Tutorials/Vertical mine shaft with water drop

A vertical mine shaft can be built quickly and allows safe, fast access to the deepest regions of the earth.

This guide describes the construction of a vertical mine shaft with the following properties:


 * Provides quick access to the lowest mining levels
 * Fast construction
 * Requires a decent amount of wood

Drawbacks:


 * Unsuitable for minecarts

Usage
We have two shafts actually; a descent shaft and an ascent shaft.

To descend to the bottom, walk onto the descent shaft and fall. You will plummet to the bottom and land in the water pit. You then hop out of the water pit and proceed to mine (or whatever it is you do deep underground).

To return to the surface, go into the ascent shaft and climb the ladder.

An example of a room housing the mine shaft. . - Doorway. Leads directly to descent shaft. D - Descent shaft. Step into it and fall to the bottom. A - Ascent shaft. Climb it using the ladder. F - Fencing.
 * 1) AFD#
 * 2) F #
 * 1) F #

Materials
Gather all materials and construct ladders before beginning construction! During construction, you will be deep in the earth before the ascending ladder is constructed. It will be most convenient to have your ladders ready.

The following tools and materials will be needed:


 * 64 ladders
 * 2 fences
 * 2 buckets of water
 * 20 torches
 * Picks and shovels

The wood requirements amount to approximately 60 blocks of wood.

Construction
The shaft works well in a room using 3x3 blocks of floor space, though smaller rooms can be used. The example room used in this guide is 3x3, with the entrance placed near the downward shaft, since you will usually be entering the room for the purpose of descending to mine. A fence prevents accidental entry into either shaft.


 * Gather and manufacture the materials. Be sure to fill the buckets with water.
 * Set aside space, or construct a room which will house the shaft. Do not place fences yet!
 * Begin digging a 3x1 pit which covers both the ascent and descent shafts. This 3x1 pit will extend all the way to bedrock.

The initial pit (marked with 'O'). Dig to the bedrock.
 * 1) OOO#
 * 1) OOO#

Never dig out the block you are standing on. A good way to dig this shaft is to stand at one end, and dig out a vertical 3x2 section of 6 blocks in front of you. Then fall into the 3x2 empty section, turn around, and remove the 3 blocks that you were standing on. In this way, a vertical 3x3 section is removed.

Be on your guard when digging out any blocks beside you! Lateral breaches into lava pools or monster caves can be hazardous. Be ready to plug the hole, or hop up and throw blocks down so you can escape upwards.

Also, be sure that the 3x2 section hasn't opened into a cavern before you hop down. Keep the pit well-lit.


 * Whenever it seems to be getting dark, cut out a 1-block alcove in both narrow sides of the shaft and place a torch in each alcove.

Torch placement In the narrow sides of the shaft T  T


 * When you reach the bedrock, make a 3-deep pit on the descent side.
 * In the middle of the shaft, cut a side shaft. Due to the fact that the landing pit must be 3 deep, you may want to stairstep downward a few blocks in this shaft.

The bottom of the pit. A - Ascent shaft D - Descent shaft (landing pit at bottom) W - Water trough ##### #A D#  ## ## # # <- Side shaft, for exiting the pit. # #    May be longer or shorter, depending # #    on the need to descend below the top # #    of the landing pit.
 * 1) W   #
 * 2) W   # <- Utility room with water trough
 * 3) W   #
 * 1) W   #

The utility room is optional. You may elect to fill the landing pit with buckets of water individually hauled from the surface. However, having an endless source of water near your mining operations is highly useful.


 * Once the side shaft has reached the desired level, open up a utility room.
 * On one wall of the room, create a trough, 3 long, 1 wide, and 1 deep.
 * Empty each bucket into opposite ends of this trough. The trough should end up with 3 still water blocks. The middle water block can be used to fill buckets indefinitely.
 * Fill the landing pit with water.
 * Go to the ascent shaft and begin placing ladder segments. Climb as you go and place ladders above you. Continue all the way to the top. The ladder should be on the side of the shaft that is unobstructed at the top. In the example room, that would be the bottom side.

Ladder placement ^ | Ladders go against this side of the ascent shaft
 * 1) A D#
 * 1) A D#


 * Descend to the bottom again. For safety's sake, you may wish to use the ladder this time.
 * Position yourself in the middle of the shaft. Fill it all the way to the surface by jumping and placing junk blocks (e.g., cobblestone, dirt, or gravel) beneath you.

Filling the middle The ascent and descent shafts become separated by the middle column.
 * 1) A#D#
 * 1) A#D#


 * Place the 2 fences.

The completed entry room. . - doorway D - descent shaft A - ascent shaft F - fencing
 * 1) AFD#
 * 2) F #
 * 1) F #

Compact alternative
The compact alternative to the 3x3 entry room requires only a 3x1 room. It can be less user-friendly because it's more difficult to see the descent shaft. It's marginally quicker to use.

Above view of the compact entry room       Side view of the compact entry room D - descent shaft A - ascent shaft L - ladder (in ascent shaft) # L### # #L###
 * 1) D#A                                       #
 * 1) D#A                                       #

In the compact arrangement, only 3 square blocks of floor space are required. They should be enclosed to prevent accidental descent. For example, they may be situated in an alcove, placed at the end of a hallway, or surrounded by a fence.

Since the central pillar is below floor level, you walk past the ascent shaft on your way to the descent shaft. Since the ascent shaft is nearer the exit, there is no danger of interaction with the descent shaft when you ascend.

To descend, you simply walk over the ascent shaft and fall into the descent shaft. When ascending, you will be facing away from the descent shaft; just walk forward once you reach the top.

Differences in construction:


 * Torches are placed on the wide sides, not the narrow ends of the shaft.
 * The ladders are placed facing out of the entry room. In the example diagrams, they would be on the right.
 * The central, separating pillar is left 1 block below floor level.
 * There is no fence.