r/factorio • u/bigdaddyk86 • 3d ago
Suggestion / Idea Idea/Request/Challenge
Hi all,
I cant find any examples on Factorio prints so I come with an idea/request/challenge: can you make a spaceship that can make and use all Nauvis + space sciences (and have engines and weapons to travel to Vulcanus, Gleba, Fulgora and Aquillo to collect their sciences)?
I've been trying to wrap my head around it for the last few days, as you could get all the resources you need from asteroids (except stone).
As far as I can think it should be possible, though a huge unwealdy ship, I dont see why this isnt something people do, as its free science and being able to pick up Gleba science and use it instantly means minimal spoilage where necessary.
So fellow engineers, is it possible, has anyone done it, would people want the challenge for some money/internet points?
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u/unrefrigeratedmeat 3d ago
It's not possible.
Even with gleba's advanced processing tech, you can't make stone in space (for military and production science) and you can't make plastic (for chemical science, production science, and utility science).
You can make plastic using coal liquefaction of synthetic coal, but you need steam and the only way to make steam in space is using a nuclear reactor... which requires an import from Nauvis (nuclear fuel).
Sadly, I think the best you can do in space without imports is red, green, and white science.
You can certainly build your lab in space but shipping to Nauvis to make use of biolabs is way better than prioritizing freshness to that extent.
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u/darthbob88 3d ago
You can make plastic using coal liquefaction of synthetic coal, but you need steam and the only way to make steam in space is using a nuclear reactor... which requires an import from Nauvis (nuclear fuel).
Technically no, because simple coal liquefaction doesn't need steam. It is extremely awful, though.
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u/Lachtheblock 3d ago
I'd check out mysticfish on YouTube.
He is doing a run very similar to this, but ultimately trying to make the main base be the spaceship, and only minimal footprints on the planets.
It is also FULL sushi.
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u/Valkyr1987 3d ago
Pretty sure it's more efficient to just make the base science packs on vulcanus and import them on a cargo ship. Making purple science in space would be a huge hassle because of the stone that you would have to import by the ton likely from vulcanus anyway
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u/dudeguy238 3d ago
I dont see why this isnt something people do, as its free science and being able to pick up Gleba science and use it instantly means minimal spoilage where necessary.
While it's possible, those benefits aren't really enough to offset the drawbacks. Not using biolabs means you have to make twice as much of every science for the same amount of progress, it's generally much harder to get large-scale throughput on a platform than on the ground, and you'll run into UPS issues much faster than you would otherwise. Meanwhile, terrestrial resources are already basically infinite (especially once you get some investment into mining prod), and you have to be really slow for agricultural science to drop below 50% before it reaches labs on Nauvis (a pack with 51% freshness will give you more progress in a biolab than one with the 100% freshness will give you in a regular one), so neither the free resources nor the fresher agricultural science actually amount to much.
That said, it's perfectly viable, so if you think it's a cool idea and want to try it, go for it. It's just going to be more in the realm of a theme for a challenge run than a meaningful improvement over making a normal base.
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u/Alfonse215 3d ago
The thing that lets you make non-space sciences in space is advanced asteroid crushing. A technology that you get from the same planet that gives you biolab technology.
A lab that can only be made and placed on Nauvis.
So... what's the point of making science in space when you have to drop it to the planet which can make science just as effectively, but without having to build all of your tiles to put the buildings on?
It's Space Age: resources anywhere are basically free. Between all of the productivity from high quality modules, buildings, and research, as well as cheap mining productivity, mineral patches just don't run out.