Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Johann Canteloupe]

Hi all,

So I'm back in the saddle with Dwarf Mode.

Been playing my current fort for a bit, and suddenly I noticed, without any apparent provocation or cause, dwarves kept dying.

I've had no syndrome causing forgotten beasts (or any forgotten beasts for that matter), no wounds delivered to my dwarves (that didn't immediately result in death), and to my knowledge no poisonous creatures stinging my dwarves.

I have had necromancer and werebeast attacks, but A. That to my knowledge shouldn't cause this and B. No one who was injured by them survived.


So I've had a little look round, and apparently similar cases have happened before, with dwarves dying randomly.

My possible solution is this: I'm very... lassez-faire with my dwarves welfare, when it comes to having cave-ins. I'll quite often have a dwarf undermine something if it saves me time. Typically they either die, or, more likely, get knocked unconscious.

Even though it shows no injury following having been knocked out, is it possible that some combination of dust/unwritten head-trauma may be having an effect, and resulting in unexplained deaths later?

I haven't tracked who's been knocked out thus far, but I recently had quite a few get batted around following some renovation of a tower, so I'll keep an eye on those involved.

----

What are everyones thoughts?


JC

[Madrigal]

Have you ruled out death from old age?

Have you engraved memorial slabs for the dead dwarfs, and do they give any clues as to the cause of death?

[Johann Canteloupe]

Yes actually. I'm currently waiting on all my slabs to be made for those dwarves (It's currently quite late in England, so I should go to bed now )

Oddly enough, one who died a while ago is listed as having "Died from Suffocation". I can't confirm that is one of the mystery deaths however, but I believe it was. Should know more certainly tomorrow.

Also yes, it wasn't old age. I'm fairly sure it gives an announcement when that happens?

[Shonai_Dweller]

Too much booze. Death by suffocation means they died of alcohol poisoning usually. Seriously, it's a new feature since the taverns release. Not having a tavern keeper apparently helps. It won't happen to everyone, only those lacking self-control (that includes most of your visiting goblins probably).

[Nolimit]

Too much booze. Death by suffocation means they died of alcohol poisoning usually. Seriously, it's a new feature since the taverns release. Not having a tavern keeper apparently helps. It won't happen to everyone, only those lacking self-control (that includes most of your visiting goblins probably).

As already said the cause is probably a tavern. Other clues that you may look for are piles of vomit around dead bodies. Besides not having a tavern keeper, other solution would be to limit the amount of mugs allowed in your tavern (3-4 mostly works great for me, but you can set it as low as one). Also, different races have different tolerance for alcohol. IIRC it depends of liver size, disease resistance, and body size(?). Somebody already did science on this and goblins are the weakest, and elfs, apparently, are the strongest, followed by dwarfs.

[YetAnotherLurker]

It's possible you're getting deaths due to infection from injuries sustained during those cave-ins you mentioned. Dying to infected ears and fingernails and such is quite possible, and may happen months or years after the injury itself.

[PatrikLundell]

Note that performers assigned to taverns are just as (in)effective at poisoning visitors as tavern keepers are (and tavern keepers are just as ineffective at entertaining guests as performers are). Thus, to remove that cause of death (if you want to do so), you should sack both the tavern keepers and the performers.

[Johann Canteloupe]

Hmmm. Interesting. Does it make the difference that I have no tavern, and I've had no idling dwarves since I've started?
I've been very focused on making an above-ground fort/underground killing-field, so they haven't had time for taverns yet.

[Fleeting Frames]

Yeah. No tavern keeper; no overdrinking. Sounds like they're not hurting their breathing by puking out guts by cave adaptation either (not that I've ever heard this killing someone)....Well, I've got nothing. Just how did Urist suffocate? Making quicksaves and -backups might help to investigate, i.e. figure out x dwarf is going to die mysterious death, then investigate them (with dfhack if need be).

Cave in injuries killing years later would be death cause of infection.

Worth mentioning that usual other reason for dwarves going "missing" is them climbing trees and towers and dehydrating, unable to get down.

[Sethatos]

"Died from Suffocation" is often from a spinal injury as well. My guess is they are getting injured spines from cave ins and then dying from suffocation shortly afterwards.

[Shonai_Dweller]

I've had dorfs apparently drink themselves unconscious without the help of a tavern keeper before. Very difficult to prove though. Just a number of cases where a dwarf suddenly required 'rescuing' having been found unconscious in the (non-tavern) booze pile. After being deposited in hospital they would leave immediately without diagnosis and the only thing left in their thoughts was euphoria after drinking. Each rescued dwarf was one lacking in self control. Seems like it could be fatal eventually. Certainly the booze pile wasn't caving in periodically.

Again, no real proof that they were actually drinking themselves to unconsciousness. But if not that, then what happened...?

"Known science" was completely out of whack during that embark anyhow, having suffered an apparently impossible 14 month zombie siege too.

[Dorsidwarf]

I'd definitely recommend checking all your dwarves for infection, it sounds most likely if you don't have a Fortress Poisoner appointed.

[Madman198237]

Maybe keep an eye out for a vampire in your fort?

[Shonai_Dweller]

Maybe keep an eye out for a vampire in your fort?

Vampire deaths usually mention that the victim was drained of blood though. Vampire with no teeth...?

[Dunamisdeos]

If you just do it deliberately it won't be a mystery. Fixed.