Is water really necessary in the Dwarf fortress? Do dwarves need water for survival? Well, your dwarves will indeed need water, but not to quench their thirst, tho! As astonishing as it may sound, dwarves could even use alcohol for their survival or say to quench their thirst.

So how can you possibly survive when there is no water? Simple, you don’t! You could be on a countdown timer until your dwarves get dehydrated and eventually die.

But! There are ways tho, to get through the inevitable depression, and that’s what this short guide is about to guide you through.

How to survive without water?

Store alcohol

When dwarves are thirsty, they go on searching for booze first, when they don’t find alcohol, only then they will need water, to quench their thirst. Unlike humans, dwarves get thirsty once every three weeks, they can go on pretty long without sipping anything.

Water from well

If you’ve built a well anywhere inside the fortress, then it could be used to fulfil the water requirement. A really useful tip would be, always have a well built inside, so that it can blossom your dwarves with Life and health.

Start digging cavern

Start digging the cavern, If you don’t have drinks or a well set up inside, you will have to dig through the cavern, some could be really deep, especially if you’ve set up high in the mountains.

Remember, not all caverns have water, but that doesn’t mean you can’t try! Most of the time water could be found once you’ve dug enough. Once you’ve found water, using an aquifer (if you have it) would bring up enough water for a well.

  • Collect and brew plants that are on the surface (if there are any). Rather than getting on an odyssey to find water, you can easily brew, consume, and live!
  • Start growing plump helmets, these take less time to grow, are easy to grow, and can be consumed. It should not be a hard task, as these can grow pretty much anywhere.

Build a well

Getting straight to the point, a well is an important need inside a fortress as it sustains life by providing water. Even if you don’t have water anywhere near you, a well will always come in handy to attend to the needs of the dwarves. Here’s how you can build a well.

Prerequisites

Dig a preferred place for the well, and ensure it is deep enough and has water coming out of it so it can be the source.

Here’s How to build a well

  • Head to the carpenter’s workshop and craft a bucket.
  • Use the metal craft skill to craft chains at the metalsmith’s forge.
  • Use the clothier skill and get yourself a rope, you would need a cloth to craft rope.
  • You can head towards mason’s workshop, a glass furnace, and a forge to craft items like Stone, metal blocks, wood etc.
  • Create a mechanism, a dwarf can actually create a mechanism through mechanic’s labour.
  • Lastly, head towards the build menu, browse through machines and fluids and find the well option to build the well.

Although dwarves can easily run on alcohol, pregnant dwarves will require water, perhaps, a lot of it. Pregnant dwarves require up to double the usual rate, as it ensures the health of the baby.

When dwarves are sick or injured, they would choose water over booze. Water is necessary for a sick/injured dwarf to recover, in such a scenario water becomes their only way of survival and recovery.

A quick tip: Dwarves can survive on water, but on alcohol, they thrive! Feeding them alcohol in between will boost their efficiency, and they will rarely fall sick or be unproductive. Remember to feed them water at least once in three weeks.