Refined & Advanced Goods

Unlock the secrets to managing Refined & Advanced Goods in Surviving Mars. Learn about resource gathering, extraction, and the crucial role of drones in your colony's success.

This section of the guide focuses on understanding and managing Refined & Advanced Goods within Surviving Mars. These are crucial for the progression and sustainability of your Martian colony.

Resources and Construction

The primary use of resources in Mars is the construction of Buildings. If a new construction site is placed within the Service Range of a Drone control point (Drone Hub, RC Rover, or Rocket), the Drones assigned to that hub will begin stockpiling the resources needed for construction. It is important that these resources are also within the Drone's Service Range, either in Storages or in raw, surface deposit form.

Resources are gathered from deposits or produced in Extractors, Factories, or Farms. Deposits can be surface (Metal and Polymers), underground (Metal, Rare Metals, and Water), or terrain (Concrete). Deposits have grades (very low, low, average, high, very high) that impact the base production of an extractor. For example, a Water Extractor with a base production of 5 will produce only 3 when built on a deposit with a "Very Low" grade.

Surface deposits are mined directly by Drones, while underground and terrain deposits require Extractors. Resources are stockpiled in Extractors until Drones move them to a Depot. Extractors also generate Waste Rock and have limited storage space. If full, the Extractor will stop working until Drones move the Waste Rock to a Dumping Site. Late-game deep scanning can reveal deep underground Metals, Rare Metals, and Water deposits that require specific technologies before extraction.

Anomalies

Anomalies appear across the map in scanned sectors. Sending an RC Explorer to analyze them triggers their effects. Anomalies can be:

• Event Anomaly (eye): Triggers events, which may be associated with Mysteries.
• Research Anomaly (flask): Instantly generates Research Points.
• Breakthrough Anomaly (magnifying glass): Reveals a tech on the Breakthrough tree.
• Tech Anomaly (key): Enables specific technologies to be researched.

Research

New technologies unlock new buildings, upgrades, colonist perks, and other benefits. Standard technologies are divided into five fields. Researching a technology makes a new one within its field available. Some technologies have fixed positions, while others are randomized. Technologies are researched by generating research points equal to their costs. Research buildings are necessary to discover advanced technologies in a timely manner. Outsourcing research is an option that grants a fixed amount of research for a period in exchange for Funding. Analyzing anomalies with an Explorer vehicle may grant research points or make new technologies available.