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[zdrgn]

Howdy folks. I'm looking for an embark with a large difference in elevation - a valley with sheer mountain next to it, preferably with cliffs. I've turned off the erode cliffs flag on my world gen, but I'm not finding many embarks that satisfy what I'm looking for.
Basically what I'd like is a nice tall mountain that I carve the front out of to make an Erebor-style fortress entrance. The valley is far less important, but even just a small patch of flat-ish land at the bottom would be helpful ...

I always have the same struggle, I only ever feel dwarfy carving into a mountain.  Basically I just look at the terrain in the embark screen and look for Large asterisks next to 0's(or 1's and 2's).  Even with no erosion these are eroded.  I keep erosion cycles low (less than 100) but on because it allows for rivers carving steep cliffs and waterfalls. I also turn off periodically erode steep cliffs flag.  Keep elevation variance high (1600-3200).
If you go with an embark that looks like.
***
***
000
You'll have high land and peaks over a lower flat area(half the time). Check relative elevation(another tabbed view in embark) it'll tell you if the 0's are on the lower or higher plain, because a lot of times you'll be looking at a plateau atop a mountain.
Even when there's ramps all the way up you can carve them into the flat cliff you want with dwarfpower.  And you can even carve cliff side statues and a multi Z entrance with a little work.
Another good looking embark screen would be:
000000*0
******0
00000000      (pick any 3 tile in there) Often this would mean that the 0's on one side of the sharp cliffs are a plateau, and the 0's on the other are a valley. If you move around your region with the *'s showing you'll see formations like this occasionally.

[Lord Shiteblast]

I did as you suggested and was able to find a number of suitable sites for embark.

Thank you very much!

EDIT: Stonesense screenie:-

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[scourge728]

ptw

[zdrgn]

So  i finally found a waterfall + volcano 3x3 embark i can live with(been experimenting and using df hack to scan for volcano + waterfall for a week or so).

In the last batch I generated 89 maps starting at 10 with the following parameters which i think are ideal for waterfalls and volcanos on a medium region and finally got this on region 43(53).

Parameters with lots of volcanos(volcanism 3200variance, 16x16mesh 8,0,0,0,1), 128 starting rivers, 64 erosion cycles, 800 final rivers( to pour into eroded lower rivers) and other good parameters like fewer lakes/oceans for big long wide rivers and lots of mountains to embark next to.

Updated:to53

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[WORLD_GEN]
   [TITLE:MREVIL53]
   [SEED:4sMae8SKW2a0YwEuuW60]
   [HISTORY_SEED:gcCiyOSaoc4iW8sGOSko]
   [NAME_SEED:X67H0dD8Yd4IiTV8pnXH]
   [CREATURE_SEED:2w20OagIG8yMSSAiUGQA]
   [DIM:129:129]
   [EMBARK_POINTS:1504]
   [END_YEAR:79]
   [BEAST_END_YEAR:25:50]
   [REVEAL_ALL_HISTORY:1]
   [CULL_HISTORICAL_FIGURES:1]
   [ELEVATION:25:400:3200:3200]
   [RAINFALL:0:100:3200:3200]
   [TEMPERATURE:15:55:1600:1600]
   [DRAINAGE:0:100:800:800]
   [VOLCANISM:0:100:3200:3200]
   [SAVAGERY:0:100:3200:3200]
   [ELEVATION_FREQUENCY:5:1:32:4:8:16]
   [RAIN_FREQUENCY:5:2:2:3:4:4]
   [DRAINAGE_FREQUENCY:4:1:1:1:3:5]
   [TEMPERATURE_FREQUENCY:5:3:3:2:1:1]
   [SAVAGERY_FREQUENCY:5:2:2:5:4:4]
   [VOLCANISM_FREQUENCY:5:8:0:0:0:1]
   [POLE:NORTH]
   [MINERAL_SCARCITY:768]
   [MEGABEAST_CAP:128]
   [SEMIMEGABEAST_CAP:256]
   [TITAN_NUMBER:64]
   [TITAN_ATTACK_TRIGGER:80:0:100000]
   [DEMON_NUMBER:52]
   [NIGHT_TROLL_NUMBER:26]
   [BOGEYMAN_NUMBER:26]
   [VAMPIRE_NUMBER:26]
   [WEREBEAST_NUMBER:26]
   [SECRET_NUMBER:52]
   [REGIONAL_INTERACTION_NUMBER:52]
   [DISTURBANCE_INTERACTION_NUMBER:52]
   [EVIL_CLOUD_NUMBER:26]
   [EVIL_RAIN_NUMBER:26]
   [GENERATE_DIVINE_MATERIALS:1]
   [GOOD_SQ_COUNTS:128:256:384]
   [EVIL_SQ_COUNTS:512:768:1024]
   [PEAK_NUMBER_MIN:40]
   [PARTIAL_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:0]
   [COMPLETE_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:0]
   [VOLCANO_MIN:200]
   [REGION_COUNTS:SWAMP:512:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:DESERT:256:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:FOREST:1024:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:MOUNTAINS:2048:3:2]
   [REGION_COUNTS:OCEAN:0:2:1]
   [REGION_COUNTS:GLACIER:384:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:TUNDRA:0:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:GRASSLAND:512:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:HILLS:512:0:0]
   [EROSION_CYCLE_COUNT:64]
   [RIVER_MINS:128:800]
   [PERIODICALLY_ERODE_EXTREMES:0]
   [OROGRAPHIC_PRECIPITATION:1]
   [SUBREGION_MAX:5000]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_COUNT:3]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MAX:100]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MAX:100]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MAX:100]
   [HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_1:1]
   [HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_2:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_GROUND:16]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_1:8]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_2:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_3:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_4:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_5:2]
   [LEVELS_AT_BOTTOM:1]
   [CAVE_MIN_SIZE:8]
   [CAVE_MAX_SIZE:64]
   [MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:128]
   [NON_MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:256]
   [ALL_CAVES_VISIBLE:0]
   [SHOW_EMBARK_TUNNEL:2]
   [TOTAL_CIV_NUMBER:40]
   [TOTAL_CIV_POPULATION:12800]
   [SITE_CAP:1280]
   [PLAYABLE_CIVILIZATION_REQUIRED:1]
   [ELEVATION_RANGES:256:1024:1024]
   [RAIN_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [DRAINAGE_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [SAVAGERY_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [VOLCANISM_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]

https://imgur.com/a/TvYPC

You can use above parameters to gen the same world in 44.07

The 3x3 embark is 2 biome shrubland, includes iron and flux and is calm + wilderness.  (i think thats low and med savagery neutral)

I will now try some different seeds to try and get this with an evil region and or Necro tower and post the results later.

Edit: oops i'm drunk, i think 43 was a fail , and 53 was the one.. I'll fix this hang on. ----Edit Done.  Parameters are as stated.  -- But damned if I can't get a different evil region embark by changing history or creature seeds as i had previously thought ><;;

[zdrgn]

Ok I knew i'd done it before..

to get the same world, with different evil / good regions etc, towers and what not..

Just change th # of years of history ( for towers is good)
and the # of squares evil/good etc. for different evil mtn ranges etc.   
but keep the same world seed.

Look at the two below screenshots of same worldseed, with diff year & evil regions parameters.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

edit: ok i now have the above posts embark with sinister/haunted biomes.
it's a little too evil but i'm ok with it.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[WORLD_GEN]
   [TITLE:MREVIL53]
   [SEED:4sMae8SKW2a0YwEuuW60]
   [HISTORY_SEED:gcCiyOSaoc4iW8sGOSko]
   [NAME_SEED:X67H0dD8Yd4IiTV8pnXH]
   [CREATURE_SEED:2w20OagIG8yMSSAiUGQA]
   [DIM:129:129]
   [EMBARK_POINTS:1504]
   [END_YEAR:77]
   [BEAST_END_YEAR:25:50]
   [REVEAL_ALL_HISTORY:1]
   [CULL_HISTORICAL_FIGURES:1]
   [ELEVATION:25:400:3200:3200]
   [RAINFALL:0:100:3200:3200]
   [TEMPERATURE:15:55:1600:1600]
   [DRAINAGE:0:100:800:800]
   [VOLCANISM:0:100:3200:3200]
   [SAVAGERY:0:100:3200:3200]
   [ELEVATION_FREQUENCY:5:1:32:4:8:16]
   [RAIN_FREQUENCY:5:2:2:3:4:4]
   [DRAINAGE_FREQUENCY:4:1:1:1:3:5]
   [TEMPERATURE_FREQUENCY:5:3:3:2:1:1]
   [SAVAGERY_FREQUENCY:5:2:2:5:4:4]
   [VOLCANISM_FREQUENCY:5:8:0:0:0:1]
   [POLE:NORTH]
   [MINERAL_SCARCITY:768]
   [MEGABEAST_CAP:128]
   [SEMIMEGABEAST_CAP:256]
   [TITAN_NUMBER:64]
   [TITAN_ATTACK_TRIGGER:80:0:100000]
   [DEMON_NUMBER:52]
   [NIGHT_TROLL_NUMBER:26]
   [BOGEYMAN_NUMBER:26]
   [VAMPIRE_NUMBER:26]
   [WEREBEAST_NUMBER:26]
   [SECRET_NUMBER:52]
   [REGIONAL_INTERACTION_NUMBER:52]
   [DISTURBANCE_INTERACTION_NUMBER:52]
   [EVIL_CLOUD_NUMBER:26]
   [EVIL_RAIN_NUMBER:26]
   [GENERATE_DIVINE_MATERIALS:1]
   [GOOD_SQ_COUNTS:128:256:384]
   [EVIL_SQ_COUNTS:7777:256:512]
   [PEAK_NUMBER_MIN:40]
   [PARTIAL_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:0]
   [COMPLETE_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:0]
   [VOLCANO_MIN:200]
   [REGION_COUNTS:SWAMP:512:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:DESERT:256:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:FOREST:1024:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:MOUNTAINS:2048:3:2]
   [REGION_COUNTS:OCEAN:0:2:1]
   [REGION_COUNTS:GLACIER:384:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:TUNDRA:0:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:GRASSLAND:512:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:HILLS:512:0:0]
   [EROSION_CYCLE_COUNT:64]
   [RIVER_MINS:128:800]
   [PERIODICALLY_ERODE_EXTREMES:0]
   [OROGRAPHIC_PRECIPITATION:1]
   [SUBREGION_MAX:5000]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_COUNT:3]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MAX:100]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MAX:100]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MAX:100]
   [HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_1:1]
   [HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_2:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_GROUND:16]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_1:8]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_2:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_3:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_4:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_5:2]
   [LEVELS_AT_BOTTOM:1]
   [CAVE_MIN_SIZE:8]
   [CAVE_MAX_SIZE:64]
   [MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:128]
   [NON_MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:256]
   [ALL_CAVES_VISIBLE:0]
   [SHOW_EMBARK_TUNNEL:2]
   [TOTAL_CIV_NUMBER:40]
   [TOTAL_CIV_POPULATION:12800]
   [SITE_CAP:1280]
   [PLAYABLE_CIVILIZATION_REQUIRED:1]
   [ELEVATION_RANGES:256:1024:1024]
   [RAIN_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [DRAINAGE_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [SAVAGERY_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [VOLCANISM_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]

[Dragonborn]

What affect does the "Cull Unimportant Historical Figures" have on world gen if I intend to only play fort mode?  Practically speaking, what do I lose in fort mode if I cull unimportant figures?  From reading what it does, it sounds like it would speed world gen up a lot.

[PatrikLundell]

What affect does the "Cull Unimportant Historical Figures" have on world gen if I intend to only play fort mode?  Practically speaking, what do I lose in fort mode if I cull unimportant figures?  From reading what it does, it sounds like it would speed world gen up a lot.

You don't miss a lot. Citizens may have missing parent(s) without being void dorfs. Artifacts may have been claimed by unknown persons (not sure if that's seen anywhere in fortress mode) and the like. I'm not sure if culled children, master, or apprentices are visible. I think you can get "X has 3 children, A and B."
It shouldn't speed up things dramatically, as the ones culled are the ones who did nothing of not in their life, so they can't be culled until they die. It might have some effect though, and affects the save game size (and thus save/load times). Their presence would affect world gen only if there is some kind of linear search through the hist fig list, which there probably isn't, apart from the general issues caused by using more memory.
I use this setting and Legends Mode info exported to Legends Viewer, where it is a bit more noticeable, but doesn't consider the absence to be of the unimportant ones to be an issue.

[zdrgn]

When my last volcano+waterfall fortress ended in ruin, due to an overabundance of werechameleon residents..

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

My poor dining hall><;;

I swore I'd just find a new location without being so picky(no more chasing waterfalls).
I searched for any river + volc + flux + 2 biomes + not flat with DFhack's embark-assistant.

Of course then I found the best waterfall I've seen yet in a winter wonderland setting.

Frozen 45z brook waterfall falling into a giant wide river that creates a chasm 45z on each side, with temperate calm forest biome in bottom left two embark tiles, and cold calm mountain biome that caps with wide plateaus for the rest of the 3x3 embark.

Gallery of 16 slices 4 apart on the way up with detail at top and bottom:
https://imgur.com/a/3VFCZ

Custom worldgen parameters with seeds for exact replica:
(and very high incidence of flux+volc+river+minerals and waterfalls)

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Created in DF v0.44.07.

[WORLD_GEN]
   [TITLE:MREVILA]
   [SEED:6kWkY6geAsq02SCCaQ2q]
   [HISTORY_SEED:MQmcua0oYOYweY4Yaa88]
   [NAME_SEED:X67H0dD8Yd4IiTV8pnXH]
   [CREATURE_SEED:0s2IWeiAuAk84Ug6E6I2]
   [DIM:129:129]
   [EMBARK_POINTS:1504]
   [END_YEAR:88]
   [BEAST_END_YEAR:25:50]
   [REVEAL_ALL_HISTORY:1]
   [CULL_HISTORICAL_FIGURES:1]
   [ELEVATION:25:400:3200:3200]
   [RAINFALL:0:100:3200:3200]
   [TEMPERATURE:15:55:1600:1600]
   [DRAINAGE:0:100:800:800]
   [VOLCANISM:0:100:3200:3200]
   [SAVAGERY:0:100:3200:3200]
   [ELEVATION_FREQUENCY:5:1:32:4:8:16]
   [RAIN_FREQUENCY:5:2:2:3:4:4]
   [DRAINAGE_FREQUENCY:4:2:2:2:3:5]
   [TEMPERATURE_FREQUENCY:5:3:3:2:1:1]
   [SAVAGERY_FREQUENCY:5:2:2:3:4:4]
   [VOLCANISM_FREQUENCY:5:8:0:0:0:1]
   [POLE:NORTH]
   [MINERAL_SCARCITY:768]
   [MEGABEAST_CAP:128]
   [SEMIMEGABEAST_CAP:256]
   [TITAN_NUMBER:64]
   [TITAN_ATTACK_TRIGGER:80:0:100000]
   [DEMON_NUMBER:52]
   [NIGHT_TROLL_NUMBER:26]
   [BOGEYMAN_NUMBER:26]
   [VAMPIRE_NUMBER:26]
   [WEREBEAST_NUMBER:26]
   [SECRET_NUMBER:52]
   [REGIONAL_INTERACTION_NUMBER:52]
   [DISTURBANCE_INTERACTION_NUMBER:52]
   [EVIL_CLOUD_NUMBER:26]
   [EVIL_RAIN_NUMBER:26]
   [GENERATE_DIVINE_MATERIALS:1]
   [GOOD_SQ_COUNTS:128:256:384]
   [EVIL_SQ_COUNTS:512:768:1024]
   [PEAK_NUMBER_MIN:40]
   [PARTIAL_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:0]
   [COMPLETE_OCEAN_EDGE_MIN:0]
   [VOLCANO_MIN:200]
   [REGION_COUNTS:SWAMP:512:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:DESERT:256:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:FOREST:1024:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:MOUNTAINS:2048:3:2]
   [REGION_COUNTS:OCEAN:0:2:1]
   [REGION_COUNTS:GLACIER:384:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:TUNDRA:0:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:GRASSLAND:512:0:0]
   [REGION_COUNTS:HILLS:512:0:0]
   [EROSION_CYCLE_COUNT:80]
   [RIVER_MINS:160:800]
   [PERIODICALLY_ERODE_EXTREMES:0]
   [OROGRAPHIC_PRECIPITATION:1]
   [SUBREGION_MAX:5000]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_COUNT:3]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_OPENNESS_MAX:100]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_PASSAGE_DENSITY_MAX:100]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MIN:0]
   [CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MAX:100]
   [HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_1:1]
   [HAVE_BOTTOM_LAYER_2:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_GROUND:16]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_1:8]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_2:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_3:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_4:1]
   [LEVELS_ABOVE_LAYER_5:2]
   [LEVELS_AT_BOTTOM:1]
   [CAVE_MIN_SIZE:8]
   [CAVE_MAX_SIZE:64]
   [MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:128]
   [NON_MOUNTAIN_CAVE_MIN:256]
   [ALL_CAVES_VISIBLE:0]
   [SHOW_EMBARK_TUNNEL:2]
   [TOTAL_CIV_NUMBER:40]
   [TOTAL_CIV_POPULATION:12800]
   [SITE_CAP:1280]
   [PLAYABLE_CIVILIZATION_REQUIRED:1]
   [ELEVATION_RANGES:256:1024:1024]
   [RAIN_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [DRAINAGE_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [SAVAGERY_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]
   [VOLCANISM_RANGES:1024:1024:1024]

generated worldmap with red circle:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

StoneSense:
https://i.imgur.com/Y9aBb46

[Lord Shiteblast]

That's a real pretty embark. I love that your dwarves decided to stop the wagon on top of the frozen river! A stonesense screenie of that place would be nice.

[ThoMeuhGal]

I feel like embark-assistant is quite a revolution for nitpickers (I'm one of them!) who look for specific embarks. Now you can spend more time generating longer and more interesting histories and actually playing instead of generating dozens of world and trying to embark on dozens of sites only to be disapointed when you look at the map or do a prospect in DF Hack. The tool is amazing.

[zdrgn]

Started a fortress log from my frozen waterfall embark:http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=170248.0

[Garfink]

@zdrgn

Good lord that is a beautiful area, picturesque and stunning.  Problem is when I embark I start on the surface of the frozen river and after unpausing for a less than a minute, the ice melts my animals and some of my dwarves drown, also all of my embark gear is now in the middle of a raging torrent.  I can save the dwarves I guess, but recruiting them into a military and moving them off the river asap, but boy o boy, the salvage operation for the gear is a bit of a challenge for beginner me.  Any tips?

[zdrgn]

@zdrgn
... the salvage operation for the gear is a bit of a challenge for beginner me.  Any tips?

The trick is something all forts need at the beginning, a custom stockpile that lets you haul just about anything into it.   From food to finished goods and everything in between except maybe refuse and stone.  Once you set that up, your dwarves have hauling labors to start and they'll begin moving everything off the wagon, you can deconstruct the wagon and salvage the wood too. 

If you read that link above your reply where i point to the Fotress log, it actually kinda explains what i did. (savescum then build a stockpile 5 feet away in the direction of the still frozen ice. I basically setup the stockpile before unpausing, and then moved everything in 3 game days.  It took 7 game days for the ice to melt.)

You can then dig your way into either the north or south mountain and once you have an area you would deconstruct the old stockpile, and make a new one for them to haul it safe and underground.
You've got almost a whole season before the other ice melts, it does so a week or so before summer.

[PatrikLundell]

@zdrgn
... the salvage operation for the gear is a bit of a challenge for beginner me.  Any tips?

The trick is something all forts need at the beginning, a custom stockpile that lets you haul just about anything into it.   From food to finished goods and everything in between except maybe refuse and stone.  Once you set that up, your dwarves have hauling labors to start and they'll begin moving everything off the wagon, you can deconstruct the wagon and salvage the wood too. 

If you read that link above your reply where i point to the Fotress log, it actually kinda explains what i did. (savescum then build a stockpile 5 feet away in the direction of the still frozen ice. I basically setup the stockpile before unpausing, and then moved everything in 3 game days.  It took 7 game days for the ice to melt.)

You can then dig your way into either the north or south mountain and once you have an area you would deconstruct the old stockpile, and make a new one for them to haul it safe and underground.
You've got almost a whole season before the other ice melts, it does so a week or so before summer.

From the description, it sounds like the embark has at least two different regions. I've seen it suggested that you can control which region the embark wagon ends up in by selecting the desired region pre embark (F1, F2,...) such that the desired region is in focus when you embark. You probably embark in the F1 region currently.

[Llamageddon]

Hmm, weird, sorry for double post. I thought I was editing this one. Don't think I can delete.