Factorio - building your own Foxconn

IvoryTower

i turned the first burner inserter arond there just to see, then tried a few of them, no joy

Battleflag

There is no pipe connecting the last burner to the steam engines

IvoryTower

i removed the last steam engine there and put pipes from boiler to next steam engine and it looked like it was going to work for a second and then stopped

Battleflag

Do you need the power? If the steam engines aren't supplying any electric devices then it won't produce energy

Wossack

shouldnt need a pipe - boilers can go directly into engines

how is the water pressure? from the screenshot, I think you've got too many boilers for that one pump... try removing half of them and putting pipe in place

IvoryTower

ive only started so i doubt i need the power, would that make a difference? like all thats connecting is the steam engines right now?

tried less boilers same thing.

Battleflag

If there is nothing connected to the electricity network then it won't produce any electricity . Try putting down some electric mining drills or electric inserters and connect it using the electric poles

IvoryTower

Battleflag wrote: »

If there is nothing connected to the electricity network then it won't produce any electricity . Try putting down some electric mining drills or electric inserters and connect it using the electric poles

ha okay i build a lab and a radar as thats all thats available and it seems to have kicked in, morto

ShadowHearth

I was sure I posted about whole inserters and power thing. Sorry for that, at least its sorted.

I was off today and had time before and after dentist pulled one of my wisdom teeth...

As I looked and my factory I realised it is still very big mess. Not as big as last one though lol. I expanded a bit to get 3 more passive oil patces. I had to go for it as I am really desperate. I am really unlucky with it.
Good thing is I found a massive oil spot, but a bad thing is its very far away and pretty much surrounded with biters. Another good thing is though that now I will need to make a train again!
I did some research on "main bus" today. It looks very effective and in a way impressive, but at the same time boring... too tidy and efficient if that makes any sense.
I kind of wanted to give it a go, but now I kind of want to expand to separate bases for separate operations and make a massive central base for off loading stuff. All connected by trains. It will be a mess, but I will make organised chaos.

ShooterSF

Ok. Im hooked green science feels like a massive achievement even if I have belts coming from all over the place to make it work. Watching some tutorials to get a better idea of some tricks. I can see me putting hours into this game and it is still early access?!

ShadowHearth

ShooterSF wrote: »

Ok. Im hooked green science feels like a massive achievement even if I have belts coming from all over the place to make it work. Watching some tutorials to get a better idea of some tricks. I can see me putting hours into this game and it is still early access?!

As they say in reddit: One of us, one of us!

Trust me, its addictive as drugs. My misses and little darling went off yesterday and I had off. I played non stop pretty much 7 hours! I have total of 57h and I dont even have it for a month. Thats taking in to account my busy life with work and family!!! This game has tetris effect on people, I could talk for hours how good and awesome this game is and how much more popular it should be, but unt you sink your teeth in to it, you wont get it why.

Your first factory should be a mess and I bet you got an itchy foot now to start a new one and make it a lot better as you learned a lot of stuff, then there will be a third factory... and 56th...
Definitely watch some youtube stuff. I would recomend watching quills18 noob playthrough and then his under 8h one. They are both terrible, but you will pick up a few life hacks in them. He is definitely not the best player and even I watch him now and cringe at stuff he does, but it helps to make your brain work.
This game is almost a puzzle game, but it makes no rules for you to follow, you have to find solution yourself and there is no one answer to any problem.

As gor my own progress: My factory starting to expand! Alredy looking forward to my next one on bases,what I learned already.
I got 2 trains going now. One for copper and one for crude oil. Copper one is pretty much standard affair, but I am really proud of my oil train!
As always nothing is given to me, so my next big oil patch is miles away and in the nest of biters. I had to do some seriuos purging to clean it up. I even had to setup a post with turrets and solar panels tp defend, before I even could lay pumps. Took me a good few runs to get a foothold as it was constantly attacked! Though in the end I secured it and got oil running. Best thing is this time my trains is fully automated for crude oil. I got full barrels going in to train, and when its in main base it unloads them, and here comes best part, it loads up all empty barrels back on the train. So when its coming back to outpost its off loads empty barrels and full ones go back in!
Its such a minor thing, but I did it and felt like a big achievment.
I have some amount of ore procesing now in main base, but space starting to get limited and one belt is not enough anymore.
My next plan will be to make a separate outpost for smelting and another few for pure mining raw ore. All connected by trains and fully done plates will go back to main base. Might even get wrid of all smelting in main base after ore is depleted.

ShadowHearth

Well,I finally started taking steps in to expanding out of my base.
Cleared a good bit of region to open up some spots. Lots of trees and biters burned or were killed by my destroyer bots.
First station for iron ore set for a separate smelting facility. Got facility spot planed out and got some defence put down there.

One more thing I finally learned! How to use blueprints and personal roboport together! Its god damn amazing. I got a cut of wall made with turrets and polls as blueprint. So now when I expand or drop new oitpost, I just drop a few of those blueprints and my little robots do the rest!


I honestly cant go back to any of those minecraft crafting games anymore. Doing crap myself just feels... crap!!! It made me so lazy lol, I am looking for better solutions so I would do less work.

cruizer101

Yeah robots make it so much easier, especially deconstruction for clearing trees. You can have multiple personal robo-ports also.

Sounds like you might need to have a go at getting the Lazy Bastard achievement.

ShadowHearth

cruizer101 wrote: »

Yeah robots make it so much easier, especially deconstruction for clearing trees. You can have multiple personal robo-ports also.

Sounds like you might need to have a go at getting the Lazy Bastard achievement.

Yup, thats what I do fpr trees. If its near base, I throw power line and set up roboport, clear all and push powerline firther to expand. If I am a bit further I use personal roboport. Very handy.

I think I will go for it after. At this playthrough I am just going to get all research achievement amd see if I can get more of those production achievemens.

I dont want to do new factory now as I have a feeling new patch will be soon, which changes a lot of stuff. Will start a brand new factory for it.

Tempted to mod it too. Bobs and angels looks interesting.

ShooterSF

I finally got an oil train going as I need me my blue science. But my base needs a total reshape and thats probably the next couple of hours of play to get that done. Biter attacks are still very few and weak, I think my early investment in solar might be helping that...
'

cruizer101

ShadowHearth wrote: »

I dont want to do new factory now as I have a feeling new patch will be soon, which changes a lot of stuff. Will start a brand new factory for it.

Yeah I think it is coming pretty soon, do you follow the friday blog posts, https://www.factorio.com/blog
Its nice to see regular updates from the devs.
There is nuclear power coming anyway so looking forward to that.

I also want to try get into doing stuff with circuits a bit more, I havn't really used them much, and there is so much potential, check this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgfwwqwxdxY

ShadowHearth wrote: »

Tempted to mod it too. Bobs and angels looks interesting.

I plan looking at bobs and angels at some stage but I've watched a few videos and it looks like serious commitment, vanilla can already be a massive timesink so not sure I should take the plunge til I have bit more free time.

I use a few mods now though, longreach is very handy, bottleneck is great for improving your factory efficiency. I also like robot army for not having to deal with biters myself.

ShadowHearth

ShooterSF wrote: »

I finally got an oil train going as I need me my blue science. But my base needs a total reshape and thats probably the next couple of hours of play to get that done. Biter attacks are still very few and weak, I think my early investment in solar might be helping that...
'

Just a few tips m8.

Use efficiency modules in pumps while they still have resources in them, when those depleted, use fast modules. Then eventually add some of those stations that transmit modules to nearby stuff. Ot all stacks. Every bit of oil helps, trust me.
Another tip: make sure to start your solar "plantation" in one dedicated area with massive amount of expansion. Preferably a bit further away from your main factory. You will be shocked how much space you will need and amount of solar panels that you end up with.

ShadowHearth

cruizer101 wrote: »

ShadowHearth wrote: »

I dont want to do new factory now as I have a feeling new patch will be soon, which changes a lot of stuff. Will start a brand new factory for it.

Yeah I think it is coming pretty soon, do you follow the friday blog posts, https://www.factorio.com/blog
Its nice to see regular updates from the devs.
There is nuclear power coming anyway so looking forward to that.

I also want to try get into doing stuff with circuits a bit more, I havn't really used them much, and there is so much potential, check this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgfwwqwxdxY

ShadowHearth wrote: »

Tempted to mod it too. Bobs and angels looks interesting.

I plan looking at bobs and angels at some stage but I've watched a few videos and it looks like serious commitment, vanilla can already be a massive timesink so not sure I should take the plunge til I have bit more free time.

I use a few mods now though, longreach is very handy, bottleneck is great for improving your factory efficiency. I also like robot army for not having to deal with biters myself.

Yeah, the new uranium ore is soooo awesome. Nuclear power yo! I hope theu will add some weaponry that uses it!
Oil tanker is another thing I look forward to.

I know what you mean about bobs and angels. Its just stupidity complex, though I love that about it. More challange. Factorio just got me so hooked, that I dont play anything else anymore. If Manage to get free time with my pc, factorio and spotify gets loaded and I am gone. Cant remember last time I was so addictive to a game. Would love to get small laptop to play it in bedroom while misses sleeps. She will kill me though.

ShadowHearth

I finally got day off and misses away pretty much all day. Babysitting was grand too, she was on a tablet all time.

So! I went further with my factory.

Expanded a lot! Got one more massove dedocated solar complex, which by the end pf thee dayi almost filled up ffs. Looks like will need tp expand that more next time!

Moved my walls a lot and trying to get mpre space everywhere I can. With each boarders push I open up myself new recourses too.

My biggest achievement of today! Spent hours trying to do proper train routes with stops and circulating movement.
Took my ages though and I only sorted out my iron ore logistics! Stations had to be redone, learning signals, laying tracks.
In the end it was worth it! I got 2 mining outposts and one mega smelting base. 2 trains on same tracks going around and visit mining outposts, then off loading to smelter and rinse and repeat! And my trains do that without crashing in to each other!

Canis Lupus

What is this nightmare you've got me into. I've seen vids of it before but dismissed it but because you were jabbering on about it I decided to give it a go.... I lost my entire night to it and all I have to show for it is production belts everwhere, a few mines and a mess of electricity poles. I'm not sure I have the kind of structured mind to get the most out of this game but definitely willing to give it a go. There's something deeply satisfying about watching an automated system makes all the bits n bobs for you. It's a bit like the X series where you create your own economy of factories.

Some initial thoughts, I dislike electricity poles. Unless I just haven't unlocked extra doohickeys getting electricity to things makes everything looks messy. This displeases me. I also wish research was a bit more intuitive.

I think personally I might start a new game tonight as I started the game without anything nasty to attack me and I realise now that this takes away a bit of urgency and the need for lots of sexy gun turrets. Also in this initial game my water source is ages away from a good spot of ores. Might try and generate somewhere new with a better starting area.

ShadowHearth

Canis Lupus wrote: »

What is this nightmare you've got me into. I've seen vids of it before but dismissed it but because you were jabbering on about it I decided to give it a go.... I lost my entire night to it and all I have to show for it is production belts everwhere, a few mines and a mess of electricity poles. I'm not sure I have the kind of structured mind to get the most out of this game but definitely willing to give it a go. There's something deeply satisfying about watching an automated system makes all the bits n bobs for you. It's a bit like the X series where you create your own economy of factories.

Some initial thoughts, I dislike electricity poles. Unless I just haven't unlocked extra doohickeys getting electricity to things makes everything looks messy. This displeases me. I also wish research was a bit more intuitive.

I think personally I might start a new game tonight as I started the game without anything nasty to attack me and I realise now that this takes away a bit of urgency and the need for lots of sexy gun turrets. Also in this initial game my water source is ages away from a good spot of ores. Might try and generate somewhere new with a better starting area.

Addictive, isn't it? Really makes your brain work too. I already clpcked in 79h!!! No signs of slowing down. I already looking forward to my next factory and implement everything I learned in this one.
Hunting down achievments too. I never ever bother with them, but I got more then 50% already.
Last one I got was iron throne 2, 200k iron plates per hour! I can do way more, but I just have such a massive backlpg of plates and ore. Outside of that 3 full trains in a queue to unload!
I think I will start new factory somewhere else that will be fed by trains.

The thing abput factorio is that you always fixing something lol. Was so proud of my 2 train lool system that I did last time, I added 2 more trains to it. One more iron ore and fresh copper ore station. Now I got traffic issues die to back log lol. Need to fix that hehe.

Canis Lupus

It's very much a 'one more thing' kind of game.

I've only set up a 4 lane belt of copper and iron plates with green and red science production. Green science is a mess though, I did it without looking at a tutorial so it's not getting enough inserters to feed the assemblers and it's a mess of belts/splitters.

I have some annoyances with the game. Taking stuff down to redo it is a bit tedious if it was a complex arrangement. Building stuff with your character in the way is annoying or he always seems to be on a conveyor belt and moving when you're trying to put something down. I wish there was an easier way to move chests with stuff in it.

ShadowHearth

Canis Lupus wrote: »

It's very much a 'one more thing' kind of game.

I've only set up a 4 lane belt of copper and iron plates with green and red science production. Green science is a mess though, I did it without looking at a tutorial so it's not getting enough inserters to feed the assemblers and it's a mess of belts/splitters.

I have some annoyances with the game. Taking stuff down to redo it is a bit tedious if it was a complex arrangement. Building stuff with your character in the way is annoying or he always seems to be on a conveyor belt and moving when you're trying to put something down. I wish there was an easier way to move chests with stuff in it.

Hehe, thats why its factorio and point of game to do less as possible yourself.

Further more you go in, the more stuff you unlock to make it so much easier for yourself.
My few tips for you:
Your first factories will be spaghetti plates, dont fight it, embrace. You learning what goes where and what is the best way or amount to supply it. You can watch as many guides as you want, in the end it will just boil down to try it yourself.
Learn ealry on how to use drones, I cant do **** without my personal roboport. In fact I got 3 of them straped on my arse and will be replacing more personal turrets woth more roboports. Having robot logistic system is just so damn handy. I just go to one corner of my base and wait a bit until little buggers just bring me my shoping list, so I can go off again with my quest.
Learn how to use blueprints as soon as you can.
It will come in so handy when you going big scale or doing your train logistocs. Copy part of your furnace setup and put it on blueprint. Then use blueprint and your personal robots will build it in a second. Then when you come back after many hours and decide to upgrade your smelting. Boom! Take blueprint that you saved hours ago and make expansion in few seconds. It shaved off sooooo much wasted time.
At this point I have full train stations saved up. One for unloading, the other for loading.

I started my current factory as organised spaghetti, but it just all felt apart and became mess. I fixed it tiny bit by doing main bus a bit, but its just too much work to fix it. Instead I am building completely new one with massove amount of space for expansion. Iron and copper plates are smelted in one dedicated area and its all supplied by trains to my new grand daddy factory.
Had enough time only to set plate source and unloading logistics and a start of main bus with proper 4 lane balancer.
Unfortunately my to iron ore patches dried out already, so will have to deconstruct those two stations and get new spirce asap... As always in factorio, you fixing leaking ship lol.

Canis Lupus

I've sort of watched a tutorial right from the start so I've fixed a lot of the crap I put down at the start. I have a bus? for iron and copper plate, electric circuits and steel. I've some off shoots for pipe manufacture and I've just put down oil wells and refineries but haven't done the transportation pipes out of them just yet.

I can't remember the options at the start of the game but my map is quite heavily wooded which is getting on my tits. It's so time consuming to clear it out of the way

ShadowHearth

Canis Lupus wrote: »

I've sort of watched a tutorial right from the start so I've fixed a lot of the crap I put down at the start. I have a bus? for iron and copper plate, electric circuits and steel. I've some off shoots for pipe manufacture and I've just put down oil wells and refineries but haven't done the transportation pipes out of them just yet.

I can't remember the options at the start of the game but my map is quite heavily wooded which is getting on my tits. It's so time consuming to clear it out of the way

Make sure to put oil tanks so it would be stored, it stops if it has no where to go. Same thing with oil refineries, if one of the products full, it wont be breaking down crude oil and just stops.
Ah trees.... I though there was option to lower them down, but no. Ots part of the game.
I deal with them like this:

1. Fire, lots of fire. Then just pick off survivors. Usually my early game.
2. Deconstructing with perosnal robopirt or roboports themselves. Depends on situation. If its a really big forest I will bring power lines and drop roboport. If I need to do path, its personal roboport.
3. I use machine gun in early game to clean up too. Its slow, but still faster then doing it one by one though.

ShadowHearth

I installed bobs and angels mod pack.... what have I done...

I really will need to look in to proper guides for it. Complexity of factorio turned not to 11, but fecking 211...

ShooterSF

So I restarted the other day and set myself the lofty goal of trying the lazy bastard route.Finally got to robots and with my 300+ solar panels and similar accumulators I've suffered very little attacks but now the biter bases are HUGE and Petroleum is my big issue. I need more crude oil and it's surrounded by some massive bases. I might try and wall it in and put up laser defenses.

ShooterSF

Also it's 3am....

Canis Lupus

Finally created robots. Watching them decimate forests almost brought a tear to my eyes.

ShadowHearth

Well, Bobs and Angels mod is just mad. If you though vanilla Factorio is complex... Well then you will be in a massive shock here. Its just madness. I have no Idea what size main bus I would need, but I got so many lanes and its already small. To make it worse I am only on my second science and Only now managed to get mk2 boards going!!!!

Will be playing modded version until patch comes out and then I will stick my teeth in to vanilla again to hunt down achievements. No energy turrets/steam engines will be my main one.

God I love this game, I wish I would have a laptop to play it while misses sleeping. 93h already in!