04-04
The goblins arrived from the west across the river. I ordered everyone inside, of course, but the real difficulty is collecting the animals. Horses are supposed to be known for their speed yet ours took three days to limp across the gate. Not a moment too soon, the goblins could be seen running through the surrounding trees even as the way snapped shut. The second we were secure I ordered the slow horse, and most of the other adult animals, butchered. I left a breeding pair of alpacas and the one dog in the fortress alone, but if this is going to be a siege we can’t keep the rest fed and we desperately need leather for quivers. I have a plan… I think.
04-05
Something about being packed together in our dining room with the threat of imminent death brought on a festive air and soon enough a party broke out. Dragoni says it’s the result of heightened emotions, that the mind has trouble distinguishing between excitement and fear. Origamiscience was leading the crowd in singsong when the two of us slipped down to the armory and adamantine smelter that are Dragoni’s great contribution to Workclench.
“On the subject of confusion, are you sure this is what you want to do? Dumed is more than capable of assembling a band of fighters to meet the goblins if we can equip them,” he told me.
At least he didn’t tell me I was too young. I assured him of my confidence in my plan as I took up the aptly named Neutralization of Declining and pulled it on. The shining blue breastplate looked chunky but it weighed easily on my shoulders and encompassed my girth with a comfortable snugness. “Dumed will lead the militia but the citizens need to see someone from their ranks contributing support. Don’t worry, he can lead the charge. I’m going to put together a group of rangers to shoot over his head. Though… this would be easier if we had a fortified wall to shoot down from.”
“If you really intend to carry through take this,” said Dragoni. He went to the corner of the armory and picked up a broad shield and brought it over to me. Upon closer examination, it turned out to be made of cat bone, light and maneuverable, and decorated with an image of dwarves on an expedition to found a new settlement, a very hopeful message compared with the grim murder portrayed on the breastplate I now wear. “This is Berrypractices, my youngest made it.”
I was touched, so much so that my throat tightened up a bit and I’m not sure I thanked Dragoni in the fashion he deserved. I’ve hassled him over his mining operations and my insistence on shutting them down put his wife in danger, and now the work done by him and his family is the best line of defense for the fortress, and for me.
He’s probably right that there are more experienced people to lead the newly formed guards, but something about this plan feels so… inevitable. This won’t be the first time a desperate situation has been saved by a fifteen year old girl and the story of it will inspire the people. I hope I’m doing this for the right reasons.
04-06
With the front gate sealed, it is safe to resume work inside the fortress. I spent today assessing the situation and preparing for the siege. Zasit, our dabbling strand extractor, is also a butcher and so very much needed in the kitchens right now. Origamiscience’s friend Led had been instructed to help out with the difficult process of strand extraction but she told me in private that the task gives her migraines so I let her off the hook. I talked instead to Id Moruluker, a legendary bone carver who is well used to fiddly work. I asked her to take on some of the strand extraction and relieved her of all superfluous chores in return. Since we don’t have any steel yet, adamantine is our best bet for equipping a fighting team to face the goblins lurking outside.
Wood is now precious. I order all the bones from the slaughtered animals turned into bolts so that my new squad, The Roofs of Pondering, can begin training. I have a room dug out across from the barracks and filled with ammunition. I ordered more equipment set up in the barracks and a shooting range put together. I will have to use some wood to make crossbows. We will need most of it for charcoal for the forges.
I met with our metallurgy team as well: Rith Zefoncuggan, our legendary armorer and the creator of The Neutralization of Declining, Rovod Thikutkadol the weaponsmith, and Elagn Duthalmedtob who is an all around metalworker. We will have to be careful while marshalling our supplies. I order a suit of high quality iron armor made for Dumed. Rovod gets to work creating iron bolts and Elagn is seeing to our fuel supply. They’re a good team and as important to the cause as any of the soldiers.
04-12
Catten the gelder has stopped responding to shouts through the wall to the caverns. We all fear the worst and his wife, Thikut, has taken to hanging around down in the landing. Well, that’s the risk you run when you set out on some mad venture.
04-15
Dolomite can be used to forge steel and I was racking my brains to remember where I’d seen some when it suddenly dawned on me, the staircase to nowhere! I ran to the workshops and flew up the dark winding steps and at the top there were sure signs of a dolomite vein through the clay. I ordered a mine dug from the top of the staircase immediately. We’ll be harvesting our precious materials right out from under those goblins. Steel doesn’t have the nearly mystical properties of adamantine but it makes up for it by being much easier to work with and a supply of it will go a long way towards equipping the troops.
04-17
My new squad mate, Cilob Ononoram, was elected mayor today. He’s a great guy and really eager to start working for the people of Workclench, though he promised me that his new duties won’t interfere with our training. We all took a break from practice and went for a drink to celebrate. It was more dwarven wine though, alas.
04-18
I haven’t had much time for my old jobs but I made a special point of stopping by the fields today. I’ve changed up the instructions for planting in an attempt to introduce at least a little variety into our diets, though apparently we don’t even have sweet pod seeds. I’ll make a special note to have old Rimtar get some from the next caravan. This is all the more reason to make sure the invaders are cleared out of here before our brethren from the Mountainhome arrive. On that note, the three veterans now possess full suits of iron armor. They will have steel as soon as it is available.
04-20
The dolomite dig found gypsum. This will be excellent for the new hospital if I can ever convince anyone to open up the clothier’s workshop. Seriously, all our clothes are all but disintegrating off our bodies. Who was supposed to be… Oh wait a minute; I think I’m probably the only skilled clothier in Workclench. Woops. I’ll see if I can’t find someone else to make us up some shirts and socks. We’ll need someone to dwarf the kiln too, come to think of it. That’s the problem with starting this new squad; we just don’t have enough hands to do all the work.
04-23
Food storage is a continuous problem and we just don’t have the wood for barrels. I had a room dug out for a kiln and glassmakers’ furnace. If we had coal we could make porcelain pots, but we don’t have coal. If we ever have any empty bags we’ll be able to supply the hospital with plaster powder. What will we do with glass? I don’t know, but we have it now.
04-26
I decided to try using the bit of space up near our entrance to train the one dog in our fortress. I’m calling him Deduk Mengrovod and he’ll be a useful companion with a little practice. While we were up there, I decided to have a peek out at the goblins. They’ve been encamped by the river for the last few days. While I was attempting to get a feel for their situation, I witnessed an event no one else will ever believe.
There was distinct movement away in the south near where our refuse pit is located. I peered in that direction and saw a towering scorpion creature picking its way through the vegetation with eerie deliberateness. I don’t know how long I watched its approach, mesmerized by the horrific creature, when suddenly it sprang into the air carried far aloft on lacy wings.
The goblins, for their part, were not idle. They too had spotted this uninvited guest and they were without the reassuring presence of strong wooden walls and a ceiling. The archers of the group sprang to their feet and readied their bows. For a moment, I allowed myself the hope that this monster would lay waste to the goblins. Our enemies could kill each other and the survivors would be easy pickings for our militia.
(ooc: I should also mention that
this is the song that came up on my playlist as the titan dove on the goblins.)
That was before one of the archers shot clean through the scorpion’s wing, crippling it.
The fight went on all afternoon but at the end of it the scorpion lay mangled by the riverside and the goblins hadn’t suffered so much as a scratch. I’m supposed to be leading my rag tag squad of militia against these titan killers when I can’t even give them armor?
I called Deduk to heel and made my way down the stairs. Cilob grabbed me as I wandered past the depot and started babbling about a plan he’s concocted to drive up the price of all the bone figurines we have lying around. He was quite eager about it, he’s almost always eager about something, but I admit I didn’t follow any of it. My mind was still on the goblins and the scorpion’s abrupt demise. I did agree to ban the export of figurines, not that it will matter if the goblins slaughter the merchants and their caravan the second they arrive in our territory.
04-27
The scorpion is still on my mind. I spent all morning at the range until we ran out of bolts. I decided to erect the soap making workshop I ordered last spring while I wait for more bolts. Sitting around and stewing won’t do anything and every fortress can always use more soap.
05-08
The goblins have been taking out their frustration on the local wildlife. They’re a constant lurking menace. They keep slinking up to our entrance and scouring the area for secret entrances. Thank goodness all those extra staircases were blocked off.
I went around and asked absolutely everyone in the fortress if they had any combat skills at all. There was a mace dwarf, two hammer dwarves and an axe wielder in our midst. I’ve recruited them all into The Regal Bodice, bringing their numbers up to seven. Now it’s only a matter of forging their equipment.
Origamiscience has picked up on the changed mood around here. She’s been throwing more parties than ever to try to lift the fortress’s spirits.
05-16
Meng, our lost bowyer, sent a message that the caverns are infested with gremlins. I decided that enough is enough. She’s the wife of a militia member and it’s time for her to come home. I had the wall taken down and searchers sent out to drag her back. Unfortunately, Origamiscience came across Catten’s corpse. Apparently he died of dehydration. Thikut is shocked by this news, though I think the rest of us saw it coming.
05-19
Now that the caverns are open we might as well harvest what we can. We desperately need more fuel for the forge. If the local fauna starts causing problems, well, The Roofs of Pondering could do with some practice on moving targets.
05-20
The cage traps had a giant rat and an olm in them. We’ve decided to have a go at taming them since no one else can think what to do with them and they don’t look particularly appetizing.
Meanwhile, the woodcutters have spotted a cave crocodile. I’ve ordered the Roofs to assemble, tomorrow we go hunting.
05-27
Well… That could have gone better. The Roofs suffered two casaulties during the great croc hunt of 127, and one of them is me. Note to self, legendary breastplates do not stop overgrown cheeky lizards biting your feet.
I sent Cilob down to talk to the metallurgy team. I want Rith to make me some matching boots for the Neutralization of Declining, and some gauntlets, and maybe a helm too. And a crossbow is useless when we don’t have any bolts or quivers. Rovod’s been training with The Regal Bodice but Elagn’s available and eager to get away from charcoal duty for awhile. I’ve asked him to make me a sword. The Roofs are still a ranged squad but as a captain I need a proper sidearm. I told him it doesn’t have to be pretty; it just has to be sharp enough to cut croc skin.
I was the first one to locate our quarry but no sooner had I charged in to distract it then it latched onto my foot. I beat at it with the alder crossbow, for all the good that did. The rest of the squad arrived and plinked at with iron bolts but they only seemed aggravate the nasty thing. The monster kept its grip on me even when sweet Deduk started tearing at it trying to come to my rescue. I admit I grayed out towards the end there. I think Cog was the one who finally killed it.
I lost quite a bit of blood and had to sit down and have a bit of the breather. Some moments later, I became aware of a commotion behind me. It seems a giant olm had attempted to sneak up on me while I was resting but my squad intervened to protect me. The Roofs might not be the best equipped or the best trained but I’ll give us this, we really have become a team under these trying circumstances. I couldn’t leave them to fight alone on my behalf. I forced myself to stand on my torn and aching feet and rejoined the fight, though not before Ezum Helmcrowns suffered a serious injury I’m afraid.
I told the others to see to Ezum and painstakingly hauled myself through the caverns and up the stairs to our hospital, which is still under construction. There must not have been any beds when the squad delivered Ezum because they’d left him lying in a corner by the supply chest. I was checking on when my legs gave out. The two of us have decided to wait here together until the doctor becomes available.
Urist Chancediamonds is the only skilled diagnostician in Workclench. She was appointed the chief medical dwarf some time ago but I’m told she can’t see us because she’s on break, custom demands that we don’t disturb her.
(ooc: This is dwarf fortress imitating life right here.)
06-02
Ezum’s eldest daughter turned thirteen today and is now old enough to choose an official post in the community. I’m told she picked bone carving and leather working as her career and is going to begin training with the Roofs in honor of her father. I’m afraid we missed the party because Ezum and I are still languishing in hospital while Doctor Diamondchance remains on break.
06-03
This is ridiculous. A cut foot cannot keep me from my duties when we are under siege. I have to make sure we’re ready to face the goblins when autumn comes. The wound has mostly stopped bleeding and so long as I don’t put my weight down on it, it’s fine. I’m going down to the forge to see if my sword is ready.
(ooc: I have a bad feeling this means De’s going to have a cut foot permanently.)
06-10
Ezum returned to work today. He never did receive any sort of treatment. His scar is a deep nasty looking dent and his arm seems misshapen as the bone was never set. I fear he has suffered permanent nerve damage. He seemed determined to return to duty with the Roofs and I can’t very well take him off the squad after everything he’s already sacrificed. Perhaps he’s hoping his place in the militia will bring him more honor than his role as fish dissector could. I admit there isn’t much call for dissecting at the moment. If he can still fire a crossbow then he is free to do as he pleases, and Kogan was sure glad to have him back.
If there were any alternative at all, I think I would have Urist demoted for this. To ignore a cut foot is one thing, but to leave a brave soldier like Ezum lying on a trunk with a mangled arm for weeks on end is unacceptable. Thinking about it makes me feel like exercising my powers as Captain of the Guard. We don’t have any cells though and I can’t possibly divert the dwarf power to building a dungeon at this time. Nevertheless, I am tempted.
06-12
I have the livestock up grazing on what grass there is near the entrance ramp. The goblins have crept closer than ever, drawn by the sound of easy prey. Their determination to enter the fortress seems as strong as ever.
06-20
The hospital is in a sorry state. The list of necessary supplies is longer than Ezum’s poor arm. I’ve done the best I can under the circumstances and had a water reservoir put in under the washroom. The construction isn’t very elegant, I’m afraid, but at least it works. The levers to control the floodgates are in the new control room I had dug from the stairs.
06-22
The jeweler Sakzul Helmpages has taken over one of the workshops and begun construction on some mystery project. I haven’t had much work for gem cutters recently and I think they must all be rather bored with our state of lock down.
06-24
Last year, the speardwarf Thob died fighting a giant cave spider. Ever since then his pet jaguar has remained curled up next to the forge. The heat must remind her of her jungle home, poor thing. I’d like to do something for the creature but I admit that this is a problem I can’t even begin to think how to solve.
06-25
The scarcity of chains and cages around Workclench is really beginning to worry me. Tensions could bubble over at any time in our state of siege and I don’t know how we would handle such a situation. I might be forced into an act of public corporal punishment, possibly even execution! I’ve decided to appoint someone as hammerer, an official to stand between me and that dreadful prospect. I’ve tapped Kogan for the job, as I’ve gotten to know her well over the last few days and I like her moxie.
(ooc: She’s the weakest dwarf in the fortress. I’ll keep her equipped with a wooden crossbow and she’ll probably be harmless as hammerer. If somebody could find her a crossbow made of feather wood that would be even better.)
07-01
Autumn has arrived and we still don’t have armor for the Roofs. The Bodices are fully equipped however. They will make the initial charge and we will give them cover from the rear. We must be prepared to break this siege at any moment.
07-09
The word I’d been waiting for all this while came today. The outpost liaison sent a message that he had arrived in our territory. I ordered the Bodices to station themselves at the entrance ramp of Workclench while the Roofs would form up just below in the fields. We would come up after the Bodices made their initial charge. I gave the command for the gate to be opened and waited… and waited.
After agonizing moments of silent Dumed sent back word. There was to be no harrowing charge, no following reinforcement or hail of crossbow bolts. Indeed, there was no siege. I stepped out into bright sunshine for the first time in months and squinted towards the horizon where I observed the peaceful progress of the dwarven caravan towards out depot. At some point during the last day or so, the goblins had gotten bored with haunting our doorstep and simply left.
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Topic: Parallel Fortresses Succession Game. | Finished (Read 87957 times)