| | |
| | | Minetest technic modpack user manual |
| | | ==================================== |
| | | # Technic User Manual |
| | | |
| | | The technic modpack extends the Minetest game with many new elements, |
| | | mainly constructable machines and tools. It is a large modpack, and |
| | | tends to dominate gameplay when it is used. This manual describes how |
| | | to use the technic modpack, mainly from a player's perspective. |
| | | The technic modpack extends Minetest Game (shipped with Minetest by default) |
| | | with many new elements, mainly constructable machines and tools. This manual |
| | | describes how to use the modpack, mainly from a player's perspective. |
| | | |
| | | The technic modpack depends on some other modpacks: |
| | | Documentation of the mod dependencies can be found here: |
| | | |
| | | * the basic Minetest game |
| | | * mesecons, which supports the construction of logic systems based on |
| | | signalling elements |
| | | * pipeworks, which supports the automation of item transport |
| | | * moreores, which provides some additional ore types |
| | | * [Minetest Game Documentation](https://wiki.minetest.net/Main_Page) |
| | | * [Mesecons Documentation](http://mesecons.net/items.html) |
| | | * [Pipeworks Documentation](https://gitlab.com/VanessaE/pipeworks/-/wikis/home) |
| | | * [Moreores Forum Post](https://forum.minetest.net/viewtopic.php?t=549) |
| | | * [Basic materials Repository](https://gitlab.com/VanessaE/basic_materials) |
| | | |
| | | This manual doesn't explain how to use these other modpacks, which ought |
| | | to (but actually don't) have their own manuals. |
| | | ## Recipes |
| | | |
| | | Recipes for constructable items in technic are generally not guessable, |
| | | and are also not specifically documented here. You should use a |
| | | craft guide mod to look up the recipes in-game. For the best possible |
| | | guidance, use the unified\_inventory mod, with which technic registers |
| | | its specialised recipe types. |
| | | Recipes for items registered by technic are not specifically documented here. |
| | | Please consult a craft guide mod to look up the recipes in-game. |
| | | |
| | | substances |
| | | ---------- |
| | | **Recommended mod:** [Unified Inventory](https://github.com/minetest-mods/unified_inventory) |
| | | |
| | | ### ore ### |
| | | ## Substances |
| | | |
| | | The technic mod makes extensive use of not just the default ores but also |
| | | some that are added by mods. You will need to mine for all the ore types |
| | | in the course of the game. Each ore type is found at a specific range of |
| | | elevations, and while the ranges mostly overlap, some have non-overlapping |
| | | ranges, so you will ultimately need to mine at more than one elevation |
| | | to find all the ores. Also, because one of the best elevations to mine |
| | | at is very deep, you will be unable to mine there early in the game. |
| | | ### Ores |
| | | |
| | | Elevation is measured in meters, relative to a reference plane that |
| | | is not quite sea level. (The standard sea level is at an elevation |
| | | of about +1.4.) Positive elevations are above the reference plane and |
| | | negative elevations below. Because elevations are always described this |
| | | way round, greater numbers when higher, we avoid the word "depth". |
| | | Technic registers a few ores which are needed to craft machines or items. |
| | | Each ore type is found at a specific range of elevations so you will |
| | | ultimately need to mine at more than one elevation to find all the ores. |
| | | |
| | | The ores that matter in technic are coal, iron, copper, tin, zinc, |
| | | chromium, uranium, silver, gold, mithril, mese, and diamond. |
| | | Elevation (Y axis) is measured in meters. The reference is usually at sea |
| | | level. Ores can generally be found more commonly by going downwards to -1000m. |
| | | |
| | | Coal is part of the basic Minetest game. It is found from elevation |
| | | +64 downwards, so is available right on the surface at the start of |
| | | the game, but it is far less abundant above elevation 0 than below. |
| | | It is initially used as a fuel, driving important machines in the early |
| | | part of the game. It becomes less important as a fuel once most of your |
| | | machines are electrically powered, but burning fuel remains a way to |
| | | generate electrical power. Coal is also used, usually in dust form, as |
| | | an ingredient in alloying recipes, wherever elemental carbon is required. |
| | | Note ¹: *These ores are provided by Minetest Game. See [Ores](https://wiki.minetest.net/Ores#Ores_overview) for a rough overview* |
| | | |
| | | Iron is part of the basic Minetest game. It is found from elevation |
| | | +2 downwards, and its abundance increases in stages as one descends, |
| | | reaching its maximum from elevation -64 downwards. It is a common metal, |
| | | used frequently as a structural component. In technic, unlike the basic |
| | | game, iron is used in multiple forms, mainly alloys based on iron and |
| | | including carbon (coal). |
| | | Note ²: *These ores are provided by moreores. TODO: Add reference link* |
| | | |
| | | Copper is part of the basic Minetest game (having migrated there from |
| | | moreores). It is found from elevation -16 downwards, but is more abundant |
| | | from elevation -64 downwards. It is a common metal, used either on its |
| | | own for its electrical conductivity, or as the base component of alloys. |
| | | #### Coal ¹ |
| | | Use: Fuel, alloy as carbon |
| | | |
| | | Burning coal is a way to generate electrical power. Coal is also used, |
| | | usually in dust form, as an ingredient in alloying recipes, wherever |
| | | elemental carbon is required. |
| | | |
| | | #### Iron ¹ |
| | | Use: multiple, mainly for alloys with carbon (coal). |
| | | |
| | | #### Copper ¹ |
| | | Copper is a common metal, used either on its own for its electrical |
| | | conductivity, or as the base component of alloys. |
| | | Although common, it is very heavily used, and most of the time it will |
| | | be the material that most limits your activity. |
| | | |
| | | Tin is supplied by the moreores mod. It is found from elevation +8 |
| | | downwards, with no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond |
| | | that point. It is a common metal. Its main use in pure form is as a |
| | | component of electrical batteries. Apart from that its main purpose is |
| | | as the secondary ingredient in bronze (the base being copper), but bronze |
| | | is itself little used. Its abundance is well in excess of its usage, |
| | | so you will usually have a surplus of it. |
| | | #### Tin ¹ |
| | | Use: batteries, bronze |
| | | |
| | | Zinc is supplied by technic. It is found from elevation +2 downwards, |
| | | with no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond that point. |
| | | It is a common metal. Its main use is as the secondary ingredient |
| | | in brass (the base being copper), but brass is itself little used. |
| | | Its abundance is well in excess of its usage, so you will usually have |
| | | a surplus of it. |
| | | Tin is a common metal but is used rarely. Its abundance is well in excess |
| | | of its usage, so you will usually have a surplus of it. |
| | | |
| | | Chromium is supplied by technic. It is found from elevation -100 |
| | | downwards, with no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond |
| | | that point. It is a moderately common metal. Its main use is as the |
| | | secondary ingredient in stainless steel (the base being iron). |
| | | #### Zinc |
| | | Use: brass |
| | | |
| | | Uranium is supplied by technic. It is found only from elevation -80 down |
| | | to -300; using it therefore requires one to mine above elevation -300 even |
| | | though deeper mining is otherwise more productive. It is a moderately |
| | | common metal, useful only for reasons related to radioactivity: it forms |
| | | the fuel for nuclear reactors, and is also one of the best radiation |
| | | shielding materials available. It is not difficult to find enough uranium |
| | | ore to satisfy these uses. Beware that the ore is slightly radioactive: |
| | | it will slightly harm you if you stand as close as possible to it. |
| | | It is safe when more than a meter away or when mined. |
| | | Depth: 2m, more commonly below -32m |
| | | |
| | | Silver is supplied by the moreores mod. It is found from elevation -2 |
| | | downwards, with no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond |
| | | that point. It is a semi-precious metal. It is little used, being most |
| | | notably used in electrical items due to its conductivity, being the best |
| | | conductor of all the pure elements. |
| | | Zinc only has a few uses but is a common metal. |
| | | |
| | | Gold is part of the basic Minetest game (having migrated there from |
| | | moreores). It is found from elevation -64 downwards, but is more |
| | | abundant from elevation -256 downwards. It is a precious metal. It is |
| | | little used, being most notably used in electrical items due to its |
| | | combination of good conductivity (third best of all the pure elements) |
| | | and corrosion resistance. |
| | | #### Chromium |
| | | Use: stainless steel |
| | | |
| | | Mithril is supplied by the moreores mod. It is found from elevation |
| | | -512 downwards, the deepest ceiling of any minable substance, with |
| | | no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond that point. |
| | | It is a rare precious metal, and unlike all the other metals described |
| | | here it is entirely fictional, being derived from J. R. R. Tolkien's |
| | | Depth: -100m, more commonly below -200m |
| | | |
| | | #### Uranium |
| | | Use: nuclear reactor fuel |
| | | |
| | | Depth: -80m until -300m, more commonly between -100m and -200m |
| | | |
| | | It is a moderately common metal, useful only for reasons related to radioactivity: |
| | | it forms the fuel for nuclear reactors, and is also one of the best radiation |
| | | shielding materials available. |
| | | |
| | | Keep a safety distance of a meter to avoid being harmed by radiation. |
| | | |
| | | #### Silver ² |
| | | Use: conductors |
| | | |
| | | Depth: -2m, evenly common |
| | | |
| | | Silver is a semi-precious metal and is the best conductor of all the pure elements. |
| | | |
| | | #### Gold ¹ |
| | | Use: various |
| | | |
| | | Depth: -64m, more commonly below -256m |
| | | |
| | | Gold is a precious metal. It is most notably used in electrical items due to |
| | | its combination of good conductivity and corrosion resistance. |
| | | |
| | | #### Mithril ² |
| | | Use: chests |
| | | |
| | | Depth: -512m, evenly common |
| | | |
| | | Mithril is a fictional ore, being derived from J. R. R. Tolkien's |
| | | Middle-Earth setting. It is little used. |
| | | |
| | | Mese is part of the basic Minetest game. It is found from elevation |
| | | -64 downwards. The ore is more abundant from elevation -256 downwards, |
| | | and from elevation -1024 downwards there are also occasional blocks of |
| | | solid mese (each yielding as much mese as nine blocks of ore). It is a |
| | | precious gemstone, and unlike diamond it is entirely fictional. It is |
| | | used in many recipes, though mainly not in large quantities, wherever |
| | | some magical quality needs to be imparted. |
| | | #### Mese ¹ |
| | | Use: various |
| | | |
| | | Diamond is part of the basic Minetest game (having migrated there from |
| | | technic). It is found from elevation -128 downwards, but is more abundant |
| | | from elevation -256 downwards. It is a precious gemstone. It is used |
| | | moderately, mainly for reasons connected to its extreme hardness. |
| | | Mese is a precious gemstone, and unlike diamond it is entirely fictional. |
| | | It is used in small quantities, wherever some magic needs to be imparted. |
| | | |
| | | ### rock ### |
| | | #### Diamond ¹ |
| | | Use: mainly for cutting machines |
| | | |
| | | In addition to the ores, there are multiple kinds of rock that need to be |
| | | mined in their own right, rather than for minerals. The rock types that |
| | | matter in technic are standard stone, desert stone, marble, and granite. |
| | | Diamond is a precious gemstone. It is used moderately, mainly for reasons |
| | | connected to its extreme hardness. |
| | | |
| | | Standard stone is part of the basic Minetest game. It is extremely |
| | | common. As in the basic game, when dug it yields cobblestone, which can |
| | | be cooked to turn it back into standard stone. Cobblestone is used in |
| | | recipes only for some relatively primitive machines. Standard stone is |
| | | used in a couple of machine recipes. These rock types gain additional |
| | | significance with technic because the grinder can be used to turn them |
| | | into dirt and sand. This, especially when combined with an automated |
| | | cobblestone generator, can be an easier way to acquire sand than |
| | | collecting it where it occurs naturally. |
| | | ### Rocks |
| | | |
| | | Desert stone is part of the basic Minetest game. It is found specifically |
| | | in desert biomes, and only from elevation +2 upwards. Although it is |
| | | easily accessible, therefore, its quantity is ultimately quite limited. |
| | | It is used in a few recipes. |
| | | This section describes the rock types added by technic. Further rock types |
| | | are supported by technic machines. These can be processed using the grinder: |
| | | |
| | | Marble is supplied by technic. It is found in dense clusters from |
| | | elevation -50 downwards. It has mainly decorative use, but also appears |
| | | in one machine recipe. |
| | | * Stone (plain) |
| | | * Cobblestone |
| | | * Desert Stone |
| | | |
| | | Granite is supplied by technic. It is found in dense clusters from |
| | | elevation -150 downwards. It is much harder to dig than standard stone, |
| | | so impedes mining when it is encountered. It has mainly decorative use, |
| | | but also appears in a couple of machine recipes. |
| | | #### Marble |
| | | Depth: -50m, evenly common |
| | | |
| | | ### rubber ### |
| | | Marble is found in dense clusters and has mainly decorative use, but also |
| | | appears in one machine recipe. |
| | | |
| | | #### Granite |
| | | Depth: -150m, evenly common |
| | | |
| | | Granite is found in dense clusters and is much harder to dig than standard |
| | | stone. It has mainly decorative use, but also appears in a couple of |
| | | machine recipes. |
| | | |
| | | ### Rubber |
| | | Rubber is a biologically-derived material that has industrial uses due |
| | | to its electrical resistivity and its impermeability. In technic, it |
| | | is used in a few recipes, and it must be acquired by tapping rubber trees. |
| | | |
| | | If you have the moretrees mod installed, the rubber trees you need |
| | | are those defined by that mod. If not, technic supplies a copy of the |
| | | moretrees rubber tree. |
| | | Rubber trees are provided by technic if the moretrees mod is not present. |
| | | |
| | | Extracting rubber requires a specific tool, a tree tap. Using the tree |
| | | tap (by left-clicking) on a rubber tree trunk block extracts a lump of |
| | | raw latex from the trunk. Each trunk block can be repeatedly tapped for |
| | | latex, at intervals of several minutes; its appearance changes to show |
| | | whether it is currently ripe for tapping. Each tree has several trunk |
| | | blocks, so several latex lumps can be extracted from a tree in one visit. |
| | | Extract raw latex from rubber using the "Tree Tap" tool. Punch/left-click the |
| | | tool on a rubber tree trunk to extract a lump of raw latex from the trunk. |
| | | Emptied trunks will regenerate at intervals of several minutes, which can be |
| | | observed by its appearance. |
| | | |
| | | Raw latex isn't used directly. It must be vulcanized to produce finished |
| | | rubber. This can be performed by alloying the latex with coal dust. |
| | | To obtain rubber from latex, alloy latex with coal dust. |
| | | |
| | | ### metal ### |
| | | ### Metals |
| | | Generally, each metal can exist in five forms: |
| | | |
| | | Many of the substances important in technic are metals, and there is |
| | | a common pattern in how metals are handled. Generally, each metal can |
| | | exist in five forms: ore, lump, dust, ingot, and block. With a couple of |
| | | tricky exceptions in mods outside technic, metals are only *used* in dust, |
| | | ingot, and block forms. Metals can be readily converted between these |
| | | three forms, but can't be converted from them back to ore or lump forms. |
| | | * ore -> stone containing the lump |
| | | * lump -> draw metal obtained by digging ("nuggets") |
| | | * dust -> grinder output |
| | | * ingot -> melted/cooked lump or dust |
| | | * block -> placeable node |
| | | |
| | | As in the basic Minetest game, a "lump" of metal is acquired directly by |
| | | digging ore, and will then be processed into some other form for use. |
| | | A lump is thus more akin to ore than to refined metal. (In real life, |
| | | metal ore rarely yields lumps ("nuggets") of pure metal directly. |
| | | More often the desired metal is chemically bound into the rock as an |
| | | oxide or some other compound, and the ore must be chemically processed |
| | | to yield pure metal.) |
| | | Metals can be converted between dust, ingot and block, but can't be converted |
| | | from them back to ore or lump forms. |
| | | |
| | | Not all metals occur directly as ore. Generally, elemental metals (those |
| | | consisting of a single chemical element) occur as ore, and alloys (those |
| | | consisting of a mixture of multiple elements) do not. In fact, if the |
| | | fictional mithril is taken to be elemental, this pattern is currently |
| | | followed perfectly. (It is not clear in the Middle-Earth setting whether |
| | | mithril is elemental or an alloy.) This might change in the future: |
| | | in real life some alloys do occur as ore, and some elemental metals |
| | | rarely occur naturally outside such alloys. Metals that do not occur |
| | | as ore also lack the "lump" form. |
| | | #### Grinding |
| | | Ores can be processed as follows: |
| | | |
| | | The basic Minetest game offers a single way to refine metals: cook a lump |
| | | in a furnace to produce an ingot. With technic this refinement method |
| | | still exists, but is rarely used outside the early part of the game, |
| | | because technic offers a more efficient method once some machines have |
| | | been built. The grinder, available only in electrically-powered forms, |
| | | can grind a metal lump into two piles of metal dust. Each dust pile |
| | | can then be cooked into an ingot, yielding two ingots from one lump. |
| | | This doubling of material value means that you should only cook a lump |
| | | directly when you have no choice, mainly early in the game when you |
| | | haven't yet built a grinder. |
| | | * ore -> lump (digging) -> ingot (melting) |
| | | * ore -> lump (digging) -> 2x dust (grinding) -> 2x ingot (melting) |
| | | |
| | | An ingot can also be ground back to (one pile of) dust. Thus it is always |
| | | possible to convert metal between ingot and dust forms, at the expense |
| | | of some energy consumption. Nine ingots of a metal can be crafted into |
| | | a block, which can be used for building. The block can also be crafted |
| | | back to nine ingots. Thus it is possible to freely convert metal between |
| | | ingot and block forms, which is convenient to store the metal compactly. |
| | | Every metal has dust, ingot, and block forms. |
| | | At the expense of some energy consumption, the grinder can extract more material |
| | | from the lump, resulting in 2x dust which can be melted to two ingots in total. |
| | | |
| | | #### Alloying |
| | | Alloying recipes in which a metal is the base ingredient, to produce a |
| | | metal alloy, always come in two forms, using the metal either as dust |
| | | or as an ingot. If the secondary ingredient is also a metal, it must |
| | | be supplied in the same form as the base ingredient. The output alloy |
| | | is also returned in the same form. For example, brass can be produced |
| | | by alloying two copper ingots with one zinc ingot to make three brass |
| | | ingots, or by alloying two piles of copper dust with one pile of zinc |
| | | dust to make three piles of brass dust. The two ways of alloying produce |
| | | equivalent results. |
| | | is also returned in the same form. |
| | | |
| | | Example: 2x copper ingots + zinc ingot -> 3x brass ingot (alloying) |
| | | |
| | | The same will also work for dust ingredients, resulting in brass dist. |
| | | |
| | | ### iron and its alloys ### |
| | | |
| | |
| | | and stone in 1.7 m. When a shield must be deliberately constructed, |
| | | the preferred materials are metals, the denser the better. Iron and |
| | | steel halve radiation in 1.1 m, copper in 1.0 m, and silver in 0.95 m. |
| | | Lead would halve in 0.69 m if it were in the game, but it's not, which |
| | | poses a bit of a problem due to the drawbacks of the three materials in |
| | | the game that are better shielding than silver. Gold halves radiation |
| | | Lead would halve in 0.69 m (its in-game shielding value is 80). Gold halves radiation |
| | | in 0.53 m (factor of 3.7 per meter), but is a bit scarce to use for |
| | | this purpose. Uranium halves radiation in 0.31 m (factor of 9.4 per |
| | | meter), but is itself radioactive. The very best shielding in the game |
| | | is nyancat material (nyancats and their rainbow blocks), which halves |
| | | radiation in 0.22 m (factor of 24 per meter), but is extremely scarce. |
| | | radiation in 0.22 m (factor of 24 per meter), but is extremely scarce. See [technic/technic/radiation.lua](https://github.com/minetest-technic/technic/blob/master/technic/radiation.lua) for the in-game shielding values, which are different from real-life values. |
| | | |
| | | If the theoretical radiation damage from a particular source is |
| | | sufficiently small, due to distance and shielding, then no damage at all |
| | |
| | | energy to let an electrical network cope with mismatched supply and |
| | | demand. They have a secondary purpose of charging and discharging |
| | | powered tools. They are thus a mixture of electrical infrastructure, |
| | | powered machine, and generator. |
| | | powered machine, and generator. Battery boxes connect to cables only |
| | | from the bottom. |
| | | |
| | | MV and HV battery boxes have upgrade slots. Energy upgrades increase |
| | | the capacity of a battery box, each by 10% of the un-upgraded capacity. |
| | |
| | | infrastructure of that tier, just to get access to faster charging. |
| | | |
| | | MV and HV battery boxes work with pneumatic tubes. An item can be input |
| | | to the charging slot through the bottom of the battery box, or to the |
| | | discharging slot through the top. Items are not accepted through the |
| | | front, back, or sides. With a tube upgrade, fully charged/discharged |
| | | tools (as appropriate for their slot) will be ejected through a side. |
| | | to the charging slot through the sides or back of the battery box, or |
| | | to the discharging slot through the top. With a tube upgrade, fully |
| | | charged/discharged tools (as appropriate for their slot) will be ejected |
| | | through a side. |
| | | |
| | | ### processing machines ### |
| | | |
| | | The furnace, alloy furnace, grinder, extractor, compressor, and centrifuge |
| | | have much in common. Each implements some industrial process that |
| | | transforms items into other items, and they manner in which they present |
| | | transforms items into other items, and the manner in which they present |
| | | these processes as powered machines is essentially identical. |
| | | |
| | | Most of the processing machines operate on inputs of only a single type |
| | |
| | | complex: it will put an arriving item in either input slot, preferring to |
| | | stack it with existing items of the same type. It doesn't matter which |
| | | slot each of the alloy furnace's inputs is in, so it doesn't matter that |
| | | there's no direct control ovar that, but there is a risk that supplying |
| | | there's no direct control over that, but there is a risk that supplying |
| | | a lot of one item type through tubes will result in both slots containing |
| | | the same type of item, leaving no room for the second input. |
| | | |
| | |
| | | ### forcefield emitter ### |
| | | |
| | | The forcefield emitter is an HV powered machine that generates a |
| | | forcefield remeniscent of those seen in many science-fiction stories. |
| | | forcefield reminiscent of those seen in many science-fiction stories. |
| | | |
| | | The emitter can be configured to generate a forcefield of either |
| | | spherical or cubical shape, in either case centered on the emitter. |
| | |
| | | |
| | | ### fuel-fired generators ### |
| | | |
| | | The fiel-fired generators are electrical power generators that generate |
| | | The fuel-fired generators are electrical power generators that generate |
| | | power by the combustion of fuel. Versions of them are available for |
| | | all three voltages (LV, MV, and HV). These are all capable of burning |
| | | any type of combustible fuel, such as coal. They are relatively easy |
| | |
| | | |
| | | ### hydro generator ### |
| | | |
| | | The hydro generator is an LV power generator that generates a small amount |
| | | of power from the natural motion of water. To operate, the generator must |
| | | be horizontally adjacent to water. It doesn't matter whether the water |
| | | consists of source blocks or flowing blocks. Having water adjacent on |
| | | more than one side, up to the full four, increases the generator's output. |
| | | The water itself is unaffected by the generator. |
| | | The hydro generator is an LV power generator that generates a respectable |
| | | amount of power from the natural motion of water. To operate, the |
| | | generator must be horizontally adjacent to flowing water. The power |
| | | produced is dependent on how much flow there is across any or all four |
| | | sides, the most flow of course coming from water that's flowing straight |
| | | down. |
| | | |
| | | ### geothermal generator ### |
| | | |