Bay 12 Games Forum

My water system spans 5 Z-levels and 8 screens, but just for you, I am making an image Sparks.

Here is Z 7, the Cave River.

Here is Z 6, the Entry Flood Path/Initial Spillway.

Here is Z 5, the Falls.

Here is Z 4, the Falls 2
Not pictured is an Identical image to Z 5.

Here is Z 3, The Farms.

Here is Z 2, Downstream Flow/Spillway.

Here is Z 1/3 E, Emergency Water Release System
Not pictured is the Emergency Pressure Release one Z level lower of the Spillway, which consists of a large room bordering the chasm for 14 tiles, all with fortifications carved in, or the Overflow room, which is the same, one Z Level Up.


And that is the Water System. It's a fairly advanced one, but it has the core elements:
1) Flow Control system to ensure that the water can be stopped at the source
2) Large Rooms inside of the system so as to prevent a quick gush from overflowing the containment area
3) An exit system to get rid of the water when no longer needed so that dwarves can enter the system to make important changes.

As long as you keep those concepts in mind when designing your own, you'll have a successful water system.

Actually, it sounds more like Lacrosse then Golf.

You can respawn the same history and world seed at a date set to end in a year that you know a war is going on.

So I spent this weekend planning and executing my fortress for this version. It's a no-immigration fortress, but my planning went out of control... 150 can live there comfortably.

Anyway, I finally finished my irrigation plan. On level 7, there is a cave river. I have it tapped and flood gated. This drops into a channel that disperses this water into many different uses, from perpetual obsidian factory to a system to flood my entry hall. In fact, if I opened the inlet and shut the outlet, I could flood the entire fortress.

So, It went well, I finally got it up, and ran the trial system. The water GUSHED into it. I hadn't realised a Cave River source has that much pressure. The entire system was full almost instantly and it started pushing out of the system. I had to shut it off and race against the tide to open all my emergency pressure releases to save the fortress from destruction. On the bright side, my well rooms are full now.

But that's not what this is about. You see, after I had gotten the system mostly cleaned out and ready for pressure plate automatic shutoffs, I noticed a few lurkers in the top area. I tapped the cave river with fortifications, but somehow, two lizardmen and a giant toad were now in my water system. The best I can tell is the water pressure was so great at the point of the tap that the three creatures were compressed to the size of a spegetti noodle and shot through. Now I have to train an army to get up there, and in the meantime, dratted trees are growing to block my system!

This was pretty good. Take that, Forest Kings!

(Edit: Update, I am a fool. Paintheld was a fortress I made, I forgot I made it. Looks like it WAS too good to be true.)

See, that's what brings elves to their carnivorous state. You chop down all their apple trees, so the starving elves, whom have never heard of birth control, attack your fort because they have nothing left to live for. And when they are done tossing themselves on your defenses and somehow overcome you, they are naturally hungry, and some pointy-eared freak suggests giving "poetic justice" and Blam! You have carnivore elves.