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Dyson Sphere Program — Practical Progression Guide

A practical route from your first factory to Mission Completed

I made this guide while learning DSP because I kept losing the thread between one successful build and the next. It's meant to stay open while you're playing, not be read once from top to bottom and memorized.

The rhythm that worked for me is:

check the guide → play for a while → come back when you need your bearings → find the next useful action → return to the game

The default route is:

Bootstrap → Blue → Red → Flight → Titanium → Yellow → ILS → Purple → Green → Dyson → Photon → White → Mission Completed → Logistics

Cube names used in this guide

DSP gives every cube a formal name, but in the middle of a build you mostly need to recognize the color. This guide therefore uses the color as the normal name:

blue cube (Electromagnetic Matrix) · red cube (Energy Matrix) · yellow cube (Structure Matrix) · purple cube (Information Matrix) · green cube (Gravity Matrix) · white cube (Universe Matrix)

When a formal Matrix name appears later, it's because the guide is naming the technology you click in the tech tree. Manufactured items, rates, stockpiles, and recipes are referred to by cube color.

Warp, a permanent pre-photon Dyson Sphere, broad PLS deployment, Gas Giant Exploitation, interstellar power transmission, advanced mining, and Dark Fog industry are optional paths. They're real options, but this guide doesn't make them mandatory. Take one when it solves a problem you can already name.

How to use this guide without constantly rereading it

Build-ratio assumptions

The build cards use standard recipes, no rare-resource substitutions, and no proliferation. They assume Assembling Machine Mk.I at 0.75× speed and baseline-speed Smelters, Chemical Plants, Oil Refineries, Matrix Labs, and Miniature Particle Colliders.

Upgrading assemblers changes how many machines you need, but not how many ingredients the recipes consume.

Card presentation: Every manufactured output that benefits from a repeatable line appears in the collapsed card index; travel loadouts, route configuration, and other non-production requirements remain in the phase text. The phase text tells you what matters; opening a card reveals one checked construction method. The cards stay closed until you ask for the answer.

Card grammar: Read every card in the same order. Input names the resources, components, power, or prepared hardware entering the card's scope, together with their required rates or quantities. Pipeline contains only the intermediate machines, conversions, routing, or configuration needed to connect those inputs to the endpoint. Output identifies the final building or completed deliverable and the rate or batch named by the card. Surplus Yield appears only for a real net byproduct at the stated output. Minimal pickup interval appears instead on buffer-oriented cards and reports how long the stated pickup quantity takes to become available. Operating note appears only when a rate assumption, spare capacity, storage limit, route alternative, or measurement caveat would otherwise be easy to misread.

Strategy, phase timing, research order, and explanations of why a build matters stay in the surrounding phase text. A checklist or configuration card follows the same grammar without inventing a production rate that the game doesn't support.

Ratio provenance: Production recipes and recipe times were checked against the supplied runtime-derived canonical dataset. Rates describe steady operation at the advertised output unless a bullet explicitly says “full-load”.

That's the whole pattern: find your place → take the detail you need → go back to the game.

  1. Jump to the phase you're in. Use the phase strip on the right. If you're unsure, use the Quick Progress Index below.
  2. Read YOU ARE HERE first. It reminds you what you just solved, what matters now, and what comes next.
  3. Scan the phase dashboard. Your useful rate, next research, likely trouble spot, and move-on condition are all there.
  4. Use the collapsed build cards only when you want the how. Every required phase output is listed; open one card, several, or none.
  5. Read the rest only when you need the why. You shouldn't have to reread a chapter just to recover one number.

And when you do come back:

You aren't expected to remember where every table or ratio lives. Leave the guide open, disappear into the game for a while, and come back when you can no longer remember why half the belts exist.

Quick Progress Index

Quick jump: BOOT · BLUE · RED · FLIGHT · TI · YELLOW · ILS · PURPLE · WARP · GREEN · DYSON · SPHERE · PHOTON · WHITE · LOGISTICS

Coming back from the game and not sure where you left off? Find the last milestone you can honestly remember completing, then jump to the next row. The tag in brackets takes you straight there.

Stage Search tag What you're aiming for
0 [BOOTSTRAP] The factory builds the factory
1 [BLUE] Keep blue cubes flowing
2 [RED] Keep red cubes flowing and stabilize oil
3 [FLIGHT] Drive Engine Lv2 and safe planetary escape
4 [TITANIUM] A serious off-world titanium supply
5 [YELLOW] Make 200 yellow cubes and unlock ILS
6 [ILS] Automated interplanetary titanium and silicon
7 [PURPLE] Keep purple cubes flowing and unlock both paths to green
8 [WARP] Optional mecha travel, vessel logistics, and rare-resource shortcuts
9 [GREEN] Keep green cubes flowing and unlock cheap Space Warpers
10 [DYSON] Default swarm route to ≥1.655 GW Dyson generation
11[SPHERE]Optional slower permanent route to the photon-power target
12 [PHOTON] Critical Photons and Antimatter
13 [WHITE] Keep white cubes flowing and finish Mission Completed
14[LOGISTICS]Automate the stations and carriers that make postgame expansion repeatable

Quick reference — Cube production targets

Come back to this table when an older cube line starts holding up research. The same useful numbers are repeated in the phase dashboards, so you don't need to memorize them.

These are useful targets for keeping the run moving, not commandments for how every factory must be built.

Cube color Minimum when first established Comfortable in its own phase Later target
Blue 20/min 40/min ~60+/min before the long green/endgame run of research
Red 10/min 20/min ~60+/min before the long green/endgame run of research
Yellow 7.5/min 15/min for the ILS bootstrap ~60+/min once later research is waiting on yellow
Purple 12/min 24/min ~40/min before sustained white-cube production
Green 10/min 20/min scale toward ~40/min for a comfortable endgame pace

Don't build the endgame factory during the blue phase. Expand the older cube line that research is visibly waiting on.

0. [BOOTSTRAP] — Stop Handcrafting the Factory

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Automate basic mining, smelting, components, belts, sorters, and factory buildings
Useful cube target None at first; prepare 20 blue/min after the no-matrix research and starter mall are underway
Research next Mecha Core Lv1 + every immediately affordable no-matrix unlock → Electromagnetism → Automatic Metallurgy + Basic Assembling + Basic Logistics System → Electromagnetic Matrix
Keep an eye on Power headroom and repeated handcrafting
Move on when Adding ordinary factory machinery no longer sends you back to handcrafting

Goal

Your first job is to stop being the factory. Reach the point where the machines, rather than Icarus, produce the materials needed to expand.

While the first mall takes shape, spend gathered parts on useful research that doesn't require matrices. Blue cubes finish the bootstrap; they aren't a reason to leave all the no-matrix groundwork untouched.

Some mall branches can be laid out before their recipes exist. Reserve the Steel and Foundation footprints now if that helps, then activate them after BLUE funds Steel Smelting and Reclamation.

Research first

Clear the useful research you can pay for with gathered parts while the mall is being built:

  1. Mecha Core Lv1 — a prerequisite for several early upgrades and available before matrix science.
  2. Electromagnetism.
  3. Automatic Metallurgy.
  4. Basic Assembling.
  5. Basic Logistics System.
  6. Mass Construction — take it once Circuit Boards are available.
  7. Electromagnetic Matrix — unlocks blue cubes after the factory-making tools are ready.
Don't force every no-matrix upgrade immediately. Some ask for Steel, Electric Motors, Energetic Graphite, or other items whose recipes still need blue research. Take the upgrades you can supply naturally; leave ingredient-locked ones until their production chains exist.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

There's no useful megabase target yet, and no prize for pretending there's.

Build enough iron, copper, Magnetic Coil, and Circuit Board capacity that every new machine doesn't immediately rob cube production.

For blue cubes, begin at 20/min and move toward 40/min only when the basic factory can feed it cleanly.

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Starter Ingots — 60 Iron/min + 60 Copper/minMANDATEDBUFFERED

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Iron Ore — supply 60 Iron Ore/min.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Copper Ore — supply 60 Copper Ore/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Iron Ingots → 60 Iron Ingots/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Copper Ingots → 60 Copper Ingots/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Iron Ingots — receives 60/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 50 minutes.
  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Copper Ingots — receives 60/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 50 minutes.

Minimal pickup interval

  • 200 Iron Ingots accumulate in 3 minutes 20 seconds.
  • 200 Copper Ingots accumulate in 3 minutes 20 seconds.
Basic components — 90 Magnetic Coils/min + 90 Circuit Boards/minMANDATEDBUFFERED

Input

  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Iron Ore — the line draws 180 Iron Ore/min.
  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Copper Ore — the line draws 90 Copper Ore/min.

Pipeline

  • 3 Arc Smelters — Magnets → 120 Magnets/min capacity.
  • 1-slot Storage Mk.I — Magnets — limit to 200 Magnets.
  • 2 Arc Smelters — Iron Ingots → 120 Iron Ingots/min capacity.
  • 2 Arc Smelters — Copper Ingots → 120 Copper Ingots/min capacity.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Magnetic Coils → 90 Magnetic Coils/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Circuit Boards → 90 Circuit Boards/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Magnetic Coils — receives 90/min; an unrestricted 6,000-item box fills in 1 hour 6 minutes 40 seconds.
  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Circuit Boards — receives 90/min; an unrestricted 6,000-item box fills in 1 hour 6 minutes 40 seconds.

Minimal pickup interval

  • The 200-Magnet buffer fills from the line’s 30 Magnets/min spare capacity in 6 minutes 40 seconds.
  • 200 Magnetic Coils accumulate in 2 minutes 13 seconds.
  • 200 Circuit Boards accumulate in 2 minutes 13 seconds.

Operating note

  • Place the Magnet storage inline before the Coil assembler. Set Limit for Automation Input to one slot, let the box reach 200 Magnets, then connect its output sorter. The 30/min capacity margin refills what you pick up while the Coil line keeps running.
Starter mall — Belts, Sorters, production buildings & FoundationsMANDATEDBUFFERED MALL

Input

  • 6 six-vein Mining Machines — Iron Ore — collectively cover the 1,020 Iron Ore/min full-load draw; split them across three Mk.I belts.
  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Copper Ore — supplies the 142.5 Copper Ore/min draw.
  • 2 six-vein Mining Machines — Stone — collectively cover 225 Stone/min, including the independent Glass buffer.

Pipeline

  • 16 Arc Smelters — Iron Ingots → 960/min.
  • 2 Arc Smelters — Magnets → 80/min capacity.
  • 3 Arc Smelters — Copper Ingots → 180/min capacity.
  • 3 Arc Smelters — Stone Bricks → 180/min capacity.
  • 3 Arc Smelters — Steel → 60/min capacity.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Glass → 30/min.
  • 6 Mk.I Assemblers — Gears → 270/min capacity.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Magnetic Coils → 90/min capacity.
  • 3 Mk.I Assemblers — Circuit Boards → 270/min capacity.
  • 1-slot Storage Mk.I — Gears — limit to 200 items.
  • 1-slot Storage Mk.I — Magnetic Coils — limit to 200 items.
  • 1-slot Storage Mk.I — Circuit Boards — limit to 200 items.
  • 1-slot Storage Mk.I — Glass — limit to 100 items.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Conveyor Belt Mk.I → 135/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Sorter Mk.I → 45/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Mining Machine → 15/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Arc Smelter → 15/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Assembling Machine Mk.I → 22.5/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Foundation → 45/min.

Output

  • Storage Mk.I — Conveyor Belt Mk.I — limit to 600; satisfied in 4 minutes 27 seconds.
  • Storage Mk.I — Sorter Mk.I — limit to 400; satisfied in 8 minutes 53 seconds.
  • Storage Mk.I — Mining Machines — limit to 50; satisfied in 3 minutes 20 seconds.
  • Storage Mk.I — Arc Smelters — limit to 50; satisfied in 3 minutes 20 seconds.
  • Storage Mk.I — Assembling Machine Mk.I — limit to 50; satisfied in 2 minutes 13 seconds.
  • Storage Mk.I — Foundation — limit to 200; satisfied in 4 minutes 27 seconds.

Minimal pickup interval

  • The Gears buffer reaches its pickup reserve from spare capacity in approximately 13 minutes 20 seconds.
  • The Magnetic Coil buffer reaches its pickup reserve in approximately 6 minutes 40 seconds.
  • The Circuit Board buffer reaches its pickup reserve in approximately 4 minutes 27 seconds.
  • The Glass buffer reaches its pickup reserve in approximately 3 minutes 20 seconds.

Operating note

  • For each intermediate buffer, set Limit for Automation Input to one slot and place the box inline before its consumers. Let the reserve fill before connecting the outgoing sorter. Output boxes use the stated limits; raising a limit increases stock, not production rate.
  • This block is sized for all six output assemblers to run together until their limits are satisfied. Once the boxes fill, the shared intermediates become ordinary mall pickup stock.
  • The Steel smelters and Foundation assembler are staged branches during BOOTSTRAP. You may place and belt the shells now, but leave their recipes unset until BLUE researches Steel Smelting and Reclamation; the rest of the mall can operate without them.

Watch for

Power headroom. Add generation before sustained demand reaches the grid ceiling; don’t wait for a brownout cascade. The starter grid should absorb the blue Labs and the coming Oil Extractors and Refineries without repeated intervention.

Overbuilding the starter layout. Most early long-distance belts have an expiration date, whether they know it or not.

The right bootstrap factory is the one that keeps you moving, not the one you'd preserve for fifty hours.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [BLUE].

1. [BLUE] — Get Blue Cubes Running

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Keep blue cubes and research labs running without hand-feeding
Good target 20 blue cubes/min minimum, 40/min comfortable
Research next Stabilize Electromagnetic Matrix production; RED will spend the output on graphite, Steel, Foundations, oil refining, and the red-cube unlock
Keep an eye on Don't overbuild blue while oil and mobility are still missing
Move on when Blue is continuous and your grid has room for the oil setup

Goal

Blue cubes should become background noise—in the good sense. Keep them running so research no longer waits for you to remember the recipe.

This phase is about making blue science dependable, not consuming its first output on every visible branch. Once the line holds at 20/min without hand-feeding, the RED phase will tell you exactly where those cubes go.

Research first

Electromagnetic Matrix should be the final BOOTSTRAP unlock. Set its recipe in the Matrix Labs, automate the two component feeds, and let the first blue stock accumulate.

Don't wait here for the red-science technology chain. Move on once blue is continuous; RED owns the blue-funded research for Energetic Graphite, Steel, Foundations, oil refining, and the red-cube recipe.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

Use this as a blueprint key, not a layout. Match the machine counts and input rates; route the belts in whatever way still makes sense on your planet.

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Blue cubes — 40/min + component reservesMANDATEDKEEP

Input

  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Iron Ore — the full line draws 180 Iron Ore/min.
  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Copper Ore — the full line draws 90 Copper Ore/min.

Pipeline

  • 3 Arc Smelters — Magnets → 90 Magnets/min used, with 120/min installed capacity.
  • 2 Arc Smelters — Iron Ingots → 90 Iron Ingots/min used, with 120/min installed capacity.
  • 2 Arc Smelters — Copper Ingots → 90 Copper Ingots/min used, with 120/min installed capacity.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Magnetic Coils → 90/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Circuit Boards → 90/min.

Output

  • 2 Matrix Labs — blue cubes → 40 blue cubes/min.
  • 1 Storage Mk.I each — Magnetic Coils and Circuit Boards — collect unused component output.

Surplus Yield

  • 50 Magnetic Coils/min and 50 Circuit Boards/min remain after the Labs consume 40/min of each.
  • Each unrestricted 6,000-item component box fills from empty in 2 hours while blue science runs continuously.

Operating note

  • Use the two storage boxes as the destination for spare component capacity. Scale Matrix Labs first; thicken the component line only when the boxes stop recovering between research bursts.

Watch for

Don't make blue your first giant factory district. The next important transition is:

red cubes → Drive Engine Lv2 → leave the starter planet

A beautiful oversized blue complex does nothing for you if oil and mobility are still missing.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [RED].

2. [RED] — Build the Oil Economy and Keep Red Cubes Flowing

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Keep both refinery outputs moving and produce red cubes continuously
Good target 10 red/min minimum, 20/min comfortable
Research next Smelting Purification + Steel Smelting → Reclamation + High-Efficiency Plasma Control + Fluid Storage Encapsulation → Plasma Extract Refining → Energy Matrix
Keep an eye on Hydrogen or Refined Oil filling up and stopping the refinery line
Move on when Red production is continuous, both refinery outputs are managed, and blue science keeps up

Goal

Oil is the first part of the game where a line can stop because you've got too much of something. Use blue science to unlock the complete red-cube factory, keep both refinery outputs moving, and establish a red line that can run without supervision.

Flight research spends red cubes. It belongs in FLIGHT, after this production line exists—not in the checklist for building the line that makes those cubes.

Research first

Spend blue cubes on the production chain in the order its factory branches need it:

  1. Smelting Purification — unlocks Energetic Graphite for the red-cube input.
  2. Steel Smelting → Reclamation — activates the staged Steel and Foundation branches from the starter mall.
  3. High-Efficiency Plasma Control and Fluid Storage Encapsulation — the two prerequisites for the oil-refining unlock.
  4. Plasma Extract Refining — unlocks the Crude Oil → Refined Oil + Hydrogen process.
  5. Energy Matrix — unlocks red cubes after the two material inputs can be produced.
Stop the research sequence here long enough to build the line. Don't queue flight and ILS preparation ahead of the production system that must supply their red cubes.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Energetic Graphite — 40/min for red scienceMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Coal — the stated output draws 80 Coal/min.

Pipeline

  • 2 Arc Smelters — Energetic Graphite → 40/min used, with 60/min installed capacity.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Energetic Graphite — buffers unused smelter capacity before the red-cube feed.

Operating note

  • Keep this output accessible. Plastic, Diamonds, Graphene, Graviton Lenses, and later components reuse the same production block.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 80 Coal/min at the stated output.
  • Final output: 40 Energetic Graphite/min, with 60/min installed capacity.
Plasma Refining — 40 Hydrogen/min + 80 Refined Oil/minMANDATEDPAIRED OUTPUT

Input

  • 1 Oil Extractor on a seep displaying at least 2.0 Crude Oil/s — comfortably exceeds the 1.33/s or 80/min draw.

Pipeline

  • 3 Oil Refineries — Plasma Refining → collectively produce the two inseparable recipe outputs at the stated rate.

Output

  • 1 Storage Tank — Hydrogen — receives 40/min before red science consumes it.
  • 1 Storage Tank — Refined Oil — receives 80/min.

Operating note

  • This paired-output process stays on one card because the authoritative Plasma Refining recipe produces Hydrogen and Refined Oil together. A full outlet blocks the other one.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 80 Crude Oil/min.
  • Final output: 40 Hydrogen/min and 80 Refined Oil/min.
Red cubes — 20/min with balanced refinery outputsMANDATEDKEEP

Input

Pipeline

  • 2 Matrix Labs — red cubes → 20/min.

Output

  • Research feed — red cubes — receives 20/min continuously.

Surplus Yield

  • 80 Refined Oil/min from the linked Plasma Refining block.

Operating note

  • One 10,000-unit Storage Tank fills with Refined Oil in 2 hours 5 minutes. Chain another tank before that interval expires until Plastic and Organic Crystal production can consume the oil.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 80 Coal/min and 80 Crude Oil/min.
  • Final output: 20 red cubes/min, plus 80 Refined Oil/min available downstream.

Watch for

The classic refinery failure isn't lack of crude oil. It's one output filling up and silently stopping the other.

Don't panic-burn or discard Hydrogen; later phases will ask for absurd amounts of it. Early on, however, a finite buffer is still better than letting a full tank stop research.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [FLIGHT].

3. [FLIGHT] — Drive Engine Lv2 and Planetary Escape

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Reach the titanium planet safely and leave behind useful mining and smelting
Good target No cube-rate target here; bring enough fuel, power, and buildings to avoid a token trip
Research next Engine → Drive Engine Lv1 + Mecha Core Lv2 → Drive Engine Lv2; then prepare the listed titanium and PLS support research
Keep an eye on Fuel margin, destination power, and remote defense on Dark Fog runs
Move on when You can mine and preferably smelt titanium off-world without improvising the whole outpost by hand

Goal

This isn't a sightseeing trip. Leave the starter planet safely and come back with the ability to exploit off-world titanium.

The starter planet has no normal Titanium Ore veins. Silicon can be bootstrapped inefficiently from Stone, but Titanium has no ordinary synthetic fallback.

To reach yellow cubes, you eventually have to leave the starter planet.

Research first

Now that red cubes are sustainable, spend them on the flight closure:

  1. Engine — unlocks the component needed to pay for Drive Engine Lv1.
  2. Drive Engine Lv1.
  3. Mecha Core Lv2.
  4. Drive Engine Lv2 — requires both Drive Engine Lv1 and Mecha Core Lv2.

While fuel and the expedition loadout are being prepared, continue through the support research that makes the titanium trip useful:

Planetary Logistics System has implicit requirements in addition to its visible branch: Thruster and Vertical Construction Lv1. Queue them here rather than discovering the gap after the titanium trip.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

There's no cube target here. The target is a trip that changes what your factory can do.

Before launch, carry enough fuel and core-energy margin to survive a bad approach, plus enough construction material to leave a real outpost behind. A token miner and a promise to come back don't count.

Watch for

Persistent remote outposts on Dark Fog runs

An unattended mining world can acquire an unpleasant new neighbor while you're away.

Before leaving a persistent outpost behind, make the choice explicitly:

Don't configure early defenses to attack orbital or Relay targets unless escalation is deliberate.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [TITANIUM].

4. [TITANIUM] — Your First Off-World Industrial Expedition

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Establish remote titanium mining and smelt it before transport
Good target First haul: 810–860 Titanium Ingots; remote source: 60/min minimum, 120/min comfortable
Research next Only what's needed for the Structure Matrix tech (yellow cube unlock) → High-Strength Titanium Alloy → ILS
Keep an eye on Don't spend scarce first titanium on a broad PLS rollout
Move on when You've built a serious titanium stockpile and direct silicon is available or planned

Goal

Make the first trip count. Return with enough titanium to break through the yellow/ILS transition instead of commuting between planets with pocketfuls of ore.

Research first

This is a poor moment to wander into interesting side research.

Finish only the research you need for:

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

First serious haul

Aim for 810–860 Titanium Ingots.

That's a practical target for:

The hard technical minimum for the 200-yellow research batch, two ILS towers, and one vessel is about 770 Titanium Ingots.

Persistent remote smelting

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Remote Titanium Ingots — 120/minMANDATEDKEEP

Input

  • 2 six-vein Mining Machines — Titanium Ore — collectively supply the required 240 Titanium Ore/min. One miner covering eight veins can replace them when the patch geometry permits.

Pipeline

  • 4 Arc Smelters — Titanium Ingots → 120 Titanium Ingots/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Titanium Ingots — receives 120/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 25 minutes.

Minimal pickup interval

  • 860 Titanium Ingots accumulate in 7 minutes 10 seconds after the line starts.

Operating note

  • At base Mining Speed, each covered vein contributes 30 Ore/min. Six veins therefore produce 180/min, not 240/min; a Mk.I belt can carry twelve such veins. Two ordinary six-vein miners provide comfortable coverage, while one eight-vein placement feeds the four-smelter block exactly.
High-Purity Silicon — 120/minMANDATED OR PLANNEDBUFFERED

Input

  • 2 six-vein Mining Machines — Silicon Ore — collectively supply the required 240 Silicon Ore/min. One eight-vein placement is an exact alternative.

Pipeline

  • 4 Arc Smelters — High-Purity Silicon → 120 High-Purity Silicon/min.

Output

  • 2 stacked Storage Mk.I — High-Purity Silicon — hold 6,000 items and fill in 50 minutes.

Operating note

  • The later 24-Processor/min science demand requires 192 Silicon Ore/min. The four-smelter block is sized to 240/min so it also supports the Processor reserve built in PURPLE.

Watch for

PLS is tempting, but your first titanium has a more important job: ending manual interplanetary hauling.

Before ILS, PLS can tidy local transport, but it can't move titanium between planets. Build only the units that will become your first ILS pair unless the local belts are genuinely costing more time than another titanium trip.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [YELLOW].

5. [YELLOW] — Make 200 Yellow Cubes and Break the Hauling Loop

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Produce 200 yellow cubes and have the first ILS hardware ready when research finishes
Good target 7.5 yellow/min minimum, 15/min comfortable for the ILS rush
Research next Chemical branch → Structure Matrix tech (yellow cube unlock) → High-Strength Titanium Alloy → confirm PLS + Reinforced Thruster → ILS
Keep an eye on The oil-heavy Organic Crystal chain and missing ILS prerequisites
Move on when 80 yellow has gone to Titanium Alloy, 120 to ILS, and the first station pair is ready to build

Goal

This is one of the cleanest bargains in the run: produce 200 yellow cubes, spend them on the two technologies that matter, and retire yourself from interplanetary freight duty.

Default allocation:

Make 200 yellow, spend it, and move on. The game will give you plenty of reasons to build more later.

Research first

If the chemical branch is incomplete:

  1. Basic Chemical Engineering
  2. Polymer Chemical Engineering
  3. High-Strength Crystal
  4. Structure Matrix — unlocks yellow cubes
  5. High-Strength Titanium Alloy
  6. Confirm the PLS required research
  7. Confirm Reinforced Thruster
  8. Interstellar Logistics System

ILS requires:

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

For the ILS rush:

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Plastic — 30/min for yellow scienceMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

Pipeline

  • 2 Chemical Plants — Plastic → 30/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Plastic — receives 30/min before Organic Crystal production.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 30 Energetic Graphite/min and 60 Refined Oil/min.
  • Final output: 30 Plastic/min.
Organic Crystals — 15/min for yellow scienceMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

  • 30 Plastic/min from the Plastic card.
  • 15 Refined Oil/min from the same shared Plasma Refining block; do not build a duplicate refinery bank.
  • 1 Water Pump — supply 15 Water/min.

Pipeline

  • 2 Chemical Plants — Organic Crystals → 15/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Organic Crystals — receives 15/min before Titanium Crystal production.

Surplus Yield

  • 37.5 Hydrogen/min from the complete shared 75 Refined Oil/min Plasma Refining block.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw through the linked chain: 60 Coal/min, 75 Crude Oil/min, and 15 Water/min.
  • Final output: 15 Organic Crystals/min.
Titanium Crystals — 15/minMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

Pipeline

  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Titanium Crystals → 15/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Titanium Crystals — receives 15/min before the yellow Labs.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw through the linked chain: 60 Coal/min, 75 Crude Oil/min, 15 Water/min, and 90 Titanium Ore/min.
  • Final output: 15 Titanium Crystals/min.
Diamonds — 15/minMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Diamonds → 15/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Diamonds — receives 15/min before the yellow Labs.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 30 Coal/min through Energetic Graphite.
  • Final output: 15 Diamonds/min.
Yellow cubes — 15/minMANDATEDKEEP

Input

Pipeline

  • 2 Matrix Labs — yellow cubes → 15/min.

Output

  • Research feed — yellow cubes — receives 15/min continuously.

Surplus Yield

  • 37.5 Hydrogen/min from the shared Plasma Refining block.

Operating note

  • Hydrogen is a coupled refinery output. Route it to storage or a consuming line before the outlet fills; blocked Hydrogen stops Refined Oil and the entire yellow chain.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 90 Coal/min, 90 Titanium Ore/min, 75 Crude Oil/min, and 15 Water/min.
  • Final output: 15 yellow cubes/min.
Steel — 20/minMANDATEDILS SUPPORT

Input

  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Iron Ore — the line draws 60 Iron Ore/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Iron Ingots → 60/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Steel → 20/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Steel — receives 20/min; the required 80 Steel take 4 minutes and a full 3,000-item box takes 2 hours 30 minutes.
Titanium Alloy — 10/minMANDATEDILS SUPPORT

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Titanium Ore — supply 20 Titanium Ore/min.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Iron Ore — supply 30 Iron Ore/min.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Stone — supply 40 Stone/min.
  • 1 Oil Extractor on a seep displaying at least 1.0 Crude Oil/s — the line draws 30/min.
  • 1 Water Pump — supply 20 Water/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Titanium Ingots → 10/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Iron Ingots → 30/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Steel → 10/min.
  • 2 Oil Refineries — Plasma Refining → 30 Refined Oil/min and 15 Hydrogen/min.
  • 1 Chemical Plant — Sulfuric Acid → 20/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Titanium Alloy → 10/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Titanium Alloy — receives 10/min; the required 180 Alloy take 18 minutes and a full 3,000-item box takes 5 hours.

Surplus Yield

  • 15 Hydrogen/min.
Processors — 20/minMANDATEDILS SUPPORT

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Iron Ore — supply 40 Iron Ore/min.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Copper Ore — supply 60 Copper Ore/min.
  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Silicon Ore — the line draws 160 Silicon Ore/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Iron Ingots → 40/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Copper Ingots → 60/min.
  • 3 Arc Smelters — High-Purity Silicon → 80/min used, 90/min capacity.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Circuit Boards → 40/min.
  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Microcrystalline Components → 40/min.
  • 1-slot Storage Mk.I — Microcrystalline Components — limit to one item slot.
  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Processors → 20/min at stated output, with 30/min installed capacity.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Processors — receives 20/min; the required 130 Processors take 6 minutes 30 seconds and a full 6,000-item box takes 5 hours.

Operating note

  • Limit the Microcrystalline Component buffer to one 200-item slot so the component remains available for pickup without turning the support line into a warehouse.
Electromagnetic Turbines — 20/minMANDATEDILS SUPPORT

Input

  • 2 six-vein Mining Machines — Iron Ore — collectively cover the 200 Iron Ore/min draw.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Copper Ore — supply 40 Copper Ore/min.

Pipeline

  • 2 Arc Smelters — Iron Ingots → 120/min.
  • 2 Arc Smelters — Magnets → 80/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Copper Ingots → 40/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Gears → 40/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Magnetic Coils → 80/min.
  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Electric Motors → 40/min.
  • 1-slot Storage Mk.I — Electric Motors — limit to one item slot.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Electromagnetic Turbines → 20/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Electromagnetic Turbines — receives 20/min; the required 50 Turbines take 2 minutes 30 seconds and a full 3,000-item box takes 2 hours 30 minutes.

Operating note

  • Limit the Electric Motor buffer to one 100-item slot. The earlier Magnet, Gear, and Magnetic Coil buffers may feed this line instead of being duplicated.
Graphene — 20/min for Particle ContainersMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Coal — supply 60 Coal/min.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Stone — supply 20 Stone/min.
  • 1 Oil Extractor on a seep displaying at least 1.0 Crude Oil/s — the line draws 15/min.
  • 1 Water Pump — supply 10 Water/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Energetic Graphite → 30/min.
  • 1 Oil Refinery — Plasma Refining → 15 Refined Oil/min and 7.5 Hydrogen/min.
  • 1 Chemical Plant — Sulfuric Acid → 10/min.
  • 1 Chemical Plant — Graphene → 20/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Graphene — receives 20/min before Particle Container production.

Surplus Yield

  • 7.5 Hydrogen/min.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 60 Coal/min, 20 Stone/min, 15 Crude Oil/min, and 10 Water/min.
  • Final output: 20 Graphene/min.
Particle Containers — 10/minMANDATEDBUFFERED

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Particle Containers → 10/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Particle Containers — receives 10/min; the required 80 Containers take 8 minutes and a full 3,000-item box takes 5 hours.

Surplus Yield

  • 7.5 Hydrogen/min from the linked Graphene support.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw through the linked chain: 200 Iron Ore/min, 60 Copper Ore/min, 60 Coal/min, 20 Stone/min, 15 Crude Oil/min, and 10 Water/min.
  • Final output: 10 Particle Containers/min.

Watch for

The 15/min line is a bridge to ILS, not your final yellow factory.

The first 200 yellow cubes only get you through the ILS rush. Later research will eat thousands more, but ILS will make the eventual expansion far less painful.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [ILS].

6. [ILS] — End Manual Interplanetary Hauling

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Keep the first ILS routes running and start using PLS where it actually saves effort
Good target Titanium and silicon arrive unattended; later, move older blue/red/yellow cube lines toward ~60/min each only when research is waiting on them
Research next Applied Superconductor if needed → High-Strength Material → Particle Control → Processor if needed → Information Matrix tech (unlocks purple cubes)
Keep an eye on ILS charging spikes and the temptation to rebuild the entire planet at once
Move on when Logistics is stable and the research queue is clearly pointed at purple

Goal

You're no longer the cargo ship. Replace manual interplanetary hauling with continuous supply, then convert only the worst global belts into local logistics districts.

Research first

Point the main research queue toward purple:

  1. Applied Superconductor, if still missing
  2. High-Strength Material
  3. Particle Control
  4. Processor, if still missing
  5. Information Matrix — unlocks purple cubes

The Information Matrix tech (purple cube unlock) requires Processor + Particle Control.

Unlocking ILS feels like a victory lap. It isn't a reason to research every yellow-tier utility technology before pointing the queue at purple.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

The target here isn't a prettier planet or a larger cube number. It's:

Once logistics is working, check the older cube lines occasionally. Before the long run to green, around 60/min each for blue, red, and yellow is comfortable—but expand only the color research is actually waiting on.

Quick reference — How much is enough

ILS is complete when the route works without you. These are configuration checks, not production lines.

RouteSourceDestinationEnough when
Titanium IngotsSource ILS: Remote Provider; Local may remain Depot. Belt Titanium Ingots into the station.Powered home ILS: Remote Receiver. Install vessels and set the outbound belt-port filter to Titanium Ingots.Titanium arrives automatically and manual hauling ends. The powered home station may collect from an unpowered source.
Silicon OreSource ILS: Remote Provider with enough mining throughput for Processor demand.Home ILS: Remote Receiver. Use a dedicated tower only when other bulk traffic can starve Silicon.Silicon delivery is sustained automatically, or an equivalent local source demonstrably covers demand.
Imported material to local districtHome ILS: imported item set to Local Provider after remote receipt; install Logistics Drones.Consumer PLS: same item set to Local Receiver. Keep belts short inside the district.The long global belt is replaced by Drone transport while the production district remains locally legible.

The intended transition is global spaghetti → logistics network → local spaghetti. Blueprint perfection isn’t a phase requirement.

Watch for

ILS charging spikes

A newly placed ILS charges a large internal buffer and can make the power graph look as though the factory has suddenly lost its mind.

The spike is real but temporary. Don't size the whole grid around it; lower the station charging-power setting if the early network can't absorb it comfortably.

Premature total rebuilds

Don't celebrate ILS by demolishing the planet. Replace one irritating long-distance belt at a time, and leave anything that still works alone until it becomes the problem.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [PURPLE].

7. [PURPLE] — Build the First Truly Wide Production Tier

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Keep purple cubes flowing and complete both the Strange Matter and Quantum Chip paths
Good target 12 purple/min minimum, 24/min comfortable
Research next Miniature Particle Collider → Strange Matter → Gravitational Wave Refraction and Casimir Crystal → High-Strength Glass → Wave Function Interference → Quantum Chip → Gravity Matrix tech (unlocks green cubes)
Keep an eye on Processors, Particle Broadband, Graphene/Carbon Nanotubes, and older blue/red/yellow cube rates
Move on when Purple cubes are stable and both tech branches needed for green are finished or nearly finished

Goal

Purple is where the tidy little chains stop pretending they're independent. Keep the cubes running and finish the two branches that meet at green.

Your next clear goal is:

sustain purple → complete the Strange Matter branch → complete the Quantum Chip branch → unlock the first green cube

Once you can make the first green cube, purple has done its job. Stabilize the weak links, but don't hold the run hostage until the whole district looks respectable.

Research first

Work on both paths as the factory allows; neither branch is optional if you want green.

Branch A — Strange Matter / gravity side

  1. Miniature Particle Collider
  2. Strange Matter
  3. Gravitational Wave Refraction

Branch B — Quantum Chip side

  1. Casimir Crystal
  2. High-Strength Glass
  3. Wave Function Interference
  4. Quantum Chip

Wave Function Interference sits downstream of Casimir Crystal and High-Strength Glass.

Then unlock green

  1. Gravity Matrix — unlocks green cubes

The Gravity Matrix tech (green cube unlock) only becomes available after both the Quantum Chip path and Gravitational Wave Refraction are finished.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

A 12/min purple-cube line takes about 83 minutes to produce 1,000 cubes if purple alone sets the pace. At 24/min, the same amount takes about 42 minutes.

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Processor expansion — 30/min total, 6/min reserveMANDATEDEXPANSION

Input

  • The installed 20 Processors/min line from the YELLOW Processor card.
  • Iron Ore delivery — increase the complete line to 60/min.
  • Copper Ore delivery — increase the complete line to 90/min.
  • Silicon Ore delivery — increase the complete line to 240/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 additional Arc Smelter — Copper Ingots — the two-smelter line supplies 90/min at stated output.
  • 1 additional Arc Smelter — High-Purity Silicon — the four-smelter line supplies 120/min.
  • 1 additional Mk.I Assembler — Microcrystalline Components — the three-assembler line supplies 60/min.
  • The existing 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Processors → use their full 30/min installed capacity.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Processors — receives the 6/min not consumed by the 24/min purple branch.

Surplus Yield

  • 6 Processors/min while purple science consumes 24/min; an unrestricted 6,000-item box fills from that reserve in 16 hours 40 minutes.

Operating note

  • Keep the reserve visible. Quantum Chips use Processors next, and later production uses them again.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw for the expanded line: 60 Iron Ore/min, 90 Copper Ore/min, and 240 Silicon Ore/min.
  • Final output: 30 Processors/min: 24/min to purple science and 6/min to reserve.
Graphene expansion — 40/min totalMANDATEDEXPANSION

Input

Pipeline

  • Merge the two Graphene module outputs onto one visible feed with 40/min total capacity.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Graphene — receives 40/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 1 hour 15 minutes when nothing consumes it.

Surplus Yield

  • 15 Hydrogen/min from the two linked refinery blocks.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw through both linked modules: 120 Coal/min, 40 Stone/min, 30 Crude Oil/min, and 20 Water/min.
  • Final output: 40 Graphene/min.
Carbon Nanotubes — 24/minMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Chemical Plant — Carbon Nanotubes → 24/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Carbon Nanotubes — receives 24/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 2 hours 5 minutes.

Surplus Yield

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw through the linked chain: 108 Coal/min, 24 Titanium Ore/min, 36 Stone/min, 27 Crude Oil/min, and 18 Water/min.
  • Final output: 24 Carbon Nanotubes/min.
Plastic — 12/min for Particle BroadbandMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Coal — supply 24 Coal/min.
  • 1 Oil Extractor — supply 24 Crude Oil/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Energetic Graphite → 12/min.
  • 2 Oil Refineries — Plasma Refining → 24 Refined Oil/min and 12 Hydrogen/min at stated output.
  • 1 Chemical Plant — Plastic → 12/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Plastic — receives 12/min before Particle Broadband production.

Surplus Yield

  • 12 Hydrogen/min.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 24 Coal/min and 24 Crude Oil/min.
  • Final output: 12 Plastic/min.
Crystal Silicon — 24/minMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Silicon Ore — supply 48 Silicon Ore/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — High-Purity Silicon → 24/min at stated output.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Crystal Silicon → 24/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Crystal Silicon — receives 24/min before Particle Broadband production.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 48 Silicon Ore/min.
  • Final output: 24 Crystal Silicon/min.
Particle Broadband — 12/minMANDATEDBUFFERED

Input

Pipeline

  • 3 Mk.I Assemblers — Particle Broadband → 12/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Particle Broadband — receives 12/min; an unrestricted 6,000-item box fills in 8 hours 20 minutes.

Surplus Yield

  • 25.5 Hydrogen/min from the linked Graphene and Plastic support.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw through the linked chain: 132 Coal/min, 24 Titanium Ore/min, 48 Silicon Ore/min, 36 Stone/min, 51 Crude Oil/min, and 18 Water/min.
  • Final output: 12 Particle Broadband/min.
Purple cubes — 12/minMANDATEDKEEP

Input

Pipeline

  • Bring the two buffered products to the cube district on separate visible feeds.

Output

  • 2 Matrix Labs — purple cubes → 12/min.

Operating note

  • When scaling toward roughly 24 purple/min, copy the linked prerequisite capacity as well as the final Labs.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 24 Processors/min and 12 Particle Broadband/min.
  • Final output: 12 purple cubes/min.

Watch for

Purple feels messy because it exposes several old resource networks at once:

Judge each one by whether it keeps up, not by whether the district deserves a screenshot.

A synthetic Sulfuric Acid district can be ugly and still be perfectly adequate. A beautiful Processor district that only makes half the required rate is the real problem.

Ready to move on when

Next

Default route: go to [GREEN].

For a targeted rare-resource detour, read [WARP] first.

8. [WARP] — Optional Interstellar Shortcuts

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Choose how much interstellar reach you want and put each imported resource to a specific job
Useful breakpoints Mecha warp for scouting and hand-carrying; vessel warp for continuous ILS routes; green cubes for cheap warper automation
Research paths Drive Engine Lv4 for Icarus; Logistics Carrier Engine Lv4 for vessels
Keep an eye on Which standard chain each rare recipe replaces, and whether the import is still keeping up
Use this section until You've taken the shortcuts you want; there is no WARP completion gate
Optional route disclaimer: Interstellar expansion deviates from the recommended practical playthrough and diverts research, cubes, fuel, buildings, and attention at different breakpoints. The section below explains the bargain; deciding whether to take it is yours.

Goal

Warp is two capabilities, not one. Mecha warp lets Icarus cross between stars. It is the scouting tool: inspect systems, land on a promising planet, hand-carry a first load, and place the power, miners, and station shells for an outpost. Vessel warp lets Logistics Vessels cross those same distances through ILS routes. It is the automation tool: the outpost stops being a personal errand and becomes another provider in the factory network.

That distinction creates three useful entry points. After purple, you can rush mecha warp and retrieve a small quantity yourself. You can continue the rush through vessel warp and automate a rare import before green, paying for every trip with the expensive Graviton Lens recipe. Or you can wait until green cubes unlock the 8:1 Space Warper recipe, then make interstellar logistics an ordinary operating cost instead of a luxury item.

The end-to-end loop is straightforward: reveal or scout a deposit, reach it with Icarus, establish extraction and power, place an ILS as Remote Provider, establish vessel warp and warper supply, then Remote Receive the resource beside the alternate recipe that consumes it. Mecha warp finds and starts the shortcut; vessel warp keeps it fed.

Research paths

Mecha warp

  1. Gravitational Wave Refraction — unlocks the Graviton Lens → Space Warper recipe.
  2. Drive Engine Lv3.
  3. Mecha Core Lv4.
  4. Drive Engine Lv4 — requires Drive Engine Lv3 explicitly, plus Mecha Core Lv4 and Gravitational Wave Refraction implicitly.
  5. Optional Universe Exploration Lv3 when resource visibility is more valuable than blind scouting.

This breakpoint is enough for exploration, hand-carrying a useful first batch, and constructing a remote outpost. It doesn't grant warp to vessels.

Vessel warp

Advance Logistics Carrier Engine through Logistics Carrier Engine Lv4. Its final level requires the previous carrier-engine level and implicitly requires Drive Engine Lv4, so vessel warp sits on top of personal warp rather than beside it.

With vessel warp researched, put Space Warpers into the ILS network and verify the station's dedicated warper reserve fills. A pre-green vessel network can bring a rare recipe online early; after Gravity Matrix, the advanced warper recipe makes the same network much cheaper to keep moving.

Rare-resource shortcuts

Rare resources don't make the baseline recipes wrong. They replace specific pieces of them. Mine ordinary rare veins with Mining Machines, pump Sulfuric Acid from a Sulfuric Acid ocean, and collect Fire Ice either from veins or—after Gas Giant Exploitation—through Orbital Collectors.

ResourceAcquire it byWhat it changes
Organic Crystal (mined)Mining Organic Crystal veinsFeeds Titanium Crystals directly and removes the synthetic Plastic + Refined Oil + Water chain.
Sulfuric AcidPlacing Water Pumps on a Sulfuric Acid oceanRemoves the Refined Oil + Stone + Water acid process wherever imported acid is used.
Fire IceMining Fire Ice veins or importing it from an Orbital CollectorMakes Graphene directly and returns Hydrogen as a paired output.
Kimberlite OreMining Kimberlite veinsSmelts two Diamonds per ore and skips Energetic Graphite.
Fractal SiliconMining Fractal Silicon veinsAssembles two Crystal Silicon per ore and skips High-Purity Silicon.
Optical Grating CrystalMining Optical Grating Crystal veinsCan replace Titanium Crystals in Casimir Crystals or replace Prisms in Photon Combiners.
Spiniform Stalagmite CrystalMining Spiniform Stalagmite Crystal veinsMakes Carbon Nanotubes without Graphene or Titanium Ingots.
Unipolar MagnetMining Unipolar Magnet veins after locating a depositMakes Particle Containers without Electromagnetic Turbines or Graphene.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Use one Mk.I Assembler on the advanced Space Warper recipe and limit its output to one 100-item stack. At full use it diverts 4.5 green cubes/min and produces 36 Space Warpers/min, so the buffer fills from empty in 2 minutes 47 seconds and the line then rests. This is a deliberately arbitrary refill line, not a claim about how many warpers your empire ought to consume.

Build it once green cubes are stable and repeated travel or vessel traffic makes automatic replenishment useful. Belt its output into an ILS configured to provide Space Warpers remotely. On another planet, dedicate an ILS item slot to Remote Receiver and confirm the tower's warper reserve fills before relying on it for onward trips. For a one-off pre-green expedition, use the 1 Graviton Lens → 1 Space Warper recipe temporarily instead of treating it as permanent infrastructure.

Quick reference — Optional builds

Each card shows one complete rare-route substitution. Open the shortcut you're considering, compare its operating note with the linked baseline card, and build only the branches you want.

Space Warpers — 36/min from green cubesOPTIONALILS REFILL

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Space Warpers → 36/min from the advanced 1 green cube → 8 Space Warpers recipe.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Space Warpers — limit to one 100-item stack; satisfied in 2 minutes 47 seconds.

Operating note

  • Belt this buffer into an ILS and verify the station's dedicated warper reserve fills. Before green, the alternate recipe consumes one Graviton Lens per warper and produces only 4.5/min in the same Mk.I Assembler.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 4.5 green cubes/min while the limited buffer is refilling.
  • Final output: 36 Space Warpers/min.
Organic Crystals (mined) — 15/min replacement feedOPTIONALYELLOW SHORTCUT

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Organic Crystal veins — supply 15 Organic Crystals/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 source ILS — Organic Crystals — set to Remote Provider and sustain at least 15/min.

Output

  • 1 receiving ILS slot — Organic Crystals — set to Remote Receiver and feed 15/min into Titanium Crystal production.

Operating note

  • This replaces the complete YELLOW Organic Crystal card: 30 Plastic/min, 15 additional Refined Oil/min, and 15 Water/min disappear. The linked refinery block's 37.5 Hydrogen/min surplus disappears with them.
  • With mecha warp but no vessel warp, store the mined crystals at the outpost and hand-carry the first batch instead of placing the ILS route.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 15 mined Organic Crystals/min.
  • Final output: 15 Organic Crystals/min delivered to the existing Titanium Crystal line.
Pumped Sulfuric Acid — 20/min replacement feedOPTIONALGRAPHENE SHORTCUT

Input

  • 1 Water Pump — Sulfuric Acid ocean — supply at least 20 Sulfuric Acid/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 source ILS — Sulfuric Acid — set to Remote Provider and sustain at least 20/min.

Output

  • 1 receiving ILS slot — Sulfuric Acid — set to Remote Receiver and feed 20/min into Graphene production.

Operating note

  • At this rate, pumping replaces the acid portion of the YELLOW Graphene card: 30 Refined Oil/min, 40 Stone/min, and 20 Water/min disappear. The paired Plasma Refining block's 15 Hydrogen/min surplus disappears too.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 20 pumped Sulfuric Acid/min.
  • Final output: 20 Sulfuric Acid/min delivered to the existing Graphene line.
Graphene — 60/min from Fire IceOPTIONALEFFICIENT RECIPE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Fire Ice veins — one available source for the 60 Fire Ice/min draw.
  • 1 ILS import — Fire Ice — the alternative when Orbital Collectors provide the resource; sustain 60/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Chemical Plant — Graphene (efficient) → 60 Graphene/min and 30 Hydrogen/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Graphene — receives 60/min.

Surplus Yield

  • 30 Hydrogen/min; give it an outlet because either paired output can block the Chemical Plant.

Operating note

  • This replaces the Energetic Graphite and Sulfuric Acid inputs in the YELLOW Graphene card. The cost is a sustained Fire Ice import and another Hydrogen stream to manage.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 60 Fire Ice/min.
  • Final output: 60 Graphene/min, plus 30 Hydrogen/min.
Diamonds — 80/min from Kimberlite OreOPTIONALEFFICIENT RECIPE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Kimberlite Ore — supply 40/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Diamonds (efficient) → 80/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Diamonds — receives 80/min.

Operating note

  • This replaces the Energetic Graphite input in the YELLOW Diamond card. At the stated output, 40 Kimberlite Ore/min replaces 80 Energetic Graphite/min and its 160 Coal/min raw draw.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 40 Kimberlite Ore/min.
  • Final output: 80 Diamonds/min.
Crystal Silicon — 60/min from Fractal SiliconOPTIONALEFFICIENT RECIPE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Fractal Silicon — supply 30/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Crystal Silicon (efficient) → 60/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Crystal Silicon — receives 60/min.

Operating note

  • This replaces the High-Purity Silicon input in the PURPLE Crystal Silicon card. At the stated output, 30 Fractal Silicon/min replaces 60 High-Purity Silicon/min and the 120 Silicon Ore/min behind it.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 30 Fractal Silicon/min.
  • Final output: 60 Crystal Silicon/min.
Casimir Crystals — 10/min from Optical Grating CrystalOPTIONALEFFICIENT RECIPE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Optical Grating Crystal — supply 80/min.
  • 20 Graphene/min from the YELLOW Graphene card.
  • 1 Hydrogen feed — supply 120/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Casimir Crystals (efficient) → 10/min used, with 11.25/min installed capacity.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Casimir Crystals — receives 10/min.

Operating note

  • This replaces the Titanium Crystal input in the GREEN Casimir Crystal card. The Graphene and Hydrogen costs are unchanged; each Casimir Crystal now consumes eight Optical Grating Crystals instead of one Titanium Crystal.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 80 Optical Grating Crystals/min, 20 Graphene/min, and 120 Hydrogen/min.
  • Final output: 10 Casimir Crystals/min.
Photon Combiners — 15/min from Optical Grating CrystalOPTIONALEFFICIENT RECIPE

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Photon Combiners (efficient) → 15/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Photon Combiners — receives 15/min.

Operating note

  • This replaces the Prism input in the DYSON Photon Combiner card. The Circuit Board cost remains; 15 Optical Grating Crystals/min replace 30 Prisms/min and their Glass branch.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 15 Optical Grating Crystals/min and 15 Circuit Boards/min.
  • Final output: 15 Photon Combiners/min.
Carbon Nanotubes — 30/min from Spiniform Stalagmite CrystalOPTIONALEFFICIENT RECIPE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Spiniform Stalagmite Crystal — supply 90/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Chemical Plant — Carbon Nanotubes (efficient) → 30/min.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Carbon Nanotubes — receives 30/min.

Operating note

  • This replaces both direct inputs in the PURPLE Carbon Nanotube card. At the stated output, 90 Spiniform Crystals/min replace 45 Graphene/min and 15 Titanium Ingots/min.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 90 Spiniform Stalagmite Crystals/min.
  • Final output: 30 Carbon Nanotubes/min.
Particle Containers — 10/min from Unipolar MagnetsOPTIONALEFFICIENT RECIPE

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Particle Containers (efficient) → 10/min used, with 11.25/min installed capacity.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Particle Containers — receives 10/min.

Operating note

  • This replaces the Electromagnetic Turbine and Graphene inputs in the YELLOW Particle Container card. At the stated output, 100 Unipolar Magnets/min replace 20 Turbines/min and 20 Graphene/min; the 20 Copper Ingots/min remain.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 100 Unipolar Magnets/min and 20 Copper Ingots/min.
  • Final output: 10 Particle Containers/min.

Next

WARP is optional and doesn't own your progress. Use the phase navigation to return to the section that matches what you're building now.

9. [GREEN] — Green Cubes and Cheap Warp Logistics

Phase dashboard

At a glance What matters now
Main goal Keep green cubes flowing without letting Hydrogen or Deuterium take over the whole factory
Good target 10 green/min starter, 20/min comfortable, scale toward ~40/min for the endgame
Research next Quantum Chip + Gravitational Wave Refraction → Gravity Matrix tech (green cube unlock); then take vessel warp or Gas Giant Exploitation when they solve a real need
Keep an eye on Hydrogen, Deuterium, Strange Matter power use, and whether Orbital Collectors would now save real effort
Move on when Green is stable, cheap warpers exist, and Dyson/photon preparation is already moving

Goal

Green is where the factory begins to feel genuinely interstellar. Keep the cubes running, stabilize their expensive ingredients, and scale far enough that the photon and white-cube research doesn't become a surprise multi-hour wait.

Research first

By now both prerequisite paths should be finished:

  1. Quantum Chip
  2. Gravitational Wave Refraction
  3. Gravity Matrix — unlocks green cubes

After the first stable green line:

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Deuterium — 50/min by ColliderMANDATEDSTANDARD ROUTE

Input

  • 1 Mk.I belt from Hydrogen storage — carry 100 Hydrogen/min; one Mk.I belt can carry 360/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Miniature Particle Collider — Deuterium → 50/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Tank — Deuterium — receives 50/min; a 10,000-unit tank fills in 3 hours 20 minutes.

Operating note

  • Watch the feeding Hydrogen tank while the Collider runs. If its level trends downward, the belt is fast enough but the source isn’t sustaining 100/min.
  • Use this checked standard line unless a Fractionator loop or Orbital Collector route already delivers a measured 50 Deuterium/min.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 100 Hydrogen/min.
  • Final output: 50 Deuterium/min.
Titanium Crystals — 10/min for Casimir CrystalsMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Coal — supply 40 Coal/min.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Titanium Ore — supply 60 Titanium Ore/min.
  • 1 Oil Extractor on seeps displaying at least 1.0 Crude Oil/s — the line draws 50/min.
  • 1 Water Pump — supply 10 Water/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Energetic Graphite → 20/min.
  • 4 Oil Refineries — Plasma Refining → 50 Refined Oil/min and 25 Hydrogen/min at stated output.
  • 1 Chemical Plant — Plastic → 20/min.
  • 1 Chemical Plant — Organic Crystals → 10/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Titanium Ingots → 30/min at stated output, with 60/min installed capacity.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Titanium Crystals → 10/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Titanium Crystals — receives 10/min before Casimir Crystal production.

Surplus Yield

  • 25 Hydrogen/min.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 40 Coal/min, 60 Titanium Ore/min, 50 Crude Oil/min, and 10 Water/min.
  • Final output: 10 Titanium Crystals/min.
Casimir Crystals — 10/minMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

  • 10 Titanium Crystals/min from the Titanium Crystal card.
  • 20 Graphene/min from the YELLOW Graphene card.
  • 1 Mk.I belt from Hydrogen storage — carry the 120 Hydrogen/min gross demand; one Mk.I belt can carry 360/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Casimir Crystals → 10/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Casimir Crystals — receives 10/min before Plane Filter production.

Surplus Yield

  • 25 Hydrogen/min from the linked Titanium Crystal card reduces the external demand to 95/min when returned to the feeding tank.

Operating note

  • Put the refinery Hydrogen on a short return belt into the same tank that feeds the line. Watch the tank after connecting the loop; a falling level means the outside source isn’t sustaining the 95/min net demand.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 10 Titanium Crystals/min, 20 Graphene/min, and 120 Hydrogen/min gross or 95/min external net.
  • Final output: 10 Casimir Crystals/min.
Titanium Glass — 20/minMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

  • 1 Mining Machine — Stone — supply 40 Stone/min.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Titanium Ore — supply 40 Titanium Ore/min.
  • 1 Water Pump — supply 20 Water/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Glass → 20/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Titanium Ingots → 20/min.
  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Titanium Glass → 20/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Titanium Glass — receives 20/min before Plane Filter production.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 40 Stone/min, 40 Titanium Ore/min, and 20 Water/min.
  • Final output: 20 Titanium Glass/min.
Plane Filters — 10/minMANDATEDREUSABLE

Input

Pipeline

  • 3 Mk.I Assemblers — Plane Filters → 10/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Plane Filters — receives 10/min before Quantum Chip production.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 10 Casimir Crystals/min and 20 Titanium Glass/min.
  • Final output: 10 Plane Filters/min.
Quantum Chips — 5/minMANDATEDBUFFERED

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Quantum Chips → 5/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Quantum Chips — receives 5/min; an unrestricted 6,000-item box fills in 20 hours.

Operating note

  • The linked cards contain the complete modular support. Scale the starving prerequisite card instead of restating its factory here.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 10 Processors/min and 10 Plane Filters/min.
  • Final output: 5 Quantum Chips/min.
Strange Matter — 5/minMANDATEDBUFFERED

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Iron Ingots → 10/min.
  • 1 Miniature Particle Collider — Strange Matter → 5/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Strange Matter — receives 5/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 10 hours.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 10 Particle Containers/min, 50 Deuterium/min, and 10 Iron Ore/min.
  • Final output: 5 Strange Matter/min.
Graviton Lenses — 5/minMANDATEDBUFFERED

Input

  • 5 Strange Matter/min from the Strange Matter card.
  • 1 Mining Machine — Coal — supply 40 Coal/min.

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Energetic Graphite → 20/min.
  • 1 Arc Smelter — Diamonds → 20/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Graviton Lenses → 5/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Graviton Lenses — receives 5/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 10 hours.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 5 Strange Matter/min and 40 Coal/min.
  • Final output: 5 Graviton Lenses/min.
Green cubes — 10/minMANDATEDKEEP

Input

Pipeline

  • Route the two buffered card outputs directly to the final Labs on separate visible feeds.

Output

  • 2 Matrix Labs — green cubes → 10/min.

Operating note

  • The preceding cards contain the complete modular support. Scaling only the final Labs does not increase green output.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 5 Quantum Chips/min and 5 Graviton Lenses/min.
  • Final output: 10 green cubes/min.

Watch for

Green is where Gas Giant Exploitation often changes from “expensive detour” to “why am I still making all this locally?”

If Hydrogen or Deuterium production is taking over the factory, Orbital Collectors are solving a real problem rather than adding another system for its own sake.

Rare resources can also change the build ratio substantially:

These routes change how you make the materials, not which technology comes next.

Ready to move on when

Next

Take the default route to [DYSON]. Choose [SPHERE] instead only when you deliberately prefer a slower build that doesn't expire.

10. [DYSON] — Build the Photon Swarm

Phase dashboard

At a glanceWhat matters now
Main goalSustain 511 Solar Sail launches/min and ≥1.655 GW live swarm generation at Ray Transmission Efficiency Lv0
Good target23 Mk.I Solar Sail assemblers feeding 80 EM-Rail Ejectors that average at least 32% firing duty
Research nextSolar Collection → Photon Frequency Conversion → Super Magnetic Field Generator → Solar Sail Orbit System → Ray Receiver
Keep an eye onSolar Sail lifetime, star luminosity, measured Ejector firing duty, and the live Dyson generation readout
Move on whenThe live swarm meets the GW target and the Ray Receiver technology is ready for the photon phase

Goal

The swarm route isn't a one-time build; it's a running bill:

raw materials → Solar Sails → EM-Rail Ejectors → sails in orbit → live Dyson power → Ray Receivers in [PHOTON]

Every sail adds power only for its researched lifetime. When sails expire, generation falls with them. Reaching the target once isn't enough: production and long-run launches must keep replacing the sails that disappear.

Why the target is 1.655 GW

The number is large because the photon economy is large. The default finish pace is 40 white cubes/min; the next phase uses four fully warmed, lensed Ray Receivers to make 48 Critical Photons/min. Those receivers convert 960 MW at full output. At the starting 58% Ray Transmission Efficiency, the swarm must generate approximately 1.655 GW to deliver that power after losses.

Why the baseline needs 511 sails/min

At luminosity 1.0 and the base 5,400-second Solar Sail lifetime, a 1.655-GW swarm holds roughly 46,000 active sails. Keeping that population steady requires approximately 511 replacements/min. Use:

required launches/min = target watts × 60 ÷ (36,000 × star luminosity × sail lifetime seconds)

Higher luminosity, longer sail-life research, and better Ray Transmission Efficiency all reduce the replacement stream. Use the calculation to size the factory, then trust the live Dyson generation readout over your spreadsheet.

How the launch block works

An EM-Rail Ejector launches 20 sails/min while it's firing, but planets rotate and injection points wander out of view. The reference block uses 80 Ejectors: at a measured average duty of 32%, they sustain roughly 512 launches/min. If your duty is lower, add Ejectors; if it's higher, enjoy the spare capacity.

Research first

  1. Solar Collection
  2. Photon Frequency Conversion
  3. Super Magnetic Field Generator
  4. Solar Sail Orbit System
  5. Ray Receiver

Solar Sail Orbit System has Super Magnetic Field Generator as an implicit requirement.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

RequirementBaseline target
Critical Photon capacity prepared for48/min
Fully warmed lensed Ray Receivers prepared for4
Receiver conversion capacity960 MW
Live swarm generation at Ray Transmission Efficiency Lv0≥1.655 GW
Solar Sail production and long-run launches511/min
Reference Ejector block80 at ≥32% average duty

Launch setup: feed the 511/min sail buffer to 80 EM-Rail Ejectors. Each launches 20/min while firing; a measured average duty of 32% produces about 512 launches/min. Reserve 96 MW of peak grid capacity and judge the block by its long-run measured launch rate, not its installed Ejector count.

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Photon Combiners — 255.5/min for the swarm lineMANDATEDSWARM ROUTE

Input

  • 2 six-vein Mining Machines — Iron Ore — collectively cover 255.5/min.
  • 1 six-vein Mining Machine — Copper Ore — supply 127.75/min.
  • 9 six-vein Mining Machines — Stone — collectively cover 1,533/min.

Pipeline

  • 5 Arc Smelters — Iron Ingots → 255.5/min.
  • 3 Arc Smelters — Copper Ingots → 127.75/min.
  • 26 Arc Smelters — Glass → 766.5/min.
  • 3 Mk.I Assemblers — Circuit Boards → 255.5/min.
  • 12 Mk.I Assemblers — Prisms → 511/min.
  • 18 Mk.I Assemblers — Photon Combiners → 255.5/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Photon Combiners — receives 255.5/min before Solar Sail production.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw: 255.5 Iron Ore/min, 127.75 Copper Ore/min, and 1,533 Stone/min.
  • Final output: 255.5 Photon Combiners/min.
Solar Sails — 511/minMANDATEDSWARM ROUTE

Input

Pipeline

  • 23 Mk.I Assemblers — Solar Sails → 511/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Solar Sails — receives 511/min; an unrestricted 6,000-item box fills in 11 minutes 44 seconds.

Surplus Yield

  • 95.8125 Hydrogen/min from the scaled Graphene support.

Total draw and output

  • Total raw draw through both linked branches: 255.5 Iron Ore/min, 127.75 Copper Ore/min, 766.5 Coal/min, 1,788.5 Stone/min, 191.625 Crude Oil/min, and 127.75 Water/min.
  • Final output: 511 Solar Sails/min.

Watch for

Ejector count isn't launch throughput. Measure sail consumption or actual launches over a long enough interval to include day/night and orbit-angle downtime.

The swarm is the faster route to photons, but the meter never stops running. If the continuing sail draw feels disproportionate, use [SPHERE] and turn the same industrial base into permanent structure.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [PHOTON].

11. [SPHERE] — Optional Permanent Dyson Sphere

Phase dashboard

At a glanceWhat matters now
Main goalBuild permanent nodes, frames, and shell cells until live Dyson generation reaches the four-receiver power target
Good target5 Small Carrier Rockets/min, 5 rocket launches/min, and 15 shell-cell sails/min
Research nextSolar Collection → Photon Frequency Conversion → Super Magnetic Field Generator → Solar Sail Orbit System → Ray Receiver → High-Strength Lightweight Structure → Vertical Launching Silo
Keep an eye onProcessors, Quantum Chips, Deuteron Fuel Rods, completed frame boundaries, and the live sphere-generation readout
Move on whenThe permanent sphere meets the same GW target required by the receiver array

Goal

The sphere route trades speed for permanence. Instead of maintaining an expiring swarm, you complete a construction project:

raw materials → Frame Material → Dyson Sphere Components → Small Carrier Rockets → Vertical Launching Silo → nodes and frames → Solar Sails absorbed as shell cells → permanent Dyson power

What rockets build

Use the Dyson Sphere Editor to create a layer, place nodes, connect them with frames, and designate enclosed shell areas. Small Carrier Rockets launched by the Vertical Launching Silo build the nodes and frames. Until those boundaries exist, the sails have nowhere permanent to go.

What the Solar Sails do

Once completed structure encloses a shell area, launched Solar Sails can leave the temporary swarm and become permanent cell points. The production block below makes 45 sails/min: 30/min go into Dyson Sphere Components, leaving 15/min for shell-cell filling.

Why this route is slower

The one-Silo reference line launches only 5 rockets/min, and the layer you draw determines how long the project takes. Large radii and dense frames require more structure before sails can be absorbed. This route comes online more slowly than the swarm, but completed structure and cells don't expire.

What counts as complete

Your design determines the final rocket and sail count, so there's no honest universal material total. The endpoint is still numerical: reach ≥1.655 GW at Ray Transmission Efficiency Lv0, or the lower target for your researched level. The live generation readout decides when you're done.

Research first

If you came directly from [GREEN], complete the shared solar-launch path before the sphere-specific technologies:

  1. Solar Collection
  2. Photon Frequency Conversion
  3. Super Magnetic Field Generator
  4. Solar Sail Orbit System
  5. Ray Receiver
  6. High-Strength Lightweight Structure
  7. Vertical Launching Silo

Solar Sail Orbit System has Super Magnetic Field Generator as an implicit requirement. The sphere route still uses Solar Sails, EM-Rail Ejectors, and Ray Receivers; it changes how the power is built, not what happens downstream.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

RequirementReference target
Small Carrier Rocket production5/min
Vertical Launching Silos1 supplied continuously
Rocket launches5/min
Solar Sails available for shell cells15/min
Reference shell Ejector block2 at ≥40% average duty
Live permanent generation at Ray Transmission Efficiency Lv0≥1.655 GW

Launch setup: feed the rocket buffer to 1 Vertical Launching Silo for 5 launches/min at an 18-MW active draw. Feed the separate 15-sail/min shell stream to 2 EM-Rail Ejectors; at 40% measured average duty they provide about 16 launches/min and draw up to 2.4 MW while firing.

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Casimir Crystals — 20/minOPTIONAL ROUTEEXPANSION

Input

Pipeline

  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Casimir Crystals → 20/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Casimir Crystals — receives 20/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 2 hours 30 minutes.

Surplus Yield

  • 50 Hydrogen/min from the linked Titanium Crystal support reduces the external demand to 190/min when returned to the feeding tank.

Operating note

  • Use a short return belt into the same Hydrogen tank that feeds the Casimir line, then watch the tank to verify that the external source sustains the 190/min net draw.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 20 Titanium Crystals/min, 40 Graphene/min, and 240 Hydrogen/min gross or 190/min external net.
  • Final output: 20 Casimir Crystals/min.
Quantum Chips — 10/min for rocketsOPTIONAL ROUTEEXPANSION

Input

Pipeline

  • 6 Mk.I Assemblers — Plane Filters → 20/min.
  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Quantum Chips → 10/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Quantum Chips — receives 10/min; an unrestricted 6,000-item box fills in 10 hours.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 20 Casimir Crystals/min, 20 Processors/min, and 40 Titanium Glass/min.
  • Final output: 10 Quantum Chips/min.
Small Carrier Rockets — 5/minOPTIONAL ROUTEKEEP

Input

Pipeline

  • 4 Mk.I Assemblers — Frame Material → 30/min.
  • 2 Arc Smelters — Glass → 45/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Prisms → 30/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Photon Combiners → 15/min.
  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Solar Sails → 30/min.
  • 2 Mk.I Assemblers — Dyson Sphere Components → 10/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Super-Magnetic Rings → 10/min.
  • 3 Mk.I Assemblers — Deuteron Fuel Rods → 20/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Small Carrier Rockets → 5/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Small Carrier Rockets — limit to one 20-rocket stack; satisfied in 4 minutes.

Watch for

Rockets can't fill a shell by themselves, and sails can't become permanent until completed nodes and frames enclose a designated shell area. If either launch stream sits idle, check the Dyson Sphere Editor before building more machines.

Processors feed both Dyson Sphere Components and Quantum Chips. Deuteron Fuel Rods feed both rockets and fusion power. The sphere route therefore leans hardest on lines green science may already be using at full stretch.

Ready to move on when

Next

Return to [PHOTON].

12. [PHOTON] — Critical Photons and Antimatter

Phase dashboard

At a glanceWhat matters now
Main goalSustain 48 Critical Photons/min and convert them into 48 Antimatter/min
Good target4 fully warmed lensed Ray Receivers feeding 1 Miniature Particle Collider
Research nextPlanetary Ionosphere Utilization → Dirac Inversion Mechanism; then Controlled Annihilation Reaction only when Antimatter Fuel Rods are useful
Keep an eye onContinuous Receiving, Receiver Strength, lens supply, available Dyson power, and returned Hydrogen
Move on when48 Critical Photons/min and 48 Antimatter/min are continuous, and all five cube colors can reach 40/min

Goal

This is where the enormous orbital project finally turns back into items on a belt:

live Dyson power → lensed Ray Receivers → Critical Photons → Miniature Particle Collider → Antimatter + Hydrogen → white cubes in [WHITE]

How Ray Receivers become production buildings

Ray Receivers normally turn Dyson output into grid power. Dirac Inversion Mechanism unlocks the Photon Materialization recipe and the Receiver’s Photon Generation mode. In that mode, each fully warmed receiver supplied with a Graviton Lens converts up to 240 MW and produces 12 Critical Photons/min.

Three conditions must agree: Continuous Receiving has to warm up, Receiver Strength must reach 100%, and the swarm or sphere must have enough uncommitted generation to meet the request. A Receiver can be built, lensed, and configured correctly and still underperform if any one of those is missing.

What the Graviton Lenses do

Planetary Ionosphere Utilization allows Graviton Lenses to support the Receiver array. Four lensed Receivers consume only 0.4 lenses/min in total. Your green-science line already makes far more than that, so reserve a feed and local buffer instead of building another factory out of habit.

How Antimatter is made

The Photon Materialization recipe unlocked by Dirac Inversion Mechanism runs in a Miniature Particle Collider. It converts Critical Photons into Antimatter one-for-one and returns the same amount of Hydrogen. One Collider handles 60 photons/min, so the four-Receiver stream of 48/min fits with headroom.

Technology order

The naming is confusing enough to deserve one plain statement: Photon Materialization is a recipe, not a technology, and there's no separate “Antimatter” technology. Research Planetary Ionosphere Utilization, then Dirac Inversion Mechanism.

Controlled Annihilation Reaction is a real later technology. It unlocks Annihilation Constraint Spheres and Antimatter Fuel Rods for Artificial Stars, but you don't need it to manufacture Antimatter or complete the main mission.

Research first

  1. Planetary Ionosphere Utilization
  2. Dirac Inversion Mechanism

After Antimatter is flowing, take Controlled Annihilation Reaction only when you intend to make Antimatter Fuel Rods or continue toward Artificial Star.

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

Finish paceLensed ReceiversCritical Photons/minAntimatter/min available
Relaxed — 20 white/min22424
Comfortable — 40 white/min44848
Fast — 80 white/min78484

The two required technologies also test the older cube lines:

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Critical Photons — 48/minMANDATEDCOMFORTABLE TARGET

Input

  • At least 1.655 GW live Dyson generation at Ray Transmission Efficiency Lv0 and 0.4 Graviton Lenses/min.

Pipeline

  • 4 fully warmed Ray Receivers — Photon Generation → 12 Critical Photons/min each.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Critical Photons — receives 48/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 1 hour 2 minutes 30 seconds.

Total draw and output

  • Total operating draw: at least 1.655 GW live Dyson generation and 0.4 Graviton Lenses/min.
  • Final output: 48 Critical Photons/min.
Antimatter — 48/minMANDATEDKEEP

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Miniature Particle Collider — Photon Materialization → 48 Antimatter/min at stated output, with 60/min installed capacity.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Antimatter — receives 48/min; an unrestricted 3,000-item box fills in 1 hour 2 minutes 30 seconds.

Surplus Yield

  • 48 Hydrogen/min.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 48 Critical Photons/min.
  • Final output: 48 Antimatter/min and 48 Hydrogen/min.

Watch for

Receivers don't begin at full output. Let Continuous Receiving warm up before declaring the array broken, then verify that the Dyson source is supplying the full requested power.

The Collider returns Hydrogen at the same rate as Antimatter. Give it somewhere to go; the final production chain shouldn't be defeated by a full Hydrogen belt.

Ready to move on when

Next

Go to [WHITE].

13. [WHITE] — White Cubes and Mission Completed!

Phase dashboard

At a glanceWhat matters now
Main goalResearch the white-cube recipe, sustain 40 white cubes/min, and feed the final 4,000 into Mission Completed!
Good target20/min relaxed, 40/min comfortable, or 80/min fast — only if every feeder can match it
Research nextUniverse Matrix → Mission Completed!
Keep an eye onThe slowest older cube line; white-cube production can't run faster than its weakest input
Move on whenMission Completed! finishes

Goal

The last phase is less a new production chain than a roll call for everything you built before:

five established cube lines + Antimatter → white-cube Matrix Labs → white-cube stock and research feed → Mission Completed!

Unlock the recipe first

Universe Matrix unlocks white-cube manufacturing. It consumes 2,000 blue, 2,000 red, 2,000 yellow, 2,000 purple, and 2,000 green cubes. Treat that as the admission price, not part of the production build.

Then build the synchronized production line

Each white cube consumes one cube of every earlier color plus one Antimatter. A baseline Matrix Lab produces 4 white cubes/min, so the comfortable target uses 10 production Labs and requires 40/min from each of the six inputs.

The white Labs are rarely the real bottleneck. All five earlier Matrix lines must now work at once, and the slowest one sets the final rate. Watch the feeds separately and expand the starving color instead of adding more white Labs to stand around looking important.

Finish the main mission

Once white cubes are flowing, queue Mission Completed! in the research Labs. It consumes 4,000 white cubes. At a sustained 40/min, the final batch takes 100 minutes; 20/min takes 200 minutes, and 80/min takes 50 minutes.

Research first

  1. Universe Matrix — unlocks white-cube manufacturing
  2. Mission Completed! — consumes the final 4,000 white cubes

Quick reference — How much is enough

Looking something up mid-build? Start here. These are the numbers you're most likely to need without rereading the whole phase.

White cube rateProduction LabsRequired from each cube colorAntimatter/minTime for 4,000
20/min520/min each20200 min
40/min1040/min each40100 min
80/min2080/min each8050 min

The default [PHOTON] array supplies 48 Antimatter/min, leaving 8/min of headroom over the comfortable white-cube line.

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

White cubes — 40/minMANDATEDCOMFORTABLE TARGET

Input

Pipeline

  • Route the six established inputs directly to the final Labs on 6 independent visible feeds.

Output

  • 10 Matrix Labs — white cubes → 40/min into research.

Operating note

  • White science is a convergence test. Expand the starving upstream card, not the final Labs, unless every input feed is full.

Total draw and output

  • Total direct draw: 40/min each of blue, red, yellow, purple, and green cubes, plus 40 Antimatter/min.
  • Final output: 40 white cubes/min.

Watch for

The most common endgame mistake is assuming the newest line must be the important one. White cubes call every earlier color back to work; the bottleneck may be a tiny blue, red, or yellow setup you stopped thinking about hours ago.

Ready to move on when

Next

Finish Mission Completed!, then go to [LOGISTICS].

The main quest is over. Before choosing a megabase, exploration, combat, or permanent-sphere project, automate the hardware that lets you build the next factory without handcrafting its transport network.

14. [LOGISTICS] — Automate the Infrastructure That Moves Everything

Phase dashboard

Main goalAutomate Logistics Distributors, PLS, ILS, Logistics Bots, Logistics Drones, and Logistics Vessels
Useful rates1 Distributor/min · 5 Bots/min · 0.5 PLS/min · 5 Drones/min · 0.25 ILS/min · 2 Vessels/min
Research checkDistribution Logistics System · Planetary Logistics System · Interstellar Logistics System
Watch closelyUse the smallest logistics layer that fits the job; don’t ask little Bots to replace a bulk station network
Move on whenAll six lines refill small buffers without handcrafting, and you can configure a route without guessing what Local and Remote mean

Goal

You’ve already built all six of these things during the main run. The difference now is that expansion will consume them repeatedly. A new mining planet wants an ILS and Vessels. A new production district wants PLS towers and Drones. A useful storage box wants a Distributor and Bots. Handcrafting each batch turns every expansion into another shopping trip.

This phase builds a small logistics mall. The rates are deliberately modest: fast enough to refill between projects, slow enough that they can share the component factory you already own. The cards show complete standard-recipe support, but you don’t need six isolated raw factories. Feed the output assemblers from your established smelting and component network wherever it already has spare capacity.

Use the three logistics layers for different jobs

Read the route settings literally

Provider offers the selected item to that network. Receiver requests it. Depot stores it without asking that network to move it.

Local controls same-planet Drone traffic. Remote controls Vessel traffic. A common import pattern is:

Remote source ILS: Remote Provider → Vessels → Home ILS: Remote Receiver + Local Provider → Drones → PLS: Local Receiver

For a local production relationship, use:

Producer district → PLS Local Provider → Drones → PLS Local Receiver → consumer district

Replace one painful long-distance relationship at a time. The aim isn’t a blueprint-perfect planet. It’s still the respectable middle ground:

global spaghetti → logistics network → local spaghetti

Research first

  1. Distribution Logistics System — unlocks Logistics Distributors and Logistics Bots
  2. Planetary Logistics System — unlocks PLS towers and Logistics Drones
  3. Interstellar Logistics System — unlocks ILS towers and Logistics Vessels

You’ll normally have the station technologies long before this phase. This is a production checklist, not a reason to postpone logistics until after the mission.

Quick reference — How much is enough

These are mall refill rates, not factory throughput limits. One line at each rate will replace ordinary expansion hardware while you work elsewhere.

OutputTarget rateWhat that feels like
Logistics Distributor1/minOne new bot-served storage point every minute
Logistics Bot5/minA ten-Bot Distributor loadout every two minutes
Planetary Logistics Station0.5/minOne new PLS every two minutes
Logistics Drone5/minFifty Drones every ten minutes
Interstellar Logistics Station0.25/minOne new ILS every four minutes
Logistics Vessel2/minA ten-Vessel fleet every five minutes

Quick reference — Required builds

The card titles cover every required output in this phase. Open one when you want the numbers; leave it closed when you'd rather solve the production chain yourself.

Logistics Distributors — 1/minMANDATEDMALL

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Arc Smelter — Glass → 12/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Prisms → 8/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Plasma Exciters → 4/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Logistics Distributors → 1/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Logistics Distributors — limit to one 50-item stack; satisfied in 50 minutes.
Logistics Bots — 5/minMANDATEDMALL

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Engines → 5/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Logistics Bots → 5/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Logistics Bots — limit to one 200-item stack; satisfied in 40 minutes.
Planetary Logistics Stations — 0.5/minMANDATEDMALL

Input

Pipeline

  • No intermediate production building — 1 Mk.I Assembler — Planetary Logistics Stations → 0.5/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — PLS — limit to one 10-station stack; satisfied in 20 minutes.
Logistics Drones — 5/minMANDATEDMALL

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Thrusters → 10/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Logistics Drones → 5/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Logistics Drones — limit to one 200-drone stack; satisfied in 40 minutes.
Interstellar Logistics Stations — 0.25/minMANDATEDMALL

Input

Pipeline

  • No intermediate production building — 1 Mk.I Assembler — Interstellar Logistics Stations → 0.25/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — ILS — limit to one 10-station stack; satisfied in 40 minutes.
Logistics Vessels — 2/minMANDATEDMALL

Input

Pipeline

  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Reinforced Thrusters → 4/min.
  • 1 Mk.I Assembler — Logistics Vessels → 2/min at stated output.

Output

  • 1 Storage Mk.I — Logistics Vessels — limit to one 50-vessel stack; satisfied in 25 minutes.

Watch for

Shared upstream lines. Each card’s references cover that card by itself. If several logistics boxes refill at once, add their shared Processor and alloy demands together; the same upstream surplus can’t feed every card simultaneously.

Small buffers matter more than maximum speed. Limit station and carrier storage so these lines don’t quietly consume the whole component factory while you’re designing something else.

If a route starves, decide whether the problem is production or transport before adding machines. Full source storage plus an empty receiver usually points to carrier count, travel time, station power, or route settings—not a shortage of the item.

Ready to move on when

Next

The critical path is finished and the transport layer is reusable. Pick a project: interstellar expansion, a permanent sphere, Dark Fog industry, a cleaner factory, or something gloriously unnecessary.

Optional Paths

These aren't side quests you owe the tech tree. Take one when it solves a problem you can already see; otherwise leave it alone and keep moving.

[PILE SORTER] — Integrated Logistics

What it's for

Fix production lines that are being held back by how quickly items can enter or leave the machines.

Take it when

Do this

Research it when machine input or output speed is already the problem—not when the icon merely starts glowing.

Don't take it merely because it's available.

Return to the main route when

Once the sorters are no longer what's slowing the line down, return to the main progression path.

[GAS GIANT] — Orbital Collectors

What it's for

Use Orbital Collectors when making enough Hydrogen, Deuterium, or Fire Ice locally is becoming more trouble than it's worth.

Take it when

Do this

Take Orbital Collectors because you need the gas, not because the technology happens to be sitting there looking affordable.

Green is often the point where the economics become obvious.

Return to the main route when

Once gas supply is no longer slowing green or later production, return to the main route.

[INTERSTELLAR POWER] — Energy Exchangers and Accumulator Shipping

What it's for

Use this when powering remote worlds locally is awkward and shipping charged accumulators is genuinely easier.

Take it when

Do this

Compare the continuing logistics burden with the unglamorous alternative of simply building local generation.

Remember that a new ILS can create a large temporary charging spike; don't mistake that brief load for the remote world's permanent demand.

Return to the main route when

Use the simpler power system. Don't create a logistics network merely to avoid a few easy local generators.

[ADVANCED MINING] — Large Remote Extraction Networks

What it's for

Make large multi-world mining networks quicker and less tedious to build.

Take it when

Do this

Treat it as a convenience upgrade for a factory that's already spread across many worlds, not as permission to spread too early.

It isn't required for an efficient Mission Completed run.

Return to the main route when

If mining is no longer what's slowing expansion down, go fix whatever production or logistics problem actually is.

[DARK FOG] — Hidden Industrial Technology

What it's for

Access the hidden Dark Fog industrial branch in a long-run combat-focused game.

Take it when

Do this

Treat Dark Fog industry as a separate progression lane.

Holo Beacon can help you manage deliberate Relay interaction, but you still need the Dark Fog to reach the right levels and drop the required items.

Return to the main route when

For the default Mission Completed route: don't enter this branch at all.

One-Screen Default Checklist

[BOOTSTRAP]

[BLUE]

[RED]

[FLIGHT]

[TITANIUM]

[YELLOW]

[ILS]

[PURPLE]

[WARP]

[GREEN]

[DYSON]

[PHOTON]

[WHITE]

[LOGISTICS]

When you aren't sure what's wrong

When the factory stops making sense, resist the urge to rebuild it on instinct. Ask these questions in order:

  1. Can I research the technology?
    If not, check which earlier technology is still missing.

  2. Can I build the recipe or machine?
    If not, check whether you're missing another technology or the machine that actually makes it.

  3. Can I keep supplying every required material?
    If not, find the material you can't yet mine, make, or import reliably.

  4. Does the line still depend on me carrying or hand-feeding materials?
    If yes, automate the missing transport or storage step.

  5. Does everything work, but progress still crawls?
    Compare your production rates with the numbers in this guide and fix the slowest line.

A line below the minimum for the phase is usually the first thing worth fixing.

A line between minimum and comfortable is usually doing its job. Leave it alone unless the evidence says otherwise.

A line already above the comfortable target has probably earned some peace until the next phase starts asking more of it.