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[BlckKnght]

In Dwarf Fortress right now there is only one form for wood to take, the humble log. I propose that we go beyond logs and include three other forms of wood that have been commonly used throughout history: firewood, beams and boards. Note that my suggestions are independent of the different kinds of wood (oak, maple, pine, etc), though there might be characteristics of different woods that would make them better suited for use in different forms.

Logs would kept pretty much as they are now, coming from trees that are cut down by a woodcutter. They could be used to build rough walls and burned to charcoal, but not much else.

Fallen branches, brush and other small wood growth I collectively call "firewood", since that what it would be used for. Firewood would be gathered from trees in a similar way that plant gatherers collect food from bushes (no axe required). It would be used as the fuel for some furnace jobs that do not require exceptional heat (and possibly in other places, like kitchens, if fire use is ever expanded).  Workers could perform a new "chop firewood" job that would turn a log into a stack of fire wood items, allowing a fort to stretch its fuel supply (I'm not sure what workshop would have this task though).

The other two kinds of wood, beams and boards, would need to be cut from logs at a workshop. I propose two new ones: the saw pit and the sawmill.  A saw pit uses manual labor to do the sawing (usually one sawer on top and another below the log, something that might be hard to exactly reproduce in DF).  A sawmill would require an external power source (and a "large, serrated disc" in its construction). Powered sawmills may have been used occasionally in antiquity, with some sources describing Roman sawmills powered by water wheels. They did not become widespread until centuries later, spreading through the Islamic world in the 11th century and into Europe through the 13th and 14th centuries. Much later industrialization provided more plentiful power sources and sawmills completely replaced the remaining saw pits, which required backbreaking effort from their workers.

Large beams would be used for substantial wooden constructions, such as for pillars and floors over open space (lintel and beam construction), bridges, and as axles for machinery. Beams might also be used to shore up tunnels through soft rock or soil, if any of the "difficult mining" suggestions gets adopted. A beam represents lumber 6x6 and larger in size.

Boards would represent lumber of smaller sizes, so you would get more of them from each log.  They would be used for all smaller carpentry projects (doors, tables, etc) and wood crafts. Finished wooden walls might require a beam for the frame and boards for paneling (this would only make sense if material quantities for construction get rebalanced at some point such that more than one item is typically used).

What do you think? Would dwarven society benefit from a more realistic wood usage model?

[Urist Obama]

No it wouldn't. It's more micro-managing for the player and that means less fun.

[Vester]

I always assumed that they turned them to planks in the workshop.

I think that the game already does have enough detail, though I like the idea of a whole new wood industry.

[Shad0wyone]

I always assumed that they turned them to planks in the workshop.

I think that the game already does have enough detail, though I like the idea of a whole new wood industry.

The game won't have enough detail until it simulates each individual quark.

[Granite26]

Didn't I already confiscate your dwarf card?

I think it would be a reasonable addition to add a sawmill and call logs logs and wooden blocks 'boards'.

[Joakim]

The firewood idea is great.
The Sawmill/Saw pit idea is great too.

I'm not sure about beams though. It seems to add an extra step that in 100% of all cases leads to construction anyway. Maybe logs could be cut into beams at the construction site? Actually if "build Beam-Wall" automatically generated a "cut beam" job if there where no beams, I'd be ok with them. Same thing for rock blocks would be nice too...

However, I still think "rough" log constructions should be available. In particular I'm thinking of log palisades and log cabins.

[Rvlion]

Considering we can create blocks out of practicly every freaking piece of material, why not also boards just for wood maybe 3 or so boards out of 1 log, not sure about the practical side of firewood and beams as of yet.

[Derakon]

You'll need to add some step along these lines before you can reasonably get more than one unit of wood from each tree. This sounds like a reasonable approach.

[BlckKnght]

I'm not sure about beams though. It seems to add an extra step that in 100% of all cases leads to construction anyway.

Yeah, I didn't really give a justification for beams, did I.  I have percolating an idea about adding more complicated requirements for materials and labor when substantial constructions are being made. Under that system, building a 10x10 floor over a chasm suddenly wouldn't be trivial, as you'd need several beams to carry the load and some significant architecture work to get it all designed. Hopefully I'll get it written up soon.

[Silverionmox]

Beams (and masts, flagpoles, ballista arrows, ..) will necessitate reorganizing the woodworking options, starting with multiple-tile trees, and then everything further down the chain.

I think there's room/need for:
- beams: longer than 1 sq. Can be processed into logs
- logs: cut beams, fit in one square. Presumably the yield from 1 tree should be enough to build a log wall (=palissade) in one square.
- (Planks: for furniture and architecture if construction is refined, and stone slabs exists as equivalent. Otherwise, include functions in blocks. Could be engraved, painted, etc.)
- blocks: useful for whatever blocks are used, and as a base for wood crafts.
- wicker: among other plants, tree branches can supply it.
- sawdust: will be handy in stables, as emergency meal, base for paper pulp,...
- Anything wooden should be able to be marked for recycling, much like metal. The larger pieces will be cut up into smaller pieces. Possible uses: charcoal, firewood, turn to sawdust, ...

'Beams' become 'logs' become 'blocks OR planks' become 'sawdust'. Wicker is directly harvested and used, or marked for recycling.

With flexible workshops (flexible in area and tasks) everyone will be able to put the tasks where he likes, but standard I would expect to find the tasks of cutting/sawing logs in a woodworker's workshop (with all the other ones, woodcrafters, carpenter, coopers, etc.: they need the same chisels, saws and stuff). Woodcutters can store their axes and saws there too, if they're not using them: cutting/sawing up trunks into logs would be done by woodcutters, wherever the trunk happens to be.

Cultivating and harvesting cork oak bark would be great too, for bottled wine and floating stuff.

Cutting down a tree should also yield plant material that isn't fit for anything but compost or animal feed. In the most cases that could be ignored, though on some maps you might want to collect that resource. Should be an option in the menu: process tree side products? yes/no. If turned off, cutting trees doesn't generate plant material or fades very quickly outside. Otherwise, it lies on the ground for someone to collect it where the trunk is cleaned.

[mickel]

Well, there is the constant stumbling block that we don't know how large a square is, and hence have no idea about volumes. A tree is only one square large, getting more than one square of material out of one would be... interesting.

[Silverionmox]

Well, there is the constant stumbling block that we don't know how large a square is, and hence have no idea about volumes. A tree is only one square large, getting more than one square of material out of one would be... interesting.

Toady has recently said that he is "quite comfortable" with not defining the exact dimensions of a square. So conservation of matter is not a necessity. A tree will, in the future, be more than one square high, of course.

[lucusLoC]

i love the idea of expanding to wood industry. right now it is rather simple. the OP seems to be right on track. the issue of getting more that one tile of wood out of a one tile tree is a moot point until material volume is taken into account, and that can only be partially accomplished without defining a ridged tile size (we could use relative volume for harvestable resources)

[BlckKnght]

the issue of getting more that one tile of wood out of a one tile tree is a moot point until material volume is taken into account, and that can only be partially accomplished without defining a ridged tile size (we could use relative volume for harvestable resources)

I'm not sure that this idea has a clear dependency on tile sizes being better defined. The reason it doesn't make sense yet for a log to be cut into three beams is the same that it doesn't make sense  for mining to generate three rocks per square: hauling all that material around would be a nightmare.

I hope that when the hauling situation gets addressed in the (relatively) near term, the quantities of many materials can be scaled up across the board to allow better balancing (which may or may not involve calculating the volumes of the items involved).  Then if suggestions like this one get implemented, it might make sense for a wall to require three boards and one beam (or 3 pallets of bricks and a bucket of mortar, if my previous suggestion about more realistic masonry is implemented too).

[lucusLoC]

I see your point about hauling and in that reguard it does affect how many items a job should produce, but it has little effect on any discussion about volume. I missed you topic about the bricks, can i get a link?