Stairs are broken!

[creepshow2914]

Will make stairs down, but on lower level there won't be any stairs up. Tried redrawing, making stairs next to it, etc. No water is blocking the path. Also, if I try to remove the stairs with keys "mx", they cant't be removed.

Tried exiting the game and coming back in. Still broken - the bug seems to be embedded in the game save file?

Help! Any workarounds?

[Fel]

If you mean constructed stairs they seem to only connect to other built stairs if those are below, so when constructing stairs from top to bottom (to go down in a cave for example) you need to make sure to designate the whole thing in one go.

If that wasn't what you were trying to do, maybe a more accurate description might help because stairs can be a bit weird to work with at first (in a different way compared to older versions).

[creepshow2914]

I use the keys "mt" to make stairs, 1x1. Click on the upper level, mouse scroll down one level, click on the lower level. Dwarf comes to build them on the upper level. Staircase showing down on upper level. No staircase going up on lower level. Nothing in the way and no water.

[creepshow2914]

I just tried going the other way as well. "mt", start on the lower level, mouse wheel up a level, click. dwarf comes to build on upper level. When done, upper level shows stairs going down but no stairs up on lower level.

[creepshow2914]

I should also add that both floors are mined. Stairs are trying to be built on clear, mined floors.

[creepshow2914]

Some more info, just for the heck of it I created a new world. Embarked, tried to build stairs. They work as expected. Something must happen to the world to cause stairs to be eternally broken?

[DoubleG]

To dig up stairs you need an undug tile, else what will your dwarfs carve the UP stairs into?
To build up stairs, you need a hole in the roof above them, else how will your dwarfs build the stairs without banging their head?

[Morkonan]

Originally posted by creepshow2914:

I should also add that both floors are mined. Stairs are trying to be built on clear, mined floors.

As above, but distinguishing a bit more - If you are Mining stairs, that can not be done into empty space. You must "construct" them, instead. (Separate menu) And, as far as constructing stairs going "Up" it's a ... terribly overcomplicated process.

IMO - The stair mechanic needs to be unified. Period. end_of_line Make them always "Mined" for ease of access, but then make them use "Nearest Material" to Construct them if they're accessing empty space. Keep the optional Construction capability, just don't require it to be user-selected for while using the Mining instructions.

[DoubleG]

Originally posted by Morkonan:

IMO - The stair mechanic needs to be unified. Period. end_of_line Make them always "Mined" for ease of access, but then make them use "Nearest Material" to Construct them if they're accessing empty space. Keep the optional Construction capability, just don't require it to be user-selected for while using the Mining instructions.

I think they need to bring back the old stair system. That was a lot more intuitive and manageable than this. Plus it was a LOT more flexible.

[creepshow2914]

Thanks everyone! Constructing the missing "up" stairs solved the problem.

I agree about this being tedious. But as I think about it, it sort of makes sense. I can see how there's a difference between "stairs cut in rock by a miner" vs "constructing stairs where nothing exists".

In light of what @Morkonan said, automating construction with nearest material could save some headaches. But having fine-grained control over everything comes at a price, I guess.

I'm going to research the old stair system. Curious to see what's behind the controversy.

[DoubleG]

The old system was just you being able to construct each type of stairway independently. You build a down stairway, an up/down stairway or an up stairway. If you put any of them in the wrong place it messed it up, so it wasn't without some problems. But I found it much more intuitive and I think it would have been easier for newcomers than this current system.

[Deimos kai Aischylos]

This was such a useful thread. I was having this same issue. I was doing the whole column, but they wouldn't mine all of the stairs in the line. I likely screwed up the process. This solves so much--like my endless desire to make patterns. Not having a perfect column in the order I like would have driven me crazy. Now I just need to learn to master wells. And hospitals. And...everything else.

[Den Bjornen]

Originally posted by DoubleG:

The old system was just you being able to construct each type of stairway independently. You build a down stairway, an up/down stairway or an up stairway. If you put any of them in the wrong place it messed it up, so it wasn't without some problems. But I found it much more intuitive and I think it would have been easier for newcomers than this current system.

I would like them to keep the new system in, but put the individual parts from the old system back in case you need to fill in a gap or have something particular in mind.

[smol-wittle-debil]

I think the new system works ok, but that people just aren't familiar enough with it, or they don't even know it has been changed. Its pretty simple to remember "mine stairs in one go, and if they need extended or something goes wrong constructing stairs will fix it". At least, that has been my experience with it.

[Fel]

When mining stairs it's fairly easy to extend them, just put the starting point on already existing stairs.
It even changes up stairs into up/down stairs just by telling it to dig a down stair on an up stair.
Once you understand how they work it's pretty simple really.

The main issue is with constructed stairs that things don't work as you might want them to.