Conquering the floating landmasses of the Archipelago requires far more than placing basic smelters and hoping for the best. Progression hinges entirely on how efficiently you navigate the Brave New Wonders tech tree to automate robot logistics across expanding biomes. Understanding the branches of the Brave New Wonders tech tree is critical because technologies are not handed out in a rigid, predetermined sequence; they respond dynamically to exploration, Old World relics, and targeted production milestones.
Whether you are configuring your first mining automaton in the Americas or routing red science across volcanic chasms in Asia, this research guide outlines every tier, production requirement, and strategic upgrade path you need to rebuild humanity.
How the Tech Tree Functions in Brave New Wonders
Unlike traditional factory simulators that rely on fixed research webs and mechanical conveyor belts, the Brave New Wonders tech tree evolves alongside your expedition achievements. Developed by City From Naught, the game places you in control of Mira, an authorized Academy Pioneer guided by her mentor Corin. As you explore ruined landscapes and recover artifacts left by ancient ancestors, you unlock distinct technological branches tailored to the challenges of each region.
The core research process takes place at regional transit hubs, starting with the Train Station Hub on the Americas island. In the early stages, you manually deposit basic refined goods into the station terminal to trigger immediate breakthroughs. As your factory expands, research transitions into an automated science system driven by manufactured Research Packs.
Player experience indicates that research operates through three fundamental phases:
- Manual Raw Material Infusion: Early nodes like Monowheel Mining and Logistics 1 require hand-delivered metal plates and crystal shards.
- Localized Research Pack Automation: Mid-tier developments demand dedicated factories to synthesize specialized packs, such as Industry Research Packs and Automation Research Packs.
- Cross-Island Scientific Logistics: Advanced branches require intercontinental freight transport, using airships and cargo trucks to deliver continent-specific packs (like Blue and Red Science) back to central research labs.
Furthermore, developer updates confirm that unlocking advanced nodes does not merely unlock recipes—it fundamentally deepens the natural-language command system. While early nodes provide baseline movement scripts, deeper progression unlocks signal-reactive logic, letting automatons read facility status states like color broadcasts, heat thresholds, and container capacities.
Americas Starting Tech Tree and Node Requirements
The Americas serves as your proving ground, introducing the basic elements of mining, fabrication, electricity generation, and automated defense. Below is the verified progression order for the Americas starting region:
| Technology Node | Core Research Cost | Key Unlocks | Primary Function in Base Building |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monowheel Mining | 2 Metal Plates | Manual Monowheel Mining | Allows Mira to mine crystal and metal ore nodes directly. |
| Mining 1 | 2 Refined Crystals, 2 Metal Plates | Miner Automaton | Unlocks autonomous mining bots to excavate resource patches. |
| Blueprint Mode | 3 Crystal Shards | Area Blueprint Tooling | Enables copying, pasting, and mass-duplicating machine layouts. |
| Logistics 1 | 10 Refined Crystals, 4 Metal Plates | Warehouse, Sentry Marker | Provides 500-slot item storage and coordinate waypoints. |
| Manufactory 1 | Refined Crystals, Metal Plates, Coal | General Factory | Manufactures multi-component items like Crystal Compound. |
| Industry Research Pack | Metal Plates, Refined Crystals | Industry Research Pack Recipe | Crafts the foundational science pack needed for higher tiers. |
| Energy 1 | 10 Industry Research Packs | Solar Power Collector, Energy Cells | Expands the electrical grid beyond starter power outputs. |
| Combat 1 | 25 Industry Research Packs | Weapon Factory, Gunpowder, Dynamite | Allows clearing physical obstacles and harvesting defensive materials. |
| Automation Research Pack | Simple Kits, Cortex Chips | Automation Research Pack Recipe | Crafts Tier 2 science packs for industrial machinery. |
| Gun Turrets | Automation Research Packs | Gun Turret Defense | Automated defense structures that target roaming hostile machines. |
| Gas 1 | Sky Pillar Core Discovery | Natural Gas Processor | Refines raw gas deposits into usable methane and helium. |
| Energy 2 | Automation Research Packs | Fuel Power Plant | High-output energy generator burning coal, natural gas, or methane. |
| Trucks | 1 Natural Gas, Research Packs | Truck, Truck Hub | Long-range, high-speed bulk cargo hauling across map zones. |
Getting through these starter tiers requires balancing your primary processing lines. When you place a Smelter, you choose between processing metal ore into metal plates or crystal shards into refined crystals at a standard rate of six items per minute. Supplying these raw items to a General Factory then allows the automated synthesis of Crystal Compound, Simple Kits, and Cortex Chips, which form the bedrock of mid-game advancement.
Automated Science Packs and Production Ratios
Progressing through the mid-to-late Brave New Wonders tech tree requires retiring manual deliveries in favor of dedicated science lines. Holding the ALT key in-game activates the Alternative recipe view, revealing exact cycle times and throughput per minute so you can calculate balanced input streams.
Industry Research Pack (Tier 1 Science)
Synthesized inside the General Factory, this recipe takes Refined Crystals and Metal Plates. A single General Factory produces these research packs in steady increments. Community reports suggest feeding one General Factory dedicated to science from a dedicated pair of smelters (one plate, one crystal) to prevent research from starving your construction item stockpiles.
Automation Research Pack (Tier 2 Science)
Unlocking defensive technologies and long-range vehicles requires the Automation Research Pack. This item combines Simple Kits (assembled from metal plates and crystal compound) with Cortex Chips. Because the Weapon Factory and General Factory run at varying speeds—often taking 20 to 25 seconds per cycle—dedicating specific smart mover automatons to split crystal compounds between factories prevents production deadlocks.
Electromagnetism Research Pack (Blue Science)
Introduced when expanding into the snowy expanses of the Europe continent, the Electromagnetism Research Pack introduces advanced circuitry and power mechanics. Seasoned pioneers recommend building at least two automated facilities on Europe dedicated purely to Blue Science, routing finished packs back to your primary railway station to keep research queues progressing while you explore elsewhere.
Heavy Industry Research Pack (Red Science)
Found on the volcanic island of Asia, Red Science requires industrial processing under extreme conditions. Fabricated inside a Smelter rather than a standard factory, it consumes two distinct inputs:
- Charged Energy Cells: Recycled energy cells energized at Battery Charging Stations using thermal plant power.
- Heavy Rare Earth Ingots: Smelted from rare earth elements extracted from salvaged industrial scraps.
Because Heavy Industry packs yield five units of research per craft, you do not need vast stockpiles to initiate progress. Setting an airship hauler threshold of 50 packs allows automated transport back to central research stations without waiting for slow accumulation.
Wonder Megastructures and Cross-Continent Unlocks
Monumental megastructures known as Wonders form the major milestones of the Brave New Wonders tech tree. Constructing a Wonder transforms global progression and grants access to entirely new operational theaters across the post-apocalyptic ocean world.
The first major Wonder is the Sky Pillar, located in the hazardous red zone of the Americas. Activating the Sky Pillar requires completing a complex thermal regulation trial. Gas eruptions periodically threaten the excavation process, requiring automatons to dynamically adjust the platform's temperature between 25 and 70 degrees Celsius. You can maintain equilibrium by programming automatons to deliver coal to raise temperatures by 10 degrees or thermal plates to lower them by 20 degrees.
Completing the Sky Pillar excavation yields the Old World Core, unlocking the Gas Extraction and Airship blueprints. The Airship acts as a mobile factory base and cargo hauler, allowing you to fly between major continental landmasses:
- Europe: An industrial landscape focused on advanced energy grids, train transport systems, and Electromagnetism research.
- Asia: A treacherous volcanic continent defined by periodic lava flows, infinite scrap mining, recycling loops, and the Advanced Metallurgy and Flying Mover tech branches.
- Africa: An agricultural continent centered on greenhouse production lines, bio-processing, and tight delivery schedules dictated by spoilage timers.
Throughout your journey across the Archipelago, you can construct up to seven distinct Wonders—including the artificial Levitanium Sun and the Heavenly Forge—culminating in the completion of the entire technological database for the legendary pioneer achievement.
Strategic Research Order and Factory Upgrades
Choosing which nodes to prioritize in the Brave New Wonders tech tree can save hours of rebuilding and prevent catastrophic automated factory losses. Consider these priority paths during your campaign:
1. Character Mobility and Capacity Upgrades
Never ignore personal upgrades located at the top of the tech interface. Recovering Old World relics from ruined structures increases your base Monowheel backpack capacity from 200 to 300 items, and subsequent tech tree nodes expand this limit even further. Similarly, purchasing vehicle propulsion nodes boosts your movement speed by 50 percent, vastly reducing transit times across expansive production hubs.
2. Rapid Combat Gating
Before dismantling the fallen tree barriers that block access to rich deposits, ensure you have researched Combat 1 and Gun Turrets. Removing these barriers often connects your base directly to hostile enemy patrol zones. Hostile machines will immediately assault any structure built within red danger zones. Establishing an automated ammunition factory (combining metal plates and gunpowder) and deploying a defensive line of three turrets ensures safe expansion.
3. Recycling and Flight Logistics
Upon reaching Asia, immediately queue the Recycling node after harvesting initial industrial scraps. Recyclers break down waste into six distinct materials, providing unlimited building supplies. Follow this directly with Advanced Metallurgy and Flying Movers. Flying Movers ignore terrain elevation and lava flows entirely, eliminating logistics pathing errors and making obsolete the early warning thermal sensors previously needed for ground bots.
For official patch notes, system updates, and community discussions regarding late-game progression, visit the Brave New Wonders on Steam page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I finish the Brave New Wonders tech tree on the starting island?
No, completing the full Brave New Wonders tech tree requires traveling to other continents aboard your airship. While the Americas contains the resources needed for early manufacturing, subsequent science packs—such as Electromagnetism packs in Europe and Heavy Industry packs in Asia—require unique regional resources and specialized facilities like recyclers and thermal power plants.
What happens if my miner automatons run out of resources?
Early surface resource patches contain limited materials (often between 100 and 3,000 units) and will eventually deplete. Once you research Combat 1 and fabricate dynamite, you can destroy fallen tree trunks and stone debris blocking access to infinite resource mines. When a node is exhausted, simply relocate your mining bot to an infinite node and update its delivery destination.
Does researching new nodes alter natural-language robot programming?
Yes. Unlocking advanced logistics and automation nodes in the Brave New Wonders tech tree expands the capabilities of the natural-language command engine. Early nodes support simple pick-and-drop routines, while mid-to-late game research unlocks conditional signal processing, multi-destination routing, and status-based evacuation commands.
Why is my General Factory stalling during research pack crafting?
Production stalls typically occur due to uneven ingredient delivery or backed-up output storage. Ensure your mover automatons deliver metal plates and refined crystals in balanced quantities. If using a single automaton to supply multiple facilities, program a smart splitter behavior or maintain dedicated input warehouses to prevent uneven consumption rates.