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[HellTiger]

Hello!

So since i am a bit into the game, i think of embarking on a horrible place. any advice for start? I think i would take a door and a floorhatch. maybe only good militairy dorfs. pigs and dogs, ... ye thats pretty much it for now XD

[jcochran]

1. Get the dwarves underground as rapidly as possible, don't bother to empty the wagon. Just get underground and seal yourself off from the surface.

2. Dig under the wagon you left up top, and put in a lever linked support.

3. Channel out around the wagon in such a way that ground bound creatures can't get at you (unfortunately flyers can still reach you, but don't go channeling when they're about, or keep a close eye on 'em so you can retreat when they get too close. And of course, prior to even starting the channeling effort, have a retreat path available that you can close with a drawbridge)

4. Throw the lever to collapse the ground underneath the wagon.

5. Build a bridge or floor over the fallen wagon to seal it off from the surface.

6. Continue as normal, staying underground except for BRIEF exposures to grant access as needed.

Mind, a lot of details have been omitted, but you can generally figure them out yourself. One method of creating a channel while never exposing your dwarves to ground bound creatures is

1. On the level below the surface, dig up stairs. Yes, they're not connected to anything, just simply dig 'em... 'd-u'
2. Now on the surface, designate the area to be channeled. The dwarves don't actually have to have access to the surface (and in fact, you don't want them to have access to the surface).  'd-h'
3. Now get rid of the up stairs you created in step 1 above. 'd-z'

The above 3 step process will result in a 1 Z level deep channel with vertical walls. And at no time will they be able to be used to move from the the ground outside to the floor underneath. So you don't have to worry about undead elephants, badgers, etc. But birds and other things that can fly will be able to get in.... But at least the major problem is handled.

[vanatteveldt]

Have a look at the single pick challenge thread from a while back, that contained some good tips on how to survive in the worst possible circumstances with a pick only.

[Kirkegaard]

Hey, I'm also a beginner and had great fun with a fort where all dead turned into zombies.
I don't know if this will happen in all evil areas or if I was just lucky.

In the zombie scenario, don't bring any animals besides maybe dogs, and atom-smash all dead including your own dwarfs they don't stay down in their coffins. Use some kind of autosave or copy/paste of the savegame cheating, because you will die, and die again, and again. Great fun.

[Grim Portent]

I'm fond of bringing some rocks and throwing a quick wall up around the wagon to make it nice and safe to unload stuff.

[KingBacon]

You can also deconstruct the wagon, channel underneath it and build a bridge or tiles over the hole. Be sure to make a way in though for the dorfs left on top.

Recommendations would be to embark with some hammers, shields, leather armor + copper helms.
That should be enough to deal with zombie ravens and the like. Make sure you have at least two dorfs with military skills, like 4 hammer, 2 shield, 1 armor, 3 dodge.

[WoobMonkey]

Personally, I find that the less you bring, the better.  Seems counter-intuitive, I know,  but it's easier to NOT have hauling jobs at the start.

Though it's often suggested, bringing a military is a BAD idea.  You won't win against the undead, and every fallen soldier will just become one more enemy.  Also, every dwarf who's fighting is a dwarf who isn't helping to secure food, water, and shelter.

Just remember that sometimes survival requires a healthy dose of cowardice.  Don't be afraid to wall your entrance off - turtling up is sometimes the only viable strategy - especially in terrifying forests, where most undead will be flyers.

All it takes to get going (assuming there's a soil layer) is a pick, and maybe a couple plump helmets.  If you dash down to the caverns, your soil layer will start growing all the food you need to survive.

Be prepared to go without trades, migrants, and the like for a little while.  Remember to set your refuse orders to dump all skin, hair, and corpses, and dig out a hole at least 5-6 z-levels deep to contain them.

As suggested above, check out the SPC threads (and YT vids) for some ideas.  If you can survive the first 6 months or so, it's not too hard to build a viable fort, even in the worst of biomes.

Just my 2 Urists.

[Beast Tamer]

I once made a giant dome over my entire fort in the middle of a Biome that routinely had clouds of soot that turned things into husks. It covered most of the map, and I had a blast trying to keep a stable city while ignoring all traders that came by. Sure it was difficult, and I had to deploy my two axlords more than once to push back the husks (usually after the rain washes the soot from their bodies), but it was my favorite fort out of any.

Always a quick order and a wall away from sucumbing to the forces of evil... though to be honest that Legendary Cow Husk scared the shit out of me, the thing killed a Minotaur in one hit, then battled a Web Spraying Forest Titan for years before knocking its head off.

Depending on the surroundings when you embark, either make a dome over your wagon with some blocks you brought, or dig a hole and go under- then rise from below and make a covered city once you have the manpower, supplies, and plans to do so.

[HellTiger]

nice. I got now some inspiration.
how about the theory of application the incoming hordes? once i saw a fun pic where some one used the blood flows from died enemy to power a water wheel. i think bone industry's are also going high.