Science pack
Science packs are items which are required by labs to perform research. Researching technologies requires a certain number of different types of science packs, which is then multiplied by a certain value to get the tech cost. For example, Physical projectile damage 3 requires one automation science pack and one logistic science pack and one military science pack to begin researching, but it needs this to be input into labs a total of 300 times, raising the research cost to 300 automation science packs, 300 logistic science packs and 300 military science packs.
Base Game Science Packs
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Or, broken down into the most basic components:
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Creating science packs
The science packs and research are meant to guide players through the game by gradually increasing in complexity. At first the player has to create automation science packs by hand to research automation. Then the next goal is to create automation and logistic science automatically and to automatically feed the science packs into labs. These science packs allow research of most of the basic technologies.
If needed due to enemies, the next step is to create military science packs to allow unlock higher tier combat-oriented products. Unlike previous science packs, military science produces two packs per crafting cycle versus just one per cycle from automation/logistic.
Following military science, chemical science packs should be created. This science pack incorporates a new 'raw' intermediary - plastic bars necessitate the need to harvest and process crude oil.
After chemical science, production science packs are next. Production science packs are a fair jump in complexity, as the required products have quite a few different intermediaries. Production packs yield three packs per crafting cycle.
The final stage of automated research pack creation is utility science pack. Utility sciences packs are the most complex packs to make, requiring a large chain of intermediate products. Utility science packs, like previous production science packs, yield three packs per crafting cycle.
Space science packs are yielded from launching satellites via rocket, and thus are difficult to automate effectively without massive resource-hungry bases. Unlike other science packs, space science packs are exclusively used to research repeating/infinite technologies - such as mining productivity or gun turret damage.
The ratio needed to keep science production in sync is 5:6:5:12:7:7, or:
- 5 Automation science pack assemblers
- 6 Logistic science pack assemblers
- 5 Military science pack assemblers
- 12 Chemical science pack assemblers
- 7 Production science pack assemblers
- 7 Utility science pack assemblers
The list above assumes that all science packs are being produced by the same tier of assembling machine. For example, if using plain assembling machine 3 then packs will be produced at 75 items per minute.
Space Age
Science Packs
The Space Age expansion adds five new types of science packs, and changes the recipe for space science pack. Each is only able to be crafted on a specific planet or a space platform
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Note that Agricultural science packs are subject to spoilage. Their freshness also reduces their science value.
Productivity module vs Quality module
Quality science pack decreases science pack drain, while production science outputs additional science packs from the same amount of input. Assuming that you are only using common ingredients and a single 1 tier module, and that all quality levels have been researched:
Quality module:
- 0.9% chance to create at least 1 uncommon science pack, which lasts 100% longer than normal (equivalent of 2 science packs).
- 0.09% chance to create 1 rare science pack, which lasts 200% longer than normal (equivalent of 3 science packs).
- 0.009% chance to create 1 epic science pack, which lasts 300% longer than normal (equivalent of 4 science packs).
- 0.001% chance to create 1 legendary science pack, which lasts 500% longer than normal (equivalent of 6 science packs).
Overall, this represents approximately 1.1112% extra science for the same number of inputs.
Productivity module:
- 1 extra product every 25 normal products.
This provides approximately 4% extra science for the same number of inputs.
Comparison
- Productivity is more resource efficient, as it provides more science progress for the same amount of resources.
- Quality is more space/rocket efficient, as higher quality packs take up the same amount of space.
- Quality has a special effect on Agricultural science packs, as quality increases their spoil time. This means that a higher quality pack will not only have more science value, it will lose less of that value over the same time period as a lower one.
Do note that quality modules cannot be combined with speed modules or speed beacons for smaller builds, while productivity modules can.