Each setting will indicate the Par time expected for the combination selected.
Resource Level[]
Rapid (default)
Rapid Resources is designed for those in a hurry, with children, jobs, or attempting to stream the game in a weekend! This is also an excellent place if you're looking to learn the game quickly before returning on a harder difficulty.
Plentiful
Plentiful Resources will give you plenty of resources, and will massively accelerate your early and late-game progression. This is a good starting point for patient, beginner players.
Scarce
Scarce Resources will give you a slower, more thoughtful game, with plenty of time to explore and optimize your base. Not recommended for beginner players!
Greg
Greg-level Resources will massively reduce your rate of progression. This is balanced for 24/7 dedicated multiplayer servers or VERY patient people!
Power Level[]
Plentiful (default)
Plentiful Power gives greatly improved energy collection from all power generators. This will greatly affect the speed of early-game progress.
Scarce
Scare Power gives a balanced power generation. This will slow down early-game progression.
Conveyor Speed[]
Fast (default)
Fast Conveyors mean less waiting around. They're about twice as fast as slow.
Slow
Slow Conveyors are well-balanced, and emphasize higher-tier conveyance system. This setting will make your progression greatly slower.
Day/Night Cycle[]
Normal (default)
Normal Day/Night cycle is 24 minutes. For the 12 minutes of darkness you will suffer from extreme temperature drops, increased mob aggression and reduced visibility.
Eternal Night
Eternal Night means no respite from the freezing cold during the day, and no access to non-organic solar technology; including your CPH. This will prove to be a significant challenge.
Eternal Day
Eternal Day means that your Solar collection systems will work constantly and you do not suffer from a temperature drop at night. Choosing this will allow much faster progression - average Solar Collection is 4x faster!
Mob Difficulty[]
Normal Mobs (default)
This is where it's at. Good choice!
Hard Mobs
Choose this and you will be dealing with much harder, more aggressive mobs. This is ONLY for VERY experienced players!
Trivial Mobs
Trivial Mobs is not recommended. Mobs still exist to allow full progression, but will pose no challenge, and this is opting out of a large part of the gameplay. You will get reduced Base Threat and reduced spawn rates on Hiveminds and other base-interfering mobs
Death Mode[]
None (default)
Clumsy
Clumsy mode is recommended if you want a reasonable challenge, and a good reason for not dying! You will drop the contents of your inventory on death!
Iron Man
NOT FOR BEGINNERS! Iron Man is only for the brave, the stupid and the bold; you permanently LOSE your entire inventory on death!
SquishCore
NOT RECOMMENDED FOR ANYONE! SquishCore is simple; you die, you stay dead.
Hardcore
NOT RECOMMENDED FOR ANYONE! Hardcore is the hardest mode; If you die, or your CPH dies, it's permanent game over! Your CPH also does not heal.
Rush Mode[]
Locked (default)
Rush Mode will be unlocked once you have successfully charged an Orbital Energy Transmitter.
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Flatland[]
Locked (default)
Flat Land mode will be unlocked once you have successfully killed a CryoPlasm Spawner.
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Care Package[]
Locked (default)
The Care Package will be unlocked once you have successfully built a Climate Control Center.
Use a completely new form of Logistics, build guide paths for robots, and shun conveyors.
Sky Islands
Build upwards through a series of floating islands, and avoid falling into the infinite lava fields.
Hardcore Crafting
Enforced stack limits and no manual crafting mean a very different approach to the game
OSHA Mode
Everything that looks dangerous to the touch, is dangerous to the touch.
Resinpocalypse
Your base is encircled, surrounded by fast-growing hives. Can you charge the OET before you disappear under a dome of resin?
Lucrative Mobs
murder your way to success.
Important CPH
keep the hub of your base alive, or suffer the consequences!
Aggressive Mobs
Mobs shoot first.
Backstory[]
You have just escaped the Orbital Station on a damaged escape shuttle. It didn't survive re-entry, but luckily you managed to eject safely. Now you will have to survive on this dreadful alien planet!
Starting Out[]
Your state-of-the-art suit can keep you safe under these cold conditions, but it requires power to do so. The ship's crash site may give you the resources to see you over on the short term, so you should head out there as soon as you can.
Craft a Torch to heat yourself using the Self Crafting window (‘C’).
Use the scanning tool ('M') to Scan blocks and process them at the Research Station for new recipes.
The scanning tool can also do environment scans like the Unknown Material ping to find new ores.
Pay close attention to the battery discharge rate on your suit, a blue text indicates that extreme cold is affecting your suit and a red text indicates extreme heat.
The Head Light uses power. It’s great for exploring but don’t leave it on!
Coal Ore is the best fuel for starting out, but if you're in a pinch you can burn the local flora.
You may have to dig very deep to find the ores you're looking for.
You have a large build reach, so use it to place torches across large caverns.
Powering the Crash Site[]
The Central Power Hub is your first power generator. It has Solar Panels and can burn fuels to generate power. Unfortunately, it can only hold one fuel source at a time so automating the delivery of fuel materials via hoppers can save you a lot of time. It has a large internal power storage capacity. Later in the game, additional power-producing machines will be needed.