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[borderlands]

Once you have the brick or glass making factories going (clay and sand is infinite), you can start trying to build your serious towers.

Don't bricks require fuel? If so, the rate of construction is limited by how many trees I can burn, which requires another skill set, or by if and how much fuel can be found through exploratory mining. Either way, expansion is still resource-dependent.

Girlinhat: The problem with workshops in the rooms is the noise it generates. Generally, while a dwarf is sleeping upstairs or beside the shop, another dwarf with the same profession enabled will bolt in and use the workshop, waking everyone up and causing bad thoughts.

Workshop Profiles.

But then you get the problem of needing to build a workshop for every dwarf with that profession, which leads to more complication and space usage... but none of that matters now that I realize that workshops don't generate noise.

[Girlinhat]

A magma kiln is amazing for making bricks by the boatload.  Still, wood will always be the easiest above-ground resource.  Since you aren't digging underground, you very likely won't have much spare stone, which is strange.  Normally stone is so plentiful, but when you're going above-ground it's rather rare.  Cavern trees are still your friend though.

[Beanchubbs]

I like doing above ground forts a lot as well. What I usually do is designate an area of land that can provide me enough resources to last one year, and build a wall around it as quickly as possible. Once that is done, I build 'buildings' within the walled in area that usually are only temporary(like small houses, dining rooms, storage rooms, etc.). After a while, you will need to expand, but you should have enough dwarves to do so. I usually have all dwarves that don't have a 24/7 job having the masonry and carpentry skills enabled (job profiles help here so you can still have better masons and carpenters make quality products) and building will go very quickly like this. I replace the first wall(which is usually wooden) with stone and it becomes the base of the keep. The temporary buildings become rooms, and you can build larger buildings outside the keep(apartments, large 'factories' that have many similar workshops in them, etc.).
I've been liking above ground forts since 40d and this setup usually works for me. I haven't tried one in .19 yet, and from what I gather, it will probably be more difficult.

[squeakyReaper]

I almost always play above ground, making little towns.  My usual house design is this:

Code: [Select]

#######
#WWW#_#
#WWW__#
#WWW#_#
#####_#
#<_____
#######It's rather modual, and can have as many floors as you want.  Just replace the < with a X, an up/down stair case.  Each of my skilled craftsdwarves have their own house like this.  The WWW space can be whatever is necessary.  Usually, my workshops are on the first floors, personal dining area second, and bedroom at top.  If a craftsdwarf is married, their children/spouses that live with them are set to haulers only, or take up the family business.

And I usually build all these out of wood, but I build a large city wall out of stone.  Afterall, castle walls were build out of those; it's really not all too much of cheating.  Don't forget the paved roads!

[Keldane]

Unless I'm mistaken, can't you use raw clay for constructions at the moment? I realize it's a bug, and if that doesn't bother you (and I'm right), then at least gathering the resources for building an initial wall wouldn't take too long or require too much in the way of resources.

[borderlands]

I like doing above ground forts a lot as well. What I usually do is designate an area of land that can provide me enough resources to last one year, and build a wall around it as quickly as possible. Once that is done, I build 'buildings' within the walled in area that usually are only temporary(like small houses, dining rooms, storage rooms, etc.). After a while, you will need to expand, but you should have enough dwarves to do so. I usually have all dwarves that don't have a 24/7 job having the masonry and carpentry skills enabled (job profiles help here so you can still have better masons and carpenters make quality products) and building will go very quickly like this. I replace the first wall(which is usually wooden) with stone and it becomes the base of the keep. The temporary buildings become rooms, and you can build larger buildings outside the keep(apartments, large 'factories' that have many similar workshops in them, etc.).
I've been liking above ground forts since 40d and this setup usually works for me. I haven't tried one in .19 yet, and from what I gather, it will probably be more difficult.

I'm definitely trying this idea. Sounds like a great compromise between the peaceful, small-town development strategy I favor and the eventual establishment of a military presence.

[Girlinhat]

This is true.  Clay isn't supposed to be used for chairs and cabinets and stuff, but I think raw clay shouldn't be usable at all, even for walls and floors.  We'll see what happens with that.

[NW_Kohaku]

Once you have the brick or glass making factories going (clay and sand is infinite), you can start trying to build your serious towers.

Don't bricks require fuel? If so, the rate of construction is limited by how many trees I can burn, which requires another skill set, or by if and how much fuel can be found through exploratory mining. Either way, expansion is still resource-dependent.

Either you can use nothing but trees for your project, use trees as fuel for bricks, dig up stone, or just dig for the magma, and set up a magma forge for infinite bricks or glass blocks.

The last requires the most setup, but makes the rest of your construction project easy mode.

[borderlands]

Either you can use nothing but trees for your project, use trees as fuel for bricks, dig up stone, or just dig for the magma, and set up a magma forge for infinite bricks or glass blocks.

The last requires the most setup, but makes the rest of your construction project easy mode.

I think I'd prefer to build everything with wood. Clay just adds another step and requires wood burners, furnace operators, and masons to just build stuff. Digging down to magma violates my "no more than 2 z-layers" rule.

Has anyone ever tried to hollow out a giant cube underground and build a similar town, but entirely under the surface? I tried this once, but too many deaths resulted from stupid channeling and the entire process was too time consuming and complex. However, it does offer the advantage of being able to carve out houses. Building floors over dirt and grass is the most time consuming and resource-heavy task when it comes to wooden structure construction, so carving out houses definitely seems tempting.

[NW_Kohaku]

I think I'd prefer to build everything with wood. Clay just adds another step and requires wood burners, furnace operators, and masons to just build stuff. Digging down to magma violates my "no more than 2 z-layers" rule.

There's always volcanic vents...

[agatharchides]

In a lot of areas you can strip-mine for stone in 2 z layers.

[Grax]

The biggest problem with an above ground home is security.
Start with a manor of sorts with a small protective ring outside in case of titans and ambushes. Generally make it a safe haven that the dwarves can run to if trouble arises. As your population grows and homes, farms, and gardens are gradually fill up the area around the inner sanctum, build another wall to keep invaders out. A sort of layered defence. A good thing about this is that you will finally have a use for roads.

Just wall yourself inside and make everything to build a good infantry then remove the walls.

I've just yesterday started a nanofort 1*1 in a flat desert.
Without any food or drink. Second year and still nobody died.

Dwarves have been unvanilled only by a [no_sleep] tag.

[Grax]

too many deaths resulted from stupid channeling

Try "ramping".

[Dorf3000]

Has anyone ever tried to hollow out a giant cube underground and build a similar town, but entirely under the surface? I tried this once, but too many deaths resulted from stupid channeling and the entire process was too time consuming and complex. However, it does offer the advantage of being able to carve out houses. Building floors over dirt and grass is the most time consuming and resource-heavy task when it comes to wooden structure construction, so carving out houses definitely seems tempting.

I did this once in 40d, it took absolutely ages, my dwarves starved and were miserable in their tiny hobbit hole on the surface, and I got way too many miners with moods and then ambushes and then death.  If you designate from the top one layer at a time you can avoid all cave ins (at least, all stupid-tile-choice ones..), but it makes it hard to sit and design.  Also, digging out the wrong tile by mistake after you've done 3 layers and before you make a save is reallllllly frustrating.

Also, dwarves who live in wooden houses on the surface and don't dig more than 2 z-levels and don't use magma?  Enjoy your Short Hairy Human Fortress.

[TheyTarget]

Has anyone ever tried to hollow out a giant cube underground and build a similar town, but entirely under the surface? I tried this once, but too many deaths resulted from stupid channeling and the entire process was too time consuming and complex. However, it does offer the advantage of being able to carve out houses. Building floors over dirt and grass is the most time consuming and resource-heavy task when it comes to wooden structure construction, so carving out houses definitely seems tempting.

Yes. It started as multiple z levels hollowed out then with giant pillars inserted containing related workshops or in some cases apartments. Then I decided to wall off a massive area of the surface and channeled out everything on my side of the wall leaving a series of sky scrappers. I added windows and some detailing but eventually lost the fort to a reason I cant remember but probably related to my broken computer. It had a lava moat... oh how I miss you lava moat.