Building a Ship
Ships are built block by block in Build Mode. This guide takes you through spawning your first ship and making it flight-ready.
Spawning a Ship Core
Press X (default: Spawn Ship) to place a new Ship Core block in the world. Give your ship a name when prompted. The core must have enough clear space around it to materialise.
Tip: Don't look at the ground or a wall when spawning — the core needs room in the direction you are facing.
After spawning, enter the ship with R (look at the core first), then switch to build mode with Z.
Build Mode Basics
In build mode you pass through all blocks and float freely. This makes it easy to work inside and around your ship.
| Action | Key |
|---|---|
| Place block | Left Mouse Button |
| Remove block | Right Mouse Button |
| Select block | 1–9, 0 / Mouse wheel |
| Fast movement | Left Shift (hold) |
| Advanced Build Mode | Left Ctrl (hold) |
| Build tools radial menu | ` |
| Undo | Ctrl+Z |
The selected block type is shown in your hotbar. Open your inventory (I) to move blocks into the hotbar slots.
Making a Ship Flyable
A bare ship core cannot move or fire weapons. At minimum you need:
- Power Reactor Module — place one or more anywhere on the ship. More reactor blocks = more power generation. The layout of reactor groups affects efficiency (see Ship Systems).
- Thruster Module — place one or more anywhere on the ship. More thruster blocks = more top speed and acceleration. The direction the thrusters face doesn't matter mechanically — they push the ship forward in whatever direction the core is pointed.
With both placed, switch to flight mode (Z) — you can now fly.
Adding Weapons
To arm your ship:
- Place a Weapon Computer block (e.g. Cannon Computer).
- Place several Weapon Barrel/Module blocks near it. These are the actual gun barrels.
- Open the Weapon Panel (
G). - Drag the weapon computer into a hotbar slot at the bottom of the panel.
- Close the panel and select that slot with the number keys.
The weapon computer turns orange and pulses when it is the last selected/placed computer — this indicates it is "active" for connections.
See Weapons for details on weapon types and combinations.
Blueprint Tips
At any time, you can save your current ship as a blueprint:
- Open the Catalog (U, or the Catalog tab in inventory)
- Click Create New Entry
- The blueprint is saved and can later be spawned at any shop, provided you supply the required blocks
See Catalog & Blueprints for the full catalog guide.
Good Building Practices
- Build symmetrically — a balanced ship handles more predictably. Use symmetry planes (see Advanced Building) to mirror blocks automatically.
- Protect your core — the ship core is its most critical block. Surround it with hull and armour.
- Protect computers and reactors — a destroyed weapon computer disables that weapon system; a destroyed reactor drops available power.
- Use build mode fast movement (
Left Shift) to move quickly around large ships.