Condenser

Summary

The Condenser was an Extractor whose production varied depending on the altitude of the condenser. Once constructed, the condenser would start to condense iridium found in the atmosphere and move it to its output pipe.

Condensers produced more iridium the higher up they were, so for maximum efficiency, people would often build them at tall heights, usually on skybases.

On an update on July 31st, 2024, condensers were removed and replaced with Spire Batteries.

Overview

The Condenser was an excellent option to power bases that are at high altitudes. The prime examples of this were skybases. However, they were very ineffective at ground level.

The Condenser had a small screen displaying its production. Condenser production automatically scales to the height of the map (which can be adjusted in private servers). The condenser's production was defined by the following equation, where x equals blocks above ground level:

(math.log10(math.max(1.25, math.min(height * 1.7 - 49, 340) * 0.0093)) * 10 + 0.19) * producerMultiplier

Players sometimes placed condensers on the ground with the belief that condensers will have an impact on their iridium production. This, however, costed more time, iridium, and space than it was worth. It was much better to expand on the mainland and build Well Pumps instead. A single maxed well pump is equivalent to 13 condensers on the ground. At max height, 3 condensers are equal to 1 maxed pump.

A common misconception was that condensers use the fog in the air, similar to the fog near the ocean, to make power. However, this is not true, as the higher condensers are, the more iridium they produce.

On Skybases, condensers could be connected together using a "chain pipe" tactic, which uses t-junctions and normal pipes.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Can be placed anywhere
• Can produce iridium for high-altitude bases
• Can be built en masse
• Relatively inexpensive
• Produce large amounts of iridium at low cost

Cons

• A large amount of space and number of condensers are needed to power a base.
• Needs to be built high up to be effective.
• Weak and large, making them easy targets