A Newbie’s Bestiary: A Comprehensive Guide to Threats in Dwarf Fortress

Welcome to Dwarf Fortress, where the world is your oyster – an oyster filled with a delightful assortment of creatures eager to crack your fortress wide open! This guide will introduce you to the many dangers awaiting your dwarves, from the mundane to the mythical.

Natural Threats

Ordinary Wildlife

While most wild animals won’t go out of their way to attack your fortress, they can be a nuisance. Predators might stalk your dwarves in the wilderness, and some critters may develop a taste for your hard-earned supplies. The general rule of thumb is: if you don’t bother them, they’ll mostly ignore you.

However, the "agitated" wildlife status (new to the Steam version) can turn even docile animals into threats. The cause of this agitation remains a mystery, so be prepared for anything!

Savage and Evil Biomes

Don’t let the inviting names fool you – biomes like "Joyous Wilds" or "Savage Wilds" are anything but. These, along with "Terrifying", "Sinister", and "Haunted" biomes, are home to creatures far more dangerous than your average wild animal.

Savage biomes feature both animal people and giant versions of common creatures. While giant desert scorpions are a thing of the past, giant predators remain a significant threat. On the bright side, some of these behemoths can be captured, tamed, and trained for your military!

Evil biomes harbor a menagerie of unique threats. Ogres, as dangerous as semi-megabeasts, often roam in packs. Harpies combine aggression with aerial superiority, while grimelings drag unsuspecting dwarves to watery graves. And if that wasn’t enough, even more terrifying creatures lurk within these cursed lands.

Undead Wildlife

Evil biomes are also home to the undead – creatures that are inherently aggressive and much harder to kill. While they won’t launch organized attacks, they pose a constant threat to anything venturing outside your fortress walls.

Remember: undead don’t need internal organs! Severed limbs can reanimate as long as they can grasp. Stick to blunt weapons when dealing with these foes, and avoid butchering or hunting in these areas.

Evil Weather

As if the local fauna wasn’t bad enough, evil biomes are often plagued by supernatural weather. Evil rain can range from annoying (human blood, anyone?) to deadly (think contact poison that induces necrosis).

But the real danger lies in the fog. Any creature caught within these ethereal mists risks contracting a disease that instantly transforms them into a thrall – a superpowered undead abomination. To make matters worse, thralls can spread the fog’s effects. Since the fog can’t penetrate walls or doors, staying indoors is your safest bet.

Civilized Creatures

Kobolds

Don’t let their civilized status fool you – kobolds are pesky creatures that dwell in caves and love stealing shiny things. While weak, primitive, and generally disorganized, they are masters of stealth and can infiltrate your fortress with ease. They can disarm traps, pick locks, and will make off with your valuables given the chance.

Guard dogs can help detect these would-be thieves. Once discovered, kobolds usually flee, posing little threat to an armed dwarf. However, if they manage to steal enough loot, they may grow bolder and launch small raiding parties called "ambushes". While not overly dangerous, these ambushes require a small militia to repel.

Goblins

Goblins are the bane of dwarven existence. Ruled by despotic demons, these barbaric creatures are driven by an insatiable hatred for all things dwarven. While individual goblins might be amicable, their civilizations are not. Expect them to become your primary military adversary.

The goblin threat manifests in two ways:

• Baby-snatchers: These solitary infiltrators operate like kobold thieves but with a more sinister goal – kidnapping dwarven children. They can be countered with the same methods used against thieves.
• Sieges: Goblin armies will attempt to overrun your fortress with the intent of wiping out your entire population. These sieges consist of:
  • Goblin infantry: Armed with iron weapons and armor, they are a match for equally equipped dwarves. However, your dwarves’ ability to enter martial trances gives them an edge in large-scale combat. Be wary of other races joining their ranks, often the descendants of enslaved children.
  • Goblin cavalry: Riding a variety of creatures like beak dogs, cave crocodiles, and giant bats, they can bypass moats and even walls.
  • War monsters: Trolls, ogres, and cave dragons, while less organized than their goblin counterparts, can wreak havoc on your fortress, smashing through even locked doors.
  • Demonic rulers: If still alive, the goblins’ demonic overlord might join the fray. These beings are comparable to titans, which we’ll cover later.

Remember: goblins are cowardly creatures. Routing their main force will send the survivors fleeing.

Elves

These pointy-eared, tree-hugging cannibals might not be inherently hostile like goblins or kobolds, but they can be a real pain. Elves revere nature and despise those who exploit it. Trading or gifting them products derived from plants or animals (except those created through their own nature magic) will anger them and could spark a war. They might also try to impose treaties limiting your logging activities. Violating such a treaty inevitably leads to conflict.

Elven aggression takes two forms:

• Ambushes: Large parties, often accompanied by war animals, will attempt to take you by surprise.
• Sieges: Elves will openly assault your fortress in large numbers.

Traditionally considered a minor threat due to their reliance on weak wooden weapons, elves have reportedly received a combat boost in the Steam release.

Humans

Humans generally make for good neighbors and trading partners. They are incredibly difficult to offend in trade (short of murdering their merchants, you’re probably good) and relatively easy to get along with. However, they might still declare war on you during world generation.

In warfare, humans are slightly larger than dwarves and wield iron weapons and armor. They don’t bother with subterfuge – when humans go to war, they send a large army to besiege your fortress. Expect both infantry and cavalry to come knocking at your gate. They will encamp outside your fortress for a time before launching their assault.

Dwarves

Unless you actively seek it out, facing your kin in battle is highly unlikely. However, starting a war with another dwarven kingdom is possible. Like humans, dwarves prefer sieges to ambushes. Unlike humans, they wield steel weapons and armor, enter martial trances when outnumbered, and might bring cave creatures as mounts and war animals. Be prepared to face an enemy that utilizes your own tactics.

Even worse is the possibility of conflict with your own kingdom. This triggers a "loyalty cascade" – a devastating event that plunges your fortress into civil war, followed by a chaotic free-for-all. There’s no reliable way to salvage your fortress once this begins. Avoid attacking your own kingdom at all costs.

Bandits

Occasionally, bandit gangs composed of goblins, humans, or kobolds might attempt to besiege your fortress. However, these sieges are significantly weaker than those launched by organized civilizations. Bandit forces are smaller, typically lack cavalry or war animals, and are poorly equipped.

Night Creatures

Ghosts

A dwarf denied a proper burial might return to haunt your fortress as a ghost. The type of ghost depends on the dwarf’s personality in life and the circumstances of their death. They can range from harmless phantoms to vengeful, murderous spirits.

To deal with a ghost, lay the deceased to rest by either burying them in a tomb or, if the body is irretrievable, constructing and engraving a memorial slab. Ensure these graves are well-protected – desecration or destruction will bring back the ghost in its most aggressive form.

Werebeasts

These cursed individuals transform into monstrous beasts once a month. They are rarely found in civilization, often choosing to live as hermits in the wilderness.

Werebeasts will stealthily approach your fortress. Amusingly, they still undergo their transformations even when already inside, leading to descriptions of naked humans in the same tone used for megabeasts. In their civilized form, they pose no greater threat than any other human, dwarf, or elf, and will flee from combat. However, their beast form is far more dangerous, requiring a dedicated militia to defeat.

The greatest threat from werebeasts lies in their curse’s contagious nature. Any dwarf bitten by a werebeast has a chance of becoming one themselves. Quarantine any survivors of a werebeast attack for a month to identify and contain the infection.

Vampires

Cursed with immortality and an unquenchable thirst for blood, vampires can pass for living members of their race. They might infiltrate your fortress disguised as dwarven immigrants, lying about their age to conceal their true nature. Look for inconsistencies in their skills or accomplishments – a young dwarf with expertise beyond their years might be a vampire in disguise.

Vampires don’t require food, drink, or sleep. While they don’t NEED to drink blood, they will indulge their cravings. They feed on sleeping dwarves, draining them of blood and killing them. The game won’t explicitly identify vampires, so you must rely on observation and deduction. Be wary of framing attempts – vampires are cunning and manipulative.

Despite their dangers, vampires can be surprisingly useful. Their lack of basic needs makes them ideal for menial tasks like bookkeeping or lever pulling. As living creatures, they are also immune to attacks from mindless undead.

A word of caution: ingesting vampire blood turns a dwarf into a vampire. Use this knowledge responsibly (or for chaotic fun, your choice).

Necromancers

These immortal wizards command armies of the dead from their secluded towers. Angering a necromancer or settling too close to their domain will provoke their wrath. Expect both ambushes and sieges.

A necromancer’s army consists of:

• Mindless undead: While generally unarmed and unarmored, they are incredibly resilient.
• Intelligent undead: Retaining the skills and equipment they possessed in life, these undead pose a significant threat.
• Necromancers: Capable of reanimating the dead with ease, as long as the corpse can move. Even a severed hand can become a weapon in their hands.

Using blunt weapons against undead armies is highly recommended.

Megabeasts

Semi-Megabeasts

Large and powerful creatures like minotaurs, giants, cyclopes, and ettins, semi-megabeasts are drawn to sufficiently large and prosperous fortresses. They pose a serious threat to civilians and can destroy doors, but a well-prepared military should be able to handle them.

Hydras

These massive, seven-headed serpents are the smallest of the true megabeasts. Each head can attack independently, and the hydra can survive as long as a single head remains. Their multiple heads also provide defense, blocking attacks aimed at the body. While they can’t regrow lost heads, hydras possess a potent healing factor.

When facing a hydra, you have two options:

• Use piercing weapons and aim for vital organs like the lungs or heart.
• Attempt to sever the heads with slashing weapons.

Dragons

These fire-breathing behemoths are the stuff of legends. While their physical prowess is formidable, their true terror lies in their fiery breath – one of the deadliest attacks in the game. Dragonfire burns four times hotter than the sun’s surface, incinerating or melting almost anything in its path.

Dwarves caught in a dragonfire blast are almost certainly doomed. However, shields offer some protection. Dragons themselves are immune to all fire damage.

Dragonfire ignites plants and trees, potentially starting massive wildfires that endanger dwarves far from the initial conflict. Engaging a dragon in a barren or underground environment is advisable. Ranged weapons and shields are your best bet.

Rocs

These colossal birds of prey are a force to be reckoned with. While lacking special attacks, their ability to fly allows them to bypass ground-based defenses. Never assume that unroofed walls will protect your fortress from these airborne threats!

Bronze Colossi

These towering humanoids are made of solid bronze, making them walking tanks. Most weapons will only scratch their metallic hide. To stand a chance, equip your military with steel weapons or utilize environmental hazards like magma to melt them down.

Titans

These gigantic nature spirits are a law unto themselves. Each titan is unique, its abilities dictated by the environment it spawned from. This makes creating a comprehensive guide to titans nearly impossible. However, some traits deserve special attention:

• Rock or metal bodies: These natural defenses make titans incredibly difficult to kill. You’ll need high-quality metal weapons, preferably steel, to stand a chance. If the titan itself is made of steel, consider indirect methods of combat. Note that iron and steel titans are immune to magma.
• Toxic blood, vapor, or gas: These can be deadly depending on the toxin’s potency. Effects range from mild dizziness to rapid flesh decay.
• Web attacks: Titans can shoot webs to ensnare and immobilize your dwarves, leaving them vulnerable to follow-up attacks. Keep your distance and utilize ranged weapons.
• Dust attacks: These blasts of dust particles can knock dwarves down and potentially inflict them with toxins. While titans made of organic or fragile materials might harm themselves with their own dust attacks, it’s best to avoid direct confrontation with these behemoths.

The Underground

General Underground Wildlife

As a rule of thumb, underground creatures are more dangerous and aggressive than their surface counterparts. While many are relatively harmless or pose no unique threat, caution is always advised. Notable threats include blind cave trolls, cave crocodiles, and cave dragons.

Animal People Tribes

These subterranean societies, while considered civilized, don’t adhere to the same rules as other civilizations. Most tribes, even hostile ones, will keep to themselves rather than launch organized attacks. However, their primitive weapons are often coated in deadly poisons.

Magma Dwellers

These creatures are immune to fire and magma, often wielding fire-based attacks. While relatively fragile, they can be a significant threat if they reach your fortress. Keep them away from flammable materials, especially your booze stockpile.

Giant Cave Spiders

These monstrous arachnids are among the deadliest "ordinary" creatures you’ll encounter. They possess a potent fast-acting paralytic venom and can trap victims in their webs. Engaging them from a distance, outside their web range, is crucial. Large war animals like elephants or giant surface predators are less susceptible to the venom due to their size. Always equip your dwarves with helmets, as giant cave spiders tend to aim for the head.

Hidden Fun Stuff

Some things are best left undisturbed in the earth’s depths. If you’re unlucky enough to encounter them, refer to the titan section above, as they share similar characteristics. Good luck, you’ll need it.