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[Tsarwash]

So my five best legendary fighters were slaughtered by goblin crossbowmen. One was elite. My guys had bronze mostly full armour one, but nothing on underneath. They also had bronze battle axes and featherwood shields. Most of the armour would have been of very high quality. The one with three horizontal lines.

Iron and copper arrows and bolts killed them swiftly. Only six or seven goblins. and I sent out ten or so good fighters.

So, would silk offer more protection against arrows, as legend tells us it ought ? Would war dogs have distracted the marksmen ? My tactics definately left something to be desired, and I'm willing to listen. My guys are not really very good in shield use or armour use and they are proficient dodgers. I'm sure that different training would address this, but i'm a little niave about training.

(on the plus side, my hospital is now working a treat. )

[Miggy]

Better shield material and, more importantly, better shield skill would have made a difference. However, what's probably the best piece of advice would be asking the question: Why did you charge your melee dwarves at the ranged enemies? Why not have the dwarves hide behind a wall or something similar until the archers were just around the corner, then storm them?

[Argonnek]

The best way to beat marksmen is to get them into melee combat, but to do this you need either very good shield use or you need to deplete their ammo using diversion targets.

The first one requires a strong shield and the knowledge of how to use it, but the second one is a little more complex. My suggestion for the second would be to have a small bunker with fortifications all along one wall with some animals or civilians or whatever withing sight to make their marksmen waste ammunition on the diversion instead of your soldiers.

[SkyRender]

The best defense against ranged weapons is indeed close quarters.  And no better way exists to get that than to build an entry hall to your fort that twists and turns backwards on itself and has very short stretches between corners.  To make your life even easier, build traps on the inside corners of each curve (cage ones if you're feeling especially cruel), and watch as the sieges and ambushes turn into a gauntlet of laughs instead of a slaughterfest for your Dwarves.

[Greiger]

I've found a short hallway with a checkerboard pattern of pilliars is quite effective against ranged greenskins.

Spoiler: Current fortress defense layout including an example (click to show/hide)

Figure A is the station for the 2 melee military squads, swords and spears, 10 each.  Blocking the way into the courtyard and prevented from charging ahead recklessly by the low visibility corridor.  The low visibility corridor also significantly reduces the threat of marksgoblins, by preventing them from firing on my military from anywhere but near point blank range.  My own ranged military however is stationed above, and are easily capable of firing into the corridor.

Figure B is where the goblins enter the defenses from.  A simple 3 wide road with spiked trenches on each side.  If anyone dodges either the small group of traps or incoming bolts from defenders they have a good chance of landing on a spike 2 levels below in the trenches.

Figure C is the main entrance bridge, which when raised opens a pit preventing even building destroyers from entering, and forces the attackers into the low visibility corridor.  The yellow squares south of the trade depot is a typical ballista.

The defenses work quite effectively.  Only 3 military fatalities in 6 years, and I have all my military using two handed weapons instead of shields.  The design seems quite effective against both marksgoblins, and at keeping your military at their station instead of running off to pursue targets.

[shadowform]

You also appear to be using dragons, which is somewhat detrimental to the weight of your claim, "3 military fatalities in 6 years".

[existent]

I use the method in this thread:
http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=63707.0

[Greiger]

Well, yea.  But they are human size, none of that silly firebreath, and the invaders include larger, stronger Orcs as well as goblins.  My Dracon aren't significantly more combat effective than your typical dwarf.  While the opposition includes both goblins and "significantly more combat effective" goblins.  Often both picking the same season to siege bumping the maximum siege population up to 160 invaders at once.

So yea, I tried my darndest to keep that balanced.

[Tsarwash]

Thanks for the advice folks, I shall definately take some of it on board. I'm just going to repeat a few questions. Does silk offer good protection against arrows and bolts, as in real life ??

And how do you help the dwarves train up the dodging skills and shield use ?? Is there a thread that explains more advance combat training anywhere ?

And I read somewhere that all shields protect the same no matter what the material that they are made out of. Is that incorrect ?

[KhazâdAimênu]

I've been pretty successful with that checkerboard pattern myself, but I like to make it out of floodgates so that I can retract my archer screen when it isn't needed.

[terminal]

And how do you help the dwarves train up the dodging skills and shield use ?? Is there a thread that explains more advance combat training anywhere ?

I build a 4x4 room and fill it with upright weapon traps [b-T-S], loading each with three wooden training spears.  Leave one square untrapped and put a weapon rack in it.  Then hook up each spear to a lever (one lever for all traps).  When they are all connected to the lever, set it to be pulled repeatedly.  Create a barracks around the weapon rack and have your dwarves train in the traproom.  They will quickly gain shield, armor, dodge, fighter, and weapon skill.  Might be considered an exploit.

[Bryan Derksen]

I build a 4x4 room and fill it with upright weapon traps [b-T-S], loading each with three wooden training spears.  Leave one square untrapped and put a weapon rack in it.  Then hook up each spear to a lever (one lever for all traps).  When they are all connected to the lever, set it to be pulled repeatedly.  Create a barracks around the weapon rack and have your dwarves train in the traproom.  They will quickly gain shield, armor, dodge, fighter, and weapon skill.  Might be considered an exploit.

Doesn't seem like an exploit to me, any more than using archery targets or training dummies (when training dummies are added). You've just created an automated "danger room" with training dummies that fight back.

Hm. Rigging up the dining hall with these things to give civilians some extra combat training might be considered more of an exploit.

[Derekristow]

I'm pretty sure putting them in the dining hall would do more for your doctors than your civilians.

On the plus side, no pets.

[Bryan Derksen]

I'm pretty sure putting them in the dining hall would do more for your doctors than your civilians.

On the plus side, no pets.

Seems like it's all plus side, really. My doctors tend to get rusty between sieges.

Oh! It's also the perfect way to break up an unproductive party!

[darkflagrance]

I'm pretty sure putting them in the dining hall would do more for your doctors than your civilians.

On the plus side, no petschildren.