Electric poles should be lightning proof on Fulgora just like rail components

[Krizs]

I'd like to propose that all sizes or at least big electric poles should be lightning proof so on a big scale Fulgora setup when you're running your power lines along your rail tracks you don't need to cover your entire rail track with lightning collectors/rods.

Rail parts and signals are immune to lightning probably due to this reasoning, so you don't need to cover them with lightning protection, but who doesn't string their electric poles along rail tracks?

I don't think "pushing" players to create many self-sustaining mini grids on Fulgora is a good idea as it just consists of lightning collectors and accumulators anyway, which isn't an interesting choice or puzzle in itself.

Otherwise as it stand now, we are forced to cover the rail network with lightning protection, so at this point it's almost pointless that rail parts are lightning proof anyway.

[IsaacOscar]

Same could be said for roboports.

However, I think Fulgora is designed to force you to have seperate electric grids, because the islands are too far apart for non-quality poles to connect (similarly with roboports).

Elevated railes however are unique in that you can build the rail support on the oil ocean directly, but you can't do that with power poles.

Thus I think it would br bettet to just have that lightning doesn't strike things on the oil ocean, but only things on land. That would make more logical sense than the arbitrary exception for rails.

[Krizs]

To constrast my original post, I'm talking mega base size and late game where my frustration comes from having an extensive rail network that is a hassle to expand because of the connected electric network.

I can understand and I suppose accept the argument if the dev intention is to force or at least incentivize micro electric grids and thus my circumventing that with the electric poles along railways comes with the price of frustration of having to lightning proof my electric poles because it isn't the intended way to build on Fulgora.

...
Thus I think it would br bettet to just have that lightning doesn't strike things on the oil ocean, but only things on land. That would make more logical sense than the arbitrary exception for rails.

Regarding your suggestion, the question arises, "What is considered to be on the oil ocean"? With your rule once you make a big foundation and a factory on that "on the oil ocean" then it'd be lightning proof by default, granted covering large areas in foundation is relatively expensive for a casual playthrough.

[IsaacOscar]

Regarding your suggestion, the question arises, "What is considered to be on the oil ocean"? With your rule once you make a big foundation and a factory on that "on the oil ocean" then it'd be lightning proof by default, granted covering large areas in foundation is relatively expensive for a casual playthrough.

Sorry, by 'on the oil ocean' I meant only oil ocean tiles.
So stuff on foundations would ge hit. (the logic could be that oil oceans are sufficiently insulating to not attract lightning? but foundation and the land is conductive)

[IsaacOscar]

To constrast my original post, I'm talking mega base size and late game where my frustration comes from having an extensive rail network that is a hassle to expand because of the connected electric network.

I can understand and I suppose accept the argument if the dev intention is to force or at least incentivize micro electric grids and thus my circumventing that with the electric poles along railways comes with the price of frustration of having to lightning proof my electric poles because it isn't the intended way to build on Fulgora.

The lightning is intended to be a challenge, but they also intend you to use multiple island (hence why they are typically small, especially the ones with scrap).
Prior to getting foundation however, the only option to transport stuff is trains. But without foundation you might not be able to put lighting rods down, or roboports to have rails automatically repaired. So to make it actually playable, they needed to make rails not get hit by lightning.
There's no need to do that for electric poles, because you probably need foundation anyway to connect islands with them.

I think the trains themselves can still be hit by lightning? This has never caused me any problems, but you can always make it visit a roboport network to get periodically repaired.

[h.q.droid]

Is there an in-game source indicating rail components are immune to lightening? I don't remember seeing one.

I crammed my base into the vault island and it stayed that way well after Solar Edge.

[CyberCider]

Is there an in-game source indicating rail components are immune to lightening? I don't remember seeing one.

I crammed my base into the vault island and it stayed that way well after Solar Edge.

I believe the factoriopedia planet description mentions elevated rails? Or maybe it’s the planet discovery tech. I never checked, I already knew it before release because I was following the blog.

Fulgora is basically meant to be a railworld planet. You build your base on large islands, and supply it with scrap mined on small islands. Islands can’t be connected with power poles, but can be connected with elevated rails.

You unintentionally played a bit of a challenge run, oops.

[Kyralessa]

Is there an in-game source indicating rail components are immune to lightening? I don't remember seeing one.

https://wiki.factorio.com/Fulgora#Lightning

See the section "The following entities cannot be struck by the lightning:".

And actually it mentions just before that that electric poles have a priority of 1 for being struck (vs. 10000 for lightning collector, 1000 for lightning rod, etc.).

So their likelihood of being struck is actually extremely low. But if they're the only thing around...

[IsaacOscar]

Is there an in-game source indicating rail components are immune to lightening? I don't remember seeing one.

https://wiki.factorio.com/Fulgora#Lightning

See the section "The following entities cannot be struck by the lightning:".

And actually it mentions just before that that electric poles have a priority of 1 for being struck (vs. 10000 for lightning collector, 1000 for lightning rod, etc.).

So their likelihood of being struck is actually extremely low. But if they're the only thing around...

Ahh thanks for the link! Surprisingly tree's can't get struck by lightning... (not that there's any way to have a tree om fulgora?)

It also claimed that recyclers don't get hit, and didn't mention that land-mines are exempt, so I've fixed the wiki.

For anyone curious, the priority and exemptions are listed come from here https://github.com/wube/factorio-data/b ... t.lua#L316
So it should be easy to mod.

[IsaacOscar]

I believe the factoriopedia planet description mentions elevated rails? Or maybe it’s the planet discovery tech. I never checked, I already knew it before release because I was following the blog.

Strange I could've sworn I read about the raiI exemption in a tips and tricks, but my memory must be wrong as I've looked in the following places in game and found no mention of it in:

• The planet discovery technology
• The Fulgora Factorpiedia entry
• The Fulgora Briefing Tips & Trick
• The Lightning Mechanics Tips & Trick
• The Rail item entry in Factorpiedia

I also searched the game's locale data for "lightning" and found nothing mentiong rails.
That being said, there are several suggestions to use elevated rails on Fulgora, but no mention of them not getting hit by lightning.

I did fine this line in https://factorio.com/blog/post/fff-399:

Some of your own structures, like rails, can handle being struck by lightning, but most structures will take a lot of damage if they get hit.

[h.q.droid]

I believe the factoriopedia planet description mentions elevated rails? Or maybe it’s the planet discovery tech. I never checked, I already knew it before release because I was following the blog.

Strange I could've sworn I read about the raiI exemption in a tips and tricks, but my memory must be wrong as I've looked in the following places in game and found no mention of it in:

• The planet discovery technology
• The Fulgora Factorpiedia entry
• The Fulgora Briefing Tips & Trick
• The Lightning Mechanics Tips & Trick
• The Rail item entry in Factorpiedia

I also searched the game's locale data for "lightning" and found nothing mentiong rails.
That being said, there are several suggestions to use elevated rails on Fulgora, but no mention of them not getting hit by lightning.

I did fine this line in https://factorio.com/blog/post/fff-399:

Some of your own structures, like rails, can handle being struck by lightning, but most structures will take a lot of damage if they get hit.

Thanks for the confirmation. By the way, any chance they mention rail won't freeze on Aquilo? Guess what, I thought they'd freeze there too and imported many rockets of heat pipes from Vulcanus and piped to all my pumpjacks.

[IsaacOscar]

Thanks for the confirmation. By the way, any chance they mention rail won't freeze on Aquilo? Guess what, I thought they'd freeze there too and imported many rockets of heat pipes from Vulcanus and piped to all my pumpjacks.

I haven't visited Aquilo yet (as I'm taking a break from the game...) but you can check https://wiki.factorio.com/Aquilo#Freezing
(I hypothesise that it's related to the heating_energy field on prototypes, so if you want to be sure, ctrl-shift-f on a place building, and then ctrl-f for heating, if it's listed as 0 it should be safe from freezing? I'm not sure as that field isn't actually documented!)

[h.q.droid]

Thanks for the confirmation. By the way, any chance they mention rail won't freeze on Aquilo? Guess what, I thought they'd freeze there too and imported many rockets of heat pipes from Vulcanus and piped to all my pumpjacks.

I haven't visited Aquilo yet (as I'm taking a break from the game...) but you can check https://wiki.factorio.com/Aquilo#Freezing
(I hypothesise that it's related to the heating_energy field on prototypes, so if you want to be sure, ctrl-shift-f on a place building, and then ctrl-f for heating, if it's listed as 0 it should be safe from freezing? I'm not sure as that field isn't actually documented!)

Thanks. But my main point is, one shouldn't need to check wiki to play a game. To avoid spoilers I didn't read those wikis / fffs until solar edge.

[Kyralessa]

Thanks. But my main point is, one shouldn't need to check wiki to play a game. To avoid spoilers I didn't read those wikis / fffs until solar edge.

I guess the in-game source would be that if you build rails between islands and route trains between them, you don't see the little "subject to lightning" icon that you see on other things. But that's easy to miss. I've never noticed it before; I'm just assuming that's how one could tell. But of course you'd have to build rails and then notice that there's no icon on them, which you might not do if you assume they're subject to lightning strikes like everything else.

[h.q.droid]

Thanks. But my main point is, one shouldn't need to check wiki to play a game. To avoid spoilers I didn't read those wikis / fffs until solar edge.

I guess the in-game source would be that if you build rails between islands and route trains between them, you don't see the little "subject to lightning" icon that you see on other things. But that's easy to miss. I've never noticed it before; I'm just assuming that's how one could tell. But of course you'd have to build rails and then notice that there's no icon on them, which you might not do if you assume they're subject to lightning strikes like everything else.

Lesson learned. I just put down a tank on Aquilo. It didn't freeze!

[IsaacOscar]

Yup, much easier than my ctrl-shift-f stupidity, just plop something down and check for the icon:

01-04-2025, 20-30-08.png (149.91 KiB) Viewed 485 times

01-04-2025, 20-29-47.png (151.91 KiB) Viewed 485 times

(Assuming you don't put it down within range of a lightning rod or heat pipe).

[Kyralessa]

...just plop something down and check for the icon:

Does it also work for ghosts?

[IsaacOscar]

Does it also work for ghosts?

Sadly no, ghost's can't be hit by lightning or frozen.