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[Salmeuk]

The entire thing reeked of evil what with the remains of Amara twisted in such a way as to evoke a tarantula's web down the sides of the clothing, the top half of her skull on the crotch and her hip bones turned into pockets.

What a horrifying description you've created here!

Also, I enjoy how much drinking occurs in your journaling. Almost enough to be realistic. .

[StrikaAmaru]

 

This is one hell of a thing to read on holiday. I knew I jinxed that poor dwarfette when I said she was going to live past SmallHands... now we have a temporal paradox on our hands

And a fell mood! Between this and the macabre mood I got in SmithSoldier, I guess we are bad at keeping dwarves happy?

[recon1o6]

I knew I jinxed that poor dwarfette when I said she was going to live past SmallHands.

In my defence, it was her (a relatively unskilled haulier) or our only armoursmith. So I locked the door to the corridor and it forced Vutok to go through the animal pen to get out to the corridor. I then unlocked the door after he killed her in front of two people no less

Most of the dwarves are content, there's only 4 that weren't, and he was one of them. He wasn't the worst one by any means- that's Auze who I'm gonna write off as a lost cause

Wish me luck guys, exam in 15 minutes

[recon1o6]

Hey everyone, its been a little while, thought I'd update you all
Great news: I passed the exam with 85%

Better news: I'm going to be resuming the fortress in a few minutes and am looking to finish my term by wednesday. Current status is fps tanked because of another bunch of beak dogs hatching and giant birbs hatching. On the plus side, at least there's plenty of fat available for soap production

Bad news: I suspect that my successor is going to be the one decorating the Towering Tankard. Including the magma. We don't have much if any gold

[delphonso]

How's it going recon?

[recon1o6]

RL derailed me again... and the fps lag isn't helping, making everything a chore


Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 28th of Limestone 163

Had an unexpected visitor in the Tavern today

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Apparently two important events had occured outside smallhands. Numer 1 was a new Religious leader in some dank alley back at the mountainhomes. I don't care really, the only gods any dwarf should worship are reason and magma, and as we all know the avatar of magma is Armok
The second was mildly more interesting: The mint sack formed an expedition led by the old religious leader, gave some goblins a kick and became mayor, expedition leader and broker of someplace west of us.
I confess I wasn't paying attention given I was going over my plans for the tavern and the liason in question had already downed two of my strongest ales by the time he had finished rambling about the trade agreement

That said, I did start paying attention after he started bellowing to Sal about next years export agreement, hard not to really when he was flailing rudely as apparently I didn't serve big enough tankards before he went into a tirade about the state of the mountainhomes. I made a note of it on the back of one of my discarded plans. Might as well not let that parchment go to waste. That's one benefit of being bartender, you can listen in to all the patrons and nobody would suspect a thing, like the mountainhomes is having similar troubles to us that they are trying to keep quiet about

Spoiler: next years trade agreement (click to show/hide)

Some day it feels like I'm the only forward thinking dwarf in the entire kingdom. Instead of whinging about lack of armour and rotten clothing, I actively go about finding solutions like getting production restarted and artisans training. A sobering thought, I best have another pint.

good stuff that longland beer

Something horrendous caught my eye while I was draining my mug- why does the mountainhomes want Wooden Toys, seeds and armour?
I have a bad feeling about this...that sounds to me like an elven plot- regrow the forests from seeds, taint the children with wood and scare them off metal armour and/or train their soldiers to find weak spots.
I KNEW that elven "diplomat" was a fraud. Not only was he apparently royalty, but he was after our necromancy too. The elves are up to something I swear, something big.

Where's my mug, I need another drink


Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 14th of Sandstone 163

This last week has been pretty good all things considered. I managed to fix another stockpile and the engravers have collectively stopped bickering and managed to finish not just one, but multiple rooms! Olin, the head engraver has even been on a streak of masterwork production- I will have him work my chambers personally after Sal's.
The 6th came with a bit of good fortune as well, Auze came out of another stumbling spate and somehow blundered into the carpenters shop and produced a masterwork bed. Into my bedroom it goes!
I have taken stock of the food and bed rooms. With the kitchen and distilleries moved to their own little corners, that leaves me free to turn the old kitchen room at the end of the bedrooms into a mueseum, and the annex next to it into an emergency stockpile. The hospital annex as well has been turned into a soap stockpile- a rather embarrassing oversight I had made in hindsight but better late than never. On a side note, I finally moved Salmeuk out of the hospital and into his own personal quarters with full engravings and statues depicting himself and smallhands.

I popped into the dining hall and progress seems to have stalled there with no more tables available. I threw more orders down then set about admiring the multiple statues. There was one depicting smallhands founding, another of Nogood next to Salmeuk. Laterigrade had a statue too that I had taken down immediately upon noticing it was depicting the moment the poor sod got killed. There's space for a few more statues including my own of course but until the masons make something that doesn't look like an amateur's practice piece we'll put them in.

As a consequence of all this room shuffling the old mayoral office and Zultan's makeshift office have been freed up.


Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 25th of Sandstone 163

I was sorely tempted to reach for the strong stuff when KingZultan came up to me today

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Instead I decided to inquire after the other plan put in place after the incident. Zultan thankfully informed me that the leggings were being sealed away as we spoke. Thank goodness.

Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 9th of Timber 163

The volume of tasks that need doing doesn't seem to be getting any smaller yet every dwarf was coming here to my tavern. It was getting more packed lately and my growing frustration at the lack of progress on some of them was getting to me. I slammed my tankard for yet another announcement and told everyone that I expect progress update on every project in 6 hours. To emphasize this, I announced I was shutting the bar early today unless everyone here completed at least 1 task in the next half hour.

That certainly shocked everyone enough to get them moving and gave me some time to review my monument's progress.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

The 3rd floor has been stuck like this for the last 3 weeks. The gem windows I have earmarked for installation were sent out nearly 2 months ago.
In terms of height, the handle is still untouched past that floor and the furniture I ordered still hasn't been produced despite it being the 5th thing I demanded after beginning this project with 1 through 4 being walls and the stairs.
We're not even halfway yet

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I might have to make another short speech soon about smallhands' new tower. Maybe that will put some fire back in the workforce

[auzewasright]

Unknowns of Auze

What a year... I have seen much, and I don't feel good about any of it. I remember watching as the army who I engraved personally to the walls of the library was killed. I remember growing sick of death, and then going mad and contributing to the death. They say that I should write out my issues, so that I may deal with them in a way more healthy than trying to drink myself to death. Well, I guess I can start with the good. The Library is bigger than ever, and another definitely-not-plagiarized book on wound wrapping was written. Tista's been dead for 60 years now, so exempting the possibility of a necromancer we should have to worry to much about that. The livestock I tried organizing and purchasing seem to have boomed in number.
As for the not-so-good...
I nearly was executed for my crimes, a fate which I almost certainly deserve for what I did, not to mention the irony of dying to a system which I helped create. Instead I got locked up in a cage by the system, and managed to get out and do my job. It was at this point were I realized that the current overseer was going to get us killed, as I watched him kill the diplomat from one of our few allies. Oh well, at least things are getting better, I hope...

[King Zultan]

I seem to remember another fortress that had a giant mug as a massive project, but I don't remember the name.

[recon1o6]

Unknowns of Auze

..as I watched him kill the diplomat from one of our few allies

Shockingly, this plays well into the current status of Auze. Too despressed/delirious to realise my dwarf is female, but improving slowly to start writing. (he's gone from 49000~ stress to 47893 stress since I started

I seem to remember another fortress that had a giant mug as a massive project, but I don't remember the name.

I don't recall the name but I know the one you are talking about, it was sculpted in the shape of an arm holding the tankard which poured magma onto invaders
It failed as the magma dried up and the fort perished anyway through incompetence as per the usual

I was going through some old plans earlier, its a wonder half of our fort is still used the way it is what with every subsequent overseer reassigning functions after they were dug out.

[Spriggans]

Is everybody dead ? 

[recon1o6]

Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 12th of Timber 163

I caught the human keeper of seals sneaking down to the slab chamber this time. He got to the top of the stairs, turned around and wisely decided to leave. I might have to see about moving those slabs to somewhere more secure if people keep trying to go for it.
Salmeuk's also been complaining about the lack of goblets. What a load of elf shit, there's 156 goblets in this fortress.

Just when I thought things were settling down though, Amara decided to rise up from the grave in the trade depot. I told her I sealed the artifact away pending destruction and was currently debating how many hammerstrokes to administer Vutok. Suddenly her ghost vanished as though it was never here.

I checked the records half an hour later, and she was never there, not even on the dead/missing list. What in Armok's name happened?
Maybe the fever is getting to me, where's my flagon...

Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 23rd of Timber 163

I really wish there was some way to recover from this fever. I checked out all the statues that had been made of myself and Salmeuk. The vast majority were of substandard quality, fit only to be sold to caravans, or maybe line our prison cells for our prisoners to admire our craftsdwarfship.

Another thing that displeased me was how all of mine were of the moments when I dyed a piece of fabric or something. Why no statue of me slaughtering the elven spy? Or creating that masterwork sock? Hell why are the majority of statues about Salmeuk arriving at smallhands?

The fever must cause trouble with the mind, it has to be, why else would we struggle so. What else would cause me and the rest of smallhands to miss an entire wagon's worth of supplies in the trade depot abandoned by the humans!

There's even an exceptionally crafted copper ladle that we can use to serve at the Towering Tankard when it opens. A donkey that's somehow survived for months, seeds, fresh fruit chilled by the cold, 2 books...some gold bars even!

and...wagon wood logs according to Auze? I'll trust his judgement on this, he's the best carpenter we have.

Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 4th of Moonstone 163

Damn this perpetual fever, it flared up again when I was drafting the plans for the Towering Tankard and it appears to have led to me making an error on the plans- the handle staircase does not reach out far enough. It needs to be at least another urist away from the main tower.

At least my other plans to whip this fort into working order are progressing well. We have 8 dwarves that pass for novices are armoursmithing and some of the items they have made have been good enough that the military have been ditching their masterwork bronze immediately for a steel piece even if its not as good.
What's especially pleasing is Auze has been trying his hand at it and he's certainly competent at it.
Much to my frustration however is the military members that have been dumping their old armour have been doing it on the towering tankard causing blockages for work flow. When I find out who's responsible they are getting water tonight!

I might try and get an armourer's guild established. It could work out quite nicely.
I've also decided to impose a ban on the farmer's guild from holding any Gelding demonstrations until further notice after Tosid was left with painfully crying out "no job" for a week.

On the plus side Dakost has finally turned 2 and begun walking, talking and drinking. Unfortunately she's a talkative one, as she informed me Zultan was trying to collect webs. Not sure where from but it certainly explains where Zultan has been up to when she isn't outperforming me at clothcraft or being hit on by those she's interrogating.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

There is however a snag. He may have been tainted.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 10th of Moonstone 163

This is concerning

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Not the fact that this is the second time Kubuk has been possessed (well that is unusual) but the fact he's in the caverns. In hindsight, KingZultan was down there recently looking for webs. I really should have investigated sooner.

10 months into my term as overseer and I keep finding problems to fix. Yet as I wander round the fortress, I keep finding evidence that however hard I look, there's always a critical flaw that I've missed until later. At least I have found them, unlike previous overseers. Unless this is all some part of an elven plot, then its a wonder the fortress hasn't sunk yet. Actually now I have wrote that, future overseers, I apologise, we have sunk, back when the undead almost wiped the fortress to pieces.
But smallhands clawed its way back.

By Armok's will, we will claw our way further up to the heavens and down to the heart of our world!

Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 14th of Opal 163

Even for Opal tonight was bitterly chilly and wet. Rain all day all week. I brought out my own private winter stock for the patrons and I even deferred Vutok's punishment so he could cook some much needed roasts to keep us all fed.

I felt a chill for another reason. One I dearly wish I didn't need to announce, but for the good of smallhands it had to be done. I raised and slammed my tankard for the last time in this room. Trying to keep the shaking out of my voice was hard

"My fellow dwarves...I-I have a...a very painful announcement to make." I took a few deep breaths.
"As you are all ah-aware I am having a grand tavern opened up in the towering tankard. Due to her majesty's regulations however I had to name it The Tall Bar. Unfortunately...I couldn't bare to tell you all the full story until now, when I no longer have a choice. As a result of this move and the reorganisation of smallhands"

I took a long shaky drink from my tankard. A tear trying to escape my eyes. Come on girl...

"I am having to close this tavern from the first of obsidian in ord-"

A wine stain covers the rest of the speech as well as a few tears

-ven Phonso was in shock

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 2nd of Obsidian 163

It was strange not opening the tavern last night. Mainly because we don't have a tavern as it stands. Its still being built.

I noticed as a form of protest, many dwarves did not move the old food stockpile to where the old tavern was like they were supposed to. Gradually though its shifting thank goodness, and some of the others are building upwards instead of floor by floor. Something about being able to look down on the goo rather than cower under it.

I may be a tavern wench, but I am still the overseer. Tardiness will not be forgiven and so I am writing down certain dwarves who have been slacking. The only exception will be Olin. I collared the man one a few days ago demanding to know why he was socialising with nobody instead of hauling or engraving.

"Did you not see my masterwork's in Salmeuk's room?" he asked me
"Wait you finished those?"
"Yes, I am one of the few dwarves who aren't fevered." Olin replied, weaving his chisel between his fingers
"As a result, I can perform my art much faster than most with greater precision. A pity the majority do not get to see the wonders."

I then had an idea

I then had a second excellent idea upon realising Olin was a glassmaker too

Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 17th of Obsidian 163

Some time ago I found we had no more soap. As a stop gap measure I had some trees chopped and burned from underground. This made an excess amount of ash to turn into soap. I then had the spare ash turned into potash for our fields. But we really didn't need all that and so I had a mountain of spare potash.
Fortunately I have found a use for all that potash now upon discovering the sheer volume of sand cluttering the stockpiles. I have had it turned into clear glass blocks and give our two glass worker dwarves something to do other than hauling.

Between 98 pieces of potash and quite a few pieces of sand (my fever was too high to count further) I have had them begin assembling clear glass in bulk. It shall become the ceiling to protect us from the goop in the tankard...if everybody can actually get it done in time for the new year.
I have skipped out on some of the floors as detailed in my earlier plans and instead gone straight to developing the bar at the top. Once the glass ceiling is in place, the hauliers can construct the silver floor. Unfortunately, what happens after that will be out of my control, as will the rest of the tower.

In other news, Amara reappeared again watching the workers from the wall of the tower. I'm having a slab engraved for her as I write this and it will be placed tomorrow.
A quiet but productive winter. I don't think I could have asked for much more than that.


Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 28th of Obsidian 163

Its been a long year in charge of Smallhands, but I can raise a tankard to the fact I have done my best for the fortress and it seems to be in better condition than when I started.

I let everybody know I had a little announcement to make at the usual time, in the old kitchen and food room, just outside the bedrooms. Everyone was to bring their drink of choice. Well...it was three really. I admit I was a little late myself on account of getting distracted by a book at the library but no matter, I can put it down to nerves if anybody asks.

My fellow dwarves of SmallHands!
Through pints and perservearance, Smallhands thrives evermore. Thanks to me and I hope my successors, Smallhands shall continue to do so for years to come. But! We would not have gotten here without the work of those who came before, and so I declare the Best of Smallhands mueseum to be open!

I dragged away the two tarpaulings on each side of the room to a chorus of claps and curious faces.
To the north was a display of our best artifacts that were not better suited to being equipped or installed, to the south were a series of masterwork statues of each overseer in turn, and one of the original 7 at the end.

Spoiler: topright the new mueseum (click to show/hide)

Second! Thanks to everybody's hard work, the ceiling on the new tavern has been completed, as soon as we get the floor in, we can install some furniture and declare the place open!
There was a very loud cheer from that and lots of chatter. For the final time this year, I slammed my tankard against my mat for quiet.

Finally! It is the end of Obsidian, so raise a mug to smallhands for another successful year!


Journal of the Tavern Keeper Overseer 1st of Granite 164

I stayed up a little late last night reflecting on what I did during my term as overseer.

• Heavy reorganisation of the stockpiles.
• A large project for a new tavern.
• Kitting out the military with steel armour
• Creation of a legendary dining hall
• Proper prison
• New clothing for the masses
• Improved offices and bedrooms for the nobility
• Mueseum for the best of us
  
• Soap production

I suppose it wasn't a bad term as Overseer. I didn't fix everything I wanted to, but I like to think I laid the groundwork for the future.

Hanging outside this morning to the doors of the still in construction Tall Bar, gazing out upon the sun as we got a new day and a warm breeze, as my term as overseer came to a close, I raised a tankard to my lips one last time as the leader before I headed down to the forges to make some furniture.





-------------
For my successors

The Tall Bar has a silver floor and will be having brass furniture. We have no tavern atm. Up to you if its completed though, I did lay out the instructions earlier

Get another person trained on armoursmithing, we might be able to make one of our none fevered dwarves into an expert with a guild's help

We need a new statue of salmeuk in green glass in the memorial floor. I found one of them was depicting him being shunned by other dwarves after he stopped being militia commander. It was unacceptable so I had it removed.

The statues in the mueseum are right to left as i put them in form the dwarven perspective. Smallhands founding on the right, myself at the leftmost current statue

SAVE
https://dffd.bay12games.com/file.php?id=15194

[delphonso]

B) My work hasn't answered my calls even though I'm supposed to start at a new location tomorrow. Either I'm fired or I have another week free, so hopefully I can crank out the next updates. Thanks for the hard work, Recon - I know it was tough juggling between this and schoolwork.

Missions for my overseership:
- Destroy all wooden toys.
- Nothing else.


Bunch of empty slots after me and Strika, if anyone wants another turn

[Salmeuk]

Nice lengthy updates Recon! Thanks for all the work you've put into this fortress. I especially like the central location of the new museum - it seems only right to have visitors introduced to the history of this place through the various artifacts it has produced.

Between 98 pieces of potash and quite a few pieces of sand (my fever was too high to count further) I have had them begin assembling clear glass in bulk. It shall become the ceiling to protect us from the goop in the tankard...if everybody can actually get it done in time for the new year.

Very nice! This glass production might be a project worth continuing.

We need a new statue of salmeuk in green glass in the memorial floor. I found one of them was depicting him being shunned by other dwarves after he stopped being militia commander. It was unacceptable so I had it removed.

I mean, if that's the artist's interpretation of my life, who am I to argue? As long as the dwarf responsible met all the requests of the commission, I have no right to anger. Of course, considering my vain obsession with depictions of my person, I might have regretted finding that later on, and the statue's removal saved me a deep blow to my ego. From the bottom of my beard, thank you!


Looking forward to your diary Del, take your time and don't burn out. I might grab that next slot if overtime lets off at work.

[recon1o6]

Nice lengthy updates Recon! Thanks for all the work you've put into this fortress. I especially like the central location of the new museum - it seems only right to have visitors introduced to the history of this place through the various artifacts it has produced.

Your welcome! this fort has been a blast, I really regret not taking a turn sooner

Between 98 pieces of potash and quite a few pieces of sand (my fever was too high to count further) I have had them begin assembling clear glass in bulk. It shall become the ceiling to protect us from the goop in the tankard...if everybody can actually get it done in time for the new year.

We have tons of empty bags and sacks. The problem is we don't actually have that much wood, but the caverns seem relatively safe atm.
I wasn't expecting more than about 20 by the time i started it in the first week of obsidian but Olin belted them out at a right rate. Clear glass is absurdly labour intensive and the mass production of one of the ingrediants was unintentional

we can absolutely mass produce green glass, clear glass would take a bit more effort. When spring arrived we were running a little low on the supplies

Green glass is made of just sand

Clear glass requires sand and pearlash. To make clear glass
1. chop a tree
2. Burn in wood furnace
3. Make it into potash at ashery
4. Turn potash into pearlash at a kiln
5. Get a bag of sand
6. Make clear glass X at the glass works (note, you need to make blocks to continue the ceiling etc, raw glass is useless)

I mean, if that's the artist's interpretation of my life, who am I to argue? As long as the dwarf responsible met all the requests of the commission, I have no right to anger.

Blame Quarque for that one. I didn't get chance to make another order as spring arrived

Of course, considering my vain obsession with depictions of my person, I might have regretted finding that later on, and the statue's removal saved me a deep blow to my ego. From the bottom of my beard, thank you!

Trust me, its nothing compared to my ego...I uh may have put all the mass produced statues of myself that had any sort of quality level inside everybody's bedrooms as a means of freeing up space in the finished goods stockpile. (well those rooms where there was space avoid blocking the door or the bed)
I thought I had changed the mass produced one to be of smallhands but I must not have realised after the crash i had in timber (only lost 4 days where nothing much happened)

[Spriggans]

Bunch of empty slots after me and Strika, if anyone wants another turn

I might, but I'll manifest myself if I can play when the time is right.
I'm buying a new house and we're moving in next week. So I might be too busy to play during the incoming weeks/months.

But I feel like I've destroyed this tiny fort during my turn.
I sort of want to get it back to its former glory. Legends of Smallhands' faded greatness still resonate. I want to bring this era back.

So put me on the "maybe turn when no-one can play" list.