That's what I am uncertain of. Does it connect?
Yes, if you already have walls in your waterfall pourer.
I suspect you don't, with bridges and pumps.
That said, I don't see a way to build general-purpose static 3D printer able to build any structurally sound shape with pouring from above due jutting elements in particular being workable only on highest z-level.
As a potential alternative, consider combination of water and magma-filled minecarts; with track stops you can have them dump their load in the same tile in the same step, if you so desire. Perhaps you could alternatively turn the printer horizontal instead of vertical.
With a very clever design*, it might be possible to take advantage of the fact that shotgunned magma/water is a contaminant of magma[833] or water[833], until it hits the wall or stops, upon which it turns back into 2/7 water or magma. By using parabolic arcs, multiple tracks, precisely-controlled velocities and timing and perhaps sideways movement it would be possible to deliver 2/7 water or magma to any one floor or wall surface that falls between the minimum and maximum arcs traced by the contraption. Since you can only hit the wall from one side at once, you'd obviously need to be able to hit it from four sides at once.
However, on the plus side, it's easy to imagine using it to construct an upright plus sign, which would be outright impossible with static "falling from above".
* Seriously, you'd need to encode X destinations + return systems each into 4*X track systems 1-wide for X by X arena, and possibly double that if using separate track for magma and water.
Furthermore, any input system you use must be able to encode anything you desire to be possible, i.e. you must be able to input a representation of desired object that can be mathematically transformed into it exactly. In dwarf fortress, that typically means levers. Assuming you can make the machinery, how would you ask the system to build "A on z1, B on z2, C on z3, D on z4 and E on z5"?
*Scrolls up to the OP*
*Realizes the OP is not talking about maximally general 3D printer, but merely making unsupported caveins over an area*
Uh.
Water and magma can flow on bridges and off pumps, which won't support the obsidian.
With that, it's relatively trivial to build a map-spanning bridged containment area on zdesired holding water, another slightly higher holding magma, and then retract the retracting bridge with magma to have it fall into water. This will crush the unsupported bridge beneath under obsidian wall, so need to prevent subsequent flow into hole from elsewhere as well as reconstruct and relink the bridges afterwards though.
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Topic: Obsidian 3D printer, possible? (Read 9068 times)