How do you start your colonies?

[EnricoDandolo]

Im interested in knowing how people start their colonies off.
I always start them off using a concept, I don't really plan ahead that much, but I've seen people who have planned their whole base from day one.

Some of my concepts are
Outdoor Complex
Self-Sustaining Fortress
Underground City
So how do you guys start your play-through/Colonies?

[XeoNovaDan]

Loosely planned in my head based on the 'geography' of the area, build off from there. I've almost always played an outdoors colony, should try a vault some time. The challenge of dealing with infestations will be interesting...

[EnricoDandolo]

Loosely planned in my head based on the 'geography' of the area, build off from there. I've almost always played an outdoors colony, should try a vault some time. The challenge of dealing with infestations will be interesting...

Never really had to deal with an infestation. I've seen videos of it though, its some nasty stuff. Thank God the town of Luxembourg is not located near any caves.

[daman2501]

I always do Mountanous Biome (in fact, i think i have never done large, small hills or flat) and then when my pawns spawn i always look for the narrow corridor that is ALWAYS pressent in a mountain map... From there it is a 50/50 thing if i build a vault or i expand inside that corridor having a nice "semi-outdoor" That happens to have a bottleneck that results perfect to deal any kind of Raid.

[Hans Lemurson]

"a wall of wood alone shall be uncaptured, a boon to you and your children."

...Turns out it was referring to navies, not to flammable fortresses. 

[grinch]

1.- Beds (sometimes go for 1x2 provissional rooms)
2.- growing zones, Power, kitchen
3.- workshop
4.- Research
5.- defense

Always use the planning tool, very handy for mark turrets and weapons ranges at your defense zone and for planning corridors between zones

[Shurp]

The planning tool is fantastic.  I lay out nearly all my long term plans at the start -- windmill zone, palisades, greenhouses, etc. etc.  Things get jumbled up a bit as I build but the basic layout starts there.

Important tip: find the center of the map, then place your base near it.  This way it takes roughly the same amount of time for raiders to get to you wherever they spawn.

[Beider]

Lately I got addicted to running a hugely modded game (avoiding mods that makes things easier like big stacks, tilled soil, etc...) and starting with a single random pawn, tribal faction, no gear or animals and on a random map. Usually iron man with Cassandra classic on rough difficulty.

With that start you are pretty locked into what you do in your first few days.
Harvest food and wood, make a bow, make a stockpile, sow a field, get butcher and fuled stove up.
Often your pawn also tend to die early as the first event is always mad animal and it hits before you get the second wanderer. So if the animal scratches you there is a chance of infection and your guy will die sometime after the first wanderer joins. Which is fun, your guy was random anyway so you get a new random guy with a colonist died debuff.

So that is how I start all my colonies these days, where they evolve from there usually depends on which events I get and what kind of map I am playing on.

For those of you who mastered the game and find normal starts boring I highly recommend trying this kind of start. If you want an extra challenge add the research mod that makes all your research slower. Nothing beats spending a few seasons or years to research electricity (72k research for electricity, yay!).

[AngleWyrm]

You are a team of six specialists, selected to create a forward outpost on a strategically significant world for the Federation. Your mission: Create a self-sustaining base of operations and establish contact with the indigenous population.

CLASSIFIED ADDENDUM TO MISSION PARAMETERS
Science officer is authorized to conduct biological experiments that have an outbreak risk.

Government support in the form of a wealth of starting gear, weekly supply pod drops, and a resupply freighter scheduled to visit near the end of each season.

Good luck, and don't get eaten.

[PotatoeTater]

I usually build a small storage bar that I can expand, use that as a basic house for a common room for awhile until I build a city like setup. Usually then after that I move into the mountain.

[BetaSpectre]

Depends on the geography, if there are no trees, can't grow. Then I mine/decon stoneblocks.

If there are trees, and I can grow I do just that with taters until I can start cooking.

If there are trees but I can't grow, then I get heaters and sunlamps and grow food asap after research.

For defense I usually just melee for captives that I harvest. Mental breaks are common for my colonies. Though at some point I get alcohol and smokeleaf.

[Euzio]

Depends largely on the geography.

I tend to play in mountainous regions as I like mountain bases. But I've been thinking of starting a base in which half of it is within the mountain while the other half is built outdoors. Probably on the level of the living and dining areas being within the mountain but all other stuff is segregated into different buildings outdoors. Kinda like a walled off village.

[GridLink]

Step 1 find the nearest pair of geothermal vents. Can't use them yet but I don't want to be too far away so I have mid-game power.

2. Build a large area subdividable into freezer, kitchen/dining and workshop, and stockpile.

3. Hang a few smaller bedroom areas nearby

4. Prison and medical area.

After that I adapt.

[Lightzy]

mine cavern into mountain, put 6 beds, a table, chairs and a stockpile there, keep mining. Kinda natural.

If no mountains, prolly just make a big hall next to good growing grounds or something and move from there.

Though TBH I'm waiting for the next release. Finished with this one it feels. Caravans were a huge addition but not one I actually use currently (the game gives no incentive to ever use it) so it's pretty much the same as the previous build for me and kind.. got it already.