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Author Topic: Spugac the Destroyer.  (Read 8634 times)

elfhater

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Spugac the Destroyer.
« on: July 22, 2010, 01:30:34 am »

Lately, I've been invading immigrating to pre-built human settlements, because they're always full of stuff I can steal barter for, and their wood houses are easily demolished deconstructible without an axe.

In this particular story, I chose to approach a human military outpost. It was a smallish village of several residences, a couple shops, and an inn, all surrounded by three gigantic (but not very tall) obsidian towers. If you just read that and translated it as "free obsidian at ground level", then know that so did I. Furthermore, the obsidian, unlike the wood houses, was not "constructed". It was natural, diggable, and fully smoothed. Even the squares behind the exposed walls were smoothed, somehow.

I chose to re-christen this settlement: Uristnazush. Daggerbloods, in the low tongue.

I embarked in the center of town, and promptly... shall we say "re-appropriated" the nearest tower for my purposes, followed ultimately by the other two. Before digging down into the sweet Dwarven Earth, I decided to try something new, and make the entrance to my fortress be on the top floors of the three towers, snaking through the walls down each level until I reached the basement. Designating a pattern that could get from top to bottom without needing to build new walls was something of a logic problem, but eventually I planned out routes through all three towers, an example of which can be seen here:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Which brings me to Spugac.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

What is Spugac? Well, apparently Spugac is the law-giver. And Spugac is friendly.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Oh, and it goes without saying that Spugac is, physiologically, an eldritch abomination the likes of which mortal eyes were not meant to see without going mad. It has no gender. Even its blood is deadly. Spugac apparently means "gland" in the human language, and I suppose that's a reference to some sort of serious glandular problem that this thing has.

Did I mention that Spugac is friendly? Well, I thought it was, anyway...

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

For most of the first year, Spugac didn't move. Not once. It just stood there, by the northwestern cottage, minding its own business. I pretty much forgot it was there at all.

Of course, had I remembered my lessons from Nethack, I would have known that a giant ampersand is never friendly, unless it grants wishes. Spugac doesn't grant wishes, as far as I can tell. But Spugac isn't purple, so no alarm bells immediately went off. I left Spugac alone, and Spugac left me alone. All was right with the world.

Then, suddenly, come mid-winter, as if it had been switched on by something, Spugac began a rampage. First it destroyed the door to the cottage. Then it destroyed everything inside. It occurred to me while Spugac was smashing the bed that I should try to wall it in there. Unfortunately, Spugac was too fast for me, and I had to abandon that attempt.

Then, charmingly, Spugac started running towards my population centers.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Spugac apparently doesn't like furniture, and it commenced destroying the contents of the next building it came across, just inside the gate I was planning to build. The gate wasn't meant to protect me from Spugac, but in retrospect I should have hurried the work on that.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Again I tried to wall the abomination in.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Again Spugac was too fast for me.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Then Spugac started to actually cause trouble. First it destroyed my carpenter's workshop, presumably because it thought that was the source of the hated furniture. All that stuff it had already smashed was built by the humans before I arrived, and Spugac was also here before I arrived, but it didn't seem to appreciate such a technicality as that.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Then Spugac destroyed my outdoor still, interrupting the flow of the sweet sweet nectar which races lesser than Dwarves can only drink sometimes. I realized at this point that I might have a serious problem on my hands. While I had stockpiles overflowing with stolen conveniently found weapons of human manufacture, I hadn't yet had a moment to spare to train any of my Dwarves in their use.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Spugac's next stop was destroying my farms. Since I hadn't actually broken earth yet, these above-ground farms represented my entire agricultural sector. I was beginning to suspect that Spugac hated not only furniture, but also the brewing process.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

It was at this point that I noticed where Spugac was headed. It did not bode well.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

In a matter of seconds, my trade depot ceased to be.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Then, apparently just to get its point across, Spugac also destroyed my wagon before changing direction and heading back towards the tower I had hijacked rented out from the humans for my own use, within which was everything I hold dear.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Just as fast as that, Spugac was inside my tower, heading towards all my precious squishies, and whatever it was intent on doing to them, I knew it wouldn't be good. One only needed to peruse the thing's track record so far to guess that:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)


Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Spugac stopped here for a good while, and I thought perhaps it was done with its tantrum, and would go back to its previous state of torpor.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

But no, it turns out Spugac was simply pausing to contemplate how much it hates doors, and then it smashed the door to my main food stockpile. At least Spugac can't destroy the stockpile itself.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Then, suddenly, I saw my opportunity.

Spugac was surely going to keep destroying the doors in the southern quarter of my... commandeered tower. After it broke through this door, I guessed it'd head south. If I acted fast, I could wall it in down there while it was busy breaking those other 3 doors.

If it went north instead, I was quite screwed.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Then Spugac went north. I was quite screwed.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Spugac managed to topple my indoor still, one floor above, without ever going up there in the process.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

It continued rampaging through the human my tower, destroying doors left and right. I continued my attempts to wall it in. I knew that if it got to my meeting hall (just there to the right), all hell would break loose.

I made preparations to wall off the meeting hall, at least from the rest of the ground floor. It still had its own stairwell, and exit was still possible.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Just then, spring arrived, which I took to be a good omen. Perhaps it meant I would be able to seal Spugac away for a future generation to deal with. I wouldn't feel the least bit bad about it: what did those deadbeats in the future ever do for me? Nothing!

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I should point out that, throughout all of this, Spugac has always remained "friendly". If this is friendly-Spugac, then I would hate to see angry-Spugac.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Then, quick as a whip, Spugac went back down to where I tried to spring my trap, and I saw my second opportunity. I swore an oath to Armok that I would contain this abomination once and for all, or die trying. I immediately ordered every single one of my Dwarves to masonry detail, and nothing else, to be absolutely sure that the walls would be built as fast as Dwarvenly possible. I would never allow it to be said that a Dwarven colony failed for want of a good stone wall. I canceled the other 167 build orders (I was building a wall around the entire village) so there could be no screw-ups.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

The trap was set. All that remained was for Spugac to walk down the corridor, waste time smashing the three doors down there, and the wall would be built behind him. And I swear to Armok, if the Dwarf who builds that wall seals himself in along with Spugac, I am not even going to attempt a rescue.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

And in double-quick fashion, my Dwarves proved they were the equals of any Urist who ever lived. I now have a "friendly" rampaging behemoth in my tower, but hopefully it is sealed away forever. Or until I can think of a use for it...
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Acanthus117

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #1 on: July 22, 2010, 01:46:05 am »

Oh my.

That is quite the terror you have there, my fine sir.
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Is apparently a Lizardman. ಠ_ಠ
YOU DOUBLE PENIS
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mnjiman

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #2 on: July 22, 2010, 02:46:07 am »

That was a great story.



Well played my friend well played.
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I was thinking more along the lines of this legendary champion, all clad in dented and dinged up steel plate, his blood-drenched axe slung over his back, a notch in the handle for every enemy that saw the swing of that blade as the last sight they ever saw, a battered shield strapped over his arm... and a fluffy, pink stuffed hippo hidden discretely in his breastplate.

Urist McDepravity

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #3 on: July 22, 2010, 04:57:51 am »

This is common in cases of trading with humans, but quite fun to see in human-settlement case too. You should probably add report here: http://bay12games.com/dwarves/mantisbt/view.php?id=596
Anyway, would like to hear how things progress. Sadly, with trading case, demon goes insane after few seasons, so he cannot be used. In this case, since he is local, he should be awwwright for longer time and you could do something fun with him.
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Jonlissla

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #4 on: July 22, 2010, 06:29:11 am »

That was... quite the epic scenario. Strange that he still was considered friendly while destroying all your buildings.
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Internet Kraken

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #5 on: July 22, 2010, 07:11:08 am »

That was... quite the epic scenario. Strange that he still was considered friendly while destroying all your buildings.

That's a problem with every demonic horror that manages to gain status in human society. The game treats them like a normal creature in that position, but it doesn't remove their building destroyer tag. And that presence of said tag forces the creature to smash every building it sees. Or I think it's something like that. It's quite annoying when you get a visit from the human liaison, only to find out he's a flying weasel and proceeds to smash apart your depo.

Maybe these demons are like former junkies looking at drugs. They try to resist the urge to smash everything to pieces, but it's just to powerful.
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Kav

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #6 on: July 22, 2010, 08:09:03 am »

So in exactly what way are trapped insane demons not perfect for a goblin motel?
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ghosteh

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #7 on: July 22, 2010, 08:29:56 am »

you should have tried imprisoning it in a soulstone
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I've killed enough humans to know their patterns.

Golcondio

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #8 on: July 22, 2010, 09:09:40 am »

So in exactly what way are trapped insane demons not perfect for a goblin motel?
Or, better yet, an exclusive vacation resort for elves! Of course, you'd have to make them mad at you first, but somehow I think it's TOTALLY worth it!
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MaDeR Levap

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #9 on: July 22, 2010, 02:00:31 pm »

It does not need to remove tag. Just add check if building belongs to friendly civ.

Of course, if buildings have no concept of ownership, Toady must fix this oversight.
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Toast024

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #10 on: July 22, 2010, 02:32:24 pm »

You should reload an early save and wall him in during the "not moving" process, purely for teh lulz and revenge.
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Eric Blank

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #11 on: July 22, 2010, 03:23:05 pm »

But would it even feel like revenge if they themselves don't know what they've done?
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I make Spellcrafts!
I have no idea where anything is. I have no idea what anything does. This is not merely a madhouse designed by a madman, but a madhouse designed by many madmen, each with an intense hatred for the previous madman's unique flavour of madness.

Toast024

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #12 on: July 22, 2010, 03:30:30 pm »

There is still the lulz.
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Eric Blank

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #13 on: July 22, 2010, 03:31:11 pm »

That's true...
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I make Spellcrafts!
I have no idea where anything is. I have no idea what anything does. This is not merely a madhouse designed by a madman, but a madhouse designed by many madmen, each with an intense hatred for the previous madman's unique flavour of madness.

Toast024

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Re: Spugac the Destroyer.
« Reply #14 on: July 22, 2010, 03:34:44 pm »

Think about it. Your Dwarfs would be the best Trolls in town. Everyone and their mother would BAWWWWWWWWWWW about there llawgiver* being locked in a room. For bonus points, make it out of clear glass. That will seriously make the people angry.

*llawgiver is the best joke I could think of.
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The learning curve of the df forums should be equal to that of df itself.
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