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[Rocky]

When one first starts DF, it seems daunting-- impossible, even. Then, you get the hang of it and go far. Then, it starts to seem almost too easy.
That's when you start looking for new ways of challenging yourself.
My current fort is practically "anything goes", with very few rules or limitations set up. But my next one will have to be a bit more challenging...

That's where you come in! Yes, you!

I'm trying to think of a challenge or theme to set up for my next fort. I have a few ideas, but any input/vote is appreciated.

Here are the ideas I'm currently considering:
1) Skull Fortress.
No metal, no plants (except for brewing, but not eating-- no plump helmets!). Basically everything is made from animals: Leather clothes, bone armor, shell helms, etc. The only weapons I can make are obsidian swords and (maybe) wooden weapons. Decorate everything with bones and have skull totems set up around the fort, and leave bones scattered about.

2) Military state
Go to war with elves and humans. Never request any goods from dwarf merchants (only trade for what they bring). I was considering no trade at all, but exported wealth is required for some things like certain nobles (I do want a dungeon master).
Also, when migrants come, only one is allowed to do work-- the rest become full-time soldiers.

3) The Clans
3 male, 3 female dwarves (no. 7 has to die). No migrants. If No. 7 didn't get to live, you foreign spies certainly won't!
Each couple is given a clan name (husband and wife are given the same 'nickname'), and their children receive the same. So even when we reach a higher population, everyone will either be of one clan or another.

4) Exotic Farm
Why base your meat industry on plain old cows, when you can raise alligators and elephants?
This may be a good one to combine with Skull Fortress.

I might have to combine some ideas to make them more interesting or challenging.
Yes, I checked the page at the DF wiki page, but I wanted to see if the public had any good ideas for medium-level challenges. (I'm not ready to build an entire fort out of soap just yet).

Thank you

[Crowbar]

I go for impressive structures rather than challenge builds, personally.

I don't know if this is too easy for you, but why not build a waterfall?  An enormous pump stack, starting from underground water sources and taking it high into the air before it gracefully descends.  You'd have one-up on me, that's for sure.

Or an aqueduct!  That's all kinds of impressive.

[Maggarg - Eater of chicke]

Bone-fortress. Also build distinctly evil dark towers of ultimate darkness, and a gateway that looks like a skull.

[Psieye]

Mods are an alternate way to change difficulty. In fact, Genesis Mod has a handy building called "display case" so once you build your skull totems, you can turn them into stationary buildings without having to put a 1x1 stockpile or dump.

[Old-one-eye]

The clans sounds cool to me actually.

[Rocky]

Mods are an alternate way to change difficulty. In fact, Genesis Mod has a handy building called "display case" so once you build your skull totems, you can turn them into stationary buildings without having to put a 1x1 stockpile or dump.

That sounds pretty good, especially the display case. But I am using version 0.28.181.40d, and I can't find the corresponding version of Genesis. How can I add display cases to my game?

and a gateway that looks like a skull.

Sounds like a Doctor Wily level from Megaman

The clans sounds cool to me actually.

I might have to mod the dwarves to grow up faster, or I might loose patience and quit (I tend to abandon whenever I get a new idea that sounds better than what I'm doing)

[Gus Smedstad]

Basically everything is made from animals: Leather clothes, bone armor, shell helms, etc. The only weapons I can make are obsidian swords and (maybe) wooden weapons.

Maybe it's different in 40d, but this seems extraordinarily hard.  My experience with arms and armor is that low-quality armor (leather or bone) gets your troops killed almost immediately, and low-quality weapons don't kill anything, ever.  You'd have to rely almost entirely on cage traps and macro traps (i.e. retracting bridge pit traps and the like).

 - Gus

[Old-one-eye]

Basically everything is made from animals: Leather clothes, bone armor, shell helms, etc. The only weapons I can make are obsidian swords and (maybe) wooden weapons.

Maybe it's different in 40d, but this seems extraordinarily hard.  My experience with arms and armor is that low-quality armor (leather or bone) gets your troops killed almost immediately, and low-quality weapons don't kill anything, ever.  You'd have to rely almost entirely on cage traps and macro traps (i.e. retracting bridge pit traps and the like).

 - Gus

Made from bone. If that's possible.

As for the clans, you could even have the different clans specialise in different professions from each other, and see how it effects the attributes of the children over time, especially if you confine clans to their own burrows. You may get all the miner clan members super dwarvenly tough, hunters agile. etc.

[Motive]

i tried turning immigration off to see how populous i could get by just having babies and it just took too long to get interesting. bone fort sounds fun. i hate plump helmets and butchering provides lots more food now, but yeah, your soldiers will be worthless. maybe you could allow them to use steel only after it's been decorated with bone? Bonafide, if you will. HAR

[Old-one-eye]

How do you turn immigration off?

[zergl]

How do you turn immigration off?

Take a look at your init directory. It's somewhere in there (either init.txt or d_init.txt, depending on version, I think).

[zecro]

Your task is to embark on a site where a river feeds into a valley, and then create a massive reservoir and dam up that river, making sure to generate enough power for the entire empire.

Bonus points if you build in a self-destruct lever of some sort.

[Ubiq]

3) The Clans
3 male, 3 female dwarves (no. 7 has to die). No migrants. If No. 7 didn't get to live, you foreign spies certainly won't!
Each couple is given a clan name (husband and wife are given the same 'nickname'), and their children receive the same. So even when we reach a higher population, everyone will either be of one clan or another.

Counter proposal:

Embark in a location with a valley and hills. One dwarf stays at the bottom to begin building a city while the two clans each head for a location in the hills above him. Migrants live in a city while the clans, one with the dwarves named after Roman gods while the other uses a Greek god naming systems. Figuring out how to make cannibalism work in the scenario is up to you.

[Retro]

(I tend to abandon whenever I get a new idea that sounds better than what I'm doing)

Resist the urge! Forts where you simply keep adding more and more projects can be awesome. They also create more for the player to do, which helps fight off "gnh I am bored of DF" syndrome.

[Hyndis]

Giant above ground fortress carved out of ice on a terrifying glacier. 

But make that just your starting fort. Then dig into the ground, and dig deep. Enjoy the undead horrors in the caverns below.

Eventually make your way down to hell itself, conquer hell, and then construct out of rock blocks a fortress on the slade surface of hell, fending off the endless demon hordes. And zombie elk. Endless zombie elk too.