Milestone Progression: The Road to Oil Processing
Satisfactory, the first-person open-world factory building game from Coffee Stain Studios, has captivated players with its intricate automation systems and the sheer joy of transforming a pristine alien landscape into a sprawling industrial complex. Among the many exciting milestones in your factory-building journey, unlocking trains stands out as a pivotal moment. Trains are more than just a mode of transportation; they represent a significant leap in your factory’s capabilities, allowing you to move resources across vast distances efficiently and automatically. They are the arteries of your burgeoning industrial empire, pumping vital raw materials to processing centers and finished goods to storage facilities. But when exactly do you get your hands on these mechanical behemoths, and how do you unleash their potential? This article will guide you through the process of unlocking trains in Satisfactory, providing a clear path to automating your resource transport and taking your factory to the next level.
Milestone Progression: The Road to Oil Processing
Before you can even dream of laying down tracks and building locomotives, you need to advance through the game’s milestone system. In Satisfactory, progress is intrinsically linked to completing milestones, which are essentially research and production goals that unlock new technologies and building blueprints. The key to unlocking trains lies in reaching Tier Five, specifically the Oil Processing tier.
Tier Five is a significant step up from the earlier stages of the game. It requires a substantial investment of time, resources, and careful planning. To reach it, you must first ensure that you have completed all the necessary research and production tasks from the preceding tiers. This involves unlocking various technologies in the Molecular Analysis Machine, or MAM. The MAM allows you to research alien flora and fauna, unlocking alternative recipes and advanced construction options.
Reaching Tier Five will require you to produce and deliver specific items to the HUB. These items often involve more advanced components that require the efficient production lines.
Remember, efficient production lines for basic resources like iron, copper, and concrete are essential before you even contemplate Tier Five. Take the time to optimize your existing factory layout, improve your power generation, and ensure a steady supply of essential components. Without a solid foundation, tackling Tier Five will prove to be a frustrating endeavor.
Unlocking Railway Construction Through Milestone Completion
Once you’ve successfully ascended to Tier Five and begun Oil Processing, the path to trains becomes clear. Within this tier, the crucial milestones will unlock the necessary blueprints to begin building your railway network. This milestone is simply called Oil Processing.
Completing this milestone unlocks a treasure trove of railway-related components. The most obvious is the Railroad Track itself, the foundation of any train network. You’ll also unlock the Locomotive, the powerful engine that pulls your trains across the landscape, and the Freight Car, which allows you to transport various resources in bulk. Equally important are the Train Stations, which serve as loading and unloading points for your trains. These stations will require power, unlocking the Power Line supports as well.
With these blueprints in hand, you are ready to begin planning and constructing your railway empire. However, acquiring the blueprints is only the first step. You must now gather the necessary resources and begin producing the train components.
Resource Gathering and Production for Train Construction
Constructing a railway network is a resource-intensive undertaking. You will need significant quantities of iron ingots, copper ingots, concrete, and steel, among other materials. Railroad tracks, in particular, require large amounts of concrete and steel, so ensuring a robust supply of these materials is critical.
Start by assessing your existing resource production and identifying any bottlenecks. If your iron and copper production is struggling to keep up with demand, consider expanding your mining operations and optimizing your smelter setups. Upgrading your miners and smelters to Mk.two versions can significantly increase their output, allowing you to meet the growing demands of train construction.
Concrete production is another key area to focus on. Automating the production of concrete from limestone is essential, as you will need large quantities of it for both railroad tracks and train stations. Consider setting up a dedicated concrete production line, supplied by multiple miners extracting limestone from nearby deposits.
Finally, steel production is arguably the most challenging aspect of train construction. Steel requires both iron ore and coal, and setting up an efficient steel production line can be complex. Consider using alternative recipes, such as the “Coke Steel Ingot” recipe, which uses petroleum coke instead of coal, if you have access to oil processing.
Once you have secured a reliable supply of these key resources, you can begin setting up dedicated production lines for train components. Create separate factories for producing railroad tracks, locomotives, freight cars, and train stations. Automating this production will save you countless hours of manual crafting and ensure a steady supply of components for your railway network.
Train Construction: Laying the Foundation
With the necessary blueprints unlocked and a stockpile of components ready, you can finally embark on the exciting task of train construction. This involves carefully planning and laying out your railroad tracks, building train stations at strategic locations, and assembling your locomotives and freight cars.
Start by surveying your factory complex and identifying the key resource nodes and production centers that you want to connect with your railway network. Consider the terrain and plan your track layout accordingly. Railroad tracks can be built on inclines, but steep slopes can reduce train speed, so try to minimize elevation changes where possible.
When laying down tracks, use a combination of straight segments and gentle curves to create a smooth and efficient railway line. Avoid sharp turns, as they can also reduce train speed. Use foundations to create level surfaces, especially when building tracks over uneven terrain.
Next, construct your train stations at the designated loading and unloading points. Train stations require a power connection, so make sure to run power lines to each station. You can connect your train stations to your existing power grid using power poles. Position the freight car connections of the stations so that they align with your storage containers or production facilities.
Once your tracks and stations are in place, you can assemble your locomotives and freight cars. Place the locomotive at the front of the train and attach as many freight cars as needed to transport your desired resources. Remember to power on the locomotive by interacting with it and pressing the power button.
Programming Train Schedules
Now comes the crucial step of programming your trains to follow a specific schedule. This involves setting up the train’s route, specifying which stations to visit, and defining the order in which they should be visited. Train scheduling is relatively straightforward and can be accessed from within the locomotive.
The first step is to name each train station. The train schedules uses these names to define its route. Next, open the train interface while inside the locomotive. In the train schedule interface, you will see a list of all available train stations in the world. Simply drag and drop the stations into the desired order to create your train’s route. You can also adjust the amount of time the train will wait at each station, allowing for efficient loading and unloading.
Once you have configured your train schedule, save the route. The train will then begin automatically traveling between the designated stations, following the defined order.
Optimizing Your Train Network
As your factory grows and your resource demands increase, you will need to optimize your train network to handle the increased traffic. This involves adding more trains to your network, expanding your track layout, and implementing strategies to prevent train collisions.
One of the most common challenges in train network management is preventing collisions. While Satisfactory does not have block signalling to direct multiple trains, you can avoid collisions by keeping only one train on a track at a time.
If you notice that your trains are spending excessive time waiting at stations, consider increasing the number of freight cars or upgrading your loading and unloading facilities. Faster loading and unloading times will reduce congestion and improve the overall efficiency of your train network.
Troubleshooting Common Train Issues
Even with careful planning and construction, you may encounter various issues with your train network. Here are some common problems and how to troubleshoot them:
- Train collisions: Ensure that your trains are programmed with accurate schedules.
- Power shortages: Train stations consume power, so ensure that your power grid can handle the additional load. Monitor your power production and consider expanding your power generation capacity if needed.
- Resource bottlenecks: If your trains are consistently arriving at stations with full or empty freight cars, this indicates a resource bottleneck somewhere in your production chain. Investigate your production lines and identify any areas where resources are not being processed efficiently.
- Incorrect train schedules: Double-check your train schedules to ensure that the stations are in the correct order and that the wait times are appropriate.
Conclusion
Unlocking trains in Satisfactory is a transformative moment that unlocks a new level of automation and efficiency for your factory. By carefully progressing through the milestones, gathering the necessary resources, and constructing your railway network with precision, you can create a transportation system that revolutionizes your resource management and unlocks new possibilities for expansion. So, embrace the challenge, lay down those tracks, and let the trains carry your factory to new heights. All aboard!
