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Tech Tree · 37 nodes · 8 tiers

The Research Tree.

Progression runs on three tracks. Tiers are the eras of the climb: Cosmic Beginnings, Surface Expansion, Factory Founder, Orbital Reach, Particle Physics, Atmospheric Command, Planetary Engineering and Stellar Ascension. Milestones open each tier once every node in the tier before it is researched, and research nodes are the individual unlocks inside each tier. Click any node below and the whole prerequisite chain lights up, so you can see exactly what it takes to reach the Dyson swarm from where you stand.

The Eight Tiers

From the landing kit to the star.

T0
Cosmic Beginnings
The landing kit and your first Tornado.
T1
Surface Expansion
Assemblers, doubled belts, hover flight.
T2
Factory Founder
Steel, the Foundry, the Fabricator.
T3
Orbital Reach
Fluids, aluminum, the Space Elevator.
T4
Particle Physics
Sulfur chemistry, batteries, uranium.
T5
Atmospheric Command
Hurricanes, gas giants, the Orbital Ring.
T6
Planetary Engineering
Magma seas and a growing ring.
T7
Stellar Ascension
The Dyson swarm, carried to 10 PW.
Story Beats

Eight milestones to ascend.

Milestones gate the tiers. Each one lands the moment every research node in the tier before it is done, and it opens the next tier's research.

MILESTONE 01 · OPENS T1

Surface Expansion

Belt 100 Science Pack 1 into the Research Lab to finish Applied Science, and the first tier of choices opens: the Assembler, doubled belts, hover flight and the Electrical Storm.

MILESTONE 02 · OPENS T2

Factory Founder

Research all four Surface Expansion nodes and steel arrives, along with the Foundry, the Fabricator, the Recycler, Miner Mk.2 and the Solar Storm.

MILESTONE 03 · OPENS T3

Orbital Reach

Research all four Factory Founder nodes to bring in fluids and the Refinery, aluminum, the Space Elevator and your first flight off the planet.

MILESTONE 04 · OPENS T4

Particle Physics

Research all three Orbital Reach nodes for sulfur chemistry, batteries and uranium, with the Blizzard on the Frozen world as the tier's capstone.

MILESTONE 05 · OPENS T5

Atmospheric Command

Research all five Particle Physics nodes for exotic materials, the Hurricane, gas giant harvesting and the founding of your first Orbital Ring.

MILESTONE 06 · OPENS T6

Planetary Engineering

Research all six Atmospheric Command nodes to pump magma from lava seas and grow the Orbital Ring segment by segment.

MILESTONE 07 · OPENS T7

Stellar Ascension

Research all four Planetary Engineering nodes and the star opens up: the Dyson swarm, thrown from the ring's Launch Cradles and Frame Bays, and the reflector lattice that carries it to 10 PW (10¹⁶ W), the Kardashev Type-1 line.

MILESTONE 08 · EVERY NODE

Cosmic Ascension

Completes when all 37 research nodes are done, from the Landing Kit to the Galactic Grid.

The Constellation

The whole climb, in one diagram.

Eight tier-stars, seven milestone bridges. Hover any tier to trace its dependency chain. The graph reads from the bottom-left (T0 · Cosmic Beginnings) up and right to the top (T7 · Stellar Ascension).

M1 · Surface M2 · Factory M3 · Orbital M4 · Particle M5 · Atmospheric M6 · Planetary M7 · Stellar T0 Beginnings T1 Surface T2 Factory T3 Orbital T4 Particle T5 Atmospheric T6 Planetary T7 Stellar
T0 · COSMIC BEGINNINGS 2 nodes · Tornado 300 MW

You land with a working base, belt 100 Science Pack 1 into the Research Lab for Applied Science, and end the tier by raising your first tornado on a Weather Generator Mk.1.

Research Tree

37 nodes, and you pick your path.

Research nodes unlock recipes, machines, and entire industries. Each node is paid in science packs that your Research Labs draw from their belts as the work runs, and more labs finish it sooner.

FILTER BY TIER

56 Steam-ready achievements

Categorized across Exploration, Production, Construction, Research and Secret. Rarities span Common to Legendary. Every achievement has a unique ARIA voice line that fires when you unlock it.

EXPLORATION
PRODUCTION
CONSTRUCTION
RESEARCH
SECRET

Plot your tech path.

Each tier's research opens once every node in the tier before it is done. Pick a focus inside it (speed, automation, megastructures) and watch your factory specialize.

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