Want to learn the basics of building in Icarus? Base building is one of the core tenets of a survival game, and the creators of Icarus have taken that to heart. RocketWerkz’s new multiplayer survival game offers several different types of construction materials, each with varying levels of utility and aesthetic appeal.
By design, players must build new bases each time they enter a prospect, these bases house workbenches and supplies, but must also withstand environmental threats. These include wild animals and severe weather, such as thunderstorms that can quickly set your base on fire and high-speed winds that can wipe out your base completely.
As players progress through the game, they unlock new construction materials and building pieces. In order to build specific pieces, a player must reach a certain level and then use a skill point to unlock a construction type. If you’re new to Icarus or just want to build a base that won’t break down at the first sign of a heavy gust of wind, here’s what you need to know about construction.
Unlocking new materials in Icarus
There are several different materials in Icarus: thatch, wood, stone, concrete, glass, and aluminium. Unlocking a beam from any of those materials allows the player to allocate skill points to floors, walls, doors, and so on.
Building pieces have variants which can be accessed by holding down R, such as a wood ramp which can be turned into a wood roof. It’s worth noting that several building and construction items fall under miscellaneous materials, including doors which are reinforced with steel, and leather curtains.
Finally, all players should plan to allocate skill points to repair hammers as they’re necessary for fixing damaged construction pieces.
Using thatch to Construct a base in Icarus
Thatch materials are available to players from the start, provided you have skill points to assign to the construction components. Thatch is composed of fiber and sticks, which are abundant in the early game in all low-level missions.
While thatch is good for building a quick-and-easy base, it won’t withstand Icarus’s harsh weather conditions. Some players choose to skip thatch entirely, allocating their early-game skill points to other craftable items instead.
Presently, thatch offers no clear advantages over wood, which players can unlock at Level 5.
Using Wood to Construct a base in Icarus
Wood is reasonably strong and provides some protection against extreme weather and wild animals, though it sustains damage when subjected to windy conditions and storms. When struck by lightning, wood structures can quickly catch fire, and many players have returned home from a journey to find their wood houses ablaze. Therefore, players who build wood structures should avoid venturing too far from home and should always have thwackers to put out fires.
Wood construction pieces are easy to reassemble. If you ever have to head to a location far from your wood base, you can easily carry parts of it with you, or keep the pieces in wood crates stashed in a nearby cave. Beyond their bases, players can use wood floors and ramps to get to higher ground and otherwise inaccessible ore deposits in caves.
Prospectors can also unlock and craft several interior wood pieces. However, these are primarily decorative.
Using stone to construct a base in Icarus
To craft a base using stone, a player must first unlock the masonry bench, available at Level 15. Stone structures are far sturdier than wood, but build pieces require iron components. To craft these components, a person must first craft a stone furnace and an anvil, which requires 20 iron ingots.
However, stone structures can be worth the investment. Unlike wood, stone won’t catch fire. It’s a good option for those looking for something semi-permanent, as stone structural components are relatively heavy to try to move. Some people choose to mix wood and stone building components, which offers a mix of stronger protection but reasonable resource costs.
Using glass to construct a base in Icarus
Glass structures don’t seem to offer any significant advantages over other build types. According to the game’s interface, glass walls have an extra 5% resistance against falling trees. However, falling trees aren’t a significant issue in Icarus, so the additional resistance is nominal.
To build glass structures, a person must build a concrete furnace, which they can use to turn silica into glass. Glass building pieces don’t hold up particularly well in storms, but players who enjoy designing bases can enjoy glass for its aesthetic appeal. For the best mix of aesthetic design and utility, a person can mix glass with wood, stone or concrete.
Using concrete to construct a base in Icarus
Concrete is a high-quality building material, but it’s only accessible after Level 25 and has a high resource cost. Besides being strong, it also provides thermal insulation, so it’s ideal for the Arctic biome.
Players craft concrete pieces at the machining bench. To craft concrete construction pieces, a player must use stone and silica to produce cement mix from a mixer, as well as steel for steel screws and steel rebar. It can take a long time to gather the materials that make up these components, so it can be difficult to justify.
Using Aluminium to construct a base in Icarus
Aluminium building pieces require only aluminium ore, wood, and a few steel screws. While aluminium isn’t as abundant on Icarus as resources like wood and stone, it may become more accessible as the player begins to collect workshop rewards. Aluminium pieces aren’t as pretty as glass, but they’re light enough that players can carry them around to build makeshift bases.
At present, it seems better to save aluminium for crafting weapons such as the recurve bow or to make carbon paste that players can then turn into carbon fiber for carbon fiber armour sets.
However, should players regularly find themselves bogged down by the weight limits of other items, aluminium may become the material of choice.
Regardless of your preferred construction type in Icarus, always design a base that can withstand extreme weather conditions and other threats. If you’re interested in seeing players’ elaborate construction ideas, check out the official Icarus Discord to see player screenshots.