So, just getting into DF for the first time.
On my first serious fortress, I get the main entrance placed and setup with draw-bridges., I tortuously build a side path on it and contemplate the value of putting battlements into the hill overlooking it.
Siege rolls in and catch a lot of bats, olms, and 2 goblins on the trapped entrance, one being the squad commander. So now I have a slew of unmounted, untrapped goblin swordsmen lounging out on my side-entrance, sticking to their commander.. 'Great, I can rush them with my crossbowmen, but thanks to the mounts hogging traps, the goblins are right at the ramp down, my bowmen would start the fight in melee range.
Battlements: Sure, some risk of carving them out mid-siege, but that's what, 1-2 holes from above... I'd need one dwarf to dig them out, with my crossbowmen guarding the work. Plus then the goblins have to close on me, not the reverse.
Dig dig dig. Order a bridge built to seal the battlements, order a lever for it... Dag-nabit, my miners won't carve out fortifications to open the fire lanes onto the goblins. Fine... I'll just dig them out and build fortifications later. Lets order that lever hooked up.....
As the first arrows are sent into the milling goblins, my camera zooms to the far corner of the map, with a popup message announcing the arrival of a dragon. '...beware it's breath...'
Facepalm one: Finding myself mid siege, fortress with an opening (nope, too soon for the lever to be working) and Bonus Fun on the map. I watch the dragon for 20-30 ticks, it doesn't move. I'd had that happen to the only other legendary creature I'd seen to date - it had milled in the corner till my guards had chased a kobold out near it.
'Ah,' I says to myself, 'the dragon's doing the same thing. It'll keep where it is till the siege resolves'. I opt to ignore it and pop back to my battlements where I see plenty of blood and one of my dwarves outside - bolts were being exchanged with goblins from above? Evidently one goblin had climbed to the z-level above in the interm. Recent Combat logs show no worrisome red text, just ample red on the exterior slope. I let the fight progress (miners remove the last of the wall and flee), and I order a trap placed in my battlements for the dragon... just in case it tries that entrance... cause, you know: Pet dragon.
Fight progresses for a bit, and I pause again, hopping to the U menu to center on the dragon and make sure it hasn't moved.
D
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Facepalm two: Imagine my shock when the view centers on my 'barn-door-open' battlements. Clearly, dragons move fast.
Different fort (cavern's wern't working as advertized in the first fort - no moss or mushrooms- so I started fresh...):
Same sort of entrance setup: Main path, with a heavily trapped side entrance I can close separately.
Ambush comes, I seal the main entrance and set 'General Quarters' (everyone inside Alert, with squads to the barracks).
Everyone outside runs around in circles.
I check the side entrance: It's an elevated one-block wide path that snakes around a bit, except for one spot that isn't a + sign indicating floor.
It's a dot.
*facepalm* The path snakes around to a dead end.
I loo'k' at at and discover it's not open space either. It's a Hamster. No ground. No blocks. No placed flooring. Just a levitating Hamster.
On the spot I designate floor put there but find that the placement is blocked - which is why I'd omitted putting floor there in the first place, and having seen the hamster on it during the construction phase, I'd figured that it was already floored...
I've since fixed that but I'd failed to test the side entrance, dwarves *still* won't path through my side entrance. I'll need to set about some serious tests once I let this latest bunch of goblins into my fortress proper to do battle with both dwarf and caravan guard. Again. *facepalm*
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Moment of triumph: Designating wounded as being part of my 'General Quarters' warren, and just the individual wounded, so that they are gathered FIRST after combat resolves.
//Torrenal
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Topic: Face Palm moments you had in Dwarf Fortress (Read 2213109 times)