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[thvaz]

Toady do you have any plans to deal with the two main population problems in the game?

Namely Elves are too numberous (At least in the sense that there are SOOO many that they effectively turn surviving members of another race into Super Legends)

and Goblins are too few (From murdering eachother non-stop... Though this doesn't seem to train them too well)

Please deal with these problems, Toady...they are the main issues with the history generator right now (at least to me).

[Warlord255]

Also, this question might seem a tad random, but are there any plans to make an entity's metal preferences more flexible?

At the moment, of course, an entity can only use the least valuable metal, the most valuable non-deep metal, and the second-most valuable, but this can be kind of restrictive to modders. Will this system still be around for the next release of Dwarf Fortress, or will there be some new, more flexible system?

This would certainly be nice to fix for modders who want to use more esoteric "metals", such as crystal ores or other nonsenses.

And CUSTOM ALERT STATES, HOLY GOODNESS.

If the alert states can be used to direct dwarves to a specific area, one could rotate among a set o them and have a Dwarven marathon! The winner gets an anvil.

[Karlito]

*gasp* Toady doesn't use the darkling theme!

[Dareon Clearwater]

Off topic, but I wholly recommend bitter apple spray for keeping Scamps from chewing on cables (If that is the problem, cats do tend to pull with mouth and paws together.)  Practically any pet store will stock it, and it's a likely find in the pet aisles of major department stores.

[Dakk]

For associated threats, more to come.

[Mr.Person]

Also, this question might seem a tad random, but are there any plans to make an entity's metal preferences more flexible?

At the moment, of course, an entity can only use the least valuable metal, the most valuable non-deep metal, and the second-most valuable, but this can be kind of restrictive to modders. Will this system still be around for the next release of Dwarf Fortress, or will there be some new, more flexible system?

The caravan arc will take care of all that.

[umiman]

Dakk: None of those are even remotely close to the danger posed by the player. In fact, player-assisted casualties are probably 900x greater than all those combined.

[Leafsnail]

Goblins civs tend to do fine, they just get taken over by the slaves they've captured.  So the solution may be to just up the breeding rate of goblins due to their ridiculously high war and murder rate, and to get them to send slaves into battle so they don't take over.

[G-Flex]

Alternatively, maybe goblins should discourage the breeding of their captives, or keep them as a sort of "slave" caste. Or both. Something to discourage them from overtaking.

[ShadeJS]

Toady do you have any plans to deal with the two main population problems in the game?

Namely Elves are too numberous (At least in the sense that there are SOOO many that they effectively turn surviving members of another race into Super Legends)

and Goblins are too few (From murdering eachother non-stop... Though this doesn't seem to train them too well)

Elves may or may not get out of hand... That depends a lot on the world and history seeds. It can be eerily random.

In the case of Goblins removing [MULTIPLE_LITTER_RARE], giving them a [liTTERSIZE:1:2], and [CHILD:10] in creature_standard.txt helps them a lot. The bigger problem is that they treat the snatched too well. Before they are accepted as part of the tribe / clan there should be a period of dangerous labour, dangerous imprisonment, and a better chance of physical violence... Just to make sure that they are fit additions to goblin societies and sufficiently sociopathic to blend in.

[Untelligent]

Goblins civs tend to do fine, they just get taken over by the slaves they've captured.  So the solution may be to just up the breeding rate of goblins due to their ridiculously high war and murder rate, and to get them to send slaves into battle so they don't take over.

I like that last idea. At first, equipping slaves with weapons and armor and showing them how to fight doesn't seem like the greatest idea (see: Spartacus), but historically, slave armies weren't completely unheard of. The islamic Fatimid dynasty of north africa, for example, had an army comprised almost entirely of slaves that lasted for centuries, somehow.

Of course, goblins already do this to some extent, but if they ONLY sent slaves, and sent slaves into battle as often as possible, it could go a long way to keeping the Foreigner:Goblin ratio low.

[Mel_Vixen]

Dwarfes and Humans take slaves. Goblins rescue intelligent beings into a worthy society. (Damn that should be a line for a goblin philosopher) They seem to believe in equality of species even thought their right-system is a bit harsh not unlike social-Darwinism.

[Aqizzar]

Goblins civs tend to do fine, they just get taken over by the slaves they've captured.  So the solution may be to just up the breeding rate of goblins due to their ridiculously high war and murder rate, and to get them to send slaves into battle so they don't take over.

I like that last idea. At first, equipping slaves with weapons and armor and showing them how to fight doesn't seem like the greatest idea (see: Spartacus), but historically, slave armies weren't completely unheard of. The islamic Fatimid dynasty of north africa, for example, had an army comprised almost entirely of slaves that lasted for centuries, somehow.

The Islamic "slave" system last as long as it did because it was far removed from the Sparticus model.  They were slaves in that they were technically property of the Sultan, but that doesn't mean they were whipped or kept in shackles or the other nasty things we in the modern world associate with slavery.  They were actually some of the richer people in the Turkish Empire, and non-muslims would offer the kids to taken in the hope they'd get a good job and send money home.

The Janissary model actually isn't too far from Toady's occasional explanation of Goblin snatching.  Goblins see their way of life as superior and raise other children as Goblins.  That said, it would go a long way to keeping Goblins in their own civs if they'd snatch people at a slower rate than they breed, at least when their own ratio in the civ is small.

[Org]

I can't wait for the Random game Generator.

I wonder...does this mean that there is a chance of dwarves playing Wizards and Warlocks?

[Christes]

Off topic, but I wholly recommend bitter apple spray for keeping Scamps from chewing on cables (If that is the problem, cats do tend to pull with mouth and paws together.)  Practically any pet store will stock it, and it's a likely find in the pet aisles of major department stores.

Yes.  This works incredibly well with my dog.