Generate a World
This is the first step to any fortress game. You will need to generate a world. Default settings are generally a good idea here.
Click the “Create World” button to start generating your world. During generation, history is simulated. As the years tick up, you will see civilizations rise and fall, as well as a list of events scroll by on the dialogue. By default, the simulation stops at year 100.
Click “Play now” to use the generated world.
Embark
Click the “Fortress” button to play in fortress mode.
Two weeks will pass in game, and you’ll be presented with the option to play a tutorial. Personally, I think the in-game tutorial leaves a lot to be desired. Because the tutorial option will lock you into an area, I suggest declining the tutorial option for now. It will always be available to you should you decide to generate a new world.
Navigating the World Map
The controls for this are not very intuitive. Zooming in and out is extremely jarring, but it works. I promise.
| Action | Control |
|---|---|
| Move Camera | WASD Middle Mouse Click + Drag |
| Zoom In | Left Mouse Click |
| Zoom Out | Right Mouse Click |
| View Tile Information | Hover Mouse over Tile |
Find a Suitable Embark Location
First time players need an easy embark location. Trust me. There are already enough hazards. You do not need your embark location plotting against you. As it is, you will likely find heaps of FUN without the looming threat of evil rain.
For a friendly embark zone, these will be your target conditions.
| Attribute | Condition |
|---|---|
| Temperature | Temperate |
| Trees | Woodland Heavily Forested |
| Other Vegetation | Moderate Thick |
| *Surroundings | Calm Serene |
| Neighbors | Humans |
* The surroundings come with a level of ‘Savagery’ and ‘Spirit.’ Calm describes low savagery with neutral spirit. Serene describes low savagery with good spirit. Higher savagery generates stronger, more volatile beasts, and evil spirit is excessively FUN even for experienced players.
Something else to look for are aquifers. These tiles leak unlimited water, and will easily drown your fort. Try to avoid this.
Neighbors are equally important. You’ll want humans around to trade with. They are easy to please, and they appreciate dwarven craft.
On the contrary, elves are picky traders, and if you anger them, they’ll invade your fort. Cutting down trees will certainly get their attention, as will trading any wooden crafts or items made from animal parts.
Goblin civilizations are always hostile and will invade your fort if they deem the endeavor profitable. If you must embark close to them, then the best way to avoid an early game invasion is to simply not be worth the effort.
Use the Built-in Search Function
Click the “Find embark location” button to start narrowing your search.
| Attribute | Condition |
|---|---|
| X Dimension | 4 |
| Y Dimension | 4 |
| *Savagery | Calm |
| **Spirit | Normal |
| Temperature | Medium |
| Flux Stone Layer | Yes |
| Aquifer (Light) | No |
| Aquifer (Heavy) | No |
| River | Yes |
| Iron | Yes |
| Copper | Yes |
* Savagery. Calm surroundings are easiest.
** Spirit. Normal surroundings are the easiest to parse for new players. The plants and animals here have real-life counterparts.
After setting up the search function, click the “Begin” button and wait for the search to finish. You will see the scan search the world in columns. Places that are highlighted green match the search query.
Right click to close the search window. This will not clear the results, but it will let you see the location descriptions again.
This location seems like a good fit for me.
Left clicking on the tile will zoom in on the tile. Embark areas that match the search query are highlighted green.
I decide to go with this location because it has a lot of trees and other vegetation.
Click the “Embark” button, and place your fort on your location of choice by left clicking.
Immediately, you’ll be met with the option to “Play now!” or “Prepare for the journey carefully.” You will want to prepare carefully, trust me, so select that option.
Continue on to the next step of the tutorial: Preparing Carefully.
The DF wiki: https://dwarffortresswiki.org/