Everything You Need To Know About Base Building in No Man's Sky

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Building bases in No Man’s Sky isn’t exactly obvious. Hello Games, the controversial developers behind the procedurally-generated space exploration adventure game have been pretty tight-lipped since launch, but with enough experimentation, you can start building an awesome base with a gang of alien workers at your back.

Here you’ll find simple step-by-step explanations for every aspect of base building; where to build a base, how to get started, how to begin construction, how to get an alien worker, how to color your buildings, and lots more. This will be a comprehensive guide for No Man’s Sky base building, so if you have any questions, just let us know in the comments section. For now, let’s dive into No Man’s Sky and get building that base.

Base Building Guide

Base building became official after the Foundation Update landed on 11/27/16. Now you can construct a modular base using pre-fab parts. While there are limitations, this is a significant update over the previous model, and gives explorers more reason to plant a flag on a planet and call it home.

Before Getting Started…

Before we start building our very own base, you’ll want to check out the new Game Mode options included in the Foundation Update.

Normal Mode: Regular mode — Collect resources, craft devices and explore casually.
Creative Mode: Unlimited mode — No limits to your resources, and you can begin constructing bases right away.
Survival Mode: Hardcore mode — Try not to die in this much more difficult experience.

If you want to start building right away, try starting fresh in Creative Mode.

Step #1: Finding A Habitable Base

Custom bases can only be constructed on abandoned base plots. You won’t be able to establish a base anywhere you like, instead you must discover special pre-fab locations that are procedurally generated on planets.

To find one of these Abandoned Bases, you can explore freely or use a Signal Booster.

Using a Signal Booster to Find a Base Location:
1. Place the Signal Booster on the ground. [Green highlight means it can be placed.]
2. Interact with the Signal Booster to select what you want to find from the menu.
3. Select “Habitable Base” — these are the abandoned bases we’re looking fo.

The Signal Booster will place a waypoint on an abandoned base on the planet. If there is no habitable base available on your planet, you’ll just have to try somewhere else.

A “Habitable Base” is a simple plot of flat land with no enemies and a single structure in the center. Once you arrive, we can begin establishing a base.

Step #2: Claiming A Home Planet

Once you find an abandoned base plot, it’s time to take it for yourself. Remember — you can use a Signal Booster to find a “Habitable Base” — these locations are large, open, flat areas with a single round building in the center.

To Claim Your Home Planet:
1. Enter the small building at the Habitable Base site.
2. Interact with the terminal to the left of the door.
3. Choose to “Claim Home Planet”

This sets your base plot not only as your home, but the entire planet as a “Home Planet” — this is where you’ll construct a base and have easy access to return after going on long expeditions across the galaxy. On Creative Mode, there are no limitations, and you can begin building right away.

Step #3: First Requirements for Base Building

Now that you own the base, you can begin expanding. Base rooms can be connected via hallways, and all rooms snap together from their doors. The main room or center room is where you’ll expand out from — attach extra halls and doors to the exit door of the main room.

Required Device — The Construction Terminal
- While in the Build Menu, select “Construction Terminal”
- Place the Construction Terminal in you main room.

The construction terminal is required for expanding your base with different types of hallways and rooms.

When in the build menu, you can enter a separate [Delete/Color] menu. From here, you can recolor rooms / halls, or delete segments.
- In Color Mode, you can select to recolor targeted segments.
- In Delete Mode, you can choose to remove targeted segments.

Step #4: Hiring a Construction Manager & Using the Base For Easy Money

Your base isn’t just a fancy place to hang out, you can also use it to start making fast cash. Using help from aliens, you can unlock bonus quests and other oddjobs around your base.

How To Hire a Construction Manager
1. Travel to a Space Station
2. Enter the small room where Aliens meet up.
3. Talk to Alien NPCs until you get the option to “Recruit Builder”
  - This option is only available if you’ve built a Construction Terminal in your base.

Now that you have a Construction Manager, you can begin making bonus money at your base.

How to Make Money at Your Base
1. The new Alien Construction Manager will sit at the Construction Terminal in your main room at the home base.
2. Talk to him and he’ll offer a series of assigned tasks to the player.
3. Complete these tasks to turn your base into a cash factory.

Everything Else You Need To Know – Base Building FAQ

Can I Build More Than One Base?
- No — you can only have one base at a time. If you select to claim a new base, all materials will return to your item cache, and all alien workers will respawn at your new base after their terminals have been built.

How Do I Return To My Home Planet?
- There is a blue warp portal in the main room of every base.
- Warp three times and you’ll unlock the ability to use Space Station teleporters.
- There’s a teleporter on every Space Station, and those devices can be used to return to your Home Planet Base anywhere in the galaxy.

Can I Use My Base For Farming?
- Yes! There are special rooms and devices specificall designed for farming plants. You can grow outside your base, or inside Hydroponics Labs — both on a Freighter and in your base.
- You can also hire an Alien Farming Specialist Worker to improve your crops and develop 10 new species of plant. Cultivate these to uncover all-new resources.

Got any other base building questions? Let us know in the comments!

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