Hello, I hope I am putting this in the right section.
This and the Dwarf Mode Discussion sections largely run into one another. Here is probably more appropriate for your questions, though.
I haven't even started dwarf fortress yet, it seems very complex, and daunting. First of all, should I?
It depends what you're looking for. It is, as you say, a very complex game, and learning it is a daunting task. Those people who stick with it, however, typically find it to be entertaining.
Secondly, if I should, could somebody please point me to a tileset and tell me how to put it in game, im big on gameplay over graphics in most cases, however, I honestly can't easily tell what is going on in a lot of videos i've watched.
I can say that graphics might not help you figure out what's going on. I know that for my part I have difficulty knowing what's going on in videos that have a graphics set active, but I can read the vanilla ASCII easily. That said, I've heard many good things about the
Lazy Newb Pack; it comes with much that you'll likely find helpful for starting out, and is easily installed, too.
Third, can somebody point me to recent tutorials? I've just been watching these, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koZUS2h-Yzc, and apparently, they are from 2008, and alot of the info here does not apply anymore.
I don't know of any good ones for the latest (31.x) versions, but
Tinypirate's tutorial comes highly-recommended.
Last, just a small question, but the person in those videos made all of there military marksdwarves, is there a reason for this? Are they the best? I was thinking of having about 2/3 spears and 1/3 crossbow, is this a better idea?
Marksdwarves have the advantage of a ranged attack, and, at least in the version capnduck was playing, worked more like machineguns than crossbows. A marksdwarf in a good position could take out whole sieges singlehandedly, unless there were enemy elite marksmen. Anymore, however, crossbows got nerfed a fair amount with the new materials and body systems (so a single bolt can't take out all of an enemy's internal organs in one hit), so melee troops are now more desirable than they used to be.
The problem with having just spears and crossbows is that they both deal piercing damage, so if you go against something that is resistant to piercing damage, you're in trouble. It's probably better to do more like 1/3 axes, 1/3 spears, 1/3 crossbows if you're going for a mix like that, or just mix your weapons at random.
Sorry if these questions are obvious, but im new, and haven't even attempted playing yet. I actually did not lurk here, so I do not know how friendly the community is, I hope you can all answer my questions kindly. Thank you 
The people who learn this game are, frankly, outrageously patient. The people who frequent the forums have mostly learned the game. It's a friendly community, in general.
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Topic: Beginner questions (Read 1092 times)