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[Intro1827]

Can it be hollow all the way to the top? I found a spire that goes up to the third cavern layer and have never really mined it

[Urist Imiknorris]

I don't think the top layer can ever be hollow, but the rest are basically Russian roulette. However, given that the hollow center is always 2x2, there's still a good amount of perfectly safe adamantine on the other levels - just don't mine any that could hide a 2x2 hole.

[Intro1827]

Which sadly means potentially wasting 16 units of Adamantine, but eh. Better than death by Eldritch abominations

[Telgin]

I can't say if this is normal, but the only candy vein I've ever mined was solid for about 60 z-levels.  It wasn't until about 5 z-levels from the bottom that it opened up into the circus.

[ASCIt]

Which sadly means potentially wasting 16 units of Adamantine, but eh. Better than death by Eldritch abominations

Well, 4 per level, which can add up but is still preferable to clowns.

[Urist Imiknorris]

Actually 16 per level - the part that might be empty and the adamantine shell around it. Still worth not dealing with the HFS.

[MonkeyHead]

Had 2 spires at the now demonic Testpage. One was hollow on its second level. One was hollow after 50 z's. Go figure.

[daggaz]

Newb question, but cant you kind of section off the spire into segments for safe mining?  Like set up some double bulkheads at intervals, so that you can mine as much as you can and if it does open up to the circus, you can seal the break off with only a few casualties locked in on the wrong side?

Or will the demons just tear thru your fortifications (as I would think they could).

[MonkeyHead]

Oh there are many ways of keeping them out. Trouble is there are usually so many, your FPS becomes veeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrryyyyy ssssslllooooooooowwwwwww.

[Mitchewawa]

I always have a mason on hand every time I mine another level. I use burrows to keep him there and if I do open it up, I use burrow alerts to get everyone out of there. Then I wall it up before the demons get TOO close, and sometimes I can save everyone.

[proxn_punkd]

I took a sneak peek at the candy under Bootrazors with DF Reveal, three veins-- one of which doesn't even appear until the middle of the magma sea, the other two of which are in the third cavern. One of the latter hollows out one layer below its topmost point.

And I've since forgotten which one it was. @_@

[Khenal]

They seem to hollow out around the magma sea.  Though, as others have stated, this can vary by a lot.  I've had tubes into the bottom cavern layer be hollow after the first level, and I've had tubes solid all the way to the circus.  Honestly, I either ignore my candy or use dfreveal to see where they hollow out.  Or use tubefill if I really feel like having safe candy.

[MonkeyHead]

And if there is, apply marksdwarves?

[Loud Whispers]

And if there is, apply marksdwarves?

Use something with better range, like ballistae, just to avoid those inevitable fireballs.

[Urist Imiknorris]

I usually generate my worlds with the maximum 100 z-levels between the magma sea and HFS. The height at which veins hollow out seems to be completely random.