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- Mid-Game Scarcity: Shallow Pool Radiant Heating
- Solid Transport & Fluid Density Hierarchy
- Update #3 Buoyancy Elevator
01
Mid-Game Scarcity: Shallow Pool Radiant Heating
When you need to stretch limited mid-game lava reserves, spread your lava thin (6-10 pixels deep) in a wide basin and hang Thermal Buffers just above the surface. The rising embers will slowly heat the buffers without consuming the entire pool. A ~6 block width is sufficient for belt power, while ~30 blocks can sustain flamethrowers. For maximum efficiency, players use an 8x8 perfect 1-pixel layout to spread the lava evenly before applying the Thermal Buffer.
02
Solid Transport & Fluid Density Hierarchy
Lava cannot be transported through standard fluid pipes due to its high density of 200. The reliable factory pattern is to freeze it into a solid (spray Snow to make Scoria, then excavate to Cinder), transport the Cinder on belts or launchers, and melt it back into Lava using a Flamethrower at the destination.
Additionally, because Update #3 increased Lava density to 200, lighter fluids like Water (density 100) and Florinol (density 120) will naturally float on top of it. If you need to extract Lava from a mixed basin, Pump intakes must be placed at the very bottom.
03
Update #3 Buoyancy Elevator
Because Update #3 increased Lava density to 200, lighter materials like Stratacore (density ~130) and Cinder (~50) now naturally float upward through it. You can exploit this for passive zero-electricity vertical transport: build a 2-wide vertical shaft, fill it with lava, and insert Stratacore at the bottom to see it rocket upwards at ~60 blocks/min.
Always line these lava shafts entirely with Basalt or manufactured Foundations. Lava will rapidly melt and destroy Strataform and Fluxite terrain.
