How Climates and Temperatures Work in Dwarf Fortress

We explain how Climate and Temperature works in Dwarf Fortress.

Hritwik Raj

Published: Dec 31, 2022 12:44 pm

The Climate in Dwarf Fortress is a temperature rating internal system uses to define the weather of the area or biome. But, since the game uses a fictional unit instead of the standard ones, we often find players confused about the Dwarf Fortress Climate and Temperature systems. In the wake of that, we are here with a handy guide on how climate and temperature work in Dwarf Fortress.

How Climates and Temperatures Work in Dwarf Fortress

In Dwarf Fortress, the game uses its own unit, Urist, to define the temperature of a particular area or biome. And based on the temperature, players will encounter different Climates which affect living beings, including dwarfs, resources, and other such things.

As per the Dwarf Fortress Temperature wiki, you use the following formula to calculate the temperature in Dwarf Fortress:

[URIST] = [CELSIUS] * 9/5 + 10000

[KELVIN] * 9/5 + 9508.33

[FAHRENHEIT] + 9968

[RANKINE] + 9508.33

The formula is helpful for modders who are working on Dwarf Fortress mods related to biomes, climates, temperatures, and any other associated thing.

A simple example that would better explain how temperature and climate work in Dwarf Fortress is by taking the freezing point of Alchohol in the game. Alchohol’s freezing point in Dwarf Fortress is 9850 °U (Urist), which corresponds to -118 Fahrenheit.

Now, if you enter the value -118 in the above formula, you will get the temperature in Urist, which is 9850 °U. Now, you can use the temperature available in Celcius and Fahrenheit for the different climates to obtain their corresponding temperature in Urist.

When the time of writing this guide, Dwarf Fortress offers six climates. These are:

Scorching: Peak temperature 122°F (50°C) and above
Hot: Peak temperature 107-121°F (41-49°C)
Warm: Peak temperature 82-106°F (28-41°C)
Temperate: Peak temperature 47-82°F (8-27°C)
Cold: Peak temperature 33-46°F (1-8°C)
Freezing: Peak temperature 32°F (0°C) or less

That is it. That concludes our guide on how climate and temperature work in Dwarf Fortress.

For more on Dwarf Fortress, check out our dedicated guides section.

Dwarf Fortress is a roguelike construction and management game currently available on PC and macOS platforms.

Author

Hritwik Raj

Hritwik is a guides writer who has been writing about video games for almost a decade. He is a Computer Science graduate who has always been into gaming. Most of the time, you will find him covering News and Guides for various publications. And when he is not working, you will find him fighting with his friends about how good of a gamer he is. His favorite games include Fallout 76, Borderlands 2, Call of Duty, Apex Legends, Destiny 2, Souls series, Genshin Impact, and The Last of Us.