Okay, posting the first part of the story now. Second one and save will be up sometime this afternoon.
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The wagon trundled along the terrain, wooden wheels creaking as it passed through the trees. Six hooded figure sat huddled together, with a seventh at the seat, holding the reins, cracking them every so often to hurry the camel pulling the wagon along. At first it seemed a desperate, desolate little party, but then one of the hooded figures raised an arm - holding a mug. The hood fell back, revealing a bearded dwarf, and he burst into a rowdy drinking song, the other five in the back joining in. The driver, a female, merely smiled at their joviality.
The group was in good spirits, for this was no suicide mission to a terrifying glacier or carved into the shear peaks of a volcano. The wagon bounced over a low rolling hill, falling away to reveal the gentle valley below. The trees were full and green, the hills gentle and rolling. The brook, Scoopedbank, bubbled merrily along at the bottom of the small valley, its waters clear and clean. The temperature was warm, with only a hint of cool breeze. No scorching deserts or freezing tundras here.
Yes, this small area, from the brook to the hills beyond in the west, now belonged to the small outpost of Ironblow, as per the order of the fair queen Olin Eturamud. The Queen, worried about her southern border, had ordered this group of seven to establish a fortress overlooking the very edge of her land. It would not be an easy job, but as the dwarves brought their wagon to a halt, looking around at the scenery, their hearts felt light with hope. Here was a good land, not cursed and blasted like it was rumored some dwarves were sent to, never to return. No, this land looked like evil could never stand to dwell here, or so the dwarves thought...
The wagon stopped with a halting jerk. They were here.
---So begins the journal of CloverMagic, first expedition leader of Ironblow, 1st Granite, year 6---
We have arrived! The journey was long through the last of winter, but I'm not about to complain. I hear some dwarves actually have to travel to glaciers and the like. Well, not this dwarf! Ironblow here is just perfect. The boys are in good spirits, too. Even sleeping on the ground for a bit until we've actually dug somethign to sleep in doesn't seem too bad in a place like this.
Taking pick in hand, me and a fellow who calls himself "bayar" have started digging out a respectable entrance to the new fort. Guy claims he's a doctor, too, odd to seem him pick up a pick. Well, he does good work, so I certainly won't complain!
A little more digging has netted up some basic storage space and the beginning of a good farm. After all, we wouldn't be dwarves without our plump helmets, would we?
A dwarf by the name of "xellas84" or something or other, our fisher, ran screaming into the halls today. Grabbing my pick, I hefted it, palms sweaty. I'm just a miner with an eye for goods and numbers, I'd never fought anything in my life. What was so horrid to send one of our sturdy kind into the halls, screaming as if she'd seen demons? What sort of evil...
"Groundhogs!" Xellas84 shrieked. "Groundhogs everywhere! I can't fish, ma'am! They're
watching me!" Outside, there were indeed several plump groundhogs, eating the grass and looking up every once in a while, noses wiggling.
Perhaps I should keep an eye on this dwarf.
Aside from the...threat...of the groundhogs, construction continues at a good clip. We have started to work on the actual backbones of the fort, instead of hasty rooms dug above for protection. My pick rings as it strikes into the stone, and occasionally ores or gems. We've struck galena already, and several varieties of gems. The queen chose good for this site. Inspired, I dug further, mind filled with spirals, as if Bem herself was working through me.
Hmmn, the spiral is pretty. I like it. More bedrooms!
With pick to rock, a grand dining room has also been carved out. I've ordered our mason, "Xenos", to start carving us some tables and chairs to fill it form all the rock lying around. So much rock...
She grumbled about building tables instead of some supports. Apparently she has a grand idea of being a master architect... Well, she's our mason, so tables and chairs it is.
Slackers! I thought I told you to pull that lever--!! ....I didn't? I was so busy working on the great spiral of Bem... -coughs- Well, due to...a communication error (and certainly not absent-mindedness on part of the expedition leader) the farms were flooding...and nearly flooding everything else. Thankfully, the water was not too deep, so someone could run to pull the lever controlling the floodgate, and with a bit more digging to expand the farm, the only consequence is some mud everywhere. At least it did not reach The Great Spiral.
Migrants! A cheesemaker, leatherworker, milker, and woodburner. Nothing of use to us, but more strong backs are welcome. The cheesemaker and milker have been told to work on smoothing the dining room and the Spiral. The milker whined, claiming his skills were going to waste. An expert metalcrafter, you say? Well, we have no metalworks as of yet...but that can be easily remedied. I pick up my pick. The leatherworker and woodburner have taken to giving us large amounts of fuel. We'll have those metalworks yet!
A room for a well has been constructed, we've gotten low on drink occasionally over the past months. Has it really been months...? Anyways, this will be refreshing for all dwarves who want to clean off the grime of a hard day's work.
Xenos has taken to building supports everywhere. I tell her to tear them down, but in consolation she can build as many supports as she like in the back of the farms. She's also been building good bridges lately, to help seal off our fort in time of trouble. As if trouble could come here!
Xenos takes to my permission to build her supports enthusiastically. Her skills are growing pretty fast.
Autumn has come. I'm not sure if it freezes here, the climate is so mild, but it's little matter now - a cistern of water is safely underground under the well. Later I will perhaps construct one for safer flooding of the farms than directly from the brook...heh heh.
More migrants! Another four: a woodworker of all talents like our own lolghurt,
another milker (why do we need two) who also appears to have some knowledge of cutting gems, a fish cleaner/leatherworker, and a woodcutter....we now have three people that can cut wood. I know we have trees but...thankfully, the new woodcutter told me he also has some talent with making armor. Our metalworks is working on smelting ore and fuel, so I've instructed the creation of pig iron as well. We don't have a military, but when we do, it will be steel-clad!
Whilst digging for marble to make our steel - and some convenient gems and malachite - my pick broke through a wall and it crumbled away, revealing a vast, twisted cavern. I stared out at it over a while, and no sounds issued from below. It worried me, that echoing emptiness. Far down below, past layers of rock that this openness tunneled into, I could just make out the muddy cavern floor, covered in webs and giant mushrooms.
Disturbed, I ordered the breach walled over. Luckily, it could be walled, and none of our main staircase penetrated the cavern. Perhaps when we have that said steel-covered military, we will reopen it and explore the depths...but for now, I feel easier with the sturdy granite wall between it and us.
Propelled by my uneasiness, the metalworks is now completely functional. I order our leatherworker working the furnace to turn half of our iron to pig iron, which we will then turn to steel. If we run out of iron, the vein is not completely mined out yet, and I will dig out the ores myself. For now, this comforts me.
---to be continued---
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Topic: Ironblow - Noobish Succession Game (Read 4319 times)