Reactor

What is the Reactor?

The Reactor sets the limit for army growth: ore pays for production, while energy determines how many units can be fielded at once. Expanding through several Barracks, Factories, or Heliports therefore requires the energy network to grow in advance. Without it, even a rich economy cannot quickly turn a stockpile of ore into the composition it needs.

How much energy does the army use?

To know when to build the next Reactor, you only need to know how much energy each unit requires. Buildings use no energy — the entire supply goes to the army.

One important detail: energy is reserved not only by finished units but also by orders waiting in building queues. If Titans are already ordered in two Barracks, there may not be enough spare capacity for a new order, even though those Titans have not appeared on the field yet.

What happens when you run out of energy?

An energy shortage does not shut down the base, but it stops army growth. Here is what happens:

• New orders are blocked. A unit cannot be ordered while its energy cost does not fit into the spare capacity.
• The game tells you why. When you try to place an order, a “Build more reactors” warning appears.
• Your existing army works as usual. Units do not switch off or get weaker — only new production suffers.
• Losing a Reactor hurts production. If the opponent destroys a Reactor, spare capacity drops immediately and queued orders can stall.
• Recovery is fast. A new Reactor takes only 20 seconds to build, and Power I also takes 20 seconds to research — all you need is a free Worker and ore.

Reactor upgrades

Power ICosts 10 ore and takes 20 seconds to research. Increases the Reactor’s energy output from 5 to 7 and fully restores the building’s health when complete.

Power IICosts 12 ore and takes 20 seconds to research. Increases the Reactor’s energy output from 7 to 9 and also fully restores the building’s health when complete.

The most cost-effective way to build up energy

A new Reactor and both upgrades provide energy at different prices: the Reactor itself costs 10 ore for +5 (2 ore per point of energy), Power I costs 10 ore for +2, and Power II costs 12 ore for +2. This leads to a simple investment order:

1. First, build new Reactors until you hit the limit of 5 Reactors: this is the cheapest energy in the game.
2. Then research Power I on every Reactor. It gives the same increase as Power II but costs less.
3. Only then take Power II. Upgrades are researched in each Reactor separately and strictly in order — you cannot take the second level right away.
4. When all 5 Reactors are fully upgraded, only additional Centers provide more energy — they cost more, so save them for the late game.

Can an upgrade save a Reactor under fire?

The full health restore on upgrade completion turns Power I into an emergency repair, but on the Reactor this trick works right at the limit. A Tank hits buildings with double damage: 60 per shot every 2 seconds, or 30 health per second. A single Tank takes down an intact Reactor with its 450 health in about 15 seconds — while the research takes 20. The conclusion: starting Power I on an untouched Reactor already under Tank fire is too late. The trick works when the research was running before the attack, when the raid comes from Peacemakers or Thunders without double damage to buildings, or when a repairing Worker absorbs most of the incoming damage and stretches the demolition beyond 20 seconds.

The economics of the trick are excellent, though. Power I costs the same 10 ore as a new Reactor: if the research finishes in time, the building stays in service for the same price and brings a permanent +2 energy — instead of rebuilding a destroyed Reactor from scratch and waiting another 20 seconds without its output.