For a stable start in Factorio, apply the core habits of a Factorio beginner guide: keep the factory readable, leave spare power capacity and supply your turrets. Those choices prevent the early stalls that waste the most time.
Key points
- A starter bus can carry iron, copper, steel and green circuits.
- Chemical science introduces oil processing and chemical plants.
- Automated ammunition is essential to reliable turret defense.
- The official demo features research, turrets, walls and piercing rounds.
A Factorio beginner guide starts with room to expand. A cramped base may look efficient for an hour, then every new production line requires a rebuild.
Key takeaways
- Put iron, copper, steel and green circuits on a simple bus.
- Keep one side for assemblers and the other clear for belt crossings.
- Add boiler and steam-engine capacity before the power grid reaches its limit.
- Stabilize red and green science before multiplying labs.
- Automate magazines, inserters, walls and turrets before attacks escalate.
Factorio beginner guide: build an expandable main bus
A main bus carries materials used by several production lines. Four iron belts, four copper belts, two steel belts and two green-circuit belts make a practical start. Run them in one direction.
Leave two tiles between belt groups. Underground belts can then cross the bus later without cutting a line. Keep assemblers on the same side so expansion remains predictable.
- Smelt iron and copper near ore patches.
- Send plates to the bus on separate belts.
- Make green circuits beside iron and copper.
- Put circuits on the bus and draw materials from one side.
- Expand supply upstream when a belt runs short.
Do not place copper cable on the bus. Direct-insert it into green-circuit assemblers because it crafts quickly and consumes belt throughput.
Factorio beginner guide: prevent a power shortage
Check the electric graph before every major expansion. When demand permanently meets production, a few new drills or labs can slow the whole factory.
Give boilers a dedicated coal belt. Build by water and leave room to copy the setup. In the classic setup, one boiler supplies two steam engines. Nuclear heat exchangers later provide hot steam to turbines, so the two power builds are not interchangeable.
Scale science without starving the factory
Run a small number of labs continuously on red and green packs before adding more labs. Extra labs do nothing when copper or power already fails.
Military science helps when attacks rise. Prepare steel, engines, advanced circuits and pipes before chemical science. Oil processing, refineries and chemical plants add a major new production layer.
Automate defense before attacks grow
Attacks follow polluted areas. Protect exposed approaches and critical mines with turret groups, then place walls in front. A breach near coal can trigger a power failure across the factory.
- Automate magazines and keep a limited buffer.
- Automate inserters, turrets and walls.
- Deliver ammunition by belt or a short inserter-fed supply chain.
- Put walls in front of the turrets.
- Research damage and firing-speed upgrades when attacks become costly.
Clear nests inside the pollution cloud before doubling furnace output. Turrets buy time, but they cannot replace a maintained perimeter.
Check supplies before expanding
Before adding furnaces or science, check ore, plates, boiler coal and magazines. An empty circuit line may point to missing iron, power or inserters. Leave open ground at the end of the bus for red and blue circuits, engines, plastic and later chains.
Browse our gaming articles, game news and latest posts. Read the official demo post for its featured mechanics and Wube’s official science notes for the science progression.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many belts should a first main bus have?Start with four iron, four copper, two steel and two green-circuit belts. Expand only when a supply line is truly short.
No. Direct-insert cable into green-circuit assemblers to preserve belt capacity.
Add capacity before the electric graph shows demand permanently touching production.
Check power, the input belts and every pack colour required by the active technology.
Add military science when attacks matter, then prepare chemical science with oil and its advanced intermediates.
Automate ammunition, inserters and turrets, then supply magazines by belt or inserter-fed chests.
No. Cover exposed routes and critical mines first. Walls need turrets and ammunition to stop attacks.
Use Wube’s official science notes and the official demo post.
Verified sources
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