How do I know what to do next?

[tim091]

So I have been playing for a week or so and have built heaters to raise the temp, vegetubes to create oxygen, drills to do something (?) other stuff etc. Questions:

1) Do they stack? I mean, I keep adding more heaters, more drills etc. assuming that will get the job done quicker, but is that so? Am I wasting my time and resources?
2) The new stage on the terraform progress screen is "Moss". What do I do to make that happen? I mean, does it need more oxygen stuff, more heaters, more drills etc.? Which is it? If I new I would concentrate on just building more of what was needed.

I don't know what the connection is between the things you can build and the effects they have on the terraforming tasks.

[Ensign Toby]

1) Yes, Yes, No
2) Moar Terraforming Index, Moar, Yes, Just Moar

I don't know what the connection is between the things you can build and the effects they have on the terraforming tasks.

AFAIK, the game doesn't require a "balanced ecosystem", just Moar TTi.

[tim091]

Thanks very much. You mean just build more of everything?

[satans_favourite]

plz ignore the previous reply from Toby,
each of the basic stats of the planet can be improved upon. each 1 has their own unlocks at certain points. so only improving 1 thing wont get you all the machines/things you need.
youre blueprints screen will show you what numbers you need for what unlock.
and for youre first question: yes each item you build adds its value/production to the terraforming index. so yes 10 heaters works 10 times better then 1.
in the beginning of the game its all about having what you need to survive, and improving all youre terreforming scores to unlock new/better equipment and options.
i hope this helped. enjoy the game. and if you have more questions just ask thats what this forum is for.

[tim091]

Thanks mate. I get that I can improve each area with more and better machines in that category, but is there a way of knowing what I should be building to work on the specific terraforming task that is on the progress screen? I.e it says "Moss" at the moment and it will slowly get to 100%, but can I make it go faster by just building oxygen generators, or just heaters etc.?

How do I know what the number should be? I might have enough Heat now so no sense in building any more heaters for instance.

[EmilyHunter]

Did you build the blueprint screen/monitor? Because there you can check which things unlock when, what numbers you need, and you can decide which numbers to rise first for whatever tech you want first.

The terraforming is basically a side-by-side process with the unlockables. Any number will increase the Terraformation Index Ti, doesn't matter which one you choose. But doing them all will get you there faster (probably) than just one, mostly because you will never have enough resources at once for only one part (oxygen/heat/pressure) at that stage of the game (like, not enough Iridium for a multitude of heaters, or not enough plant seeds for your vegetubes to be useful).

[satans_favourite]

@Tim i would suggest you unlock tree spreaders lvl3 asap. they have the highest bonus to oxygen production. this can boost progress to the next era faster. but any path wil get you there. oxygen is generally the fastest. ( bigger boosts on buildings in percentages )

[Obi-Wonka Nobi]

Tim, I usually just add things to keep the numbers steadily increasing. If I want them to move faster, I add more stuff. If you're at the stage where you can launch rockets, those are a big help and multiply the speed of *all* of your heaters or drills or oxygen depending on the rocket type.

[Tinian]

I believe that TI is the base Terraforming Index and relates to the screen you are talking about. It is the combination of all other measurements and has no single part. You should look at the other lines to figure out what you might want to increase, it will all increase the main TI.

If you have not noticed, the blue print screen has 2 parts. The main part and a second part that shows up when you start making biomass. This biomass screen is the same screen that is in the bio dome.

If you mouse over the machines in the construction menu it will show you what it will increase. You will have oxygen, heat, and pressure when you start. After you place your first machine that produces bio mass, that will increase to plant, insect, and animal. Bio mass is the main measure of all plants, insects, and animals you produce.

[starlight78sso]

The Progression screen is for the overall terraforming level, there is no one specific thing that is needed to progress it farther faster. So no building just O2 generators will not move it faster on its own. Build more of everything, launching rockets will also help as well.

[Zep Tepi]

Rockets will greatly improve heat and pressure, plus give you goodies raining from the sky. To get the numbers to go up, build more of everything. Heat, oxygen and pressure each have their own recipe unlocks, in addition to the big overall number, and later various biomass numbers. You will also unlock other rockets as you go. Use them, they're good.

But it's also good to take a break from building and do some exploring. The contents of the chests will change as you progress, so don't be in a rush to unlock those all at once, but open them as you go and they will help. Naturally you'll want as many microchips as you can get, until you run out of things to unlock. And there are story bits. No need to be a slave to the machines, get out of your base too.

[Ensign Toby]

Originally posted by Zep Tepi:

No need to be a slave to the machines, get out of your base too.

Uh, did you just tell us to virtually "go outside and touch grass" within a video game???
My brain hurt now.

[Dex]

BUILD MOAR. MOOOAAAR OF EVERYTHING. And hope you're not one of those "ASCHTUALLY, EARLY'S ATMOSPHERE..." types, because this game is NOT meant to be a science game.

[keltten]

The satalites also help a lot they are a 1000% modifier BIG improvements with the benefit if meteors and other things. Whatever you have the most of Send that satlite up to get 1000% the benefit

[tim091]

Thanks all for the advice. I have launched some rockets and have a bunch of each thing built. I've explored every corner of the map and raided all the wrecks. I'm just feeling a bit let down now as all that it seems I can do is gather resources and build more of the same machines (or new ones when they get unlocked). That's got pretty boring now.

[Dex]

Originally posted by tim091:

Thanks all for the advice. I have launched some rockets and have a bunch of each thing built. I've explored every corner of the map and raided all the wrecks. I'm just feeling a bit let down now as all that it seems I can do is gather resources and build more of the same machines (or new ones when they get unlocked). That's got pretty boring now.

I'm curious, how are you playing the game? You don't own it on Steam.