Astroneer is a sandbox adventure game where players can colonise entire planets by exploring outer space, creating structures and managing resources. This guide will tell you everything about power in the game.
Astroneer: Power Guide
Types of Power Generators
First is the small generator which gets unlocked when you start the game and requires 1 compound to be built. It runs on a single unit of organic material that will make it run for 100 seconds and it can produce 1 unit of power per second.
Next is the medium power generator which costs 3750 bytes to research and costs 1 Tungsten and 1 Aluminium to build. It runs on a single unit of carbon which is one cooked unit of organic material and can produce 3 units of power per second. This can run for a total of 100 seconds producing 300 units of power from a single carbon.
Both of them can be turned on or off to conserve resources and great options for use in any environment unlike some of the other options which require certain conditions. While there is the best option out there, they are freely available and cheap to construct.
Next are the Wind Turbines which are available in two sizes: small and medium. The Small Wind Turbine costs 500 bytes to research and 1 glass to build and can produce 0.5 units of power per second.
The Medium Wind Turbine on the other hand costs 2500 bytes to research and costs 1 glass and 1 ceramic to build. It can produce 1 unit of power per second and requires a medium platform minimum to construct.
These Wind Turbines obviously rely on the wind in order to produce energy and they can work in some of the caves where there is a gust of wind occasionally. They are great if you want some sort of passive source of power and are relatively cheap as they don’t require resources or sunlight to produce power as they rely on the power of the wind.
Next are the solar panels which are available in three sizes: small, medium and solar array. The small solar panel costs 500 bytes to research and 1 copper to build. It can produce 0.5 units of power per second and takes a single slot on the ground.
The medium solar panel on the other hand costs 3750 bytes to research and 1 copper as well as 1 glass to build. It can produce 2 units of power per second and requires a medium platform at least to construct.
Meanwhile, the solar array costs 6250 bytes to research and requires 1 copper,1 glass, 1 plastic and 1 graphene to construct. It can produce 8 units of power per second and does not require a platform to build it.
Obviously, all of them rely on the power of sunlight to generate power and it’s great on planets where sunlight is abundant. However, there are not recommended on planets where sunlight is scarce and day rotation takes a bit longer than usual.
Finally, we got the RTG which stands for Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator which uses natural radiation in the atmosphere to generate electricity. It is the most expensive power generator that costs 12500 bytes to research and requires 1 Nanocarbon Alloy and 1 Lithium to construct. It can produce 4 units of power per second and requires a medium platform at least to build it.
Another thing to note is that it runs all the time unlike solar panels and wind turbines that function passively. You can use it on any planet or any location even inside caves which makes it a good reliable source of power however it doesn’t produce as much energy in comparison to other sources.
Types of Power Storage
First are the power cells which cost 800 bytes to research and require 1 zinc to construct. They can store 48 units of power as well as produce 1 unit of power per second. These are temporary storage items that can store a limited amount of power and can be helpful for getting a temporary boost of power.
For example, if you are disconnected from power and you got one of these attached to your backpacks, it will start replenishing the power at 1 unit per second until it runs out and then you cannot use it anymore. You can use it to power items like drill mod or boost mod in your backpack.
Next is the battery which works similarly to the power cell except that it is not expendable and can be recharged. The small battery occupies a single slot in your backpack and costs 2000 bytes to research. It costs 1 lithium to construct and can store 32 units of power as well as produce 1 unit of power per second. While it does have less storage than the power cell, it can be recharged meaning it’s reusable and does not need to be built again and again like the power cell.
We also have the medium battery which costs 3750 bytes to research and requires 1 zinc as well as 1 lithium to produce. It produces three units of power per second and has a storage capacity of 256 units. It will also need a medium platform to build so it’s great for putting it on the rovers or attaching it to rockets etc. You can use your solar panels to charge the batteries during the day and use them throughout the night.
Power Management
The first item is the extender which costs 500 bytes to research and 1 copper to produce but you do get 5 extenders in return making it very economical to produce. These are used to extend the length and extend the length of the cable run by having it in the middle while limiting the direction of power to a single direction. If you are using them in your setup, you will need two different directions of cables to power up your items in the direction being determined by the way the cables are set up.
The next item in power management is the power switch which costs 750 bytes to research and 1 copper to produce. Just like the cable extender, it can only send power in one direction and the direction of the cable is determined depending on which way it is plugged in. It works like a power switch and it can turn the power on or off if you wish to conserve electricity.
The third item in power management is the Splitter which costs 1000 bytes to research and requires 1 copper as well as 1 graphite to produce. It splits the flow of power into multiple directions and you can use it to control the flow of power to each connection.
Alternatively, you can also use it to join power from multiple sources together into a single source. You can control the ratio and amount of power going into each connection.
There are three other items that help you with the automation of power management.First is the power sensor which costs 500 bytes to research and requires 1 zinc as well as 1 copper to produce. It can control connected items based on the prevailing power conditions.
You can connect it to devices like Wind turbines and it will automatically start or stop power generators attached to the turbine depending on whether the wind is blowing or not.
The next item is the battery sensor which costs 750 bytes to research and requires 1 zinc as well as 1 graphite to produce. It only works with medium batteries and it will trigger a device based on the state of the battery. The device connected to the battery will get activated depending on whether the battery is empty or full.
Last but not the least, we got the storage sensor and it works the same way as the power sensor and the battery sensor. It costs 750 bytes to research and requires 1 zinc as well as 1 graphite to produce. You can use it to trigger items connected based on whether the storage is full or empty.
That’s it, these are all the items related to power generation, storage and management in the game!
