Research

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Research is the primary method through which players can enhance and expand the abilities of their colony. Certain buildings require research in order to be built.

Once a player constructs a research bench, and selects a project from the list of available research topics, a researcher will work at the bench to generate research points. The rate at which points are generated depends on the researcher's skill level. Multiple research benches worked by researchers will further increase the speed at which points are generated.

Only one research project can be actively researched at a given time, regardless of the number of research facilities available. However, you can freely switch between research projects, even if another is already underway. The progress towards finishing the research project is retained.

Research difficulty is related to your faction’s tech level. Researching techs above your level is harder. So if you’re a tribe, researching electricity will be difficult, while industrial colonies will find mastering spaceflight harder.

Research is presented in a tech tree form, with earlier research placed to the left and later research more dependent on the earlier ones placed on the right. Mods can add their own research projects; they can be manually placed, or automatically placed if not specified. Projects will be moved apart if they overlap.

Besides the main research tab, modders can add separate research tabs for their research projects, so any new research projects appear there instead.

Research Projects

Neolithic and Medieval Research Projects

Name Description Tech level Base cost Industrial start cost Tribal start cost Required Research Required Research Bench & Addon
Psychoid brewing With preparation, psychoid leaves can be boiled in water, producing a mildly euphoric and addictive tea. Neolithic 500 500 500 None Simple
Tree sowing Sow the local biome's natural tress in your feels. Neolithic 1000 1000 1000 None Simple
Beer brewing Allows you to build a brewery to transform hops into tasty, tasty beer. Neolithic 400 400 400 None Simple
Complex Furniture Build complex furniture like beds, end tables, dining chairs, armchairs, dressers, tool cabinets, billard tables, and poker tables, vents, sarcophagi, and more. Medieval 400 400 400 None Simple
Passive cooler Make passive coolers, a way to cool indoor spaces without using electricity. Neolithic 400 400 400 None Simple
Stonecutting Cut rock chunks into stone blocks for use in construction. Build beautiful stone tile floors or ugly concrete walkways. Medieval 300 300 300 None Simple
Complex clothing Tailor complicated garments like pants, dusters, and cowboy hats. (Research needed only for tribal starts) Medieval 600 600 600 None Simple
Cocoa Sow cocoa trees to create your own delicious chocolate. Eating chocolate fulfills the need for recreation, and it's valuable on the market too. Neolithic 1000 1000 1000 Tree-sowing Simple
Devilstrand Plant devilstrand, a slow-growing mushroom that yields an exceptionally tough, hear resistant plant fiber. Neolithic 800 800 800 None Simple
Carpet making Weave beautiful carpets from cloth. Medieval 800 800 800 None Simple
Pemmican Make pemmican, a preserved mixture of meat and plant matter that doesn't go bad for a long time. Great for traveling. (Research needed only for non-tribal starts) Neolithic 500 500 500 None Simple
Smithing Build smithies for crafting metal weapons and tools. Allows you to craft simple weapons like knives, gladii, and maces. Medieval 700 700 1400 None Simple
Recurve bows Build the recurve bow, an effective and inexpensive ranged weapon. Neolithic 400 400 400 None Simple
Long blades Craft longswords and spears. Medieval 400 400 800 Smithing Simple
Plate armors Smith suits of plate armor from metal or wood. This heavy armor noticeably slows movement, but protects very effectively. Medieval 600 600 1200 Smithing Simple
Greatbow Craft greatbows for killing enemies at great range. Medieval 600 600 1200 Recurve bow
Smithing
Simple



Industrial Research Projects

Name Description Tech level Base cost Industrial start cost Tribal start cost Required Research Required Research Bench & Addon
Drug production Build a drug lab for basic drug synthesis. Further research is required to make specific drugs. Industrial 500 500 1500 None Simple
Psychite refining Refine psychoid leaves into flake and yayo, different forms of the euphoric drug psychite. Industrial 400 400 1200 Drug production Simple
Wake-up production Synthesize wake-up, a work performance-enhancing drug which replaces the need for sleep. Industrial 600 600 1800 Drug production Simple
Go-juice production Produce go-juice, a synthetic combat-performance-enhancing drug which improves shooting, melee, and movement ability, and dulls pain. Industrial 1000 1000 3000 Drug production Simple
Penoxycyline production Produce Penoxycyline a disease prevention drug which blocks plague, malaria, and more before they start. Industrial 500 500 1500 Drug production Simple
Electricity Harness the power of electricity for a hundred different tasks. Industrial 1600 1600 3600 None Simple
Hydroponics Build hydroponics basins to rapidly grow crops indoors regardless of the terrain or weather outside. Industrial 700 700 2100 Electricity Simple
Battery Build Battery for storing electricity. Industrial 400 400 1200 Electricity Simple
Autodoor Build autodoors which automatically open when someone approaches without slowing anyone down. Industrial 600 600 1200 Electricity Simple
Air conditioning Build coolers to make people comfortable in hot weather or to construct freezers for storing perishable goods. Industrial 500 500 1500 Electricity Simple
IEDs Build improvised traps from any kind of mortar shell. Industrial 500 500 ? Electricity Simple
Watermill generator Build watermill generators on rivers to generate a steady supply of power. Industrial 700 700 ? Electricity Simple
Solar panel Build solar panels for electrical generation. (Needed for tribal starts only) Industrial 600 600 1800 Electricity Simple
Biofuel refining Build Biofuel refining to make chemfuel from biological matter like wood or foodstuffs. Industrial 700 700 ? Electricity Simple
Nutrient paste Build nutrient paste dispensers which efficiently produce edible meals from raw nutritive feedstocks. Industrial 400 400 800 Electricity Simple
Firefoam Construct firefoam poppers, automatic fire-safety devices which spread fire-retardant foam in response to encroaching flames. Industrial 600 600 1200 Electricity Hi-tech
Geothermal power Build geothermal power plants on top of steam geysers, for uninterrupted power. Industrial 3200 3200 ? Electricity Hi-tech
Packaged survival meal Produce packaged survival meals, which never go bad. Great for travelling. Industrial 500 500 ? Nutrient paste Simple
Tube television Produce tube televisions for recreational watching. Industrial 1000 1000 2000 Electricity Simple
Sterile material Construct sterile tiles to make cleanrooms for safer and more effective medical treatment, research, and cooking. Industrial 600 600 ? Electricity Simple
Microelectronics Work with complex microelectronics. This unlocks the Hi-tech research bench and comms console. Industrial 3000 3000 ? Electricity Simple
Gunsmithing Craft simple manually operated guns like revolvers, pump shotguns, bolt-action rifles, and incendiary launchers. Industrial 500 500 1500 Machining Simple
Flak armor Craft clothing with metal armor sewn in to resist bullets and explosions. This weighty armor slows movement slightly. Industrial 1200 1200 ? Machining Simple
Smokepop belts Build smokepop belts which generate an automatic defensive smokescreen when the user is shot. Industrial 300 300 900 Machining Simple
Blowback operation Craft low-power blowback-operated guns like autopistols, machine pistols, and heavy SMGs. Industrial 500 500 1500 Gunsmithing Simple
Mortars Build mortars which can lob mortar shells long distances - even over walls. Industrial 2000 2000 6000 Gunsmithing Simple
Prosthetics Build inexpensive Prosthetics body pars to replace lost limbs. Requires a skilled doctor to attach. Industrial 600 600 1800 Machining Simple
Gun turrets Produce simple automated gun turrets. Industrial 500 500 1500 Blowback operation Simple
Gas operation Craft high-power guns like chain shotguns,LMGs, and heavy SMGs. Industrial 1000 1000 3000 Blowback operation Simple
Medicine production Produce standard industrial-tech medicine by combining herbal medicine, neutroamine, and cloth. Industrial 1500 1500 4500 Drug production
Microelectronics
Hi-tech
Colored lights Construct colored lights for decorative purposes. Cosmetic only. Industrial 300 300 900 Microelectronics Hi-tech
Flatscreen television Produce high-resolution flatscreen television for greater enjoyment. Industrial 2000 2000 6000 Microelectronics
Tube television
Hi-tech
Transport pod Construct launchable transport pods that you can use to sendpeople and supplies long distances across the planet's surface. Can be used for reading, travel, sending gifts, and more. Industrial 1000 1000 3000 Microelectronics Hi-tech
Long-range mineral scanner Construct long-range mineral scanners your researchers can use to detect precious minerals across the planet. Can be turned to find a specific mineral. Requires advanced components to construct. Industrial 2000 2000 ? Microelectronics Hi-tech
Hospital bed Construct hospital beds which improve medical outcomes. Industrial 1200 1200 1200 Microelectronics Hi-tech
Moisture pump Construct moisture pumps, which very slowly normalize the moisture in the ground around them. They can turn wet ground dry and convert soft sand into normal sand. Industrial 1200 1200 3600 Microelectronics Hi-tech
Shield belt Build shield belts, which use momentun-repulsion technology to block ranged attacks coming in or going out. Industrial 1000 2000 3000 Microelectronics Hi-tech
Autocannon turret Produce the heavy, long-ranged autocannon turret. Industrial 1600 ? ? Microelectronics
Gun turrets
Gas operation
Hi-tech
Precision rifling Craft precisely-machined guns like assault rifles and sniper rifles. Industrial 1400 1400 4200 Microelectronics
Gas operation
Simple
Multibarrel weapons Assemble miniguns. Industrial 2600 2600 7200 Microelectronics
Gas operation
Hi-tech
Multi-analyzer Build multi-analyzers which increase research speed, and allow higher level research projects. Industrial 4000 4000 ? Microelectronics Hi-tech
Vitals monitor Builds vitals monitors which improve medical outcomes when placed next to medical beds. Industrial 2500 2500 7500 Multi-analyzer
Hospital bed
Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Deep drilling Build deep drills for extracting resources from deep underground. You'll need a ground-penetrating scanner to find the resources. Industrial 4000 4000 12000 Multi-analyzer Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Fabrication Build fabrication benches, capable of high-tech projects ranging from component assembly to power armor construction. Industrial 4000 4000 8000 Multi-analyzer Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Uranium slug turret Produce the armor-penetrating uranium slug turret. It fires uranium slugs which tear though plasteel like paper, but it's less effective at close range. Industrial 3000 3000 6000 Multi-analyzer
Autocannon turret
Precision rifling
Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Ground-penetrating scanner Build ground-penetrating scanners that can detect drillable resources deep under the surface. Requires advanced components to construct. Industrial 1000 1000 2000 Deep drilling Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Advanced fabrication Fabricate advanced components from standard components and other materials. Industrial 4000 4000 8000 Multi-analyzer Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)

Spacer Research Projects

Name Description Tech level Base cost Industrial start cost Tribal start cost Required Research Required Research Bench & Addon
Cryptosleep caskets Construct cryptosleep caskets, which can put living beings in a state of suspended animation. Spacer 2000 4000 6000 Multi-analyzer Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Powered armor Build the power armor and power armor helmets. Note that these also require advanced components. Spacer 6000 12000 18000 Fabrication Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Pulse charged munitions Build weapons which fire pulse-charged munitions for extra damage. Note that these also require advanced components. Spacer 3000 6000 9000 Fabrication
Precision rifling
Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Bionics Build high.tech bionic body parts to replace lost limbs and eyes. Requires a skilled doctor to attach. Spacer 3000 6000 9000 Fabrication
Prosthetics
Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Starflight basics Construct the structural and supportive elements of a starship. This is the first step in building a ship to leave this star system. Spacer 4000 4000 8000 Advanced fabrication Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Starflight sensors Construct long-range sensors for a starship. These sensors are essential for navigation, communication, and threat avoidance. Spacer 4000 4000 8000 Starflight basics
Long-range mineral scanner
Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
AI persuasion Build a reward-signal system to persuade an existing AI persona into serving as a ship's AI captain. Since people sleep during interstellar travel, an AI core is necessary to handle the complex decisions of a years-long starflight. Spacer 3000 3000 6000 Starflight basics Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Vacuum cryptosleep caskets Construct hardened ship cryptosleep caskets tough enough to be exposed to vacuum, for transporting people on the years-long journey between the stars. Spacer 2800 2800 5600 Starflight basics
Cryptosleep casket
Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Ship reactor Build a long-duration nuclear reactor to power a starship. Note that reactors have a long startup process that will attract raiders. Spacer 6000 6000 12000 Starflight basics Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)
Johnson-Tanaka drive Construct a Johnson-Tanaka drive for a ship. The JT drive can push you to other stars by leveraging quantum scale effects to beam momentum to distant stars. Of course, as with all starships, it still takes many years to get anywhere. Spacer 6000 6000 12000 Starflight basics Hi-tech (Multi-analyzer)