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[John Hopoate]

This is sort of a spin off of that "Armed Civilians" thread in the bug reports forum.

This is a simple suggestion. We should have the option of giving non-combat dwarfs a small weapon to defend themselves with. The increased weight, the effort of making them and the low potential for unskilled dwarfs to do much damage would come close to offsetting the advantages.

[Tamren]

Im doing a writup on this, not really an essay just an expanded post.

In older times a belt knife was pretty much standand issue for everyone. Even if it was only used for eating. So dwarfs carrying small arms would make sense.

[Locus]

But then your politician noble would arrive and mandate that all personal weapons be confiscated from non-military/law enforcement dwarves, for the safety of the fortress.

Just kidding. I think it's a great idea. It could be sort of treated like clothes with most dwarves (taken or purchased at shops with capitalism), and I could imagine a noble carrying around a special dagger studded with moonstone that he demanded.

[Xeirxes]

Don't assume that only small knives or other similar weaponry would be the only method of personal civilian defense. IIRC, in China, when they banned the use of personal weaponry, the people turned to hand-to-hand combat training. So, all sorts of things could be used.

[Tamren]

But in china wasnt that because the goverment was afrain the peasants would rise up and overthrow them or something?

Thats not really a problem here, im sure the nobles in the future would actually do important work instead of a select few like the bookkeeper and manager.

[Naminator4]

There are already daggers in the game...

Only kabold master theives have them.  You could just edit the data files so that the human and dwarf towns to have them, but you can't spawn with them.

[ May 05, 2007: Message edited by: Naminator4 ]

[Vanigo]

I think goblin thieves have them, too, actually.

[Draco18s]

quote:Originally posted by Vanigo:
<STRONG>I think goblin thieves have them, too, actually.</STRONG>

Yes.  Kobolds have copper or bronze, I forget which and goblins have iron.

[Tubal_Cain]

Kobolds have copper.

[Gauteamus]

Why not just look at small handarms, daggers &c as being abstracted? Unarmed damage could implicitly mean an attack with a dagger, small club or alike. The fact that any dwarf at any time can participate in pretty much any trade (e.g butchering, growing or plant gathering) also suggests that they run around with some kind of swiss army-knives.

[John Hopoate]

quote:Originally posted by Gauteamus:
<STRONG>Why not just look at small handarms, daggers &c as being abstracted?</STRONG>

Because of adventure mode, we KNOW that it's not abstracted, this game is supposed to be a fully integrated Dwarf-fest.

[Locus]

Yeah, if a dwarf can get his hand bitten off by a giant bat, and in doing so lose his artifact cave spider silk mitten studded with zinc and depicting traveling dwarves in horse leather... It's not the kind of game that would just assume a dwarf is carrying a dagger.

If Toady ever implements dagger carrying for civilians though, there'll have to be a reason they wouldn't all have them, or all use them in combat. Wrestling is too cool to be marginalized.

[FunkyBomb]

From reading the dev pages, I strongly doubt that wrestling is going to be marginalized. I think the addition of small weapons would be a good thing for wrestling. For example, a small knife would be a great item for the farmer who happens to also be an Accomplished Wrestler. He's got a good chance of escaping enemy holds, applying some of his own, and he has the perfect tool to finish the job discreetly.

[Asehujiko]

We need an option "Drop weapon when in mood" then.

[Locus]

True, FunkyBomb. I recall reading the thing about more wrestling moves, specifically throat-slitting.