Researching technologies allows you to unlock more components, more buildings, and upgrades for your mecha and workers.
There are two primary methods of research. In the early game, Research is done manually, by having the required items in your mecha's inventory after selecting a technology to research. This is ok at first, but the amount of materials needed for technologies quickly becomes burdensome to carry around.
The second method of research is automating it with Matrix Labs. After placing a Matrix Lab, you must select which mode it will operate in:
- If you select a matrix type on the left, it puts the Lab into manufacturing mode, creating the specified type of science matrix.
- If you select Research, on the right, it puts the Lab into Research mode, consuming matrixes to research technologies.
In Production mode, like with other production buildings, be sure to automate the removal of the created matrices, via sorters and conveyors.
In Research mode, the Matrix Lab must be supplied with matrix cubes from an external source (often, other matrix labs in Manufacturing mode). A lab cannot both create and consume matrices at the same time.
Note that you can stack Matrix Labs! At first, you can stack them up to 2 labs tall. More levels are unlocked with the Vertical Construction upgrade. Stacked Matrix Labs can be fed from the bottom, and when the bottom one fills it will push inputs up to the next one, and so on. For manufacturing mode labs, you only need to extract from the bottom level.
Production of Matrices
| Belt Tier | Electromagnetic Matrix (Blue) | Energy Matrix (Red) | Structure Matrix (Yellow) | Information Matrix (Purple) | Gravity Matrix (Green)1 | Universe Matrix (White) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mk 1 | 18 | 36 | 48 | 60 | 72 | 90 |
| Mk 2 | 36 | 72 | 96 | 120 | 144 | 180 |
| Mk 3 | 90 | 180 | 240 | 300 | 360 | 450 |
Number of Belts and Ingredients needed to saturate one output belt.
| Number of Belts | Item |
|---|---|
| 1 | Circuit Board |
| 1 | Magnetic Coil |
| Number of Belts | Item |
|---|---|
| 2 | Energetic Graphite |
| 2 | Hydrogen |
| Number of Belts | Item |
|---|---|
| 1 | Titanium |
| 1 | Diamond |
| Number of Belts | Item |
|---|---|
| 2 | Processor |
| 1 | Particle Broadband |
| Number of Belts | Item |
|---|---|
| 0.5 | Graviton Lens |
| 0.5 | Quantum Chip |
| Number of Belts | Item |
|---|---|
| 1 | Anti-Matter |
| 1 | Electromagnetic Matrix (Blue) |
| 1 | Energy Matrix (Red) |
| 1 | Structure Matrix (Yellow) |
| 1 | Information Matrix (Purple) |
| 1 | Gravity Matrix (Green) |
Note1: Gravity Matrix (Green) is the only matrix that produces 2 per cycle
Consumption
Each Matrix is worth 180 hashes, and lasts 3 seconds in the lab at base speed.
Labs needed to consume a fully saturated belt of matrices:
| Belt Tier | Labs Needed |
|---|---|
| Mk 1 | 18 |
| Mk 2 | 36 |
| Mk 3 | 90 |