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[randyshipp]

Can anyone think of a reason why I would be designating the carving of fortifications into existing constructed (slate block) walls and the designation flashes red but no job is generated or appears on the job list, so it's not getting done.

This is trying to clean up from some kind of mistake that the wiki says shouldn't have been able to happen.  I have an outer drawbridge that was linked to a lever in my little lever control room.  I know for certain that at one point this was linked up and that I tested its operation.  Now, the lever in the control room only lists one mechanism when I inspect its contents with {t}.  Needless to say that when I sent a dwarf in a panic to close the gate when the HUGE invading force of goblin masters, olms, rutherers, and trolls arrived...the gate did not rise.  The wiki says the only way to disconnect the lever from the bridge is to deconstruct one or the other, and that didn't happen, so I don't know what went wrong. 

Now, the only thing I can think of to do is carve fortifications in my courtyard walls (thank Armok the INNER drawbridge raised!) and shoot at them from inside.  Otherwise, I'm afraid the trolls will eventually dismantle the drawbridge and get in.

[Nasikabatrachus]

Carving fortifications only works on natural stone. Constructed fortifications must be constructed. Raised drawbridges can't be destroyed, as far as I know. I'm not sure about the other problem--is there a magma moat near the bridge? I suppose that might have melted the mechanism. Otherwise I guess it's a bug or you just forgot what connects with what.

[Frelock]

Well, luckily for you, a raised drawbridge acts like a wall, so the trolls won't be coming inside anytime soon (read "this version").  Guy above me got the fortification problem down pat.

With the lever problem, are you sure you have the right lever?  Have you savescummed during this fort(specifically shortly after the bridge and lever were made)?

[Ubiq]

Can anyone think of a reason why I would be designating the carving of fortifications into existing constructed (slate block) walls and the designation flashes red but no job is generated or appears on the job list, so it's not getting done.

Are you sure that dwarves have access to the walls in question?

I just tested carving fortifications into wooden walls in 31.25 and my engraver did so without a problem.

Carving fortifications only works on natural stone. Constructed fortifications must be constructed.

I've been constructing walls and carving fortifications in them all the way back to 40d. It does indeed work and has ever since I started playing.

[Nasikabatrachus]

I tested and Ubiq is indeed correct. That's weird: I think I have believed this almost the entire time I've been playing DF, but I can carve fortifications into constructed walls in every version I've played, and it's even in the wiki. The only source I can think of for this misconception is Captnduck's tutorial videos.

[Sphalerite]

Now, the lever in the control room only lists one mechanism when I inspect its contents with {t}.  Needless to say that when I sent a dwarf in a panic to close the gate when the HUGE invading force of goblin masters, olms, rutherers, and trolls arrived...the gate did not rise.

Raiding bridges won't raise if any creature over a certain size is standing on the bridge.  In your case, I suspect the rutherers were the culprit.  The lever is still connected to the bridge, the bridge just refused to raise due to the creatures on it.

[randyshipp]

Carving fortifications only works on natural stone. Constructed fortifications must be constructed.

This wiki entry -- http://df.magmawiki.com/index.php/Fortification -- needs to be corrected if that's the case.

Thanks for the other ideas.

[randyshipp]

Now, the lever in the control room only lists one mechanism when I inspect its contents with {t}.  Needless to say that when I sent a dwarf in a panic to close the gate when the HUGE invading force of goblin masters, olms, rutherers, and trolls arrived...the gate did not rise.

Raiding bridges won't raise if any creature over a certain size is standing on the bridge.  In your case, I suspect the rutherers were the culprit.  The lever is still connected to the bridge, the bridge just refused to raise due to the creatures on it.

Nah, I definitely pulled the lever in time (well before the trolls arrives...well, not WELL before, but in time. ;-) ) but it didn't raise.  Somehow, the lever end is short a mechanism.  I'll figure it out if and when the siege gets bored and goes away or I kill them off.  (Probably the former, since this is not a "training siege" that I want to send my untested military against.  No, I think I'll be taking advantage of my mountaintop location and just pull up the welcome mat, turn on the "NO VACANCY" sign, and wait it out!)

Oh, if that's an Engraver's job, I wonder if it didn't create the job because they're both busy.  I'll try cancelling what they're already doing and see if that gets them busy.

Thanks, folks.

[randyshipp]

Oh, if that's an Engraver's job, I wonder if it didn't create the job because they're both busy.  I'll try cancelling what they're already doing and see if that gets them busy.

Removed all the smoothing/engraving designations, and the job instantly appeared and they took off running.  So I should have fortifications soon.  Now to figure out how to get largely untrained marksdwarves to stand next to them and shoot the trolls....sigh.

[BigD145]

Carving fortifications only works on natural stone. Constructed fortifications must be constructed.

I've been constructing walls and carving fortifications in them all the way back to 40d. It does indeed work and has ever since I started playing.

Not only that, but carving fortifications from constructed walls gives you a walkable space on the z level above. Constructed fortifications do not. At least that's how it's been working when I take over existing civ forts.

[ext0l]

Constructed fortifications do have walking space on top. This is how my archer walkway is built. I'm still on 31.21 though

[Dorf3000]

Nah, I definitely pulled the lever in time (well before the trolls arrives...well, not WELL before, but in time. ;-) ) but it didn't raise.  Somehow, the lever end is short a mechanism.

If the lever only has one mechanism in the list then it's not connected to anything.  If you're sure you pulled the lever before and it raised the bridge, then either you're now confused over which lever it was that you pulled, or you blacked out while playing and deconstructed and reconstructed that lever.  The 'q' menu can get the wrong one if you're not moving the cursor directly over the lever and there's another one 'closer'.  It might be that you linked up and pulled a different lever than the one you thought you did.

The difficulty of selecting the right lever is why I don't build control rooms any more, well that and confusing my depot bridge lever with the entrance hall atom smashers while half my dwarves were bringing goods to the depot..

[Triaxx2]

Now that's dwarven.

I tend to build my levers fairly close to my bridges. It keeps me from messing up, mostly.

Interestingly, a door linked to a lever runs in a state opposite to a bridge linked to a lever. So a raised bridge opens a door. A lowered bridge will close the door.

Makes for a good safety feature.

[wuphonsreach]

Tricks to staying sane with levers:

- Levers should, as much as possible, be on the same level as the bridge.
- Always have a gap of 2+ tiles between any lever and anything else that can be activated with the 'q' menu.
- Ideally lever layout should match bridge layout.
- If you have colorful stones, make the bridge out of the same color stone.

Life has become more difficult since 31.18, it's harder to get a wide assortment of colorful stones.  So often in 31.25 I'm stuck with "gray", "gray", "another gray" a "white" and a "brown" colored stone.  Which makes kalonite and microcline and orthoclase valuable in my forts...

[Triaxx2]

Not to mention Kobaltite.