What to do with a water world

[Mako Kai]

One of my systems has a water world, which at first I was excited about at first. I thought building a tourist station or a science station above it would be cool. However, after learning a lot about weak links and the havoc it can create on my refinery economy, I realize that now I don’t want either. Because both tourist and high tech could eat some of my refinery products. So now I’m thinking of building a space farm, because there is already a commercial outpost there, and at least I’ll be able to get some fruit and veggies there for further building.

Am I missing any other better uses for a water world that I’m missing?

 

[SlickPBW]

FSS it, DSS it. Then admire it.

 

[PilotB]

Am I missing any other better uses for a water world that I’m missing?

If you place a single station of any type there and no other stations they won't give links. You already have one so it's just the links you can accept or would build anyway.

 

[_Flin_]

However, after learning a lot about weak links and the havoc it can create on my refinery economy, I realize that now I don’t want either.

What commodities are you afraid of?

I have a tourist T3 around a Waterworld in a refinery system. "Victoria Wolf Resort", check out the market. It even provides Steel, Titanium, Aluminium, conductors and even liquid oxygen on multi-FC levels with the 20% refinery from the weak links. Have created two tourist installations/settlements so far.

Tourist eats into gold and silver. Have not noticed any impact on other refinery commodities.

The other stations and ports still provide Insulating Membrane and Ceramic Composites.

So imho Tourist is rather easy on refinery.

 

[Rock Hunter]

I thought the significant boost in population a waterworld with a large station orbiting may boost production while not giving a negative effect on the colonisation commodities produced by a decent refinery.

I guess I’ll find out soon enough. I have a Coriolis (it was my primary build) around a WW. With a Hestia Outpost being built on a rocky moon with space for three refineries and another orbital station above it. Beyond that all other constructions will have zero economic effects.

 

[_Flin_]

This is definitely the case.

Be aware, though, that the pop increase and therefore the production increase is limited to the actual station around the WW.

Population does not migrate to the other stations in system. At least not from what i have observed.

 

[Rock Hunter]

It’s a shame, particularly as I favour a switch to Cmdrs choosing with free reign the placement of the primary build (which would include any available surface builds,*) but a T3 was way too much for me to solo in four weeks.

I’m still hopeful it will be enough, and possibly enough should I go with a longer term T3 build in the orbiting slot, for a lesser but still noticeable population boost.

* I don’t expect to see this happen at any stage.

 

[Astrofizzix]

The best use for a water world is a T3 orbis or ocellus. Water worlds give a huge bonus multiplier to population on stations built around it. The T3 alone will probably pick up agriculture/tourism and produce crazy amounts of water, grain, fruits & vegetables for building out from.

Even weak links from other stations anywhere else in the system will be considerable to the ww-linked orbis. The orbis I have (Port Olisar) produces lots of metals and liquid oxygen from three refineries on a different planet in the system.

High population in the system will provide large multipliers on goods produced by anything throughout the system. Edit: I retract this statement as I believe it is limited to only stations around the body as Flin observed.

My system is based on a T3 orbis around a water world. The only difference is it has three orbital slots. One of which I place a scientific outpost to add some high tech items to the orbis.

Current population as of yesterday was around 650 million.

System for reference:
Col 285 Sector KI-A C14-8

 

[_Flin_]

High population in the system will provide large multipliers on goods produced by anything throughout the system.

Not from i have observed. My refinery Coriolis only system had 500k pops and offered 120kt of Steel. Now with 118m is offers 140kt Steel.

After all the stuff i added (T3 Orbis, T1 planet. port, outpost, sec station, tourist installation) this 15% increase is explainable with higher SoL, Dev and Wealth. But not with some kind of systemwide population multiplier.

WWs are nevertheless the secret champions, because you can turn it into almost anything with a few weak links. Except a gold mine.

 

[Mako Kai]

What commodities are you afraid of?

I have a tourist T3 around a Waterworld in a refinery system. "Victoria Wolf Resort", check out the market. It even provides Steel, Titanium, Aluminium, conductors and even liquid oxygen on multi-FC levels with the 20% refinery from the weak links. Have created two tourist installations/settlements so far.

Tourist eats into gold and silver. Have not noticed any impact on other refinery commodities.

The other stations and ports still provide Insulating Membrane and Ceramic Composites.

So imho Tourist is rather easy on refinery.

I think Insulating Membranes were a concern. From my notes after reading through many of these threads was that you basically want to keep your Refinery systems as clean as possible, as stray weak links can mess with what is supplied. And the only three that don't have a major affect on Refinery economies are Extraction, Agriculture, and...maybe Tourism was the third one. Please fact check me on this.

I thought it would be cool to have a tourist station there, but for practicality a space farm would make more sense so that i can get water and fruits and veggies for further facility building from the commercial port in the slot next to it.

The best use for a water world is a T3 orbis or ocellus. Water worlds give a huge bonus multiplier to population on stations built around it. The T3 alone will probably pick up agriculture/tourism and produce crazy amounts of water, grain, fruits & vegetables for building out from.

Even weak links from other stations anywhere else in the system will be considerable to the ww-linked orbis. The orbis I have (Port Olisar) produces lots of metals and liquid oxygen from three refineries on a different planet in the system.

High population in the system will provide large multipliers on goods produced by anything throughout the system.

My system is based on a T3 orbis around a water world. The only difference is it has three orbital slots. One of which I place a scientific outpost to add some high tech items to the orbis.

Current population as of yesterday was around 650 million.

System for reference:
Col 285 Sector KI-A C14-8

Not from i have observed. My refinery Coriolis only system had 500k pops and offered 120kt of Steel. Now with 118m is offers 140kt Steel.

After all the stuff i added (T3 Orbis, T1 planet. port, outpost, sec station, tourist installation) this 15% increase is explainable with higher SoL, Dev and Wealth. But not with some kind of systemwide population multiplier.

WWs are nevertheless the secret champions, because you can turn it into almost anything with a few weak links. Except a gold mine.

Now THIS is new to me and intriguing. I had no idea that water worlds could cause a population explosion, which would be great. However from what I'm reading there seems to be a difference of opinion if that population increase affects just that planet, or if it benefits the whole system.

Here's the rundown of my refinery system. It's not great for refinery, but out of the four systems i got right next to each other, it's the best I've got. There's a bunch of planets with slots, but most are either RMC with organics (not good) or ice (also not good). So I have #1 RMC (no organics) with 3 ground/2 space, and #2 RMC (no organics) and 2 ground/1 space. The original plan was to use #2 as a little refinery base, and then build a T3 planetary port on #1 with 2 refinery hubs, with a T3 Ocellus in orbit for super refinery production (I know, that's a huge project, but I'm not planning to do that all at once, just pick away at it).

Now this water world, and this new information, might change that. It's way out orbiting the B star, and game forced me to use one of it's two orbital slots with my primary port, with is a commercial outpost. If the population increase only affects things orbiting the water world, I'm not sure if replacing one of those T3's I was planning to build and building it instead in the 2nd slot would do me much good. However if it affects the whole system, that might be different. Thoughts?

 

[_Flin_]

Now this water world, and this new information, might change that. It's way out orbiting the B star, and game forced me to use one of it's two orbital slots with my primary port, with is a commercial outpost. If the population increase only affects things orbiting the water world, I'm not sure if replacing one of those T3's I was planning to build and building it instead in the 2nd slot would do me much good. However if it affects the whole system, that might be different. Thoughts?

Population is mostly just a number on the map. Apart from making the BGS waaaay more stable (or increasing effort).

What population offers is huge supply and demand, and therefore goods and possibly good trade routes.

After we have built several T3s in our squadron, our current approach is: only build T3s for population boost around earth likes/water worlds. There is no need to build a T3 anywhere else. A well built T1 offers significant resources (see Victoria Wolf Composites Market ). A well built Coriolis offers more supply that can possibly be drained, except with a CG ( see Victoria Wolf Steel Market ). The T3 is the difference between double-triple digit kilotons supply and megatons supply. A good system will make a T3 meaningful through weak links. ( see Victoria Wolf Resort Market ). Victoria Wolf Resort, my Tourism station around a waterworld, offer triple digit kilotons Steel, Aluminium, Titanium, etc. With 20% Refinery economy. And that's after only 4 population ticks and 118m pop 223m pop (Edit: pop ticks have been updated, and the system is now in Boom, which changes the demand/supply figures, but the point is still valid). You do not need more. You do not need megatons. (Edit: At least there is no use case i can imagine outside of a CG).

So for resource supplies i'd concentrate on T1 planetary and T2 Coriolis. Everything else is megagrind and unnecessary overkill. Sure, an eternal construction to get rid of your T3 points. But who knows, maybe keep them and put them to yet unknown uses later.

I'd place a T3 around the WW, and rather colonize another system than build an additional T3. You get an amazing system for 200k. With 4 T2 economy buildings, security, standard of living, a T1 port and a Coriolis. One that supplies a 40-60ly radius, 500ly if it's good for carriers.

But that's just me. If you have emotional or flavor aspirations, build all those T3s.

 

[Mako Kai]

That actually sounds like a really good plan. And a lot less of a headache building a second T3. Will a T3 over a Waterworld provide a bigger population boost than a T3 planetary port?

 

[_Flin_]

That actually sounds like a really good plan. And a lot less of a headache building a second T3. Will a T3 over a Waterworld provide a bigger population boost than a T3 planetary port?

Yes, significantly. Just check inara. T3 above WW offers triple digit million population. 250m-750m.

T3 offers mid-double-digit millions. Possibly with the exception of agri economy, but havent seen one of those.

 

[Mako Kai]

Great info, thanks!

 

[Doctor Dread]

A quick advice needed:

This is the new system I found and want to claim:

I need to build this colonization Slot 1 quickly, so I can later leisurely build an Orbis there on Slot 0.

What's better / less intrusive outpost, Civilian or Commercial?

 

[Kzak]

A quick advice needed:

This is the new system I found and want to claim:

I need to build this colonization Slot 1 quickly, so I can later leisurely build an Orbis there on Slot 0.

What's better / less intrusive outpost, Civilian or Commercial?

Anything with Colony economy is unintrusive. It depends on what stats you want from the T1 orbital outpost. The Commercial outpost gives +3 Wealth and +5 Standard of Living, which is a higher sum of stats compared to the Civilian outpost.

 

[PilotB]

What's better / less intrusive outpost, Civilian or Commercial?

Criminal. It has 0 negative links. Civilian and commercial will link the body economy to the rest of the system. So if you don't want any system wide market impact criminal.

 

[Ned Flandalorian]

Civilian and commercial will link the body economy to the rest of the system.

They don't do that if they're in orbit by themselves.

 

[PilotB]

They don't do that if they're in orbit by themselves.

The question was explicity about claiming with an outpost so that a t3 Orbis could be built without a time limit. The answer takes that into account.

 

[KKomrade Sylas]

If you care about population, a water world provides a boost to that. A single station around the water world will not disrupt your economy makeup elsewhere, so it's just a nice place to put a station over to have a big big pop system.

All that being said, while a normal Coriolis around a random planet gives approx like 500k population in total after it grows for a while, I think one around a water world will give you more or less 10 million pop. It's a big jump from the base coriolis, but it's still not 'big' and can be a bit underwhelming if you were expecting more. You can get like 600-700 million pop out of it if you build a T3, but that may be out of your time budget. On a normal system without a water world you can still get a ton of pop by just building Tier 1 planetary ports and supporting with other small constructions like settlements and installations.