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[Dermonster]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Mental journal of Dermonster.

I have come to a dillema. The screams of the dying are only allieviated by the shard of blue, i still don't know what it is, but Whenever i carry it with me, every dwarf close to me Lifts his head up, as if sensing something, then shrugs and goes back to work. I cannot carry it with me during the day, for fear of it being taken from me. But the voices do not stop, they are just drowned out. And it is becoming worse.

The howls grow fiercer, and the lies grow weak. I must find more of this rock and save myself from the madness. But the only blue rock around is microcline and cobalite...
I shall need a pick. If i cannot find what i seek, surly the souls of the damned will seep into my spirit, and i will go mad.
I cannot allow this to happen.
The plan is falling apart. The undertaker would seem like a good ally, but i cannot concentrate enough to focus on such long term things anymore. The cook will keep up his spices with the supply I found. It is incredible, the hills sing with bloodroot, yet i am the only one who seems to care. But i am becoming apathetic toward the plant as time goes on as well.
But enough. A shall go steal a pick. I shall find microcline, and i shall find peace.
But i have the vague feeling i am forgetting something.

Almost forgot the spoilers 

[The Architect]

Great post, thanks for the update! Particularly enjoyed the part about Rick.

It may just be simple humor, but it's very nice. Good reading.

[Lord Dakoth]

It amazes me how you can turn a completely uneventful season (obviously, I'm talking about before the magma incident) into a brilliantly written drama. Keep up the good work.

[Quietust]

With the alterations you've made to the magma tower, it looks like it will finally operate exactly as it was originally intended.

I look forward to seeing it in action.

[edit] Interesting thing you've done there with the "shower tank", though I fear you may run into some difficulties when you want to switch it off afterwards since the water will keep dripping out as the tank attempts to refill. A lever-controlled door at the very edge of the tank would probably serve well to stop this from being a problem, but you'd have to fully drain it first (which, considering the next Duke is due to arrive shortly, shouldn't be much trouble).

[KenboCalrissian]

All pump stacks are lever-controlled, so it really shouldn't be a problem.  I can just shut it down before opening the hatches.  The only reason for the manual pump at the start is because it was a lazy fix.  Automating that one would require another windmill, since the two currently present are almost totally taxed right now.

Besides, there was a request for the next Duke to go out with magma, so this year's Duke will be taking a really hot bath instead of a high-velocity shower.

[Quietust]

I'm not talking about extra water being pumped in, but it continuing to flow in through that diagonal passage - since there's no seal between the "pipe" and the "tank", it'll continue to drip out while attempting to reset the lever, though the low flow rate should hopefully prevent any mishaps (since it'll fill at the far right edge and should fall just to the right of The Lever).

Granted, even if the pumps were left on, the fact that the passage is diagonal would prevent any pressure from filling the tank too quickly (and may even cause it to take longer than desired to fill).

[Flaede]

I don't suppose there's time to change that magma-death-chamber to an obsidian-casting one?

Petrified Noble Statues sound pretty awesome. you could even set the statues up in their bereaved consorts' chambers!

[rickvoid]

Ha ha! Thanks for the save Kenbo! Would have sucked if sad dwarf had atom-smashed the both of us.

"Well, now that the fun's over with, I'll go an' bury old Bomrek. I'll just- hey! Where's the corpse then!?

Did someone take it? Did someone steal MY corpse!? Do we have a dirty thief skulking about!!??

Can't be an undertaker without a corpse to take under, can.I? That'd be silly, you know? 'Hey, what is it you do?' 'Oh, I'm an undertaker.' 'Really, working with the deaders then?' 'Nah, I make bauxite mechanisms.' 'What?' 'And Kelgar Ironshoulder's your uncle.' See, it makes no sense!

I'll get to the bottom of this, I will..."

[Quietust]

Drinks are currently at three-hundred and sixty-five, a pretty good amount, but I set two stills to brewing anyway, and the rest to essence extraction.

Only 365 units of booze? That could be as little as 30 barrels, which could be forcing some of your dwarves to drink water. My previous fortresses (at population 200 and up) usually preferred to keep at least 2000 units of booze at any given moment (or at least enough to keep 150 or more barrels filled).

Also, have you been gathering kobold bulbs? If so, I rather doubt that you'd have enough of them to warrant dedicating more than one still to essence extraction (given their extreme rarity).

I had asked for thirty iron bins, and due to some sort clerical error this was misinterpreted to thirty iron cabinets!

Ah, yes. I've made that mistake myself in the past, and it's quite annoying, especially because I make all of my bins out of wood; wood is best used for bins, barrels, and pearlash with which to make clear glass furniture.

[KenboCalrissian]

I don't suppose there's time to change that magma-death-chamber to an obsidian-casting one?

How much fun do you guys have seeing me make mistakes?  XD  I've never done obsidian casting before, so there could be a LOT of trouble if I try it... which is no excuse not to.  A better excuse would be lack of water, but oh, hey, there's a brook right there...

Only 365 units of booze? That could be as little as 30 barrels, which could be forcing some of your dwarves to drink water. My previous fortresses (at population 200 and up) usually preferred to keep at least 2000 units of booze at any given moment (or at least enough to keep 150 or more barrels filled).

Also, have you been gathering kobold bulbs? If so, I rather doubt that you'd have enough of them to warrant dedicating more than one still to essence extraction (given their extreme rarity).

Ah, you caught me.  I had that job confused with something else, naturally they cancelled immediately and I forgot to update it in the narration.

[Flaede]

I don't suppose there's time to change that magma-death-chamber to an obsidian-casting one?

How much fun do you guys have seeing me make mistakes?  XD  I've never done obsidian casting before, so there could be a LOT of trouble if I try it... which is no excuse not to.  A better excuse would be lack of water, but oh, hey, there's a brook right there...

DOooo iiiiit. hehe.

Actually, I'll give you an out: Obsidian casting requires two stories. Bottom for obsidian. Top for water. And you'd better be able to close the magma floodgate before you open the water one.

But other than those requirements, it's not that bad. With planning, you can even automate the whole close magma, open water, close water (that last is a 2nd level pressure plate on the far side of the water-gate).

I have confidence in the engineering prowess of Severedcoils! You wouldn't want to deprive those poor consorts of the obsidian mementos of their loved ones would you?

[Grendus]

Making obsidian isn't too hard, though if you want to get the bones out of it you'll need to drop magma on the drowning noble instead of dropping water on the incinerated noble. I'm fairly sure that when you mine out that tile the noble's bones will pop out. Actually, I don't know, the only obsidian casting I've done was dropping water on magma, magma+height=more chances for dwarfy fun^tm.

Loving the narration.

[Diablous]

Liking this. Hope to see more.

[KenboCalrissian]

11th Granite, 210, Early Spring
-------------

JOURNAL!!  Oh, I thought I lost you to the garbage compactor I don't know what I would have done had I truly lost my journal forever I'm so happy now I can get on with my life!!

Ahem.

Days turned into weeks turned into months as I trudged along with the others clearing the floors of stray rocks.  Nothing else... just rocks.  I wasn't even doing any fishing.  If one could fish for rocks, what kind of bait would one use?  Probably worms, after all, rocks spend all their time in the ground with worms anyway.  In fact, I think microcline would enjoy a nice, fat, juicy nightcrawler... gabbro is unassuming, and would probably be quite content with earthw

Focus.

The fear of losing my journal under a pile of rubble and then subsequently atom-smashed to bits subsided, and I realized I had it with me all along.  I was so incredibly busy with my daily affairs that I simply hadn't the time to update my journal!  Not to mention I had a great deal of adjustment, as my affections for kimberlite had crumbled away like so many pebbles, and the lovely basalt took my eye.  It was tough letting go of kimberlite, but I knew in my heart that it had to be done because things just weren't looking out, not to mention kimberlite was so far away that it became a painful long-distance relationship.  And there was basalt, who was stuck in a stagnant relationship with alunite, yet really seemed to enjoy my company... we courted for a while, and it seemed I was spending all my time with basalt, so much so that stopping to make updates about the fort just didn't fit into my schedule.  But then, I realized that I'm a dwarf, and dwarves are like stone, and their preferences are practically carved in stone and can't really be changed, but fortunately all of the above was just a metaphor anyway so

Blahh. 

No more stone hauling for me!  I've spent my time slaving away with the laborers, working an honest month's living so that I don't forget what these fine workers really do for me all day, every day of their monotonous lives.  It's good to be able to get your hands dirty and not take your laborers for granted.  Great!  Now, back to letting them do the dirty work for me.  I could really use some time to relax...

"SIEEEGE!!"

Oh, bloody hell.

Seventy-three enemies total... this is the worst yet.  Thirty-four wrestlers, six speargobs, seven axegobs, ten swordsgobs, thirteen crossbows... and one of them is human!  Also, there are three human guards.  Unfortunately, none of them are anywhere near the magma trap, but that's fine because it won't be ready until it gets its inauguration.

((DFMA)) ((Movie)) The river tower, however, received quite a spectacular inauguration, courtesy of the first wave of goblins.

"Er, Zon?"

"Oh, hello Asob!  Fine siege we're having, isn't it?"

"Yeah, going great so far.  Hey, this might sound like a dumb question, but why is Imush the Blind standing outside?  Are you giving him a final death in battle or something?"

"Eh??"

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Sure enough, there was Imush, standing outside like nothing was wrong!  Knowing that the workers sometimes can't tell the difference between inside and outside when there's something over their heads - and especially Imush, who has no eyes - I check the area he's standing in and verify that it's Light, Outside, and Above Ground - a place he is deliberately not allowed to be.

"Imush!  I order you to get inside!  I will not have an unnecessary casualty today!"

"Ah, Zon!  Take away a dwarf's crossbow, and you truly leave him with nothing!  You leave me to move rocks day in and day out - me, a Competent Marksdwarf, and you put me on peasant duty!"

"All the competence in the world won't help you, buddy!  You've got no eyes!!"

"No!  I will stand and fight!  I can hear the enemy just as well as I can see them!  Come closer, you stinking goblins!"

The champions snickered in their war box.  "Zon," Elizar spoke up, "tell him to stop aiming that rainbow trout at us.  He's going to hurt someone."

I shake my head and shout, "Imush!  You're wielding a fish!  Get back inside and grab a crossbow if you're meaning to get yourself killed!"

"Whoa, hey!  Don't give him a loaded weapon!"

"Relax, Elizar.  He isn't shooting anyone today."

It's then that I notice Sibrek the Hammerer is standing on the lever for the animal trap, and instantly I recall the numbers... Fifteen wolves, one wolf pup, twenty-four giant eagles, three of them already named for kills, and one giant eagle chick.  The chick pushes them just over what I think we need to rout this next incoming force, which is two waves combined in one.

((DFMA 1)) ((DFMA 2)) ((Movie)) "Sibrek!  Pull that lever!  Let the wings of death fly!!"

As it turned out, our champions weren't even required.  The goblins turned to flee even before the dwarves made it up the hill, and still the eagles pursued, flying over trees and boulders and hills to divebomb their foes, spraying their blood across the grass.

"Good show, Zon!  Want some strawberry wine?"

"...Ugh, no, not right now."

The final force, who had just finished killing a groundhog and getting their human squad leader trapped in a cage, decided correctly that giant eagles are not a fair fight and they should just quietly go home.

It's difficult to count the losses among the giant eagles, but it looks like we lost four, two of which gained names before their deaths.  Of those alive, a few have permanant injuries and roughly half of them have earned names.  I don't think we lost a single wolf, probably in part because we pulled the trap a bit early and some of them walked away, leaving the eagles to take the brunt of the attack.  We did get one of the wolves named, though.  I won't know for sure what we have left until we put their cage back together and pile them inside again.  There were no dwarven casualties, but much to the chagrine of our champions, there were very few kills available for dwarves.

"Hey, are they gone?"  I heard the voice of Skuorgs behind me, shuffling nervously at the doorway with what looked like half the labor force scrambling on the edge of the bridge.

"Uhh... yeah, they've all either fleed or died."

"LOOOOOOOT!!"

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[Dermonster]

wait, wrong fort  thought it was the one with the castle.
man im in so god damned many of them its hard to tell the differance anymore