Electricity Wire Routing and Power Grid Visual Guide

What this guide solves

A working cable does not prove that the whole base has a good power layout. When every bench, refrigerator, light, and defensive device hangs from one unlabeled chain, a single disconnected segment is difficult to find. Batteries also discharge according to their downstream network, so an apparently simple series can perform differently from parallel branches.

This guide uses the current power rules to build a grid that can be inspected from the wall outlet to one device at a time. The branch names are an editorial organization method. The connector capacities, discharge formula, and default night values come from the linked references.

Verified power rules

These rules distinguish a distribution component from a consuming device. A Plug Board adds sockets, but the six objects connected to it are what matter to the upstream battery during an outage.

Recommended readable layout

Use this flow for a normal base:

Wall outlet
  -> root Plug Strip or Plug Board
      -> food branch battery -> refrigerator and food devices
      -> workshop branch battery -> crafting and repair devices
      -> defense branch battery -> traps or defensive devices
      -> comfort branch -> lights and noncritical equipment

The named branches are not a hidden game mechanic. They make the real network visible. When the refrigerator loses power, start at the food branch instead of unplugging the workshop.

Build order

1. Select the wall outlet that will act as the upstream source.
2. Place one root Plug Strip or Plug Board where every branch remains visible.
3. Give each output a purpose before connecting a device.
4. Use Cable Reroutes to carry a branch along walls or ceilings.
5. Place the branch battery before the devices that need outage coverage.
6. Split again only after the branch battery if several devices share it.
7. Connect one device and verify it before adding the next.
8. Record how many consuming devices sit downstream of each battery.

Connecting one device at a time creates a known-good checkpoint. If the third device fails, the first two connections do not need to be rebuilt.

Plug Strip or Plug Board

Do not place another connector only because the cable looks untidy. Use a Cable Reroute for distance and a Plug Strip or Plug Board for branching. This keeps the diagram aligned with what the component actually does.

Cable Reroute placement

The Cable Reroute page says it is created while holding a Power Socket and using the Fire action with one Tech Scrap available. The placement preview changes from green through yellow to red as it approaches its range limit. It cannot be placed outside that radius.

Reroutes can attach to walls and ceilings and can be chained without a fixed count limit. The real constraint is Tech Scrap and whether the finished route is readable.

Use these placement rules:

• Keep each reroute visible from the previous checkpoint when possible.
• Follow wall edges instead of crossing doors and work areas.
• Turn corners at a reroute rather than stretching a diagonal cable through the room.
• Keep different branches on separate wall heights or sides.
• Stop extending when the preview turns red and place the next reroute from the last valid point.

Packaging a Cable Reroute returns Tech Scrap rather than a reusable reroute item. Plan a relocation with that behavior in mind.

Battery discharge formula

The current Mechanics power section gives this outage formula:

runtime in seconds = 5 x total battery charge / downstream device count

For a Makeshift Battery, total charge is 50. One downstream device therefore receives 250 seconds from a full battery:

5 x 50 / 1 = 250 seconds

On default settings, the power outage lasts 270 seconds. A single full Makeshift Battery falls 20 seconds short for one device. The Makeshift Battery page documents two batteries in series powering one device for 375 seconds, and three in series powering two devices for about 270.83 seconds.

Series and parallel comparison

Series batteries do not behave like a simple sum because each upstream battery counts the batteries and devices after it as downstream loads.

Choose the layout from the required outcome. Two separate devices usually need separate readable branches. A short documented series can cover a critical single device through the default night, but adding batteries indefinitely becomes less efficient.

Outage-planning worksheet

For each battery, list only the consuming devices downstream of it.

The default 270-second night is only the correct requirement when the world uses the documented default cycle. If server settings differ, measure or obtain the actual outage duration and use that value.

Critical and optional branches

Do not give every device the same outage priority.

The examples are planning categories, not claims that every named item draws a special amount. Under the documented formula, the number of downstream devices is what matters to the battery.

Troubleshooting from upstream to downstream

Inspect in one direction:

1. Confirm the wall outlet is active for the current time of day.
2. Confirm the root connector receives an upstream cable.
3. Follow the named branch through every Cable Reroute.
4. Check the branch battery's upstream input and charge indicator.
5. Count its downstream devices again.
6. Check the final connector and the target device.
7. Disconnect the newest device if the branch failed immediately after it was added.

Randomly reconnecting cables changes the evidence. Preserve the last known-good segment until the failing segment is identified.

Daytime works, nighttime fails

If the devices work while the outlet is active but fail during the outage, the cable path is probably not the first issue. Check:

• Was the battery fully charged before the outage?
• How many consuming devices are downstream?
• Is another battery in series adding to the upstream load?
• Does the calculated runtime cover the world's outage duration?
• Is a noncritical device using capacity intended for a critical branch?

Move optional devices to another branch before adding more batteries. A larger unlabeled chain is harder to verify and may preserve the same underlying load problem.

Multi-floor routing

Treat each floor as a zone connected to the same documented upstream rules. Carry one feeder path with Cable Reroutes, then create a labeled branch at the destination floor. Do not hide every split in the vertical run.

Outlet -> root distribution
  -> ground-floor food battery -> food devices
  -> stairwell Cable Reroutes -> upper-floor Plug Board
      -> upper workshop battery -> workshop devices
      -> upper optional branch -> lights

This diagram makes the upper-floor battery's downstream network explicit. The Cable Reroutes themselves do not add battery drain.

Failure recovery

Completion condition

The grid is ready when every important device can be traced from the wall outlet through one named branch, every battery has a recorded downstream count, and the calculated runtime covers the intended outage. Optional devices should be separable without disconnecting critical food, workshop, or defense equipment.

Sources

The Mechanics power section provides outlet throughput, downstream load, series/parallel, and outage rules. The Energy page provides outlet and nightly power context. The Makeshift Battery page provides its 50 charge, 250-second single-device runtime, and documented night configurations. Plug Strip, Plug Board, and Cable Reroute provide the connector capacities and placement behavior.

Related guides and tools

• Power runtime calculator
• Beginner power and electricity basics
• Power battery runtime check
• Base lighting guide