I currently have a trainstation blueprint that I put down as and when I need to send artillery trains out to clear some nests. Unless I get this blueprint real close to the nests it isnt automated, anybody have a better system for expanding into unclaimed areas?
during endgame (which I think you’re at), I usually just load up a power armor full of the laser defenses, shields, and batteries + the personal nuclear reactor thing. Then I just run through the nests while the laser defense does all the work
I’ve only ever used artillery outposts once in a game with 1000x science cost where we were so far behind with science vs biter evolution manual clearing just wasn’t an option.
Every other time it is just manual clearing and then blocking off the cleared are with reinforced walls (if expansion is on). Early on with turret crawl, then tanks/grenades and later nukes and power armor.
You can use the remote control to manually target artillery. Much longer range.
Other than that, spidertrons!
Or have a friend who enjoys fighting and mind other things, my preferred approach :D
When I play with bitters on (it’s been a while, I want to try rampant but currently I’m doing a B&A so it’ll take a long while) I either clean with the tank or spidertron when available, or grow organically with the walls. Artillery closer to the walls and first, let the artillery clean automatically and then fire manually for longer range.
If I have to build an outpost and is not feasible by growing the base, my outpost looks quite similar to yours. Add some dragon teeth and depending on how crowded it is, I can send a couple oil trains for the flamethrowers.
All in all, I’d say 90% of the time I grow with the walls (robots make this easy and basically I copy-paste big sections, straight - corner and let the robots build), 8% with the spider (as many missiles as I can carry, or full of lasers for disco effect) just because I can, and in very odd cases I build outposts.
I really do need to try the flame turrets, hundreds of hours and i’m still just reliant on the lasers, they’re just so little hassle to pick up and replace, but i image the flame turrets will be with a couple of blueprints.
I still die often enough to biters even with the bots and a spider to not want to try rampant yet, but thats more to me being clumsy, in the same way i blow myself up plenty with the spider too!
But i suppose with the map i’m playing currently being railworld-esque i have to push further into them than I would normally, at least it is easier with the expansion off.