by solid arch symbol(s) or whatever other race relevant symbol if there is a site in that embark tile. 
Either way, not 100% about this, but I don't think your proximity to goblin or any other sites is actually relevant, unless you're actually cut off by sea, until the next patch (which won't be long hopefully!)
can anyone verify that?

[Eric Blank]

Most dark fortresses, dwarf mountain halls and elven sites don't show up on the regional or world maps of the embark screen currently, and my only guess as to why some show up and others don't is that it requires a certain population/importance to the civ. But they will always show up in the local map of the embark screen as a large square filled with the symbols for the appropriate site type, and moving your embark location cursor over that square will prevent you from embarking there. The game doesn't let you embark on pre-existing sites owned by other civs, including towns/castles/tombs, dark fortresses, mountain halls and forest retreats: you need a utility like Embark Anywhere which allows that to occur. If you mouse over that site in the region map, it should display the name of that site in red text under the biome tab where it would also display the names of rivers and volcanoes.

But yes, Neblime, you bloody ninja you: your fortress' distance from other civilizations doesn't affect when or how often they will show up. Only geographical features like oceans, lakes, and mountain ranges that completely cut you off from them will prevent interaction with them, and if they can't interact with you they will not show up under the civilzations tab of the embark interface.

[Oddible]

Wait so even my embark 3x3 is one square over from a purple highly populated goblin fortress is makes no difference to the volume of goblins who will come to visit?

[Eric Blank]

Wait so even my embark 3x3 is one square over from a purple highly populated goblin fortress is makes no difference to the volume of goblins who will come to visit?

Exactly. The game currently doesn't have the information or procedures to make sense of how distances should affect the political climate.

[Oddible]

Thanks, that makes this easier. What is the recommended embark size? 3x3? 4x4?

[neblime]

Neblime, you bloody ninja you

that would be a good name for a dwarf..

Wait so even my embark 3x3 is one square over from a purple highly populated goblin fortress is makes no difference to the volume of goblins who will come to visit?

Exactly. The game currently doesn't have the information or procedures to make sense of how distances should affect the political climate.

I don't really have any evidence of this, but the closest (goblin) civilization has always been the one to attack me in my games, which makes sense anyway so I wouldn't expect that to be a coincidence, so that's the only thing you really have to consider when you're looking at where the forts are

Thanks, that makes this easier. What is the recommended embark size? 3x3? 4x4?

depends what your comp can handle and/or what you want the space for? i've never really had any problem with 4x4 but if you go a bit bigger, like 5x5 theres more chance for cool terrain features... and HFS
dont go overboard with embark size though, keep it fairly small, framerate can die for many reasons in dwarf fortress.

[Oddible]

Well, ok so I embarked in a green temperate field smack dab in the middle of the huge world map right on the bank of a stream... after picking all my stuff, I embark and somehow I'm in tundra with snow and a few ice patches on the ground and no stream anywhere to be found!?!?!?  Yay, abandon, trying that again.

[Eric Blank]

Wait so even my embark 3x3 is one square over from a purple highly populated goblin fortress is makes no difference to the volume of goblins who will come to visit?

Exactly. The game currently doesn't have the information or procedures to make sense of how distances should affect the political climate.

I don't really have any evidence of this, but the closest (goblin) civilization has always been the one to attack me in my games, which makes sense anyway so I wouldn't expect that to be a coincidence, so that's the only thing you really have to consider when you're looking at where the forts are

Oh, yeah, you're right. The game does choose the civilizations closest to your embark location and those are the only ones of their race(s) that will interact with your fort. That detail can be important when you're looking forward to the elves bringing you giant, tropical animals, but you only get arctic creatures because you embarked in the arctic and the nearest elf civilization doesn't have access to a tropical environment to pull pets from

[BoredVirulence]

Well, ok so I embarked in a green temperate field smack dab in the middle of the huge world map right on the bank of a stream... after picking all my stuff, I embark and somehow I'm in tundra with snow and a few ice patches on the ground and no stream anywhere to be found!?!?!?  Yay, abandon, trying that again.

When you embark, its the beginning of spring. Its probably freezing in the winter, and parts of spring, where you embarked.

[PaleBlueHammer]

Well, ok so I embarked in a green temperate field smack dab in the middle of the huge world map right on the bank of a stream... after picking all my stuff, I embark and somehow I'm in tundra with snow and a few ice patches on the ground and no stream anywhere to be found!?!?!?  Yay, abandon, trying that again.

When you embark, its the beginning of spring. Its probably freezing in the winter, and parts of spring, where you embarked.

This is correct.  Temperate biomes will have snow/ice during the winter.  Warm, hot, and scorching biomes will not.  The stream may have actually been a 'brook', which is not an open river type feature but rather has surface features kind of like fortifications which are possible to walk on, and they will collect snow on top of them.

[Raphite1]

Well, ok so I embarked in a green temperate field smack dab in the middle of the huge world map right on the bank of a stream... after picking all my stuff, I embark and somehow I'm in tundra with snow and a few ice patches on the ground and no stream anywhere to be found!?!?!?  Yay, abandon, trying that again.

When you embark, its the beginning of spring. Its probably freezing in the winter, and parts of spring, where you embarked.

Yeah, you were in the right place. If you had waited for a bit, the snow would have melted and then the stream would have thawed. No tundra, just a pretty winter landscape.

[Larix]

And first thing to do when embarking on a frozen map: look at the first "underground" z-level before doing anything else, rivers and ponds can be spotted there as solid ice. When you embark before the thaw, your embark wagon (and buildings and stockpiles) can accidentally end up on top of a frozen body of water. When the water subsequently thaws, buildings, goods or dwarfs can fall into the water and get damaged/drowned.

[Ravendarksky]

I know this isn't really what you asked for... but download the legends viewer 3rd party program.

Open your world in legends mode and export all the information and then opened it with legends viewer.

You can view all sites in your world on a map identical to the medium sized embark screen. It really helps to understand the embark screen and what is going on around you. You can enable sites on the legends viewer which will show you all the goblins/dwarfs/human sites as little squares which you can hover over for info.

[Godlysockpuppet]

Currently only human towns actually show up when you embark on them. As of yet, embarking with the embarkanywhere utility, goblins elves and dwarf's towns/strongholds/retreats do not actually exist, they're just a flat plain of unremarkable land.