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Windmill

2025-08-18T14:30:24Z

Jack Redfield: Article correction

{{Quality|Fine}}
{{V50 machine|name=Windmill|key=m
|icon=[[File:windmill_icon.png]]
|construction=
* 4 [[wood|Log]]s
|construction_job=
* [[Carpentry]]
|power=Generates 40, 20, or 0 power, depending on wind level
}}{{av}}

:''For a basic overview of how the different machine parts work and work together, see [[Machine component|machinery]].''

A '''windmill''' is a [[machine component]] that provides [[power]] via [[Weather#Wind | wind]] on the surface of a fortress map.

In order for the windmill to generate power, its center tile must have the "outside" [[Tile attributes|attribute]]. A windmill can produce 40, 20, or (rarely) 0 units of power, depending on how much wind there is in a map. If its power output is zero, but you've just built it, give it a few ticks (fifty or so) to start spinning. It may need to reorient itself to align with the wind direction first. If that doesn't work, there may still be hope.

In previous versions, wind was fixed and did not change depending on the embark map, seasons, location, or elevation.

If a windmill built on solid ground did not generate any power, then you simply didn't have enough wind on your map and would never be able to use windmills. While this may still be true for some maps, there are numerous reports in the Steam version of elevation and location affecting the power output. If a windmill at ground level does not generate power, placing the windmill on a platform at a higher elevation can sometimes make the windmill begin generating power again.

: (* The amount of wind is largely based on the latitude at which your fortress is located on the [[World generation|world]] map. See [[Weather#Wind|Wind]].)

Designate a windmill with the ({{Menu icon|b|m|m|sep=-}}) keys. Constructing a windmill requires [[carpentry]].

[[File:Windmill animation.gif|left]][[File:windmill_anim.gif|right]]The power generated by a windmill is transmitted either horizontally through the surrounding twelve tiles, or downward through its center tile. If you wish to use the center tile, you must first [[channel]] out the central tile and build the windmill on top of an existing [[axle|vertical axle]] or [[gear assembly]] (or the actual machine you wish to power). As the center tile of the windmill has an implied floor, this does not permit passage as long as the windmill stands.

When building a windmill on top of an existing axle or assembly, you might get a "no access" message, even if your dwarves can reach the center space of the windmill. You need to build a floor so that there's a place to stand next to one of the nine windmill squares (i.e. one space between the standing platform and the windmill axle). Spaces next to the windmill's axle (i.e. within the 3×3 building area) aren't enough to build it.

Due to what is assumed to be a bug, windmills can sometimes transmit their power through a solid floor without channeling. They only have this effect if the windmill is built ''first'', and whatever it's powering ''second''; however, this does not always work reliably.

As with other machines, windmills freeze if the floor under them is natural ice.

==Synchronization==
Windmills can be synchronized using [https://www.reddit.com/r/dwarffortress/comments/5cxv5t/science_i_have_found_a_way_to_synchronize/this] method.

[[Water wheel]]s don't cause a [[cave-in]] when they collapse. Their central tile, however, turns the tiles below into indoor tiles. You can deconstruct the supported gear assembly to make all windmills start at once by building a number of hanging [[gear assembly|gear assemblies]], [[axle]]s, and waterwheels connected to a single supported gear assembly.
[[File:Windmill_at_Watermill,_Southampton_NY_20180914_080131.jpg|thumb|320px|center|An old windmill.]]
{{buildings}}

Cavern

2025-08-18T08:10:11Z

Jack Redfield:

{{Quality|Exceptional}}
{{av}}
{{minorspoiler}}
[[File:Cavern v50.jpg|thumb|351px|A cavern found underground.]][[File:v50_cavern2.png|thumb|351px|A deeper, more colorful layer of a cavern.]]
:''Not to be confused with [[Cave]].''
'''Caverns''' are ''huge'' natural underground tunnel systems, inhabited by strange and dangerous creatures. In the vanilla game, worlds have three cavern layers. Number, size and z-position can be altered in the [[world generation]] parameters.

The caverns will usually have open map edges, allowing all sorts of [[creatures]] to migrate into and from them. By exploring the caverns in adventure mode it is possible to travel large distances below the surface - the caverns effectively connect all sites that access them.

Upon reclaiming a fort, all mud in the caverns is removed.

''In subterranean biomes, Chasm, water, and lava mean land, water (pool), and magma (pipes) respectively.''

==Geography==
The top of the first cavern usually resides about 10-11 z-levels below the surface.
Each cavern layer spans multiple z-levels. Beneath the third layer lies the [[magma sea]].

If you hit caverns too often, you can create a custom world with a higher number for 'Z Levels Above Layer 1'—i.e. the levels of stone above the first cavern layer. Making this higher will guarantee at least this many levels to build your fortress, but will have no impact on how many z-levels thick the surface layer is. Also, the top of a cavern may be higher than the rest of a cavern, so in practice there will be more levels than this.

Generating worlds using the ISLAND template tends to produce much deeper caverns (hundreds of z-levels down) than those with the REGION template, where only 50-60 z levels will separate the surface from the Underworld.

===Lakes and Pools===

Usually, most cavern layers are filled with [[water]] to a certain degree. This can range from a few pools (similar to, but distinct from [[murky pool]]s) at the bottom level to the whole layer being submerged, forming a gigantic underground sea, including [[fish]] and possibly camps of [[olm man|olm men]] and other [[fun]] aquatic creatures. If a body of water in a cavern connects to the map edge, creatures native to [[Creature#Subterranean|subterranean]]/[[Creature#Underground_Tribes|underground]] biomes, that can [[Swimmer|swim]], are able to [[Creature#Spawning|spawn]] there, which maybe be considered a [[Cavern#Dangers|danger]] or a [[Cavern#Benefits|benefit]].

The average amount of water cavern layers feature depends on your world generation settings, specifically:

[CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MIN:0]

[CAVERN_LAYER_WATER_MAX:100]

===Features===
[[File:cavern_announcement_v50.png|right]]Exploring the underground world, you may find a variety of special geographical features. When your dwarves discover a feature, an announcement window will let you know of it.

'''[[Deep pit]]s:''' Deep pits are... deep pits that connect one cavern level to the next. They have a fixed shape: The top z-level, where the pit meets the next cavern level, is un-muddied rough rock floor where the normal open space of the deep pit, and the random rock spires of the cavern collide.

If your map has an unseen [[cave-in]] at the beginning of embark, the caverns may have a deep pit somewhere. This occurs because some stone in the cavern above the deep pit is unsupported and falls down. This may be a bug.

'''[[Magma pool]]s:''' Despite the name, magma pools are not actual pools, but tubes extending up from the [[magma sea]]. Their shape is fixed and their presence random. A magma tube might extend all the way to the top cavern, or merely a few z-levels. Magma pools can be distinguished from the magma sea even if they are only a single Z-level high due to two important features: they will always be walled by obsidian as opposed to the standard stone of the layer and, more importantly, will (very slowly) refill to their top if any magma is drained.

'''[[Passage]]s:'''
Passages are natural tunnels connecting two layers by ramps and short, twisted tunnel sections. The announcement window will let you know you've found a downward passage, even if you happen to discover it from the bottom.

==Wildlife==
A number of [[vermin]] and [[creature]]s can only be found in subterranean biomes, at certain cavern levels. Cavern creatures seem to follow different rules from above-ground creatures - their population numbers are usually far more than their [[Raw file|raws]] imply, and alignment plays no role in whether they can be found in the map or not. Good creatures like the [[gorlak]], evil creatures like the [[troll]] and savage creatures like the [[giant cave spider]] can be found in any cavern, regardless of the actual [[surroundings]].

[[Forgotten beast]]s are a special type of procedurally-generated [[megabeast]] found only in caverns, and may invade your map from any of the three cavern levels.

===Creatures===
{| class="wikitable"
! Name
! Level 1 !! Level 2 !! Level 3 !! Level 4
|-
| [[File:Amethyst man sprite.png|15px]] / {{Tile|M|5:1}} [[Amethyst man]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Amphibian man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|a|6:0}} [[Amphibian man]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Antman sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|a|0:1}} [[Antman]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Bat man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|b|0:1}} [[Bat man]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Blind cave bear sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|B|7:1}} [[Blind cave bear]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Blind cave ogre sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|O|7:1}} [[Blind cave ogre]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Blood man sprite.png|15px]] / {{Tile|M|4:0}} [[Blood man]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Bugbat sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|b|5:0}} [[Bugbat]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Cave blob sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|o|6:1}} [[Cave blob]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Cave crocodile sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|C|7:0}} [[Cave crocodile]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Cave dragon sprite anim.gif|20px]] / {{Tile|D|7:1}} [[Cave dragon]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Cave fish man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|f|7:1}} [[Cave fish man]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Cave floater sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|f|6:1}} [[Cave floater]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Cave swallow man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|s|0:1}} [[Cave swallow man]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Creeping eye sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|e|7:1}} [[Creeping eye]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Crundle sprite.png]] / {{Tile|c|4:0}} [[Crundle]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Draltha sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|D|6:1}} [[Draltha]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Drunian sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|d|7:0}} [[Drunian]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Elk bird sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|E|6:0}} [[Elk bird]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Fire imp sprite.png]] / {{Tile|i|6:1}} [[Fire imp]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Fire man sprite.png|15px]] / {{Tile|M|4:1}} [[Fire man]]
| || || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Flesh ball sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|o|6:0}} [[Flesh ball]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Floating guts sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|%|7:0}} [[Floating guts]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Beast sprites preview anim.gif|22px]] / {{Tile|?|7:1}} [[Forgotten beast]]2
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Gabbro man sprite.png]] / {{Tile|M|0:1}} [[Gabbro man]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Giant bat sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|B|0:1}} [[Giant bat]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Giant cave spider sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|S|7:0}} [[Giant cave spider]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Giant cave swallow sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|C|0:1}} [[Giant cave swallow]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Giant cave toad sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|T|7:0}} [[Giant cave toad]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Giant earthworm sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|W|6:0}} [[Giant earthworm]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Giant mole sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|m|6:0}} [[Giant mole]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Giant olm sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|O|7:1}} [[Giant olm]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Giant rat sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|R|6:0}} [[Giant rat]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Gorlak sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|g|6:1}} [[Gorlak]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Green devourer sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|G|2:1}} [[Green devourer]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Gremlin sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|g|2:1}} [[Gremlin]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Helmet snake sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|s|7:1}} [[Helmet snake]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Hungry head sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|h|0:1}} [[Hungry head]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Iron man sprite.png|12px]] / {{Tile|M|0:1}} [[Iron man]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Jabberer sprite anim.gif|20px]] / {{Tile|J|5:1}} [[Jabberer]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Large rat sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|r|6:0}} [[Large rat]]
| {{check}} || || ||
|-
| [[File:Magma crab sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|C|0:1}} [[Magma crab]]
| || || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Magma man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|M|4:1}} [[Magma man]]
| || || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Manera sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|m|6:0}} [[Manera]]
| || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Molemarian sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|M|4:1}} [[Molemarian]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Mud man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|M|6:0}} [[Mud man]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Naked mole dog sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|n|4:1}} [[Naked mole dog]]
| {{check}} || || ||
|-
| [[File:Olm man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|o|7:1}} [[Olm man]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Plump helmet man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|m|5:0}} [[Plump helmet man]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Pond grabber sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|p|1:1}} [[Pond grabber]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Reacher sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|R|7:0}} [[Reacher]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Reptile man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|r|2:0}} [[Reptile man]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Rodent man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|r|0:1}} [[Rodent man]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Rutherer sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|R|7:0}} [[Rutherer]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Serpent man sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|s|7:1}} [[Serpent man]]1
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Troglodyte sprite.png|12px]] / {{Tile|t|6:0}} [[Troglodyte]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Troll sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|T|0:1}} [[Troll]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Voracious cave crawler sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|C|1:0}} [[Voracious cave crawler]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|}

:1 [[Animal person#Subterranean animal people|Subterranean animal people]] may occasionally launch [[ambush]]es into a fortress from any of the cavern levels.
:2 [[Forgotten beast]]s are a special type of [[invader]] who serve as subterranean [[megabeast]]s.

===Vermin===
{| class="wikitable"
! Name
! Level 1 !! Level 2 !! Level 3 !! Level 4
|-
| [[File:Bat sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|∙|0:1}} [[Bat]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Cap hopper sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|∙|2:0}} [[Cap hopper]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Cave fish sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|α|7:1}} [[Cave fish]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Cave lobster sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|¥|7:1}} [[Cave lobster]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Cave spider sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|∙|7:0}} [[Cave spider]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Cave swallow sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|∙|0:1}} [[Cave swallow]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Creepy crawler sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|*|6:0}} [[Creepy crawler]]
| || || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Fire snake sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|∙|6:1}} [[Fire snake]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Olm sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|∙|7:1}} [[Olm]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || ||
|-
| [[File:Purring maggot sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|{|7:1}} [[Purring maggot]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|}

==Vegetation==
[[File:Cavern krugg.jpg|thumb|Rendering of cavern Vegetation]]

Any cavern layer without a pool of water will have only muddy dense floor fungus, and no plants or trees except [[blood thorn]]s.

Removing a layer will cause the layer above to randomly pick from trees that the now-removed layer could have handled and that the layer above can handle.

===Shrubs===
{| class="wikitable"
! Name
! Level 1 !! Level 2 !! Level 3
|-
| [[File:Cave wheat shrub sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|:|7:1}} [[Cave wheat]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Dimple cup shrub sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|:|1:1}} [[Dimple cup]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Pig tail shrub sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|:|7:0}} [[Pig tail]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Plump helmet shrub sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|:|5:0}} [[Plump helmet]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Quarry bush shrub sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|:|7:0}} [[Quarry bush]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Sweet pod shrub sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|:|4:1}} [[Sweet pod]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} || {{check}}
|}

===Trees===
{| class="wikitable"
! Name
! Level 1 !! Level 2 !! Level 3
|-
| [[File:Black-cap trunk sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|♠|0:1}} [[Black-cap]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Blood thorn trunk sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|╡|4:0}} [[Blood thorn]]
| || || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Fungiwood trunk sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|♣|6:1}} [[Fungiwood]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Goblin-cap trunk sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|♠|4:1}} [[Goblin-cap]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Nether-cap trunk sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|♠|1:0}} [[Nether-cap]]
| || || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Spore tree trunk sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|♣|3:0}} [[Spore tree]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
| [[File:Tower-cap trunk sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|♠|7:1}} [[Tower-cap]]
| {{check}} || {{check}} ||
|-
| [[File:Tunnel tube trunk sprite.png|20px]] / {{Tile|│|5:1}} [[Tunnel tube]]
| || {{check}} || {{check}}
|-
|}

===Grasses===
{| class="wikitable"
! Name
! Level 1 !! Level 2 !! Level 3
|-
| {{Tile|.|7:1}} [[Floor fungus]]
| {{check}} || ||
|-
| {{Tile|.|3:1}} [[Cave moss]]
| || {{check}} ||
|-
| {{Tile|.|5:1}} [[Underlichen]]
| || || {{check}}
|}

==Dangers==
Though digging down can be tempting, coupled with the fact that caverns can provide some helpful resources, there are many, many <s>dangerous</s> [[fun]] [[animal]]s in a cavern. This includes [[giant cave spider]]s, [[giant olm]]s, [[troll]]s and [[cave crocodile]]s, but even the seemingly [[gremlin|harmless ones]] can provide great [[Stupid_dwarf_trick#Self_Destruct_Lever|fun]].

Cavern level one is as good as things get, and the following levels will [[Cave dragon|only]] [[Voracious cave crawler|be]] [[Magma crab|worse]]. If you can't stand level one, you won't be able to stand level two or three. [[Hungry head|Flying creatures]] can <s>ruin your day</s> [[Fun|provide some fun]] if your main stairwell leads directly into the cavern (the bottom of up-down/down stairs can be passed by flying creatures). Also, any cavern of sufficient size will be inhabited by [[giant cave spider]]s, which can be both a [[Silk|benefit]] and a hazard.

Opening the caverns will make it possible for your fortress to be attacked by [[forgotten beast]]s, which range in lethality from "not much" to "nigh unkillable". One thing you really have to watch out for is having your main stairwell lead into a cavern. It doesn't have to be so walking creatures can get in, but just so there's an open hole. Any hostile creature sitting under your open stairway will spook any dwarves trying to use it, causing a flood of job cancellation messages as they keep trying to reach their destination. When this happens, it can lead to all your dwarves starving themselves to death. Only build stairs on the side, preferably with a hatch.

And of course, digging too deep will lead the player to encounter certain [[Demon|overwhelmingly fun things]].

==Benefits==
Caverns provide ever-regenerating resources in the form of underground [[wood|forests]], animals to hunt, and fish. On breaching a cavern layer, a variety of [[ore]]s and [[gem]]s lining its walls will be revealed. The cavern floors are always [[Farming#Underground Farming|muddied]], providing soil to a variety of underground [[plant]]s. Also, underground caverns and the [[water]] they provide can be used in constructions and traps. In places like [[glacier]]s, caverns will provide the only source of [[water]] and [[farming|farmable]] land. Throwing your prisoners into a damp hellhole filled with ravaging beasts is a nice addition, too. Additionally, creating a world without caverns will result in no subterranean plants, plant products (plump helmets/spawn/wine etc.) or fish available on embark. However this is a moot point, as without mods, dwarven civilizations only use indoor farming, and so will never form. Worldgen will stall without a usable dwarven civilization.

Once an underground cavern has been discovered, shrubs and trees will spontaneously grow on any subterranean [[soil]] or [[mud]]died [[rock]] on every embark site that accesses the cavern. This means that if you find a cavern in one embark site and embark in another site accessing the same cavern, plants will start growing there even before you discover the branch of the cavern that lies under the site. This allows you to construct underground tree farms and avoid sending dwarves to the surface to harvest wood, or just to get wood in environments without above-ground forests.

As walls can be built right up to the map edge below ground, it is possible to prevent land creatures from spawning by turning all the spawn points into walls. A single level of wall is sufficient to halt most non-fliers, who will appear on the wall and be unable to get down into the cavern itself. Creatures with the ability to climb or jump, however, tend to eventually figure out a way down, so prepare for these accordingly. Fliers can be stopped only by building walls up to the ceiling, and swimmers can't be prevented from spawning without obsidianising the water tiles on the map edge. The next best thing is to block off access, which can be achieved by dropping a layer of natural stone wall into the water.

NOTE: walls come with floors above them, which means that creatures may still spawn on top of the wall and interrupt jobs, or not spawn where you want them to (if you are trying to wall off most entrances and leave a few designated entrances with cage traps). So fortifications without floors on top of them should be built instead to seal an entrance from ground creatures. Also avoid completely walling off all ground creatures with only 1 floor of walls; the game will spawn flying creatures if ground creatures cannot be spawned.

===Creatures===
[[Cage trap]]s placed in the caverns can capture wild animals to potentially [[animal trainer|tame]]. As with above-ground creatures, subterranean groups of creatures are limited to one group at a time. Many of the more interesting creatures appear in groups of one and have small populations, so you'll have to clear out a lot of bugbats and crundles before being able to grab every giant cave spider or jabberer your site can produce.

These small populations may result in all spawned individuals being of the same sex, making breeding programs impossible even for creatures that have the necessary tags. Adding the {{token|CHILD|c|1}} token to a creature is a relatively easy mod, but sex changes require the application of a transformational syndrome, and possibly changing the creature from an egg-layer to a live-birther.

==When should I start exploring?==
One standard approach is to wait until you have a working military. The first cavern usually has few hazardous monsters, apart from the occasional [[giant olm]] or [[giant toad|toad]] and [[giant cave spider]]s, but just one giant bat can destroy an early fort, and [[Forgotten beast|uninvited guests]] will wander in sooner or later. The subsequent caverns will become increasingly [[fun]], so don't dig too deep without making adequate preparation. A decent military should be able to handle the cavern fauna, assuming they're not busy dealing with surface [[invader]]s.

Alternatively, you might want to breach the caverns as early as possible, then wall off the entrance. Doing so has several benefits: it will allow you to plan your fortress layout around the underground features, release the spores necessary for an underground [[tree farm]], prevent a calamitous discovery later when [[forgotten beast|powerful enemies]] lie in wait, and minimize the amount of time invested if the caverns prove unsuitable. You can of course continue to explore a cavern without a military, but you will likely get a bunch of dwarves killed.

Another alternative approach is to breach the caverns on a separate tunnel from your main fortress, so that beasts found inside have to path through the surface to reach your citizens, much in the way regular wild animals and invaders have to. Watch out for automatically created 'collect silk' jobs though, since dwarves assigned to them will be all the more in danger.

Not all parts of a cavern are immediately visible; a good portion of a cavern is revealed once you breach it, but other parts remain hidden until your dwarves explore them. Since you often don't know what you'll find in a cavern, they can be exciting places, but also
very <s>dangerous</s> fun.

==Methods of exploration==
:''This section covers methods to explore already-discovered caverns; if you're having trouble finding the caverns, check [[Exploratory mining]] for tips.''

There are many different methods of exploring, some less [[fun]] than others.

'''Military squads''': You can order your [[squads]] into the cavern with move orders. This way you can have dwarves manually explore the cavern by foot. The caverns are dangerous and unpredictable; well equipped dwarves will live longer. The {{k|s}}quad:{{k|a}}ttack:{{k|l}}ist command will help you find and kill enemy creatures which may be located on many different z-levels inside the cavern.

Note that creatures may wander into the cavern from the edges, so, if you want to start collecting silk, gems, ore and the other valuable loot in a cavern, and you want to do so safely, you should first kill or capture the creatures in the cavern, then wall off the edges to keep new creatures from wandering in. Note that, if you want to keep flying creatures out, your walls will need to cover the edge of the cavern from the floor to the ceiling. If you'd still like to fight or capture wandering creatures, but don't want them killing your workers, you can leave some room for creatures to get in, and build doors or cages as necessary.

'''Monster slayers''': Once you've discovered a cavern, if your [[world]]'s population and history is large enough, a steady stream of wandering [[monster slayer]]s will come to your fort, [[petition]]ing you for the right to live there and kill the awful horrors that live beneath your feet. While it's best not to rely on them to actually keep your fort safe from deep trouble, they actually do a pretty solid job of mapping out your caverns for you. Just be sure to keep [[cage trap]]s and sane armed guards at whatever access route you choose to leave open so your slayers can reach their tasty slayables.

'''Lone woodcutter''': Most cavern creatures are not faster than a normal dwarf, so it may be safer to send out a civilian woodcutter to cut 1 tree at where you want to explore. Unlike exploring with an early unarmed military team that will suicide against [[jabberer]]s, a woodcutter will actually run away when confronted by hostile creatures. Cavern creatures also tend to give up the chase after a while, provided you can dodge the few hits they rarely get in if they catch up (not a problem if your explorer has moderate dodging skill).

'''Fortifications''': as dwarves can see through [[fortification]]s, you can carve out a fortification near the edge of the explored area to safely discover more of the cavern. This prevents wildlife and [[megabeast]]s from entering your fort, as an added benefit. This method does not work for exploring the magma layers - or rather, it ''does'' work, but for a very, very brief time during which there is much [[fun]].

'''Digging and walling''': Instead of [[smoothing]] a wall and then carving a fortification, it can be quicker to just dig out the wall and then blocking off the opening with a [[construction|constructed]] wall. The disadvantage over the fortification method is that if any dangerous creatures are lurking unseen near edge of the explored area they might get to your dwarf before the wall can be put up.

'''Digging from above''': The only method that works in the magma layers, this method requires you to dig a hole from above the caverns into the cavern. It is advisable to seal the hole afterwards if you wish to prevent flying or magma creatures from entering your fort.

'''Autonomous Dwarven Cavern Rover''': [[Activity_zone#Pit.2FPond|Pit]] an animal into the cavern through an access tunnel above the cavern floor, walling it up afterward if you wish. The animal will wander the cavern, revealing more of it, and possibly stumble across things you would prefer your dwarves not encounter unaware. If the animal is tame, its movement can be somewhat controlled by creating a [[Activity zone#Meeting Area|meeting zone]] in the place you would like it to move to.

'''Suicide mission''': Ideal for exploring the bottom of a deep pit or magma pool. Knock a dwarf or animal into the pit, and they will rapidly plummet. Despite being unconscious, they will report everything they see for as long as they are alive. [[Noble]]s, [[cat]]s and [[vampire]]s make excellent geonauts.

'''Separate tunnels''': Digging exploration tunnels from within your fortress will result in a direct path from the caverns to your fortress- this can result in enormous volumes of fun. Players seeking to avoid fun may instead choose to start their exploration tunnels from elsewhere on the surface, outside the fortress. This guarantees that any threats released through exploration must pass through the same entrance utilized by surface threats, such as goblins or elephants, before they can access the fortress.

This method works in conjunction with the "Digging from above" method. Placing the tunnels as close as possible to the edges of the map will reduce obstruction to the fortress. The Dwarf Fortress Wiki assumes no liability for any potential damage to lesser surface races resulting from the release of subterranean monsters directly into the surface world.

==Adventure mode==
You can enter a cavern with an [[Adventurer_mode|adventurer]] and explore it. Ways to enter them include [[cave]]s, dwarven [[fortress]]es that connect to [[tunnel]]s, starting in [[Mountain halls]], and goblin [[dark pits]] that have pits that can be [[climb]]ed down. You can also encounter downward [[passage]]s or [[Cavern#Features|deep pits]] that connect the different cavern levels.

The dangers are obvious: nasty creatures, pitfalls, and so on. You need to be careful, since you can't fast-travel underground, unless you are in a generated [[tunnel]], where you can only fast-travel if not in a mountail tile or a hostile site. Make sure to stock up on food, water, and (if necessary) ammunition before you go. Caverns are very big—finding your way back can be hard.

There are tribes of animal men underground, who will attack you on sight. If you're lucky, you might find a [[gremlin]] or other non-hostile intelligent wildlife, which can be recruited. Because you can't fast-travel, you can only heal by sleeping, which can be dangerous due to the [[Giant cave spider|nature]] of caverns. You're on your own against [[Forgotten beast|whatever]] [[Troll|shows]] [[Blind cave ogre|up]], unless you brought or find allies. Escaping from the caverns by the same route used as an entrance can be very difficult; though if you manage to reach a cavern area right below, there is a town where you can fast-travel to the surface.

If you discover the underground caves in Adventure mode, then retire and start a fortress, the fortress will grow subterranean plants as if a passage to the underground had already been opened on that map.

==Caravan and Embark Item Availability==
[[Embark]]ation and dwarven [[caravan]]s only provide the resources available in the first cavern level. Since [[purring maggot]]s don't appear in the first cavern level, unlike in 40d, you can't buy dwarven [[cheese]] or dwarven [[milk]] {{Bug|1449}}. A workaround is to edit the global [[raw file]]s to make purring maggots appear on level one or be ALWAYS_PRESENT as pets of dwarven civilization, [[world generation|generate a new world]], then edit the raws of the new world to change the maggots back to normal before embark.

{{Translation| dwarven = kor | elvish = nunòre | goblin = aspâd | human = rushan}}

{{World|Biomes}}

Engraving

2025-08-17T20:51:54Z

Jack Redfield:

{{Quality|Superior}}
{{av}}
[[File:DF_Cheese.jpg|208px|thumb|right|A dwarf eating cheese]]
The process of '''engraving''' [[smoothing|smoothed]] or constructed [[wall]]s and [[floor]]s increases their value further, and gives them a [[quality]] level. It is unknown if dwarves currently look at engravings (in previous versions, they did not), but if they do, it would no doubt satisfy their [[need]] to admire art.{{verify|I have seen dwarves satisfy their Admire Art needs in areas with engravings, but I cannot verify that the engravings are the only factor present}} Engravings made with a quality of -Well-crafted- and higher will usually be in reference to [[Legends|previous events]], but they can still be depictions [[preferences|of]] [[deity|something]] [[weapon|the]] [[crafts|engraver]] [[cheese|cares]] [[friend|about]], whether they [[booze|love]] it or [[vermin|absolutely hate]] it. You can examine the contents of an engraving by clicking on it.

Any constructed tile or non-{{token|SOIL|imat}} natural tile that has been [[smoothing|smoothed]] can be engraved, even [[slade]] and the materials that exist in geological layers only as a [[Duplicated raws#Duplicated materials|result of a glitch]].{{verify|is this still in v50?}} Engraved [[ice]] is called "Sculpted Ice".

==Process==
[[File:engraved_preview.png|right]]You can only engrave non-[[soil]] floors and walls. However, smooth and constructed walls/floors can both be engraved. The material the tile is composed of has no effect on the process of engraving, so a constructed wood/glass wall can be engraved in the same way as a natural stone wall. Once the area has been smoothed with {{k|v}}-{{k|m}} (not necessary for constructions), you may designate it to be engraved using {{k|v}}-{{k|g}}. The dwarf must have the Engraving [[Labor#Default_work_details|work detail]] active and the [[Labor#Default_work_details|Stone Cutting]] work detail active to smooth a rough cave tile.

Once a tile is designated, the theme or content of the engraving can be selected by first clicking on the designated tile and then on the "specify [[art|image]]" button. This must be done before the game is unpaused. If no selection is made, then the contents of the engraving are left to the [[preferences|choice]] of the engraver performing the job. Note that engraving glass floors will remove their transparency.

Engravings are directional—only a room containing the tile the engraver stood on when it completed will receive the engraving value bonus. There is no way to engrave more than one side of a single wall tile.

Using only highly-skilled engravers will result in high-quality engravings, and therefore higher room and fortress value.

==Toggling==
Settings exist in the game for enabling and disabling the display of engravings, but this currently does not work, either by manually designating an engraving as hidden or by changing the in game/init setting. See previous version for how this used to work.

==Removal==
Floor engravings of unsatisfactory quality and/or content (e.g. carvings of [[Boatmurdered|elephants mauling dwarves]]) can be removed by designating{{k|v}} the carving of minecart {{k|t}}racks over them. The tracks can then be removed by smoothing the stone, which results in fresh, smooth stone tiles ready for another attempt at engraving.

There are bugs with engravings on constructed floors that make it tricky to remove them—simply removing the constructed floor and building it back will result in the engraving reappearing, albeit without any description text.

To remove an engraving from constructed floor located on stone, first deconstruct the floor, then smooth the floor. This will cause the engraving to magically reappear, meaning it is now safe to put new constructed flooring over it. As an alternative to smoothing, you can also carve minecart tracks.

To remove an engraving from constructed floor located on soil, first deconstruct the floor, then build a wall, then cut arrow slits into the wall, then destroy the wall, and then rebuild your constructed floor.

Both methods will reset your floor to a fresh state, allowing you to start anew.

Floor engravings can also be removed from natural walls by allowing [[magma]] to flow over them, which reverts the tiles to their smooth form.

Wall engravings can only be removed by removing the wall – mining in the case of natural walls, or removing a constructed wall using {{k|m}}-{{k|x}}.

Removing engraved natural walls/floors will remove the engraving without triggering the negative thought. However, removing a masterwork engraving using any method except construction removal will cause a message and an unhappy [[thought]] in the artist who engraved it, as will mining a natural wall with a masterpiece on it.

==Effects on room value==
[[File:v50_engrave_preview.png|thumb|right|The center area of the floor has been engraved. The left and bottom walls are also engraved, but the top one is not.]]How engravings affect room values has changed considerably, such that even the value of wall and floor tiles must first be understood.[https://www.reddit.com/r/dwarffortress/comments/zzqlfu/steam_version_room_value_calculations_demystified/] In a nutshell, however, in almost all cases it is now better to place walls/floors with high-value materials and then engrave those. It doesn't matter whether that placement is done using blocks, a rough boulder, or metal bars, as long as it is a Construction.

For floor tiles, their value calculation is [floor origin multiplier] × [floor material value] + [engraving bonus]

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Floor Origin Multipliers
|-
! Origin !! Multiplier
|-
| rough cave floor || 1×
|-
| smooth cave floor || 4×
|-
| constructed floor || 7×
|}

If the floor is engraved, the added engraving bonus is [10] × [floor material value] × [quality value modifier], with those modifiers being:

{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center;"
! style=""| Designation
! Description
! Value Modifier
|-
| Engraving || — || 1×
|-
| -Engraving-|| Well-crafted || 2×
|-
| +Engraving+|| Finely-crafted || 3×
|-
| *Engraving*|| Superior quality|| 4×
|-
| ≡Engraving≡|| Exceptional || 5×
|-
| ☼Engraving☼|| Masterful || 12×
|}

If a dwarf has a [[preference]] for the type of stone in which the engraving was made, its value doubles in their eyes. However, the actual image depicted in the engraving has ''no'' effect on its value.

Bearing all this in mind, if, for example, you placed a single golden block floor in a room, that floor tile would increase the value of that room by (7) × (30) = 210☼. If that floor tile was then engraved with a Masterwork, it would be worth an additional (10) × (30) × (12) = 3600☼, for a grand total of 3810☼. Since the material value of the floor is used in both calculations, using high-value materials on floor tiles you plan to engrave can make the value of the rooms they're in skyrocket!

However, if a floor tile exists in more than one designated room, a strict value penalty multiplier is applied to all overlapping rooms, possibly as high as -99%. Sharing a door that does not have two adjacent wall tiles (i.e. the rooms have double-doors rather than single doors) implies sharing the tile under the door as well. However, having only a single door between two walls will not cause an overlap penalty, which allows internal offices and bedrooms inside of houses to function. You can remove this penalty simply by un-designating any floor tiles that overlap in more than one room's designation. Not all room designations cause this penalty, however. You'll know the penalty has triggered when you see the room's name turn red and gain "Overlapping."

Wall engravings are yet another beast entirely. The initial calculation is similar, being [Wall Origin × Material Value], but their multipliers are different than floors, and their engraving bonus works differently.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Wall Origin Multipliers
|-
! Origin !! Multiplier
|-
| natural cave wall || 1×
|-
| smooth cave wall || 5×
|-
| constructed wall || 9×
|}

Walls also receive an added Engraving Bonus using the same formula as floor engravings ([10] × [material value] × [quality value modifier]), but how their material value is calculated and how their value affects rooms is far more complex. Wall engravings are directional, and they only provide their value to a room which contains the floor tile the engraver was standing on at the time of completion, and instead of simply using the engraved wall's material value, they instead look at a combined tally all of the tiles of the room they're in, both walls and floors, and use the value of the most common material in those tiles.

For example, if you had 20 dacite wall tiles, 2 smooth native copper wall tiles, 20 dacite floor tiles, 20 platinum wall tiles, and 21 platinum floor tiles, it would use the material value of platinum as the material value for all wall engravings done in that room, even the dacite and native copper walls. However, if you then removed two of the platinum floor tiles, all engravings in that room would use the material value of dacite instead.

However, unlike floor tiles, walls can be in multiple room designations. There is no room value penalty if the same wall is in two or more designated rooms. Because of how walls interact with rooms and doors, and rooms don't have to be contiguous, you can increase the value of all bedrooms in your fortress by exploiting these rules.

==Room Value Exploit==

[https://www.reddit.com/r/dwarffortress/comments/zzqlfu/steam_version_room_value_calculations_demystified/ According to Reddit user TBTerra]:

# Make a line of wall with 1 tile gap either side (if your engravers are really good this might only need to be 2-3 long)
# Make the lines of floor either side of this wall out of the most valuable material you can (aluminum or platinum are great; steel and gold also work), and have your best engraver engrave them
# Place doors on top of all those engraved tiles, what sort doesn't really matter, as they will be adding 10-100 value to 2-3k value floor tiles
# For every room add the doors and the wall(this is a convenient rectangle). The wall makes the doors shareable, and the doors make the engraved floor shareable.
For optimal results hide this to the south east of your area, otherwise the zone icons can get rather confused

==Bugs==
* While the [[quality]] rating of engravings on ice walls is shown properly, the quality of engravings on ice ''floors'' doesn't show when looking at a tile with {{k|k}}, only when hitting {{k|enter}} to inspect the engraving. This gives the false impression that engraved ice floors have no quality levels. In addition, the engravings are described as "engraved on the wall" instead of "on the floor".{{verify}}
[[File:engraving_preview.jpg|thumb|320px|center|Engraving of a Hindu civilization.]]
* Engravings on constructed floors magically reappear when removing the floor and placing new floor, or when removing the floor and smoothing the natural floor beneath.

{{Category|Fortress mode}}
[[ru:Engraving]]

Water wheel

2025-08-17T11:18:11Z

Jack Redfield: Fixed the article

{{migrated article}}
{{Quality|Exceptional}}
{{V50 machine|name=Water wheel|key=h
|icon=[[File:water_wheel_icon.png]]
|construction=
* 3 [[Log]]s
|construction_job=
[[Carpentry]]
|power=Needs 10 power. Generates 100 power. Net gain of 90 power.
}}{{av}}
'''Water wheels''' provide [[power]] via water [[flow]]. To build one, select {{key|b}}uild menu and choose {{key|m}}achines/fluids. It requires 3 [[wood]] and generates 90 net power, which can be used to operate one or more [[Screw pump|pumps]] or [[mill]]s. You can use [[axle]]s and [[Gear assembly|gears]] to distribute the power of a water wheel, or connect the machinery directly.

Water wheels do ''not'' work with [[waterfall]]s, or magma—they need "[[flow]]ing" water, according to the definition of the game.

(* Dwarf Fortress' version of "flow" is not intuitive—see below.)

''For a basic overview of how the different machine parts work together, see [[machinery]].''

== Construction ==
[[File:water_wheel_anim.gif|thumb|151px|right|Animation of a water wheel connected to a millstone.]] The [[carpentry]] labor is needed for construction.

A water wheel occupies 3 adjacent tiles (N-S or E-W axis, no diagonals). It is the [[Wood#Types|color]] of the first wood selected for it, so you could build a red wheel with one piece of [[goblin-cap]] and two of any other wood.

While you can build a water wheel on solid ground, it won't provide any power. A useful water wheel is built in an empty tile with no floor (you need to dig a ramp going down) so it can be powered by water from tiles one [[Z-axis|z-level]] below. Build the water wheel with its central tile orthogonally next to a gear assembly, a horizontal axle, a screw pump, or the central tile of a pre-existing water wheel.

Don't hang the water wheel from a gear assembly you wish to control with a switch, as a disconnected ("switched off") gear assembly can't support anything and will cause the water wheel to deconstruct.

A water wheel produces [[power]] as long as it has [[flow]]ing water with a minimum depth of 4/7 under, at least, one of its tiles. The easiest way to do it is by placing the water wheel over a [[river]] or [[brook]]. '''With a brook, you must first channel through the surface''', since brooks have a floor of sorts over them.

Furthermore, the water beneath the water wheel must be flowing in the right '''direction''' for it to work. For example, placing a N-S water wheel over water flowing straight east or west will be useless. Since most water in Dwarf Fortress flows diagonally, this is rarely an issue.

==Designs==
'''Key:'''

'''#''' = '''Wall'''
○ = '''Millstone'''
+ = '''Floor'''
~ = '''Water'''
W = '''Water Wheel'''
* = '''Gear Assembly'''
═ = '''Axle'''

{|style="border: 1px solid #0b0; background: #dfd"
|+'''Basic watermill design'''
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #333; padding: 0"|○
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #333; padding: 0"|*
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|═
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|═
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|═
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #7FF; padding: 0"|~
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|}
{|style="border: 1px solid #0b0; background: #dfd"
|+'''Dual watermill design'''
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|style="color: #07f; padding: 0"|~
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|style="color: #7FF; padding: 0"|~
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #333; padding: 0"|○
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #333; padding: 0"|*
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|═
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|═
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|═
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|style="color: #970; padding: 0"|W
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|- style="font-family: monospace; font-weight: bold; font-size: 135%"
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|#
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #777; padding: 0"|+
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|style="color: #07F; padding: 0"|~
|}
This is by no means the limit of water power from one location, depending on the width of your river/brook/channel you can stack many water wheels side-by-side (really big assembles will need to be artificial as there is a limit to how wide the game created water flows get). Just remember to make sure there is a support structure in place before you place the next wheel.

== Perpetual Motion ==

Due to the relatively low power draw of a [[screw pump]], a ''self-powering'' assembly can be made with a water wheel that still leaves plenty of excess power for other uses. This is undeniably an [[exploit]] and possibly a bug.

To get it working, you must start the pump manually.*

:''(* Exceptions are [[aquifer]]s, which can sometimes have a natural [[flow]]. This can be good if, for example, you want the wheel '''not''' to provide any power while building a pump next to it. It is not clear what causes an aquifer to keep a flow. It is difficult to replicate and might be lost with additional [[channel]]ing, so designs will have to be adapted if found.)''

It is good to have a ready source of water to refill the machine, as water tends to escape and evaporate. As the water level decreases, the water wheel may intermittently stop providing power; when the level falls below 4/7, the wheel stops providing power altogether.

'''*REMEMBER TO BUILD AN ORTHOGONAL PUMP, HORIZONTAL AXLE, OR GEAR ASSEMBLY BEFORE THE WATER WHEEL*'''

===Dwarven Water Reactor===
{{projects}}
This compact two-wheel design produces 170 surplus power (less additional [[axle|power train]]). While the water reactor provides a constant source of mechanical power in high amounts, the use of several reactors can cause performance issues in the game. When building your water reactor, it is recommended that you include a method to stop it once started ''(explained below)''.

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[[File:Reactor with mist generator.png|thumb|right|Reactor with Mist Generator attached.]]
[[File:Water channel.png|thumb|right|Lower Level water channel]]
:: '''Key'''
:{{Raw Tile|║ ═ ╝ ╚ ╔ ╗ ╦ O|7:0:1}} = '''Wall'''
:{{Raw Tile|+|7:0:0}} = '''Floor'''
:{{Raw Tile|W|6:0:0}} = '''Water Wheel''' with floor underneath
:{{Raw Tile|W|6:1:1}} = '''Water Wheel''' with water underneath
:{{Raw Tile|≈|1:0:1}} = '''Water''' on current level
:{{Raw Tile|≈|3:0:1}} = '''Water''' on level below
:{{Raw Tile|X|2:0:0}} = '''Screw Pump''' output to north {{Raw Tile|X|2:0:1}} = '''Screw Pump''' drawing from south ''(and temporary initial [[Pump operator|operator]] location, to start process)''

Dig the V-shaped channel, then fill it with water either designating it as a [[pond]] or from an outside source of water. On the top level, channel out two tiles under each wheel: one tile under the center of the wheel and another one by the pump output. Build the pump pumping from the south, then the two water wheels.

Start the pump manually ( {{k|q}}, {{k|Enter}} )—if there is enough water*, the "reactor" will start immediately and the pump operator will leave. The water from the north end of the pump will spill over the top-most floor tile, filling that to 7/7 and the two tiles east and west of it to ~5/7, but will not overflow back past the water wheel to the walkway area. Note that for the upper level, no southern walls are shown as none are needed, unless you don't follow the design and do something to create water pressure.

*''(* Estimated minimum depth to prime the reactor is 3/7 to 4/7, though this is not guaranteed as ~some~ water will be in motion on the z-level above via the pump action.)''
* The ideal amount of water in this design is apparently 63 units of water. In other words, six tiles below the V are full (7/7), and three more above are also full up to 7/7, which will generate a reliable, permanent flow without ever losing any of that water to evaporation. An easy way to do this is to simply leave your pond fill command on after the reactor activates. They will eventually fill it up to the optimal level and stop.
* When you first start the pump, you are likely to have at least some excess water splash out while the fluid level achieves equilibrium - don't locate this in an area that you don't want any mud in.
* If the reactor is connected to a load totaling more than 100 power (including that used by the water wheels and pump), it may sometimes fail to start. Using a gear assembly to disconnect the load from the reactor before starting it can fix this.

The reactor can be safely halted either by blocking the tile the pump draws water from or "overloading" the reactor (since drawing more power than the reactor supplies will stop the pump that keeps the cycle going until the load is reduced and the pump is manually restarted by dwarf-power). An easy way to halt the reactor is to place a lever-linked hatch cover over the tile the pump draws from. When the cover is closed, the pump can't draw any water, and the reactor stops. More drastically, the reactor will obviously be halted by deconstructing the pump. Deconstructing one wheel will cause a flood (and almost immediately cancel any job order to deconstruct the other components), and deconstructing the pump will cause both wheels to collapse (unless they are attached to [[machinery]] outside them, not shown).

[[Power]] can be routed up from the pump or off to the side from a wheel; the bottom of the pump is difficult to access without danger of water escaping. Routing power from a wheel is typically safe in practice, but it's not impossible for a small amount of water to escape the reactor if it is temporarily overfilled. Power can also be routed out of the reactor via a gear or horizontal axle over the pump's intake tile; while this does not interfere with the pump's operation or present a danger of flooding, it makes it more difficult to shut down the reactor. In either case, it's typically wise to place a [[gear assembly]] linked to a [[lever]] early in the power train in order to allow disconnecting the power at that point, as opposed to needing to halt the entire reactor to stop the power supply.

Expanded versions can produce more power, and can be added later with minimal advance planning; such extensibility is easily attainable by placing dis-engageable gears on either side of the two water wheels, then attaching minireactors at your leisure, or halting the original reactor by other means. Alternatively, it may be easier to simply produce a second reactor, then connect to the power train at another location.

''Note: If created in an aquifer, there is a chance that the channeled tiles will have a natural [[flow|water flow]] - this will cause the pump to start the moment the first wheel is finished, flooding the work area for the second.''
*This can be countered by connecting something that consumes >90 power while building the water wheels -19 [[gear assembly|Gear assemblies]] works

===Mini Water Reactor===
This alternative is even more compact than the original dwarven water reactor, but it can be used in tight spots where you don't need more than 80 units of power surplus. You can consider this an extension unit to the DWR, as it can be added to one or the other side to provide an additional 80 power to the resulting power train.

To safely build a mini reactor and add it to a previous reactor without the risk of flooding and/or loss of power, you need to '''first turn off the original reactor'''.

It is better if you plan ahead; for example, build a larger reactor from the start, if you need more than 170 units of power

As stated previously, the design below produces 80 surplus power (less additional powertrain).

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When building the mini reactor, follow the same order as for the DWR. The channel, however, is slightly different—you only need one water wheel. If it is an addition to a full size reactor or set of reactors, all channels will need to be fairly full with water to start the reactor.

===Micro Water Reactor===

Replacing the pump with a dumping [[minecart]], the micro reactor is even more compact and produces up to 90 surplus power per water wheel (less additional power drain).

<diagram>
z z-1
+++ ╔═╗
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+ ║[#0:0][@6:0]■[#@]║
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#6:0][@]═[#@] ║[#1:0]▲[#@]║
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+ ╚═╝
+++

</diagram>

Channel two adjacent tiles to create a trench, remove the ramp from one trench tile and build a [[Minecart#Track_Stops|track stop]] dumping into the other trench tile. Optionally link a lever to the track stop (to disable and enable the reactor later). Add a minecart to the track stop, build a water wheel over the trench, and use a pond [[zone]] to fill the ramp tile. The reactor requires 11 units of water for continuous operation; any excess will simply disappear. Once filled, the minecart will dump water into the ramp tile. The water will then flow back to the minecart tile, refilling the minecart and repeating the process endlessly.
It's best to use a [[metal]] minecart for this, as wooden ones may be pushed from the track stop by the moving water.

For more power, each trench can operate two water wheels and multiple trenches can be arranged in a row to provide as much power as needed. (Each trench should remain isolated to avoid interference.) This example provides 356 surplus power with only 4 tiles of moving water:

<diagram>
z z-1
+++++
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#6:0][@]═[#0:0][@6:0]─[#6:0][@]═[#@] ╔═╦═╗
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+ ║[#0:0][@6:0]■[#@]║[#0:0][@6:0]■[#@]║
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+ ║[#1:0]▲[#@]║[#1:0]▲[#@]║
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#6:0][@]═[#0:0][@6:0]─[#6:0][@]═[#@] ╚═╩═╝
+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+[#0:0][@6:0]─[#@]+
+++++

</diagram>

For a more compact design, several trench rows can be staggered to produce a solid block of water wheels, scaling to whatever size necessary. The example below provides 538 power with 8 tiles of moving water:

<diagram>
z z-1
+++++ ╔═╗
++[#1:0].[#@]++ ║[#0:0][@6:0]■[#@]║
+[#0:0][@6:0]───[#@]+ ║[#1:0]▲[#@]║
+[#0:0][@6:0]───[#6:0][@]═[#@] ╔╩╦╩╗
+[#0:0][@6:0]───[#@]+ ║[#0:0][@6:0]■[#@]║[#0:0][@6:0]■[#@]║
+[#0:0][@6:0]───[#@]+ ║[#1:0]▲[#@]║[#1:0]▲[#@]║
+[#0:0][@6:0]───[#6:0][@]═[#@] ╚╦╩╦╝
+[#0:0][@6:0]───[#@]+ ║[#0:0][@6:0]■[#@]║
++[#1:0].[#@]++ ║[#1:0]▲[#@]║
+++++ ╚═╝

</diagram>

Note: To avoid access problems, large blocks of micro-reactors should be built and filled one layer at a time.

== Flowing Water ==

[[File:Flowing water reactor over.png|thumb|right|Water wheels over a patch of "flowing" water]]
[[File:Flowing Water Reactor Under.png|thumb|right|A screw pump produces pressurized water that flows off the map edge through carved fortifications, flagging the water as flowing.]]
[[File:Flowing water reactor still.png|thumb|right|The water movement can be cut off and the water retains the "flowing" flag.]]

Water wheels need flowing water. The game considers it to be flowing water under two circumstances:

1. When deeper water flows into shallower water ("gradient flow".) Water which does not have a gradient—such as stretches of water 7/7 deep—is generally not considered to be flowing water even if the water technically flows through those tiles.

2. When water flows off the map edge or into an aquifer. (Water entering an aquifer vanishes from the map, since the aquifer can never become full, even if it's only a single tile). This type of flow returns from a map edge or an aquifer sink, giving the water the "flowing" quality. Water flowing off the map counts as flowing even at full 7/ depth. This kind of flow is found in brooks, streams and rivers. Artificial water channels work just as well, as long as they flow off the map.

A tile marked as flowing off the map will keeps this quality even if the water movement is later blocked. This is evident in that a dammed river will continue to power water wheels, even though the water is no longer flowing off the map. This works just as well for dwarf-made water channels, the flowing quality is so persistent that it will remain even if the area is completely drained and refilled, although while the tiles contain less than 4/7 water they won't power water wheels regardless.

=== Legitimate Artificial Rivers ===
You can create an underground river with 7/7 water to power water wheels by letting water from a river, lake, sea, or aquifer flow off the map edge in a cavern. For this, you need to build an aqueduct and bring the river to the map edge. Be careful: if the water spreads significantly before flowing off the map edge, the game won't consider it flowing water. Water flowing from a higher elevation (Z level) to a lower one is also considered flowing water.

=== Flowing Water Reactors ===
You can exploit the game's definition of flowing water to create bodies of water that power water wheels despite the absence of actual water flow. When a channel is dug into an aquifer, it will sometimes have a "natural flow". However, if water is pumped into an aquifer channel, the channel will always have a "natural flow" because water is regarded as disappearing from the map at that point, and the tiles are marked as flowing water, and will power water wheels—even if the pump is removed.

The other way to create water movement is letting water flow off the map edge—most commonly through a fortification carved into a map edge, although a map edge on the surface or in a cavern also works. The water will be considered flowing water, even if the map edge gets blocked by a floodgate or a raising bridge. You can even do this with stagnant water pools (e.g. murky pools); for example, digging out a channel next to a map edge, building a floodgate to seal the map edge drain, filling the channel with 4/7 water, opening the floodgate, closing it, and filling it back up to 4/7 water.

The ethics of these reactors are not very different from constant motion machines, these using water wheels to generate power and a fraction of said power to move the water with a screw pump. A water wheel generates 100 units of power and consumes 10 units of power, the latter 10 presumably being the energy the water wheel requires to move the water in front of its blades. But if the water wheel moves water in and of itself, the pump actually becomes unnecessary. The water wheel itself both moves the water and is moved by the water.
[[File:water_wheel_preview.png|thumb|340px|center|Circular version works much better than the triangular one.]]
{{Translation| dwarven = arel kol | elvish = alu rere | goblin = esp sost | human = thomo pobe}}

{{buildings}}