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[Game Hunter]

Okay, so, I didn't actually have time to play this weekend (lotta LPing other stuff and bugfixing). I WAS able to reacquaint myself with the flow of the game and the state of the fortress, as well as bone up on Klear's pretty thorough notes and journal. I think I have an idea of what to work on and such, so starting tomorrow I'll post daily journal updates: with any luck I can get through a season each day. Gonna try the detective role out, too (for as long as he'll last, ha).

[Game Hunter]

3rd Granite
Finally, I've made a name for myself at Rerithakam! The whole village is panicking because of the "incident" and everyone wants answers: there are none to be found, yet. In order to establish some civility, and after Klearol Rulolon's resignation as chief planner, a village committee was formed from the few that can still sleep at night. Their first decision was to make me a full-blown sheriff! No doubt they heard of my work at the Violent Arena, but alas, those days seem so far away now. They're already begun setting up my suite, paid entirely by the village.

Still, I can't say I'm going to be living an easy life, by any means. People want to know what happened down there, and I've more or less been hired to figure out just that. My only lead is that they've made us aware that Udil Megiddoren, our of the very founders, was brutally murdered during the "incident". To be quite frank, journal, I am skeptical that anything here in this godsforsaken habitat stays murdered. They want me to go down and investigate the scene but I'm going to try and hold that off as long as possible...I dread to think of what still may be down there.

7th Granite
The committee decided to place food and drink directly in the dining hall. This would seem a very prudent decision, given the current party going on there. My own satisfaction comes from the ever-completing office just to the west of the dining hall: I asked specifically to be placed near the largest area of gathering, in order to keep an eye on everyone and judge their motives. Part of it, journal, is actually because I want to make sure I can go and enjoy myself whenever I have a panic attack. My dearest, Nish, has been my comfort throughout my stay here, but even she requires some reprieve after the "incident".

10th Granite
erith, one of our recently-established medical professioners, has suddenly raced to the workshops and taken over a craftsdwarf shop. I would be suspicious of this behavior if I had not already seen it dozens of times back at the Violent Arena: sometimes dwarves need to vent their frustrations, even if it may drive them to the brink of insantiy.

15th Granite
The damned project begun by erith is finished, and it's another stupid bracelet. I know of the other one that was fashioned here and I can't say I was impressed: looks like another for the pile.

More importantly, today I finally settled into my special quarters. Now that I have an official place to work, however, it means I'll have to start getting serious about this job of mine.

21th Granite
I've begun to keep track of fellow dwarven activity, plotting their whereabouts and jobs. Seems like this would be a job for our Chronicler but he's not quite as much a people person as I am, especially not since the "incident". He seems quite anxious in general, avoiding large crowds and keeps away from conversations in the dining hall. I suspect he knows something, but I know he isn't capable of that kind of murder. Once he's fully recovered from the "incident", I will try to get what information I can regarding that time.

No one's actually gone even near the old dormitory since then. Well, no one except for those who are set to continue harvesting adamantium. It's not that I don't empathize with the need to process all that is precious metal, but so help me Aspis they'll be the death of us if they're not careful around the mining shaft.

26th Granite
So much for all the tracking! Another wave of migrants has arrived at our doorstep, bringing our total population up to a bloated one hundred and three citizens. This will easily push my note-taking down a couple of weeks as I try to figure out what kinds of jobs these newcomers do and communicating with the village committee so that they know that I know who's taking care of what. Many, including the village committee, are getting quite restless and would like to be able to put the old beds to use. Now that more are among us, I have a feeling we'll have to force our way through.

----

2nd Slate
I've finally caught up on the various tasks that were assigned to the immigrants. With any luck, I can see if there are any irregularities in routines, possibly find someone unusually guilty of a certain crime.

Not that it should matter all that much, but after investigating one of the newcomers, I was told of a giant fire-breathing lark outside of Chaosfortunes. There's really no way inside of the fortress, but I suppose it's something to watch out for, lest any traders arrive to find a beast at our metaphorical doorstep.

8th Slate
The committee has decided to expand our production capabilities with the new population by setting up additional craftsdwarf shops: these will build stone crafts while our veterans continue to extract the adamantium strands. Keeping the dwarves busy is exactly what is necessary to keep them from remembering what has already happened. They've also set up some butcheries, though I'm unsure why: too often I've heard of beasts rising from the dead to claim their destroyers. Perhaps you think me crazy, journal, but I find that it's very difficult to desire meat that may bite back.

23rd Slate
Disaster strikes again! Ezum Kosothzatam's corpse was found in the main dormitory at 9:37 PM. Cause of death, according to medical examiner Bomrek Zimoddom, was loss of blood. He really wasn't kidding: there wasn't a speck of red in poor Ezum's face. He loved planting seeds every season, and it's a true waste to see someone do something like this to him. I hauled the corpse to the smasher myself: unfortunately we haven't the time to think of what to do with the body, not with the reanimation that seems to happen here.

The loss of blood is most curious, though. I can't any of a single dwarf who'd do something like THAT to their fellow kind: back at the Violent Arena we settled matters, even one-sided ones, with carnage and dismemberment. Something very mysterious is going on here...very mysterious indeed.

24st Slate
I investigated Rovod Uristubal, the dwarf who found the now-atomized Ezum. Quite frankly the man seems in better condition then I would expect after realizing there's a dead body where you're about to sleep. Still, he answered my questions thoroughly and graciously, and I sent him on his way. Surely there's a lot that can be said for his foresight to immediately summon myself and the makeshift doctors we have: I suppose it's part of the instinct of a ranger when dealing with a corpse around here. I pray that he and his wife manage to stay alive for the sake of their recently born son, Udil.

With no help in figuring out the crime, I've decided to stake out the "dormitory" for some time. Expect a long break between entries, journal.

And with that I'll need to stop for today, since I need to figure out Dwarf Therapist and set up all the new people. I should be able to get more done tomorrow, maybe start some daring excursions. (Ugh, really sorry for holding this up. I know there isn't anyone really "waiting in line" but I do want to apologize that I wasn't able to put in the time I thought I could.)

EDIT March 6: Well some interesting things happened, I'd say. Also, there's a corpse running loose in the shaft down towards the magma, and I need to figure out how to handle him. Any suggestions?

[Klear]

Great read! I can't wait to see what kinds of disasters lie ahead (we'll probably get invaded this winter, right?)

Where did that corpse come from? Did I leave somebody to starve there, or could it be another unreported victim of the vampire? (which would mean they don't only attack sleeping dwarves, scary)

I'd wall it off, unless it's very close to the magma. In that case there is only one good solution =)

BTW, I just realized that I probably forgot to carve memorial slabs for all the victims of the first vampire incident - you should do that if it's not done already, or there's gonna be ghosts all over the place soon. On the other hand, if the ghosts decided to haunt their murderer, they could help you find the vampire... not sure if that is the case though.

One last thing - while atom smashing all the corpses is a must for now, maybe we could make a haunted graveyard somewhere later, with small crypts closed off with grates where the corpses can reanimate and be contained. Once the graveyard fills up, we could hook the grates with a pressure plate at the entrance and seal it off, creating a new one elsewhere. It would involve a lot of dangerous micromanagement after each death, but that is already the case, and it would be great for flavour purposes/adventure mode. If nothing else, I propose we don't smash at least the corpses of nobles who require crypts.

[Game Hunter]

Where did that corpse come from? Did I leave somebody to starve there, or could it be another unreported victim of the vampire? (which would mean they don't only attack sleeping dwarves, scary)

I can't double-check this at the moment, but I was pretty certain it had come from the old dormitory. Last I checked there were only four undead in that room when there should have been five, and there wasn't a population decrease (reported, anyway). There's also a pretty significant trail of vomit in the shaft, dunno if it's from dwarves puking as they went by the dorm or by the walking corpse. Either way, I'll have to wall it off or risk some militia on it. I have a metalsmith set up to make an axe, since there are some trees finally beginning to spout within the upper levels of the fort: maybe we could fahsion some adamantium weapons (the strand extraction is finally making progress!) for a few of the soldiers that showed up with skills.

BTW, I just realized that I probably forgot to carve memorial slabs for all the victims of the first vampire incident - you should do that if it's not done already, or there's gonna be ghosts all over the place soon. On the other hand, if the ghosts decided to haunt their murderer, they could help you find the vampire... not sure if that is the case though.

Oh geez, ghosts. I'll try to make those slabs ASAP.

Also of note (although no one in the fortress would know about it) is that the "lark" from early Slate is actually a Forgotten Beast: it's been making rather quick work of all the cave fishers and their reanimating limbs with its fire-breathing attack.

I really do want to try killing these reanimated corpses, but RSO knows best as to whether or not it's worth it. I bet adamantium weapons could be enough as long as the soldiers know to hack up every last body part. It'd be really nice if there was like, a way to purify them or something. Supposedly butchering prevents reanimation (which they suggest as a method of destroying the undead), just gotta make sure not to eat any meat that come from it. (Can you even butcher non-caged animals? Maybe you could cage the corpse and it'd count.)

[Klear]

Hmm.. the vomit (and perhaps the corpse as well) is probably the result of one of the dwarves left in the tunel fighting their way to their bedroom, as noted in the part of my report not from Klearol's POV. She fought with a child's corpse and killed it, but was hurt and nauseous. Then she stubbornly went up to the dormitory where IIRC according to legends killed the original zombie (the first vampire victim) before being killed.

If you want to try to fight the zombies, make sure you can seal it and the soldiers off if it gets really messy. I'd like to know if it's better to use blunt or edge weapons... but since the only metal we have is adamantium (which is useless for blunt weapons), there's not much choice. If you maybe you should try to catch the zombies inside cage traps instead.

Hmmm... flying fire-breathing megabeast. That sounds almost like an ideal zombie eradicator, if only there was a way to catch it once it is released outside.

And I think I never buthered a caged animal, only those running around. Don't know if it is possible, but from what RSO wrote, buthering seems to lead into multiple zombie bodyparts rampaging in the fortress - not good.

[Game Hunter]

...

10th Felsite
There was no luck whatsoever in spotting any sort of criminal activity at the makeshift dormitory. It's hard to really call it one, what with our prized Leganlerteth on display right in the middle of the room. That someone would come in here and kill with that priceless artifact standing become him or her is unthinkable. I must find the culprit as soon as possible!

During my wait, I noticed a number of other events. Some of our masons have taken the liberty of engraving some of the walls, no doubt in order to prepare some memorial slabs for those lost at the "incident". It's a little surprising that the committee took as long as they did to begin work, but I suppose it was smart to let the grieving time pass before the memories really start to sink in. There were also some very scared dwarves coming from the mining shift. Perhaps I ought to explore a little downwards: it's quite possible that the deviant has taken to hiding in the depths.

13th Felsite
Great boulders below, I feel grateful merely to have survived that encounter! But I should explain: having passed the underwater reservoirs, I stumbled upon a very motionless corpse. Indeed, it was "alive" in the sense that it could move, but it did not but the slightest twiches in the wake of my presence. Apparently the adamantium gatherers have been passing this frequently, as I see the spattered vomit all around this particular area. There would appear to be no need to take specific action against this thing, but all the same, it is good that the committee is crafting an adamantium axe in order to cut down the various fungal trees growing near the surface. I can imagine it may come to good use in cutting down this abomination in due time.

Unfortunately, I cannot say that I recognize that which used to be a dwarf. One of the gatherers I spoke to regarding the matter called it "Ido", so surely he came from here. Supposedly there are no signs of breakout from the area of the "incident", so it couldn't have come from there. I am worried that we have another potential murder on our hands.

14th Felsite
Incidentally, the caravan has arrived today. Not that I expect anything from elves, but we may be lucky enough to scavenge some useful materials from them.

19th Felsite
Negotiations lasted long (apparently, as I cannot be bothered with our financial affairs) but word is that we've managed to secure a great deal of lumber from the foreigners. Finally, more beds can be made! I will, however, plead with the committee to keep the beds public matters, as it is paramount that the safety of our village remains as high as ever. With murderers walking around we have to resort to these kinds of measures, as difficult as they are.

24th Felsite
We are still finishing up the consequences of trading (namely, retrieving all of that wood... and there's plenty of it, thank Luskal), but things continue to speed up in the village. A couple of kobold thieves snuck into our supplies and tried to pilfer whatever they came for, but were impressively stopped by the might of our warriors. It has been a good long time since I've seen as a savage beating, as it used to be back at the Violent Arena. It didn't take long for the squad to lay those sickening creatures to rest, and their corpses were handled appropriately.

10th Hematite
With the elves gone and summer well on its way, Chaosfortunes is slowly returning to its peaceful and enjoyable culture. Drink has been a little low, but plenty is coming thanks to the extra storage fashioned from wooden barrels.

Our village committee, finding that safety has been restored, have designated Kel Rigothastel, one of the great founders of Chaosfortunes, to become our fine mayor. Construction has begun on his living quarters, which will make my own space seem quite pale. Still, I cannot say they could have picked a better candidate, given just how much he's already contributed to our earthly society.

15th Hematite
The memorials have finally been placed into the dining hall, as they were with Dastot Sobirber. Though my progress has thus been slow in finding any vengeance for these souls, I hope to someday allow them to rest and find their peace with the gods.

The elves had a REALLY nice supply of wood, managed to get enough public beds for a lot of people to be happy. The corpse in the mine shaft isn't one of the five in the old dorm, but he's not identified as murdered, either, so it could have well been another vampire attack that went unnoticed. As for the corpses in the dorm, I think they are moving through doors, but they don't seem to know how to climb stairs, so that might be what's preventing them from killing everyone.

Gonna wait until the summer caravan before trying my luck with an actual new dormitory and privatized bedding. Since the zombies don't even seem to be a huge problem stair-wise, I'm also considering a good deal of mining expansion. So yeah, in spite of the constant threat of death, I think we're starting to get some real headway!

[RSO]

Sorry I haven't been checking regularly.

Butchering does not prevent reanimation, but it does weaken it. Meat does not reanimate - only body parts. To completely stop an animal from reanimating, butchering it and then quickly tanning the hide into leather is sufficient. There is no way to stop a dwarf from reanimating short of a drawbridge or magma.

Ways are being discussed for future versions to have zombies eventually stop being reanimated, but in the current version, they cannot be destroyed in combat.

If you must engage a zombie in combat, blunt weapons are best. Melt down an anvil for iron if you have to, but for the love of Armok, don't use an axe. Especially not an adamantite one.
Blunt weapons have the highest raw damage values. They do consistent damage even against things with no vulnerable anatomy, which is what zombies are. Piercing weapons have the lowest damage, but the highest piercing value, which means they're the most likely to damage internal organs like hearts and brains. Against living creatures, that's great, but zombies don't care. Bladed weapons have medium damage, but can sever limbs. That would be great most of the time, even against undead, but not in this biome. Even a severed finger will just be another enemy, and another hauling job. Keeping the corpses intact means that it only takes a single hauler to bring them to the atom smasher.

My recommendation is to build another atom smasher, bait the zombie into it, and then atom smash it without a fight. Something like this:
##########
#XXXXXXXX#
+XXXXXXXX+
##########
X = Drawbridge (raises north). When pulled up, it will be a 1-wide hallway with doors at both ends.
##########
#========#
+........+
##########
Once a zombie gets inside, lock both doors and drop the bridge. No fight, no blood, no loss of civilian life.

[Klear]

The undead can use stairs, so that won't help. I've had a dwarf chased by a zombie for several Z levels before it caught up with her. Try not to open the tunnel that's connected to the doomed dormitory.

Also, atom smashing everything seems a like like cheating to me. I'd prefer if we could only throw the zombies down to a pit they can't get out and then drop invading goblins on top of them =)

[RSO]

Also, atom smashing everything seems a like like cheating to me. I'd prefer if we could only throw the zombies down to a pit they can't get out and then drop invading goblins on top of them =)

I agree that it's cheating, but I don't see any other option. Zombies, in their present state, are unkillable in conventional combat. Beating them down and hauling them to an atom smasher/pit is risky, to say the least. I'm pretty sure that Hallcarver zombie still has her physical stats. Even if you beat them all down down, the risk that one of them will wake up and kill the haulers (and other surrounding dwarves) is too great.

There's way too many ways that this could go wrong, and any of them do go wrong, Chaosfortunes is dead. This might be my Angel of Max Carnage showing, but that's counting on way too much generosity from lady luck. Either leave it walled off, or dust off an nuke it from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

That said, it's your call, Game Hunter. We can always reclaim or find a new site if it all goes to the Circus.

[Klear]

How is it goiung, Game Hunter? Will you be able to finish your year?
I'd hate to see this game stopped. In case you won't be able to finish this week, somebody should probably take over, either from my last save, or preferably where you left off.

[Game Hunter]

How is it goiung, Game Hunter? Will you be able to finish your year?

You should probably just restart my year without me. I haven't had time to sit down for some serious playing and I'm pretty sure I haven't been using dorf time very efficiently. Now I got even MORE stuff going on, so I don't think I'm going to be able to finish the year any time soon. Really, really sorry about wasting your time on this place, since it really is a nice scenario.

[Klear]

In that case - anybody new interested in being a sheriff looking for the vapire? (great experience in playing dwarf frotress in NOT required. I'm a living proof. Besides, we want to have fun, right?) In case nobody wants to join, RSO, are you still available?

On an unrelated note, are there some people lurking around and reading the story, or is it just players to themselves?

[RSO]

I'm still available. I'd like to give it a couple days for others to speak up, though.

Is it possible to change the thread title to alert people that there are still spots open?

[thelaptop]

I'm around reading the story.  Keep 'em comin'.  =)

[RSO]

If no one else picks this up by tomorrow, I'll grab it for another round. I'll try to do an actual IC writeup this time.