Getting Started (Logistics Pipes)

''This guide is currently being written by. Please don't touch anything yet!''

Introduction
You have probably heard about it. Maybe you are currently playing Infinity Evolved Expert Mode, or Infinity Evolved Skyblock, and you want to autocraft items because doing 20 crafting steps manually just to get a Hardened Jetpack becomes boring after a while. But Applied Energistics is so expensive! You will need something to automate crafting a long time before you can afford the required wrench. So people have been telling you to use Logistics Pipes.

But this mod seems daunting. So many different pipes and modules with strange names - what is a "polymorphic item sink"? Or a "satellite pipe"? And you don't know how anything works either. How do you even get items out of a machine to transport it to a chest? How can you autocraft items with it? What pipes do you have to use for what? This guide will teach you the most important things you should know to use Logistics Pipes effectively.

''This guide assumes that you are using the latest version of Logistics Pipes, as it is currently used in 1.7.10 FTB modpacks. Logistics Pipes depends on BuildCraft. Other mods used in this guide include Thermal Expansion and Dynamics, Storage Drawers, and MineFactory Reloaded.''

About the mod
Logistics Pipes (LP) is an add-on to BuildCraft. The original aim of the mod was to greatly improve the functionality and usefulness of BuildCraft's various transport pipes. However, after many continuous improvements, the mod now only uses BuildCraft pipes in crafting recipes anymore. It can still be used together with BuildCraft pipes, of course, but in most cases that is not optimal.

The mod is a solid item transport and routing system with many neat tricks. You can use it to automate crafting and machines, keep certain items stocked, and remotely order items from your storage. It can handle items as well as fluids, can transport RF and EU power, and it even has special handling for Forestry's bees!

Everything in this mod is about automating item transport. The transport and sorting works with both the push and pull principles. Push means that items can be simply inserted into the LP network and it will find a suitable destination; pull means that an item is requested at a specific destination, and the LP network will try to find an inventory which contains the item, then send it on its way. The automated crafting options can handle both crafting recipes and machines well.

LP can also be very compact. Almost all of the functional pipes that the mod offers are also available as a module which can be used in a Logistics Chassis, a group of pipes with varying amounts of module slots. With these modules it is possible to fit up to 8 pipes into one!

Getting started
Before you begin with LP, you should get some power. Whether you want to use RF or EU does not matter, LP accepts both - but it will require a little power.

It is highly recommended to also make an Assembly Table and a few Lasers (and enough power to run them), as you can save resources by using chipsets instead of ingots or gears to craft functional Logistics Pipes. Later you will learn how to keep a few chipsets stocked so you don't have to wait so long for the chipsets to finish. It pays off well!


 * BuildCraft-compatible wrench
 * Logistics Power Junction
 * Unrouted Transport Pipe
 * Basic Logistics Pipe

A wrench is necessary to do almost anything with Logistics Pipes (LP). A Crescent Hammer or Buildcraft's own Wrench will do the job nicely. Unlike other mods, to open the GUI of the mod's special pipes you will need to right-click it with the wrench - be sure to keep it handy!

Like an ME Network, a Logistics Pipes network will not simply work as it is. It requires power, which is supplied with a Logistics Power Junction. This device accepts either RF or EU power and will convert it to Logistics Power, which is used by most pipes. An LP network does not need much power and can be used quite early, but power requirements rise together with the size of the network. You will only need one Logistics Power Provider

Unrouted Transport Pipes are the simplest and cheapest pipes. They serve only to transport items and Logistics Power; they do not have any special functions. They do not connect to machines or inventories.

The Basic Logistics Pipe is the most important pipe you will use. Unrouted Transport pipes will send items in random directions if they intersect - that's why Basic Logistics Pipes have to be placed at every intersection! They are also used to connect to machines and chests.

Item storage
The first thing you want to have in your LP network is item storage. LP is mostly about transporting items to specific places, so it needs a place to store items - and take items out of.

(To be continued)

Tips and tricks
One interesting aspect of LP is that you can use it together with other item transport pipes, like Thermal Dynamics' Itemducts - using Warp Itemducts instead of LP's own Unrouted Transport Pipes will greatly speed up your network! Of course that is not a cheap method. This guide will concentrate on LP's own pipes though.