A Strange Mood: Recent Episodes

Kristin McFarland, Drew Buschhorn

A married couple makes a humorous attempt to understand and inhabit the world of Dwarf Fortress.

We’ve got fort updates, strange characters, and artifacts galore! Drew tells us about his monster encounters, and Kristin shares her new favorite weirdo, Shem the Shirtless Fisherdwarf. As a bonus at the end, we talk a little about some other games we’ve tried, including Elin, the game that feels like Adventure Mode!

Extra Info:

Join the Discord! https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
Tlatoani: Aztec Cities. If you like Caesar 3, check it out: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3161270/Tlatoani_Aztec_Cities/
Elin: A game about some sort of adventuring and possibly eating kittens? https://store.steampowered.com/app/2135150/Elin/
Mirthwood: Gotta be honest, needs more time to bake. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2272900/Mirthwood/
Fields of Mistria: Worth a look. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2142790/Fields_of_Mistria/

Transcript (see README for more details)

“For Gods Sake, Someone Pull The Lever!”Today we’re visited by a very special guest, who brings along his process, stories and great Dwarfy tips! Stick around in the episode for another great bop? ditty? (idk, I’m old – Drew) from Stephen!

Extra Info:

Join the Discord! https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
Check out Stephen’s Story Dwarves channel: https://www.youtube.com/@StoryDwarves
- Also, his ‘Were of the Beast’: https://youtu.be/TBs-guUs-mI?t=514
- Even more also, if you like the ukulele or want to learn, he and his wife have a channel just for that: https://www.youtube.com/@UkuleleWineTime
- And don’t forget to check out his Patreon: patreon.com/StoryDwarves and Bandcamp: https://storydwarves.bandcamp.com/
Finally, we said it before, but we’ll say it again,
“Congrats to Tarn on his marriage!”
Unique physical instruments with MIDI: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KybaFjKld6g
Simon Swerwer – Dwarf Translations – https://www.reddit.com/r/dwarffortress/comments/10xhbsb/simon_swerwers_dwarf_fortress_inspired_soundcloud/

Transcript (see README for more details)

This week, we actually played Dwarf Fortress! Drew has a cool new fort with some artifacts, and Kristin has a new fort that will be cool eventually, probably… hopefully? For the start of spooky season, Kristin talks about Mind Over Magic. And finally, Drew tells us all about Amazing Cultivation Simulator and how it doesn’t involve plants.

Extra Info:

Join the discord! https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
Mykl’s Dreamfort Tutorial Episode 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4-d7mdiol0
DF Hack Release: https://github.com/DFHack/dfhack/releases/tag/50.13-r5rc1
Mind Over Magic: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1270580/Mind_Over_Magic/
Amazing Cultivation Simulator: https://store.steampowered.com/app/955900/Amazing_Cultivation_Simulator/
- “Cultivation Fantasy”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xianxia
- “Progression Fantasy” / “LitRPG”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LitRPG
Towerborne: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2458830/Towerborne/
Core Keeper: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1621690/Core_Keeper/

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’ve got a special episode all about Critter Cove! This is 100% a Kristin Game, with cute creatures, exploration, crafting, and much more! We tell you all about the game and then discuss the concept of early access, and our experiences with games in development. Note that Kristin raises some questions about game features and then answers them herself at the very end (via the magic of reading the roadmap in detail).

Extra info:

Join Our Discord: https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
- Critter Cove! – $20 on Steam sale currently: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1631470/Critter_Cove/
- Dead Cells – https://store.steampowered.com/app/588650/Dead_Cells/
- Core Keeper – https://store.steampowered.com/app/1621690/Core_Keeper/
- Fields of Mistria – https://store.steampowered.com/app/2142790/Fields_of_Mistria/
- What is early access: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_access

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’re back with an update about all the games we’ve been playing. There are dwarves, we promise!

Extra Info:

Join the discord! https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
Cult of the Lamb: Sins of the Flesh
- https://store.steampowered.com/app/1313140/Cult_of_the_Lamb/
- Pretty funny youtube short of Cult of the Lamb: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuVAWbg4kns
Core Keeper: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1621690/Core_Keeper/
Rogue Trader: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2186680/Warhammer_40000_Rogue_Trader/
Critter Cove: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1631470/Critter_Cove/
Crab God: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2289390/Crab_God/
- Kingdom: https://store.steampowered.com/app/701160/Kingdom_Two_Crowns/
Worshippers of Cthulhu:
- https://store.steampowered.com/app/2807150/Worshippers_of_Cthulhu/
Return to Moria: Age of Gold –https://store.steampowered.com/app/2933130/The_Lord_of_the_Rings_Return_to_Moria/
Sun Haven: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1432860/Sun_Haven/
Against the Storm: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1336490/Against_the_Storm/

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’re alive! We’ve returned briefly from our summer interlude to discuss what we’ve been up to, and Drew tells us all about his recent Rimworld experience. We’ll be back soon with more dwarfy goodness, we promise!

Extra Info:

Join the discord! https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
Get RimWorld on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/294100/RimWorld/
Read “Fire Upon The Deep” by Vernor Vinge, author also of “True Names” (i.e. passwords) the origin of cyberspace (one of many). RimWorld also probably influenced by “Revelation Space” by Alastair Reynolds.
TV Show recommendation: Evil. Fun, weird, very late 90s for being from early 2020s.
Eventually we’ll get to:
Dwarf Fortress: Laboratory and Homestead, Journal Article https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412015603192

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’re back from summer break! Kind of! Indiana is going crazy in the heat, yo, but we’re staying cool with Dwarf Fortress, Rimworld, and all the good settlement games available right now.

Extra Info:

Join the discord! https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
Get RimWorld on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/294100/RimWorld/
DFHack 50.13-r3rc1 released, with lots of new features! https://www.reddit.com/r/dwarffortress/comments/1dk0a9l/dfhack_5013r3rc1_beta_has_been_released/
Building SimCity: How to Put the World in a Machine (Game Histories) https://www.amazon.com/Building-SimCity-World-Machine-Histories/dp/0262547481
Dwarf Fortress: Laboratory and Homestead, Journal Article https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412015603192

Transcript (see README for more details)

Kristin starts settling a volcano start location, and realizes it’s a bit more fun than she thought it’d be. Drew continues with the adventure mode beta, making best friends with a hermit-crab-man and his platonic life partner, a master swordsman squirrel-man. Together with their cuddly pet giant war turtle and giant war bear they attempt to murder the lobster queen of Crab Town!

Also, it’s vacation time!

Extra info:

Join Our Discord: https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
- Kaiju No. 8 – Because I guess every badass leader needs war tiger.
- Mind over Magic – horizontal base building game
- Kenshi – because, idk, it’s a whole thing
- Rurik and DFHack Mykl are making videos in the discord
- Bobbit worms! Apparently Drew was wrong about what they are! He was thinking of Osesdax or ‘Zombie Worms’

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’re back, this time with more goblin murder! We talk in the first 20ish minutes about adventure mode, some of the reactions we’ve seen to it, and how we’re feeling about the current state of the beta. Then, in the last 40ish minutes, you can hear us create an adventurer and almost immediately become murder hobos! That second segment is a lot different than our usual episodes, and there are some clicks and volume differences, but hopefully you enjoy hearing our adventure.

Extra info:

Join Our Discord: https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
- Rurik’s mine carts on discord
- Mykl’s video on pumpstacks on DFRoundTable
- Stephen’s StoryDwarfs Song Contest
- A very naughty Reddit post: https://undelete.pullpush.io/r/dwarffortress/comments/1bsnr67/_/kxguueo/#comment-info
- Fallout / Skyrim Monster Factory Videos from the McElroy’s

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’ve got so much going on! Drew has a metropolis, Kristin has a city, and we have all the encounters that go along with a larger population! Forgotten beasts, creepy underworld creatures, and artifacts galore. Plus, we talk a little about the Stardew Valley update and probably way too much about what manga and anime we’re consuming!

Extra info:

Join Our Discord: https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
DFHack Beta has Legends browser!
The final episode of Story Dwarfs: The Ballad Of Urist and Bembul: Episode 4 – The Hand Of Destiny, by Stephen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnEamJrckiM
Stardew Valley has an update.
What we’re reading:
- The Dangers in My Heart
- I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire!
- So I’m a Spider, So What?
A weird bit of history: resonant / sympathetic strings!

Transcript (see README for more details)

Drew and Kristin talk about how things are going too well at their forts. Also sorry for the talk of dissection of animals in a school context at the end. Idk, it’s Dwarf Fortress!

Extra info:

Join Our Discord: https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
DFHack 50.12-r2.1 released!
- https://store.steampowered.com/app/2346660/DFHack
- Highlights: Taking the frustration out of irritation, fixing longstanding vanilla bugs, instrument component lookup, automatically retrain partially trained livestock, skill level and labor type restrictions for workshops.
A late addition that didn’t make it into the ‘cast, Story Dwarfs: The Ballad Of Urist and Bembul: Episode 3 – Morality and Hatchets by Stephen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_waIQVqmFd4
Some autoshooters / Vampire Survivors games!
- Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor
- Halls of Torment
Read about Rutherers! They make great pets but better steaks and shoes!
A weird bit of history: the Codd-neck bottle! Ramune Soda!

Transcript (see README for more details)

And where does the apostrophe go when fortress is possessive? We have fort updates, goblin animal trainers, and a deep dive into story progression and endgame in simulation games. Plus, poetry corner and disappointing artifacts!

Extra info:

Join Our Discord: https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
Stephen’s Story Dwarves – The Ballad Of Urist And Bembul: Episode 1 – A Hero Walks
Reddit Post – Is someone developing a Dwarf Fortress clone updated to current gaming standards ? – lol
Thanks to MisterTux for pointing out our broken discord link!
Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles (has a demo)
KeeperRL (just reached 1.0)

images

Transcript (see README for more details)

This week, we’ve got tons of dwarfy news, musings on how Dwarf Fortress allows for so much creativity, and updates from our forts. Kristin has a wereracoon problem, and Drew’s mayor has a vendetta against mandrake juice. Plus, we’re both very tired and silly for this Monday recording, so enjoy some digressions into dwarven poetry and a lot of giggling. Don’t try mandrake juice, kids, not even once!

Extra info:

Join Our Discord: https://discord.gg/ZK7j7dYxsD
Stephen’s Story Dwarves – Real Dwarf Music – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lc1LeYm3s8 (awesome as always!)
Be sure to hop onto the discord to hear a sneak peek at Stephen’s upcoming project: “The Ballad Of Urist And Bembul” https://discord.com/channels/1087366752419184800/1087366753396461715/1207351915499757670
And check out Rurik’s tutorials: https://discord.com/channels/1087366752419184800/1158393708710990005/1202871765051899974 !
Old Poetry Corner:
- Harborpirate: A poem conforming to The Yells Of Courage (A five syllable poem emphatically renouncing immorality with vivid imagery):
  “I renounce long life!”
  “Hark, immortals stink!”
  This poem structure is hilarious.
- Storydwarf / Stephen:
  A 5-syllable poem renouncing immortality:
  “We are stars when dead”
- Agberts’ Against Immortality:
  “die now
  Die Now
  DIE”
  Truely a fitting cover piece for the Book of Grudges.
New Poetry Corner:
- The Rhythmic Dumplings is a solemn poetic form intended to describe alcoholic beverages, originating in (human) The Maroon Kingdoms. The form guides poets during improvised performances. The poem is a series of quintains. The Rhythmic Dumplings is always written from the perspective of the author. Use of alliteration is characteristic of the form. Each line has four feet with an accent pattern of stressed-unstressed (qualitative trochaic tetrameter).
- The Rampart of Roughness is a solemn poetic form intended to express pleasure with crafts, originating in The Mine of Fealties. The rules of the form are applied by poets to produce individual poems which can be recited. The poem is a single tercet. Use of assonance and vivid imagery is characteristic of the form. Forms of parallelism are common throughout the poem, in that certain lines are required to maintain phrasing and they have similar grammatical structures. Each line has six syllables. The third line of the tercet shares the underlying meaning of the first line. The third line of the tercet reverses the grammatical structure of the first line.

Transcript (see README for more details)

Drew makes Kristin compare Dwarf Fortress to other logistics / survival base building games. Spoiler alert: Dwarf Fortress is better. Also, for the SEO: Palworld, Palworld, Palworld. Meanwhile Kristin’s fort goes artifact crazy, while Drew’s fort turns into a drunken tavern nude elf orgy. Speaking of, we also recommend the (elf-loving) anime Frieren, which gets added to list of words Drew can’t pronounce, along with Urist. Finally, Aves citizens lay eggs in nest boxes … now that fact is your head too.

Extra info:

Join Our Discord: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Logistic / base building games having a moment: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Construction_and_management_simulation
Factorio, a game about assembly lines: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Factorio
Kitfox and Deep Rock Galactic’s community got the Dwarf tag added to Steam, and are in talks for a Steam “Dwarf Fest” to highlight all our favorite Dwarfy games.
Frieren. We’re not an anime podcast, but you should go watch it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frieren

Transcript (see README for more details)

Kristin metagames for a bit, then tells of the death of her beloved hamster woman bard. Drew talks about DFHack making trading easier, then regales us with the tale of the first queen of his new civilization and the competition between three brothers to become her heir. Biblical!

Extra Info:

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Episode 5 of Learned Hands from Steven: “Holes and Nothing More” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-L_-vmsIBI
DFHack: https://docs.dfhack.org/en/stable/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2346660/DFHack__Dwarf_Fortress_Modding_Engine/

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’re back, this time with mods! After a long break, we’ve spun up new Dwarf Fortress worlds and are getting back into the swing of things. Come for Dwarf Fortress talk, stay for our discussion of other games we’ve played during the break. Digressions include dralthas and how decapods wear shoes.

Extra info:

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
The mods Drew is using:
Mcnuggys Mythical Beasts (mandrake)
Stoneworking Expanded (beds)
Decapods, Aves, Accurate Cat Graphics, War Possums
Bulk Sewing
Smelters Burn Waste
Low Population Tweaks
Age of Wonders 4 (4x) on Steam
Amarantus (visual novel) on Steam

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’re back! But then we’re taking a long break! But we’ll also be trying to drop some interstitial content! We’re excited!

Alas, Fordcudgel has fallen, while Glazecradled has been abandoned by their goddess in favor of an exciting new volcano fort. Will the HOT HOT magma be enough to save their world from the ignominy of becoming a zip file in a directory no one remembers? Only time will tell.

Extra Info:

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Stephen’s Story Dwarves: Learnedhands 4: The Rise Of Turelotad on YouTube
Adventure Mode in April! Bay12Forums
DFWiki Vandalized: reddit

Transcript (see README for more details)

Sorry all, we’ve had a confluence of bad days this week which means you’re getting an apology and not much else right now. We’ll be back in a week or two with a last pre-holidays spectacular, but for now, enjoy some random Dwarf Fortress news and say your prayers for us to your preferred lungfish deity.

Extra info

Join our Discord to keep up to date over the holidays!: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Stephen’s Story Dwarves: Learnedhands 4: The Rise Of Turelotad on YouTube
Caves of Qud update: Creatures of the 7th Plague Major Update is OUT NOW!
Fangamer New DF Merch: Dwarf Fortress
Adventure Mode Preview on KitFox and BlindIRL: Blind’s Youtube Video

Transcript (see README for more details)

It’s a little after Halloween, but we’ve got spooky stories to thrill and chill you AND your dwarves! Plus fort updates: a lot of dwarves died at Kristin’s fort, while Drew’s dwarves have been taken by many strange moods. Digressions include basically everything because we’re having construction done on our house this week and are completely brain-fried. Thanks for listening!

Extra info

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Stephen’s Story Dwarves: Learnedhands 3: The Rise Of Turelotad on YouTube
Spooky Forts on Bay12Forums:
Delphonso’s Spookyfort IV: The Overlook
Autumn Kingdoms
Custom Embarks!
Bay12Forum Advice
Reddit Advice

Transcript (see README for more details)

We’re back for episode 23 with strands of meat and spooky stories! Kristin has gone mad with power and is tackling all the industries at once, and Drew is trying to console a very angry craftswoman. We talk about how ghosts work in Dwarf Fortress, and we’ve got a fun new recurring topic: what’s on the menu at your fort? Prepare to be horrified. Digressions include resin opal, dwarven fashion, and water buffalo pasture consumption.

Extra Info

Our Discord Group: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Stephen’s Story Dwarves: LearnedHands, Episode 2 “A Glimmer in the Torchlight” on YouTube
Bay12Games forum Spooookyforts!
BlindIRL on Future of the Fort
Ghosts on DFWiki

Transcript
(see README for more details)

Things are hopping at both our forts, and we’ve got paper making, mine carts, lava fountains, and clothes keeping us busy. Plus, tons of cool community news! Kristin wonders why her dwarves aren’t inspired to write books, and Drew tells us just how grumpy his dwarves are, even when they’re happy. Topic of the day is whether or not Dwarf Fortress is “grindy,” what constitutes grindiness in a game, and what makes Dwarf Fortress special in the management sim world. Digressions include the definition of quire, dwarven population booms, and how we can’t listen to podcasts while we play Dwarf Fortress.

Extra Info

Our Discord Group: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Stephen’s Story Dwarves on Youtube
Rocking Music on Bandcamp!
Why is Dwarfcore so good?
Dwarf Fortress Adventure Mode Update
35 Days of Dwarf: Nameless Archon on Reddit. Tutorials while raising money for Extra Life charity for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. See them on Twitch also.
Mention of Dwarf Fortress on ‘The Besties’
Libraries on DFWiki

Transcript
(see README for more details)

Welcome to Glazedcradled and Fordcudgel, our new forts! That’s right: we’re back to full time dwarfin.’ This time we talk settlement strategies and project plans, including Kristin’s small attempts to get into engineering and industry, and Drew’s grand lava plans. Digressions include crabapples and Kristin’s myriad elf boyfriends. Finally, be sure to send us your spookiest dwarven ghosts, macabre deaths, and scary monsters so that we can talk about them at Halloween!

Extra Info

Our Discord Group: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Start getting your spoopy Dwarf Fortress ghost stories and macabre deaths to send in! We won’t judge if you decide to put your finger on the scales of luck for a particularly annoying noble!
Dwarf Fortress v50.10 release – Now on Linux!
Sphalerite is weird – https://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/Sphalerite
“Horse-high, bull-strong, and pig-tight!” – Wikipedia on Hedge Apples!

Transcript
(see README for more details)

We’re back this week to talk about (sorry) BALDUR’S GATE 3! We dedicate an entire episode to gushing about this amazing game. Digressions include, well, the entire episode, which is a digression from our actual focus. We’ll be back to dorfin’ next time! Act 3 spoilers start at 26:47. Extra Info Transcript(see README for more details)

We’re here, we’re injured, and we’re ready to talk about storytelling! This week, we discuss the demise of both Wetringed and FieryCities. (RIP.) We also dig deep into how we pull stories from dwarf fortress, how role-playing is different from storytelling, and what challenges we have when trying to document the lives of individual dwarves. […]

This week, we’ve got brief updates from our forts, but mostly we’re geeking out about Baldur’s Gate 3! Talk about highest quality; we’re obsessed with this game. If you’re not interested and/or don’t want spoilers for Act 1, you can skip from 19:30 to 40:05. Digressions this episode include pedal harps and, well, most of […]

This week we’re talking about guildhalls! We also bring you the latest news from WetRinged and FieryCities, featuring embezzlement and divine judgement. Digressions include moon snails, shady statues, and underwhelming secret identity reveals. Drew also brings us the tale of a dwarven con artist from Legends Mode! Extra info: Transcript(see README for more details)

This week, we’re giving you the news from our forts and then discussing what constitutes cheating in Dwarf Fortress and other simulation-type games. Digressions include bumblebee deities and Sims challenges. We also talk a little about two other games we’re currently enjoying: Sun Haven and Monster Sanctuary! Extra info: Transcript(see README for more details)

We’re back from vacation to tell you all about new forts, old forts, and child labor. Kristin’s new fort has a terrible name, and Drew’s continuing fort has a power couple and intriguing deaths. Plus, we talk all about dwarven children, both feral and, uh, domesticated? Asides include bees and unmanageable cavern terrain. Extra info: […]

Kristin and Drew are still on vacation, but we’ve brought you a special bonus episode about a game we love, Against the Storm! It’s a rogue-lite settlement builder with woodland creatures and an evil forest, and we think you’ll love it, too. Note that this game has been in really rapid development, so a few […]

Episode 13 brings the return of Legends Mode browsing, Kristin’s updates from BellBlade, Drew’s lack of updates from FieryCities, and so many violent attacks by otherwise peaceful animals. We also talk about finding your fort’s theme, such as: Glass! Magma! Succession Fort! but don’t know if we come to any conclusions. Extra Info:

Episode 12 brings you updates from Kristin’s fort, BellBlade, and the epic ending of Drew’s fort, CopperStreams. Topics (not digressions!) include animal training and how/when to specialize dwarf labor.

NOTE Corrected version dropped at 1:41pm EDT. Apologies!

Extra info:

Our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1241402480100214/
Our Discord group: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Dwarf Fortress Wiki on Animal Training:
https://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/Animal_trainer
Dwarf Fortress Wiki on Skills and Professions: (listener suggested!)
https://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/Skill

Transcript
(see README for more details)

We’re back to playing our individual forts AND we’re digging deep into the topic of caverns. Who knew we could fit so much content into one episode? Digressions include keeping dwarves happy after there’s been a massacre.

Extra info:

Our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1241402480100214/
Our Discord group: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Dwarf Fortress wiki on caverns: https://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/Cavern
Forgotten Beast from a listener!
“The mountain titan Oda Thifatipi Thaluthithu has come! An enormous one-eyed serpent. It has a fat, bulging trunk and it has an austere look about it. Beware it’s deadly spittle.”
They say: “I can just see it’s one monocled eye. I can see how genteelly it spits to show how austere it is.”

Transcript
(see README for more details)

For our tenth episode, we played a succession fort. What does that mean, you ask? Well, we passed shared fort in a HAUNTED biome back and forth for a total of four dwarf years. Fun was had. Digressions include windmills and the titles of consorts baron/ess. Thanks for sticking with us for TEN EPISODES!

Extra info:

Our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1241402480100214/
Our Discord group: https://discord.gg/34kdwGQUph
Gashcozokon’s Procedurally Generated Data Extractor! https://sepsoft.ca/df/extraction/

It’s the safety requirements that’ll kill ya, folks. Drew tells us all about how to build a waterfall at your fort entrance, Kristin wonders if merchants are dumb or bugged, and we both share some weird fiction from our new forts. Plus, we reflect on how storytelling is an integral part of the game.

Extra info:

Our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1241402480100214/
Interview with Zach and Tarn at AIAS Gamemakers Notebook Podcast
https://interactive.libsyn.com/the-history-of-dwarf-fortress-with-zach-and-tarn-adams-part-1
https://interactive.libsyn.com/the-history-of-dwarf-fortress-with-zach-and-tarn-adams-part-2
Adventure Mode Coming: https://www.pcgamer.com/dwarf-fortress-devs-on-big-adventure-mode-plans-this-is-just-gonna-blow-everyones-mind/
Lord Bookworm’s awesome artifact:
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=128565266816725&set=g.1241402480100214

We talk fort reclamation, aquifers, and HELL! Seriously, though, we cover a lot of ground in this episode. Drew is trying to dig to hell, Kristin reclaimed an old fort, and aquifers ooze uncontrollably. In other words, it’s a normal day in Dwarf Fortress.

Two weeks may feel like an AGE between episodes, but we’re back and we’re ready to talk about AGES of time… okay, there’s nothing there. Regardless, we’ve got weird news from our forts, and we delve into world generation and how history passes in Dwarf Fortress. We also talk a bit more about FPS problems, managing trash in your fort, and digging straight to hell.

We’re back! Welcome new listeners! We’re talking embark locations, including surroundings and how to deal with aquifers. We both have new forts and lots to say about them, and we mourn the demise of both Ragdreams and Daubedpages. Kristin also had a knock-down, drag-out fight with the microphone about a quarter of the way through this episode, so the sound quality changes for the better after 12ish minutes.

Riftflaxen the violence of treaties, a damn fine siltstone mugBluntblossomed the patterned lamentation,
a white table engraved with bogeymen. Plural.A standard masterwork llama wool coat

Nothing says romance like zombie entrails and olm people skeletons. We’re both facing some troubles with our forts, and it might be time to move on. Drew’s linked location (Dungsville?!) is having some economic success, and Kristin cannot get rid of the zombies. Should we call it quits and embark anew?

The evolution of a fortress!A damn good tower cap doorA vicious bat man … man bat … idkA hydra engraved puzzle box

Welcome to our fourth episode! Drew shares the military exploits of Daubedpages, Kristin laments the ongoing misery that is Ragdreams, and we talk briefly about fortress tiers. Are you a hamlet or a village? How about a duchy? Who knows!! As a bonus, Kristin shares a tragic short story about our friend Kol Copperleopard and her boyfriend Vabok. (You’ll be able to find text of the story in a separate post.) Thanks for listening!

Alas, poor Vabok.The Battle of DoomfeetMENACES WITH SPIKES

No, not a fort called design; we’re talking about designing your fort! We also have some fun news from our forts, and a lamentation about the casualties of well-digging.

A kaolinite crownAn avocado osUshat Seedlabored

In our second episode, we’re talking drinks! We learn all about plump helmets, including how to efficiently grow them, store them, and turn them into that sweet, sweet dwarven wine. Drew reports on the unhappiest dwarf in existence, and Kristin bemoans the weremonitorlizard invasion currently plaguing her fort.

https://www.twitch.tv/thatkristin

Our very first episode! We talk a little bit about the game itself, introduce you to our worlds, and tackle the big question of whether Dwarf Fortress is a game or a toy. We had a couple of recording glitches, but we thought it was time to drop our pilot episode, so please forgive any audio goofers this once.

For future episodes, this page will feature detailed show notes, the text of short stories, and links to anything we reference.

Enjoy the episode, and thanks for embarking on this journey with us!

The Forgotten Beast Quula Sutris lu has come! A towering feathered earthworm. It has wings and it squirms and fidgets. Its midnight blue feathers are long and broad. Beware its fire!The Forgotten Beast Asno has come! An enormous feathered iguanodont. It has a pair of knobby antennae and it undulates rhythmically. Its eyes glow azure. Its orange feathers are patchy. Beware its webs!