Simon Swerwer Soundsense Fun Pack

This is a collection of ten songs (MP3, 320kbps) written in a month (Jun-July 2012) that I made specifically for the Dwarf Fortress community. It also includes some miscellanea that I wanted to add (I have no idea why). The entire thing in no way constitutes an album or whatever. I regard the project as open as Dwarf Fortress is. The trained ear will know that the songs are far from perfect, but I utilized the best of what my Google musical degree and free time provide. The writing? There are legions who write stories inspired by DF. This is just my drop in the bucket. My music and all my content may be distributed freely and used wherever and for whatever you like, but remember what world(s) they were inspired by (and who made them, plz). Also, remember always to support Tarn and Zach in their development of Dwarf Fortress.

CONTENTS:
A. SOUNDSENSE INSTRUCTIONS B. "THE TANKARD BASHER" LYRICS C. ON DWARROWS (mothram) AND !BEAUTY! D. THE TALE OF INITH AND OD E. LINKS F. THANKS

A. SOUNDSENSE INSTRUCTIONS
The songs are specifically intended for use in zwei's Soundsense utility (http://df.zweistein.cz/ soundsense/). Its functions are explained on the wiki (http://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/ Utility:SoundSense). I made a quick guide for adding songs to the Soundsense playlist: 1. The most recent sound pack (12-06-12) already has a folder with some of my stuff in it ("simonswerwer"). All you do is copy the songs you like into that folder (or wherever). 2. Look for the file seasons.xml. Open it, preferably with Notepad++. 3. Scroll down to the bottom-ish. 4. There you'll see lines that start with <sound logPattern= (example: <sound logPattern="(Autumn has come\.)|(Autumn has arrived on the calendar\.)" loop="start" channel="music" playbackThreshhold="0">). This is how you know which season you're modifying (Autumn in this case). Each season has a selection of songs that are played randomly.

5. Finally, look for a line under the season you're modifying that starts with <soundFile fileName= (example: <soundFile fileName="simonswerwer/encounter.mp3"/>). All you do is copy-paste one of these lines, change the name of the song to the appropriate file name and it should work. If a song is played too often, you can always add weight="25" (the default is 100) directly after the .mp3 part (example: <soundFile fileName="simonswerwer/encounter.mp3" weight=25/>).

B. "THE TANKARD BASHER" LYRICS

One of the tracks, "The Tankard Basher", has lyrics. I give them here in what I call Toadese (the dwarven language developed by the Tarn Adams) and the Kings English. Since Toadese is still in development, many parts of speech are missing. As a result, translations can be quite open. TOADESE: ucat udir ucat umom otin netk otin nashon r deb avuz rsh numol libash thol! rsh numol libash thol! otin netk otin nashon ucat udir ucat umom r deb avuz rsh numol libash thol! rsh numol libash thol! ucat udir ucat umom (abod ber) otin netk otin nashon (abod ber!) r deb avuz (abod ber) rsh numol libash thol! (abod ber!) rsh numol libash thol! (abod ber!) rsh numol libash thol! ENGLISH: (The) beer (is) black, the beer (is) dark (The) wine (is) sweet, the wine (is) bloody Drink, eat, mine, Die (by your) lonesome (with your) axe (down) deep! Die (by your) lonesome (with your) axe (down) deep! (The) wine (is) sweet, the wine (is) bloody (The) beer (is) black, the beer (is) dark Drink, eat, mine, Die (by your) lonesome (with your) axe (down) deep! Die (by your) lonesome (with your) axe (down) deep! (The) beer (is) black, beer (is) dark (Strike the earth!) (The) wine (is) sweet, the wine (is) bloody (Strike the earth!) Drink, eat, mine, (Strike the earth!) Die (by your) lonesome (with your) axe (down) deep! (Strike the earth!) Die (by your) lonesome (with your) axe (down) deep! (Strike the earth!) Die (by your) lonesome (with your) axe (down) deep!

C. ON DWARROWS (mothram) AND !BEAUTY!

In one of the community websites, I introduced a song using the following title: "New song I wrote about a couple o' dwarrows (mothram): 'Inith and Od Travel North'" Dwarrows (mothram) was bard-of-our-time Tolkien's preferred (but not used) plural form of dwarf. As dwarves can sometimes argue about the smallest things (such as who is depicted on the front of the engraved frieze of the battle of Rshilir), some small skirmishes have broken out. There were some capitalisations and downvotings, but no bones broken (Armok be praised). Obviously I started to suspect elvish treachery. I now loathe the word dwarrows (mothram). In fact, I have deduced that the use of "dwarrows" (mothram) is despised by many others in the community as well. The etymology of this cursed term has infested our drinking halls for the last time so far as I can help it. I therefore swear to always write or say the word dwarrows (mothram) or any derivation thereof with the appendage mothram, meaning (roughly) damn it in Toadese. Curse that perfumed, two-syllable, elven vowel vomit. Besides, it has no !beauty! *belly laugh* Perhaps it is because DF is not set in the lovely green bubblegum pastures of Tolkien's airy fairy Middle Earth. There elves are honourable and "nice" creatures. There they have squabbles about one measly dragon, or supposed alliances against some forgotten, ring-obsessed hill titan called "Sarah" or something. The worlds of Dwarf Fortress are stained with dark coal and scraped with hard iron. You do not find elves so welcome here. They have killed many dwarves. They have thrown many a hissy fit over the trees that the good earth provides. They call them beautiful, some even dare to say more beautiful than adamantine. But beauty is no Armok-damn tree in soft dirt, if you ask me. Beauty is no light-skinned maiden with pointy ears. !Beauty! is a scar on a fat, big-busted she-dwarf. Her beard glimmers in torchlight, her nose is clogged with dust. !Beauty! is the hazy mix of metal blue and boiling red on a rising adamantine spire. !Beauty! is most robust and slightly crooked.

D. THE TALE OF INITH AND OD

I wrote Inith and Od Travel North inspired by a family fortress I once had, which means that, upon embarking, I *ahem* delete the other five starting dwarves and *ahem, ahem* all immigrants that arrive afterwards. I would of course have allowed some fresh blood later on to avoid making a hick-town, although the point is that I hope to one day survive for enough generations to make a dwarf clan with a large family tree. My friend Od here (who taught me the word dwarrows (mothram), by the way) wants to tell you of his family fortress if youll give him your ear: My apologies in advance, I've tried my whole life to get rid of this Elvish accent. Father and mother were indentured while I still grew in her belly. As a child they told me that there was a small war with a tower dweller that drove three families far south into the forests. Mine was one of them. The families came upon the elven retreats expecting friendship for some reason, or at least safe passage through. What

they found were greedy sunfuckers that killed my older cousin Kol over a wooden barrel of 34. The year I became a dwarf of twelve, I ran off with my love. Growing up, Inith and I knew nothing but hatred for the elves and the land they inhabit. The elves were always suspicious and watching for runaways (in case we bring back our brothers and sisters, no doubt). Furthermore, the elven ground is soft and the metal far too sparse. Finally we couldnt stand it any longer and set out to find the dwarven lands of our kin. My father, before he died of old age, spoke of a cousin who lived in a fortress in the north. Supposedly it was built into a cliff that faced the frozen sea, which melted with the fires of the monthly feasts. I was perhaps also thinking of other things at that age. Inith was known for her !beauty! and extremely long braids amongst the three families. Sure, at age four I made Isholossek, the famous diorite table. And yes, the image of dwarf surrounded by dwarves is known even among the elves. However, I knew Inith loved the Od inside. Lying on a hill that overlooked the wide river north of the forest, I asked Inith to marry me. She took the cat-skin glove that threatened gently with spikes of citrine, and we stole away that very night. However, we soon realised that the world is much larger than we knew. We cut through forests and waded through seas, finding nothing. After weeks became months we decided that the elves would have given up looking for us. The truth is that soon you realise that any home is better than no home at all. We founded a small ranch near an often-used road at the mouth of a valley beyond the Green Steppes. It was there that we made a home of our own with nothing but the wood from our little wagon. Life was quiet in our vale, until the ancient ravens brought us news that travelling dwarven migrants were not far off. Despite the fact that I was the one who suggested we settle near the road, I suddenly became anxious with fear about our position. My life has been so good here with Inith this spring. I had even forgotten about my kin and the city in the cliff. Out of curiosity, I approached the migrants in secret one night. They were loud, they were rude, they were fat. One she-dwarf was adorned with gold and tin. She chugged down a mug of Sweet Pod rum. It had that familiar and distinct spicy smell of my fathers cellar. Underground brew. I could even catch a glimpse of her silk thong. These were refined dwarves indeed. In a way, she reminded me of my Inith when she cutely spills beer on her golden braided beard. No refinement matches Iniths loveliness and muscular forearms, though. I knew deep down that Inith needed the company of dwarves besides myself. This she-dwarf could have been her friend. But I did not trust the group. They would take her, I thought. I remember stories of the tower dweller and a time when dwarves with brazen eyes ate the flesh of their own kind. Perhaps the migrants are indentured spies for the elves, come to take us back. How little I knew of the world. Nevertheless, I decided that Inith could never know. I constructed an elaborate flooding chamber with a place for the immigrants to put their supplies and gather. Then I pulled the lever. When one escaped, I shut our wooden gates and told Inith that a maddwarf had come for our food. He starved outside our now-tainted home. I killed many like this, year after year. The dead were entombed some distance from the fort under a clay hill. The door was kept locked. Word had spread that the valley was cursed with two psychopathic dwarves who lured and devoured their own kind. Yet Inith knew nothing of these rumours. In such dark days, a little beard was suddenly born to us.

One early Obsidian morning I woke up from a dream. The image of dwarf surrounded by dwarves on Isholossek burned in my mind. Inith and the infant were missing. I felt an omen slither around in my bowels. I stepped outside and saw the wooden gates stood open. She must have found the tomb, I muttered and ran out. When I arrived at the door of the hill tomb, it was closed but cracked. Something was bashing against it from the inside. Was Inith trying to get out? I called to her, but she did not The very talented dorf, Izak Flash Man, honoured Ods tale answer. I moved my head slowly with this engraving. closer to hear better, when suddenly the door flew off its hinges and a magnificent white unicorn leapt into the open. It had probably wandered inside by mistake. At first I was struck by its blazing beauty, but then I fell back on my ass, burying my screams in my beard. The unicorns face was red, and its horn cruelly sparkled with the happy blood of my family. I left it all as it was that day and went north again to find the frozen sea. Sometimes, walking alone on the darkest nights, I could feel Iniths cold glove closing around my hand.

E. USEFUL LINKS
Bay12 Games (mega obviously) http://www.bay12games.com/dwarves/ Community (some of it) http://www.bay12forums.com/smf http://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/Main_Page http://www.reddit.com/r/dwarffortress http://plus.google.com/u/1/103373139937626313951 http://www.talesfromthefortress.com http://www.youtube.com (just type in "Let's Play Dwarf Fortress"). http://izaksmells.blogspot.com (Izak Flash Man) http://shop.oreilly.com/product/0636920022565.do (Peter Tysons Getting Started with Dwarf Fortress) My stuff http://soundcloud.com/simonswerwer; http://www.simonswerwer.co.za/; http://www.facebook.com/simonswerwer

F. THANKS
The industrious Tarn and Zach Adams (donate here: http://www.bay12games.com/support.html). The exceptional DF Community (DF forum, the subreddit, the folks at G+ etc.). All my stuff are penance for being a lurker for so
long.

Izak Flash Man for his engraving The dwarves who sacrificed themselves when I started playing DF on the 8th of August, 2011.

-Simon Swerwer/Urist McWolvonk/Poonyen