Guides/Power and Energy Costs: Difference between revisions

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# Included for the sake of completeness. Technically viable/competitive but requires a massive swarm to do anything. Uses behaviors on the solar bots to shut them off at night
# Included for the sake of completeness. Technically viable/competitive but requires a massive swarm to do anything. Uses behaviors on the solar bots to shut them off at night


===== Mobile Power: Range-limited options =====
===== Mobile Power: Unorthodox (range-limited) options =====
TODO: Extension Cord
Extension Cords: There are blueprints on the discord for {{IL|Worker}}s with {{IL|Small Power Field}}s and a {{IL|Behavior Controller}} instructing them to form a chain to the target. This chain can transmit infinite power but gets more expensive with distance. The break even point with power transmitters is around 0.75 tiles per unit power transmitted (wind/solar grid) and 1.2 tiles per unit power transmitted (blight grid).


TODO: Battery Running
Battery Running: A loop of  {{IL|Worker}}s with {{IL|Small Battery}}s and {{IL|Behavior Controller}}s is theoretically competitive with power transmitters for distances up to over 550 tiles. However, there are not currently any behaviors available for automating this.
[[Category:Guides]]
[[Category:Guides]]

Revision as of 08:42, 5 October 2023

What's in 100 Watts

The purpose of this guide is to quantify the strengths and weaknesses of each method of generating power. For each method the cost (including frames) to generate 100 power is calculated and broken down into the number of spaces required, the resources required, and the number of seconds it takes a standard miner to gather those resources.

For simplicity this excludes processing and time Laser Extractor mining time, but in general recipes that require more basic resources also require more processing per resource.

Stationary Power

This assumes using the cheapest available frame for each component size: Building 1x1 (1S), Building 1x1 (1M), and Building 1x1 (1L)

Miner-seconds Space Metal Ore Crystal Chunk Silica Sand Blight Crystal Chunk Laterite ore Notes
Crystal Power 110 0.67 10.0 10.0 1
Solar Cell+Small Battery 904 3.83 76.3 89.2 2
Solar Panel+Large Battery 2194 0.45 153.8 112.4 100.3 10.8 9.8
Wind Turbine 1103 1.00 128.0 61.0 5.0 3
Large Wind Turbine 913 0.25 64.5 42.8 52.0 3
Power Unit 749 0.10 40.0 19.0 31.5 22.5 40.0 4
Power Core 2310 0.10 153.4 110.5 139.5
Power Cell 6938 452.0 526.0 266.0
Blight Power Generator 73 0.10 7.2 1.0 2.5 5.0 5
  1. Uses 1 crystal chunk (5 miner-seconds) per 100 power per 60 seconds. So after around 3 hours (of running near max power) it's less efficient than having built solar cells, and after around 7.5 hours it's less efficient than having built a power core. However, keep in mind that the cost isn't paid upfront and that 3 hours might make better power options available
  2. A cheap source of earlygame grid power
  3. If not running on a plateau double all costs. Requires battery backup during blight storms
  4. This is the only option with a significant Laser Extractor mining cost at 240 seconds, making it more comparable to expensive options like power cores than miner-seconds implies
  5. The current best stationary power source, although it requires dipping into three tech trees
Mobile Power

Mobile power is more expensive due to the increased cost of frames and the fact that the frames consume some of the energy. This assumes using the cheapest available frame for each component size: Worker, Cub, and Rock

Miner-seconds Space Metal Ore Crystal Chunk Silica Sand Blight Crystal Chunk Laterite ore Notes
Power Transmitter 1698 1.00 140.0 66.0 88.0 1
Large Power Transmitter 1664 0.20 90.8 59.0 79.0 35.0 1
Crystal Power 127 0.74 11.9 11.1 2
Solar Panel+Medium Battery 3044 0.70 244.2 196.2 99.5 3
Wind Turbine 2719 1.18 277.6 189.4 17.6 3
Power Unit 761 0.10 40.7 19.3 32.0 22.8 40.6 4
Power Core 4200 0.10 274.1 234.5 230.5
Power Cell 6938 452.0 526.0 266.0 5
Solar Cell+Small Battery 2159 7.67 190.3 203.3 6
  1. Mounted on a Building 1x1 (1M)/Building 1x1 (1L). Doesn't include the cost of the grid power being transmitted
  2. Uses 1 crystal chunk (5 miner-seconds) per 100 power per 60 seconds. So after around 6 hours (of running near max power) it's less efficient than having built a power transmitter + blight power, and after around 9 hours it's less efficient than having built a power transmitter + wind turbines. Excellent source of mobile power for the early and midgame
  3. Not useful compared to power transmitters, and wind power more than doubles when not on a plateau
  4. Still has a significant Laser Extractor cost of 240 seconds, but the costs of its competitors have almost doubled making it competitive with basically everything except transmitted blight power. Can be mounted on a faster bot without significantly increasing costs.
  5. Very expensive but has a few uses, especially as it has a 10-range power field on an internal slot
  6. Included for the sake of completeness. Technically viable/competitive but requires a massive swarm to do anything. Uses behaviors on the solar bots to shut them off at night
Mobile Power: Unorthodox (range-limited) options

Extension Cords: There are blueprints on the discord for Workers with Small Power Fields and a Behavior Controller instructing them to form a chain to the target. This chain can transmit infinite power but gets more expensive with distance. The break even point with power transmitters is around 0.75 tiles per unit power transmitted (wind/solar grid) and 1.2 tiles per unit power transmitted (blight grid).

Battery Running: A loop of Workers with Small Batterys and Behavior Controllers is theoretically competitive with power transmitters for distances up to over 550 tiles. However, there are not currently any behaviors available for automating this.