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[InfiniVide]

What I'd like to do is have a drawbridge right at the beginning of the fort entrance then about ten spaces back into the fort, put another drawbridge so the two will essentially trap anything (or anyone) inside it.  Then have a drawbridge suspended over a high pit that'll drop potential attackers.  How would I go about building this? I've experienced a cave in once before (with my expedition leader on my first fort, no less) but would I try just doing a controlled cave in?

[Jhoosier]

Your bridges need to be connected to something, or they'll collapse.  If you have two bridges out in the open with a third in between, it'll collapse when you raise the outer two, unless there's a wall alongside to hold them up.

Just create one drawbridge 2 tiles long that creates a wall when raised, and just outside have a retracting bridge that'll drops them.  You don't really need one at the beginning unless you plan on holding them there for a while, and there's no reason.  They'll all just pile into the raised drawbridge, and stand confused for a bit before heading some other direction if there is one.

I create really long S-shaped hallways with retracting bridges and a puppy tied on the inner side.  Then all the baddies pile in, and I drop them a squad or two at a time several z-levels and pick up the bits later.  If the caverns weren't in the way, I'd drop them all the way into magma and just strain out the weapons.

If I were home, I'd get a screen to show you.

[InfiniVide]

How do I go about clearing an empty shaft?

[Crashmaster]

I like to use stockpiles to move food and drink to the area, the forbid the stuff and remove the stockpiles (failure to remove the stockpile will screw up digging the area under the stockpile). Then have a miner or two just start channeling out the area one level at a time (designating more then one level will screw up digging). As you go down there will only be ramps on the lowest level. Once the miners can no longer get back out un-forbid the food and drink and they can live in the shaft until it is finished. When you get as deep as you want remove the ramps and dig an access way out that can be gated with a bridge and used to get at the goblinite and corpse bits.

I you want a suspended retracting bridge between two other bridges leave a one-tile pillar of natural rock in the center and build two bridges off of it to either side. You just need to build a floor out to the pillar to build the first bridge off of it.

I usually make a U shape detour so dwarves can bypass it during construction or times of peace. Here the shortcut is blocked, the exit of the first detour is blocked as well and the bulk of the white tigermen are piling in moments from dropping 6 z-levels (stunned and wounded only) to an eager axedwarf squad.

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