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[Saiko Kila]

I recently learned that for pathing purposes, stairs are like a ladder; if a Dwarf falls into a stairwell, he falls all the way down

Only the up/down stairs. I use macros for alternate up stairs and down stairs (or the whole stairwells), and has been using this setup for as long as I remember. If the key bindings are not changed, the macros works the same in different game versions, thus two minutes of work can save many hours in later years.

Very interesting, I didn't realize this.  So it's like the spiral design, but with stairs?  I wrote the ramp macro and immediately realized I would have traffic problems, since there was only 1 or 2 access points per level.  If I understand what you're saying, a single-stair level would look like this? ;

UDU
DXD
UDU

z-1
DUD
UXU
DUD

This would give 9 access points, 4 paths, and changing direction would only require one step.  Not quite as efficient as having Dwarfs rocket through a U/D tube, but ultimately a small sacrifice if it prevents the idiots from plummeting just b/c of a little flooding.  I suppose they could get pushed across and continue falling down each stair, looney toons style, but what are the odds?  I'm gonna see if I can get both zeds in a single macro.

I meant something like this:

Zero level:
DU
DU
DU

+/- one level:

UD
UD
UD

Plus free space to sides, to allow room for levers and such. This is slower than the ladder-style X stairs, of course. But it looks better in graphics pack.

I imagine the X-stairs as steep and narrow, similar to a ladder cut in stone, while the up stairs with down stairs I see as normal stairs, like in real life.

[gunpowdertea]

How about a 2-wide double helix / spiral?

I use this design, but 3 wide. It leads down from the surface to the cavern layer where my fortress is now located, including the trade depot. I see no need to go upstairs ever again (I still have a watch tower overlooking the entrance, though).
One ramp goes to the trade depot entrance, the other connects a watch tower and some upper layer facilities (graves, some old farm plots, hatching zones, the beehives,...) to the fortress proper. I will channel out the area next to the trade ramp on one side of this "square" structure and then carve fortifications into the wall facing it let my crossbow dwarves patrol it. I will also install a "flush" to that ramp to wash all of the gobbo remains down the drains, maybe separate out the goblinite...

[Sanctume]

For a 3-wide, do you use a 2x2 central pivot point? 
I think that an up-ramp adjacent-diagonal to a down-ramp makes that down-ramp still path-able.

[Bumber]

My current fort has a double-helix like this:

Code: [Select]

^#.
v.v
.#^

#.v
^.^
v.#

.v^
#.#
^v.

v^#
...
#^v. = Empty space
# = Wall
^ = Up ramp
v = Down ramp

The ramps apparently provide support between the wall adjacent and below, so it can be free-standing. A waterfall pours down the center. (Or it would, but I kept getting over-spill, and my FPS doesn't allow for it right now.)

[gunpowdertea]

For a 3-wide, do you use a 2x2 central pivot point? 
I think that an up-ramp adjacent-diagonal to a down-ramp makes that down-ramp still path-able.

In fact I use a 3x3 central column. In previous forts I sometimes installed a waterfall in it. It was prone to sweeping dorfs down it. Maybe I should build one out of Magma, but that would be totally irresponsible (but imagine how cool such a thing would look at night!)

[Libash_Thunderhead]

snip

My recent design is a 3x3 ramp shaft.

Code: [Select]

#####
#V.V#
#...#
#^#^#
#####

Code: [Select]

#####
#^#^#
#...#
#V.V#
#####I don't know if the 3 tiles in the middle are really necessary, but sometimes I feel I need to add a door or draw bridge on certain level.