40d Talk:Chasm

I removed the "this is for use on the lowest level of the Chasm" part of the article, because it doesn't seem to be the case. You can set a dump zone over the side of a tower 20 z-levels high and still have the crap land in the chasm, and I don't see why the collapse trick wouldn't work at all levels as well. --Tallyho 07:24, 5 May 2008 (EDT)

I've had a chasm in a mountainous area near a volcano which was in fact cylindrical, not shaped like a river at all. It was basically a bore of empty space all the way to the bottom-most level, which consisted of the # chasm squares. In that respect, it looked much like a volcano bore but generally a bit smaller. There were variations in width on different levels of it as well. This led to open cave floor around it on some levels where troglodytes, iron men, giant cave swallows, and caveswallowmen frolicked about. --Janus 08:25, 1 November 2007 (EDT)

Huh, how about that. They're certainly more interesting than they used to be.--Draco18s 14:54, 1 November 2007 (EDT)

Interesting. Sounds like a magma vent minus the magma. I have a game going in a grassland a few region squares away from a volcano. When I first started the game, I got a message that part of the cavern had collapsed and it zoomed to the magma vent. The vent itself was as you describe--a roughly cylindrical sinkhole of varying widths that went all the way to the bottom. Only in my case, it was full of magma up to the surface, and at lower depths, fire imps, magma men and fire snakes could be seen (Apparently, magma is transparent.) Maybe the game treats magma vents as localized chasms full of magma? --RedKing 16:43, 3 November 2007 (EDT)

That's probably how it was formed, using the same algorithm as a magma vent, but it does appear to be intentional. Perhaps it is indeed meant to be a dead magma vent. That same map has the main volcano magma vent a short distance away. The magma vent was of course shown on the local map when choosing the map location, but the circular chasm was not.

As for the collapse message when starting on a map with a magma vent, that appears to be due to a bug where a body of water is generated in the middle of it. This water instantly creates a solid block of obsidian with no support, which then collapses. Magma is semi-liquid, and fireproof monsters like those you mention will swim freely through it. --Janus 17:06, 3 November 2007 (EDT)

Actually there are two variants of the chasm, a chasm vent/pit and a chasm/river star like chasm (encountered this one twice, and it really fucked up the level). Perhaps we should works this into the article. Perhaps we should ad screenshots. I sadly have no save with the star river like chasm anymore (abandoned those). --Soyweiser 18:45, 7 November 2007 (EST)

I'm playing a fortress right now with the same type of "pit" chasm. I'll see if I can get a shot of it to add to the page. --Sk128234 19:08, 7 November 2007 (EST)

Are the surface chasms visible from the map when selecting the site? It would be great to get a screenshot of that for the page to look similarly to the volcano page. --JPolito 02:26, 18 November 2007 (EST)

They're not visible until you actually embark. Same thing for kobold caves. However, if they reach the surface at all, you can see every single tile they contain right away.--Maximus 15:05, 19 November 2007 (EST)

I don't think that chasms are the only things that can produce 20+ cliffs. I have a fortress now that is right on the edge of a massive cliff.--Zonhin 19:39, 18 December 2007 (EST)

They aren't. Those cliffs appear rather often around true volcanoes and mountain peaks. Chasms just happen to be VERY common in mountain region tiles at embark, as much so as small brooks/rivers in certain other regions.

I have a pretty oddly shaped chasm, or at least i think i do. It starts from the corner of the map in a river like shape, then it splits off into 5 smaller 'fingers.' I've mined alot of the rock around it; it has a wide assortment of metals, gems, and stone i havent seen anywhere else on the map.--Hiho216 00:58, 23 January 2008 (EST)

Apparently, you have a chasm that got the same code as a river source/delta, as that creates the same sort of 'fingers.'--Alfador 11:34, 23 January 2008 (EST)

The article says that cave spiders "Often cave spiders are present near chasms". Shouldn't it be "Cave spiders spawn periodically near chasms"? I haven't seen chasm without those awesome little silk spawners. --Someone-else 08:09, 22 April 2008 (EDT)

I have a pic of the end of a chasm here: http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/8286/chasmendfl7.png Not sure if it's notable... QMarx 23:59, 26 April 2008 (EDT)

Baddies

Do chasms spawn hostile creatures like ratmen, or do they just start there? Gairabad 00:00, 15 December 2008 (EST)

Sadly, UG/chasm/magma no longer spawns anything. Kill it, and it is gone for good. --Savok 10:05, 15 December 2008 (EST)

Any chance of re-introducing spawning? A init option enabling it would be sweet! --Kwieland 14:04, 3 March 2009 (EST)

Chasm of Death

There's no mention of this in the article so I feel compelled to inquire as to what people's experiences of chasms in adventure mode have been.

When 'venturing about one of my fallen fortresses I was attacked by a hoard of troglodytes, approximately 15 brutally violated me within the corridors of my fortress as my noble warrior collapsed due to over-exertion after blocking countless attacks and was promptly strangled to death. Thinking this a mere quirk of the wonderful world of DF I returned to the fortress with a different character, much stronger this time, expecting to be able to have a proper look around. I was sadly mistaken. I was first attacked by a giant eagle, after a few fortunate strikes I had claimed the upper hand and was preparing to deal the killing blow when a wave of those cursed troglodytes clambered up the mountainside. Well taught by the experience of that unfortunate past warrior, abandoning my prey, I fled. Well, I did for a few moments before turning to see the troglodyte hoard attacking the giant eagle, I must say, I felt a deep sense of pity for the poor beast as the monsters went about their brutal practice of trying to break every bone in its body.

With a cry I charged at the mass of assailants and began to cleave them apart, blood spat forth endlessly from the mount of creatures before me as I hacked and slashed, coating the mountainside in crimson. Unfortunately the eagle was torn apart before I could give it a slightly more honourable death (slightly being the key word here) and I found myself surrounded by limbs, corpses and blood. The slaughter of the troglodytes was not to be the first however as each time I return to that cursed place more and more crawl forth from the chasm. They attack all in their path, be they goat or giant eagle and as such the slope of the mountain is stained with the blood of perhaps hundreds and the bones of the countless fallen litter the earth. It seems the troglodytes are without number.

Perhaps this was a curious enigma in the world, a strange chasm of frenzied and blood thirsty troglodytes, so I thought until I came upon an inhabited fortress deep in the mountains nearby. Upon arriving I heard the cries of a child set upon by vicious bat-men, by the time I found the infant I was too late, only a bruised and battered corpse remained. Upon this visit there was little more of importance which came to pass, I was in fact not even aware that there was a chasm in the vicinity until my second visit. As soon as I neared the fortress the stench of death was thick in the air, rat-men, troglodytes and bat-men were mobbing and slaughtering soldiers, fish-cleaners and dyers indiscriminately. I ran to the aid of the assailed but for many I was too late, after what seemed like an age of combat all was quiet and the ground was littered with limbs and corpses and, of course, stained with blood. As I looked upon the all-to-familiar scene of destruction a terrible thought suddenly struck me, perhaps there was a chasm here. From my experience I presumed that it would probably be upon the side of a mountain and so to the East I ran, clambering up the slopes, and as I did so I heard a cry. A swordsman, perhaps with the same idea as I had come upon the chasm and was being attacked by numerous assailants, including a gremlin and several rat-men. Tragically, as I neared his location he bled to death (I don't quite know what cut him, perhaps a large rat entered the battle at some point), I found his corpse high atop a pile of the bodies of those he had slain in his battle-frenzy.

And then, I saw it, the chasm, a damned pit of suffering and torment. No sooner had I sighted it than I was attacked by a number of bat-men. As I fought more and more emerged from the chasm but they all met the same bloody end, my time spent fighting hoards of vicious troglodytes had sharpened my skill in combat and once the stream of foes ended I emerged tired, but unwounded.

To conclude, chasms may be useful waste-disposal areas in fortress, but in adventure they are terrible places of endless slaughter where blood flows unceasingly. Have others had similar experiences? If so I'll add a section (with a little less story-telling) to warn people of the dangers of these cursed pits. --Deja Mort 17:25, 8 February 2009 (EST)