From
Earthbust or Bust: a Short History of The Merchants of Peace, written by Urist McSchoolchild as a history assignment.
Dwarves of The Competitive Boot, an expeditionary settlement led by Kadol Noiseless-Stake, left their home among The Merchants of Peace to found the hamlet of Earthbust on 15 Hematite, 1000.
The dwarves of Earthbust, keen to assist in the rebuilding of their fragmented civilisation, which apart from its tiny capital only commanded the baronies of Oilcoast and Roughsprays, arrived at the volcano they had chosen to settle and immediately set about constructing a bunker in which their huddled masses could take refuge.
Very soon, The Competitive Boot received news that one of their number, a Logem Coastal-Crypt by name, had been elevated to the monarchy. Mercifully, the king was relatively easy for the new settlers to work with: he continued in his professions of carpentry and smithing, and was by all accounts an humble man. A man of simple, and martial tastes, his only insistence was that the fortress produce and retain the use of crossbow bolts, a boon to the hunting trade and, in due course, the militia. All spoke highly of the king, glossing over rumours of the period as he was adjusting his new status, struggling to bear under the delays to the construction of quarters.
Engravings of the killing of Dodok Tin-Talon, cook and brewer, remain in the king's tomb and bedroom to this day. The loss of Tin-Talon, along with the excessive haste towards Dwarven magma-powered industry, resulted in food and drink shortages for a year and more. The lack of good hunting above-ground became all-too apparent as the fortress' hunters failed to bring in little more than the occasional Grey Parrot and Blue Peahen. Ospreys and Giant Ticks were seen, but never successfully shot. Eventually, the food shortage was ended by the arrival of stragglers from the disasters to befall The Merchants of Peace, bringing with them skills, knowledge, and edible livestock.
Eventually, the Quarters block was dug out, providing living and office space to Earthbust's burgeoning population. The Quarters, adopting a hatch-based multi-level plan, was a great success and was extended multiple times to accommodate the population arriving in all conditions.
The dwarves turned their sights once again to the question of the industries. The plentiful heat provided by the magma of the volcano turned out to be more than necessary, as no coal was ever discovered; a similar absence of flux stone was far more difficult to overcome. Work proceeded on the urgent task of bringing Earthbust to the status of a fully-fledged Dwarven manufactory, turning out the trade goods for which The Merchants of Peace had justifiably earnt their name, as the volcano was carefully tapped for its precious magma.
As industry developed, the magma kilns, making good use of plentiful clay and ever-renewing heat, turned out earthenware bricks for the constant construction of Earthbust. The magma glass furnace, idle most of the year as sand could not be found, sprang into life when The Merchants sent the annual caravan and sand could be traded.
Gold dug from the heart of the mountain provided the raw stock for the furniture necessary to equip the king's quarters. By early spring 1002, these were equipped, not quite sufficiently to reflect his majesty, yet enough for the circumstances. Iron was in abundance as well, and soon Merchants of Peace were manufacturing iron weapons and armour to fit out a militia that was yet to be recruited from the population of forty-seven adult dwarves and one infant.
It was indeed at this point that the question of military preparedness arose, since the miners had successfully breached a cavern wall, spying a troll before quickly walling up the entrance...
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Topic: What's going on in your fort? (Read 6219444 times)