Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Lord Shonus]

I like to build space station miners and move them about with tugs. Quite apart from any economic benefits, I put tractor beams on all my ships. So I don't need to use a big freighter to move them around.

[Rince Wind]

Ahh, a 23kt station (probably) right next to Sol. Only detected it with passive sensors, so I don't know anything else. How close would I need to get with intelligence collection equipment? It is still pretty much the beginning. Ion drives, and everything else is either the same TL or lagging behind.

Edit: What is the difference between spaceports and cargo shuttle stations?

[Akura]

If I remember correctly, Spaceports can move not only cargo, but fuel, ordnance and MSPs as well.

[AlStar]

Edit: What is the difference between spaceports and cargo shuttle stations?

As Akura says, Spaceports can do everything that refueling stations, cargo transfer stations, and ordinance loading stations do, as well as allowing your industry to build space stations (commercial stations without armor). However, unlike the individual stations, which are automated (unmanned), the spaceport needs 500 1m people.

Edit: Coleslaw is correct, it's 1m workers, not 500m - not sure where I got that from (maybe I was originally thinking 500k workers?).

[coleslaw35]

-snip- the spaceport needs 500m people.

As in the population needs to consist of 500m people or that it requires 500m workers? Because either way, I think that's incorrect. Unless something has changed recently, I am able to build spaceports at any population less than 500m (just tested on a ~130m pop Ganymede.) The worker requirement for one spaceport is only 1m. You can have multiple spaceports at a pop, in which case they take 1m workers per, but I'm pretty sure their abilities don't stack.

[Rince Wind]

Thanks!

[Micro102]

So never build all these stations and only ever build spaceports?

[Rince Wind]

I just found out that spaceports are a bitch to transport though. My fleet of 5 ships with 1 standard cargo each hold can carry .6 of a spaceport (I set it up to transport the whole thing now, I just hope there aren't rounding errors and I'll actually transport 1.03 spaceports to Barnard's Star).

Another transport problem though: my troop transports won't pick up my engineering brigade. It is around 20000t and I have space for 50000t across 5 ships. Do they all need to go into one ship? The geosurvey team, which is only about 5kt, is happily on board.

[coleslaw35]

I just found out that spaceports are a bitch to transport though. My fleet of 5 ships with 1 standard cargo each hold can carry .6 of a spaceport (I set it up to transport the whole thing now, I just hope there aren't rounding errors and I'll actually transport 1.03 spaceports to Barnard's Star).

Another transport problem though: my troop transports won't pick up my engineering brigade. It is around 20000t and I have space for 50000t across 5 ships. Do they all need to go into one ship? The geosurvey team, which is only about 5kt, is happily on board.

Yeah, they're rough to transport, but I usually just do a civilian contract to have them take care of it and I haven't had any issues yet. Fuck doing that myself lol.

Is the brigade one contiguous formation or is it a command for a number of lower level formations? If it's one whole formation then unless there's a single ship with 20000t of free space for troops, I'm pretty sure it won't pick up the unit, since picking up troops won't "split" the formation being transported. However, if you've selected to transport the brigade AND all its subsidiary formations then I think the ships should load up with whatever whole formations it can carry.

[Micro102]

I'm noticing a sorium shortage heading my way, and am already not producing enough fuel for my ships.

1) Do civilian ships use my fuel? If so, how do I nuke them into non-existence?

2) How many fuel harvesters do you guys use? I've just built one so I am not eternally fucked if I run out of sorium and fuel, but I feel like I'm going to need dozens.

3) Can I harvest the sorium itself from gas giants without converting it directly to fuel via fuel harvester, or can I only convert the sorium mined from normal planets?

[Lord Shonus]

As far as I know, the only way to get gas giant Sorium is to use fuel harvesters. This is actually a really good thing, because it doesn't tie up your planetary refineries.

Code: [Select]

Exxon class Orbital Refining Platform      4,547 tons       40 Crew       123.2 BP       TCS 91    TH 0    EM 0
1 km/s      No Armour       Shields 0-0     HTK 15      Sensors 0/0/0/0      DCR 1      PPV 0
MSP 16    Max Repair 30 MSP
Lieutenant Commander    Control Rating 1   BRG   
Intended Deployment Time: 36 months   
Fuel Harvester: 1 modules producing 48,000 litres per annum

Fuel Capacity 1,250,000 Litres    Range N/A
Refuelling Capability: 50,000 litres per hour     Complete Refuel 25 hours

This design is classed as a Commercial Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Space Station for construction purposes

Build something like 20 or 30 of these- you can do it with industry no problem. Then move them to the best gas giant you have. As long as you keep picking up the fuel, it should solve your crunch.

[Micro102]

30 ships at 56,000 liters per annum (that's my current tech) gives me 1.68 million liters a year. My exploration can use up twice that in half a year. My freighter fleet can use up many times that with one transport trip to my second colonized sector 3 jumps away. My harvester has 42 modules on it and weighs 155,000 tons and I feel like I'm going to need dozens of THOSE.

Also, what do you mean "do it with industry"?

[coleslaw35]

Also, what do you mean "do it with industry"?

You can build space stations with construction factories so long as the population has a spaceport.

[Lord Shonus]

Yes. Space stations don't need a shipyard, so you don't have to mess with build slips and retooling.


Also, if you're using that much fuel, you seriously need to have a look at your engines. Either your power boost is too high, your engines are too small, or you're way behind on fuel efficiency tech.

[Akura]

Generally, they're built a whole hell of a lot faster as a result since a planet's industry generally supplies more build points and isn't limited by capacity or slipways.

And damn, you're burning a lot of fuel. I stuck commercial engines on my survey ships - 350k liters on my starting geosurvey ship had a fuel endurance of 2034 days. They don't need the speed. I shut down Earth's refineries because I simply had too much fuel.

I've got two of these over a single gas giant:

Code: [Select]

Upholder class Fuel Harvester Station      109,074 tons       460 Crew       1,488.2 BP       TCS 2,181    TH 0    EM 0
1 km/s      No Armour       Shields 0-0     HTK 230      Sensors 0/0/0/0      DCR 11      PPV 0
MSP 8    Max Repair 30 MSP
Lieutenant Commander    Control Rating 1   BRG   
Intended Deployment Time: 3 months   
Fuel Harvester: 42 modules producing 2,352,000 litres per annum

Fuel Capacity 2,000,000 Litres    Range N/A
Refuelling Capability: 50,000 litres per hour     Complete Refuel 40 hours

This design is classed as a Commercial Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Space Station for construction purposes
Just have to drain them every year, and there's all the fuel I ever need.