Factorio, highly addictive game(alpha)

[LordMortis]

I'd forgotten how relaxing it is to play the start of the game and just getting one little thing up and going at a time and then monitoring it all. I've just got a slow roll of green research going, so I'm taking my time building out some basic bus stuff as the green research takes its time to expand my means a bit.

I will need to eventually worry about biters but so far they seem to be a ways off and slow advancement means not much pollution to attract them yet. My one concern is that I seem to be in a desert, so there's also not much green to suck that pollution in. I probably should customized for me more green world to pollute.

[jztemple2]

Damn, purple flask production is complicated

[Tampa_Gamer]

I restarted a new game for 2.0 and am at the point where I am converting from a jumpstart base to a traditional BUS structure. I spent an hour or two clearing nearby nests to make my Lebensraum (and more importantly search for some damn STONE)!!!! Cleared about 600-800 units in all directions up to several nice chokepoints. You would think starting in the rocky desert biome that I wouldn't have a problem finding stone, but still nothing - it certainly is going to put a crimp in my train expansions...

Spoiler:

[Isgrimnur]

Spoiler:

[jztemple2]

When I started my 2.0 game I changed my resources setting to 200%. It makes it easier for me as I'm not that systematic or efficient. It means that I have good access to iron ore and stone, but oil and coal and especially uranium are still tough to get. And now that the neighbors are active I'm spending a lot of time on defences.

[jztemple2]

Ah, turns out that purple flash isn't that complicated when you tap off of existing production lines. I'm loving my logistics robots.



Speaking of robots, is there some way to see a table or other info on the number of construction and logistics robots you have and see their efficiency?

[Unagi]

Not that I know of, beyond clicking on the logistics button on the TAB map, but that's not what you asked for really.


You can also look at the X,Y,Z,T,R signals on a Roboport to get some numbers.

Spoiler:

I just got robots unlocked in my new game myself, and it sooooo nice to have them again.
Haven't gotten to Space at all yet. (although that is about to change)

[LordMortis]

How do you add more lines to the two you build from again? There is no easy click or click and drag that I can find or remember.

[Tampa_Gamer]

How do you add more lines to the two you build from again? There is no easy click or click and drag that I can find or remember.

If you mean the toolbar, it is under settings->interface settings->other (lower right corner) choose # of active quickbars shown

[Unagi]

Yeah, if you didn't look in the options, you wouldn't even know you could add more than 2 toolbars.


Also, X key will cycle between your shown tool-bars
Also, Shift-1, Shift-2,..., Shift-9 will set the top tool-bar to that Toolbar#
Also, if you click on a Toolbar# you can see all of them and select one of them.

[jztemple2]

You can also look at the X,Y,Z,T,R signals on a Roboport to get some numbers.

Spoiler:

All my numbers are blank as my roboports are not connected in a logic network.

Also, should I be using spoiler tags for my images? Since there's not really a story I didn't think anything on Nauvis is verboten, but I haven't posted any pics of the other planets yet.

[Unagi]

I would spoiler new planets - as that stuff is brand new.


The roboport itself is the logistic network

Do this:
Hit Alt-R, and connect a red cable from your Roboport to the nearest electricity pole. (with Red Cable in hand, click the roboport, and click the electic pole)

Click on your Roboport - and check that "Read robot statistics" checkbox.

The signals: X,Y,Z,T,R should show up on the side (as in my screenshot, above)

[jztemple2]

I really feel like I'm wading in the shallow waters with this game. I've only used a few, minor logic networks. I've not got modules plugged into my buildings either. I've spent more time building defenses than anything else.

[jztemple2]

I would spoiler new planets - as that stuff is brand new.


The roboport itself IS the logistic network - so - it should report on them as long as you have that little [Read Robot Statistics] checkbox checked. (?)

OK, I'll spoiler tag any images of other planets.

And oddly, it will not let me check that checkbox, probably because there are no wires attached to the roboport. I'll try running wires between a couple of them and see what happens.

[Unagi]

yeah, I was editing that part into my instructions - you will likely figure that out while you play around.

[Unagi]

By the way,to remove the Red cable connection: just go through the same actions you took to make the connection, between the two points, and it will be removed.

[jztemple2]

And oddly, it will not let me check that checkbox, probably because there are no wires attached to the roboport. I'll try running wires between a couple of them and see what happens.

Yup, I ran a green wire between two of the roboports (needed a lot of small electric poles!) and now I'm showing the network. That's giving me the info I need, I can see that all my logistic robots are in use. Thanks for the heads up!

[jztemple2]

By the way,to remove the Red cable connection: just go through the same actions you took to make the connection, between the two points, and it will be removed.

Damn, I didn't know that! I was deleting the poles

So now that I have the purple flasks figured out, my next project might be to make a production line for yellow flasks (utility science pack). However, I'm thinking I'd like to unlock the uranium tech. I drove down there and set up a simple drilling rig, but it turns out I need sulfuric acid too . I didn't get to it in my previous game.

I somehow don't think it would be very safe go all the way down there with a pipeline or a railway and not have walls and defenses. Is this what other folks do, build walls and defenses surrounding the drill rigs? Or do I just take my chances and hope the creatures won't bother my railway and/or my pipeline and belt?

Uranium is the green spot all the way south from my base:

[Unagi]

I really feel like I'm wading in the shallow waters with this game. I've only used a few, minor logic networks. I've not got modules plugged into my buildings either. I've spent more time building defenses than anything else.

Here are a few screenshots of my base. I'm about to start working on Blue Circuits.

where most of my factory stuff is constructed and stored:

Spoiler:

the robot factor:

Spoiler:

the oil yard, with chem processing and fracking

Spoiler:

[Unagi]

Is this what other folks do, build walls and defenses surrounding the drill rigs? Or do I just take my chances ...

I make trips out with Turrets and defender robots, etc - to clear out the near-by nests, and then I build walls out between the Lakes (natural walls) and kinda make a secured area.
Then I start to defend those walls - as they get tested by the insects. With a remote 'base' for the uranium - the train will be fine on the way there and back - but while it's there - you could have a walled-off fort, armed to the teeth - that the train gets inside to do its business - until it makes "a run" for it back to the main base.


but generally - I try and learn a way to cheese kill the nests and push them back beyond my pollution - then wall that area off - so I get alerted when they try to get back in.


Ultimately --- you will have a wall somewhere - defended by Laser most likely - that is supported by Roboports and construction bots that keep the whole wall in repair.

[Unagi]

With your current tech, I would learn to have 30 protector robots follow my dune-buggy around while I go in circles around the nests. That is quite effective - once you learn how to handle the buggy (and if there is room for that kind of manuevering).

[jztemple2]

Here are a few screenshots of my base. I'm about to start working on Blue Circuits.

You are so, so much more neat and organized than I am

[jztemple2]

With your current tech, I would learn to have 30 protector robots follow my dune-buggy around while I go in circles around the nests. That is quite effective - once you learn how to handle the buggy (and if there is room for that kind of manuevering).

Did you mean Defender Capsule? I can't find a protector robot, unless I haven't unlocked it yet.

[Unagi]

Here are a few screenshots of my base. I'm about to start working on Blue Circuits.

You are so, so much more neat and organized than I am

Here is a shot of the map - so you can see what I've done with my walls and how far off they are from my base - I drive the wall line, like a cowboy inspecting his ranch fence line. (soon to be a train-ride)

[Unagi]

With your current tech, I would learn to have 30 protector robots follow my dune-buggy around while I go in circles around the nests. That is quite effective - once you learn how to handle the buggy (and if there is room for that kind of manuevering).

Did you mean Defender Capsule? I can't find a protector robot, unless I haven't unlocked it yet.

Sorry, yeah - that's what I meant. Defenders. One key thing to learn about the spitter/worms (since they outrange your turrets) - is that they anticipate where you are going, so a zig-zag pattern (one foot) of some sort can keep you from getting hit at all, while the Defenders go in for the kill (takes some practice and bravery - save first!) .

[Unagi]

Here are a few screenshots of my base. I'm about to start working on Blue Circuits.

You are so, so much more neat and organized than I am

I'm actually concerned about some of my lack of planning. heh.

The base will need to be so much bigger at some point - and the orginization is key (for me) to get that done

[LordMortis]

How do you add more lines to the two you build from again? There is no easy click or click and drag that I can find or remember.

If you mean the toolbar, it is under settings->interface settings->other (lower right corner) choose # of active quickbars shown

Thank you

[LordMortis]

I would spoiler new planets - as that stuff is brand new.


The roboport itself is the logistic network

Do this:
Hit Alt-R, and connect a red cable from your Roboport to the nearest electricity pole. (with Red Cable in hand, click the roboport, and click the electic pole)

Click on your Roboport - and check that "Read robot statistics" checkbox.

The signals: X,Y,Z,T,R should show up on the side (as in my screenshot, above)

I had literally never used cables. Is this a change in the game or are there features I've always missed?

Also, I've never seen the need to spoiler screenies. Though I do appreciate bigimg them.

[Unagi]

I had literally never used cables. Is this a change in the game or are there features I've always missed?

They have basically always been there, that I can remember.
Using them to limit inserter's behavior is a nice-to-have, but not needed as the chest's capacity can be forced small.

As The Meal mentioned earlier, there is one place where 'the Circuit Network' is really kinda critical though - Advanced Oil Cracking.



Let me explain for you and others what is needed there, so that everyone can learn.

Really it's not that big of a deal, but if you don't do this - oil refining becomes a liquid capacity juggling nightmare - but with it, it's dreamy.

I'll describe what's needed below (if anyone is interested).

Okay, there are a few places you want pumps to turn on/off only if certain conditions are met.

First - All Oil should be turned into HO (heavy oil) , LO (light oil), and Petro(leum) via Advanced Oil Refining. - each of those liquids to a single tank (Capacity 25k) for the 3 liquids.

Control HO-to-LO cracking:
HO should first be piped in line to a Lubricant Plant, and then - a pump should be used to "gate" that HO flow further to the HO-to-LO cracking plants.
(1) - That Pump should monitor the Lubricant Tank - and that Pump should only turn on when the Lubricant Liquid is "> 24k" (so, only when we have Lubricant covered, should we care about making LO)

Control LO-to-Petro cracking:
LO should be piped into the LO-to-Petro Plant with a pump that monitors the LO tank
(2) - That Pump should only turn on when the Light Oil is "> 24k" (this is because LO should only be 'burned off' like this if it's overflowing - it's best used for Solid Fuel)

These are not critical - but I think they help:
Have a pump just before the Sulfuric Acid and the Plastics chem plants.
(Optional) - Those pumps should monitor the Petro tank, and only turn on when the Petro is "> 3k"
This makes it so those two chem plants wait until they have enough to actually run on.

Next up is controlling the flow of Petro to the Chem plants that create Solid Fuel (two ways to make that, and you should do both - with output on the same line)

The plants that turn LO to Solid fuel should be plentiful and left 'open' at all times. Light Oil is BEST used this way - and is the best way to make Solid Fuel.
(3) The pump that sends (excess) Petro to the Solid Fuel plant - should monitor the Petro tank, and only turn on when Petro is "> 24k"


That's it. With those three simple 'Rules' in place you will:
-Turn all Light Oil into Solid Fuel
-Turn all Petro into Lubricant & Sulfuric Acid
-Never run out of either of the above because you filled up on HO,LO, or Petro
-Always have Solid fuel as long as trains are delivering Oil.

The entire system will only 'stall' when it should, when you have reached capacity on all three: Solid Fuel, Lubricant, Sulfuric Acid


A couple pictures that may or may not help...

my tanks, the red cables going off to the various single tanks and the pumps:

Spoiler:

my lubricant pump:

Spoiler:

the pump sending Petro to the Solid Fuel plants:

Spoiler:

[jztemple2]

Let me explain for you and other's what is needed there, so that everyone can learn.

Wow, thanks for posting that info

The wiki mentions it, but now I understand it better.

Meanwhile, I've completed my campaign to seize the uranium field. I suffered a lot of damage and had to load saves a couple of times, but now that is accomplished.

Is it odd that I only seem to be using two of the logistic chests, the provider and the active requester? I'm not sure what the others do for me.

[stessier]

Here are a few screenshots of my base. I'm about to start working on Blue Circuits.

You are so, so much more neat and organized than I am

Here is a shot of the map - so you can see what I've done with my walls and how far off they are from my base - I drive the wall line, like a cowboy inspecting his ranch fence line. (soon to be a train-ride)

Nice use of lakes and ridges to minimize the wall area you need to defend!

I haven't gotten new version yet (might have to wait until Christmas ), but in the games I have been playing recently, I make a bee line for Nuclear tech....well, a very slow bee line. I keep everything at basically subsistence level and try to get nuclear power up and running. Keeps my pollution low and once one goes nuclear, there is no looking back. Does take a wee bit longer than more conventional methods, but given there was nothing much to the previous endgame, it was a fun challenge.

[jztemple2]

How do I empty my personal trash slots?

[jztemple2]

Sharing some screenshots. I was able to set up nuclear power which was a whole lot simpler than in Satisfactory:


I took my five large groups of fuel fired steam boilers and turbines offline:


To allow the conventional power plants to come back on line if needed, I set up each of the five groups on a power switch which is controlled by looking at an accumulator. If the accumulator drops below 10% the power plants are brought online.


This brought a big drop in pollution production, which is probably why the creature attacks have suddenly stopped


Finally, a look at pollution over the last 50 hours. You can see on the top left graph how much switching to nuclear power and taking the conventional power plants offline has cut down on the pollution build up.

[Paingod]

How do I empty my personal trash slots?

Those trash slots queue Logistics Drones to come collect your 'garbage' and put it into available Storage chests. You have to wait for them to pick it up and carry it off, and there needs to be space somewhere that can accept it.

I've been wading into more circuits and logistics with this run and had some notes to share. I keep bumping into things that are solutions to things I didn't really consider until I saw it and then was like "Well, DUH"

In order of how I ran into them and needed them or want to use them:

• Pump Switches - Control flow from Heavy Oil to Light Oil to Petroleum Gas. Light Oil is essential for Rocket Fuel, and it may be worthwhile to use Petroleum Gas to make Solid Fuel even though Light Oil is numerically superior.
• Nuclear Fuel Switches - Only insert a new fuel cell once your reserve of Steam in the power plant is below a certain threshold. This stops the plant from gobbling fuel cells even when it doesn't need them.
• Logistics Counts - Set factory output (either on the factory or on the Inserter) to only produce items if your entire Logistics network is below a certain threshold of items. I had nearly 300 standard Inserters in my network when I really only needed 50 - because my factory kept making them and my Drones were simply taking them or putting them back in the nearest spot.
• Sushi Belts - Now more viable than ever, and I'm working to understand them better. Using filters and counts to put exactly what your factories need on a shared belt. It asks for one, the inserters place one. Plastic, circuits, metals, stone, whatever - all on one belt.
• Light Indicators - Using lights next to output facilities or other buildings to indicate their item counts or status without having to open chests and peek. Green light? Nearly full or full storage by count. Yellow? Half full. Red? Empty.
• Trains - Disabling stations with full chests so trains go elsewhere, setting trains to "rest" somewhere and wait to be called, having trains use Interrupts to call for refueling instead of looping it into every route.
• Space - Filtering belts by count and ejecting excess into space. Simply check to see if I have more than 4 Iron Chunks on the belt and the inserter grabs one and yeets it if I do. Keep yeeting until belt is flowing freely again and ice/carbonium can be placed on there.
• Targets on Turrets - You can specify specific targets for turrets so one group hits spitters while another group hits biters. Ignore attacking a Nest and focus on the enemies produced.
• Fluids - Apparently pumps can now filter one fluid from another so you can mash fluids into one line and filter out just what you need down the line.

Every damn time I go looking for info on how to make one circuit work I end up leaving with two more I want to use.

[jztemple2]

How do I empty my personal trash slots?

Those trash slots queue Logistics Drones to come collect your 'garbage' and put it into available Storage chests. You have to wait for them to pick it up and carry it off, and there needs to be space somewhere that can accept it.

Thanks, I understand that now. I really have to spend some time reconciling my active requestor chest with their targets, and maybe figuring out what the other chest types are better used for.

I've been wading into more circuits and logistics with this run and had some notes to share. I keep bumping into things that are solutions to things I didn't really consider until I saw it and then was like "Well, DUH"

In order of how I ran into them and needed them or want to use them:

Those are awesome suggestions. I got info on the platform ejectors from the tips section in the game, but I had to discover for myself how to use a logic circuit to keep what I wanted and dump the rest. I'll try out the rest of the suggestions today.

[jztemple2]

I have a bunch of logistics robots carrying copper plate. When they drop off their cargoes they need to recharge. Sometime it is better to use a second roboport.

[Unagi]

Um, you really should have - like dozens of them after a while.

I've got 26 ports - 1.6 k logistic robots and 1.2 k construction robots.

[jztemple2]

Mine's more spread out, but with fewer robots, I'll have to make some more!

[Unagi]

Mine's more spread out, but with fewer robots, I'll have to make some more!

Oh, thank goodness. I thought you had only the two roboports!

[Unagi]

I am really loving the new QoL they added to Personal Logistics. The "logistic groups" are so so helpful - I've only begun to make full use of them here: