Editing v0.34:Clay

{{quality|Exceptional|22:18, 10 November 2010 (UTC)}}{{soillookup/0}}{{av}}

'''Clay''' is one of the many types of [[soil]] that can be found in Dwarf Fortress. [[Aquifer]]s are never present in clay layers.

==Ceramics==
Five different soil types are classified as clay - [[clay]], [[clay loam]], [[sandy clay]], [[silty clay]], and [[fire clay]]. Each of these can be gathered for use in [[Ceramic industry|Ceramics]]. If your [[embark]] site has at least one type of clay, it will be shown as ''Clay'' or ''Shallow Clay'' in the embark screen's biome viewer.

The gathering and use of clay is done from a [[kiln]] or [[magma kiln]] and behaves similarly to most material production, but includes elements similar to [[glass]] production. In order to gather clay, a [[activity zone#Clay Collection|gathering zone]] must first be designated, much like with [[sand]]; however, gathering clay creates a clay "boulder" (the same as raw stone) and does not require a bag. These clay boulders are stored in a Stone stockpile and may be used to build [[workshop]]s and [[construction]]s, but constructed clay floors '''cannot''' be used in place of natural soil. As with sand, clay can be gathered indefinitely from a single tile.

Clay can be made into pots, [[block|bricks]], [[statue]]s, [[hive]]s and [[Finished goods|craft]]s. Small pots, called [[jug]]s, function similar to bags and waterskins, while large pots are treated like barrels. Creating any object from clay requires a unit of fuel.

Clay can also be used in Jewelcrafting like any other stone or ore, allowing for an infinite source of materials for practicing cutting gems with.

Before an [[earthenware]] pot (large or small) can hold liquids, it must be '''glazed'''. Glazing is performed at a [[kiln]] and requires either a unit of [[ash]] or a unit of [[cassiterite]] ([[tin]] ore), plus a unit of fuel. [[Stoneware]] and [[porcelain]] pots do not need to be glazed.

When an underground plant ([[tree|trees]], [[shrub|shrubs]], [[grass]] or moss) grows on a muddy stone floor tile (after discovering a [[Caverns|cavern]]) and is either trampled, gathered, cut down or removed via building a dirt road on top of it, the floor tile turns into a soil type appropriate to the [[biome]] - for biomes which lack soil layers altogether (such as mountains and glaciers), a random soil type will be selected, which might sometimes be clay.

Occasionally it is possible to cultivate clay by channeling down into the lowest normal layer of the cavern, revealing a "[[Semi-molten rock|magma flow]]" above a floor [[semi-molten rock]] (and a [[ramp]] on the level below, if the square had not previously been revealed).  If a [[floor]] is constructed over the flow, then deconstructed, a natural floor of clay or [[sand]] may be left behind.  In some cases this may be the sole domestic source of clay for a fortress.

== Bugs ==

* It is possible to carve clay just like any other stone, but unlike other stones, carved clay never gains carving descriptions -- "Round Cut Clay" does not exist, instead it's simply "Clay."  This Clay is, however, treated in all respects like a normal gem and can be used to encrust the standard materials.{{Bug|5275}}

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