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IDProjectCategoryView StatusLast Update
0002377Dwarf FortressDwarf Mode -- Itemspublic2011-02-22 09:46
Reportergruftschreck Assigned To 
PrioritynormalSeverityminorReproducibilityalways
Status newResolutionopen 
Product Version0.31.06 
Summary0002377: Corpse pieces that are non-processable for ethical reasons don't disappear
DescriptionAs no report on this seems to be filed yet, here I go:

I've got a corpse outside not rotting from my first year (the fort lasts now for 7 years) and from all creatures I killed afterwards (also the most are left outside, since I've disabled refuse hauling from outside), so I assume corpses simply won't rot.

So I'm filing a bug report.
Steps To Reproducekill anything
wait a few years
corpses won't rot
Additional Informationattaching the possible quick fix tag

the world was generated with .06
TagsIntentional/Expected?

Relationships

related to 0000022 closedToady One Vermin remains don't rot 
related to 0001180 confirmeduser6 Skeletons of sentients and tame animals can't be "butchered" into usable bones 
related to 0003350 new Cartilage never decays 
related to 0003515 new Severed limbs of living dorfs are left alone 

Activities

smjjames

2010-06-19 10:35

reporter   ~0008678

Could you submit a save? That would be the best way to find out whats going on.

gruftschreck

2010-06-19 10:35

reporter   ~0008679

with rot I mean vanish from existance, they transform to skeletons fast enaugh, though they will never rot completely.

user6

2010-06-19 11:27

  ~0008685

If you check Toady's note at 0000022:0003429, it's only the "non-processable corpse pieces" that are supposed to disappear. Goblin skeletons etc. are theoretically processable, but the dwarves' ethics prevent it, which means that some corpse pieces that are practically non-processable are failing to disappear. At least, I think that's what's going on. Are they goblin/kobold skeletons or what?

zwei

2010-07-20 14:25

reporter   ~0010744

For me, it ale numerous kobbold corpses as well as ettin/giant megabeasts. I would guess goblins would have been same if they survived worldgen.

Issue here seems to be rotting: Skeletons stay intact and will not decompose to processable bones and skulls as they did originally. This means that they will not disappear but instead stay forever as "partial skeleton". If body part like head or one-bone limb that rots to single bone/skull was hacked off it is usable just fine.

Nonsentients and nonpets work with this because while skeleton also stays intact forever it can also be butchered to bones and skull. On negative side here, it has increaced workload of butchers many times because they are busy breaking up skeletons to their components.

It seems that unrotable links added to enable skeletal undead prevent mundane corpses from decomposition too.

user6

2010-07-20 15:26

  ~0010751

zwei, 0001180 may shed some light on the problem you're describing.

zwei

2010-07-21 12:41

reporter   ~0010788

That is about the fact that dwarves do not butcher sapients (which is okay and working and intended i guess).

Problem here is that skeletons do not automatically decay to bones & skulls (which would be processable and able to decay to nothingness).

Syndic

2010-08-30 04:00

reporter   ~0012256

Just a note, I think that skeletons DO automatically decay to bones & skulls... but it just takes WAY too long. About 11 years into my fort, a goblin hand or something that was chopped off decayed into a stack of 2 <goblin name> bone. So I assume it's just an issue with tendons or cartilage or whatever keeps skeletons together rotting WAY too slowly.

Chthon

2010-08-30 06:25

reporter   ~0012258

I concur, I had werewolves in my fortress. On average it took about 4 years for one to decompose. By that I mean, in the 4 1/2 years of my fortress I had one arm decompose and that was it. All of the rest of the skeletons including the main body of the first are still intact.

kwieland

2010-08-30 12:11

reporter   ~0012266

Foot, I don't think ethics is the question here. I think the real bug here is that skeletons (all, in my experience) do not decompose into individual components, even after many game years (10+ enough?).

Kumquat

2011-02-22 09:20

reporter   ~0015397

This is probably in a way related to 3350, too, as I assume it is cartilage and sinew that are keeping the skeletons together; and cartilage never rots.

However there is a game design issue as well, since if cartilage would rot then it would make butchering skeletons into bones quite pointless, as by the time the corpse rotted into a skeleton there would be nothing left but bones, since there does not appear to be a way to specify rot rate to a material.

I suppose someone could test this out by adding [ROTS] to cartilage in material_template_default.txt.

Issue History

Date Modified Username Field Change
2010-06-19 10:33 gruftschreck New Issue
2010-06-19 10:33 gruftschreck Tag Attached: Probable Quick Fix
2010-06-19 10:34 gruftschreck Tag Attached: Intentional?
2010-06-19 10:35 smjjames Note Added: 0008678
2010-06-19 10:35 gruftschreck Note Added: 0008679
2010-06-19 10:49 user6 Tag Detached: Intentional?
2010-06-19 10:49 user6 Tag Detached: Probable Quick Fix
2010-06-19 10:53 user6 Status new => resolved
2010-06-19 10:53 user6 Resolution open => no change required
2010-06-19 10:53 user6 Assigned To => user6
2010-06-19 11:22 user6 Assigned To user6 =>
2010-06-19 11:22 user6 Status resolved => new
2010-06-19 11:25 user6 Summary corpses don't rod => Corpse pieces that are non-processable for ethical reasons don't disappear
2010-06-19 11:27 user6 Note Added: 0008685
2010-06-19 11:27 user6 Tag Attached: Intentional?
2010-06-19 11:27 user6 Relationship added related to 0000022
2010-07-12 12:03 user6 Tag Renamed Intentional? => Intentional/Expected?
2010-07-20 14:25 zwei Note Added: 0010744
2010-07-20 15:24 user6 Relationship added related to 0001180
2010-07-20 15:26 user6 Note Added: 0010751
2010-07-21 12:41 zwei Note Added: 0010788
2010-08-30 04:00 Syndic Note Added: 0012256
2010-08-30 06:25 Chthon Note Added: 0012258
2010-08-30 12:11 kwieland Note Added: 0012266
2011-02-06 15:12 user11 Resolution no change required => open
2011-02-21 21:42 user11 Relationship added related to 0003515
2011-02-22 09:20 Kumquat Note Added: 0015397
2011-02-22 09:46 user6 Relationship added related to 0003350