Bay 12 Games Forum

Where do I set what race I will be playing? or is it a random selection from available races?

Sorry for just asking you this, perhaps stupid from your perspective, question, but where do I begin my masterwork journey?
I did not see any thread with large friendly letters saying "Start here, Read this, download this. This is what you need if you are new here!"

I would like to know what should I do to experience the most masterwork has to offer, but those threads are daunting: "Content repository, Last update, Unofficial release".
What exactly do I need to get all of that? The latest version of the mod, with patches and plugins and everything.
Help me please.

your main error was not having trained military.
your second main problem was not having armored military.

1. To be relatively safe - at embark - assign two of your dwarves to train 24x7 right away.
2. Once you get migrands add whoever you can spare to this squad. Once squad is 10 dwarves - make your two original soldiers into captains and split the squad in two. continue this practice ad infinity (or at least until you feel comfortable)
3. make metal armor a priority. start making full plate as soon as you can. even before clothes. do not bother with steel, use whatever is available in great quantities. Once you have legendary smith - start upgrading to steel.
4. warhammers are good. better to mix them with other weapon types two for two reasons: different weapons are better at different situations; different dwarves have different weapon talents.
5. once you have some decently trained dwarves - have them alternate training with patrolling of remote areas. This way you will have someone to delay attackers while you regroup your forces. most of civilians will survive.
6. try to limit the number of dwarves who venture out there. use burrows, jobs management or whatever you like to achieve that.
7. a good feat is to equip everyone in your fort with metal armor. that way even civilians will not be slaughtered that easily.

here.

IC
I only want the bed, but if I so desired I am well within my rights to claim the house.  I refer you to the redress proclamation:
 "No Citizen of the Slick Murk may withhold property which the council has deemed required for a purpose pertaining to
our royal mission"

And since council deemed no such thing - house is up for grabs. That is an excellent quality lake house with masterwork furniture, nice view from windows, large cellar and a workshop (or whatever resident would like to put there. can be even his own statue if he get's someone to sculpt it)

IC

The situation has gotten out of hand. These goblins are so weak that they're pitiful, Although they're actually beating us, They think they'll draw us out if they kidnap our children. We might have ranged superiority, but in the melee department we're weak. We need more recruits and migrants. I suggest we prepare more barracks for future recruits. I might not be a war leader or even on the council, But i'm still trying to help as much as i can. Also these iron sets aren't good enough, We need steel not iron. I'm talking on behalf of the soldiers and this is what we all want: More barracks and steel weapons and armor! Now who's with me!?!

For:1
Against:0

We are having 5 soldiers at best(3 of whom, being on the council, already have personal quarters), and we have only 50 dwarves overall, including council. Under such circumstances building a non-essential building will endanger our enterprise, while serving no one but you personally.
So far no armed dwarf was killed so far. I, therefore, defy the statement that we are weak in melee. And in any case barracks will not increase our readiness. Actually training will.
There might or might not be future migrants and recruits. We cannot be sure as we already have had certain problems with fresh migrants.
Iron is ok for now. It is better then what goblins have. The most armored goblin we saw had a help, a breastplate and a shield. Most come with only a helm and a shield. None of goblin equipment was made of steel or better, but most were made out of copper, bronze and silver. Furthermore, creating steel items is technically impossible and impractical right now, as we have lost access to our mine, and we have neither trained furnace operators, nor a steady supply of raw materials.

For:1
Against:1

OOC

I should really create my character sheet as soon as possible, Wouldn't want to be my character without knowing what personality i have.
Also the relationship screen would possibly help me for future RPs, Mind giving me a relationship screen screenshot? Thanks 

Actually I am. Relations screen gives us nothing, but is boring to produce.
You are single, your parents are not in fort. Only family you have here is your brother, Domas Satdeduk.

Divines could be interesting (But I'm betting that we would end up with more Divines than players eventually), Inheritances and adoptions seems fair enough.

There are only that many divines to represent, so we will not end with dozens of them. Also the divine power points system ensures that they will not overuse their divine rights. Basically god is a pretty passive position:
you cannot directly contact any dwarves except your chosen prophet, and he can ignore you if he wishes so.
you have got to do something only once in a while. Like every few years boost someone with supernatural strength, flood booze stockpile with magma or just drop a slab of obsidian on your uncooperative prophet... That is if you have had enough worshipers to afford such an action, and if you have any roleplay reasons to perform such action (unexpected and uncalled for obsidian slabs can be very frustrating).

Edit: Missed Mafol Idenlam (daughter) on that list of yours.

She is not in fort due to being snatched(liberated?). Erib(son) is not in for because he did not arrive with the family. Whereabouts are unknown.

Anyway once the bed stuff and meeting of yours is over I'm planning to acclaim that wife of yours (and the mob, but they can't actually be acclaimed so, meh) for her brutal display(once mentionables have been approved) of vengeance against the enemy.

I think you can acclaim whatever you want(mob, weather, wooden sword), even if it is not a mentionable. They will not receive any influence(because they are not mentionable), but you can (if most agree with you). Like roman populists, who acclaimed romans as a whole, and received credit for that.

Teledwarf, will we be able to pick when we die what we represent if divine? Like war or something?

For sure. No one will force you to represent things you do not like. Provided that position is vacant.
We might need some rules for freeing divine positions if some player is inactive for quite a while as a god, but we can develop those as we go.

I assumed it was one of the in-game deities, but I may have misunderstood (I did just wake up a half hour ago, and I'm certainly not a morning person.) If I read it right, then if you want to represent war would leave you as "Kidet Blazedsquash (fortresses, war)". If you wanted to represent rainbows, blight, disease, death, and rebirth (like a certain Likot Skybeige in my most recent fort), then I wouldn't know what you'd do.

Yep, Kerod read it right. I think we could as well add another custom deity if need arises. Especially if we will find someone for a position of High Priest, who will track all those gods and worshipers and decide if any new deities are needed.

Meet Zargoth Snarlclasps:

Kerod's relationships:
I would like to discourage this practice though, as in-game relationships are unimportant since we have real people here who can form grudges and friendships according to their reoleplay, instead of pure randomness of DF. Most of the in-game kin is also quite unimportant and often is not even in the settlement. It is quite boring to go through 6 pages of uncles and nieces only 3 of whom are actually in the fort... It would be better if you as a player decided who you are friends with.

Iden is fine. She was hauling a box of training axes in the north when it all happened. She is still a sheriff, but right now it is just a token role. Once we will have a jail - her position will have to be confirmed by council.

On this matter I would like to propose a few pieces of game mechanics:

Neblime, could you please reduce my influence to the realistic value of 10? Having god-like powers is fine for now, but excluding me from all the fun is downright cruel...


And to spice things up a bit:

Feel free to discuss. If you like any of it - I will add it to the OP and make official.
Neblime, we will need your professional hand to make it nice and lawful

War Leader is a council position. And it is vacant. And we have unemployed Senators. I know, it is weird. But apparently no one wants that kind of power (or that kind of responsibility).