What is Dwarf Fortress?

    Dwarf Fortress, the focus of this blog, is a videogame developed by Bay 12 Games and available for Windows, Linux, and Mac. From here on I will refer to Dwarf Fortress as its common abbreviation "DF." It heavily features procedurally generated content that allow for a huge amount of variety. DF takes place in a recognizable fantasy setting that nevertheless has many intriguing peculiarities and unique elements. DF is known as one of the most complex and mechanically deep games of all time, and its difficult to understand default appearance of pure ASCII text contributes to this reputation.

    The motto of DF is "losing is fun," a footnote originally added to the games instruction section by its creator Tarn Adams, also known as Toady One. This attitude has been wholeheartedly adopted by the community and is now an essential component of DF.

    The game is played in three different modes. These modes are adventure mode, legends mode, and fortress mode. All three of these game modes can be played using the same procedurally generated worlds, and each allows you to explore and interact with these worlds in unique way. They do share one similarity, in that there is no set story or hard-coded path that you must follow. DF is one of the purest examples of an open-world game available, and it is all about creating your own goals and finding the stories that arise naturally from its complex interlocking systems.

    Before I go into detail on DF's various playable modes I will first explain the worlds these games take place in. Prior to playing you must first generate a world. You can select various parameters that will guide the creation of your world such as the amount of minerals present, the size of the world, the amount of history that will be simulated for the world, and the worlds level of savagery. Once you have made these decisions DF takes over and generates the world, simulating it for hundreds of in game years and developing a rich, interconnected far reaching history. Each world will have its own uniquely fascinating characters, locations, and events. Once the world generation is complete you are ready to start playin whichever game mode you wish.

    Adventure mode is a turn-based rpg where you control one or more characters that you have designed or encountered in game. Adventure mode offers you a vast degree of freedom, allowing you to travel through your world and discover its every secret. A core component of adventure mode found in all rpg's is character progression. As you adventure you will improve your skills by practicing them. DF's detailed skill system includes everything from mace-wielding to swimming to cooking. Adventure mode has seen less development than the more popular Fortress mode, but I still feel it has a lot to offer. I would say that adventure mode offers the most intimate perspective to explore DF, and I would definitely suggest that every DF fan try it at least once.

    The least game-like of the three game modes is legends mode. Legends mode primarily serves as an interface to view the places, characters, artifacts, and events of your world.  Personally I rarely use legends mode as is, I find it to be too clunky to comfortably use, and so I prefer the third party utility "legends viewer." It offers a far more streamlined experience and accomplishes the same goals.

    The third game mode, fortress mode, is what DF is known for. In fortress mode you run an entire settlement of dwarves, starting with only seven brave colonizers and potentially growing to a population in the hundreds. You must construct a fortress to house your dwarves and provide for their needs by assigning them to various duties such as farming, mining, and crafting. You will also need to defend your fortress from invading armies, forgotten beasts, and other types of fun. This game mode, like adventure mode, offers a near-infinite range of options. You can construct wonderful underground palaces, create historic artifacts, muster powerful armies, or simply get to know your dwarves and their unique personalities. This is my favorite DF game mode and the one I will most likely focus on in this blog.

    Thank you for reading this post, I hope you found it informative. I welcome any suggestions or criticisms.