Ship Systems

StarMade uses a block-group system to determine how sets of same-type blocks behave together. This is most important for weapons, where grouping affects how shots are fired.

What is a Block Group?

A block group is a set of blocks of the same type that are all touching each other (face-to-face, not diagonal). A solid cube is one block group. A straight line is also one block group. A single isolated block is its own group.

Reactors

Reactors are the core of your ship, generating the energy that all other ship systems use to function, and are the central linking point for your reactor chambers, which modify other ship systems. See Reactors.

Chambers

Chambers are sub-systems that branch off from your reactor and modify the function of other systems on your ship (such as shields, jump drives, and thrusters), or give you new systems (such as scanners and stealth drives). See Chambers.

Thrusters

Thruster modules add to your ship's maximum speed and acceleration. More blocks equals more thrust. Higher thrust to mass ratio gives you a higher top speed. See Thrusters.

Shields

Shield modules generate a shield that absorbs damage before it reaches your hull. Shield recharge requires power, so size your reactors to support your shield blocks. See Shields.

Weapon and Salvager Groups

Each contiguous group of weapon, salvager, or astrotech barrel/module blocks fires as a single shot. You can choose between:

Layout	Effect
All barrels in one touching group	One powerful shot
Multiple separate groups	Multiple weaker simultaneous shots

The weapon or salvage computer is a separate block and doesn't need to touch the barrels — it is connected via the link system. See Weapons and Salvagers.