Print

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

[TrombonistAndrew]

I was taking a tour of Mons today, and while looking at the city's old bell tower, I was thinking: the city used the tower as a way to mass-communicate to the townsfolk at the time to get inside the city and prepare for someone attacking.

This seems like an excellent idea for Dwarf Fortress, instead of just switching the "dwarves stay inside" button. So, if some stealthing goblin army goes in and kills your bell tower before you ring it, your dwarves out hunting and stuff may not know to get inside before it's too late.

This, of course, brings up the physical defense of the bells to be fairly important.

A logical way to handle it might be like so: each bell and bell stand costs a bar of metal and a block/rock/etc. Ringing the bell sounds the alarm for some arbitrary number of tiles (say, 50?) in each travellable direction away from the bell. Ringing the bell requires a dwarf, like a lever.

[Granite26]

...

[Pilsu]

I don't think they need a maximum range, that'd be irritating. Bad enough to get everyone inside when all the lever pullers are on smoko break

[Random832]

I don't think they need a maximum range, that'd be irritating. Bad enough to get everyone inside when all the lever pullers are on smoko break

Combine it with fog of war and you can put one in each of your watch towers

Maybe have some sort of synergistic effect (one at 50 tiles away doesn't make a good enough sound to be heard, but 2 at 50 tiles each can. So you can increase your range by installing more bells)

[Footkerchief]

...

Doesn't work for a POST form, I'm afraid.

[TrombonistAndrew]

I don't think they need a maximum range, that'd be irritating. Bad enough to get everyone inside when all the lever pullers are on smoko break

Yes, well it's also unrealistic to assume that a dwarf on the edge of your huge map will hear the alarm sent from the other side.

One other idea: when you toggle one and the dwarf rings the bell, the ringing bell toggles all other bells to be rung within range. Thus, you don't have to toggle every one. You just have to make sure that when you build them, they're in range of each other.

There probably should be an "all clear" bell signal as well, so dwarves know it's okay to leave the fortress.

Of course, this might create some wierdness for, say, your miner who is out mining some remote gem deposit, gets the work order to ring a bell after finishing mining, rings the bell, THEN realizes that he needs to get indoors. But, hey, I didn't say it was a perfect representation of reality.

[Random832]

Of course, this might create some wierdness for, say, your miner who is out mining some remote gem deposit, gets the work order to ring a bell after finishing mining, rings the bell, THEN realizes that he needs to get indoors. But, hey, I didn't say it was a perfect representation of reality.

That'd actually be reasonable - there might be dwarves further away who haven't heard the alert, after all. There should be a safe indoor passage to the rest of the fort in the basement of each tower.

[Neonivek]

For Humans and perhaps Goblins yes...

For Dwarves I would think it could cause their tunnels to collapse... so Id say no

[Random832]

For Humans and perhaps Goblins yes...

For Dwarves I would think it could cause their tunnels to collapse... so Id say no

Huh?

[Footkerchief]

For Humans and perhaps Goblins yes...

For Dwarves I would think it could cause their tunnels to collapse... so Id say no

Huh?

I guess he means infrasonic vibrations or whatever.  It's not an objection I would have ever thought of.

[Granite26]

...

Doesn't work for a POST form, I'm afraid.

Still, if you (erm, he?) take (s) the hint and types in 'alarm', there's two pages of the suggestion.

[Draco18s]

...

Doesn't work for a POST form, I'm afraid.

Still, if you (erm, he?) take (s) the hint and types in 'alarm', there's two pages of the suggestion.

And Granite could learn the wonders of right-clicking Search Results at the top of them and getting a good link (like that one).

[TrombonistAndrew]

I guess he means infrasonic vibrations or whatever.  It's not an objection I would have ever thought of.

Somehow, I think that if a roof collapse doesn't cause sonic devastation, bells ringing also shouldn't.

[Footkerchief]

I guess he means infrasonic vibrations or whatever.  It's not an objection I would have ever thought of.

Somehow, I think that if a roof collapse doesn't cause sonic devastation, bells ringing also shouldn't.

Or you know, banging away at rock walls with picks.

[Pilsu]

The maps aren't big enough for a bell to not reach people's ears. Sure you can pick an entire region but does anyone actually do that?