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[ragincajun]

So, I've never gotten far in a fortress to start to develop my military.  This time I have armor production up and running.  I just got a message that Sigun Lathoncatten has grown attached to a copper crossbow.

[Romegypt]

Nice! That is amazing! Now he will always one shot creatures, AND always hit them! Your so lucky!

You probably should prioritize his safety over others, so you will keep him.

I'm just kidding! But seriously, that's not bad or good. It just means if it is carried off he will get mad, and if he uses it enough, he will get happy thoughts. That's what happened to me when people were getting attached to their iron battle axes and breastplates and things.

[dwarf_reform]

I've got at least one dwarf, if not two, with claimed weapons like this, and had no idea it had benefits :> I just figured he'd smash tables if he lost his crossbow :|

I also don't generally end up making a military on most play attempts, either due to early death or botched/bad embarks, or recently from ditching old games to update DF versions I also dislike the overly-complex-though-functional UI (all the equipment stuff could be condensed into a screen that actually shows the available equipment slots and what they're wearing, etc)..

This time I embarked with two dwarves dedicated to crossbow and have been cranking wooden bolts out around the clock.. I've tossed in three or four useless peasants for axedwarves too.. They've handled the keas and other occasional rowdy animals well, but they've only been tested so far (in 2+ years) by a group of four goblins, which they utterly destroyed..

My wealth levels are all messed up this round because I thought I was on a solid aquifer map and only recently found out that there is no aquifer under the hill on the east side of my map, so I've just lately gained access to gems and metals :O I did enjoy living in the damp sand while it lasted, though..

[StagnantSoul]

So you just never lasted long enough to get to use a military? That's unfortunate.

[SixOfSpades]

AFAIK, dwarves will only get attached to weapons and shields, I believe the dwarf must have gotten at least one kill using the item in question. After the weapon/shield has delivered many killing blows, the dwarf may give it a unique name, as if it were an artifact (this does not, however, make the item any better).

"Attached" items can still be removed, by unforbidding them and adjusting the dwarf's uniform to use something else instead . . . or taking them out of the military altogether.

Just in case a dwarf does perform better with attached items, and/or get unhappy thoughts from not having them or seeing somebody else with them (none of which I've ever noticed), that's a good argument for getting Legendary Weapon & Armorsmiths before forming a military, so that your warriors don't get attached to anything but masterworks.

[Thisfox]

I've had dwarves use a copper weapon for years, then upgraded the military to iron. The next battle (which was only about week later, by complete chance) had two different weapons get attached to by their owners. I interpreted it as "boss, we like the iron weapons. They're really doing their job. We want to keep these weapons thanks."

...that said, the dwarf who still goes down in History, for me, as being able to kill the most effectively was a completely unarmed cook who chose to bite her husbands killer to death, then obliterate an entire goblin siege without the use of a weapon. I stopped worrying as much about weaponry after she did that. She was magnificent. I kept checking to see if she was infected with lycanthropy or something, but she was just a young mother furious about suddenly being a single parent, with her hands full of baby.

[Mentalpatient87]

Say a dwarf gets attached to a copper axe, and then the ?duces him a steel axe to use. Would putting the weapon he is attached to into a display/trap in his bedroom give any good thoughts?

[pisskop]

You want to avoid dwarves getting attached to low quality weaponry, if possible.  Not that its a huge deal for a crossbow, but when your legendary sworddwarf gets attached to the obsidian sword, its not going to end well.

[Aslandus]

So, I've never gotten far in a fortress to start to develop my military.  This time I have armor production up and running.  I just got a message that Sigun Lathoncatten has grown attached to a copper crossbow.

Never gotten far enough? I find it's the simplest way to defend an early fortress, just make a crossbow and some bolts, and recruit a dwarf into the militia and you can start protecting your citizens, much faster than building traps or walls to protect your fotress when you only have a few dwarves... If you can build a danger room, even better, you could have one to three dwarves chase off the first two invasions themselves...

Copper crossbows aren't too bad, they can still be used as acceptable melee weapons since they're metal, but a base quality crossbow isn't so great as far as ranged weapons go, you would ideally want a high quality crossbow...

[ragincajun]

Yeah, I find military is one thing I wait to develop.  My last two fortresses I've made an effort to start squads.  But without metal crafting up and running they are just regular dwarfs with too much time on their hands.

Haven't done danger rooms yet.  That wasn't in the game last time I played (I don't think) and just haven't gotten to it as I'm still learning stuff.

[Jake]

You want to avoid dwarves getting attached to low quality weaponry, if possible.  Not that its a huge deal for a crossbow, but when your legendary sworddwarf gets attached to the obsidian sword, its not going to end well.

Quality isn't as big a deal as you might think. According to the wiki, masterwork only gives a 2x bonus over no-quality, which isn't really noticeable except versus some forgotten beasts.

[pisskop]

You want to avoid dwarves getting attached to low quality weaponry, if possible.  Not that its a huge deal for a crossbow, but when your legendary sworddwarf gets attached to the obsidian sword, its not going to end well.

Quality isn't as big a deal as you might think. According to the wiki, masterwork only gives a 2x bonus over no-quality, which isn't really noticeable except versus some forgotten beasts.

I mean material quality

But aside,  Ill take that masterpiece over that exceptional hammer all day.

[Jake]

Actually, so far as I can tell from a few arena experiments, it's possible to overstate how much difference material makes as well; broken limbs are basically an instant knock-out against anything living.

[Aslandus]

Technically, all the things you do merely increase your odds, it's possible for one dwarf with a copper sword to kill 50 armored goblins if they're exceptionally lucky, but mostly skill, weapon type, and what coverage of armor they have makes a bigger difference as to what they can kill than whether they have a masterwork or an exceptional sword

[pisskop]

You guys seem to have a completely different with the Random Number Goddess than I.  She is a cruel mistress, and her effects are felt everywhere.  Better to be lucky an have saving throws or at least understand what your unluck will do.