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are cage traps all that they're cracked up to be?

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Author Topic: are cage traps all that they're cracked up to be?  (Read 2065 times)
Chaoticjosh
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« on: October 29, 2008, 07:09:44 am »

i've read a lot of things that talk up cage traps to no end. i've tried them and i gotta say, i'm unimpressed. i mean sure, they capture things while they're still alive, but that seems more negative to me than anything else because for one, while the traps are removing a threat, they're ADDING something my dwarves have to store away forever, and i have to allocate space to store it, my mechanics need to go out of their way to get a replacement cage, and then if i want to interact with the caged creature i need to go through this complicated process of planting it with (b)uild, q->a on the cage, release/take their things (in the case of goblins), and then store it away again and/or try to sell the damn creature, which can fail stupendously apparently. i'm just glad i have like 40+ war dogs walking around my fort to jump on and maul anything that escapes.

the only thing i really care about is producing a lot of dead bodies, dead bodies are safe and easy to handle, and are profitable to some extent. cages are not conducive to dead bodies, thus i don't like cages. can anyone change my mind?

Also, i have a question about weapon traps. say for example the spiked ball:

http://www.dwarffortresswiki.net/index.php/Spiked_ball

at "number of hits", does that mean it'll strike a creature three times before it manages to get away, or that it'll attack three times and then break?
« Last Edit: October 29, 2008, 07:11:50 am by Chaoticjosh » Report Spam   Logged

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Zorgn
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« Reply #1 on: October 29, 2008, 10:05:33 am »

You have never made an arena, have you?
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LegacyCWAL
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« Reply #2 on: October 29, 2008, 01:16:44 pm »

Cage traps are an excellent way to train Marksdwarves by making a firing range:

1) Make an area surrounded by walls and/or moats with the only access being a retracting bridge
2) Put the cages on one side of the bridge and link them to a lever.
3) Go to the stocks screen and dump any ranged weapons the goblins are holding
4) Raise the bridge
5) Put your Marksdwarves on the side opposite the cages.
6) Pull the lever to open the cages.
7) Watch the carnage.

You can also make a couple (rather obvious) modifications to this process to train melee dwarves instead.

Also, if you happen to catch any wild critters in the cage traps, you can put the cage in a zoo to give happy thoughts to any dwarves that like them, or tame them and turn them into livestock or something.


As for "number of hits", I may be wrong, but I think it means that it attacks that many times per firing of the trap.  As far as I can tell, a weapon trap basically attacks with every weapon in it, then checks if it jams, if it needs to fire again, etc.  I believe that said multi-hit components smack the enemy multiple times per firing of the trap.  And yes, that DOES make Giant Axe Blades pointless.
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GreyMario
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« Reply #3 on: October 29, 2008, 01:23:49 pm »

Naw, screw that.

I say dump those bastards into your chasm, cage and all. Do it in such a manner that the dwarf removing the floor does not fall in himself.
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LegacyCWAL
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« Reply #4 on: October 29, 2008, 02:05:36 pm »

Nah, not dwarfy enough.  You have to do it in such a manner that the dwarf doing the dumping is a noble who is dumped in the process Grin
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