The Space Elevator is the win-condition machine. You do not craft its parts by hand — you build production lines that manufacture Project Parts and feed them in. This guide lists every phase requirement at the default 1× multiplier so you can plan factory capacity instead of guessing.
The building itself
The Space Elevator occupies a 48 m × 54 m footprint (about 2,592 m²) and stands 118 m tall. Only one can exist in the world. Build it on flat, permanent ground — you will be running belts and trains to it for the whole game, so place it somewhere central rather than a cramped starting biome.
The five project phases
Deliver the exact parts listed; each phase unlocks the tier band shown.
| Phase | Unlocks | Exact part requirements |
|---|---|---|
| 1 — Distribution Platform | Tier 3 & 4 | 50 × Smart Plating |
| 2 — Construction Dock | Tier 5 & 6 | 1,000 × Smart Plating, 1,000 × Versatile Framework, 100 × Automated Wiring |
| 3 — Main Body | Tier 7 & 8 | 2,500 × Versatile Framework, 500 × Modular Engine, 100 × Adaptive Control Unit |
| 4 — Propulsion | Tier 9 | 500 × Assembly Director System, 500 × Magnetic Field Generator, 250 × Thermal Propulsion Rocket, 100 × Nuclear Pasta |
| 5 — Assembly | Launch | 1,000 × Nuclear Pasta, 1,000 × Biochemical Sculptor, 256 × AI Expansion Server, 200 × Ballistic Warp Drive |
Phase 1 is a gentle 50 parts. Phase 2 is the first wall: 2,100 parts across three item types. Phase 3 needs 3,100 parts and introduces Modular Engines. Phase 4 and 5 are late-game mega-builds — note how Nuclear Pasta appears in both (100 in phase 4, 1,000 in phase 5), so over-build that line early.
Planning the production lines
Each Project Part is made in a specific machine (Smart Plating and Versatile Framework in Assemblers, Modular Engines and later parts in Manufacturers). Two real numbers drive your layout:
- Machine footprints (from the building data): Constructor 8×10, Assembler 9×16, Manufacturer 18×20, Blender 18×16. A Manufacturer needs more than twice an Assembler’s floor space, so budget room for the phase 4-5 lines.
- Belt throughput (see the main bus guide): a Mk.1 belt carries 60 items/min and a Mk.5 carries 780. Size each part line to the belt mark you can unlock by that tier.
A practical order: stand up a Smart Plating line first (it is needed in phases 1 and 2), then Versatile Framework, then Automated Wiring. By phase 3 add Modular Engines, and by phase 4-5 build the Manufacturer-heavy lines for Assembly Director Systems, Magnetic Field Generators, Thermal Propulsion Rockets, Nuclear Pasta, Biochemical Sculptors, AI Expansion Servers and Ballistic Warp Drives.
Common mistakes
- Building the Elevator on a tiny pad, then having no room for the belt and train approaches.
- Treating phase 1’s 50 parts as representative — phase 2 is 40× larger.
- Under-building Nuclear Pasta, which is required in both phase 4 and phase 5.