You may recall my last "First" story, where an unprovoked Elven ambush attacked my fortress of Matchoils. I started another fortress while I contemplated ideas for Matchoils.
This is the first fortress I have had which I put sufficient planning into. Masterwork items are piled all over the place, and every civilization comes to me for my vast non-spoilerite crafts (I don't export weapons and armor. Ever). My miners dug downwards, hearing tales of riches beyond imagination under the earth while six dwarves, armed and armored with steel, trained their dwarven hearts out. As they sparred (and a dwarf finished making an artifact palm floodgate), my miners struck through stone into the caverns below the fortress! The weavers were overjoyed, as they now had webs for silk. Both of them went to collecting while my military was stationed at the entrance for a small time, killing crundles and the like. It was no challenge for a swordsdwarf, speardwarf, two hammerdwarves and two axedwarves.
In the distance, an otherworldly screeching was heard. It was identified as a forgotten beast blob made of salt. A door was quickly installed and forbidden as my dwarves were ordered inside. My dwarves went off on their own, doing their thing for about two days. The sound of a kaolinite door being broken to pieces echoed from the deep, and my military was quick to respond. The speardwarf, acting militia commander, ran down and encountered the foul beast, where a single thrust broke the membrane keeping the salt from falling out.
Needless to say, everyone was disappointed. But that didn't stop the captain from naming his spear.
Seasons passed, and there was nary a whisper from the deep (it helped that another door had been installed and sealed shut). As the military felt comfortable, there was a notification that a giant cicada-like monster had begun to roam the caverns. But, for some reason, it avoided the fortress altogether. More months pass. Another creature, shaped as a snail, shows up. It heads straight for the fortress. The cicada follows suit once the door is destroyed. Keep in mind that both were known to have deadly vapors.
The military scrambles, going down past the living quarters and into the mining area. The cicada tied up the military as the snail moseyed on up and into the residential area. The citizens fled the scene, but the fumes shooting outwards melted flesh from bone.
An axedwarf broke off from the group and went to defend the people, and managed to provide it a meat toy until help could come.
The cicada had killed four. All that remained was the swordsdwarf and an axedwarf (who had his arms and legs removed, but was still conscious). The swordsdwarf (named Kyle as he went into battle) quickly tore through the head of the cicada as his friends helping him all succumbed to the vapors. Kyle was untouched. He ran up the stairs to aid his last comrade, who was slowly fading away. Kyle drove his sword through the beast's shell, killing it swiftly. He turned and walked away as the axedwarf bled out.
Now I looked at his stats and equipment. He was a proficient swordsdwarf, and that was his only remarkable quality. Except then I saw Misc. Item User. Sure enough, Kyle had used a rock to beat the hell out of the forgotten beasts as well. He also had his sword in his left hand (which is awesome, as I am left handed as well). I promoted him to militia commander and gave him two men to train. And they followed him well.
Each had a rock equipped in their sword hand.
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Topic: My First Cavern Breaching (And slaying of FBs) (Read 1417 times)