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[Svirfneblim]

An idea for re-doing the way mechanisms are made and used. Maybe it could be a mod.

1)Mechanisms are not made from rock, but from metal bars.
Effects on the game:
Farming - setting up proper farming will now require having a metalworking industry first.
It will promote having metalworking industry before reaching the magma. Players can still use nile-farming or buy metal bars at start.

Traps - become less available, especially at start. Even stone traps are not possible to deploy en-masse until late game.

Moving bridges, splat-bridges, pressure plates and other fancy projects - are not affected any more than normal traps. Very complicated projects will be expensive, though.

Mechanics - make less mechanisms now, so they train their skills slower. This can be counter-acted by the second part of the idea or left like it is.

2)Installed mechanisms require maintance by engineers or will malfunction.
Maintance:
Performed by an mechanic with the 'maintance' job turned on. Requires the dwarf to spend a few moments adjancted to the mechanism. The more detoriated the mechanism is, the more time the maintance will take. Higher 'mechanics' skill reduces the time. This job trains the 'mechanics' skill.
Detoriation:
Mechanisms detoriate as years pass. The speed they detoriate at is affected by the metal they are made from and the quality of the mechanism. After enough detoriation, a mechanism can have a malfunction. The malfunction will not be known until the mechanism is activated(i.e. enemy walks into a trap or a lever is pulled)
Malfunction:
An activated mechanism that has a malfunction will not work. Traps have a small chance that instead of not working, they will activate with a random delay.
Levers will not work, but they will also have a small chance of activating whatever is attached to them(floodgate?) and becoming stuck after that.
Mechanisms in floodgates do not malfunction.
Fixing malfunctioning mechanisms:
Requires a mechanican's attention, as well as a replacement mechanism. It takes more time than maintance.

Effects on game:
Farming&Floodgate - because mechanisms in floodgates do not break, they are not affected meaningfully. Maintaning a few levers won't be a problem.

Traps - having many traps will require having many mechanicans ready to service them, which will make mechanicans a more desirable resource in large fortresses.
Also, traps placed in very remote corridors will take more time from your dwarves because of longer trips.

Bridges, pressure plates, gimmicky setups - not affected much, but they'll still mean you need some mechanicans just to make sure they work smoothly. Bridge accidents in abandoned tunnels are funny.

Mechanicans - have a steady source of training by maintaining the mechanisms, which offsets the fact they'll be making less of them.
You now need more mechanicans just to upkeep your mechanisms.

3)Mechanisms are used in siege engines.
Ballistas and catapults now require a mechanism to be made. The quality of the mechanism affects their efficiency. Those mechanisms do not detoriate with time, but instead with every use of the machine.

Effects on game:

Engineers - another job for them to do after a lengthy battle.

Artifact mechanisms - can now be used to make a sort of 'artifact' ballista or catapult.

[Another]

I had an idea that looks similar to this - complexification of crossbow production.
1. Production of finished crossbows out of 2 pre-made components - crossbow bow + crossbow mechanisms and anything from wooden logs to metal bars and raw stones for the stock.
2. Production of crossbow mechanisms by common mechanics only out of metal but probably by 3 or 5 at a time out of 1 bar. (they are really small)
3. It seems logical that the material and quality of the mechanisms can give bonuses to the rate of fire. Material and quality of crossbow bows - to damage of fired bolts. Material of the stock and quality of the final assembly - to everything related to its use as a hammer (as well as its durability when it gets implemented) and maybe a small bonus to firing accuracy.

[schnobs]

I don't agree with the metal part. Requiring industry before agriculture... well, makes sense in some ways and in others it doesn't.

As to traps, I tried to rush mechanics and was surprised how long it takes to cover your cave in stone-fall traps even with four dedicated (and skilled) mechanics.
Trap-building doesn't lift off until you have an industry running and churn out proper weapons.

However, I really like the concept that mechanisms needs ongoing maintenance. One might even go one step further and include anything with moving parts (doors, catapults, ...). One side effect would be that it encourages the player to utilize fewer but better traps. Another that all floodgates &c need to be accessible (unless you're happy with them being stuck in always open position). If a mechanic cancels the job, you should however be able to find out which item he can't acess.

[Black Hound]

I would think dwarves could make mechanisms out of stone - now, if humans were playable, I would definitely say that they're not rock-savvy enough. That alone would result in them having a very different playstyle.

[Jaqie Fox]

Mechanicans?

Sounds mexican.

(mechanics, you mean)  

[Zomg]

I think the process of setting up gate farming produces a perfect engineering challenge for new players. It teaches a lot of what Fortress mode is about. I don't think that should be sacrificed; ultimately, there are plenty of other things we'd all abuse if mass trapping were made a bit more difficult.