So the Fields of Hope won't exist if I generate world and modify the parameters a bit. Unfortunate, but not unexpected. If I don't use the Pre-Set Values, could the DestinedButterfly#730 parameters generate a world with similar locations, or is it still up to chance? At this point, I'm not looking for a specific/perfect single location (although certainly I may want one in the future); I wanted to have a world that has lots of locations with my requirements so that I have options on where I could make a fort.
Depends on what parameters, but probably it will in some form in #730. I'd almost never call it for certain; I think I've had pretty much unchanged world generation for almost every parameter that doesn't modify all tiles.
Here is screenshot of the worksheet I use to keep track of it (had to compress some less important lines to fit on screen).
It will be quite similar, but not quite the same. For sticking with same embark spot/geography and just changing history and underground, I've written over 4k lines(
like this - here I'm incrementing pre-set savagery in the path of goblin pits so that history may change and I would get more towers and bigger town. Annoying, but don't know any other way to keep start of history the same (so that the nomadic necro would be born) while changing late one, which is incredibly specific constraint).
One thing not listed in that worksheet - I arrived at the specific setup of layer materials by messing with embark-nearby volcanism (even saw some without aquifers due bottom 2 layers being entirely types clay, but those had fewer sedimentary layers). Cavern parameters are my favourite ones to modify for small to moderate history changes that apply at beginning of world.
But I get the feeling you want broader, biome-level changes.
This post has two sceenshots for what level of changes to expect in a pre-set value world. Generally, expect regional tiles to say the same, as the local ones change. A non-pre-set world would have less constraints, so broader changes. But, uh, you probably won't get as many towers - I've seen only five different nomadic necromancers in variants of this world.
As for a world with multiple embark spots - there currently aren't existing tools to add, move and remove regions successfully after world is generated, so you need to consider what spots you want as you generate.
Does this change mean that semi-/megabeasts will show up announced as normal? I don't think I'm ready for megabeasts to show up like normal animals.
Just the existing Hydra and bronze colossus. Tbh, you can add them later in-play during fort mode with region-pops or just before embarking with PatrikLundell's biomediversity, but they won't be changing history then as when added mid-gen.
(Also, I'm not sure if it actually messes with things or the crash was unrelated dfhack crash - path fail messages are pretty common, mostly happening with your own dwarves.)
I think that I'll probably continue using the present current version until the new LNP is created.
Likewise, or on 43.03 for a bit. Not sure the next version will be save-compatible, but 730 doesn't have any kobolds.
It is trivially easy to increase megabeast/titan/semi-mb numbers. Similarly with civiliations. (Though koboldsand caves go together, don't leave them out in the cold, particularly with extra mb's.) Mineral scarcity=100 gives you more ores than you will ever use... a lot/most embarks will have iron. It's the towers that will be the tricky part that I can't help with but generally long histories and lots of civ's for conflicts are recommended. Maybe increasing the evil square count as well, I dunno? There are a couple of threads that will pop by searching the forum that will be useful, including recently.
Towers are done by mortals bestowed slabs by dwarven and human death gods (just did a quick testgen to confirm that elven and goblin gods won't work for animal people) after some violent events in their life. Then they may go make tower right away, or after a battlefield in an empty land spot where they pick the corpses (which is how you may get multi-tower necros). Any particular death god is not terribly eager to bestow them, usually limiting their numbers to what can be counted on a single hand, so the easiest way to increase their number is increasing the number of dwarf and human civs, or carefully prodding a nomadic necro to hustle - though mind the secret number in that it limits the first.
Neither of those are tricky part - in fact, megabeasts support the existence of towers by causing death and violence. The tricky part is getting that, while maintaining strong, major civilizations who will send you sieges from a town/dark fortress, not some dinky little pit. Lots of megas tends to kill off civs, lots of civs tends to result in large population centers surrounded by small villages, being that existing centers block new ones post-civ placement near them.