Establishing An Outpost: A Guide
scubamatt
Georgia, USA Join Date: 2016-05-22 Member: 217295Members
Georgia, USA Join Date: 2016-05-22 Member: 217295Members
This is how I go about creating a remote base, while exploring or expanding my area of control in the game. Its not the only way to do it, certainly, but it works very well for me in mid to late game when I already have most of the useful blueprints I need.
The "Instant Outpost" Kit
My version of an Instant Outpost kit consists of two Waterproof Lockers. The first creates a Survival Shelter and provides the minimum habitat with Air, Food, Water and Power. The second upgrades the shelter into a fully capable small outpost, from which expeditions can be launched. Note that the each locker fits perfectly into a cargo compartment of the Seamoth, so you could carry the Shelter in one cargo compartment, or both in two.
A note about blueprints: It is assumed you already have the blueprints for Bioreactor, Planter Pot, Bench, Battery Charger and Power Cell Charger. It is also assumed that you have been to the Floating Island to get Marblemelon seeds and/or Lantern Fruit (at least one of each).
Each locker holds 16 spaces and should be filled as listed below, before picking it up into your inventory. I like to label them before filling, so I don't mess up my packing list.
Locker #1 (Shelter) This builds a Multipurpose Room, a Hatch, a Bioreactor, and a Planter Pot.
Locker #2 (Upgrade) This builds a Fabricator, a Bench, a Battery Charger, and a Power Cell Charger.
Having two full waterproof lockers in your inventory leaves you 16 empty spaces to fill with gear or supplies. I usually carry an extra High Capacity Air Tank, Hardened Knife, Scanner, Habitat Builder, Thermoblade, Welder, First Aid Kit, a Lantern Fruit, one piece of Titanium and a 1-space fish like a Reginald or Peeper (live, not cooked). This completely fills my inventory. The Lantern Fruit and Titanium are optional, they just speed up food/fuel production later. The 1-space fish saves me some time, so I don't have to hunt one down at the place I'm building the outpost.
Step 1: Set Up The Shelter
Deploy both Waterproof Lockers where they will not interfere with your building plan, open up the first locker (Shelter) and transfer the contents to your inventory. Switch to your Habitat Builder tool and build the MP Room first. Now build a Hatch, and be sure to put it in one of the flat ('side') walls of the MP Room. This becomes important later, if you are building at great depths, because the diagonal ('corner') walls are better for Reinforcement Panels.
Before you enter your new shelter, look around and grab any small fish, or harvest a sample of plant life with your knife, then go inside. (If you brought a 1-space fish with you, ignore this step and just go inside.) Build the Bioreactor in the center of the room, and remember to rotate it (Q or E keys) so the control panel faces the entry hatch. Initialize the reactor by putting the fish or plant sample into it. (Important note: Do NOT put your marblemelon seed into the reactor.) This will power up the base, drain the water and give you air to breath. Now build the Planter Pot right next to the hand rails at the hatch, and plant the Marblemelon seed. It will take a little while to grow into a fruit, so you can spend the time grabbing a few more fish if you like, or just wait patiently (or not) until its ready to harvest.
Once your planter has produced a Marblemelon, harvest it with your knife to get four small seeds. Immediately replant those seeds into the planter. Once those have grown into four Marblemelons, harvest one with your knife (to replant seeds again) and pick up the other three melons into your inventory. Put one melon into the reactor to bring it fully online – be careful not to click the wrong button and eat it by mistake! Once you have a melon in the reactor, it will slowly build up to 100 power and then stop consuming fuel. Now you can either eat the other melons (if your hunger meter is low) or add them to the reactor. Once the planter is full of melons again, follow the same pattern of harvest the first one for seeds to replant, pick up the other three for food/water/fuel. If you screw up and pick up all four melons, you can take them outside, drop one, cut it with your knife to get seeds and then go back inside the shelter to replant. (You have to go outside to drop anything, its a strange game mechanic.)
Step 2: Upgrade to an Outpost
Go outside your shelter and pickup the first waterproof locker (which should empty). Redeploy it next to the Hatch, to either the right or left of it as you face the shelter. Now grab and redeploy the second waterproof locker (the one that is still full of gear) on the other side of the Hatch, so you end up with one waterproof locker on either side of your entry Hatch. Open the second waterproof locker (Upgrade) and transfer the contents into your inventory. In the future, these empty waterproof lockers will serve as storage for your outpost, so feel free to rename them now if you want. Go back inside the shelter.
Build a Fabricator on the wall with the entrance hatch, right above the Planter Pot. Now build a Bench against the wall next to the Planter Pot. Move to the other side of the entrance hatch and build a Power Cell Charger against that empty wall, as close to the floor as you can, and near the hand rails. Finally, build the Battery Charger directly above the Power Cell Charger, and leave a little space between them so that when you open it, the Battery Charger doesn't clip into the top of the Power Cell Charger.
You now have a fully functional outpost that will let you rest, refill food and water, recycle materials you have gathered, and recharge both your tools and your vehicles. Remember that using the Fabricator drains energy each time, so pace yourself and keep the reactor topped off with fuel. The rechargers also drain power as they are refilling a battery/power cell, so it is important to balance your energy drain against the reactor's output. Only recharge one at a time, if possible. Once a battery or power cell is fully charged, however, it can sit in the charger forever without draining power from the reactor.
Looking out towards the Hatch
Looking inward from the Hatch
Further Improvements
I recommend adding these, as time and materials permit:
Why a Bioreactor instead of Solar Panels?
I prefer the Bioreactor because it works at any depth, it holds 100 energy in reserve, and can be easily refueled via plants or fish. Solar Panels only work down to about 220m depth, and hold only 25 energy in reserve, per panel. They can also be damaged by wildlife and poor sub driving. If you don't have the blueprint for the Bioreactor, or simply prefer a Solar Panel, you can swap out 4x Titanium and 1x Lubricant for 2x Titanium and 2x Quartz. That will build one Solar Panel and give you an extra inventory space to use for something else (I would take a second Marblemelon seed, to speed up production of food/water).
The "Instant Outpost" Kit
My version of an Instant Outpost kit consists of two Waterproof Lockers. The first creates a Survival Shelter and provides the minimum habitat with Air, Food, Water and Power. The second upgrades the shelter into a fully capable small outpost, from which expeditions can be launched. Note that the each locker fits perfectly into a cargo compartment of the Seamoth, so you could carry the Shelter in one cargo compartment, or both in two.
A note about blueprints: It is assumed you already have the blueprints for Bioreactor, Planter Pot, Bench, Battery Charger and Power Cell Charger. It is also assumed that you have been to the Floating Island to get Marblemelon seeds and/or Lantern Fruit (at least one of each).
Each locker holds 16 spaces and should be filled as listed below, before picking it up into your inventory. I like to label them before filling, so I don't mess up my packing list.
Locker #1 (Shelter) This builds a Multipurpose Room, a Hatch, a Bioreactor, and a Planter Pot.
- Titanium x13
- Glass x1
- Lubricant x1
- Marblemelon Seed x1
Locker #2 (Upgrade) This builds a Fabricator, a Bench, a Battery Charger, and a Power Cell Charger.
- Titanium x8
- Glass x2
- Copper Wire x2
- Wiring Kit x1
- Computer Chip x3
Having two full waterproof lockers in your inventory leaves you 16 empty spaces to fill with gear or supplies. I usually carry an extra High Capacity Air Tank, Hardened Knife, Scanner, Habitat Builder, Thermoblade, Welder, First Aid Kit, a Lantern Fruit, one piece of Titanium and a 1-space fish like a Reginald or Peeper (live, not cooked). This completely fills my inventory. The Lantern Fruit and Titanium are optional, they just speed up food/fuel production later. The 1-space fish saves me some time, so I don't have to hunt one down at the place I'm building the outpost.
Step 1: Set Up The Shelter
Deploy both Waterproof Lockers where they will not interfere with your building plan, open up the first locker (Shelter) and transfer the contents to your inventory. Switch to your Habitat Builder tool and build the MP Room first. Now build a Hatch, and be sure to put it in one of the flat ('side') walls of the MP Room. This becomes important later, if you are building at great depths, because the diagonal ('corner') walls are better for Reinforcement Panels.
Before you enter your new shelter, look around and grab any small fish, or harvest a sample of plant life with your knife, then go inside. (If you brought a 1-space fish with you, ignore this step and just go inside.) Build the Bioreactor in the center of the room, and remember to rotate it (Q or E keys) so the control panel faces the entry hatch. Initialize the reactor by putting the fish or plant sample into it. (Important note: Do NOT put your marblemelon seed into the reactor.) This will power up the base, drain the water and give you air to breath. Now build the Planter Pot right next to the hand rails at the hatch, and plant the Marblemelon seed. It will take a little while to grow into a fruit, so you can spend the time grabbing a few more fish if you like, or just wait patiently (or not) until its ready to harvest.
Once your planter has produced a Marblemelon, harvest it with your knife to get four small seeds. Immediately replant those seeds into the planter. Once those have grown into four Marblemelons, harvest one with your knife (to replant seeds again) and pick up the other three melons into your inventory. Put one melon into the reactor to bring it fully online – be careful not to click the wrong button and eat it by mistake! Once you have a melon in the reactor, it will slowly build up to 100 power and then stop consuming fuel. Now you can either eat the other melons (if your hunger meter is low) or add them to the reactor. Once the planter is full of melons again, follow the same pattern of harvest the first one for seeds to replant, pick up the other three for food/water/fuel. If you screw up and pick up all four melons, you can take them outside, drop one, cut it with your knife to get seeds and then go back inside the shelter to replant. (You have to go outside to drop anything, its a strange game mechanic.)
Step 2: Upgrade to an Outpost
Go outside your shelter and pickup the first waterproof locker (which should empty). Redeploy it next to the Hatch, to either the right or left of it as you face the shelter. Now grab and redeploy the second waterproof locker (the one that is still full of gear) on the other side of the Hatch, so you end up with one waterproof locker on either side of your entry Hatch. Open the second waterproof locker (Upgrade) and transfer the contents into your inventory. In the future, these empty waterproof lockers will serve as storage for your outpost, so feel free to rename them now if you want. Go back inside the shelter.
Build a Fabricator on the wall with the entrance hatch, right above the Planter Pot. Now build a Bench against the wall next to the Planter Pot. Move to the other side of the entrance hatch and build a Power Cell Charger against that empty wall, as close to the floor as you can, and near the hand rails. Finally, build the Battery Charger directly above the Power Cell Charger, and leave a little space between them so that when you open it, the Battery Charger doesn't clip into the top of the Power Cell Charger.
You now have a fully functional outpost that will let you rest, refill food and water, recycle materials you have gathered, and recharge both your tools and your vehicles. Remember that using the Fabricator drains energy each time, so pace yourself and keep the reactor topped off with fuel. The rechargers also drain power as they are refilling a battery/power cell, so it is important to balance your energy drain against the reactor's output. Only recharge one at a time, if possible. Once a battery or power cell is fully charged, however, it can sit in the charger forever without draining power from the reactor.
Looking out towards the Hatch
Looking inward from the Hatch
Further Improvements
I recommend adding these, as time and materials permit:
- a Reinforcement Panel (2 Titanium, 1 Lithium) on one of the diagonal/corner walls (behind the bench is perfect)
- a second Planter Pot (1 Titanium) on the other end of the Bench, planted with a Lantern Tree fruit.
- an Exterior Grow Bed (2 Titanium) very close to the Outpost. Plant it with 2x Creepvine Pod Plant, 2x Purple Brain Coral, 1x Creepvine Plant, and 4x Acid Mushroom. This gives you a permanent supply of materials for rubber, fiber, lubricant, and acid for batteries/power cells. It also makes a visible beacon for your base with a yellow glow, and a stream of air bubbles to the surface that can allow you to swim up/down in the air column without drowning. A handy emergency ascent path, for very deep bases.
- one or more Lockers (2 Titanium, 1 Glass per locker) to simplify gathering/sorting/production
- a First Aid Dispenser (5 Titanium, 5 Quartz), in the actual entrance hallway of the outpost. The usefulness of free healing kits cannot be overstated, especially when you are far from your main base.
- a Beacon (1 Copper Wire, 1 Titanium) deployed directly above your outpost, and labeled “Outpost 1” or whatever name you want to give it.
- One or more Solar Panels (2 Titanium, 2 Quartz per Solar Panel). Put these on the roof, unless you plan to make your Outpost a two floor affair, in which case, put the Solar Panels to one side of your base away from any grow bed or other item you have built/deployed, and higher than the floor of the outpost if you can. Remember that if you later try to build something under/near the Solar Panels (a foundation, another room, etc) you may accidentally destroy them without getting any materials back. When in doubt, Deconstruct the Solar Panels first, build whatever it is, then rebuild the Solar Panels again.
Why a Bioreactor instead of Solar Panels?
I prefer the Bioreactor because it works at any depth, it holds 100 energy in reserve, and can be easily refueled via plants or fish. Solar Panels only work down to about 220m depth, and hold only 25 energy in reserve, per panel. They can also be damaged by wildlife and poor sub driving. If you don't have the blueprint for the Bioreactor, or simply prefer a Solar Panel, you can swap out 4x Titanium and 1x Lubricant for 2x Titanium and 2x Quartz. That will build one Solar Panel and give you an extra inventory space to use for something else (I would take a second Marblemelon seed, to speed up production of food/water).
Comments
I haven't checked the ingredients and whether they'd exchange nicely, but it occurs to me that a scanner room could make a nice outpost upgrade for remote exploration and mapping resources. It might replace the bench and one of the rechargers (iirc they have the same ingredients so you can deconstruct/rebuild whichever is needed).
Also, isn't a whole marblemellon the same inventory size as the seeds (I never use them so don't recall)? If so, you can get multiple seeds for the same cargo space.
Ok, now I've got to check the wiki for recipes to see if my swap will work.
I always include a bench in the outpost because it lets you pause food/water loss while you check inventory or wait for things to grow (etc). Also handy for passing time until daylight, without wasting resources, at least until they make the beds work differently. I haven't used the scanner room much at all, but I can see how it would be a useful addition to an outpost.
If you plant enough fast enough they all take up one slot in the pot
They dont attack me or my base if I let them free. They just roam around my base eating fish but they have yet to attack me
This does not work at all for me. A fully grown Marblemelon (not a Small Marblemelon, btw) is 2x2 and takes all four spots if you try to plant it in either a Plant Pot, or a Grow Bed. Seeds take up one space each.
Not sure what you're asking, here.
Can I build these onto the outpost while still keeping it a basic outpost.