Source
r/dwarffortress•
Azoreo

Dwarven TSA

Just recently I had an immigration wave which coincided with uninvited guests - a goblin ambush/welcoming party. It wasn't pretty for the immigrants (although I silently mused to myself that at least I wouldn't have to rush to build 20 new homes for them).

Now, while I'd walled myself off and had floodgates blocking the entrance, I realized that when I opened them for immigrants, goblins could rush in as well. So I started the Dwarven TSA program.

I now have two gates, with a meeting area between them. When immigrants arrive the first gate is opened and they're admitted to the screening area. Once they've all arrived the outer gate is shut, they're all strip searched, and if no IED's or goblins are found, they're allowed into the fortress proper.

Posted Mar 9, 2011, 4:43 AM UTC

4229
gegc•

Don't forget to confiscate all crossbows, axes, and picks, and then melt them no matter the quality!

24
AzoreoOP•

And any magma they bring onto the premises is clearly off limits and dangerous and must be dumped - however, magma they find/purchase after passing through security is quite alright, no matter where they spill it.

14
Pagan-za•

Weapons and stuff should be ok, but no liquids that isnt beer.

4
robeph•

Crossbows, and axes? You're not thinking correctly, not only do you take those, but you take all jugs, barrels, and anything else they may be carrying that isn't a small 3 x 3 " prepackaged food item.

2
EndlessInfinity•

You should add the option to fill the holding area with water, drowning any goblins inside.

5
Davdak•

Also good for killing unwanted immigrants.

7
Geofferic•

And Nobles.

14
Geofferic•

And Nobles.

13
trustmeep•

I know the double post is probably a result of the 50X errors many of us have been getting...but this is funny.

4
AzoreoOP•

That's a very good idea. I haven't got into pumping water yet unfortunately. So, for me, I`d have to build it below the level of a river, which can sometimes be a pain in the neck. Time to work on screw pumps I guess.

1
Taladar•

Why use water when you could be using Magma?

1
neshel•

I couldn't figure out how to make an airlock work (meeting areas, of course! what about caravans?) but I have a blender hallway that solves all my problems now. Dwarves pass through safely, gobbos get blended.

4
robeph•

How's that work?

3
neshel•

I have a large outdoor courtyard to my fort, but this could be done at any entrance area. I built a long tunnel bookended by bridges, 2 spaces wide, and filled it with weapon traps, mostly each has a pair of large, serrated steel discs. When an ambush or seige happens I close all other entrances, call my few wayward dwarves in, and they pass happily over the traps unmolested while the gobbos get torn to shreds. At first I would periodically have to close a bridge or two and leave them to blend, but at this point they mostly don't get near the end of the blender.

I've been meaning to submit the story behind these screenshots, but I guess you can have them early so you can see the blender. screencaps

5
robeph•

Thanks, that is interesting.

1
neshel•

No prob! It's weird that I'm now a moderately experienced player.

1
topherclay•

I was doing the same thing as you a while but then after a FB attack all my guys limped over their own traps and got torn to shreds. AFAIK there is no way save a limping Dwarf from tripping over a trap. :(

1
neshel•

hmmm, well the way my fort is set up right now, only the hunters really roam and if they splat themselves who cares? I think I'll be taking tygea42's suggestion of cage traps and cave-ins for FBs.

1
ChaosMotor•

I don't like weapon traps, they are lost training opportunities.

1
neshel•

I already had a nice room full of caged goblins from before I built the blender. I'll probably stick a few cage traps outside the blender when my supplies get low.

1
threeminus•

Now when a Forgotten Beast shows up you can play "Will it Blend?"!

2
neshel•

Sadly, FBs and Titans don't blend. They just march in and kill your donkey bait. But the screencaps I offered show what happens when I trap a fire-breathing Titan in the blender and release it on the next seige. =D

2
tygea42•

you can knock them out with a cave-in, then they blend just fine. A floor tile on top of a lever linked pillar works fine. Or no lever, because you're trying to knock out a building destroyer and not a kobold.

But I might recommend cage traps when working with FBs and titans. Weapon traps splatter.

2
neshel•

ooh, that sounds like a plan for my upcoming spelunking mission, got quite a few FBs running around down there. Cage traps are definitely a great idea. Poison blood killed my last fort.

1
AzoreoOP•

Well, next to the meeting area, have a trade depot. Open the outer gate - caravan arrives. Close outer gate and open inner gate, dump your cheap goods off with the elves and trade for phat lewts.

I was actually use three gates due to how the fortress evolved over time, but it`d be simpler to condense the trade/immigration zones into one area. Then the immigrants could be drafted into item hauling labor immediately.

1
neshel•

XD I'm so used to where I place my trade depot, generally, in a fort that the idea of putting it inside the airlock never occurred to me.

1
[deleted]•

[deleted]

1
[deleted]•

make it a meeting area.

maybe stockpile food and drink nearby, depending on how badly you need new immigrants.

2
AzoreoOP•

Meeting area! Have two meetings areas. With the inner door closed, dwarves inside default to the inner meeting area deep inside your fortress. With the outer door open new immigrants default to the meeting area between the doors (floodgates). Once they and their donkeys or whatever are all inside, flip the switches and eliminate the meeting zone.

1
holodog•

I hope you remember to make them remove their boots.

1