First trip to Vulcanus: what to bring (Factorio Space Age)

Vulcanus is usually the first planet players leave Nauvis for in Factorio: Space Age. It unlocks foundries, big mining drills, tungsten, and calcite—but only if you can stand up basic infrastructure by hand before a local mall exists.

This Beltworks checklist is a live Starter logistic request group refined after a second trip: Foundry craft solids, a rocket silo to bring with you, and enough power / belts / bots / chests to place a working starter base—not a finished automated outpost. Expect another revision once you see what you actually empty.

What this list is for

Ad-hoc craft and place early foundries (steel + refined concrete + green circuits packed below).

Drop a cargo pad, pull this kit from orbit, and wire temporary power + bot coverage on cliffs.

Build basic infra: drills, assemblers, chem/oil, belt lines, a short rail stub, labs, and a silo path home.

Hold off Demolishers long enough to unlock tungsten and leave.

It is scaffolding for the first hours, not the final factory.

Before you leave Nauvis

Working rockets and a platform that can reach Vulcanus and drop cargo.

Exactly one cargo landing pad for the planet (still bring it even if it is not in the Starter grid). Attach cargo bays for slots / drop rate.

Know how to board: How to board a rocket and travel to a space platform.

Foundry unlock needs Calcite processing (mine calcite) plus crafting tungsten carbide. See Foundry research stuck at 99% if the tech sits at Unavailable.

Foundry ad-hoc craft (why the steel / concrete / greens)

Once Foundry is researched, each foundry crafts from:

Tungsten carbide × 50 (make on Vulcanus after carbide unlock)

Steel plate × 50

Electronic circuit × 30

Refined concrete × 20

Lubricant × 20 (chem / oil kit below)

The Starter stacks (1k steel, 1k refined concrete, 200 green circuits) let you place several foundries by hand. Carbide and lubricant still come from Vulcanus-side crafting.

Starter checklist (copy this)

Quantities match the current Starter request group (screenshot below). Grouped by job for reading; order within groups follows the in-game grid.

Always bring (not always in the request group)

Cargo landing pad × 1 (one per planet max)

Cargo bay × enough for your platform’s drop slots (often ~10)

Silo + Foundry solids + early science

Rocket silo × 1 — bring a finished silo so you are not stranded without an export path

Steel plate × 1,000 — Foundry crafts + general builds

Refined concrete × 1,000 — Foundry crafts (not plain concrete)

Electronic circuit × 200 — Foundry crafts + early electronics

Electric engine unit × 50

Lab × 10 — research on-planet without waiting on Nauvis

Processing unit × 200 — mid-tier crafts / modules later

Iron plate × 100

Iron stick × 100

Fluids and chem

Pipe × 400

Pipe to ground × 200

Offshore pump × 20

Pump × 10

Storage tank × 50

Pumpjack × 20 — sulfuric acid / local fluids

Chemical plant × 50 — lubricant for Foundries

Oil refinery × 50

Power and poles

Vulcanus solar is very strong; keep steam / heat for spikes and familiar layouts.

Solar panel × 200

Accumulator × 200

Steam turbine × 50

Boiler × 50

Steam engine × 10

Heat exchanger × 10

Heat pipe × 50

Small electric pole × 50

Medium electric pole × 50

Big electric pole × 50

Power switch × 10

Lamp × 50

Radar × 50 — scout the pocket and Demolisher paths

Battery × 50

Belts and inserters (basic infra lines)

Tiered belts so you can build yellow → red → blue without a local mall.

Burner inserter × 50

Inserter × 400

Long-handed inserter × 400

Fast inserter × 400

Transport belt × 400

Underground belt × 50

Splitter × 50

Fast underground belt × 150

Fast splitter × 100

Express transport belt × 400

Express underground belt × 300

Express splitter × 150

Bots and logistics chests

Roboport × 50

Repair pack × 20

Personal roboport × 20 — armor grid construction

Battery equipment × 20

Active provider chest × 50

Passive provider chest × 50

Storage chest × 50

Buffer chest × 50

Requester chest × 50

Steel chest × 50

Circuits

Constant combinator × 50

Arithmetic combinator × 50

Decider combinator × 5

Programmable speaker × 5

Rail stub

Locomotive × 5

Cargo wagon × 50

Rail signal × 50

Rail chain signal × 10

Train stop × 20

Rail × 10 — short stub; expand after you know the route

Production machines

Electric mining drill × 50 — starter ore / coal / stone

Assembling machine 2 × 50

Assembling machine 3 × 10

Beacon × 50

Productivity module × 50

Speed module × 50

Defense

Stone wall × 100

Laser turret × 20

Piercing rounds magazine × 100

Submachine gun × 5

First hour on Vulcanus

1. Land in a pocket with room for the pad, power, and the silo footprint.

2. Place the cargo landing pad, solar / steam, and roboports.

3. Pull the Starter stacks. Place drills, assemblers, and temporary belt lines—do not redesign Nauvis on day one.

4. Mine calcite, craft tungsten carbide, finish Foundry research if needed.

5. Hand-craft foundries from the packed solids + local carbide / lubricant.

6. Plant the rocket silo once power and a feed path exist.

7. Note what you emptied—that becomes the next Starter revision.

Common mistakes

No cargo landing pad on the planet.

Bringing plain concrete instead of refined concrete for Foundries.

Forgetting lubricant / chem plants so Foundry crafts stall after the solids are ready.

Treating this as a finished base instead of basic infra scaffolding.

Foundry tech stuck at 99%: mine calcite for Calcite processing (Foundry research stuck at 99%).

What to search on Beltworks

Vulcanus solar / accumulator tiles and compact cargo-pad hubs.

Foundry casting blocks and big mining drill setups (after the ad-hoc phase).

Starter rail / belt tiles if you prefer ghosts over hand-placing every underground.

FAQ

Is this enough for a full Vulcanus base?

No. It is enough to stand up basic infra, Foundries, and a silo. Automate and resupply after you see real consumption.

Why refined concrete instead of concrete?

The Foundry recipe wants refined concrete, not basic concrete.

Why bring a whole rocket silo?

So you are not dependent on Nauvis ferries forever. Place it once the starter grid can feed rocket parts.

What about Fulgora or Gleba first?

Possible, but Vulcanus is the common first planet because foundries and tungsten unlock broad productivity. Adapt the list if you go elsewhere.

Related Beltworks guides

How to board a rocket and travel to a space platform, Foundry research stuck at 99%, Finding Space Age and Factorio 2.0 blueprints, and How to import a blueprint string into Factorio.

Method and sources

Checklist quantities come from a live Vulcanus Starter logistic request iterated across trips—first for Foundry solids, then expanded for basic infrastructure (belts of all tiers, drills, roboports, silo, labs, defense). Expect further edits.