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[pisskop]

How to make them a stronger race.  I have my own ideas about them and what they should be, and mostly I'm tired of ripping up 50 elf raiding parties with a moderately skilled squad.  Even their animals are of limited help to them.

So:

Giving them metal (not my idea of 'fair'.  I'm more than happy with Toady's vision of Elves as naive to metalwork)
Giving them custom weapons (I do this, in this new version with archery more nerfed I'm currently experimenting)
Giving them more access to animal products (animals die of old age, after all)
Giving them more exotic mounts (to limit other races' access to them)
Giving them poison weaponry (ala cavern tribals)
Giving them better bodies (size, skills, w.e.)
Giving them better minds (attributes, 'magic' (CDI)


Ive toyed with some ideas, like adding new creatures that can benefit the elves (mammoths, dinosaurs, and sentient plants), but thats kind of sidestepping the problem of wood weaponry being terrible.

Ive thought about adding a cdi on the elves, either a 'heal' spell or a 'mutate' spell, or else something to make them more capable of not dying.

Ive considered adding some natural skills to the elves.

Ive considered the custom weapons, giving them custom arrows and bows.



What would make elves more capable and still fit the generalized lore Toady has lain out?

[Girlinhat]

Use the steel trick.  In previous versions at least, I assume still somewhat applicable, if a race had access to a custom reaction, then they always had that material.  In this way, worlds with no metal would still generate steel bars and steel anvils, because dwarves would 'cheat' and have access to steel at all times - steel is a custom reaction.

So, give elves access to custom wood types.  Make a reaction that generates a type of wood that has the stats of bronze, and make it so only the elves have this reaction.  Then you should start seeing elves wielding bronze-wood weapons, and other races can only get these if they steal them from elves.

I'd also bump their stats, in general.  Gait, attack speed, dodge, strength... Elves in DF are pretty brutal cannibals and murderers, they're not the flimsy pixies of LOTR.

[Art]

I never understood Elves in DF lore. They do not like chopping down trees, but have no metalworking and everything they own is made of wood? Did I miss something?


My ideas:
1. Give them higher base agility, focus
2. Glass armor and Weapons? slightly stolen from elderscrolls.
3. Gold or Silver armor/Weapons? Possibly worse than no armor.
4. War Bears/Elephants/Crocodiles

[Mlamlah]

Now that Elf Wood is now a different material than regular old dead tree wood i was thinking it could be made a stronger denser material than regular wood. I'm not sure exactly how age effects the skill of generated characters, but it might make elves a little tougher if skill correlated with it a little bit better, with older characters tending to have greater levels of skill.

[Art]

I was just looking at the stats for glass and it seems like it could make interesting armor/weapons

http://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/DF2014:Weapon#Material

In some areas it is better than Iron/Steel and in other areas weaker. Could be interesting.

[Lovechild]

I never understood Elves in DF lore. They do not like chopping down trees, but have no metalworking and everything they own is made of wood? Did I miss something?

They grow their stuff on the trees like fruit. It's very humane. Or elfe?

[Art]

OK makes sense. Maybe give them special hardwood armor?

[pisskop]

Where is the data for the grown log?

[Art]

I am no expert, but I think the wood template is in material_template_default.txt

And then I think the specific types can be found in plant_standard.txt and plant_new_trees. I am not sure how elves make "grown" wood items though. In entity_default.txt, they have [WOOD_WEAPONS] and [WOOD_ARMOR] tags.

[MDFification]

I gave them a new caste that was a duplicate of Satyr. That made them bring a few melee powerhouses alongside their regular sieges.

But yeah, odd weapon materials and some more potent war animals would be good.

[pisskop]

I am no expert, but I think the wood template is in material_template_default.txt

And then I think the specific types can be found in plant_standard.txt and plant_new_trees. I am not sure how elves make "grown" wood items though. In entity_default.txt, they have [WOOD_WEAPONS] and [WOOD_ARMOR] tags.

I cant find any reference to grown wood.

[Art]

Yeah I searched the whole raw folder for the word "grown" and found nothing relevant.

Possibly hardcoded?

[EinsteinSatDown]

I think magic might be the way to go here.
Elves have assorted types of magic featured in threetoe's stories, ranging from summoning bees to advanced alchemy.

Once a general system of magic is implemented in the game, I think elves will have much more martial potential.
If something like the forest spirit is implemented, elves may be bestowed blessings in times of war

This can also come from "the force" mentioned in legends mode.
Furthermore, usage of beastfolk as allies can lead to more entertaining sieges.

[Larix]

I'd give elves all kinds of poisons; a few hard-coded, many procedural. Fits well with their nature theme. And while plant poisons are normally not as spectacular or quick as some animal poisons (esp. of predators, who use them to disable prey), there are quite a few very effective ones. Of course, they'd still need a way to make the poison work, if metal armour provides 100% impenetrable protection against elf-arrows, that's no good.

[Panando]

I've always thought that elves grow their weapons something like this.

And magical wood should be able to do cut steel.