- A swarm of constructors building a cargo port station.
Laying the Foundation
Construction starts with a simple step: placing the structure. This defines where your structure begins. The modules can be placed on other modules if they have extension sockets. These come in two types, Tier 1 and Tier 2, and are designated with yellow “+” icons. T1 are usually basic and lightweight modules, while T2 are more advanced and powerful variations of the various tools and weapons you can build in Starminer. T3 modules are reserved for those structures that occupy more than one T2 socket when placed. Modules come with various numbers and tiers of extension sockets, so a consideration is needed when designing your ship.
- Placing construction blueprints on designated construction sockets.
Once the blueprint is placed, the construction can begin. To complete a construction, materials and energy are required. Construction vessels will begin construction and start delivering required materials to the construction site. When expanding an existing station, the power needed for construction will be delivered from the station’s power generators, as construction vessels can only deliver materials. Search filters help you quickly find what you need - a scaffold, a trade ship port, or something more specialized. Instead of rummaging through the build menu to find the module you want to place, you can also use a more handy “mini build menu”, which shows the history of recently built modules - this menu is displayed under the cursor when you hover it over the available construction socket.
- Mini build menu.
Modules can also be placed directly in the 3D space, instead of building them on an existing ship or station.
- Placing a shield module blueprint in space via the construction point.
In this case, a construction tower is needed - the key difference from constructor vessels here is that towers can also deliver energy to the construction site, making them a more versatile (and expensive) option.
- Commander ship building a station with construction towers.
And if you don’t want to rummage through all the modules to find one that you need right now, there is a neat search function to help you navigate the building menu. You can also enter keywords like “energy”, “weapons”, etc. to display the relevant available modules.
- Searching through the build menu.
There is also a free camera to zoom in, rotate, or take a better look before committing. You can check alignment and placement with it before locking anything in.
- Basic starting ship with mining and refining capabilities.
- Larger outpost under attack by a swarm of enemy gunships.
From One Build to Many
Once you've got your station or ship just right, you don’t have to start from scratch next time. Save your layout as a blueprint and recreate it elsewhere - perfect for scaling up operations or deploying standardized structures across multiple sites.
- Several blueprints are placed and ready to be constructed.
Just don’t forget the basics: power, structure, access. Many things go into constructing a station - among other things, you also need to take into account the desired role, its mass, storage space, habitats for colonists, heat dissipation, and power output - but these are all topics for another time!
- A large industrial hub.
