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| “ | A huge humanoid monster with coarse fur, large tusks and horns. | „ |
| ~ In-game description. |
Trolls are major antagonists in the indie construction and management simulation video game Dwarf Fortress. They are giant, predatory and very dangerous subterranean creatures. Although animalistic and barbaric, they are sapient and morally aware. Trolls are often the tamed allies of goblins - the main antagonists of the game, especially during sieges.
Due to the procedural generation of the world and civilizations in the game, coupled with the fact that many elements can be customized by the player, the strength, placement and disposition of trolls vary greatly.
Their large size, immense strength, natural evil disposition and alignment with goblins make them a formidable foe. Due to them being able to smash buildings with ease, the player will often have to create specific designs to circumvent them.
Despite their name, they are not related to Night Trolls.
Biography[]
History[]
Like almost all the creatures in the game, there is no concrete history of trolls, although their prominent alignment with goblins is often part of the pre-generated history the game creates when creating a playable world, as goblins capture and enslave them. Their appearance matches that of other subterranean creatures, showing that they've likely evolved in the caverns for a very long time, similar to gremlins and fire imps, with the latter being from the Underworld.
Description[]
A drawing of a troll being killed by a dwarf, done by Zach Adams. One of the game's creators.
Standard and undead troll adult, child and baby sprites.
In the classic version of the game, or if playing the premium version with ASCII mode enabled, trolls appear as a gray "T". In the premium version, trolls appear as tall, fat, hairy dim-green humanoids with tusks, horns and pointy ears. Their undead appearance matches the same format of other undead creatures, with the sprite having a blue/indigo tint, black eyes and white pupils. They also have sprites for child and baby versions, which is somewhat uncommon among the creatures in the game.
Trolls are found in all layers of caverns. Any other trolls are already moved to a goblin's society. Some trolls may keep to themselves when citizens of a player's fortress walk in their line of sight, while others may immediately attack. Trolls are four times the size of dwarves, and are immensely powerful, being classified as "Level 2" building destroyers in the game's code (which is the highest level), meaning that it can be very tricky to keep them out of your fortress compared to most other (weaker) creatures.
Almost every type of buildings can be destroyed by trolls, meaning that they can heavily impact the progress of a player's dwarven fortress. Trolls can also be found in "dark pits", which are small settlements made by goblins in evil areas. An overwhelming amount of trolls can be seen residing there. They are also the goblin equivalent to sheep, as a troll's fur can be sheared off and used for many resources. Alongside their immense strength, trolls' horns and tusks can also be used to easily gore their opponents.
Trolls are also naturally adequate swimmers despite their size and weight, meaning that defensive moats and rivers will not be able to stop them. They are also decent climbers and wrestlers, which can leave their opponents with broken bones. When they are cut open, their blood is cyan-colored, hinting that it's possibly hemocyanin-based. Trolls have two tokens in their code, being [EVIL] and [SLOW_LEARNING], which respectively make them a constant viable option for goblin recruitment/enslavement, and halt their ability to pick up skills as fast as most races in the game.
Despite their slow learning, they are considered intelligent, but do not speak their own language, let alone communicate at all. When a goblin siege occurs, it is very likely that trolls will appear with them, and a well-trained military will likely be needed to deal with them, given their size and strength. Trolls are able to wear armor, although this is rare. The history generated by the game can also contain goblins using trolls to siege other races as well.
Seeing as the game recognizes them as intelligent beings, they cannot be butchered for meat if they are captured in traps, or if one wishes to do something useful with their corpse, unlike most animals in the game.
Behavior[]
Portrait of a troll.
Naturally evil, barbaric, somewhat dim-witted and surprisingly strong, trolls are nothing short of dangerous predators and living siege engines. Some trolls found in caverns are not openly hostile, having a somewhat passive nature, but even these trolls will still initiate violence if someone is close enough to them. They are smart enough to be aware of their surroundings, but still retain a very violent and animalistic demeanor.
Because of their evil disposition, the good or neutral races (such as humans and elves) cannot make use of trolls the way goblins can. Trolls are actually smart enough to be civilized, as they can be given non-military positions in a goblin society, although their slow learning capabilities do not make them well suited for more complex tasks.
Trolls also seem to have average fighting skills, rather than just being able to mindlessly claw and punch everything. They are more than capable of finding ways different ways to destroy buildings, including ripping away bars and grates to gain access to areas, despite their massive size. They also have some form of wrestling skills, using them to properly catch attacks of their enemies and throw them in the air, even into other enemies.
Gallery[]
External Links[]
- Troll - Dwarf Fortress Wiki
 Villains 
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Enemies Immortal & Undead Night Creatures Other | ||