Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Aequor]

Just in time for a huge migrant wave dermonster! Seriously, my population more than tripled within seconds, and then more than halved, ah well.

Also, have no fear Tarran! I won't modify the gremlins, not since there are quite a few cave alligators paddling around, and probably some giant cave spiders no doubt. And I know marksdwarves are bugged, but I got Rovod to shoot once before, so...yeah, I can try again, and if it doesn't work then we have a group of hammerdorfs.

Also, r3d5kull, here's the save from just before this update. There are some migrants right at the south, and the Nothings are huddled a bit to the east of them.


2nd Slate 674 - Dawn

Fori was observing the rising sun through the gem window in the Lighthouse when all hell broke loose. It started with a Nothing that moved worryingly close to the window. Fori stood her ground, trusting in the Dwarven craftsmanship. The Nothing began clawing at the window to no avail, and Fori decided to go down for breakfast. Unseen by her, the Nothing flattened its dark appendages and slid them into the minuscule cracks between the gem window and the mountain wall. Once its proboscis had infiltrated inside, it wrenched the window back, knocking it back into the three gem panes it had been made from.

The Nothing was inside.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

However, Fori's Elf-hearing had once again proved its worth as she had heard it. Quickly she raised the alarm and soon Tarran, Rion, Rovod and Spartan stood ready to fight with the new iron weapons. The Nothing powered down the ramp, tentacles at the ready, only to be met by the four Dwarves who promptly hacked it into pieces. The four-Dwarf squad moved forward only to be met by another Nothing, quickly dispatched. They sprinted up the ramp, followed by Urist who had volunteered to build a wall to fill the breach while the soldiers kept watch.

Fear and worry filled the Dwarves as they looked out the window, two more Nothings burst out at them, and it took the four of them to kill the creatures. But beyond them was a veritable cloud of Nothings, a huge swarm, all charging towards this one breach in the Dwarven defenses. Hand trembling, Urist sprinted to the hole and with the help of the soldiers, slid the gneiss block into place, shutting out the growing sunlight and the invading Nothings. They thought they heard some scratching on the rock, and then nothing. Sighing with relief, the five of them all moved off to get a stiff drink.


12th Slate 674 - Midnight

They had traversed mountains and lakes for more than a season before reaching the valleys in which nestled the Swamps of Tunneling. 31 of them, all that was left of the exodus of 60 that had escaped from the destruction of their mountainhome. Now they came to the rumoured site of a defended fortress which had withstood the Nothing.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

"See anything?" Delta grunted to Derm. Derm scanned the horizon,

"I can see trees, ground, rocks, plants, a river, the moon-"

"Nevermind."

"Pardon me gentledwarfs." came a voice behind them. They turned round. It was Stas, a shady individual they had picked up on the way. He had fled from the destruction of his own mountain home and wandered the continent before finding and joining them. Delta grunted a 'what?'.

"Well I just thought you'd want to know, there's a wall over there, and a ditch." Stas said, pointing off to the other side of the valley. Derm peered into the gloom,

"Hey! There is! How did I miss it?"

Another Dwarf came up now, Johann Schimdt,

"What's happening?" he asked. Stas turned to him,

"I was merely pointing out the wa-"

"We've found a wall and the fortress is there and we're gonna go there and we'll be safe!" Derm said happily in one breath.

"Don't count your purring maggots too soon." Delta murmured. Johann nodded,

"There could be Nothings anywhere." he agreed.

"Well then, gentledwarves. We had better get moving I'll...ah, get my stuff. You tell the others." Stas said, leaving with a twirl of his cloak.

Soon the two dozen Dwarves were cautiously moving down the valley, weapons held tight in their hands and eyes sweeping the surroundings for any sign of the Nothing. They had made it to Squeezemunch when the Nothings emerged. The monsters burst out in an ambush, there were at least 20 of the things, all piling in on a single Dwarf, who's screams of pain carried long into the night. Pushed by self-survival and hardened by already 30 other deaths prior to their arrival, the Dwarves continued to the entrance, shouting to be let in. The Nothings moved in on them and ten brave Dwarves all broke off from the rest of the group, holding make-shift or rusty weapons and telling the others that they would hold the swarm off while they fled inside.

The half-a-score of Dwarves were soon submerged as more and more Nothings joined the horde, meanwhile, the drawbridge was finally lowered and the rest all fled in. Of the 31 Dwarves that had made their way to Nomekast, only 16 remained. One had been caught outside and fled from the Nothings, away from the fortress, and another, Sarvesh Mosusedtul, had been struck by some strange mood and had gone off on his own, leaving the group behind. Despite the fact that 16 Dwarves had made it to safety, it did not seem like so great a victory in the face of so many losses.

But it was still a victory in respects to the Dwarves saved. Ibruk greeted each of them personally, and was pleased to find several devout and ardent worshippers within the ranks of the Dwarves, some of which even agreed to help him build his temple. Meanwhile the tunnel to safely allow migrants and traders in was well underway, almost halfway dug out, and Reg and Steve had inaugurated a hospital to tend to the wounded. There had been no sign of the gremlin that had surprised Fori, though there was a renewal of the splashing sounds from the underground lake to the north and plans were underway to enlarge the compound with a wall in order to increase safety in the underground.


6th Felsite 674 - Afternoon

The arrival of the largest group of refugees Nomekast had had so far had had many effects. Ibruk's temple was well-underway now. The farms would need to be increased in size, and there was talk of moving them into the caverns. Most of all, there was less work all-around. This meant that a fully-fledged military could be set up, which would prove vital if the Nothing ever broke into Nomekast again. A squad, named 'The Noiseless Metals' had been formed. On account of his having always been at the forefront of the fortress' defence, Tarran was made Militia Commander, while Rion was made Sergeant, also joining The Noiseless Metals was Johann Schmidt, as a hammerdwarf, and Risen and Kol, both axedwarves. Meanwhile Rovod had been made a Militia Captain and was now heading the Marksdwarf squad known as 'The Tusks of Silver' which consisted of him and Doc. Steve, who had agreed to become a marksdwarf responsible for removing the wounded from the battlefields. Barracks were being dug out for the two squads, and iron armour forged. If all went well, Nomekast would have a functioning and well-trained, well-equipped military by the time the tunnel was finished.


I haven't added Stas, Derm, Delta and Johann's profiles yet but I'll get them up tomorrow.

[masam]

Muenster had been thinking lately.  The elf had asked him if she should carry a weapon.  Of course in these dangerous times, everyone should carry a weapon.  He himself had even taken to a weapon now and then, just in case.  Maces were quite dwarvenly.  Not as dwarvenly as a hammer...but still they were excellent smashing weapons.  But an elf wouldn't wield one.  No they were too...lithe.  They favored speed and flexibility over strength and solidity..hmm...perhaps a sword would be good for her.  He liked having her around...wouldn't ever say that, but he did.

(I humbly request that Muenster make her a training weapon.)

[Fortis]

From the log of Fori
   
   By the spirits, I have never been so frightened. If I had not gotten hungry just then, I would have been dead at the cruel hands of the defiler. As it was, I barely had enough time to scream and flee down the ramp. Fortunately, the stout dwarves grabbed their weapons. Four of them killed the defiler, and went on up to the tower to protect Urist as he sealed up the gap where the window had been. The rest of us waited anxiously, half expecting to hear the screams of the dwarves as the defilers swarmed them. But no, spirits bless them, they came down, all alive, and said their hasty stonework stopped the defiler’s claws. There was a collective sigh of relief, and mugs of ale were passed around to help everyone’s nerves recover. I didn’t see who handed one to me, but I drank it. At least this time, I could remember what happened, and my jerkin stayed where it was.

   There was more news as well. Without the window, the information whispered through the trees to me has been our only source of news to the outside. And a rather intermittent news at that. But it was enough to alert us that a battle was taking place outside, that once again dwarf and defiler blood quenched the roots of the trees. The drawbridge was lowered in time to save sixteen souls, as the defilers butchered the ones who were not so fortunate. I sang a song of mourning for them.  But it was fortunate that so many managed to survive, our numbers grew quite a bit today. It seems that these dwarves took to an elf living among them in relatively good stride. Granted, I did get a lot of suspicious looks, but the knowledge that I helped feed these dwarves with my farming (And made their ale brewing possible) seemed to mollify them.

   But…the defiler break in, the slaughter of the immigrants… This has me thinking, and not on pleasant thoughts. So far, I’ve seen lots of dwarves that have managed to survive, but no elves. Were the retreats so thoroughly overrun that so few elves escaped? Am I one of many refugees from the retreats, or one of few?

   Is it possible that I am the last of my kind?

[Dervin]

((Keep the story coming, I like it.))

[Stas]

Brilliant!

[Tarran]

Tarran's dabbles, Chapter 4:

...

...

...

Oh, I'm writing this? Oh, well, recently a Nothing broke though a window. Not like that's a gigantic surprise. But at least I got to cut things up... ...Nothing else to report.

I Kinda feel like a underground ocean-side residence, preferably one that has fortifications to see the sea. Please?

[Aequor]

Right, Stas, Johann, Delta and Derm's profiles are up on the main page with the others.

Tarran, you can have your seaside house, but I'm not responsible for any giant olms or cave crocodiles that visit. Also, wouldn't you prefer windows that fortifications?


18th Felsite 674

Life in Nomekast was beginning to - despite Ibruk's protests - settle down into the familiar routine of an ordinary fortress, only in this fortress, going outside meant death, more so than anywhere else. And there was an Elf living amongst them; but she was good at getting a large plump helmet harvest in, and had recently - with a sword kindly made for her by Muenster - taken up swordselfship to better defend herself and her adopted home.

Work on Ibruk's temple was advancing quickly with the help of the new migrants, and the prophet had managed to somehow commandeer several bars of iron to build the inner walls with while Tarran was away from the forges. This had resulted in hot words from several Dwarves who rightly felt that this was a waste, but to no avail.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Torvold and Urist had finished several traction benches for the hospital, and crutches, beds and splints were being made by a carpenter who had arrived with the refugees. Talk of a dining room had surfaced, though there had been no consensus yet. Some Dwarves supported making the dining room in the caverns, but this would place it far from the farms; at least, until the new farming land was ready; while others supported carving it near the current farms and bedrooms.

Work on the tunnel; mostly through Spartan's mining and Torvold's ideas, was advancing fast, though it didn't seem likely that the traps would be finished by summer. Torvold had spared no expense, drawing up plans for a drowning room, spike traps, pressure-triggered bridges, stone-fall traps and more which would hopefully keep anything out, whether they been Nothing or animals.

Meanwhile, Tarran had started work on a little cottage by the underground lake-sea just to the north of the temple.


1st Hematite 674

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Sarvesh Mosusedtul stumbled up the hill like a Dwarf possessed. He had been with the refugee group when something had struck him, and he had wandered away. A voice had spoken to him, harsh and unreserved. He had lost control over most his body and had now spent several weeks roaming the southern side of the valley, and yet he hadn't died yet.

"Glass! Glass you fool!" the voice hissed.

"What do you want!?" Sarvesh managed to gasp, his throat drier than a desert, yet he had not died from dehydration,

"You will obey me!"

"But what do you want!?"

"I must have glass! Glass you fool!"

"There isn't any!"

"Do not question me! Get me glass!"

Just his luck, Sarvesh had to be possessed by what seemed to be a noble, unwilling to understand the impossibility of its demands. He was no longer in control of his body, having gradually lost it, and yet the voice seemed to think he could get him glass.

"Glass! Obey me! Glass! OBEY!"

"There isn't any!" Sarvesh screamed, breaking into sobs. His body immediately stopped its weeping as he felt his control over his face leave him,

"Pitiful fool! Do not think you can trick me with tears! You! Will! Obey! Me!"

"There's no glass here!" Sarvesh screamed in his mind. Then he felt possibly the most terrible feeling he had ever felt, like something was going through his very mind, and stabbing at it. Like acid was trickling down through his brain, searing everything in its wake. The voice was silent for a few seconds, and then,

"Then I have no use for you."

Wispy smoke flowed out of Sarvesh's mouth, rising into the air and then dissipating. His mind broken by the ordeal, Sarvesh, regaining control of his body in one sharp shock, ran screaming down the mountain, clawing his clothes off, like a Dwarf gone stark raving mad. He made it to Squeezemunch before a dozen Nothings piled on him and tore him to shreds.


Doesn't seem like there's going to be an Elf caravan this year. I blame the elves.

[Tarran]

If there are going to be any windows, they are going to be on the second floor.

Hey, anyone else want to have a sea-side residence next to mine?

[Dermonster]

Derms Mental journal.

Oh Journal! everything here is great! The floors are smooth, the walls have the occasional picture, and theres this neat Cavern below the surface. Too bad My pals from Niltosed couldn't see this. (Though most of them made fun of me for my spear. I switched to an axe. It's so shiny!) Stupid encroaching wave of darkness. Luckily i managed to jump into some sort of portal near the glowing pits. I wonder what happened to them? I never got to say goodbye to Fortis... Oh right! Fortis was this really weird dwarf that was really tall, and he liked plants. I was going to give him some of my mums special sunshine brew, it could knock out a hydra, but the darkness spread before I could. Ah well. I think I'll go over the gardens, for old times sake.
...
Say, that elf looks familiar. I wonder why.

[Areku]

The rambling logs of Delta;

Hrrm. A dead end, once again. Stuck in this pathetic excuse of a fortress. For eight months had I roamed the wilds in search of my lost daughter, since those... things attacked the mountainhomes.
I have to say, I am a hardened individual, even compared to other dwarves. I survived the great magma flood back in Machineshimmers. I escaped from the skeletal carp in Razorrubs. I fought against the goblin menace in Fortressmurder. But these monsters are fiercer than anything I had ever encountered before. My wife was killed before my very eyes, and my daughter and I got separated. With no food and nowhere to go, my only chance of survival seems to lie here, in this hole in the ground. Well, it's better than nothing. Or Nothing, for all that matters.

Well, I'll see if I can get myself some lodgings. Hopefully something better than the 2x1 alcoves I've seen so far. I heard someone talking about building a sea-side residence down in the caves. That oughta mean there's some water down there, so I reckon I might even get to build a submerged room like the one I had in Machineshimmers. But judging by the state of this place, I'll be lucky if I even get a bed to sleep in. Looks like these guys never heard anything about proper decoration or comfort. *mumblecursegrowl*

---------------------------------------

On an unrelated sidenote, I've just noticed that Delta is a tall dwarf in his profile. :3

[Stas]

I love how my dwarf looks, it's so thief-like.

[Fortis]

From the log of Fori

Despite the ever present danger outside, life seems to be becoming routine here. Once one gets used to living underground, a dwarf fortress isn't a bad place. My eyes are getting better at seeing in the dark tunnels, and the air no longer feels so close and restricting. While it isn't as open as a retreat, it does feel much safer. Also, I think the new arrivals are getting used to me as well. They don't mind my singing as I work at farming the mushrooms.

There has also been more construction projects going on. Ibruk and some more of the more 'devoted' dwarves have been busy building a temple. There was quite a row when he made off with some of the forged metal from Tarran's workplace. Personally, I don't understand him, or his talk about the gods. Then again, most dwarves don't understand the spirits of the trees that I talk with. It's pretty much a given fact that they can't even hear them. But temple aside, there's talk of making a grand dining room, so we don't have to eat dinner in the storeroom anymore. Of the two ideas suggested, I'm in favor of building it in the cavern. I even took up a moment to draw up some plans of an open styled room, up on a platform to keep the creatures of the caverns from bothering us. Personally, I thought it to be a nice fusion of dwarf and elf styles, their stonework paired with the openness to nature favored by the elves. I don't know if they will agree, or even if it is feasible, but it wouldn't hurt to present my ideas to them.

And I'm getting better with the training sword Muenster made for me. This is the first time I've ever picked up a weapon, let alone a metal, dwarf-made one. Dwarf swords are usually made to work like their axes: heavy chopping implements. But Muenster made me a sword more fitted to my style. It was lighter and thinner, more suited to the elves way of fighting. Its rather reminiscent of the human style of fencing. I hope I don't have to use it, but I'm more ready to face the dangers that await us.

There has been no other sightings of other elves though. Some days, it depresses me, but there is usually a dwarf there to cheer me up. Of course 'cheer up' and 'get hammered drunk' are fairly synonymous to dwarves. I generally wind up forgetting my worries for a while (or forgetting everything for a while) and simply laugh at the defilers outside and at all our troubles in general. And wake up the next day with a splitting headache.

[Mangled]

Ah at last things are starting to get sensible round here.
Well as sensible as can be expected of a Dwarven Fortress, I swear I heard someone demanding glass a few days ago but nothings came of that. The Elf is adapting well to her new home and despite being plagued by this "Hangover" malady she continues to drink the good stuff and has even started swinging a sword about. We'll make a dwarf of her yet methinks.
In other news we have the beginnings of a hospital so chances are me and Reg will be busy with that in the coming months.

[ISGC]

"A strange bunch, we are!  Prophets, elves, Nothing; it seems generations of dwarven tradition are just being thrown away!  Though in time of such peril, it's probably for the best.  I don't like it, though, not one bit.  And that elf, pfft! elves aren't made for dwarven drink, not by a long shot, and the others seem to be warming up to her!  can you believe that, an elf accepted in the halls of dwarves, you'de never find that at home, never.  Though she does seem to take a bit more rum then I would have expected of an elf; albeit the complaints about her "hangovers".  If you ask me I'd attribute it to the elve's lack of sun, but I'm not elf doctor... curious (note to self, inquire further).  Anyway, the hospital is moving forward, and though I'm happy to have some base of operations, I'm dreading the hauling that would have to be done.  Hopefully I can get one of these bucket-head fighters to do it for me.  Well, inventories to do, people to talk to, later."

with everyone warming up to the elf, thought I'd take a more... radical approach.

[ScreamingDoom]

You need some humans and goblins in this fortress. Make Nomekast a true multicultural fortress! The Nothing making friends of former bitter enemies.