10 Astounding Tales Which Exemplify Dwarf Fortress' Insanity

9. Bronzemurder - The Siege Of Oggez Rashas

More powerful than even the war beasts of the elves, the fabled megabeasts are among the most powerful of Dwarf Fortress' monsters. The more commonly known among these are traditional mythical beasts such as dragons, hydras, rocs and the like, but then there are the truly nasty ones. More powerful than any standard creature of legend, twisted into a cruel parody of life and often excreting clouds of noxious or acidic gasses, these forgotten beasts lurk in the dark corners of the world. Unfortunately, sometimes, a fortress just happens to strike the earth atop of one, as was the misfortune of Bronzemurder's population. Despite a difficult start with no river in sight, Bronzemurder had nevertheless managed to support a booming population of sixty-six dwarves with few real setbacks. One of their greatest projects had been to tap into an underground sea, drawing water into the upper fortress and giving the population a much needed reservoir. Unfortunately not only did it require water to be manually pumped to the surface but the legendary forgotten beast Oggez Rashas decided to take roost at its base, right next to an all-important lever. Unwilling to abandon such a lengthy project even in the face of a poisonous winged reptile the size of a Boeing 747, the militia was promptly sent down to test its strength. Unsurprisingly everything instantly went to hell. Rashas reduced the entire militia to bloody giblets and then promptly chased a fleeing war dog to the upper levels. Just as it caught up with the hapless canine, Rashas caught sight of a mechanic barely starting to lay down a few traps, who promptly legged it from the screaming monster formed of of venom and malice. Half a dozen dead dwarves later, Rashas had assembled a large conga line of stunties, all fleeing for their lives and leading it into the very heart of the fortress. By the time it burst into the dining room, over a third of Bronzemurder€™s population had been massacred with the rest soon following. Even throwing everyone they had at the creature as a makeshift army, the dwarves only managed to badly maim Rashas, leading to the last few to wall themselves inside the sleeping quarters and try to wait the beast out. Depressed, isolated and covered in blood, the remaining trio of dwarves proceeded to wait several months for the monster to find prey elsewhere, surviving only by butchering animals trapped inside with them. Somehow managing to wait out the hellspawn still rampaging about the fortress, the dwarves lived long enough to see its gristly end at the hands of some especially hardy caravan guards. The kicker? This wasn't the end for the fortress. The dwarves, in their corpse filled ruin of a home, began to rebuild and over the passing decades Bronzemurder recovered thanks to gradual influxes of migrants. Even on the absolute edge of annihilation, lucky players can still find ways to claw back victory no matter how long how much much patience it might take.