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[Conan]

How do you butcher/strip caged animals/enemies? I want to slaughter a groundhog and strip a goblin thief so our dorfs have something to spar on.

[khearn]

You can tame the animal (need a kennel and an animal trainer for that), then you can designate it for butchering. Or, you could build the cage and link it to a lever and pull the lever to release the (untamed) animal and let your troops practice on it. Then you can butcher the corpse.

Stripping a prisoner is a FAQ and is answered in the wiki page for cages

[Conan]

Yay, time to set up a sparring zone underground. Just have to wait for my miners to finish digging...

[Conan]

I'm having a problem here. I {k} over the cage and look at the contents, and I only see the goblin inside. I cannot access the goblin's inventory to dump the clothing.

Do I have to build the cage first?

[Starver]

I'm having a problem here. I {k} over the cage and look at the contents, and I only see the goblin inside. I cannot access the goblin's inventory to dump the clothing.

Do I have to build the cage first?

{d}esignate {b}uildings and items to {d}ump over that tile.  This will designate the cage and everything the goblin inside wears/holds to dump.  I generally de-designate the cage's Dumping tag next time I'm in the Z-Stocks menus and doing housekeeping (de-forbidding various relevant items that have been completely Dumped and are now Forbidden on the refuse pile, frexample).  You can also select the cage with your {k} key and remove its Dump-tag without undoing the possession-dumping you've just done.

But if the cage is built and you don't de-designate the cage-dump it also doesn't do any harm.  And, if you later link it to a lever and use that to release the creature in the midst of your training/arena area you now have a cage still set to be Dumped (as soon as you allow access to the area by the relevent haulers) and it might help clear the area quicker (and more quantumly) than waiting for an Animal hauler (or Furniture...? one or the other) take it to a spare bit of non-refuse stockpile.

(Does that make sense?)

[Conan]

Then how do you un-designate the guy's armor (if he has any) to not be dumped? I'm not very used to the stocks screen.

[Starver]

Then how do you un-designate the guy's armor (if he has any) to not be dumped? I'm not very used to the stocks screen.

First of all, you ideally need a good enough Bookkeeper to have access to Z-Stocks for the number of items within the appropriate stock area.  Right-cursor into the items beneath that stock area and either globally un{F}orbid all the items with that tag against them or <tab> and (finding them at the bottom of that list) un{F}orbid them individually.

That's purely from memory though (no DF on this machine), so you may need to hunt around for what I'm trying to describe.

[Conan]

dang

I have a bad bookkeeper.

[evileeyore]

dang

I have a bad bookkeeper.

Take off all his other labors, wait 1 season, profit!

[Jhoosier]

If you know where the garbage dump is, you can d-b-c to reclaim all the items on that tile.

Also, don't forget to claim the items in the cage, otherwise your dwarves won't dump them.

[Niccolo]

So, to summarise (and gather everyone's advice in one spot)

First: Build all of the cages. When building a cage and you have to select which one, press {x} to choose from a specific cage.

Then: {d} {b} {c} and draw a box over the cages - this claims everything inside, since armour ad weaponry worn by not-your-dwarves is automatically forbidden to you.

Then: {d} {b} {d} over the cages - this designates everything for dumping. Wait for some idle dwarves to strip the goblins clean. Depending on how much work you have backed up, this can go quickly or can take years.

Then: {k} to switch to the item-cursor and pass over each cage. You'll see the cage name with a bright pink D next to it; press {d} on your keyboard to undesignate the cage itself for dumping.

Then: {d} {b} {c} over your garbage pile to reclaim everything dumped there. At this point, your dwarves should move everything not-garbage to their respective stockpile.

Then murder the goblins and display their corpses in humorous ways.

[Starver]

Then: {d} {b} {c} and draw a box over the cages - this claims everything inside, since armour ad weaponry worn by not-your-dwarves is automatically forbidden to you.

I hadn't forgotten that bit.  Honest.  I just tend to claim (even set to dump) the clothes on invader's backs while they're still at liberty.  With all the attendant fuss that can sometimes cause.

Then murder the goblins and display their corpses in humorous ways.

One should be able to Construct a vertical Spike and hang a skeleton (or even corpse) on it.  Attaching said spike to a pressure-plate off to one side should be able to cause psychological issues for someone wandering by.

(Bonus points if/when books come in, planting a diary in the skeletal hand.  *nodnod*)

[Fredd]

One should be able to Construct a vertical Spike and hang a skeleton (or even corpse) on it.  Attaching said spike to a pressure-plate off to one side should be able to cause psychological issues for someone wandering by.

 You could build a Party Crasher. Build a structure, where you can expose the glass window behind it(floodgate linked to lever). Then the dwarves can see what nasty you pitted in the structure. They are great to place near statue gardens, zoo's, when you think its time to cancel the party.

[Conan]

So, to summarise (and gather everyone's advice in one spot)

First: Build all of the cages. When building a cage and you have to select which one, press {x} to choose from a specific cage.

Then: {d} {b} {c} and draw a box over the cages - this claims everything inside, since armour ad weaponry worn by not-your-dwarves is automatically forbidden to you.

Then: {d} {b} {d} over the cages - this designates everything for dumping. Wait for some idle dwarves to strip the goblins clean. Depending on how much work you have backed up, this can go quickly or can take years.

Then: {k} to switch to the item-cursor and pass over each cage. You'll see the cage name with a bright pink D next to it; press {d} on your keyboard to undesignate the cage itself for dumping.

Then: {d} {b} {c} over your garbage pile to reclaim everything dumped there. At this point, your dwarves should move everything not-garbage to their respective stockpile.

Then murder the goblins and display their corpses in humorous ways.

Okay, thanks. However, I was wondering if I could just do it without building the cage. Anyways, thanks for the help!

[Starver]

Okay, thanks. However, I was wondering if I could just do it without building the cage. Anyways, thanks for the help!

I'm pretty sure you can do this on the spot where the unbuilt cage sits, but then you definitely want to un-Dumpify the cage to prevent the whole lot being taken away to the dumpit site rather than just the selected contents of the encaged (and enraged)  creature's inventory.

Besides which, although you can pasture/re-cage/tether an unbuilt cage's tame creature, I wouldn't want to mess with a caged hostile in many other ways apart from building said cage in arena/training area, link to a lever, get the chosen opposing force into the arena accordingly, seal the arena and pull the lever(s).  If not that, then regardless of whether you've got the top-notch military ready to train, some poor civvy schmuck is going to have to go and attempt to pit or pasture or cage or tether the enemy and you're putting them at potential risk if it doesn't go as smoothly as it needs to...  ("Urist McDistracted cancels handle dangerous creature: handling dangerous creature...", as it were.)