I added 4 different metal alloys, each for specific neiches that I felt were needed, along with the processes needed to make them usable.
I added two different weapons, the 'battle spear' which is basically a slightly weaker spear and slightly weaker shortsword in one weapon, and the bolt caster, that fires large rocket propelled bolts, although the latter tends to never get used as making the ammunition is quite difficult.
Can you elaborate on these items? When you are at it, I'd really appreciate if you also go to my mod thread and comment on its features. It look like we have quite similar ideologies.
Hah - well - it was in 'response' to your Fortress Defence that prompted me to add these particular items - I wanted to retain the hordes of seiging enemies, while giving back some of the dwarven metalurgical edge.
The four metals are:
Blue Steel - smelted in a smelter from pig iron, illmenite, and cobaltite in the prsence of chalk and carbon (coal), this steel alloy contains titanium azs an impurity. It has the same stats as steel, but 1.5 times more
edge, as well as being a lovely cobalt blue colour. I use it for edged weapons mostly. Illmenite is sufficiently uncommon to make regular steel the choice for bulk armour.
Mithril - Smelted in a smelter from Rutile in the presence of bauxite, with a pyrolusite (magnesium) flame, this is as close as you can get to modeling a titanium smelt - I wasnt about to waste everyone's time making a 'fancy super smelter' as I figure it is a game and I can use my imagination to handwave away certain real world impracticalities. This is Dwarf Fortress! So my end product has the same stats as steel, but for the density (which is equal to aluminium) and max edge, which is again 1.5 times that of steel. It winds up being great for light armours for weak dwarves. Both Rutile and Pyrolusite are pretty rare, and so is this mithril - but - what makes it rarer still is a second reaction, using mithril + cinnabar (mercury) heated in a kiln with an extra coal provided flame. More hand waving to get around boring real world physics, and the end result is mithril cloth - in this form it can only be used for metal clothing, but it means you can make robes, hoods, cloaks and the like with cloth that has the stats of steel.
Titansteel - smelted in a smelter from regular steel, blue steel, and mithril cloth, given a chrome finish (chromite) and smelted using a pyrolusite flame, this is essentially a high grade titanium steel. I rarely if ever get to be able to make this stuff, so I have no real idea if the numbers I made up for it are appropriate or not. It is supposed to be about twice as good as steel, a far cry from adamantine of course. In practice - well - who knows if I have the numbers right.
Neutronium. An ugly reaction made by baking pitchblende in ash on a lead base - probably while a dwarf screams obscenities at it. I was going to use the rough stats for depleted uranium for the end produ but I decided to bump its density up by about 60 pct. In the raws I basically copied platinum and upped the density, while lowering its value and giving it a worrisome 'negative' dark colour. The metal is there to give hammers and maces something to make them hopefully more effective.
As far as the weapons go - lets see:
The battlespear is more because I like the idea of using spears, but was always a little miffed that you could stab a goat for weeks and do little to it, and then a single hit with a short sword could cut it in half. So I made a weapon that had both the stab and cut possibilities. I think the end weapon is probably better than a short sword, due to the overall size being bigger and the length of the weapon being represented by a higher velocity - but it still falls short of an axe for cleaving. As for being a spear - again it is a bigger weapon, but it's thrusing tip is a bit bigger too, so possibly doesnt penetrate as well. Needless to say - in combat it does exactly what I want - stab things with nasty wounds, and then cut to the chase and cut them in half.
The Bolt caster - well - the weapon itself is basically a longer crossbow, with a bayonette for melee combat. Can be made of wood or what ever like a crossbow. But the ammo - that is made with a custom reaction using lead, brass, saltpeter, brimstone, and charcoal. You get 20 bolts per reaction, and they weigh a massive amount. The bolts themselves do blunt damage, so as to make them good in situations where crossbow bolts might not be so good, and also to make them bad in certain other limited situations. They pack a whallop, but saltpeter and brimstone tend to e very rare - so usually you'd keep the bolt casters for your best marksdwarves who no longer need to train. Oh - and there is a neutronium rocket bolt round available too - it is - insanely heavy.
usually though - Fortress Defence kills me before it is much of an issue. I have discovered that if I have 20 or more dwarves when year 2 starts - I loose. On the other hand - I refuse to use corridors of traps and danger rooms - so more fool me huh.