Factorio Forums

From time to time on the radar map I get a red dot, I never correlated it with anything special. Any clue?

Looks like a worm
Most likely overseen when destroying biter nests nearby.
If it is, it should be permanent however.

Could also be a single biter that's wandering around, sometimes being in the next chunk that's not covered by radar, therefore disappearing

Porter65 wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 13, 2021 4:43 am

From time to time on the radar map I get a red dot

Red is the enemy. Most likely there is a nest north east of the dot in your screenshot.

Dim chunks on the map view show what was there at an earlier time. They are updated by visiting the area or being scanned by a radar. The map doesn't indicate how long ago the view of a dim chunk was updated.

If you have enemy expansion on, it is possible there is a nest nearby but only a chunk containing eg a single biter has been updated since the nest was created.

It is also possible that a biter or spitter was just passing and happened to be there when the chunk was last updated.

You can go there and look what it is. Most of the time, the dot will vanish or there are biters...
Or bring up radar coverage there.

Usually in my games a small isolated red dot like that means I marked something for bot deconstruction and forgot about it.

Easiest way to find out is shoot one artillery shell at it, and be zoomed in (with map view) when the shell arrives. This is called "reconnaisance by fire".

Whatever it is, if it's red, it's not your friend.

Personally, I'm more intrigued by the fact that you have four vehicles parked at your base. One tank, one car, and what?

Redpossum wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:12 pm

Whatever it is, if it's red, it's not your friend.

Unless it is pollution

Redpossum wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:12 pm

Whatever it is, if it's red, it's not your friend.

approved by liberty prime

It could also be a biter moving to a gathering point for the next attack wave

I have seen the same thing. A red dot, in radar vision, but no worm, biter, or anything,

Ranakastrasz wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 17, 2021 11:18 am

I have seen the same thing. A red dot, in radar vision, but no worm, biter, or anything,

radar is a snapshot of what was in a spot when it was scanned, if it's a migrating / expanding party then they will probably show up on the map but not be there when you go to look.

ptx0 wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 17, 2021 1:45 pm

Ranakastrasz wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 17, 2021 11:18 am

I have seen the same thing. A red dot, in radar vision, but no worm, biter, or anything,

radar is a snapshot of what was in a spot when it was scanned, if it's a migrating / expanding party then they will probably show up on the map but not be there when you go to look.

Sorry, when I say radar vision, I mean radar coverage, using map view, and even physically going there. Actual vision, via radar revealing. Not the afterimages, which often show enemy waves frozen in time til it rescans.. Red dot, next to my character, with no enemies, blueprints, entities, anything.

But it was a modded game, so maybe some invisible entity leaked or something.

you could load up a copy of the map and open /editor and see if that lets you deconstruct the area