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[Darktongue Breakbone]

I'm playing on a map with a volcano and want to make magma forges.  Problem is, there doesn't seem to be any tutorial on how to keep the channel from overflowing.   How does everyone manage to use this precious resource?

[Flok Speargrabber]

The best way is to build them on the layer ABOVE the magma stops. Barring that, dig out the level BELOW where you want the forges. Drain the lava (Make a vent to the outside but don't dig into the lava) Then dig a channel. This will also give you some obsidian.

[Janoveck]

Magma is a "chunky" flow and will only rise to the top of a level that is open to the vent.

code:

2D View
##''''''''## Open level.
##________## Floor Level
##~~~~~~~~~~ Channel Level
############  

General procedure to safely harness Magma is to scroll down the vent to a level where the vent walls extend further into the vent than the floor below. That way you can designate a channel and the area will be pre filled with magma. Then channel it across to your Smelters/Kilns/Furnaces/Forges.

Magma also contains various firey critters, Fire Imps, Magma men etc. Most can throw fire that causes damage but is ignored by Dwarves, leading to mass scorched deaths... Answer, Traps - and try to expose the magma as little as possible too, maybe mine two sets of tunnels one above the other, then channel out the last piece of the lower level to expose it to the Magma, that way theres an indestructable floor blocking most of the passageway that the magma can flow under.

[AlanL]

Magma doesn't use pressure code, it won't overflow like water does unless you breach your own tunnel.

[Mystry]

I had a bad experience trying to use a channel to open a tunnel into lava 1 z-level below.

Now I just take my lest skilled miner and have him bust the wall down. I lose the dwarf, save the fortress.

[Glazius]

I got magma into my fortress through careful channeling.

A fire imp came through the access tunnel before I could close it up, though.

And somehow, he went through three stonefall traps and a weapon trap without triggering any of them.

Is that bad luck or do fire imps just not trip traps?

[Akroma]

I had the same problem, I had to build a channel on the same level as the magma, as it turned out that the channel on the same level was too long, and the magma wouldn't reach 4 or higher below my furnaces

so I took my calculator and tried to figure out how much magma would have to be dealt with

then how much magma would be dealt with by the channel to the new furnaces
then how much spare magma was left to overflow
then I simply dug out a big atrifical magma lake
not a single unit of magma was flowing over
also, now I have something where I can drop my enemies into

[Krash]

quote: Is that bad luck or do fire imps just not trip traps?

I've seen that too.  My imp snuck through at least 4 stone fall traps and seriously wounded a peasant before he messed with my war dogs.  Fortunately, nothing caught on fire.

[Wolfius]

I just go down a few levels and find a spot where the magna sticks out beyond the level above it.

ie

code:

Start: Side View
█████████MM
██████████M
███████MMMM
█████████MM
████████MMM
Come in the side, but stop short - this is your magma channel, with workshops on the level above
█████████MM
██████████M
      █MMMM
█████████MM
████████MMM
Stair up(some distance from the future breach, 10-20 tiles away) and dig access tunnel on above level
█████████MM
█______███M
 ▲    █MMMM
█████████MM
████████MMM
Channel out the block
█████████MM
█____☺_███M
 ▲    ▒MMMM
█████████MM
████████MMM
Designate somewhere far away for mining to insure the miner gets out of there
█████████MM
█______███M
☺▲  mmMMMMM
█████████MM
████████MMM

To insure safety, you can mine out the upper part directly from the fort.

To keep magma critters from melting the face off your smith, just make the corridor long and twisty - it'll take a long while to fill, but I've never had anything come down it. You may also want to build a steel grate in the corridor befor flooding it.

[Shadowlord]

The easy way is to dig out a, say, 35x6 room adjacent to the volcano, underground. Seal it off. Then breach the volcano in one tile using a channel above, as others have mentioned, so that it flows into the room. Once the room is filled with magma, drop water down the channel until it turns the tile below into obsidian. Ta-da! Nothing can get into the room from the volcano now.

When you want to build magma workshops/furnaces, dig a channel in the room above to provide access to the magma below.

Here's my setup: http://mkv25.net/dfma/poi-1903-magmaworkshops

[Jreengus]

quote:Originally posted by Krash:
<STRONG>

I've seen that too.  My imp snuck through at least 4 stone fall traps and seriously wounded a peasant before he messed with my war dogs.  Fortunately, nothing caught on fire.</STRONG>

I find it easiest to set up a couple of c-bow traps and assign a war dog to any of my dwarves who are going to go work by the lava.

[Glazius]

Hmm.

Can magma force its way up through a channel? I tapped the surface vent and drew it down about 5 Z-levels into a nice tight channel. So far when I've cracked the ceiling to site a workshop there haven't been any problems.

[Skanky]

The answer to that question is already in this thread.

quote:Originally posted by AlanL:
<STRONG>Magma doesn't use pressure code, it won't overflow like water does unless you breach your own tunnel.</STRONG>

[Shooer]

You all are going through such lengths for such a simple answer, Iron Bars.

I don't "Channel" my magma, I mine out it's path and then break into it with a channel from the floor above.  Before opening it I put some Vertical iron bars in the path and no creatures have gotten through in the 2 plus years my magma industries have been in business.

And no, Magma can't flow up.  That is why I am able to have all my industries 3 Z levels below the top of the magma and dig my magma channel right below that.

[sphr]

quote:Originally posted by Shooer:
<STRONG>You all are going through such lengths for such a simple answer, Iron Bars.

I don't "Channel" my magma, I mine out it's path and then break into it with a channel from the floor above.  Before opening it I put some Vertical iron bars in the path and no creatures have gotten through in the 2 plus years my magma industries have been in business.
</STRONG>

Second this.  Always worked for me.  But say, don't iron melt?? I've always splurged on steel bars instead, as I thought only steel stays solid in magma.

But as an added precaution, the entire magma chamber is carefully planned so that the "open" square is directly below an impassible tile in the workshop (east and west tiles for magma forge, north tile for other smelters and kiln).  So, unless magma creatures get passed the steel bars, and have building destroying capabilities, I don't think they can get in....

But I *AM* thinking of creating a little theme park with a magma ride for my dwarves... perhaps open up another channel to some fortification sealed area so that my archers can have something alive to shoot at once in a while when they practice archery???