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[drseptapus]

Just out of curiosity, how do you guys generally set up your forts? I just did my first vertical oriented fort and found that it was much more efficient than having all my stuff on a couple z levels. I had a central staircase that allowed dwarves to move from the top to the bottom really quickly. I can however see that this might be flawed from a defensive standpoint because if an enemy got access to that central staircase they would pretty much have total access to the fort. So anyway, how do you guys tend to "strike the earth".

[celem]

The vertical layout really is efficient as you've noticed.  I usually have a floor of workshops with their associated stockpiles directly below them.  Rather than a single vertical stair, try a stair beside every workshop to allow near-instant access to the stockpile below it.  The output from these workshops go to a stockpile floor above it, linked by the same stairs (you end up with a staircase every 5-6 tiles, reduces pathing congestion massively and the shortest route for any given task is an ideal fairly diagonal route in 3-dimensions.)

Its a good idea to break the continuous stair just above each cavern for the reason you described, if for nothing else than to buy you time.  Also....hatches over the stair every few floors are win because they cant be broken from below, even by building destroyers.

The other risk with a single continuous stair is that if you should unfortunatly flood your fort it will rain down said stair making it completely impassible and pretty much dooming every floor below the leak.  Yet another reason for the hatches.

[ninja137]

I normally make the fort start deep....like, deep enough that I need to make sure I have 50 z levels before the fortress. I fill those with a maze of traps and my military and all sorts of cool shit, then I have the main fortress o about 7-8 z levels. I normally use a simple plan for workshops and beds and most rooms because I havent found something better yet.

X=space I dug out

XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
         XXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
         XXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX

I put workshops in the 5x5 squares, for bedrooms its basically the same but with a space between the main corridor and the room so I can add doors and have walls. Does anyone have a more efficient way to do rooms or the fort?

[celem]

Its better to actually hollow out bedrooms rather than completely mine the space and construct walls, that way you can smooth/engrave them.

Also its useful to bear noise in mind when planning bedrooms.  Try and keep em away from areas that will see heavy mining or construction work.  For me thats usually the surface so my bedrooms are generally 20-25 z's down or more from the surface

[JoshBrickstien]

I usually do the vertical fortress as well.

I can however see that this might be flawed from a defensive standpoint because if an enemy got access to that central staircase they would pretty much have total access to the fort.

If you leave pillars standing around the stairwell, you add in bridges, and hook them up to a lever. I'd do this on every level, so that any level can be either locked up securely, or Quarantined.

[Chocolatemilkgod]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

An edited version of up down fortress so it's symmetrical and has aesthetic values, except I usually use a 41X41 area.

As for the central staircase, that is true though I usually have a long maze with traps, and I have a gate that i can retract, like this.

               XXX
               XXX
               GGG
           MMGGGMM
FFFFFFFFFGGGFFFFF
FFFFFFFFFGGGFFFFF

F = Floor
M = Moat
G = Gate
X = Central Staircase

I have about 3 lines of cage traps in front so I know if there is an ambush, so all I have to do is retract the bridge where my main staircase is, and then the enemy has to go down a looooooong twisty passageway down through tons of cage/weapon/upright weapon traps into a room where all my animals are stationed, and then finally into a room where my military are lurking to kill any survivors.

Or I have them stationed near the gate so anyone trying to run are destroyed by my dwarves

[Wastedlabor]

My current WIP:


 ▲_________wwwww_XXX_wwwww_________▲
           o.....XXX.....o
           o.....XXX.....o
                (...)     
           o.....XXX.....o
o_____d__X o.....XXX.....o X__d_____o
         X_______XXX_______X


_ = floor; w = weapon traps on catwalks; . = empty space; X = stairs; o = wall, D = door

Basically it's an octopus-like level with folded, floodable arms to the edges of the map, that lead to catwalks over a vertical, empty shaft with a central staircase. The bottom of the shaft is at the magma workshops level and drains over semi-molten rock. The bottom level leads to all the chambers around the shaft (save at the bottom level itself, because digging warm stone is annoying and I'm too lazy to edit the warning rule).

The point is to trap the enemy squads, push them to the shaft and collect the goblinite right near the workshops/stockpiles/dumps. Hollowing the shaft through the caverns can be fun, though.

[Internet Kraken]

Like this.. Minus the corpses of course. Pay no attention to the Dwarves locked in the underground forest either. They aren't normally supposed to be there.

It's certainly not the most efficient fortress design. Things would probably go a lot better if I didn't have an inane need to put almost everything over the ocean. If you find me a more efficient design for an ocean fortress, I would like to see it. But this design functions well enough, provided you don't have to fight a civilization that can fly.

[Namfuak]

Like this.. Minus the corpses of course. Pay no attention to the Dwarves locked in the underground forest either. They aren't normally supposed to be there.

It's certainly not the most efficient fortress design. Things would probably go a lot better if I didn't have an inane need to put almost everything over the ocean. If you find me a more efficient design for an ocean fortress, I would like to see it. But this design functions well enough, provided you don't have to fight a civilization that can fly.

I'm not quite sure where your dwarves actually go in.  Also, does your fortress actually go into the sea?

EDIT:  Oh, your fortress is actually built over the sea.  That's pretty cool.  I wanted to make a fortress like that, but I figured it would be a big project to make a way down through the ocean.

[Shoku]

A variety of things.

My trade depot have a ramp down into a side path for letting caravans in but this is covered by a bridge so that while I let in caravans I don't have to open up the fort. I eventually expand some walls on the surface up to a large keep so that I can gather plants and things without having to send a bunch of patrols around to be sure there are no goblins. This has a nice moat, closable front entrance, and some nice sniping spots and things when I get around to it.
What it has besides that is a high suspended walkway entrance that can technically be trader safe but is mainly for the purpose of killing invaders.

[Herbiie]

Well I've got 2 lay outs, either a large dining hall with everything leading off it with some more rooms on different levels.

The one I'm using now is above ground 2 floors, then the roof is ringed with fortifications for my Marksdwarfs on the floors I have an inner nucleus of a few workshops & bedrooms, with other bits added on as I go along. It's quite nice because if you make a mistake you can just destroy everything & start again. Then I have a shaft in the centre for magma & industry etc. & for getting stuff like stones.