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[RandomNumberGenerator]

I just found this out today, so pardon if this trick is old. Anyway, I just found a nice, simple way to get rid of caged creatures you simply don't want to deal with. First, build an atomsmasher. Second, throw the cages under the atomsmasher. Third, pull the lever. No fuss, no mess, no annoyance.

While you do lose any loot this way, such as narrow clothes/armor(though this could be considered an advantage) I vastly prefer this to other ways. If you have magma, you can set a glass furnace to churn out free cages. If you don't have magma, just make wooden ones instead. Since you don't ave to deal with corpses, miasma, or narrow clothing cluttering up your stocks, I like this method a lot.

The reason I didn't know about this, is I thought your dwarves let the inhabitants out whenever they moved the cage(outside of building it), however, thye take the animal as well if you set it to dump.

[Untelligent]

Problem is you can't build a stockpile under a bridge, so you have to use the dump command, which is problematic because the dwarves will probably dump the cage to one of your other garbage dump zones. Or dump something you don't want to get rid of if you forget to turn off the bridge dump zone later.

Also this obviously has problems on maps without iron, as goblin loot are probably your only source of decent metal. I also like the giant piles of clothing, because then I don't have to worry about producing trade goods and can focus more of my dwarves on building giant things.

And if you don't have magma, then making wooden cages/smelting them with charcoal simply isn't an option unless you're in a heavily wooded region, as wood, though technically an infinite resource, takes time to grow and after a few years, due to the constant woodcutting I rarely have more than a dozen trees and a dozen logs at once.

Even if your fort is in a swamp or a forest, once you get a baron (in my experience) the elves will start demanding you limit your wood production. If you can't afford going to war with them (which I deduce is likely what with all these cage traps you're using instead of a contingent of champion soldiers), this can bring mass wood-production to a halt.



In my opinion it's simply less of a hassle just to hurl the goblins off a cliff or a tower. The normal soldiers don't put up a fuss being dragged around, and the thieves (which DO put up a fuss) are easily dealt with by putting a handful of soldiers in the goblin stockpile.

Of course, if you have a map with iron and magma, can easily handle adding the elves to a list of races to genocide (most players do that well before they start attacking you, but I keep them around for the bear and giant eagle imports), and don't mind managing your dump zones from time to time, the bridge method is probably easier.

[forsaken1111]

I have been told that if you designate the caged critter's stuff for dumping that your dwarves will disarm/disrobe him.

Here's something to test... if you build magma-safe cages and a room which can flood with magma and the safely drain, will it kill caged creatures?

[Fossaman]

Pretty sure that last one is a no, but if you link a cage to magma safe mechanisms and flood the room, you could just magma-fy the beasties inside without losing any metal.

[forsaken1111]

Pretty sure that last one is a no, but if you link a cage to magma safe mechanisms and flood the room, you could just magma-fy the beasties inside without losing any metal.

Ahh, so the cage would protect them from the magma? Annoying. Combine this with the metal mechanisms mod someone else had made and we could make a nice sacrifice chamber.

[Ubiq]

Ahh, so the cage would protect them from the magma? Annoying. Combine this with the metal mechanisms mod someone else had made and we could make a nice sacrifice chamber.

You'd need a giant statue of Armok, a bunch of wild cave crocodiles, and a dwarf named Morul Ram for the complete effect.

[Gergination]

I have been told that if you designate the caged critter's stuff for dumping that your dwarves will disarm/disrobe him.

Here's something to test... if you build magma-safe cages and a room which can flood with magma and the safely drain, will it kill caged creatures?

Magma will toast caged creatures.  An easy method for disarming subjects is to set up a stockpile for cages.  Then mass designate the cages for dumping.  Open up the stocks screen and find the cages, then undesignate the cages for dumping.  This will cause all the critter's possessions to be dumped but leave the cage with the critter where it is.

Another tip is that creatures can be dumped through bridges, this prevents your dwarves from freaking out from seeing creatures in the pit while dumping multiple creatures.

[SquirrelWizard]

speaking of dumping, I have a question regarding the pit zone.

if I want to set up a pit in which I dump critters for combat practice or a zoo or what have you. How do i go about setting that up? what From what i've read, master thief type mobs shouldn't be thrown in pits as they can escape, is there a risk of escape for other creatures while throwing them in the pit?

[Gergination]

I think all creatures have a chance to escape.  Master Thieves will pretty much escape the instant they are grabbed from the cage.  If you have the stockpile set on top of the pit so that your dwarves only have to walk 1 or 2 tiles there is very little chance for escape.

[Arrkhal]

The way to prevent escapes is to build the cage before assigning the critter to the pit.  If the cage is in the stockpile or otherwise deconstructed, they escape immediately.  If it's been constructed (preferably close to your pit), they obediently follow the dwarf around like a sheep.

Also, you can designate a pit over magma.

[Itnetlolor]

Here's a solution:

@ = chain
O = Wall/pillar
X = Floodgate

╔═╦═╦═╦═╦═╦╗
║@O@O@O@O@╚╣
  Atom-   @O
  Smasher OX
   Area   @O
║@O@O@O@O@╔╣
╚═╩═╩═╩═╩═╩╝

Built to suitable scale. 3x10 bridge used. For larger/smaller AS's, -/+ 2 to scale x/y.

Be sure to strip them first, so you don't lose any valuables. Floodgate is there to prevent them from dodging the bridge, as well as added security in case they do stand in the way. Sooner death.

[Gergination]

The way to prevent escapes is to build the cage before assigning the critter to the pit.  If the cage is in the stockpile or otherwise deconstructed, they escape immediately.  If it's been constructed (preferably close to your pit), they obediently follow the dwarf around like a sheep.

Also, you can designate a pit over magma.

What you're saying is if I built a cage somewhere, near the pit or not, and then assigned creatures to it after they've been caught in a trap they have almost no chance of escape.  Do thieves not escape as you take them out of the stockpile cage?

[random51]

Dealing with this is why I stopped using cage traps. It was entertaining the first few times to set up an arena and have some battles ala Gladiator, but it eventually got stale.  Only time I use cage traps now is when it is a beast I want to keep and train, like a dragon.

What I do now is when I'm skilling up a weaponsmith on copper spears I don't melt the spears down, I use them to build weapon traps. Things that can't avoid traps never make it past the 3rd row and things that can avoid traps would avoid cage traps anyways.  Had a colossus show up, was getting excited about a nice battle with a megabeast but he didn't make it past the third row.

It was also annoying how anything friendly, but wounded, would also end up in a cage trap.  Very hard to explain to the human emissary why some of his guards ended up in my menagerie.

[Slogo]

I'm the same way. The only thing I use cage traps for is to catch wild animals or as a protection for my dwarves against weapon traps when they're injured or otherwise in a state where they could trigger them.

[RandomNumberGenerator]

Do Weapon Traps alert you to an ambush? I tried substituting my cage traps with stonefall traps, but to my chagrin it didn't alert me when goblins tripped one like Cage traps do... the result was my Legendary Mechanic hauling a rock out to the now empty stonefall trap, while I didn't know about it being set off...