Tell me more ×
Arqade is a question and answer site for passionate videogamers on all platforms. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 9 down vote favorite

I am very confused about this. I know how to start a job, but I can't figure out how to assign a dwarf to it. I've looked around a lot, and can't find it. Can anyone help?

share|improve this question
I remember this part of learning DF, it takes a while to get use to, but, when you do figure it out, it's really helpful cause it eliminates micromanaging on a macro scale. (Plus it adds more fun.) – Russell Nov 19 '12 at 12:07
1  
Nerd4life123, now wait until you manage to discover how job management works using the manager. That will make stuff a lot easier! – Ids Nov 19 '12 at 12:42

1 Answer

up vote 18 down vote accepted

You've got it backwards; Dwarves don't pick jobs, jobs pick dwarves. When a job is created, it picks the nearest dwarf with the appropriate labors enabled.

If you've set a job and are finding it's not getting completed, chances are, you don't have enough dwarves with the corresponding labor enabled.

While you can assign labors manually (Magmawiki link), this method usually becomes untenable once you have more than a handful of dwarves.

Therefore, I would suggest you look into Dwarf Therapist, an external program that you can run alongside dwarf fortress which will take care of all labor assignations from one simple screen.

share|improve this answer
DFHack also has a similar interface built into the game via the unit screen (u - l) since version 0.34.11 r2. – Martin Sojka Nov 19 '12 at 6:09
1  
The only people allowed to call the Dwarf Therapist labor assignment screen "simple" operate nuclear power plants or fly passenger jets for a living. – Shadur Nov 19 '12 at 8:28
2  
@Shadur It is as complicated as an simple spreadsheet application. Don't overreact. It just contains a lot of information, as DF has a lot of jobs. – Ids Nov 19 '12 at 12:41
Thank you so much. – nerd4life123 Nov 19 '12 at 15:24

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.