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Z-level
| This article was migrated from DF2014:Z-level and may be inaccurate for the current version of DF (v50.14). See this page for more information. |
v50.14 · v0.47.05 This article is about the current version of DF.Note that some content may still need to be updated. |
- See also: Tile
Z-Level describes vertical space (depth or altitude) within Dwarf Fortress, analogous to the Z-axis in geometry which extends out of the page towards the viewer. Each layer of view is a discrete z-level with a value relative to the bottom of the map space, indicated in the lower right corner of the screen. There is another Z-level display in the upper right corner of the main view which displays the player's z-level viewpoint relative to the surface z-level. The player moves their view from one z-level to another by using < to move up and > to move down.
The default settings produce levels with around 50 z-levels of land (for an embark with average elevation changes) with an additional 15 z-levels of empty sky space above the highest point of land; mountainous regions can end up with well over a hundred z-levels of caverns. 100 corresponds to sea level.
Numerous factors available in world generation impact the available z-levels, and can alter the depth of the map to a minimum of 6 and a maximum well in excess of 600. (Worldgen has 400 z-levels; maybe one can force 200 levels of sky.)
Reducing the number of z-levels, especially cavern levels, can reduce processor demand and boost framerate. Notably, a common reason players get 100+ Z-level embarks is because "Generate New World" makes ISLAND worlds, and the resulting terrain causes caverns to be a lot taller than usual.