Anyone Using Blueprints in Early Game?

[Timmetry]

I don't know if I'm doing something wrong, but right now blueprints seem pretty useless in the early game. Seems like you can only paste standalone components that don't overlap at all or connect to anything that was already built? It seems like the blueprint system isn't even designed to recognize any parts of the blueprint that are already built.

If any of the belts are touching, or any machines are already built, even if they are exactly the same as the blueprint, it just fails to place anything at all because it says "collide with other object". I thought they said you'd even be able to place a blueprint down over already existing stuff just to upgrade buildings? But it won't even ignore existing buildings, even when they're the exact same as on the blueprint.

I know I would love to be able to copy/paste a certain section of a production chain (including belts, power poles, machines, sorters, etc), and just link it up to my existing sections. But that seems impossible in the current state of the blueprint system? Am I doing something wrong, or is the blueprint system still missing some very important key features?

Are any of you guys using the blueprint system in the early game right now? If so, how is it helping you? Right now to me it seems like it will only be useful in the very endgame when you have everything fully upgraded and can paste an entire interstellar trade network from scratch that doesn't connect to anything else.

[jamiechi]

If you mean early game as before you leave the planet, yes. I do use the Blueprint Tweaks mod to allow me to overlap identical items. There is the option with this mod to press shift while placing to ignore different stuff.

Without mods we will just have to wait until the Devs fix it. There are several other threads in ths forum that discuss this in more detail.

[josmith7]

This first release of the blueprints has some pretty big limitations, and obstructions are a large of of that.

You should be able to paste a blueprint over many building types; basically anything that allowed manual pasting atop itself (smelters, assemblers, chemical plants, oil refinery, solar panel, wind turbine).

I'm not sure about power poles, storage, or research labs.

And belts are known not to work if there's more than a 1 segment overlap. And there are some other later game buildings where you can't paste one down to modify an existing one.

Also as I understand it you can't paste down dissimilar versions of a building. So if you've got a Mk.I assembler or something with Mk.I sorters I don't thing you can overlay it with a blueprint calling for Mk.II versions (or vice versa).


The developers did say this original version is pretty limited and they'll be working to improve it. But for the moment if you want blueprints that extend your production chain you'll probably have to save them in non-overlapping blocks and then manually connect up the belts of each block after pasting down the blueprint(s).

[Timmetry]

Thanks for the input guys, I'll try adjusting my methods a bit based on this feedback. Just wanted to make sure it wasn't user error, and that I was doing something wrong in the way I was using them lol.

Totally understand that there's still a lot of work to be done. I'll look forward to updates in the near future!

I'll try to check out that mod too! It sounds like a good workaround for the time being.

[Jan]

I am working on a mall segmented in 150 entity blueprints for my new run. I can upgrade it step by step and connect everything to towers later on.

[Timmetry]

Originally posted by Jan:

I am working on a mall segmented in 150 entity blueprints for my new run. I can upgrade it step by step and connect everything to towers later on.

Wow that's a lot of blueprints to manage.

Are you using mods?

[cwattyeso]

I'm using the blueprint system, however I do find the restrictions on it's use being locked away behind research and then having object/item limitations that again can only be lifted via further research with more elaborate materials, means you end up having to build so much by hand still as the functionality is locked away from you. When I heard blueprints were coming to Dyson Sphere I thought it'd have been exactly the same as in Factorio, where you can just go to town placing blueprints the minute you load into a game. Sadly that's not the case. Many builds have to be broken down into smaller parts and kind of jigsaw pieced together. That can make it very confusing to follow and place blueprints for malls and other things when people have separated them into 20 blueprints and provide no instructions or diagrams on how to place and piece them together.

[thenonsequitur]

I have made heavy use of blueprints in early game (and onward). It's not nearly as smooth as Factorio's blueprints but it's also brand new. Over time I'm sure it will be improved and tuned. But it's already a huge time saver over placing everything manually. Hard to overstate how much blueprints have improved my experience.

[thenonsequitur]

Also there is one spot that blueprints can connect to existing layouts. If you have a conveyor belt sticking out exactly 1 spot further than the rest of the blueprint, placing a copy side-by-side that belt will connect with the existing layout.

[Timmetry]

I don't mind the quantity restrictions (though it might be a bit TOO restrictive at early levels). I just wish the blueprints would actually paste as expected, joining on to existing buildings and belts, ignoring things already placed, upgrading others, etc. Factorio is definitely a good place to look for example of intuitive function. If they can make the blueprints paste closer to the way Factorio does it, I will definitely be happy. It's still new, and they have a lot of development to do.

[Timmetry]

Originally posted by thenonsequitur:

Also there is one spot that blueprints can connect to existing layouts. If you have a conveyor belt sticking out exactly 1 spot further than the rest of the blueprint, placing a copy side-by-side that belt will connect with the existing layout.

I swear I've tried this before, but will definitely give it another shot. Thanks!

[Jan]

Originally posted by Timmetry:

Originally posted by Jan:

I am working on a mall segmented in 150 entity blueprints for my new run. I can upgrade it step by step and connect everything to towers later on.

Wow that's a lot of blueprints to manage.

Are you using mods?

No mods. It is not that big. The basic stuff for early to mid games takes maybe 4 150x blueprints. A 600x blueprints will add most other things.

It would really nice if the devs could add the option to overlapp belts in blueprints. Would make it a lot easier.

[Regicide]

I also hope Blueprint Limit will get removed or at least increased. The 150 is really too low and a big annoyance/hassle for BP Creators. If you check the Blueprint Website, it even feels a bit like Spam if people have to upload 8 BP's for the same build, just to make it available in Early Game.

I know, it's to somehow prevent people from just smashing down big Factories and make Early Game a piece of Cake. But as you can see, it's still doable by splitting BP's up. So it doesn't really prevent anything. And for me, I think everyone on his own should decide how he wants to play. Trying to keep Early Game challenging by limit BP's makes no real sense for me?

[Tatsuyo]

My problem is that i can't use BP, it says Bp areas are divided by tropic lines, it needs a lot of improvement.

[Regicide]

Originally posted by Tatsuyo:

My problem is that i can't use BP, it says Bp areas are divided by tropic lines, it needs a lot of improvement.

That's a known problem and dev's mentioned before the update that it will be quite difficult up to impossible to have BP cross tropic line, due to grid changing in size.

They might find a solution some day, but that won't happen in the near future I guess. So you have to create/use Blueprints a way that they don't cross Tropic Lines

[_Morgoth_]

I do not even use blueprints late game because they are basically crap. I build a complex arrangement for producing power from oil. Then created a blueprint and wanted to place it near a new oil well. No luck : some stupid error message about not being the same or correct type of area.

End result: the blieprint is worthless and useless because when I want to use it for fast and easy copying of factory arrangements it does not work at all.