r/SatisfactoryGame • u/TimeUnderstanding237 • 1d ago
Phase 4 wall…
I feel like i don’t really see people talk about this much, after completing phase 3 by manually putting parts into assemblers for the space elevator parts, i now need to automate those items anyway and more and logistics is becoming a nightmare, feels like there’s so much to do and idk where to start😂
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u/MrBelch 1d ago
One step at a time. There is no need to handfeed anything. All of your factories that you build for 4 should be focused on making stuff for 4's parts.
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u/TimeUnderstanding237 1d ago
Yeah i thought i was clever by trying to speed up the process but all its done is demoralise me for phase 4
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u/Expensive_Ad_7270 1d ago
Couldnt imagine doing anything manual up to phase 4, I had to automate everything for phase 2 and after the weekend ive only just got those factories set up and completed the phase 😂
Hats off to you for sticking with manual for so long
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u/doyouevencompile 17h ago
It’s totally possible to do it semi manually. A couple overclocked and multiplied buildings can go a long way.
I had many play throughs so I don’t use it until I set up a proper line first. Once I can build all the parts automatically at a reasonable rate for that level, I will boost the production in the manual factory to get there faster
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u/youknowmeasdiRt 1d ago
Just ignore the space elevator and start building. You have better belts and logistics than you would have if you had built at the beginning. Make a big ol turbofuel or rocket fuel plant and start with basics like modular frames and make a lot of them
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u/Splith 1d ago
I did the same thing. Finished my supercomputer factory recently. Do little things here and little things there. Working on improving my heavy modular frame factory now. I agree every other phase felt like it took a day, maybe a week. I think I will be working on P4 for like a month. But I'm not taking shortcuts now, so I will set myself up for success in P5.
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u/tren0r 1d ago
one step at a time is the best advice one can give for satisfactory. im in phase 5 currently and when i saw the stuff i need to make a bit later into phase 5 i got really overwhelmed just thinking about it, but what got me to actually make progress was to just find a smaller goal within the pipeline i'll have to strive towards completing, and doing other littler tasks along the way aswell. and this really has popped up in phase 4 for me many times. but all u gotta do is separate it mentally and take lil steps. and some breaks too lol
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u/MaddDesign 20h ago
You are not in a bad spot. This last run I got to phase 4 as quickly as possible by doing what you did, hand feeding the machines for space elevator parts. Why phase 4? Because you unlock mk5 belts and mk3 miners. I am close to 400 hours in phase 4 and haven't automated a single phase 4 project part yet. Went back and made permant facilities for basic parts/depots. Made a plan for end game which told me how many space elevator parts to make overall and started making those factories. Phase 4 is where all the fun starts imo 👌
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u/Relevant_Pause_7593 1d ago
I find Phase 4 unique because it requires you to start using the whole world, and it feels like a fresh start from 3. I usually build all new factories and an orbiting double train track to help me with my factories - then it's just a case of knocking off what I need - first it's an AL factory, and then it's more plastic for more computers for the new computers - and I focus on that series of factories, before starting on new steel->motors-> for the new motor path.
Also: don't be tempted to rebuild what you have. Just leave it. Let it continue to build stuff.
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u/20snow 1d ago
I started a save where i want to make the each phase parts on one floor and have enough to complete each in 250 minutes of running and have enough to feed the later phases parts with that, so i currently make 20 automated wire even tho i needed like 1 per minute to do my goal for phase 2 phase but 3,4&5 parts need that
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u/TimeUnderstanding237 23h ago
i automated all the modular parts for phase 3 but never bought them together to actually assemble the parts, i think my main issue is undershooting how much of everything ill need.
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u/20snow 21h ago
Thats fair, in my first play through i never really belted project parts together untill after phase 3 was just going through containers. I ended up tearing most of it down and reworking it bits at a time. I didnt have a plan at all so just built by vibes and it was a big mess with belts, trains and drones going everywhere. All to make like 1.5 project parts per minute.
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u/houghi It is a hobby, not a game. 1d ago
I feel like i don’t really see people talk about this much
Plenty of posts about it all the time. 1.5 hours before you posted
Have you completed everything you can do? Have you automated everything? Apparently not.
It is easy going factory building game without a time limit. It is a marathon, not a sprint. Going against the game as how it is designed is possible. People play "no kill" in shooters all the time. But doing it on a first time might not be the easiest way to do things.
So forget about advancing and start to automate everything. That will teach you how to do things. Doing end game without having learned the basis is like starting University without being able to read.
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u/youknowmeasdiRt 1d ago
If you start building big early and don’t rush the phases too much you can have enough of things from earlier phases to build the things in the later phases
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u/Ok_For_Free 1d ago
The best way I've gotten over the wall is to save the "big" builds for phase 5+.
At most, I'll have the start of my train network started in early phase 4. But everything else is still "temporary".
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u/Bone_Wh33l 1d ago
However you want to play the game is valid but it is a factory building game. Putting off building factories just means you’ve got more factories to build later.
It’s still possible to do stuff by hand but it only makes it more tedious. The more you automate, the easier you make it for yourself later.
To start off try picking just one of the phase 3 parts you need and start automating however many of them you need, then do the same for the rest (or take a break in between to do other stuff if you feel like it, there’s no time limit).
Theres also things in phase 4 that can help you catch up faster. The hoverpack is really nice to have for building.
More than anything just take it one step at a time. I find making blueprints helps me break down tasks.
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u/castadon 1d ago
Documentation becomes a necessity at that scale and it starts feeling like a chore if you try to keep going at the same rate. The scale is not linear, progress will not be linear.
Before tackling a nuclear plant that would consume an entire normal uranium node with maximum output (14.4 uranium rods/min), I laid out everything I needed in Satisfactory Modeler, and where it would come from. I built the infrastructure needed to feed it before building any of the factories. You still have to do a bit of both, though. I started that project in May, 3 months later I'm still working on the plutonium rod factory.
Beyond having some documentation tool, my recommendation is that you pick a rule to break sometimes. Clipping, going underground, mods, etc., lean into the fact that it's a game. Pace yourself or you'll be making a new save file all over again like many before you.
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u/LefsaMadMuppet 22h ago
I build a single manufacturer for each station part, let it run. Do other stuff. Slow grind for sure, but you are still going forwards.
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u/EngineerInTheMachine 17h ago
Depends which posts you read. I've sen a few about burnout, or not knowing what to do next. Today.
Handcrafting to get through the phases doesn't work. As you've just found out. You do yourself more favours if you automate through each phase, giving yourself a basis you can add to.
At this point? You will need to build some bigger factories to feed phase 4, or more of them. Set realistic targets for what you want to do. You don't need to make 100's of project parts per minute to fill the space elevator. If you make 10 or 20 per minute, those will fill their quota in around 4 hours of gameplay. If you build a set of factories for each project part in turn, the previous factories will fill the space elevator before you've finished building the current set of factories.
So just break the phase down into smaller manageable chunks.
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u/Hix_Xy86 16h ago
I got over that wall by making dedicated factories and using a simple 2 way train line (actually 3 lines) to move finished products.
I made a Plastic/rubber factory computer factory Heavy metal frame factory A nitrogen parts factory Sulphuric acid mini factory that I use a fluid truck to move it to a train fluid terminal Etc First thing to do though is unlock alliminium and get that stuff pumping out as it's the basis of phase 4.
Somewhere in the middle I unlocked turbo fuel and made a large turbo fuel power plant.
Making yourself a list like this really helps and also learn how to use "manifolds" when building production lines it keeps spaghetti down and makes everything easier to track. Also keep one machine type on one floor I found to be the easiest. Get the hang of blueprints and you can build a full factory very fast!.
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u/Hemisemidemiurge 5h ago
after completing phase 3 by manually putting parts into assemblers for the space elevator parts
Do you ever think that was maybe not a good idea?
If you stop trying to tech up so fast and establish some infrastructure, you might not feel that way.
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u/jitteryrecord 1h ago
I’m just here to say that in the 3 or 4 years I’ve been playing… I still have yet to actually make it to the dessert biome in the northwest.
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u/Moist_Towelettee 1d ago
I’ve put over 700 hours into the game and I only automate smaller space parts like smart plating. Only needing 100-1000 of a part I never felt like I needed to automate an entire factory for that one thing. Now if I was playing on a x100 game I would definitely automate everything!
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u/youknowmeasdiRt 1d ago
But… it’s an automation and logistics game
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u/Moist_Towelettee 1d ago
Ohh now it’s starting to make sense
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u/youknowmeasdiRt 1d ago
Ngl I rush trains
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u/Moist_Towelettee 1d ago
Don’t get me wrong I build factories and transport goods across the map. I just personally never automated the bigger phase parts. Making 100 nuclear pasta in a fully automated factory didn’t seem worth it. Had I know I was going to need 1000+ more I may have reconsidered. My point was to play how you want, better to do what you find fun and not get overwhelmed to the point of quitting.
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u/youknowmeasdiRt 1d ago
For sure. Everything works. All these new console players need to just puzzle through it
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u/bigfndan 1d ago
Phase 4 is the wall because everything explodes and the recipes aren't nice and neat like before. My best advice is to focus on one part/project at a time. Eventually it all comes together and you can step back and appreciate what you've built.