Well, that took longer than expected.
I've uploaded the initial embark setup to DFFD (here (http://dffd.wimbli.com/file.php?id=6228)) if anyone wants to set a scenario running using it, or just wants to see what happens if you wall out the immigrants and let them be savaged by honey badgers.
The first year of experiments has been run, and it doesn't really tell us anything particularly insightful or interesting, just that having more skill is better - which is sort of intuitively obvious, really.
Starting skill levels (start of summer year 1):
Domas - Axe/Teacher - lvl 5 Axe, lvl 5 Teacher (3500/4500xp)
Nil - Axe only - lvl 5 Axe (3500/4500xp)
Ral - Teacher only - lvl 5 Teacher (3500/4500xp)
iton - Student - lvl 5 Student (3500/4500xp)
Cog - Student 2 - lvl 5 Student (3500/4500xp)
Dastot - Unskilled - no relevant skills
Etur - Worker - no relevant skills
First test:
Axe/Teacher + Student
Axe + Student
Teacher + Unskilled
Summer, 1st year
Observations:
Both axe squads immediately launched into Organise/Wait For Axe Demonstration. The pair with no weapon skills went to Individual Combat Drills. Since the dwarves are unmodded to preserve consistency with 'real' dwarves, these demonstrations get cancelled as soon as the dwarves sleep, eat, or drink, resulting in the next demonstration for one squad being dodging. Individual drills fill in the gaps between the demonstrations.
Squad 1 (Axe/Teacher + Student) begins sparring almost immediately, on 9th Hematite, only slightly over a week since being drafted.
Squad 2 (Axe + Student) follows on 11th Hematite, and Squad 3 (Teacher + Unskilled) starts sparring on 12th Hematite.
The Student in Squad 1 is announced as an Axedwarf on 14th Hematite, just two weeks into his training. Squad 2's Student is only a little behind as he 'graduates' on 16th Hematite.
28th Hematite: Squad 3 show a disturbing lack of work ethic by showing as 'Soldier (no activity)' and deserting their barracks to visit the meeting area where the Worker is confined. They decide to drink there too, despite the stockpile in their barracks.
4th Malachite: Squad 2's student is now attached to his battle axe.
6th Malachite: Out of curiosity I check the length of the sparring reports; Squad 2 & 3 are identical at 28 pages, while Squad 1 is a whopping 81 pages long.
11th Malachite: Squad 3 seem to prefer 'Fighting' demonstrations, although this may just be (bad) luck - Fighting is currently the only non-Dabbling combat skill they have.
15th Malachite: Squad 3's Teacher has become a militia captain; this announcement means he's finally become a Novice Axedwarf and dons the blue regalia of his new position. Later the same day, his previously-Unskilled pupil joins the fold, so the fort now has 6 Axedwarves, up from 2, after about 6 weeks.
24th Malachite: Irrelevant to the experiment, some migrants arrive. They are reclassified as Herbalists, the whole surface is designated to gather plants, and they're basically told that if they want to live they'll have to make do on their own.
2nd Galena: Red 'C' pops up. Looks like the migrants have angered the local badger population. Worker on standby for slab duties if necessary.
5th Galena: Badger loses a few teeth to the camel I left outside. Still keeps spamming its rage at everything though.
7th Galena: Axedwarf leading squad 2 is attached to his weapon; this squad is the only one to become attached so far.
12th Galena: Squad 3 are spotted doing an Axe demonstration session, at last. The Unskilled dwarf is now attached to his axe as well.
13th Galena: Honey Badger gets fed up with raging at everything and steals a strawberry, presumably because it is the same red as its RAAAAGE.
23rd Galena: Notice that most of the migrant wave are now showing 'Thirsty', despite a perfectly good murky pool which I've even designated as a water source for them.
27th Galena: See a skill announcement popup and get excited, but then realise it's just 'Urist McMigrant has become a Herbalist'. Guess that necessity really can be a good motivator.
End of Summer report:
Domas, Axe/Teacher, Squad 1, commander
Lvl 8 Axedwarf (7317/8100xp) +3817xp
Lvl 6 Fighter (4991/5600xp) +4991xp
Lvl 5 Teacher (3600/4500xp) +100xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (297/500xp) +297xp
Lvl 0 Student (150/500xp) +150xp
Lvl 0 Striker (231/500xp) +231xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (100/500xp) +100xp
Lvl 0 Observer (265/500xp) +265xp
Lvl 0 Leader (70/500xp) +70xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (12/500xp) +12xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (290/500xp) +290xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (150/500xp) +150xp
Nil, Axe Only, Squad 2, captain
Lvl 6 Axedwarf (5110/5600xp) +1610xp
Lvl 3 Fighter (2257/2600xp) +2257xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (93/500xp) +93xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (290/500xp) +290xp
Lvl 0 Student (350/500xp) +350xp
Lvl 0 Striker (54/500xp) +54xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (100/500xp) +100xp
Lvl 0 Observer (182/500xp) +182xp
Lvl 0 Leader (60/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (112/500xp) +112xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (350/500xp) +350xp
Ral, Teacher Only, Squad 3, captain
Lvl 5 Teacher (3880/4500xp) +380xp
Lvl 2 Fighter (1549/1800xp) +1549xp
Lvl 2 Axedwarf (1341/1800xp) +1341xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (96/500xp) +96xp
Lvl 0 Student (310/500xp) +310xp
Lvl 0 Striker (17/500xp) +17xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (120/500xp) +120xp
Lvl 0 Observer (469/500xp) +469xp
Lvl 0 Leader (40/500xp) +40xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (100/500xp) +100xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (310/500xp) +310xp
iton, Student, Squad 1, member
Lvl 7 Fighter (5728/6800xp) +5728xp
Lvl 6 Axedwarf (5173/5600xp) +5173xp
Lvl 5 Student (3600/4500xp) +100xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (297/500xp) +297xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (150/500xp) +150xp
Lvl 0 Striker (165/500xp) +165xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (30/500xp) +30xp
Lvl 0 Observer (272/500xp) +272xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (25/500xp) +25xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (252/500xp) +252xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (100/500xp) +100xp
Cog, Student 2, Squad 2, member
Lvl 5 Student (3790/4500xp) +290xp
Lvl 3 Fighter (2179/2600xp) +2179xp
Lvl 3 Axedwarf (2363/2600xp) +2363xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (93/500xp) +93xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (350/500xp) +350xp
Lvl 0 Striker (33/500xp) +33xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (60/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Observer (88/500xp) +88xp
Lvl 0 Leader (10/500xp) +10xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (131/500xp) +131xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (290/500xp) +290xp
Dastot, Unskilled, Squad 3, member
Lvl 2 Fighter (1251/1800xp) +1251xp
Lvl 2 Axedwarf (1228/1800xp) +1228xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (96/500xp) +96xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (310/500xp) +310xp
Lvl 0 Student (380/500xp) +380xp
Lvl 0 Striker (14/500xp) +14xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (70/500xp) +70xp
Lvl 0 Observer (101/500xp) +101xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (118/500xp) +118xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (380/500xp) +380xp
Conclusions, Summer, Year 1:
It looks like Concentration and Student train at the exact same rate, which is interesting - and the Teacher skill of the Teacher trains at the same rate as the Student/Concentration skills of the student. The Leader skill is included here as a minor interest, although a dwarf who isn't a captain has got 10xp of Leader somehow, even though none of the other 'members' did - not sure how he got this.
Squad 1 (with all the skills present) has quite clearly gained the most, with the Student in the squad gaining 6 levels of Axe skill in a single season - and the Teacher hasn't done too badly herself, gaining 3 levels in the same span of time.
Squad 3, with only a Teacher and no weapon skills to start, is suffering a little - they have attained the rank of Novice, but haven't gotten any further, and exhibit the lowest skill gains of the three squads (as you may expect).
Observer appears to be being trained here too; the Worker (who is not in the militia) has zero Observer skill. If Observer affects anything important, like spotting ambushers, it seems that fighting trains it - there doesn't seem to be an obvious link with the Student/Concentration skill gains so I'd guess it might not be linked to the demonstration aspect?
Autumn, 1st year
7th Limestone: The game helpfully reminds me that there is nothing to catch in the central swamps, which is fortunate for my migrants as this is their only water source, so communicable diseases would not benefit them.
28th Limestone: Domas has become an Expedition Leader - in fact, she is the Axe/Teacher dwarf leading Squad 1, and this announcement marks her ascension to the status of Axe Lord. She is now my first Great Axedwarf of the six dwarves training.
16th Sandstone: More migrants have turned up, oblivious to the fact that the fortress is currently closed for recruiting, although I understand a nearby group are looking for some more herbalists.
2nd Sandstone: Apparently the migrants have brought their own little army, as a hunter is now sparring with a white stork. The hunter is however shooting it with a crossbow, which is an admirable way to train, but sadly tends to be lethal to any unarmoured sparring partner. Also, this 'sparring' appears to be coming up as 'hunting and combat', but I'm sure this is just an oversight.
2nd Timber: The Student in Squad 1 has now become an Axe Lord. Although this is about a month after his tutor, when you consider that he started with a 5-level deficit (ie. no combat skill at all) this is not too bad. For reference, Squad 2 are Adept/Proficient, and Squad 3 both Competent at this point, whilst Domas, the Axe/Teacher, is now a Master Axedwarf.
13th Timber: The outpost liason and caravan have arrived, to discover that the expedition leader is nowhere to be found, there's no trade depot, and the only dwarves to be found are an emaciated, dehydrated, miserable group of migrants next to the mutilated corpses of some avian creatures shot down by a hunter. Hopefully he will put this in his report to discourage further immigration.
End of Autumn report:
Domas, Axe/Teacher, Squad 1, commander
Lvl 13 Axedwarf (15926/16100xp) +8609xp
Lvl 14 Fighter (16644/18000xp) +11653xp
Lvl 5 Teacher (3690/4500xp) +90xp
Lvl 1 Wrestler (744/1100xp) +447xp
Lvl 0 Student (410/500xp) +260xp
Lvl 0 Striker (345/500xp) +114xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (210/500xp) +110xp
Lvl 1 Observer (700/1100xp) +435xp
Lvl 0 Leader (130/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (43/500xp) +31xp
Lvl 1 Dodger (863/1100xp) +573xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (410/500xp) +260xp
Lvl 0 Biter (12/500xp) +12xp
Nil, Axe Only, Squad 2, captain
Lvl 8 Axedwarf (7827/8100xp) +2717xp
Lvl 7 Fighter (5861/6800xp) +3604xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (210/500xp) +117xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (290/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Student (350/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Striker (93/500xp) +39xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (170/500xp) +70xp
Lvl 0 Observer (306/500xp) +124xp
Lvl 0 Leader (120/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (13/500xp) +13xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (275/500xp) +163xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (350/500xp) +0xp
Ral, Teacher Only, Squad 3, captain
Lvl 5 Teacher (4030/4500xp) +150xp
Lvl 5 Fighter (3613/4500xp) +2064xp
Lvl 4 Axedwarf (3032/3500xp) +1691xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (228/500xp) +132xp
Lvl 0 Student (310/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Striker (17/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (230/500xp) +110xp
Lvl 1 Observer (628/1100xp) +159xp
Lvl 0 Leader (100/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (263/500xp) +163xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (310/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Biter (21/500xp) +21xp
iton, Student, Squad 1, member
Lvl 14 Fighter (16480/18000xp) +10752xp
Lvl 12 Axedwarf (13744/14300xp) +8571xp
Lvl 5 Student (3690/4500xp) +90xp
Lvl 1 Wrestler (612/1100xp) +315xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (410/500xp) +260xp
Lvl 0 Striker (325/500xp) +160xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (60/500xp) +30xp
Lvl 0 Observer (449/500xp) +177xp
Lvl 0 Leader (10/500xp) +10xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (40/500xp) +15xp
Lvl 1 Dodger (733/1100xp) +481xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (190/500xp) +90xp
Lvl 0 Biter (14/500xp) +14xp
Cog, Student 2, Squad 2, member
Lvl 5 Student (3790/4500xp) +0xp
Lvl 7 Fighter (6388/6800xp) +4209xp
Lvl 7 Axedwarf (5892/6800xp) +3529xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (210/500xp) +117xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (350/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Striker (33/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (80/500xp) +20xp
Lvl 0 Observer (155/500xp) +67xp
Lvl 0 Leader (20/500xp) +10xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (62/500xp) +62xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (321/500xp) +190xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (290/500xp) +0xp
Dastot, Unskilled, Squad 3, member
Lvl 5 Fighter (3792/4500xp) +2541xp
Lvl 4 Axedwarf (3111/3500xp) +1883xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (228/500xp) +132xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (310/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 1 Student (530/1100xp) +150xp
Lvl 0 Striker (62/500xp) +48xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (90/500xp) +20xp
Lvl 0 Observer (205/500xp) +104xp
Lvl 0 Leader (10/500xp) +10xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (255/500xp) +137xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (530/1100xp) +150xp
Conclusions, Autumn, Year 1:
Well, it looks like a few of the dwarves gave up on teaching - 3 of them gained no Teacher experience, and correspondingly their 3 opposite numbers gained no Student experience. The dwarves with higher skills gained even more, while the dwarves who are still on lower skill are gaining fewer points. Most of the dwarves are now showing as very agile or extremely agile, except Ral who is only 'slow to tire' (which isn't even agility based); I'm not entirely sure how much effect attributes have on the training process but if agility increase the rate of action, the higher agility dwarves will in theory pick up their skills faster, which should lead to a snowball effect in this case (train skill -> gain agility -> train skill faster -> gain more agility -> etc.) - it's just a question of how quickly you can get them to that 'critical mass'.
Winter, 1st year
26th Moonstone: Nil, the Axe-Only dwarf leading Squad 2, has 'become a militia captain', and appears to have quietly relieved himself of duty. He's still doing an individual combat drill but has gone back to being a civilian instead of a militiadwarf. They have the same training orders as the other squads, so he must just have decided to incur extra bad thoughts. Also, at about this time both members of Squad 1 started flashing to indicate they have attained the rank of Legendary Fighters, although they aren't yet that far advanced with their axe skills (Grand Master/High Master at present).
3rd Opal: Sure enough Nil is now showing as 'unhappy' and his thoughts screen lists 'upset about being relieved from duty' and 'depressed by long patrol duty'. Well, make up your mind! (I deliberately haven't cross-trained any of these dwarves in civilian skills, but then I wasn't expecting them to relieve themselves and then stay off-duty!)
6th Opal: Nil is back on duty again, although still unhappy. None of the dwarves have admired the fine statues I've put up for them, which saddens me, as they depict scenes of inspiring violence, like a human ripping off another humans' ear in some previous war. In fact the same statue has appeared twice, making me think my worker has a rather odd fascination with this event...
20th Opal: Not quite sure exactly when it happened, but now I've checked and Domas, the Axe/Teacher, has achieved Legendary Axedwarf.
25th Opal: And now both of Squad 1 are showing as Legendary. It's about 8 months after the start of the experiment now, so getting a Legendary in less than a year is pretty good.
28th Opal: Honey badgers are stealing strawberries again, in between bouts of RAAAGE.
18th Obsidian: Nil has become an Axe Lord, despite his decidedly peculiar behaviour earlier in the season. His squad only differs from Squad 1 in that they have no starting Teacher skill (Squad 1 was Axe/Teacher + Student, Squad 2 is Axe + Student), but it's taken Nil 5 months longer to reach Axe Lord than Domas did.
25th Obsidian: It's Koboldmas, celebrated by a thief appearing near my migrant holding area. What exactly he thinks he's going to steal I don't know, as we haven't made anything of any value, but then I got a whole load of migrants as well, so... meh. The migrants all scatter in fear (Urist McMigrant cancels Idle: Interrupted by Kobold x13) but no harm appears to have been done, to dwarves, kobolds, or property in general.
End of Winter report:
Domas, Axe/Teacher, Squad 1, commander
Lvl 16 Axedwarf (20347/22100xp) +4421xp
Lvl 17 Fighter (22375/24300xp) +5731xp
Lvl 5 Teacher (4220/4500xp) +530xp
Lvl 2 Wrestler (1164/1800xp) +420xp
Lvl 1 Student (770/1100xp) +360xp
Lvl 0 Striker (401/500xp) +56xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (370/500xp) +160xp
Lvl 1 Observer (905/1100xp) +205xp
Lvl 0 Leader (190/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (43/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 2 Dodger (1329/1800xp) +466xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (770/1100xp) +360xp
Lvl 0 Biter (12/500xp) +0xp
Nil, Axe Only, Squad 2, captain
Lvl 11 Axedwarf (12214/12600xp) +4387xp
Lvl 10 Fighter (10548/11000xp) +4687xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (324/500xp) +114xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (290/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Student (350/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Striker (154/500xp) +61xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (220/500xp) +50xp
Lvl 0 Observer (389/500xp) +83xp
Lvl 0 Leader (190/500xp) +70xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (13/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (439/500xp) +164xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (350/500xp) +0xp
Ral, Teacher Only, Squad 3, captain
Lvl 5 Teacher (4240/4500xp) +210xp
Lvl 7 Fighter (5926/6800xp) +2313xp
Lvl 6 Axedwarf (4676/5600xp) +1644xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (270/500xp) +42xp
Lvl 0 Student (430/500xp) +120xp
Lvl 0 Striker (32/500xp) +15xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (310/500xp) +80xp
Lvl 1 Observer (695/1100xp) +67xp
Lvl 0 Leader (150/500xp) +110xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (25/500xp) +25xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (379/500xp) +116xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (430/500xp) +120xp
Lvl 0 Biter (40/500xp) +19xp
iton, Student, Squad 1, member
Lvl 17 Fighter (23574/24300xp) +7094xp
Lvl 15 Axedwarf (19675/20000xp) +5931xp
Lvl 5 Student (4220/4500xp) +530xp
Lvl 2 Wrestler (1356/1800xp) +744xp
Lvl 1 Teacher (770/1100xp) +360xp
Lvl 0 Striker (368/500xp) +43xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (120/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 1 Observer (600/1100xp) +151xp
Lvl 0 Leader (10/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (40/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 2 Dodger (1153/1800xp) +420xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (720/1100xp) +530xp
Lvl 0 Biter (50/500xp) +36xp
Cog, Student 2, Squad 2, member
Lvl 5 Student (3790/4500xp) +0xp
Lvl 11 Fighter (11532/12600xp) +5142xp
Lvl 9 Axedwarf (9381/9500xp) +3489xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (324/500xp) +114xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (350/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Striker (80/500xp) +47xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (90/500xp) +10xp
Lvl 0 Observer (270/500xp) +115xp
Lvl 0 Leader (30/500xp) +10xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (62/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (494/500xp) +173xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (290/500xp) +0xp
Dastot, Unskilled, Squad 3, member
Lvl 7 Fighter (6181/6800xp) +2388xp
Lvl 6 Axedwarf (4697/5600xp) +1586xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (270/500xp) +42xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (430/500xp) +120xp
Lvl 1 Student (740/1100xp) +210xp
Lvl 0 Striker (75/500xp) +13xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (140/500xp) +50xp
Lvl 0 Observer (223/500xp) +18xp
Lvl 0 Leader (10/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (374/500xp) +119xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (740/1100xp) +210xp
Conclusions, Winter, Year 1:
Happy New Year 251! Some interesting numbers this season. Squad 1 gained a huge amount of Teacher/Student experience (comparatively), but only improved by a lesser amount in their Axe/Fighting skills over the previous season, only gaining 4-8k experience compared to the 8-12k in the autumn. However their other fighting abilities, like Dodging and Wrestling, made some bigger gains, taking them to Novice in each.
Squad 2 is still not gaining any Teacher/Student experience - I wonder if they've actually been doing any demonstrations? - but have advanced by a decent amount nonetheless, gaining another ~4k experience in their major skills. Squad 3, which started with no weapon skills at all, is also only making progress at about the same rate as last season, but have been exercising that Teacher/Student relationship a bit - even so they have progressed at about the same rate as each other.
Spring, 2nd Year
7th Granite: Squad 2 are definitely doing some demonstrations this season as I've just caught them doing a Dodging demonstration. Both dwarves are male, they are occupying the same tile, one standing, one laying prone, and they are performing (or observing, respectively) a Dodging demonstration. Make of that what you will.
26th Granite: Squad 2's Student has become an Axe Lord, meaning that both Squad 1 and Squad 2 have become Axe Lords, whilst Squad 3 continue to lag behind. This is about 5 months after his counterpart in Squad 1, which is about the same as the difference between the leaders of the squads. Interesting.
3rd Slate: Most of the migrants are now showing as hungry as well as thirsty and unhappy, so I designate more plant gathering.
14th Slate: Squad 1 are apparently keen to branch out a little, as they seem to be doing consecutive Wrestling demonstrations at the moment.
18th Slate: The Teacher from Squad 3 has become attached to his axe now.
19th Slate: The fortress attracted no migrants this season. *fistpump*
26th Slate: Another kobold thief. Nothing to steal here though unless he wants to steal a honey badger; good luck with that.
12th Felsite: One of the migrants gives birth, apparently in the absence of work they've found something else to do.
18th Felsite: Elven caravan arrives, unfortunately we don't have an urgent need for wooden crafts.
22nd Felsite: First migrant tantrum. Apparently you can mistreat migrants for about 8-9months before they start causing problems.
23rd Felsite: Squad 1's leader has become attached to her axe.
End of Spring report:
Domas, Axe/Teacher, Squad 1, commander
Lvl 20 Axedwarf (30353xp) +10006xp
Lvl 20 Fighter (30393xp) +8018xp
Lvl 6 Teacher (4500/5600xp) +280xp
Lvl 3 Wrestler (1812/2600xp) +648xp
Lvl 2 Student (1200/1800xp) +430xp
Lvl 1 Striker (503/1100xp) +102xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (440/500xp) +70xp
Lvl 2 Observer (1261/1800xp) +356xp
Lvl 0 Leader (230/500xp) +40xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (66/500xp) +23xp
Lvl 3 Dodger (1976/2600xp) +647xp
Lvl 2 Concentration (1200/1800xp) +430xp
Lvl 0 Biter (12/500xp) +0xp
Nil, Axe Only, Squad 2, captain
Lvl 14 Axedwarf (16517/18000xp) +4303xp
Lvl 14 Fighter (16155/18000xp) +5607xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (441/500xp) +117xp
Lvl 1 Teacher (560/1100xp) +270xp
Lvl 1 Student (750/1100xp) +400xp
Lvl 0 Striker (168/500xp) +14xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (300/500xp) +80xp
Lvl 1 Observer (576/1100xp) +187xp
Lvl 0 Leader (230/500xp) +40xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (45/500xp) +32xp
Lvl 2 Dodger (1225/1800xp) +786xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (750/1100xp) +400xp
Ral, Teacher Only, Squad 3, captain
Lvl 5 Teacher (4390/4500xp) +150xp
Lvl 9 Fighter (9084/9500xp) +3158xp
Lvl 8 Axedwarf (7326/8100xp) +2650xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (324/500xp) +54xp
Lvl 0 Student (450/500xp) +20xp
Lvl 0 Striker (48/500xp) +16xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (370/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 1 Observer (695/1100xp) +67xp
Lvl 0 Leader (190/500xp) +40xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (38/500xp) +13xp
Lvl 1 Dodger (583/1100xp) +204xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (450/500xp) +20xp
Lvl 0 Biter (40/500xp) +0xp
iton, Student, Squad 1, member
Lvl 20 Fighter (30846xp) +7272xp
Lvl 20 Axedwarf (30395xp) +10720xp
Lvl 6 Student (4500/5600xp) +280xp
Lvl 2 Wrestler (1704/1800xp) +348xp
Lvl 2 Teacher (1200/1800xp) +430xp
Lvl 0 Striker (455/500xp) +87xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (170/500xp) +50xp
Lvl 1 Observer (885/1100xp) +285xp
Lvl 0 Leader (10/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (115/500xp) +75xp
Lvl 3 Dodger (1805/2600xp) +652xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (1000/1100xp) +280xp
Lvl 0 Biter (80/500xp) +30xp
Cog, Student 2, Squad 2, member
Lvl 5 Student (4054/4500xp) +264xp
Lvl 14 Fighter (17668/18000xp) +6136xp
Lvl 13 Axedwarf (14631/16100xp) +5250xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (441/500xp) +117xp
Lvl 1 Teacher (750/1100xp) +4000xp
Lvl 0 Striker (114/500xp) +34xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (130/500xp) +40xp
Lvl 0 Observer (403/500xp) +133xp
Lvl 0 Leader (40/500xp) +10xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (62/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 2 Dodger (1245/1800xp) +751xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (560/1100xp) +270xp
Dastot, Unskilled, Squad 3, member
Lvl 9 Fighter (8901/9500xp) +2720xp
Lvl 8 Axedwarf (7028/8100xp) +2331xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (324/500xp) +54xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (450/500xp) +20xp
Lvl 1 Student (890/1100xp) +150xp
Lvl 0 Striker (75/500xp) +0xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (160/500xp) +20xp
Lvl 0 Observer (319/500xp) +96xp
Lvl 0 Leader (20/500xp) +10xp
Lvl 1 Dodger (717/1100xp) +343xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (890/1100xp) +150xp
Conclusions, Spring, Year 2:
Mostly this is just the same story as before; the dwarves at higher skill levels are gaining skills faster, whilst the lower skilled
squad is struggling to catch up (but is gaining experience a bit faster now).
Also, Cog, the Student in Squad 2, displays a little anomaly - he has gained 264xp in Student, but 270xp in Concentration (and his captain gained 270xp in Teacher also). Wonder what happened here? If the training was cut short or interrupted somehow, only gains in Student were lost - the squad is not currently in a demonstration at the time of the save, either.
Dodging seems to have become the fashionable skill, as there were several observed Dodging demonstrations, and it seems that most of the dwarves are now Novice or better Dodgers - except Squad 3, who are still trailing along behind in all aspects.
Conclusions after one year training, first experiment:
The two squads of Axe/Student dwarves fared much better than the squad with only a Teacher - presumably, it's useful to have something to actually teach! Of the two squads to start with weapon skill, the Teacher/Student pair have become Legendary +5 in a year, whilst the Non-Teacher/Student pair are only just short of Legendary at the one-year mark.
All of the dwarves appear to have gained stats, although I don't have exact values and can't remember how they started out - Squad 1 have almost all the ultra-positive statements like 'basically unbreakable', Squad 2 are all high-positive, and Squad 3 are positive but not superlatively so.
Splitting the dwarves in a different pattern for the second experiment will give us more useful conclusions than simply "more is better". If the Axe/Teacher is paired with an Unskilled Dwarf, this should show how significant the Student skill is to the relationship, and coupling the Teacher and Student with no weapon skills should show if the combination can make up for the lack of weapon skill. The Axe-Only dwarf can then be partnered with the Worker (who is technically also Unskilled, as he has no weapon skills - Mining shouldn't be relevant if it's not an equipped weapon) to see what effect is gained from military-only skills with no academical capabilities. The other Student will therefore be left hauling the barrels around.
Apologies for double posting.
Results are in for the second and third experiments that I've run;
Experiment 2
Squad 1: Domas (Axe/Teacher) + Dastot (Unskilled)
Squad 2: Ral (Teacher) + iton (Student)
Squad 3: Nil (Axe) + Etur (Worker, unskilled)
Cog has Hauling duties this time.
To try and make the experiments work a little faster I did make one change, namely setting the FPS cap to 1000 instead of 100, so hopefully things will go a little quicker, although there is the potential for everything to go horribly wrong (but then what else is new?)
6th Hematite: First sparring session is started up, by Squad 3 (Axe + Unskilled).
8th Hematite: Squad 2 start sparring. Squad 1 seem to have been doing some demonstrations during this time instead, although Dodging demonstrations aren't necessarily that useful when both parties have barely any experience of it.
16th Hematite: Squad 1 starts sparring. FPS stabilises around 840 or so, which is far too fast to be practical under normal circumstances.
18th Hematite: Dastot, the Unskilled dwarf in Squad 1, is announced as an Axedwarf. This is 4 days later than the Student in the previous experiment; over such a short time random chance may have an impact though, so we'll see how they stand after the year.
1st Malachite: The Unskilled dwarf in Squad 3, Etur, has become an Axedwarf. The comparison from Experiment 1 (against Squad 2 there, which was Axe + Student), occured on 16th Hematite - this is about 2 weeks later than that. Interestingly this is despite them starting their sparring even earlier than Squad 1 did in the first experiment.
11th Malachite: iton, the Student in Squad 2, has become an Axedwarf. This is 4 days earlier than their counterpart squad in the First Experiment, curiously enough.
14th Malachite: Ral, Squad 2's Teacher, becomes an Axedwarf, one day ahead of the comparable squad from Experiment 1. All 6 dwarves are now at least Novice Axedwarves about 6 weeks into the experiment.
10th Galena: Remind me to mod Honey Badgers to evaporate at anything above freezing temperatures in future.
End of Summer report:
Domas, Axe/Teacher, Squad 1, commander:
Lvl 7 Axedwarf (6761/6800xp) +3261xp
Lvl 5 Teacher (4010/4500xp) +510xp
Lvl 5 Fighter (3851/4500xp) +3851xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (222/500xp) +222xp
Lvl 0 Student (260/500xp) +260xp
Lvl 0 Striker (183/500xp) +183xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (140/500xp) +140xp
Lvl 0 Observer (238/500xp) +238xp
Lvl 0 Leader (60/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (259/500xp) +259xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (260/500xp) +260xp
Nil, Axe Only, Squad 3, captain
Lvl 6 Axedwarf (4893/5600xp) +1393xp
Lvl 3 Fighter (1818/2600xp) +1818xp
Lvl 1 Teacher (740/1100xp) +740xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (63/500xp) +63xp
Lvl 0 Student (150/500xp) +150xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (140/500xp) +140xp
Lvl 0 Observer (88/500xp) +88xp
Lvl 0 Leader (60/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (166/500xp) +166xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (150/500xp) +150xp
Ral, Teacher Only, Squad 2, captain
Lvl 5 Teacher (3594/4500xp) +94xp
Lvl 2 Fighter (1699/1800xp) +1699xp
Lvl 1 Student (630/1100xp) +630xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (630/1100xp) +630xp
Lvl 1 Axedwarf (1066/1100xp) +1066xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (51/500xp) +51xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (80/500xp) +80xp
Lvl 0 Observer (374/500xp) +374xp
Lvl 0 Leader (50/500xp) +50xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (118/500xp) +118xp
iton, Student, Squad 2, member
Lvl 5 Student (3594/4500xp) +94xp
Lvl 2 Fighter (1413/1800xp) +1413xp
Lvl 1 Teacher (630/1100xp) +630xp
Lvl 1 Axedwarf (990/1100xp) +990xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (51/500xp) +51xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (70/500xp) +70xp
Lvl 0 Observer (67/500xp) +67xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (118/500xp) +118xp
Lvl 0 Concentration (100/500xp) +100xp
Dastot, Unskilled, Squad 1, member
Lvl 6 Fighter (4903/5600xp) +4903xp
Lvl 5 Axedwarf (4387/4500xp) +4387xp
Lvl 1 Student (510/1100xp) +510xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (510/1100xp) +510xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (222/500xp) +222xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (260/500xp) +260xp
Lvl 0 Striker (245/500xp) +245xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (60/500xp) +60xp
Lvl 0 Observer (227/500xp) +227xp
Lvl 0 Kicker (27/500xp) +27xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (251/500xp) +251xp
Etur, Unskilled (Worker), Squad 3, member
Lvl 3 Fighter (1985/2600xp) +1985xp
Lvl 3 Axedwarf (2233/2600xp) +2233xp
Lvl 1 Student (740/1100xp) +740xp
Lvl 1 Concentration (740/1100xp) +740xp
Lvl 0 Wrestler (63/500xp) +63xp
Lvl 0 Teacher (150/500xp) +150xp
Lvl 0 Organizer (30/500xp) +30xp
Lvl 0 Observer (179/500xp) +179xp
Lvl 0 Dodger (333/500xp) +333xp
Observations, Summer, 1st year:
Some curious results here. Squad 2 (Teacher + Student) are worse off than their counterparts from the first experiment (Squad 3 there, Teacher + Unskilled) in their primary skills - and show a rather unbalanced Teacher-Student partnership, with the Student gaining 6 times as much Teacher xp as the Teacher! Also it's interesting to see the non-round numbers again here, with Concentration at 'full' gain but the Teacher and Student both at 'partial'.
Squad 1 have also not performed as well here as their counterparts from Experiment 1, despite much higher gains in the academical skills - of course, in the first experiment, the equivalent squad already had Lvl 5 Teacher/Student skills, so (in theory!) they would have had better gains from the demonstrations they did do.
Squad 3 (Axe + Unskilled) have actually performed fairly comparably with their counterpart squad in Experiment 1 (Squad 2, Axe + Student). They had higher overall gains in the academical skills, and have finished at the same skill level in their main skills, albeit slightly behind in raw xp terms.
9th Sandstone: Domas (Axe/Teacher) is an Axe Lord, a couple of weeks later than in the previous experiment, and still the first dwarf to reach this status.
13th Timber: Dastot is now an Axe Lord as well. This is also about a couple of weeks later than last time.
1st Moonstone: FPS is now dropped to about 370ish (thanks, dwarven caravan), but is still faster than sanely practical.
19th Moonstone: iton has relieved himself from duty - Squad 2 again, although not the captain this time. Needless to say he is 'unhappy at being relieved from duty', but, y'know, he can't blame anyone but himself, I've ordered them to train constantly.
25th Moonstone: Domas has now also relieved herself. Seems like they also go to sleep when they do this, so possibly something related to the 'sleep' job interrupts their military service infrequently.
11th Opal: First migrant tantrum. No sharp objects have been left outside the fortress for the safety of all concerned.
26th Opal: Domas is now showing as Legendary Axedwarf, about a week or so later than last time.
24th Obsidian: It's Koboldmas Eve, and Dastot has another cause for celebration - he's now also a Legendary Axedwarf, again about a week (6 days, in fact) later than the first experiment.
25th Obsidian: No kobolds arrived to celebrate Koboldmas this year.
22nd Slate: Ral (the Teacher from Squad 2) has become an Axe Lord - there's no comparison from the previous experiment because he never reached this status last time! He's managed to become 'Great' before the Axe-Only dwarf, who had a 5-level head start on him, with no weapon skills in the squad. It'll be interesting to see how the final stats look...
23rd Slate: iton (Student, Squad 2) has also become an Axe Lord.
1st Hematite: End of experiment. No elven caravan arrived, although I'm not exactly saddened by this fact since I am neither trading nor have external access for military or drowning trap operation.
End of year report:
Domas, Axe/Teacher, Squad 1, commander:
Lvl 18 Axedwarf (24811/26600xp)
Lvl 6 Teacher (5040/5600xp)
Lvl 19 Fighter (28312/29000xp)
Lvl 2 Wrestler (1260/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Student (1460/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Striker (1115/1800xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (430/500xp)
Lvl 1 Observer (1005/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (180/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (69/500xp)
Lvl 2 Dodger (1767/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Concentration (1460/1800xp)
Lvl 0 Biter (62/500xp)
Nil, Axe Only, Squad 3, captain
Lvl 10 Axedwarf (10948/11000xp)
Lvl 10 Fighter (9663/11000xp)
Lvl 2 Teacher (1380/1800xp)
Lvl 0 Wrestler (264/500xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (166/500xp)
Lvl 1 Student (1030/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (420/500xp)
Lvl 0 Observer (324/500xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (220/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (16/500xp)
Lvl 2 Dodger (1785/1800xp)
Lvl 1 Concentration (1030/1100xp)
Ral, Teacher Only, Squad 2, captain
Lvl 5 Teacher (4264/4500xp)
Lvl 14 Fighter (16494/18000xp)
Lvl 2 Student (1530/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Concentration (1530/1800xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (306/500xp)
Lvl 12 Axedwarf (12874/14300xp)
Lvl 2 Wrestler (1150/1800xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (350/500xp)
Lvl 2 Observer (1181/1800xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (220/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (18/500xp)
Lvl 2 Dodger (1243/1800xp)
iton, Student, Squad 2, member
Lvl 5 Student (4264/4500xp)
Lvl 14 Fighter (16954/18000xp)
Lvl 2 Teacher (1530/1800xp)
Lvl 12 Axedwarf (13243/14300xp)
Lvl 1 Wrestler (876/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (180/500xp)
Lvl 1 Observer (584/1100xp)
Lvl 2 Dodger (1193/1800xp)
Lvl 1 Concentration (770/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (364/500xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (20/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (28/500xp)
Lvl 0 Biter (67/500xp)
Dastot, Unskilled, Squad 1, member
Lvl 20 Fighter (29672xp)
Lvl 17 Axedwarf (22812/24300xp)
Lvl 2 Student (1540/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Concentration (1540/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Wrestler (1450/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Teacher (1470/1800xp)
Lvl 1 Striker (975/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (240/500xp)
Lvl 1 Observer (636/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (10/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (112/500xp)
Lvl 2 Dodger (1520/1800xp)
Lvl 0 Biter (39/500xp)
Etur, Unskilled (Worker), Squad 3, member
Lvl 10 Fighter (9782/11000xp)
Lvl 9 Axedwarf (8722/9500xp)
Lvl 2 Student (1380/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Concentration (1380/1800xp)
Lvl 0 Wrestler (264/500xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (237/500xp)
Lvl 1 Teacher (1030/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (160/500xp)
Lvl 0 Observer (324/500xp)
Lvl 3 Dodger (1811/2600xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (30/500xp)
Lvl 0 Biter (14/500xp)
Conclusions, Second Experiment:
Just as before, Squad 1 contains our only Legendary Axedwarves. But while the pairing from the First Experiment had both reached Legendary +5 by now, here we've only reached Legendary +2 or +3, with the initial Student skill removed from the equation.
Squad 2 in this experiment (Teacher + Student) actually did pretty well for themselves. Comparing against the First Experiment, they did better than their counterpart squad (Teacher + Unskilled), and are only 1 or 2 levels behind the other squad (Axe + Student).
Squad 3 (Axe + Unskilled), comparing against the same two squads in the First Experiment, performed marginally better than (Teacher + Unskilled), being about 1 level higher, but worse than (Axe + Student), with a difference of about 4 levels there.
It appears, then, that having both academic skills present in a pairing is significant, as it seems to produce better skill gains over time than only having the Teacher skill (ref: Sqd 1/Exp 1 vs Sqd 1/Exp 2 and Sqd 3/Exp 1 vs Sqd 2/Exp 2), or not having the Teacher skill where the Student skill is present (ref: Sqd 1/Exp 1 vs Spd 2/Exp 1).
Surprisingly it's possible to train up from only the academical skills quite satisfyingly, as Sqd 2/Exp 2 attained better results than Sqd 3/Exp 2, despite Sqd 2/Exp 2 having no initial military experience.
From the original list of tests, this leaves only two untested combinations plus a couple of other interesting cases;
Unskilled + Student
Unskilled + Unskilled
Indvidual Combat Drills only (squad size 1)
Larger squad sizes (eg. Axe/Teacher + 2x Students)
Since I have a tragic lack of unskilled dwarves in the testing area, with only 2 of them, it makes some amount of sense to couple one of the remaining test cases with one of the other cases, to keep the dwarves occupied.
Experiment 3
Squad 1: Unskilled + Unskilled
Squad 2: 3-dwarf squad: Axe/Teacher, Student, Student 2
You kind of know the drill by now, migrants arrive, attacked by raging honey badgers, etc.
2nd Hematite: Squad 1 start sparring almost as soon as they're drafted. Meanwhile the other squad settle down to some Axe demonstrations.
17th Hematite: Cog (Student 2) becomes an Axedwarf. This is 3 days later than his counterpart in Experiment 1, but this time there's an extra dwarf in the squad.
24th Hematite: iton (Student) has become an Axedwarf. Not all dwarves in a larger squad will necessarily follow the same activity; during a Wrestling demonstration iton was doing an Individual Combat Drill.
22nd and 23rd Malachite: The Unskilled dwarves become Axedwarves one after the other, the squad captain being second to attain this rank out of the two.
1st Limestone: Brief skill check at the end of summer shows that Domas this time hasn't advanced above Lvl 5 Axedwarf yet, while her students are both Lvl 2. Looking over the combat logs it appears to be possible for all three of the dwarves to be sparring at once (the combat logs for the squad leader interleave both Students, but each student is only sparring with the leader, although there is a two-week break in the leader's combat reports where the students spar with each other), but skill gains in the early stages seem to be lower for the three-dwarf squad than with only two dwarves. The Unskilled dwarf pair at this stage appear to have comparable gains to the Students, interestingly (although one student is mid-lvl 2 instead of early lvl 2 like everyone else).
10th Limestone: Confirmed all three dwarves in Squad 2 are sparring simultaneously with the Axe/Teacher taking on both recruits at once.
9th Sandstone: Migrants cancel Hunt for small creature: interrupted by larger creature, with warlike stripe and raging temperament.
19th Sandstone: First migrant tantrum. Think this is a record for me so far.
25th Sandstone: First migrant lost to insanity.
3rd Timber: First migrant fatality. Slabs queued up to prevent ghostly interference with training.
25th Opal: Domas (Axe/Teacher leading Squad 2) has become an Axe Lord, attaining the position before anyone else for the third time in a row. This is about 4 months later than her previous best in Experiment 1.
11th and 12th Obsidian: The Unskilled dwarves of Squad 1 become Axe Lords on consecutive days. This is two months before the Teacher + Student pair in the previous experiment!
13th Obsidian: And a day later, iton (Student, Squad 2) becomes an Axe Lord. Cog is still only Professional in the Axe skill (level 9) which makes him the only sub-Great (level 11) Axedwarf in the fortress militia right now.
23rd Obsidian: I think one of my migrants wants to beat up my expedition leader as I'm getting spam of 'cancels Starting Fist Fight: target inaccessible'. Since my expedition leader is also a militia captain this is probably best for the migrant's health and well-being.
26th Slate: Dastot has become the first Legendary Axedwarf in the fort - not bad considering he started out with no skills whatsoever!
3rd Felsite: Cog, the slower of the two Students, has finally become an Axe Lord. Perhaps if he'd paid more attention to the demonstrations instead of doing individual drills he'd have gotten there sooner?
6th Felsite: Both dwarves in Squad 1 are now Legendary Axedwarves.
18th Felsite: Not to be outdone, Domas has reached Legendary status now. This comes about 4 months later (again) than her previous results in the First Experiment, and about 2 months after the first member of the Unskilled squad.
22nd Felsite: Soon after, iton becomes Legendary as well.
End of year report:
Domas, Axe/Teacher, Squad 2, captain:
Lvl 17 Fighter (23804/24300xp)
Lvl 16 Axedwarf (21679/22100xp)
Lvl 7 Teacher (5850/6800xp)
Lvl 5 Observer (3616/4500xp)
Lvl 3 Dodger (2435/2600xp)
Lvl 2 Student (1310/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Concentration (1310/1800xp)
Lvl 1 Organizer (610/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Wrestler (434/500xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (390/500xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (310/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (87/500xp)
Lvl 0 Biter (14/500xp)
iton, Student, Squad 2, member:
Lvl 18 Fighter (26569/26600xp)
Lvl 16 Axedwarf (20034/22100xp)
Lvl 6 Student (5570/5600xp)
Lvl 3 Dodger (2173/2600xp)
Lvl 3 Concentration (2070/2600xp)
Lvl 1 Teacher (650/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Wrestler (411/500xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (309/500xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (140/500xp)
Lvl 0 Observer (355/500xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (40/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (98/500xp)
Lvl 0 Biter (79/500xp)
Cog, Student 2, Squad 2, member:
Lvl 14 Fighter (16675/18000xp)
Lvl 12 Axedwarf (13456/14300xp)
Lvl 6 Student (5200/5600xp)
Lvl 2 Dodger (1662/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Concentration (1700/1800xp)
Lvl 1 Teacher (760/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Wrestler (456/500xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (231/500xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (100/500xp)
Lvl 0 Observer (294/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (66/500xp)
Dastot, Unskilled, Squad 1, commander:
Lvl 20 Fighter (29524xp)
Lvl 17 Axedwarf (24083/24300xp)
Lvl 2 Wrestler (1698/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Student (1520/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Observer (1511/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Dodger (1410/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Concentration (1520/1800xp)
Lvl 1 Teacher (1044/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (470/500xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (450/500xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (220/500xp)
Lvl 0 Biter (74/500xp)
Etur, Unskilled (Worker), Squad 1, member:
Lvl 20 Fighter (30675xp)
Lvl 17 Axedwarf (23298/24300xp)
Lvl 2 Wrestler (1423/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Teacher (1520/1800xp)
Lvl 2 Dodger (1307/1800xp)
Lvl 1 Student (994/1100xp)
Lvl 1 Observer (1048/1100xp)
Lvl 1 Concentration (994/1100xp)
Lvl 0 Striker (422/500xp)
Lvl 0 Organizer (230/500xp)
Lvl 0 Leader (10/500xp)
Lvl 0 Kicker (113/500xp)
Lvl 0 Biter (77/500xp)
Observations, Third Experiment:
So there's a couple of interesting points here. The Unskilled squad, who had no prior military or academic capability, attained Legendary +2, a result only bettered by two other combinations so far, namely Axe/Teacher + Student (Sqd 1/Exp 1) and Axe/Teacher + Unskilled (Sqd 1/Exp 2). They soundly outperformed even the Teacher + Student squad from Experiment 2 (Sqd 2/Exp 2).
Meanwhile, adding an extra dwarf to Squad 2 seemed to slow down individual skill gains somewhat, although two out of three are Legendary +1 after only a year's training with another dwarf at Master skill. The most stand-out number to me, though, is the Observer skill on the Axe/Teacher - your eyes do not decieve you, she gained 5 levels in Observer, the most I've seen in the course of the experiment. I suspect it may be linked to being attacked - in the 3-way sparring sessions, she was the target of 2 attackers, which may explain why her skill gains here are that much higher than others.
The total gain for Squad 2 in Teacher is less than the gain for Student/Concentration, so it may well be the case that the Teacher skill advances at the same rate irrespective of how many dwarves are being taught; note however that the intended Teacher gained far more Teacher skill than her subordinates (2350 > 650 + 760) so dedicated Teachers may be able to win out over dabblers.
The really unusual result here is that the completely unskilled squad has managed to do better than the squad with the military experience (Sqd 3/Exp 2), and beat out the squad with the academic qualifications (Sqd 2/Exp 2).
I've finally run the 'control group' experiment, with just Individual Combat Drills, and the results aren't exactly surprising.
Experiment 4
Control experiment - all dwarves set to single-dwarf squads to force only Individual Combat Drills.
24th Malachite: Dastot and iton both become Novice Axedwarves, after about two months' training. Interestingly, this is about the same length of time as it took for the Unskilled squad in Experiment 3 (only 1-2 days later), and is later than any of the previous 2-or-3-dwarf squads with any sort of skill combinations.
26th Malachite: Ral is also now a Novice Axedwarf.
28th Malachite: Cog, ever the slow one, is last to become a Novice Axedwarf, so all 6 dwarves are now in their customary blue colours.
1st Limestone: Checking over the skills, a few interesting points: Fighter and Axedwarf are training at precisely the same rate, and individual drills appear to give a fairly slow but steady skill gain - all 6 dwarves have advanced by fairly similar amounts (850-900xp in Axe and Fighter, 90-110xp in Dodge, and about 100xp in Organizer from where they're organizing their own training sessions).
If training gives approximately 300xp per month then it'd take 60 months - or 5 years - of individual drills to hit Legendary, so I'm not expecting to get superdwarves out of this experiment...
1st Moonstone: Actually, probably even longer than that - the skill gains after the autumn show at around 1600-1700xp, so looking at over 5 years of constant Individual Drills to get flashing.
1st Slate: 2500-2700xp after 9 months, which seems to fit with the pattern so far. Dodger has trained up by about 270-290xp by this point.
1st Hematite: End of the year, end of the experiment. Rather than give actual figures, I'll note that the trend has continued; skill gains in Fighter and Axedwarf were consistent and ranged from about 3500-3600, Dodger experience gains ranged from 350-400xp from the whole year, and since each dwarf was the only member of their squad they all gained Organizer experience - although I still wouldn't recommend it as an ideal way to train a future manager.
Observations and conclusions:
It appears that when starting out from no skill at all, it's not really that significant whether dwarves spar, demonstrate, or drill for the first couple of months. When there is some form of skill already present, either academic or military, it would seem that any squad-based activity (sparring or demonstrating) will give better results than individual drills.
There are also some skills which appear to be exclusively related to squad activities in some way - none of the Dwarves gained Observer experience this time, nor did any of them gain Leader experience, even though they all technically 'lead' their own squad (of one member). Neither Teacher nor Student skills have been exercised during this experiment, as they remain at their starting levels.
Whilst there haven't been huge stat gains, each dwarf has exhibited some improvement in their physical attributes over the year (those who were before 'slow to tire' have gone to 'indefatigable' or 'inexhaustible', for instance), although the effect is decidedly less pronounced than the 2-dwarf squads in prior experiments.
Note on possible application:
If future militia candidates are identified but have no military experience, it may be worthwhile to spend a little effort 'cross-training' - namely, allowing them to continue in useful civilian jobs (or Pump Operating if preferred), and assigning them to Inactive squads so they are able to attend Individual Drills on their own time. This will allow them to build up useful military skills, avoid the negative thoughts 'unhappy about the draft' by giving them a base level of military experience, and allow them to build up stats through their civilian jobs. Once a suitable skill level is attained these dwarves can then either be trained on a rotating basis (eg. 2 months training, 2 months civilian time), or set to train permanently as part of the full-time military force.
The summary - Individual Drills give experience at a fairly slow rate (about 300xp per month, obviously with some variance for dwarven behaviour), but they are steady and consistent. It's most interesting to note that the Individual Drills hit Novice level at about the same time as the Unskilled dwarf squad did - this seems to suggest (as noted above) that if you have no relevant skills at all, it takes about the same length of time in a squad as it does alone. Once some skills are present, the rate of gain from squad activities exceeds that of Individual Drills.
It should be noted that during these experiments I haven't taken into account armour or shields, both of which are also trainable skills, but not usually ones that I consider at embark - this may be an oversight as weapon skills train far faster than the auxiliary combat skills (Dodger, Armor User, Shield User, plus the non-weapon skills Biter, Kicker, Striker and Misc. Obj. User - although only the first three tend to be desirable in most situations).