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Author Topic: Underground Cavern Access - wha?  (Read 914 times)

grayes

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Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« on: April 03, 2010, 01:00:43 am »

So, I dug down and found a cavern.  My first one, and quite a surprise I tell you.  I gaped in open awe at all the open mineral deposits, gold, platinum etc. just sitting around for the taking.  After creating some up/down stairways to allow me access to the new caverns, I designated some mining spots that appeared accessible.

And waited.

And waited.

And my miners don't see the cavern at all.  It appears to be open space, after all I built a stairway there (not dug out of rock, built in the open) and I can't interact with it at all.  I can't put any objects there (it says blocked) I even tried designating the cavern as a meeting place, and my guys ignore it.

I'm sure there's something really obvious that I'm missing, but I dont see it.
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grayes

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #1 on: April 03, 2010, 01:07:08 am »

Alright, well I just managed to get access to the cavern by going in SIDEWAYS (i.e. tunneling down, then going south to the cavern wall) INSTEAD of going down through the top.  But I still dont understand why that didnt work.

I GOT the stairway built in the cavern from above, so obviously my guys were able to get there, they just couldn't get OFF the stairway and into the space.
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SirStrange

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #2 on: April 03, 2010, 01:07:40 am »

I had the same problem at first, when I realized what the problem was I felt like a dope.

If you dug into the cavern from the top, your staircase is hanging from the ceiling, the caverns are usually multiple z levels tall. If you look around and it says "open space" that means that there is no floor there because you're up in the air, you need to build more staircases below that one until you get to the floor.
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grayes

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #3 on: April 03, 2010, 01:12:48 am »

I had the same problem at first, when I realized what the problem was I felt like a dope.

If you dug into the cavern from the top, your staircase is hanging from the ceiling, the caverns are usually multiple z levels tall. If you look around and it says "open space" that means that there is no floor there because you're up in the air, you need to build more staircases below that one until you get to the floor.

That'd be awesome if that's what's wrong, but I'm still confused, because using my "hanging stairway" I was able to built another stairway on the level BELOW that.

Picture it:  I tunneled down into a cavern.  "Ooh, shinies!"  I build an up/down stairway on the cavern floor, building it from the level above.  Then, I use THAT stairway to build the same thing another level down.  And I STILL couldn't access anything on either floor.

Presumably I could have kept going down, building up/down stairways and passing completely through the cavern, without being able to access any of it.

If it's a glitch, I'll just access the caverns sideways.  It's not that big a deal.  I just don't get it :)
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SirStrange

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #4 on: April 03, 2010, 01:21:04 am »

If you push "k" and look at one of the spaces around your stairway, does it say "Open space" or "whatever kind of rock"?
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grayes

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #5 on: April 03, 2010, 01:22:16 am »

.........................
..........................
........................
.................................oh.
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grayes

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #6 on: April 03, 2010, 01:23:23 am »

Yeah, what i took for "floor" was open space.  I didn't connect it with open space like you see on the surface, because on the SURFACE it's all green and stuff.

I assumed that the cavern was a labyrinth spanning several z-levels, each with its own floor, but that was incorrect.  My bad.

Embarrassed, and I'mma go away now
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grayes

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #7 on: April 03, 2010, 01:24:16 am »

Wait, so how do you mine the metals in the cavern that are waaaay high on the wall?  Crap.
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beekay

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #8 on: April 03, 2010, 01:31:33 am »

Get to building more stairs, I guess!
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Malicus

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #9 on: April 03, 2010, 02:24:36 am »

That'd be awesome if that's what's wrong, but I'm still confused, because using my "hanging stairway" I was able to built another stairway on the level BELOW that.

That is because staircases can now be built from the top.  It was intended that you should be able to drop ropes from above to descend, but Toady decided that that was too much hassle for now.  Being able to build stairs from above will probably be replaced by ropes in the future.
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Walliard

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #10 on: April 03, 2010, 04:18:29 am »

Wait, so how do you mine the metals in the cavern that are waaaay high on the wall?  Crap.

Build down to the floor, find the walls, then dig back up the sides.
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Toady, how much of DF is inspired by Labyrinth? Is Armok actually David Bowie? Because that would simultaneously be disturbing and awesome.

BigD145

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Re: Underground Cavern Access - wha?
« Reply #11 on: April 03, 2010, 02:27:46 pm »

There is also a problem with room designation right now. Areas are inaccessible right after making/exposing them and you have to wait some days before the game gives you access to it. You may get "no accessible building materials" and such for half a season.
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