Ultimate Guide to Using Drones for Transportation in Satisfactory

Satisfactory introduces players to a multitude of unexpected challenges, particularly during the initial playthrough. A common theme involves the necessity of acquiring raw resource nodes located at significant distances from your starting base. As you progress, you’ll unlock transportation technology, including drivable vehicles, trains, and the most advanced method of all—drones. These drones represent the pinnacle of tech for resource transportation in Satisfactory. In this guide, we’ll explore how to effectively utilize drones for resource transport.

How to Use Drones for Resource Transportation in Satisfactory

To leverage drones for transportation, you need both drones and drone ports. Crafting these components requires significant resources, so it’s advisable to automate the resource collection process efficiently. Here are the materials necessary to create one drone:

4× Motor
10× Alclad Aluminum Sheet
1× Radio Control Unit
2× AI Limiter
1× Portable Miner

For the construction of a drone port, you will require the following resources:

20× Heavy Modular Frame
20× High-Speed Connector
50× Alclad Aluminum Sheet
50× Aluminum Casing
10× Radio Control Unit

Many of these resources pose challenges for automation, especially Radio Control Units and potentially Aluminum Casings when aiming for high output rates. Thus, it’s wise to delay your drone and drone port deployment until you have sufficient resources.

Once you have gathered the needed materials, construct a drone port and create a drone on it. Ensure you connect the drone port to a power line, and repeat this process for all other designated drone port locations. If you want a drone port to deliver resources, include an input configuration accordingly.

Remember that you must also ensure your drones have a consistent fuel supply for optimal operation. There are various fuel types available, but it’s best to utilize the most efficient option suited to your setup. Here’s how to configure your drones for infinite fuel.

Drones Fueling Setup Guide in Satisfactory

When facing a drone port, you will notice two input slots and one output slot. One input will have a fuel icon above it, indicating where to insert your fuel. If using liquid fuel, it must be packaged prior to use by the drones.

At this stage in the game, it’s essential to have an automated battery production line, feeding batteries to the drone port. Use a splitter when connecting the conveyor belt to the drone port input to facilitate multiple drone ports drawing from a single battery line.

A challenge arises when your fuel source is situated in one location—how will other drone ports refuel without nearby fuel? The trick is to designate your main base as the sole fuel source and have all your drones return there to refuel. By placing a conveyor line into each drone port’s fuel input (using a splitter), your drones will automatically refuel as needed.

This setup entails having multiple drone ports within your main base (effectively functioning as an airstrip) and linking each of these ports to different drone ports designated for resource transfer.

An example of this efficient setup includes:

Five drone ports in the main base, all receiving fuel.
Each main base drone port serving a unique drone port at another location.
Each time a drone returns to the main base, it automatically deposits collected resources and refuels as necessary.

This strategy requires multiple drone ports in your main base to ensure:

Avoidance of resource blockages or jams.
Efficient collection of diverse goods without relying on numerous Smart Splitters in a single line.
A reliable method for unlimited fuel (given sufficient fuel reserves).

The need for multiple drone ports becomes clear, as they help prevent clogged resource transfers that could disrupt production lines. It’s wise to set up several ports and drones to maintain seamless operation.

Initially, Turbofuel is sufficient to power your drone ports, but once you scale up to 20+ in your main base, consider using Rocketfuel or high-output batteries for optimal efficiency. These fuels are ideal unless you’re seeking a challenge by employing radioactive Uranium Fuel Rods. Remember to label your ports clearly to mitigate confusion on your map; naming them based on use or description, such as “Port – Packaged Nitrogen Gas to the main base,” can be very helpful.

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