1
DF Gameplay Questions / Constant interruptions from hostile flying creatures
« on: April 19, 2017, 02:15:07 am »
So, I embarked in a max savagery world, in untamed wilds. I thought I knew what I was getting into, but as usual I underestimated Dwarf Fortress. It seems every season, at least once, sometimes 2 or 3 times, I get a big group of giant keas, or giant roaches, or other terrifying giant hostile flying monsters.
Now these guys aren't too tough to kill. I have a large army with metal armor and good weapons that's highly trained -- they recently took down a goblin siege without a single major injury. But the problem is, they fly around (and thus are hard to kill), and scare away all the dwarves collecting fruits and fishing and doing all the other outside stuff. When I need to do big things outside, it becomes impossible to do anything because dwarves are panicking whenever they walk in the general vicinity of one of them.
I'm not sure how to best handle this. I've got a few ideas though.
1) A system of tall towers accessible from underground, with fortifications and patrol routes between the tops of them, for archers to shoot them out of the sky. Not sure how well this would work though, since archers already have trouble shooting them from ground level, even as champion marksdwarves.
2) A trap -- use a combat alert to bring all the dwarves inside, then use a food stockpile with a roof over it covered in weapon traps to lure and systematically murder all the enemies. Not sure if this would work for all giant hostile flying monsters though.
3) Draft everyone into the military, give them all crossbows, make them carry them even when off-duty. Not sure whether they would try to shoot down the birds while off-duty though.
Any ideas or suggestions? How do you usually handle regular giant kea invasions?
Now these guys aren't too tough to kill. I have a large army with metal armor and good weapons that's highly trained -- they recently took down a goblin siege without a single major injury. But the problem is, they fly around (and thus are hard to kill), and scare away all the dwarves collecting fruits and fishing and doing all the other outside stuff. When I need to do big things outside, it becomes impossible to do anything because dwarves are panicking whenever they walk in the general vicinity of one of them.
I'm not sure how to best handle this. I've got a few ideas though.
1) A system of tall towers accessible from underground, with fortifications and patrol routes between the tops of them, for archers to shoot them out of the sky. Not sure how well this would work though, since archers already have trouble shooting them from ground level, even as champion marksdwarves.
2) A trap -- use a combat alert to bring all the dwarves inside, then use a food stockpile with a roof over it covered in weapon traps to lure and systematically murder all the enemies. Not sure if this would work for all giant hostile flying monsters though.
3) Draft everyone into the military, give them all crossbows, make them carry them even when off-duty. Not sure whether they would try to shoot down the birds while off-duty though.
Any ideas or suggestions? How do you usually handle regular giant kea invasions?