Bridges and chunk loaders
Floater Rocks contain the magic that lets Floaters hover. Craft them into paired bridges to join distant workshops, and chunk loaders to keep those workshops active while you explore.
Use the Machinist’s Bench. Each bridge recipe makes two blocks:
| Pair | Ingredients |
|---|---|
| Item Bridges | 2 Floater Rocks + 2 Machine Casings + 4 Item Pipes + 2 Gold Ingots + 2 Diamonds |
| Liquid Bridges | 2 Floater Rocks + 2 Machine Casings + 4 Fluid Pipes + 2 Gold Ingots + 2 Diamonds |
| Power Bridges | 2 Floater Rocks + 2 Machine Casings + 4 Power Cables + 2 Gold Ingots + 2 Diamonds |
Gold and diamond are required per crafted pair. Mine Gold ore and Diamond ore with an iron pickaxe or better, smelt the raw gold, and defeat Floaters for their high-tier rocks.
Recipe screenshots: 2026-09-13 RecipeTiers Windows build; ingredients shown as missing in the empty review inventory.
- Place one bridge at each workshop and connect the matching pipes or cables on any face.
- Right-click or press Interact on the first bridge. Enter a name, such as Quarry, then choose Apply Name.
- Give the second bridge of the same type the same name. Names ignore upper/lower case.
- Check the displayed partner coordinates and Linked status. Nearby labels identify each bridge and its network.
Each name accepts two bridges of each type. A third is refused; choose another name. Item, liquid and power pairs stay separate even when all three are named Quarry. Other players’ same-named networks will stay separate too.
Unlink clears one endpoint. Renaming or mining either block breaks its previous connection. A newly placed replacement needs to be named again.
Bridges join the existing networks: they do not create electricity or duplicate stored items/liquids. Machine pipe ends still need the appropriate wrench directions. A pipe connected to a bridge behaves as a continuous route. Liquid bridges carry water or lava, but connected tanks must contain compatible liquids. Blue Signal does not pass through these bridges.
You are responsible for keeping your factory loaded while away. Without nearby player coverage or enabled Chunk Loaders, unloaded machines stop. They keep their stored contents and partial work, but produce nothing until loaded again. Returning gives no catch-up production.
Craft a Chunk Loader from 4 Floater Rocks + 1 Machine Casing + 4 Azure Crystals at the Machinist’s Bench. Place it in the chunk you want active; it starts enabled and needs no power or fuel.
A loader covers only its own 32 × 32 × 32 block chunk. Open its controls to see the chunk’s minimum coordinates. Machines, stations, pipe/cable runs and pump/drill targets across a chunk boundary need coverage in that chunk too. Cover both bridge endpoints and the factories they connect. An unloaded gap disconnects that route even if both ends remain loaded. Loaded sections can continue using their remaining valid connections; the game never loads the rest of a factory automatically.
Enabled loaders and bridge names survive Save/Load. Their distant chunks load automatically when you resume that world. Pausing or closing the world stops production; nothing is produced offline. Ordinary creature spawning still depends on player range.
These are actual in-game captures from the 2026-09-13 Bridges review build.
| Status or symptom | What to check |
|---|---|
| Unlinked | Enter a name and choose Apply Name. |
| Waiting for second bridge | Use the same name on another bridge of the same type. |
| Partner asleep | Load both endpoints with the player nearby or chunk loaders. |
| Network already has two bridges | Unlink an old endpoint or choose another name. |
| Linked but no transfer | Check source contents, cable/pipe continuity, loader coverage and machine pipe-end directions. |
| Liquid conflict | Separate or drain tanks containing different liquids. |
Turning off or mining the last loader in a chunk allows it to unload when you leave. Its bridge waits safely, and stored resources remain at their source.