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[Schmaven]

This game is pretty awesome, and I think it's safe to say I'm hooked by its unique complexity, definitely the gruesome battle mechanics, and also how realistic it is. 
I'm just going to post brief summaries of what I was doing, and what happened, along with what I learned from each embark.

Feel free to post in here too

[Schmaven]

First Try Without WiKi

Version:
     LNP_0.43.03_r.09
Map:
     I named it 'Volcanic Benevolence' because the surroundings are mirthful and calm.
Custom created a world with abundant ore, minerals, volcano magma riser cliff-island surrounded by trees and salt water. 
Embark Points:
     10,000
Starting Build
     Conquerors Build
The Fun
     Started out right next to volcano cauldron, and immediately took a locked down defensive position, complete with fortifications.  I micro managed the Dwarfs taken by moods as the fortress size swelled up to 80 with migrants.  So I give everyone jobs and build an epic sea cliff-wall archery tower complete with a drawbridge accessible and defensible for caravans.  It is my first time with magma, so I don;t to break magma chamber as I build around it and prepare to tap its power.  I am almost ready to turn on the final workshop that would let me start cranking out lots of steel, when I'm attacked by a forgotten Weremammoth.  I have several war dogs from embark, and a steel clad HammerDwarf and CrossbowDwarf together with 4 recruits in leather.  But even with 2 Dwarfs in steel armor, the sheer size of the Weremammoths was devastating as it literally dismembered all but the steel encased Dwarfs. Being on a saltwater island with no fresh water source requires water desalination pumps.  I didn't think I needed water.  Whiskey should do all the same things...  The system was almost running as the beast attacked, and most died of thirst and uncleaned wounds while some of the injured began turning into Weremammoths themselves.  The sheer speed at which the curse spread during the first attack quickly put a halt to all industry as all Dwarfs were forced into the militia.  But without doctors, their numbers dwindled to 5 before I could figure out a way how to isolate the bite victims before they turned and had to be put down.  Thank goodness the full moon passed and none of the other bite victims could turn into more Weremammoths.  All the injured died because I had no functioning hospital zone.  But on the plus side, I don't have to worry about any more Weremammoths.  Everyone who fought was bitten and either killed or laying badly injured in a massive field of carnage from the 3 Weremammoths killing 75 Dwarfs, 30 Yaks, all the War Dogs, and whatever else was unlucky enough to be near the front entry tunnel.  Too many mangled corpses outside the main gate, and the Dwarf Emissary was offended apparently because he left without the usual meeting.  Still sent the caravan in to trade for my abundant store of cut gems though.  If only he brought soap and water... 

Now I'm being haunted by about 10 ghosts at once and don't have nearly enough coffins.  I have the remaining 5 Dwarfs just build coffins, place coffins, entomb the dead, brew from plants, and farm to try and quell the ghost problem.  Luckily some migrants arrive and I am up to 13 Dwarfs.  Now I can start multitasking again! 
But Windows encountered an error and closed DwarfFortress on me.

Glitch?
     Chose unnecessarily huge embark site getting nearly the entire top half of the volcanic island
Power went out in the middle of game. 
Restarted okay at last season auto-save. 
Didn't make a backup save copy. 
Regular save attempt caused DF to crash.
Completely lost all save files.

Fix
     Cleaned up DF folder structure to be certain I'm not opening the wrong version. 
Choosing an embark site that's less than 1/4 of the map next time

[Schmaven]

Excited to reclaim the fortress or go back to the last save, but I only have the Start Playing option.
I confirmed that the save folder is indeed empty.

Version:
     LNP_0.43.03_r.09
Map:
     'Volcanic Benevolence'
Started out in the same world! At least the World Gen files are still intact.
Of course I picked the exact volcano island with everything except fresh water.
Embark Points:
     10,000
Starting Build
     Conquerors Build
The Fun
     Immediately focusing on having doctors, soap, and water as well as all idlers will become fighters is now a priority.  Also, every Dwarf gets a coffin as soon as they join the Fortress.  If not for them, then for their pet War Dog.  Everything was going according to plan, I beat back a Weremammoth only losing 1 Dwarf to the bite.  To be safe, anyone with a combat log during the time of the attack has been assigned to the cannon fodder squad and left to patrol the ocean fighting sea otters.  The desalination pump cistern is almost full and ready to turn the pumps on. 

A giant humanoid strolls in and starts throwing my yaks right off the top of their mountain peak pasture, and increasing his wrestling skill as all 25 yaks are systematically strangled and thrown by their heads.  It's your time to shine suicide squad!  The 3 of them charge in (without weapons or armor) and start punching the giant.  I expect them all to die quickly, so I seal the drawbridge to the fort.  They manage to dodge every attack, while landing a flurry of punches, but aren't doing much damage.  I send the two steel clad super troops out, making surprisingly quick work pummeling the giant to death with their war hammers. 

Glitch?
Attempted to save, and encountered the same error as before as Windows closed DF on me before saving is complete.

Fix
I copied the save folders, deleted the whole directory, and downloaded a fresh version of PeridexisErrant's Starter Pack (v 0.43.03-r09)
I'm just going to start over from scratch this time.  Maybe when I tweaked the World Gen parameters I caused the instability.

After a fresh install, saving now actually saves! 

[FakerFangirl]

without doctors, their numbers dwindled to 5 before I could figure out a way how to isolate the bite victims before they turned and had to be put down.  Thank goodness the full moon passed and none of the other bite victims could turn into more Weremammoths.  All the injured died because I had no functioning hospital zone.  But on the plus side, I don't have to worry about any more Weremammoths.  Everyone who fought was bitten and either killed or laying badly injured in a massive field of carnage from the 3 Weremammoths killing 75 Dwarfs, 30 Yaks, all the War Dogs,

Being bitten by a weremammoth counts as a preexisting condition.

[azrael4h]

I had a wereelephant attack do much the same, killing more than 20 before it reverted back to human form (and was killed). Only one bitten survivor at least, which I got locked away. After retiring that fort, she still escaped, and came and wiped out another fort I was building.

[Schmaven]

Werebeasts are more of a force to be reckoned with than I expected.  Especially when they're the size of elephants!

[Timeless Bob]

wait for the zombie hordes from friendly neighborhood necromancers coming by for tea...

[Immortal-D]

Good stuff   I'm also glad to hear that you aren't put off by the initial save problems, and that saving is working for you this time.  Would love to see pictures of your now saving properly Fortress.

[Schmaven]

So I ended up installing the new Lazy Newb Pack over the top of my existing DF folder.  Rather than keep it and hope there were no bugs, I started over from scratch.  The LNP wouldn't start, so I just ran it from the DF folder.  I couldn't wait to try v43.05 any longer.  Still got a graphics pack!  That's the main crutch I like to play the game.  Although I do miss DwarfTherapist a little.  It was off to a great start; The usual workshops were churning out their crafts and after a few migrant waves, some dwarves even began idling around.  It was now time to build a stream through the hospital, pausing in a pool for washing, fed by a waterfall producing mist in the middle of the soon to be legendary dining hall.  Yeah, think about that for a second. 

Not content with tapping a single river source, but thinking about future expansion involving moats and water cannons, I tapped a second one.  To maximize flow potential, the miners had to zig and zag to dig straight into it.  Who cares if it's a lot of water, I can always block it off with the two flood gates that were just installed and successfully tested.

Unfortunately miners can get caught in a floodgate, drown to death, and prevent it from stopping the flow of water.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Opening the floodgate didn't let his body pass by.  Channeling above his body, next to his body, and building stairs down next to the body didn't result in any dwarves retrieving the unfortunate victim.  Perhaps a cave in would clog it?

It turns out a river source can produce more water than a single channel going through fortifications can get rid of.  Many dwarves escaped up the stairs with their lives.  The 2 resting in hospital beds were able to wake up and avoided being entombed in the water.  Some of the more dimwitted dwarves drowned while trying to bring items up to stockpiles.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Well, actually it flooded the lower level very quickly.  And then began bubbling up the stairway into the stone storage level.  Despite a valliant effort, the dwarves were unable to build a bridge over the stairway, nor walls around it as the water level was rising too quickly. 

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

The second stairway down to the stone storage will have to be abandoned...

The attempted sealing of the main storage level was also unsuccessful.  Not only were 8 dwarves drowned in the disaster, but all the stone and metal workshops together with a year's worth of output was lost to the water.  Luckily my raw gem storage was on the main level so I could at least trade for another anvil, and the 2 military dwarves were training up top, wearing all the valuable steel that I brought on embark.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

The survivors reportedly enjoyed the mist and the waterfall before it got out of hand.  It was decided that next time, redundant flood gates will be installed.  For now, I wait until winter's freeze to install new flood gates so the fort can be pumped out.  The fort lives on!  It will take a lot more than a flood to break the fortress of "Basementadmire".  I can't help but think they were mocking me with that name...

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[Immortal-D]

How is it that you have over 1k Urists of plants but only 157 Urists of prepared meals?   Your layout looks good otherwise, gonna need to start building vertically.  Also, mind that you don't keep too many dogs in that corner.  Despite the reduced stress factors of the current version, your animals will still flip out if confined for too long.

[MoonyTheHuman]

i think the dogs flipping out in the corner is a feature.
But besides that, looking good!

[Schmaven]

Cooking wasn't really a priority.  The water catastrophe was mostly part of getting the healthcare system set up.  There was an earlier incident while testing the drawbridges.  A dwarf got smashed into the ceiling and broke his foot, hand, and lost some digits.  The second drawbridge is still stained with blood from that.  But there was no thread, soap, bandages or anything.  The chief medical dwarf was tasked with making splints, processing plants into thread etc. Thus shifting the overall focus to setting up a proper hospital. 

As a direct result of the flooding, I learned how to make a pump stack, as well as power it with water wheels!

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[Schmaven]

Of course 3 out of the 4 floodgates for the irrigation system jam up.  The first flood gate by the river is operational so there won't be a massive flood this time.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I thought about clearing out all the stone first, but I didn't...

[Schmaven]

Nothing exciting has happened really.  Just boring toil to build the fortress' industries, and the occasional crazy dwarf that can't take the boredom anymore going into a strange mood.  5 years into it now, and not a single siege.  The elves threatened war due to the army of tree cutting dwarves supplying the training bolts for the 21 Elite Marksdwarves, several of which are Legendary now.  But they just didn't bring a trade caravan the next year, no war party.  Their junk was not needed anyway.  Random pieces of an instrument the dwarves don't know how to make... great.  Wood armor?  Seriously?  I might kill their next caravan if it comes just to make things more interesting and to avoid the hassle of meeting with their diplomats. 

There was one flying head that made it in from the caverns and bit the crap out of one dwarf, tearing his robe, gloves and cape, but he punched it in the face a lot, and it flew back into the caverns.

The dining hall and hospital after cleaning up most of the flood damage:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Also, it's Cabinets not Coffers that Dwarves store their clothes in.  Just realized that.  The temporary living quarters looks much nicer now.

Doing a vertical fortress design, animal butchering / processing, bone carvers, pigtail farm, and clothier's workshops are functioning now.  The farms, stone masons, metal forges, gem cutters, living quarters, dining hall, hospital, and wood crafting still has to be relocated.  That will allow the original top level to be the military headquarters and open up room for the ballista hallway, and eventually something with magma if the fortress lasts that long.  I suppose with 195 dwarves I should think about a jail at some point too.  But with the cooks churning out a stock of over 10,000 urists of masterpiece lavish meals that they eat by a waterfall, morale has been good.