shipbuilding Tech Comparison
Carrier Operations vs Dreadnought Engineering
Comparing the Carrier Operations (Tier 3) and Dreadnought Engineering (Tier 4), both shipbuilding technologies in Starforge MMO. Use this to decide which to queue first when your research lab can only run one project at a time.
Research Comparison
| Attribute | Carrier Operations | Dreadnought Engineering |
|---|---|---|
| Tier | T3 | T4 |
| Research time | 32▼ | 80 |
| metal cost | 85,000▼ | 180,000 |
| crystal cost | 42,000▼ | 90,000 |
| antimatter cost | 350▼ | 1,200 |
| dark matter cost | — | 600▼ |
| Effect | enables carrier class: true; +2 carried squadron slots | enables dreadnought class: true; enables capital class: true |
▼ marks the lower resource / time cost. Cheaper isn't always better — weigh it against the effect each tech unlocks.
Carrier Operations
Flight-deck engineering and launch-catapult systems unlock the Carrier hull class and its embarked strike wings.
Unlocks buildings: carrier flight deck
Unlocks ships: dawn carrier, phoenix carrier
Requires: shipbuilding 3, drone warfare 1
Dreadnought Engineering
Multi-segment superstructure design and redundant reactor cradles unlock the Dreadnought — a Capital hull rivaling the Titan in mass.
Unlocks buildings: dreadnought foundry
Unlocks ships: titan dreadnought, hammerfist battleship
Requires: shipbuilding 7, shipbuilding 8, shipbuilding 5
Which Should You Research First?
The Carrier Operations is the lower-tier prerequisite step and typically comes first in the shipbuilding branch, opening the path toward Dreadnought Engineering.