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[DeathOfRats]

I'm contemplating doing a stripmine + magma-cast for a megaproject, and I'm wondering if interiors made using cast obsidian count as underground for plant growing purposes. Does any of you know?

[Myroc]

I believe it counts as underground, yes.

[Elvang]

Do you mean the tile at one point will have the Light flag? Because as far as I know (wiki/experience), not even making several layers of obsidian will change it back to Dark (Subterranean can only be paired with the Dark and Inside flags).

[DeathOfRats]

I mean, what is going to happen if I strip mine the whole map down to the minimum z-level, and then make a block of obsidian on top and dig inside. Does it count as underground? If it doesn't, I'll have to leave the last z-level more or less intact for tower-cap/underground plant production, and I'd prefer to know of that beforehand.

[Elvang]

Nothing will change a tile back to Inside Dark Subterranean, which is needed for underground plants, once it has been exposed to light. Only natural walls, stairs, and floors block the Light ray from the roof of the map.

Further Reading

[DeathOfRats]

Aha! That's what I wanted to know. I knew constructed walls and floors wouldn't work, but I was unsure about cast obsidian. Thanks for the info and the link!

EDIT: Hmm, that link is very informative. I think I'm going to cast a layer of obsidian along the sky before strip-mining the bottom z-levels. That sounds like it would work, and would still enable me to have a totally obsidian map (save for a sand bearing area, and a patch for aboveground plants). Nifty

[Elvang]

Only natural walls, natural stairs, and natural floors block the Light ray from the roof of the map.

Just to clarify, even if you cast obsidian over tiles that are Light, they won't change back. You can only prevent them from changing to Light in the first place (removes subterranean), nothing to be done once they are no longer considered subterranean.

[DeathOfRats]

Yeah, I noticed that. I took it to mean that I can make a layer of obsidian on top now before removing all those z-levels, and later on remake those levels in obsidian while still keeping them inside. I know it won't make what was the outside before the top layer was done undeground, but the rest should still work, if I'm not wrong.

[Skorpion]

I think I'm going to cast a layer of obsidian along the sky before strip-mining the bottom z-levels.

That deserves quoting.

[Wolfius]

This is an interesting idea - be sure to let us know how it turns out.

[Deimos56]

Has anyone ever actually tested whether or not farm obsidian turns an area Subterranean/Dark?
Just curious as to whether we've got proof or if we're still speculating.

[Wolfius]

Has anyone ever actually tested whether or not farm obsidian turns an area Subterranean/Dark?
Just curious as to whether we've got proof or if we're still speculating.

It doesn't.

However, he wants to try and cast a layer of farm obsidian befor digging out an area under it for additional casting, with the aim of preventing it from ever losing the Subterranean/Dark tag, which is interesting and, AFAIK, an unknown.

He might have to cast the initial 'cap' layer underground. Prolly not - depends on how the tag propagates and exactly how he does it.

[DeathOfRats]

However, he wants to try and cast a layer of farm obsidian befor digging out an area under it for additional casting, with the aim of preventing it from ever losing the Subterranean/Dark tag, which is interesting and, AFAIK, an unknown.

That's it, exactly. However, the wiki says it'll work, so either someone has done it before, or someone was talking out of their ass I'm hoping it's the first one.

Anyway, my first attempt went not with a bang, but with a whimper. I forgot that magma evaporates, and the whole expanse of the embark area (which is, IIRC, 5x5) is a tad too much to fill with three pumps.

Instead, I'm now moving towards a slightly more sophisticated design, with a bottom chamber all across the world spanning two z-levels, and then two more levels divided in 5x5 squares connected by throwaway doors (meaning I know they'll melt once I open them. No biggie, I've got economic stone up the wazoo, anyway, with the strip-mining). Each of these rooms will have a 3x3 retractable bridge built in order to release their contents (magma for the first level, water for the second).

If I open all the bridges on the first level at the same time, and once that has settled the bridges on the second, I should have a complete obsidian covering of the sky (except for those annoying five tiles near the borders).

It's going to take a frightening amount of bauxite, between the bridges and the mechanisms (only for the lower level, which will contain magma), but there's plenty in the map, which I'll mine once my miners have reached legendary.

I'll keep you guys posted on how well this goes.

[DeathOfRats]

Well, I've started prepping the whole pumping system, and training my soldiers so they can take care of the critters in the underground river when I breach it to generate power.

Sadly, this fortress will have to wait for a bit, while I complete another mega-project that I left aside until I'd gotten some more information about how things work. It shouldn't take too long, maybe a week or so.

[Firnagzen]

... Actually, you can cast the border of the map, since magma doesn't flow off the edge of the map.