Constructoid

A constructoid is a mechanoid added by the Biotech DLC that is capable of constructing and repairing buildings.

Acquisition

Constructoids can be gestated by a mechanitor at a Mech gestator once the Basic mechtech research project has been completed. They require 50 Steel, 1 Basic subcore and 1 gestation cycle taking 1,800 ticks (30 secs) each to initiate. They take up bandwidth from their linked mechanitor.

Dead, friendly constructoids can also be resurrected at the mech gestator using the "Resurrect light mechanoid" bill. This requires the corpse of the friendly Constructoid, 25 steel, and 1 gestation cycle taking 1,800 ticks (30 secs) to initiate.

Summary

As mechanoids, every constructoid is immune to fire, Flame and Heat damage, and temperature extremes, despite having Comfortable Temperatures defined. They have 100% Toxic Resistance and Toxic Environment Resistance, making them immune to toxic buildup, rot stink and other toxic effects. They do not need to eat, rest, and have no mood. They will be stunned by EMP attacks for a time proportional to the EMP damage inflicted and will "adapt" and rendered immune to further EMP strikes for 2,200 ticks (36.67 secs).

Dead constructoids may be shredded at the machining table or crafting spot for 10 steel. However, these values are affected by mechanoid shredding efficiency, as well as missing parts on the constructoid.

Combat

Constructoids can only make melee attacks. They have a melee hit chance of 62%, equivalent to a pawn with a Melee skill of 4.

As a labor-focused mech, constructoids are never found in mechanoid raids.

As an ally

Mechs under player control require power: constructoids use 10% of their power per day while active. If set to dormant self-charging, they instead recharge for +1% power / day, without pollution. They recharge in a mech recharger (constant 200W), for 50% power/day, creating 5 wastepacks whenever the recharger's waste is filled up.

Work

Constructoids will do tasks associated with the Construction tab; they can't be manually controlled, except when drafted. They have an effective Construction skill of 10. However, they have a base Construction Speed set to 50%, and a further Global Work Speed modifier of 50%. This results in a Construction Speed stat of 25%, which is 21% as fast as a human of the same skill.

Constructoids will also move items and cut plants to start working on a blueprint, however they have an effective plants skill of 0 and move at 3.4 c/s, 26% slower than a human.

Analysis

Due to the construction speed of 25%, constructoids are inferior to a pawn skilled in construction. However, they have the advantages of being a mech, without the need for food, recreation, or rest, and being able to be built en-masse.

With a skill of 10, they can build almost any skill-locked building, and a healthy constructoid's Construct Success Chance will be at 100% (so can't botch a building). Constructoids are useful for building a lot of things without quality, such as walls and floors. Even if you have colonists better at Construction, the mech will help save work time. Urgent buildings, and buildings with quality (like armchairs), should still be left for skilled humans. In order to control where they build, you can set a zone for them.

If a building has a quality level, but requires a substantial amount of work to build, you can save time by having a constructoid work on it while your skilled builders do other things (such as sleep or build other furniture). When the building is near completion, simply manually order the builder to work on the furniture, or forbid it until a builder is available. As a building's quality is determined only by the skill level of the last builder to work on it, this can save a substantial amount of time, especially when working on buildings that may take over a day to build (such as a stone grand meditation throne) by allowing work to continue uninterrupted.

Once you've built your entire base, you can put constructoids to work by producing constant spike traps. As time isn't an issue, you can have these traps made out of stone. You can also use mech labor to build other labor-intensive structures, such as fine stone tiles. Ideally, you should turn your colonist's construction priority down, so that you can keep constructoids in work. Alternatively, you can disassemble the constructoid - you'll get the basic subcore and some steel back.

Health

Body parts

Body Part Name	Health	Quantity	Coverage^[1]	Target Chance^[2]	Subpart of	Capacity^[3]	Effect if Destroyed/Removed
Thorax	40	1	100%	40%	N/A^[4]	-	Death Will never take permanent injury
Neck	30	1	10%	2%	Thorax	Communication	Death Will never take permanent injury
Head	30	1	80%	4.6%	Neck	-	Death Will never take permanent injury
Artificial Brain	10	1	10%	0.8%	Head	Data Processing	Death Will never take permanent injury
Sight Sensor	10	1	13%	1%	Head	Sight	−25% Sight. −100% if both lost. Will never take permanent injury
Hearing Sensor	10	1	10%	0.8%	Head	Hearing	−25% Hearing. −100% if both lost. Will never take permanent injury
Chemical Analyzer	10	1	10%	0.8%	Head	-	Will never take permanent injury
Leg	30	2	20%	16%	Thorax	Moving	−50% Moving. Will never take permanent injury
Foot	20	2	20%	4%	Leg	Moving	−50% Moving. Will never take permanent injury
Reactor	20	1	6%	6%	Thorax	Power Generation	Death Will never take permanent injury
Fluid Reprocessor	15	1	4%	4%	Thorax	Fluid Reprocessing	Death Will never take permanent injury

↑ Coverage determines the chance to hit this body part. It refers to the percentage of the super-part that this part covers, before its own sub-parts claim their own percentage. For example, if the base coverage of the super-part is 100%, and the coverage of the part is 20%, 20% of hits would hit the part, and 80% the super-part. If the part had its own sub-part with 50% coverage, the chances would be 10% sub-part, 10% part, 80% super part.
↑ Target Chance is the actual chance for each part to be be selected as the target when each part's coverage has been taken into account(I.E. Neck covers 7.5% of Torso but Head covers 80% of Neck so it actually has only a 1.5% chance to be selected). This is not pure hit chance, as different damage types propagate damage in different ways. See that page for details.
↑ Note that capacities can affect other capacities in turn. Only the primary effect is listed. See specific pages for details.
↑ This is the part that everything else connects to to be considered 'connected'.

Gallery

Age 0-99 Constructoid facing east
Age 0-99 Constructoid facing north
Age 0-99 Constructoid facing south

Age 100+ Constructoid facing east
Age 100+ Constructoid facing north
Age 100+ Constructoid facing south

Version history

Biotech DLC Release - Added.
1.4.3555 - No longer wields a Slugthrower. Previous description: "A small mechanoid designed to perform construction tasks. It is equipped with a small slug gun for light defense. It can also perform blunt melee attacks if necessary."
Version/1.4.3901 or prior - Melee attack damage reduced from 15 to 10.

Mechanoids

Mechanoids | Core: Centipede (Blaster, Burner, Gunner) • Lancer • Pikeman • Scyther • Termite
Combat: Centurion • Legionary • Militor • Scorcher • Tesseron
Command: Apocriton • Diabolus • War queen (War urchin )
Labor: Agrihand • Cleansweeper • Constructoid • Fabricor • Lifter • Paramedic • Tunneler
Cluster | Buildings: Condition causer • Count-down activator • Mech assembler • Mech capsule • Mech drop beacon • Mech high-shield • Mech low-shield • Mech node • Proximity activator • Unstable power cell
Turrets: Auto charge turret • Auto inferno turret • Auto mortar • Mini-slugger turret
Creation | Pawn: Mechanitor
Buildings: Mech gestator • Large mech gestator • Mechband antenna • Mechband dish

[1] Coverage determines the chance to hit this body part. It refers to the percentage of the super-part that this part covers, before its own sub-parts claim their own percentage. For example, if the base coverage of the super-part is 100%, and the coverage of the part is 20%, 20% of hits would hit the part, and 80% the super-part. If the part had its own sub-part with 50% coverage, the chances would be 10% sub-part, 10% part, 80% super part.

[2] Target Chance is the actual chance for each part to be be selected as the target when each part's coverage has been taken into account(I.E. Neck covers 7.5% of Torso but Head covers 80% of Neck so it actually has only a 1.5% chance to be selected). This is not pure hit chance, as different damage types propagate damage in different ways. See that page for details.

[3] Note that capacities can affect other capacities in turn. Only the primary effect is listed. See specific pages for details.

[4] This is the part that everything else connects to to be considered 'connected'.

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