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[mathSq]

In my fourth-ever run today, I hit Factory for the first time! Yay!

However, I quickly stumbled upon a Chute Trap on -7, found myself in a mysterious wing of the complex, and watched my newfound buddy get annihilated by C-40 Compactors. (Why are they only threat level 40? They sever like three parts per hit...) Those of you who have been down there know the rest...

I did escape with my life, by hitting GO NAKED and making a mad dash for the exit. Then I barely survived -7 again, accidentally wound up in the Lower Caves, got a bit too curious about a treasure room, awakened the bots inside, and got mauled to death trying to outrun a squad of angry S-class robots.

Anyway, it seems like the only way to get out of Waste alive is to leave your stuff to rot in the junkyard and outrun (I guess outhover) the Compactors. Is there another way to get out of there, preferably with most or all of my stuff? How can I avoid Waste entirely, other than hacking to find/disable/reprogram Chute Traps?

[Happylisk]

Good ole Waste. 

If you want to avoid it: you can do terminal hacks to detect nearby traps; you can kill operators, whose datacore that they drop on death can reveal traps; you can prioritize flying/hovering over walking/treading, which have a much lower chance of setting off traps.  Also, if you use EM weapons and corrupt enemies, they have a chance to trigger traps.

If you find yourself in waste: if you're a combat cogmind, standing your ground and fighting will usually lead to death.  The one time I was able to take on the compactors was when I had a really good launcher and some matter containers.  EM weapons are borderline useless against them due to their EM resistance.  Flight is usually the answer.

Spoiler time:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Occasionally, there is a secret derelict army in waste.  If you go into the nooks you can sometimes find it.  They'll shred the compactors for you.  You can't rely on this though, it's rare.

Also, note that sometimes you'll want to go into Waste deliberately.  Going there resets the alert level to zero.

[Decker]

If you want to avoid it: you can do terminal hacks to detect nearby traps; you can kill operators, whose datacore that they drop on death can reveal traps; you can prioritize flying/hovering over walking/treading, which have a much lower chance of setting off traps.  Also, if you use EM weapons and corrupt enemies, they have a chance to trigger traps.

You can also equip a structural analyzer, which will reveal some of the traps sooner.

In theory.

In practice, you can't really afford to detect traps, if you're going for a combat build. Your odds of retrieving a datacore on a floor is very low. The same for EM weapons revealing a trap. Terminals are best used to purge the alert and find the exit. You're not going to be flying/hovering much. And you don't want to waste a slot on a structural analyzer.

So, what's the solution? Carry 3 hover units with you until you leave factory. If you get dumped in Waste (or go there voluntarily, which is a good idea on -4), equip your hover units, remove/drop your heaviest weapons, and you'll make it out with most of your stuff. To be able to carry 3 hover units without crippling yourself, you will need a large inventory. Low inventory builds are overrated

[Kyzrati]

@mathSq: Congratulations! Note that you'll be able to outmaneuver them with most forms of propulsion, even legs as long as you're not overweight. Only super slow builds have much to worry about, or due to the width of the tunnels if you attract too many at once they can pin you in and make it harder to escape without taking a hit or two, which can be nasty.

Also, it's true they have a fairly low ID number compared to their ability, but they are technically a non-combat robot (and happen to be the one with the highest number). Their actual threat rating (an internal number that determines robot shade or color and threat targeting priority) is 4, which is the second to highest level (5).

I fell down there not too long ago with a weapon-heavy build with a bunch of cannons and punched right through them, so that definitely works if you've got the resources.

Once you've got the Waste survival tactics down, getting sucked down there isn't too bad unless your core was already low at the time and you have to head back to the Factory and can't find another exit quickly enough.

One of the other methods to avoid traps that wasn't mentioned: If you get an Operator ally they will instantly identify all traps that come into view.

The thing about treads is, they have a 100% chance to trigger traps, so if you're going to drive around as a battle tank, just expect that it's inevitable you'll eat some explosions and other unexpected effects along the way.

Low inventory builds are overrated

I heard that

[mathSq]

Woah, lots of useful info! I'll go through it individually.

Good ole Waste. 

If you want to avoid it: you can do terminal hacks to detect nearby traps; you can kill operators, whose datacore that they drop on death can reveal traps; you can prioritize flying/hovering over walking/treading, which have a much lower chance of setting off traps.  Also, if you use EM weapons and corrupt enemies, they have a chance to trigger traps.

I presume these strats are more useful for a hacking or stealth build, which doesn't describe me yet (I'm sticking with combat for now)?

If you find yourself in waste: if you're a combat cogmind, standing your ground and fighting will usually lead to death.  The one time I was able to take on the compactors was when I had a really good launcher and some matter containers.  EM weapons are borderline useless against them due to their EM resistance.  Flight is usually the answer.

Yeah, I followed the lead of the other bot in there and tried to fight it out. Didn't end well XD

I noticed that there seemed to be only one path through Waste for a good length, long enough for the Compactors to cut off my only route of escape. However, I did dilly-dally a bit (tried to equip a prototype, only to realize that it was of course broken); maybe that was why I got cut off. Is it possible to avoid the Compactors if I'm fast enough, even on treads?

Spoiler time:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Occasionally, there is a secret derelict army in waste.  If you go into the nooks you can sometimes find it.  They'll shred the compactors for you.  You can't rely on this though, it's rare.

Also, note that sometimes you'll want to go into Waste deliberately.  Going there resets the alert level to zero.

Thanks for the tip.

You can also equip a structural analyzer, which will reveal some of the traps sooner.

In theory.

In practice, you can't really afford to detect traps, if you're going for a combat build. Your odds of retrieving a datacore on a floor is very low. The same for EM weapons revealing a trap. Terminals are best used to purge the alert and find the exit. You're not going to be flying/hovering much. And you don't want to waste a slot on a structural analyzer.

So, what's the solution? Carry 3 hover units with you until you leave factory. If you get dumped in Waste (or go there voluntarily, which is a good idea on -4), equip your hover units, remove/drop your heaviest weapons, and you'll make it out with most of your stuff. To be able to carry 3 hover units without crippling yourself, you will need a large inventory. Low inventory builds are overrated

Oh, so you're Three Large Storage Units Guy

I did actually have two large storage units onboard, but I didn't have enough utility space to add a third (or maybe I wasn't using it optimally). And would three hover units be able to carry enough of my stuff?

@mathSq: Congratulations!

Thanks

Note that you'll be able to outmaneuver them with most forms of propulsion, even legs as long as you're not overweight. Only super slow builds have much to worry about, or due to the width of the tunnels if you attract too many at once they can pin you in and make it harder to escape without taking a hit or two, which can be nasty.

Yeah... I was on treads (I think, maybe legs?) and overweight... and I definitely noticed their ability to fill a hallway.

Also, it's true they have a fairly low ID number compared to their ability, but they are technically a non-combat robot (and happen to be the one with the highest number). Their actual threat rating (an internal number that determines robot shade or color and threat targeting priority) is 4, which is the second to highest level (5).

Non-combat... I like the way you think. XD

I fell down there not too long ago with a weapon-heavy build with a bunch of cannons and punched right through them, so that definitely works if you've got the resources.

Thanks... I guess I'll need to learn to judge whether I can take on the Compactors.

Once you've got the Waste survival tactics down, getting sucked down there isn't too bad unless your core was already low at the time and you have to head back to the Factory and can't find another exit quickly enough.

One of the other methods to avoid traps that wasn't mentioned: If you get an Operator ally they will instantly identify all traps that come into view.

The thing about treads is, they have a 100% chance to trigger traps, so if you're going to drive around as a battle tank, just expect that it's inevitable you'll eat some explosions and other unexpected effects along the way.

I suppose I'll have to accept that... maybe in future stealth runs I'll try to focus more on not falling down random holes in the floor.

Low inventory builds are overrated

I heard that

Thanks, y'all!

[Decker]

Is it possible to avoid the Compactors if I'm fast enough, even on treads?

No. They'll get you. Even on legs, you're playing with fire. Also, corruption means you'll go off-track some of the time.

And would three hover units be able to carry enough of my stuff?

Enough? Yes. You'll lose some items, but you can prioritize what you leave behind. Factory isn't too hard, and the alert level will be 0 when you get out. So it shouldn't be too difficult to restock.

Ideally you want 4 hover units, but you have to compromise somewhere. How much you can actually carry depends a lot on the quality of the hover units you're carrying. Falling into the waste at -7 is the worst scenario -- you likely won't have very good hover units by this time, if at all.