Diary of “4maskwolf” Zuglarzatthud, expedition leader of Outpost Thalalmelbil: “Empiretome”
15 Granite, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
After a long and harrowing journey, we have finally arrived at our destination. The fog that has surrounded us in these accursed swamps has momentarily lifted, allowing us to see what lies around us. We are fortunate we stopped where we did, for not 20 paces in front of us lies a stream that might have been our deaths had we walked into it. Supplies are low, but they must last until we can establish a steady food supply. Perhaps it is a dwarf’s intuition, but I do not believe that we are out of danger just yet. Strange things lurk these marshes, heard but never seen. I have ordered the miners to get us underground as quickly as possible while our woodcutter cuts down some nearby trees. With Armok’s grace, we shall survive this first year.
26 Granite, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
All of our supplies have been moved inside, and our two farmers have busied themselves setting up farms to grow our crops. After digging us out a living area, the miners dug down and struck an aquifer. This will be difficult to break through, and I’m going to leave that task until later, when everything else is set up and the fortress is more stable. In the meantime, we will simply have to expand outward rather than downward, as undignified as that is.
The mists close in again, and I fear what they could bring…
3 Slate, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
Sweet merciful Armok… it has begun to rain blood near our fortress, over in our pastures. While I hate to see our livestock die, it is preferable to all of us dying. I have heard tell of such strange occurrence
es: nobody can be sure of what will happen if we touch it, and I do not want to be the one to try.
10 Slate, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
Peering out today through the mists, I caught sight of a cloud of ash heading towards the fortress entrance. We quickly sealed the entrance with a hatch cover to keep it out, but who knows what that could have caused had it hit us.
12 Slate, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
Something moves on the horizon, a group of creatures I cannot discern. Their howls split the night, sending chills down my spine. Never before have I heard a sound so evil, so full of malice. I thank Armok for the stream that separates us, but it is only a matter of time before they find a fording point.
24 Slate, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
All of the wood has been moved from the temporary stockpile to a more permanent workshop space, from where our carpenter can create the furniture we need to call ourselves a proper fortress. A new workshop area is being dug out for food processing and storage, as well as a dining room for ourselves to enjoy. I fear I haven’t been of much help so far to the fortress, being a mere mechanic and diplomat: without stone, I cannot do my job.
12 Felsite, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
The howls have faded into the distance, and I believe that it is once again safe to brave the world above. Our woodworker has been sent to cut down a few nearby trees to restock our wood storage, while our animal trainer, who has skill as an architect, has been sent to construct a trade depot. If a caravan ever gets here, I do not want them to leave empty-handed.
26 Felsite, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
After much hesitation, I have ordered the construction of a trade bridge across the stream. While this will allow whatever those abominable… things… are to cross the river and find us, it is better to have the caravans and whatever migrants we get be able to reach us rather than be slaughtered by them.
10 Hematite, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
All of the wood has been moved to storage, and the storage area even had to be expanded to account for the increased wood supply. While I detest this place, it must be said that the natural resources are not as bad as I thought they would be.
18 Malachite, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
The howling has not returned, but we must remain ever-vigilant. The work on the dining area has been completed for now, with a small dining center off to the side. Additionally, the food processing facilities have been set up, now all that remains is to move what food we do have to there. We may end up relocating the farms for next year, but for now they can stay where they are.
27 Malachite, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
A group of migrants arrived today, joining the seven of us here. There were nine of them, and I took a census of their professions in order to determine what jobs they would perform. There were three children too young to work, an animal dissector, a clothier, a glazer, a fishery worker, a farmer, and a presser. The fishery worker was immediately sternly told not to go out and fish, for having any dwarf distracted outside could be a disaster. I have assigned the animal dissector to do weaving, which should keep him busy once we begin to process the pig tail crop.
4 Galena, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
I have taken upon myself the job of bookkeeper of this fortress, to keep our records and keep track of our supplies. After a good night’s sleep, I’m going to take an inventory of our current stocks and see what we need more of.
15 Galena, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
After some job reassignment, the pig tails have begun to be processed into thread for our new weaver. Although we have no way to process dimple cups into dye as of current, I’m sure we’ll be able to figure out that problem later. In the meantime, creating bags will be invaluable for processing the quarry bush harvest to the maximum possible extent.
28 Galena, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
The production of bags to hold quarry bush leaves has begun, as our makeshift weaver has taken to the job quite well. We must now begin to think what we will trade the caravan when it arrives…
12 Limestone, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
The caravan arrived today, slightly ahead of schedule. I had ordered some crossbows be made to trade for useful materials, but we shall see how many get made before the caravan has to leave. I’d rather not trade away some of our more useful materials, but I may have to trade our anvil in order to secure building supplies.
15 Limestone, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
To get the trade done with quickly, I traded our anvil and three crossbows in exchange for several blocks some crystal glass. We can make green and clear glass here, but crystal glass is beyond our capabilities. The glassmaking facilities are already dug out, all that is required now is for us to build the required workshops.
Little has been heard of the mysterious creatures that once stalked these lands. The caravan guards killed a couple of capybaras that wandered too close to the depot, but nothing dangerous has come in a long time. Perhaps I was merely imagining those shapes in the mist: could the howls not have come from wolves. I was too easily scared by the tales of this land, for while the rain is horrifying it does not affect the fortress proper. Out of sight, out of mind.
17 Limestone, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
Finally, I have finished meeting with the liaison from the mountainhomes. He tells of the expansion of our glorious dwarven kingdom to new locations around the world, and after much negotiating he agreed to bring a small amount of raw stone for us next year, along with some more stone blocks. We do not lack for anything else. He said that crafts, clothes, and well-made meals were in high demand in many of the other fortresses and offered us his word that we would receive a good deal next year on those items. While I’m not sure how many of them we will be able to make, I accepted his offer and promised to see what I could do.
12 Sandstone, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
Sweet merciful Armok…
As the merchants packed up to leave today, a cloud of ash drifted by. Most of the merchants shied away and found a different way to leave, but one merchant, his pack animal, and his guard decided to brave the ash storm. We could not see him through it, and as it approached the fortress entrance we sealed the hatch to keep it out.
It has passed us now, and I looked out to see the two dwarves lying dead, their bodies rotted to the bone. I have ordered my fellow dwarves to leave the bodies alone: we dare not touch them nor anything they were carrying for fear of others falling prey to the same fate.
14 Sandstone, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
To my dismay, we found another merchant and his guard, struck down by the same ash cloud that struck down his comrade. He attempted to outrun the cloud but was too slow, and it washed over him and killed him as well. A small chick, beloved pet of one of our children, was also slain by the ash cloud.
22 Sandstone, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
Another group of migrants arrived today. Once again, I kept a list of them: two children, three rangers, a metalcrafter, two farmers, a butcher, a presser and a thresher. Eleven in total, bringing our population up to 27. I’m going to begin arranging a military, although their weapon selection will be limited at least until the next caravan from the mountainhomes.
27 Sandstone, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
The first military squad of our fortress, the Curled Helms, has been recruited. A barracks was quickly dug out for them, and they are now assembling in the barracks to train as wrestlers. While wrestlers are less efficient at killing than dwarves with weapons, none of them had significant weapon skill and we simply don’t have the resources to create proper weapons or armor.
4 Timber, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
One of the farmers started behaving strangely today, muttering to herself about how she needed to make something of leather. I don’t know entirely what to do with her, so I’m going to give her a place to work and butcher a few animals and see if that’s good enough.
13 Timber, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
Turns out all she wanted was a single piece of leather, so I’m just going to wait and see what she creates. It is fortunate she did not desire any materials that we do not have on site right now.
17 Timber, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
She has created a leather piece of headwear that… I’m not entirely sure what to say about it. I don’t recognize the style from anywhere, maybe she saw some humans wearing it? In any case, in honor of her accomplishments, she has been given the title “Relic Bearer”. I have ordered the miners to create a tomb section devoted to those who create the great relics we shall become known for.
9 Opal, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
The howling is back again. There is no mistaking it. It sends shivers down my spine, and I wonder how I ever thought something so evil could be as innocent as a mere wolf. The mists do not permit us to see the creatures, and I have locked the hatch that leads to the fortress. Nobody goes in or out until the howling stops.
12 Opal, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
The others have reported seeing a ghostly form lurking the fortress, haunting the hallways of the fort. The same mist that obscures the outside has crept in to the depths, making it difficult to prove. They claim it takes the form of one of the dead merchants, wandering the halls mournfully until it is put to rest. Even if I dared risk going outside, I cannot in good conscience order the dwarves to touch the bodies of those killed by the mist.
20 Opal, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
I have ordered the miners to dig out the Hall of the Fallen, where we will shall house our honored dead and memorials to the creatures who have died around the fortress.
8 Obsidian, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
Yesterday the howling finally stopped. I went outside to check on the situation and was met by a horrible sight. Both of the yaks that brought our wagon here had been brutally slaughtered, as if with forethought and malice. Whatever came by had plucked out their hearts and eaten them whole. I’ll admit, it was too much for me to bear: I puked on my way back inside. Their corpses have been forbidden to keep anyone from going near them.
26 Obsidian, 92nd year of our lord Armok:
As the year draws to a close, I must say that this is the most dismal place I have ever lived. The fog never clears and pervades the entire fortress with dampness and a lingering sense of malice. I feel that the land itself does not want us here and sends its children to kill us. I pray that next year we will have the strength to fight off these demons that stalk our lands, making it once more safe for us to live.
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Topic: What's going on in your fort? (Read 6229815 times)