How does one find anything that isn’t human or a monster in adventure mode

dwarf-fortressdwarf-fortress-adventure

I seem to have a problem finding non-human races that are willing to talk. I've tried finding the dwarves, and there was nothing at the place they're supposed to be. I tried finding elves… Well, I guess I found the forest retreat but there were no elves. I tried finding the GOBLINS, but where it says the dark fortress is, there is nothing. And no matter how many times I try, how many different worlds I try in, and how many different sites I try, I can't find anything. Could someone help me understand what's happening and maybe understand how to find one?

I'm using Dwarf Fortress v0.31.18, SDL.

Best Answer

Occasionally, elves may populate originally human structures, such as fortresses. I once found a fort that was rotten with elves. Being immortal, they have populated it with at least 300 elves. The fort also housed an elf king, leading me to believe the elves had been assimilated into a human civilization, then the humans died out, leading to a civilization of city elves.