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[ahonek]

Hi folks. I have an interesting situation that I would like suggestions as to how to resolve.

Here's the configuration:

. empty space
+ floor (or top of wall)
X up/down stair (dry)
7 up/down stair (with 7/7 water in it)
~ water
O wall
r rock

z-level 3:

Code: [Select]

.....
.+++.
.+X+.
.+++.
.....
z-level 2:

Code: [Select]

~~~~~
~OOO~
~OXO~
~OOO~
~~~~~
z-level 1:

Code: [Select]

rrrrr
rrrrr
rr7rr
rrrrr
rrrrr
Basically I built this stairway down into a pond of water by using pumps to temporarily dry the pond floor. But my stupid dwarves carved a staircase into the z-level below the pond while this was happening (because I forgot to un-designate it), so water from the pond got down there. Now I can't get that water out, because my dwarves can't get down to that z-level. I can't channel the tiles on that level out, because there is a wall above them, and if I remove the wall the entire thing floods.

The only solution I can think of (other than removing it all and starting over) is to drop several z-layers of rock wall straight down on the stairwell, hopefully pulverizing said stair, and displacing the water elsewhere, allowing me to re-carve the staircase.

What do you think?

[Cotes]

Magma.

Although the changes are you'll just have a staircase full of magma afterwards with one tile of obsidian at the bottom.

EDIT: Actually, can you designate the tile as water source and just remove it with buckets?

[ahonek]

I thought about a water source, but I don't think dwarves can access the z-level below them for that sort of thing. I'll try it.

Edit: I just tried the "drop a bunch of wall directly onto the staircase to hopefully obliterate everything down there" and discovered that cave-ins don't destroy constructed stairs. So now I'll try the water source method.

[ahonek]

No good! They claim there's no water source. This makes sense, because when I designate it as a water source, it tells me there are zero valid tiles.

I'm really reluctant to involve magma, because the pump stack that I'll need to carry the magma up to this level will sort of defeat the purpose of punching through the pond, since I'll just be digging around it for magma...

[Cotes]

If you can cave-in it should be pretty easy to make a secondary staircase (just drop a 3x3 block from the roof), which will also allow you to dig into the first staircase and get the water to spread enough.

[Newbunkle]

If you restrict the other ponds and forbid your booze,maybe they'll drink it.

[ahonek]

Not actually a bad idea. I'm in a desert, so this underground pond is the only water on the map. I will report back with my findings.

[Tanelorn]

It looks like you tried to dig through an aquifer and ended up flooding the bottom stair case. Am I correct? I have done the same mistake before ...

I couldn't a way to empty the stairs from the top.

I had to dig another shaft on the side, tunnel under the aquifer layer, and dig back up to the original (flooded) staircase. That drained the 7/7 water into the tunnel.

Alternatively, you could channel a tile next to the flooded stairs, pump it out, which will allow a mason to stand on the (now drained) stair, and build a wall where you  channelled. It will mess up the symmetry of the staircase though and if you are anything like me, you will go for the first option.

[Lord Darkstar]

You either have to use magma or dig a second shaft. So empty your pond and then dig down. Or dig down elsewhere and dig over laterally to it.

[Hyndis]

Always build passive drainage into your fortress. Easy way to do this is to link all stairwells to a sewer system at the very bottom of the fortress that drains either into the cavern or onto the edge of the map through fortifications.

This way should any flooding occur it will be automatically and entirely passively contained. You don't need to do a thing, the problem just resolves itself.

[ahonek]

All good suggestions, but unfortunately none of them apply here. I wasn't digging through an aquifer, I was digging through water, and some of the water slipped down into my accidental stairwell.

Anyway, I'll just abandon and do it better next time.

[khearn]

Why not just do what you originally did? Use pumps to hold the water back while you deconstruct a section of wall and install another pump to drain the stairwell.

[Dorf3000]

Either use magma, or dig up from underneath.  Dwarves won't take water out of a water source they're actually standing on.  Caving in stuff on the stairs won't work as the stairs don't get crushed unless they actually fall, and you'll never be able to dig out the bottom stair that's filled with water.

[bobahz]

Could well be built over stairs?