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[Cepheid]

Cepheid was rather adamant she get the axe. I didn’t want to deny her some simple pleasure as that so I let her have it.

Ahahahahaaaa!  I finally gots me an axe!  Now I can take over this accursed place and rule with an iron-  Ooh!  Trees!  *Runs towards one, giggling like a child holding a pair of scissors, only the scissors are an axe.*

[Dogman]

It's only a - Steel Battle Axe - so it's harmless

Updates! Darkie is a fisherdwarf officially now, and we got another mood.
__________________

From the journal of Mistem Athellal:
16th of Sandstone, 376

The merchants departed today. It will be another year before we see them again, but they have promised to send out word about our existence. The goods we got from them are being put to good use. We have enough alcohol and barrels now for every Dwarf to use and I’m already seeing an increase in productivity and morale. The rooms are being furnished with beds and cabinets, and the dining hall is almost half complete. Cepheid is working like a Maddwarf cutting the trees down and clearing the way for a proper wall to be built. We haven’t built any forges yet, but that will be next on the list.

We have a proper farm set up now for Plump Helmets. Pretty soon we’ll be awash in glorious mushrooms and have enough Plump Helmet wine to sink a boat.

To mark this new age for The Hill I’ve reorganized all of the stockpiles. Before we had ones here and there, outside, inside, where ever was there was space. Now we will have a central stockpile area that will hold all of our goods.




25th of Sandstone, 376

At first I thought he was just on break, but soon the whispers got around to me. Metthos Vabakmorul, a Jeweler-turn-fisher here at The Hill, has been possessed by some unknown spirit. I tried talking to him, but he just stands in the meeting area, like a statue. When the light is right I can see an unnatural purple haze in his eyes. I’ve ordered the construction of a jeweler’s workshop as top priority. I’ve heard stories of these kinds of possessions before; a wandering spirit possesses a Dwarf most similar to it, and tries to carry on with its task through that Dwarf. If it isn’t able to finish its task, it drives its host insane, berserk, or retains possession of them and falls into a deep and fatal melancholy.

I’ll admit I do not know the Dwarf at all. He has diligently spent his time fishing in the brook since his arrival. We probably haven’t spoken more than a 12 words between us, seeing as how he was part of Kib’s crew.

The spirit that possessed him worries me. Surely this is a sign that something terrible befell Tongsrenown before our arrival here. I can only hope what ever other spirits that may be stuck between worlds be only as lost as this one, and not vengeful.


28th of Sandstoon

The possessed Dwarf took claim over the jeweler’s shop the moment it was finished building. He took from the stockpiles a single rough Smokey Quartz gem and begun working on it. He’s been mumbling “Duzelis” again and again while he works.

[Haven]

...Soul Gem? Heh.

Anyhow, things are beginning to look up here in the Hill. Which, of course, means something is going to go horribly wrong.

Meantime, Haven the Mason rambles again...

A jewler was taken by some sort of spirit today. Different than the last, I consulted Zon's book and found confirmation. It would seem that this one has been taken by some kind of restless spirit. Now, in another place and time, I would set this off as one of the many vagrant souls lost in expeditions as of late, but something about this combined with the ruins to the south makes me very uneasy. Perhaps whatever untangible things lurk here have only now been alerted to our presence?

For now, I've been warding our new constructions in the ways of our grandfathers, putting blessings into the mortar and carving Zol's sign of protection into the cornerstones. Even the simple tables and chairs I've made now bear the sigil of Zon, carved small into their undersides, in fleeting hope that it will keep our dwarven allies safe from harm at the hands of whatever lurks in those forgotten shambles.

On a less disturbing note, expansion into our newfound home moves quickly. Just a year ago we had little more than a hole dug into the dirt to keep our disparate band from death. Now, while still short of the metropolis it deserves, New Olinelbel (as Zon would have it said) has become somewhere a dwarf could be proud to call home, moreso for having helped form it from the earth.

[darksaiyan]

I would never have guessed that me' smithy hammer-hand will as likely crave for 'tis fishin' pole...
Well then, I guess that the lad really had me with the satisfaction of feedin' an entire population with the works of me' fish-catchin' skills.

[Dogman]

Just one last quick update for tonight.

Oh, and here's the map: http://mkv25.net/dfma/map-3238-tongsrenown
____________

From the journal of Mistem Athellal:
4th of Timer

It’s been an entire year since we arrived here. Half of it was without sufficient alcohol; the better part of it without beds. But we managed to survive and scrape out a living in this gods-forsaken river valley. We have enough supplies to make it back home now. And yet, I feel myself wishing to stay here. We made The Hill. We lived off the fruit of its fields and the bounty of its river; we carved out a hall worth living in. The circumstances of our arrival are almost just a faint memory now, and the name “Tongsrenown” comes up in conversation less and less frequently. The idea of staying here and making not only just a home for ourselves, but a fortress to rival that of the myth of Tongsrenown is becoming more and more appealing. The Hill will be the shining beacon; The Hill will be the fortress by which all others are compared to.

But perhaps I should record some of the more routine going-ons, and leave my dreaming for the night.

The spirit that had been possessing Mestthos finally excised itself after it had finished its quest. When Messthos emerged from the shop he was looking rather puzzling at very large and very shiny gem in his hand. Apparently Messthos had no memory of ever being possessed, or cutting such a perfect gem. The only thing he knew of it was its name: “Duzelis”. I’m told that means “Smearedthin” in the common Dwarven tongue. Perhaps it was the way the spirit, in life, liked its Wild Strawberry jam?




Domas’ apprentice Lir Reglecad struck another pocket of Smokey Quartz. After Mestthos’ possession we were starting to run out of gemstones.

[Dogman]

Cepheid, your Dwarf is starting to scare me.
___________________

From the journal of Mistem Athellal:
2nd of Moonstone, 376

There hasn’t been much happening in the past month. We’ve just been going about our daily routine; no more strange moods or possessions, no migrants yet, and the wilderness has been peaceful. What little there is to record is as follows: Vucar’s wounds finally healed enough for him to be active again. Thankfully he wasn’t traumatized and will take up hunting once again. Our butchers, tanner, and bonecarver were running out of work to do. Domas and Lir are working on mining out a new section of rooms to house any migrants that may come. Cepheid has cleared away all of the trees on top of The Hill now, so once the dining room is fully furnished our masons can start producing blocks to build the keep with. And finally, every single Dwarf at The Hill now has their own room and bed to call their own.

12th of Moonstone



It looks like the Kobolds are back. Fath, the carpenter, discovered one skulking about the trade depot, undoubtedly looking for any left over goods to steal. Too bad for them that the depot was clear of goods before the last caravan even left. They really don’t pose any threat to us, but if they are cornered they can be unnaturally dangerous with that large blade of theirs. When Vucar returns from hunting I’ll get him to guard the depot via the tower next to it.

13th of Moonstone

Another thief today, or maybe it was the same one? They all look alike. Anyways, this one had the unfortunate pleasure of not only meeting Cepheid’s axe, but Vucar was also entering the gates just as it was spotted. From what I’m told, as I wasn’t there to witness this first hand, Cepheid hacked the poor bugger’s right arm off at the shoulder and sent it flying with one fell swoop of her axe. Vucar’s bolt found its mark in the creatures stomach, and before he could fire another one, Cepheid cut off the thieves left hand, right foot and sent what was left of it at that point flying backwards. We’re going to spend weeks cleaning up the trade depot… who knew a creature that small could have so much blood in it.




When I next saw Cepheid she had a large spattering of Kobold blood around her mouth…



I’m going to have her stand guard at the depot in case more kobolds show up.

18th of Moonstone

Yet another thief. Ran right in to Cepheids axe. Again. I had the pleasure of seeing Cepheid in action first hand this time. With an unnerving craze in her eyes she charged the little Kobold and stunned out with the impact, and then just a few seconds later the thieves right arm was severed at the shoulder and flew off in a bloody arc. The final blow was rather gruesome; more so than the dismembering Cepheid had just administered. With one fluid motion the Kobold was cut in half at its torso, entrails and guts were spattered against the wall behind it, and the entire lower half the creature was propelled upwards, at least 40 feet high, leaving a mist of blood in its wake. It crashed back down with a sickening thud outside of the walls.



21st of Moonstone



Accursed things! I had a terrible run in with a Goblin snatcher in the court yard. It must have managed to sneak in while Cepheid was taking a drink. The snatcher raised its dagger, making to gut me, but luckily Cepheid and Vucar were on duty at the gates. Before the snatcher could attack Cepheid charged at it and hacked at its right leg. It tried to run, but with a badly mangled leg it could only crawl, and Cepheid was back on top of it before it could get anywhere. Another swing from her axe, this time it took off the Goblins right arm at the elbow and sent the severed limb flying in the air. After one more strike from Cepheid’s axe the thing was put down for good.

Cepheid… is starting to unnerve me. Even though the snatcher was dead, she still decapitated it and threw its head over the wall, letting out a triumphal roar in the process. The courtyard looks like a battlefield now with blood and limbs laying all over the place…

[Cepheid]

Awe man, that just made my day!  My dwarf truly is insane!  WHOOOO!  Hope she keeps it up!

Edit: My "journal" entry.

From the journal of Melbil 'Cepheid' Cattenkacoth,,

First Entry:  2nd of Moonstone, 376

   Finished cutting down all the trees on the hills, as was asked of me.  Now we can get to work on the keep when we have the manpower, time and materials.  There have been a couple of strange moods since my arrival here, never got to see much of them though, as I was out cutting trees for most of the time.

12th of Moonstone, 376

   Been bored for a while.  Not much to do.  That is, until now.  It appears kobolds are coming in force, trying to steal our goods.  Thankfully, it was scared off before it could get anything.

13th of Moonstone, 376

   Looks like the kobold problem is escalating.  I was on my way out of the gates, near the trade depot, when I ran into a kobold.  Since no one else was around to deal with it, I took my axe and attacked.

13th of Moonstone, 376, later in the day.

   Good GODS, why does kobold blood taste so freakishly horrible!?  I will never get that taste out of my mouth now!  Either way, with the help of Vucar, we slaughted the damned creature.  Hope the mess does not scare some of our traders.  Also, I have been placed on guard at the depot in case more kobolds show up.

18th of Moonstone, 376

*There is a large blotch of blood on the page.*

   Damnit, got some blood on my journal.  Another kobold attacked just as I was about to write my entry.  This one started spewing blood all over the place after the first strike.  Curses, I am going to need a shower later.  No lady dwarf should ever be caught covered in this much blood.

   Mistem caught me as I dismembered that last kobold.  Unfortunately, this one had the habit of exploding and sending most of its limbs all over the place when I hit it.  Mistem gave me this strange, almost fearful look after I was finished.

21st of Moonstone, 376

   Been a quiet day-  Er, I take that back.  Hold on.

*Another small blotch of blood is on the page.*

   Gah, goblins this time.  Strangely, I do not recall killing it.  Some say I dismembered it, screamed like a mad dwarf, and threw it's head over the wall.  When I came to, all I saw was blood everywhere, including in my journal.

*The journal ends here for the moment.*

[Dogman]

From the journal of Mistem Athellal:
23rd of Moonstone, 376

In all the excitement of the Kobolds and Goblins, I didn’t fully comprehend the ramifications of their visits. If the Goblins know we have a child here at The Hill, then they know that we have riches and Dwarves for them to desecrate and steal. The snatcher was just merely a precursor to the real threat from the Goblins, and more will follow in its wake. As such, I’ve ordered the carving of stone blocks to have the utmost priority. We need them to build a sturdy keep. Extra mason’s workshops will be built, and anyone that isn’t busy with other duties will be making blocks. Vucar and Cepheid will remain on guard duty at the gates until we have proper fortifications set up.


13th of Opal, 376

A pack of wolves now, just to the west of the palisade. Vucar is up on the tower ready to deal with them should they wander any closer to The Hill. To help with the defense, I’ve ordered the construction of a number of cages to be used in traps around the perimeter, and the front gate. While the pit we built earlier is a nice attempt, it takes too much time to get someone up to the lever room to activate it, and for the mechanisms to respond. I suspect it will only be useful with a large band of Goblins at the gates.

19th of Opal, 376


Today the first foundations of the keep were laid down. I estimate it will take just under 60 blocks for every level of the keep, and with 5 total levels, we will need to carve 300 blocks. The curtain walls and towers are another story, but we’ll tackle that when we come to it. For now, we must focus on completing the linchpin of the stronghold.

26th of Obsidian, 376

The second floor of the keep is well under way at this point. At this pace we’ll have the entire keep built by the end of spring.


20th of Granite, 377

Kobolds again; Vucar ambushed one while he was out hunting. Where there’s one, there’s bound to be more.

 I’ve stationed Cepheid at the gates to guard against the rest of the band.

Construction of the keep carries on. We’re finishing up the third level now, which I’ve decided will become the vaults for our artifacts and other valuable goods. Since the barracks will be on the second floor, any thief would have to get through the entire militia to steal anything.

The following was written in the late evening of the 20th of Granite, 377

It seems the prospects of having a proper vault to store our valuables for safekeeping has spurred Tekkud Anamrigith to great acts of craftsdwarfship.

He’s been taken by a fey mood and has claimed the same jewelers shop we built for Mestthos when he became possessed. She even took the same sort of gem from the same place in the same stockpile. Perhaps she was simply jealous of Mestthos?

24th of Granite, 377



If I didn’t know better I’d say Tekkud just took Duzelis and tried to pawn it off as her own creation. The two gems are almost identical in their perfection and beauty.


12th of Slate, 377

Another Goblin Snatcher tried to sneak into The Hill over the course of the night. Both Cepheid and Vucar were off duty. Luckily, however, we had set up a number of cage traps around the gates. It was a pleasant surprise to see in the morning that the traps preformed their duty admirably. Now we’ve got a goblin thief in a cage to deal with; I’m at a lost as to what do with it.




2nd of Felsite, 377

A rather large group of migrants arrived today. They had been looking specifically for The Hill. It seem the Dwarven Caravan we traded with in the fall has spread the word about our presence. Instead of poor saps suckered in by the myth of Tongsrenown, they instead seek a new life at The Hill. We’ll be happy to have them, of course. More laborers to help with construction efforts and food production are always good to have. Fath will be rather busy building beds these coming weeks for all the new arrivals. 20 of them came, making the total population of The Hill a comfortable 47 Dwarves.

The standard introductory interview showed the following makeup of the migrants:

1 Tanner
1 Pump Operator
5 Peasants
1 Stonecrafter
1 Cheese Maker
1 Armorer
1 Potash Maker
1 Mechanic
2 Fishery Workers
2 Animal Dissectors
1 Metalcrafter
1 Hunter
1 Animal Trainer
1 Thresher

And as pets they brought with them:

1 Donkey Foal
2 Puppies (a male and female pair)
1 Horse Foal
2 Kittens

The puppies are very welcome. When they mature and start producing offspring we will be able to put our animal trainers to use training dogs for guard and hunting duty.

As for the Dwarves, there are a few immediately useful ones in the bunch. The fishery workers will be able to help Alath Numbomrek reduce the backlog on raw fish needing cleaning. The hunter will of course be of great help and will assist Vucar when the need for a trained marksdwarf arises. The peasants could help with the construction of the keep, and become the first of the militia after it is complete.

Because of the large number of new residents, rooms are at a premium right now; as such, I’ve laid out plans to mine out a large housing complex one level below the main hall. It will initially have 32 rooms, and can be expanded in any direction should it need to be.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[DwarfMan69]

Could you make John "The demons" a wrestler, and if he gets to legendary, a weapon user? I think I'd like him to eventually become useful. To incorporate him into the story, you could just have him volunteer or something like that.

[Dogman]

When your appointed dwarf grows up I will; you're a child

Hey, you said you wanted something useless.

Anyways, quick update. I'm actually in the middle of writing something other than a journal update so please forgive the delays.
_________________________

From the Journal of Mistem Athellal:
14th of Felsite, 377

The last stone has been laid in the keep, and now we have a bastion of defence. Tomorrow, construction on the curtain walls will begin, and soon, we will have a true fortress.

What we won’t have are soldiers to man it, however. I do fully plan on having the peasants that came with the latest migrant group to be trained as soldiers, but that takes time. Time we may not have. The Goblins know of our presence and full scale raiding parties won’t be far off.

While mining out the new bedroom complex Domas struck yet another pocket of aluminum ore. At this rate we’ll have enough aluminum to furnish a dozen rooms with the precious metal.

22nd of Felsite, 377

The first level of the northern siege tower is complete, and construction has begun on the second level. The towers and walls will be put up much faster than the keep due to all of the extra hands working on them, and their limited size. With any luck they’ll be finished before we have to entertain unruly guests.

A cougar was also sighted to the northwest, in the area Cepheid is in the process of clear cutting. Normally something as insignificant as a single cougar wouldn’t give me pause, especially with Cepheid around, but with the cage traps set up I’m tempted to allow it to live, so that it may be captured and trained.


1ist of Hemative, 377

The leather workers informed me today that the first set of orders for the construction of proper soldiering equipment is complete: 5 suits of leather armour. It’s not much for now, but it’s better than nothing.

We managed to build a cage trap in one of the places the cougar likes to loiter around in. With any luck we’ll all be admiring that creature in our animal stockpile soon.

[Glacies]

Your artifacts are tellling a story about those ruins you mentioned. Seach carefully, and you'll find the glove that betrayed the inhabitants by pulling a bridge lever that smeared some of the...no? Am I going too far? But they could be connected that way. Perhaps it would have made more sense if the second artifact was also a posession, but, alas...

[MercDraco]

um if its not too much to ask can you Dwarf me as that Armorer, and if you don't already have one can you make him the Book-keeper? please

[darksaiyan]

How is Darkie doing? I hope there are no killer Carp in the brook he's fishing in.

[Dogman]

How is Darkie doing? I hope there are no killer Carp in the brook he's fishing in.

Just rainbow trout and salmon for the most part. Something happened that I wasn't even aware could though; Mistem and Darkie are no longer listed as "friends" in the relationships menu, in fact I don't even think they're "passing acquaintances" anymore. It's like they had a falling out.

um if its not too much to ask can you Dwarf me as that Armorer, and if you don't already have one can you make him the Book-keeper? please

Will do once I get back to it.

I'm trying to go towards a more 'story' direction instead of just using journal entries. It's taking some time as I haven't written anything this big for years now. I want to get some character interaction and development instead of just recounting events as they happen.

AKA I'm trying to emulate Nist Akath

[Cepheid]

AKA I'm trying to emulate Nist Akath

And you shall, as long as we can keep this alive, and get some interest in it!  You have the storytelling ability to do it, too, from what I have seen thus far.

Also, sorry for my inactivity, kind of busy/going stir crazy.  Something like this:

"Cepheid cancels sleep:  Gone insane."

"Cepheid has gone berserk!"

The rest writes itself.