40d:Stairs

Stairs allow dwarves and other creatures to travel up and down. Ramps most likely operate in the same fashion and so most advice here should apply to both.

Constructing Stairs

In order for stairs to be usable, you must construct stairs on both levels you wish to connect (An up stair connecting to a down stair). However, a Down or Up stair will give you sufficient access to the adjacent level to build connecting stairs. This means you can dig directly downwards or even directly upwards using stairs without needing any other forms of access to the area.

Using an Up/Down stair (Which goes both up and down on the same tile) you can dig a straight vertical shaft.

Only upstairs can currently be removed through the designation menu but a new floor can be built over a downstairs to effectively remove them.

There are two ways to construct stairs:

• You can [d]esignate them for your miners to dig them right into the cliff.
• You can [C]onstruct them from the [b]uild menu.

Destroying Stairs

To destroy up stairs, use the "Remove Up Stairs/Ramps" command in the designations menu (d-i). To remove down stairs, use the "Site a Building" menu and build a floor over them (b-C-f).