Infrastructure & Utilities

Learn how to manage power distribution, dust, maintenance, and resource extraction in Surviving Mars. Essential guide for building and sustaining your Martian colony.

This section covers the essential infrastructure and utilities required to build and maintain a thriving colony in Surviving Mars. Understanding these systems is crucial for survival and expansion on the Red Planet.

Controls:

• Camera: MMB or Alt + Mouse Movement to tilt/rotate, Mousewheel or PgUp/PgDown to zoom. Overview mode with 'M' or maximum zoom out.
• Game Speed: Space to pause/unpause, '+' to increase speed, '-' to decrease speed.

Basics:

• Rover and Drone Control: Rovers are manually controlled via their Infopanels for map locations or object interaction. Drones are semi-autonomous but can be controlled directly. Customize controls in the Options menu.
• Dust and Maintenance: Buildings deteriorate over time and require maintenance. Drones service buildings when their maintenance bar is full. Failure to service within a Sol stops operation. Buildings outside Domes are more susceptible to dust and disasters. Extractors, geysers, and rocket activity spread dust, increasing maintenance needs. Drones can break down due to dust and need Recharge Stations.
• Map and Exploration: The map is divided into Sectors that need scanning to reveal resources and Anomalies. Sensor towers speed up scanning. Orbital Probes instantly scan sectors but are expensive. Building in unexplored sectors risks building over deposits. Probes can be deployed with LMB or 'X'.

Resources and Construction:

• Buildings require resources. Drones stockpile resources for construction if the site is within their Service Range. Resources must also be within the Drone's Service Range (Storages or surface deposits).
• Resources are gathered from deposits (surface: Metal, Polymers; underground: Metal, Rare Metals, Water; terrain: Concrete) or produced by Extractors, Factories, or Farms.
• Deposit grades (very low to very high) affect production rates.
• Surface deposits are mined directly; underground and terrain deposits require Extractors.
• Extractors generate Waste Rock, which must be moved by Drones to a Dumping Site to prevent the Extractor from stopping.
• Late-game deep scanning reveals underground deposits requiring specific tech.

Anomalies:

• Anomalies appear in scanned sectors and are analyzed by RC Explorers.
• Types: Event (eye) trigger events; Research (flask) grant Research Points; Breakthrough (magnifying glass) reveal Breakthrough techs; Tech (key) enable specific techs.

Research:

• Technologies unlock new buildings, upgrades, and benefits. Standard technologies are in five fields.
• Research requires generating Research Points. Sponsors may provide points per Sol, but research buildings are needed for advanced tech. Outsourcing research is an option for Funding.
• Analyzing anomalies can grant research points or unlock new technologies.
• Breakthroughs are powerful, extraordinary technologies.