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[Cheddarius]

Try to station the military near the gate first, maybe, so that they can get in quick.

[Kagus]

what no magma flooding lever?

what kinda fort is this...?

The kind that hasn't yet built the 40-level pump stack to get magma up to the surface.  We'll get to it eventually...  Maybe.

Argonnek seems to be planning something of a burny nature though, so we'll see how that turns out.



Anyways, we've managed to get everyone inside.  Even the cat that just had to wander out after that one rhino lizard, and the hauler who followed the cat.  The traders are still in here though, and I can't get a good bearing on where the goblins are since they're plastered to the side of an almost sheer cliff.  I think they're closing in though, which isn't good...  There are about twenty or so swordsgoblins, unless they've dragged in even more when I wasn't looking.

[Cheddarius]

What about deconstructing the trade depot to force the traders to leave, or making them angry or something, and then opening the gates so they'll storm out, then closing the gates?

Or even just keeping the gates closed and letting the traders go insane?

[Kagus]

What about deconstructing the trade depot to force the traders to leave, or making them angry or something, and then opening the gates so they'll storm out, then closing the gates?

Or even just keeping the gates closed and letting the traders go insane?

Unfortunately, it's an economy vs. military decision.  If we deconstruct the depot, they'll leave without their stuff which will mean a very small caravan next time around.  If we keep them shut it so they go insane, that means an even smaller caravan, and most likely one without the essential items we've just ordered.

I probably could've made them angry, but I don't know if that has an effect on caravan size or not...  And besides, they're already packing up to go.

Also, the goblins seem to be directionally challenged.  Instead of storming the open gate, they've run around the wall up on the cliff so that they can spook the occasional hauler.  Not the most brilliant tactical move, I must say.


Not that we're doing much better.  The traders are taking their sweet time in getting the heck out of here, and the gate's wide open while we wait for them to do it.  And I haven't changed the mechanical aspect around so it's still that same lever doing the business.  Usually it's our broker who will run out from the middle of the fortress in order to pull it, after which he goes right back into the darkness below.

The liaison made a run for it though.  After getting snubbed in favor of some rocks (the mayor decided to cancel the meeting and go hack away at the mines for a while), a pint of beer and then a crunchy turtle, I think the liaison was ready to get out of that insolent hellhole.

[Cheddarius]

So, raise the bridge and lower it when the merchants are ready to go? That seems a bit safer...

[Kagus]

Well, the merchants had finally packed up all their stuff and had started zooming out the gate at full speed...

...right into the goblins, who had suddenly decided to join the show.




They were all slaughtered, managing only to take out two of the goblin swordsmen.  I looked on the unit screen, and from what I could tell the liaison had managed to make it out alive.  So while we still lost quite a bit of favor with the merchant guild, at least we'd have our order placed.

...and then I tried to look at a caged animal from the unit screen and the game crashed.


Well, dang.  I was hoping to be finished with this today, but it looks like I'm gonna be set back a bit.  I saved a little while ago though, so it's not that bad.  Just irritating.

[Cheddarius]

Aw.
How powerful is our military? Is it possible that we could, combined with the merchants, fend off the goblins? What if we let the merchants out and then fired the ballistas repeatedly to gore any attacking goblins?

[SethCreiyd]

A few traders would probably be killed, but that's better than all of them.

[Cheddarius]

Yeah, but our military would be killed too... it's a tradeoff.

[Kagus]

I don't think it's a likely victory...  They've got fifteen armed and armored goblin swordsmen out there and they're in a dense formation.  They'll swarm anyone who gets near, and they've got better equipment than last time.

Furthermore, our entire military contains anywhere from 4-9 conscripts depending on who's trying to pick up what.  Skills are all over the place, with some fairly good fighters mixed in with people who barely know which end to hang on to.  And the traders won't help much either, they only brought two axedwarves (I was actually expecting the horses to kick some goblin butt...  Unfortunately, they didn't).


It's a tricky situation, no doubting that...  And it's only compounded by the fact that our siege operators either don't exist or prefer to remain invisible.  In all the time since the siege popped up, no one has shown up to man the ballista emplacements.  Of course, considering the predicament we're in, I'm not even sure it would mean anything if they were properly set up...


I suppose we could send the merchants out, have them tire the goblins down a bit, and then fire away at them with the emplacement before rushing in with the troops.


It might be possible to finagle things a little more...  Hang on, I might be on to something.  I'll see if I can plan out an idea.

[Kagus]

Okay, here's the plan:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I build a temporary wall to slow the goblins down (red), get the siege engineers into position (blue circle), and move the military back a ways into a defensive position, preferably behind a corner.

Then when everybody's ready, I open the gates, causing the merchants (white) to start the long journey home.  If we're really lucky, the goblins will actually show up inside the entrance hallway (microcline) before the merchants get into position.  This will let us unleash the ballista bolts before the gobbos are engaged by the caravan guards.

Regardless of what happens in that stage, I immediately retreat the siege engineers (blue arrow) into a civilian lockdown area where they will hold out until the threat has been dealt with.

Then the goblins move through, possibly being harassed by someone unleashing the draltha.  They make their way towards the fortress proper, which forces them to move through the trap pit (green).  The weakened survivors will then face off against our military, and we all hope for the best.


If it works, the goblins should be a fair deal easier to fight off.  We'll most likely still be at a disadvantage, but it will at least be something...  And at the moment, I think that's the best we can do.

[Cheddarius]

That is an excellent plan, but I think perhaps it could be safer...
How about you open the bridge, let the merchants get just outside of the fortress, close the bridge, and then just spam ballista arrows to mangle the goblins when they engage?

[Kagus]

That is an excellent plan, but I think perhaps it could be safer...
How about you open the bridge, let the merchants get just outside of the fortress, close the bridge, and then just spam ballista arrows to mangle the goblins when they engage?

Can't shoot through the drawbridge.


We really need a defensive overhaul...

[Cheddarius]

Drat, drat...
Try that plan, then... darn, darn.
Hey, maybe if we crush them with the drawbridge? That could take out a decent chunk, and make it easier for us later on.
Or we could even take the time to construct a massive bridge line and have someone operate it on repeat...

[Kagus]

Drat, drat...
Try that plan, then... darn, darn.
Hey, maybe if we crush them with the drawbridge? That could take out a decent chunk, and make it easier for us later on.
Or we could even take the time to construct a massive bridge line and have someone operate it on repeat...

Unfortunately, this place hates dwarves.  The drawbridge is two tiles long and opens the wrong way.  Can't crush anything with it unless it happens to be a pile of valuable metal items with a mentally retarded cat sitting on top.