This is a preview of what is to come and what it could look like.
The actual generated portraits can look exactly like this, slightly different or completely different depending on the results of a more serious lore/anatomical analysis.
The actual release will match an appropriate size scale between races.
Some early trials of a female dwarf.
This project is a love letter to Dwarf Fortress, but it can become more than this. It is just enough to play with and also start a discussion.
The sooner this discussion starts, the better it will shape the project in the direction of Dwarf fortress' lore.
Ideally Dwarf Vision would display much of the relevant Fauna and Flora of Dwarf Fortress.
You can expect more exotic display of creatures, such as
lizard-folk or
dragons, once the main races have been established.
Thou some are more tricky than others to implement, we are weighting the possibility of:
- expressions (i.e. mental states)
- equipment
- different age representation
- wounds
- full body paper dolls
Some experimentation with damaged Dwarf Gear + wounds
More research needs to be carried out on 2d graphics manipulation algorithms, and possibly machine learning solutions, to gain leverage over the large workload that stands before us.
About the editor and portrait interpreterSince the program behind Dwarf Vision is written in
Qt/c++, a
Linux and
Mac build should not be far away, thou testings and tweaks need to be carried out.
The portrait editor was mostly made around our needs to help us make technical/artistic decisions, but it can also be used to modify already created dwarfs or generate new ones.
It doesn't have the prettiest of interfaces and some minor bugs are still around, particularly related to the Collection feature.
Regard it as a very rough prototype.
Editor interface breakdown imageA priority is also to rework the way Dwarf Vision talks with Dwarf Fortress for its data export. It will either be via raw TCP or by using Dfhack's protobuff.
PATREON Supporting us and the project via our Patreon is vital for a long term commitment to this project.
Among other rewards, the first tier will be able to participate in polls as to what feature/race to prioritize next.
This said, the Dwarf Fortress community will still take part in polls regarding general feature debates and feedback.
Due to recent global events we do not have major obligations that keeps us busy in our day-to-day lives.
Either being a blessing or a curse, we are free to allocate a considerable portion of our daily time to this project.
While we could pursue other activities, we wanted to do something we enjoy for a change and see what can come out of it.
It's through each other's concrete effort that a creative energy can stem.
The more we feel this project is wanted, the more creative power we get to further work on it.
If we manage to get a small momentum going, we can vastly expand Dwarf Vision. SPREADING THE WORDDo not underestimate this part. Spreading the word is equally important as financial support.
You can save portraits as PNGs for situations where you feel a certain face tells a story you wish to share.
Please consider sharing/showcasing it where ever you feel this project is fit for showing.
Without people knowing such a project exists, we would have a hard time moving forward.
If you feel like it (and want to boast about it), you can always let us know where you made Dwarf Vision known.
All efforts are greatly appreciated!
TALKING TO USGiving width, height and depth (metaphorically speaking
) to Dwarf Fortress creatures is a process that involves a lot of assumptions.
We had fun creating it, but since this is a project that addresses a community, it needs its fair share of input.
That is why
flame wars civilized debates are needed to distill vital feedback.
Write your thoughts and recommendations either here or via any other means of communication (we check every personal message as well!).
Reading them will certainly be a joy and a nice tonic for our morale.
(There is also a Discord channel, see below at About Us/Contact)
A special note to forum lurker/ninja/ghost readersMost of the time I'm one myself and I think that a lot of the readers out there are the same. Consider actively joining the discussion.
Few might be swayed by this appeal, but even in few numbers, we think you might have some interesting thoughts to share.
At this stage of development feedback will be invaluable, so give a thought about reaching out to us.
Thank you for reading. We've got a lot lot to talk, so now it's your turn
!
ABOUT USWe are two good friends, an artist (Aqua) and a programmer (RustKnight), creatures of medium size prone to great ambition!
We love Dwarf Fortress, procedural content and roguelikes in general.
A lot of fun (and FUN!) has been had doing this project. Once we got moving we just couldn't stop.
We really enjoyed the development process so far and we're hoping that this could grow into something truly beautiful.
Contact: Send us a personal message here on Bay 12 - it's hooked to our emails and we'll be sure to read it.
Or you can join our
Discord channel.
CREDITS SO FAR
To Tarn Adams and Zach Adams for embarking on such a wondrous quest, that also calls others to live and tell their own adventures.
Dfhack which lays the foundations for many incredible works, that also accelerated the development of this one considerably.
Master advisors: Rose, _Q (presumably Quietust), Lethosor, WNight, s3rius and Dragos who kindly offered their time, patience and guidance to accelerate the project's progress when most in need. We thank you!
HALL OF SUPPORTERS
Without your support and interest we wouldn't have gotten this far.
It's what keeps us going with such an ambitious project.
Onwards Together!
Resok
Danae
BlackChaos
Marius
Frankenstein Joe
Ausar
Peerless
Jasp Spice
Seen-a Mashcake
Charlie
Alex
Sam
Some Patrons used their real names, therefore some were simplified or changed to maintain privacy. Reach out if you want something changed or removed.
PROJECT STATUS
The project is now halted.
I believe it is only fair to post a small update of what has become of this project.
The way me and Aqua work is usually dedicate full time on projects to gather momentum and drive through it. We sort of tried giving it a part-time try, but it simply doesn't hold.
Thus, needing to find a sustainable source of income that we can maintain ourselves with, we no longer have the time to work on it.
That's one side of the story - the other one is that our current workplace contract prevents us from working on personal projects while employed. But I'd say this was 30% of the reason why we decided to suspend it.
At the time we took this decision, we also informed our Patrons to stop donating. If you happen to stroll over this project, we wouldn't encourage you to donate, given its current status.
So, does that mean it's canceled?
I wouldn't exclude that in the future we would come back to it. We loved developing it and we had some interesting ideas we wanted to see come alive.
In the event that we would gain some financial independence, we would be delighted to come back and continue our work.
We thank you for your love, attention and support!
