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Author Topic: Dying of thirst with a functional well  (Read 550 times)

Halo

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Dying of thirst with a functional well
« on: June 10, 2010, 05:45:36 am »

I tried embarking on a freezing map. I was getting low on booze, but the well setup was progressing. I finished it just in time, and someone was dehydrated and went to the well and got a drink. Then someone else died of thirst. Then someone else died of thirst, meanwhile a second dorf went to the well to get a drink. WTF.

Was there some kind of stealth change in .06 where only one person can use a well at a time? During sieges I've seen well over a dozen dorfs standing at a well getting a drink at the same time before. I watched 4 dorfs get a drink while 7 others died of thirst just now.
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bluephoenix

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Re: Dying of thirst with a functional well
« Reply #1 on: June 10, 2010, 06:01:23 am »

Only one dwarf can get a drink from the well and I am pretty sure it was like this since v.40d (first time I played)
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Sphalerite

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Re: Dying of thirst with a functional well
« Reply #2 on: June 10, 2010, 08:49:21 am »

Only one dwarf can drink from a well or a barrel at a time, and they take a long time to do so.  This has been the case for a long time.  I always make multiple wells to make sure this doesn't happen.

Also, make sure the well isn't exposed to the surface.  It's possible for the water in the bucket to freeze before the dwarf can drink from it under the right climate conditions.  This will result in a single dwarf trying to use the well over and over again until they die of thirst.
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Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex... It takes a touch of genius --- and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction.

Grendus

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Re: Dying of thirst with a functional well
« Reply #3 on: June 10, 2010, 09:17:38 am »

A good alternative is to dig a tunnel right next to the water source. Dwarves can drink water without a well if they're right next to the 1 z-level drop (strangely they can't drink water if it's on the same z-level, at least in 40d). They'll complain about it, it causes an unhappy thought and doesn't give a happy thought like a well designed well, but it will save their lives.
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