Ah, short workday is short!
Summer:
We made the mistake of opening the doors for those damned elves.
While their traders were stumbling into our humble abode, Urist McRunaka slipped out before I even noticed, babbling something about 'getting a drink'. Turns out there was unforbidden booze dropped by a slain caravan somewhere out there. The merchants got in without springing a single ambush, but our adventurous moron (the fortress booze was apparently too good for him...) sprung *3* of them.
Seeing as he outran them, i figured there was a chance the goblins would wander into our traps and run while he was getting his drink on (found and forbid the relevant booze...), but it wasn't to be - just as the goblins decided to start braving the traps he came running back to get peppered with arrows.
But the stupidity wasn't over. The goblins distracted from the entrance, one of our other fool dwarfs decided he had to go reset a cage trap, only to be discovered as the goblins came back to try again. And because dwarves are *too stupid to go up stairs* when frightened, he tried to run out past the goblins to get away. You deserved it Rridgway III.
So now I can't open the trap doors to let the goblins out to walk into our defenses (because our fool dwarves will find *something* to do outside), so they're stuck there until the next caravan comes...
Which means we're trapped inside with some claustrophobic elves. Who i did not manage to trade with. Did you realize we have (at least) 2 Trading Depots? Whichever moron thought that was a good idea should be thrown to the goblins outside. The elves prefer the one that *isn't* close to the door and that I didn't even notice...
(Seriously, I understand the setup works great for forgotten beasts, but its *awful* in situations where dwarves should want to go back into the fortress - they can't be scared away until they come down the stairs into that dreadfully short entrance corridor, and then they won't go back up the stairs. This design *sucks*, *a lot*. Not that I can even get outside to do some building and fix it...).
Oh, and we got more migrants... in the middle of the ambush nonsense. Yeah, they didn't make it...
In what is likely grim foreboding, one of the amber demons in teh depths started kicking in doors and upending tables down below. I wish he'd keep it down, I can't hear myself think.
And more grim foreboding, a number of animals have started to starve to death... I've ordered all teh remaining (non-cat) animals butchered to avoid wasting anymore food.
In positive news, work has begun on my mausoleum. It shall be reasonable size (i don't think this fortress could accomplish anything larger!), but of grand design and construction.
Scaffolding still in place as the upper levels get hollowed out.
(And in a fit of irony, Udil 'Squirrelloid' Tunomzon, Undertaker was scared to death by a ghost on the 3rd of Malachite, shortly after the events described above. Um, there goes my narrative).
