If you choose not to bring an anvil, you are refunded the 100 or 300 point cost, to be used for other purchases of items or skills. Not taking an iron anvil is usually only a component of challenges, but not taking a steel one may be viable, given its high cost.

If not, then your starting equipment will include a steel anvil, for a cost of 300 embark points. If your civilization has access to iron ore, a standard (no quality) iron anvil will be included by default in your starting equipment, for a cost of 100 embark points. Otherwise, however, neither the material used nor the anvil's quality affects the performance of the forge: only the skill of the metalworker does. Magma forge anvils in particular must be magma-safe, which is not a problem for conventionally crafted anvils, but may be for legendary strange mood anvils, which are often made out of other, non magma-safe metals. *Īnvils may normally be made of iron, steel or adamantine, and smithing an anvil uses the blacksmithing skill. As this is recursive, the origins of the first anvil are hard to discern. Anvils require three metal bars to be smithed at a forge - once you have one to begin with.

Since at least one is absolutely required if your fortress intends to do any metalworking whatsoever, and the only way to make an anvil is with a metalsmith's forge (whether from a strange mood or by normal means), your first anvil must be sourced from outside of your colony, either at embark or through later trading. Anvils are required to build forges, whether conventional or magma powered.

Steel anvil