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This page introduces the early game in SpaceCraft. SpaceCraft is an online space exploration and building game, so your first hours center on learning to fly, scan, mine, craft, and build while you find your footing in a shared universe.
The First Loop
At its heart, the early game is a loop: explore a system, scan it for resources, mine raw materials, craft them into parts, and improve or expand your ship. Each step feeds the next, and the better your ship, the farther and faster you can explore.
Explore a star system by piloting your ship in real time. Systems contain planets, asteroid fields, abandoned space stations, and derelict ships.
Scan your surroundings to reveal where valuable resources are located.
Mine raw materials from planets and asteroids using your ship and tools.
Craft those raw materials into refined materials and ship parts.
Use the parts to build or upgrade your ship, then push deeper into the galaxy.
Moving Through Space
You fly your ship in real time and transition seamlessly from deep space down to planet surfaces. To cover long distances between systems, SpaceCraft uses Faster-Than-Light travel, letting you jump between distant systems quickly. See Exploration and FTL Travel for details.
Building Your First Ship
Ships are assembled from crafted parts, and every component you add affects performance. Early on you can build a small, nimble vessel suited to exploration and light mining. If you prefer a head start, you can buy a Blueprint from another player and build a ready-made design instantly. As you progress you can specialize ships toward exploration, trade, or combat. See Ship Building for the full system.
Settling In
Once you can reliably gather resources, you can establish a base on a planet and begin turning an outpost into a productive hub. Bases let you process materials and, over time, automate production so you are not mining every load by hand. See Base Building and Automation and Logistics.
Playing With Others
SpaceCraft supports solo play as well as multiplayer, including online co-op. As you grow, you can create or join a Corporation to pool effort with other players, divide tasks, and build larger operations. The Trading marketplace is shared, so you can buy and sell with other players from early on. See Corporations and Co-op and Trading and the Player-Driven Economy.
Tips for New Players
Scan before you mine so you spend time extracting the materials you actually need.
Keep your first ship simple and cheap to operate while you learn how components affect performance.
Sell surplus resources and parts on the marketplace to fund your next upgrade.
Remember that the game is in Early Access, so systems and balance can change between updates.