Introduction
Fellow Praetorians!
With the recent Land 1.75 update, I am sure that many of us are eager to find out and understand what everyone else is doing and how they are approaching this big change! I bet I'm not the only one who decided that adjustments to their current land setup are needed and pivot to something a little different. Whether it's building more Farms for Grain production, shutting off Research Huts and/or Shard Mines to ensure self-sustainability, purchasing more land plots for future use, or simply just staying put, I am certain we are all keen to discover what method makes the most sense for us in this current version of the portion of the Splinterlands game that I find the most interesting and fascinating: Land!
In this article, I will discuss the steps I have taken so far in order to keep up with the new update and achieve some sort of sustainability while also planning for the future. I previously wrote about potential strategies prior to Land 1.75. You can find that writeup HERE. Let's explore my approach and see if anyone else followed the same route I took. I did something I didn't plan on doing. Please read on if you're interested to find out!
Preliminary Plans
Some time last year, I had decided that I would bring in almost all my production to my "home base." I unstaked most of my land workers, DEC, and Runi from Magical Plots in other regions and brought them to Region 50, Ia'telda. I purchased totem fragments, titles, and Gold Foil workers to ensure that all land workers in my Tract, whether in a Research Hut or in an SPS Mine, are well fed for maximum production. My setup was also self-sufficient / self-sustaining, producing enough Grain for all my workers across all Regions where I have "online" plots in.
Since all worksites will be terrain-dependent come the 1.75 update, including the introduction of new resources such as Wood, Stone, and Iron, I knew I had to make adjustments, specifically because harvesting Research and SPS will also consume the said resources.
My initial setup for Magical Plots with Research Huts, and Occupied and Natural Plots with Shard Mines, had a total of 638,300 BASE PP. This meant that I would need the same amount of PP assigned for harvesting each of the other natural resources:
- 638,300 Total PP that produces Wood
- 638,300 Total PP that produces Stone
- 638,300 Total PP that produces Iron
Per the Land 1.75 announcement from over a week ago:
🔨 But production is just the beginning—Wood, Stone, and Iron will also be required to generate SPS & Research. The consumption rates will match the production rates, meaning that when you harvest SPS or Research:
Every 1 base Production Point spent per hour toward production will consume
0.005 Wood
0.002 Stone
0.0005 Iron
To put this into perspective:
đź’ˇ If you have a 5,000 Production Point Research plot, you'll need an equal amount of Wood, Stone, and Iron production to match it (along with enough Grain) to be fully self-sufficient.
I devised a plan to re-allocate my workers and/or worksites. I have 16 Rare, 1 Epic, and 1 Legendary Natural Plots that have Shard Mines. Switching those over to Grain Farms (or Logging Camp depending on the type of terrain) instead would reduce the amount of PP I need to cover to just 411,300 PP. This will be for the Magical and the Occupied plots I plan to maintain.
I then calculated the amount of new resources I could produce by myself across the board and got the following numbers:
- 162,375 Total BOOSTED PP for Wood
- 225,380 Total BOOSTED PP for Stone
- 171,980 Total BOOSTED PP for Iron
I still won't have enough.
First Steps After The Land 1.75 Update
I had accepted the fact that I do not have enough resources to continue with both Research Huts and Shard Mines. It has to be one or the other. Or reduce production on both by 50%.
I decided that I will keep my Shard Mines and shut off all my Research Huts. Instead of taking the workers off these plots (there will be a 3-day cooldown before being able to move the workers to other plots), I opted to rebuild the worksites into whatever natural resource building is applicable to the terrain (only 24 hours to rebuild). Two of these Magical Plots can now produce Wood while the rest produce Grain. All Shard Mines on natural plots currently in production were converted to either Grain Farms or Logging Camps. The remainder of my land holdings, mostly the Natural Common plots, remain without any workers, therefore no production.
Three Runi that were previously utilized for Rare Magical Plots now support a Rare Caldera in Region 50, another Rare Caldera in Region 114, and a Rare Canyon, also in Region 114. This is to further bolster my production of Stone and Iron.
My new overall production totals are:
- 288,885 Total BOOSTED PP for Wood
- 250,530 Total BOOSTED PP for Stone
- 233,280 Total BOOSTED PP for Iron
The total amount of PP I need to cover for my remaining online Shard Mines is now exactly 240,000 PP. Almost got everything fully covered.
The Case for Shutting Down My Six Shard Mines
Okay, I didn't really shut off production on my Shard Mines. I just rebuilt the worksites to produce natural resources instead of SPS, similar to what I had initially done with my Magical Plots.
Now why the heck would I do that?
On the morning of March 21st, during my usual check-the-market-and-look-for-deals routine, I decided to review where I currently stood in terms of resource production. I looked at the prices of the other resources via the Trade Hub, too, and I was aware of their exchange rates either to DEC or to other resources.
Shortly after harvesting Grain, Wood, and Iron in Region 50, I paused and contemplated whether or not I have enough resources in other regions to complete these requirements in order to claim SPS. I knew I still won't have enough. I also knew that I have other Shard Mines in other regions that would need the same resources in order to claim SPS. Assuming I was able to trade just enough resources to harvest SPS in Region 50, what else would I need to do in order to do the same for my other Shard Mines?
I have a sole plot with a Shard Mine in Region 18. I thought this would be a perfect example for my analysis of trading excess resources in order to obtain more of what I needed for an SPS claim.
As you can see in the above image, I would need the items below in order to claim 330 SPS. This is assuming I can already cover the needed Grain by transporting this resource from other regions:
- Approx. 19,000 Wood
- Approx. 8,000 Stone
- Approx. 2,000 Iron
Based on the Trade Hub prices during the time of analysis:
- 19,000 Wood ~ 1,540 DEC
- 8,000 Stone ~ 5,760 DEC
- 2,000 Iron ~ 2,560 DEC
It would cost approximately 9,860 DEC to get 330 SPS!!
Well how much in DEC is 330 SPS???
I looked at Tribaldex to see how much SPS is if I just swap for it with DEC.
2,500 DEC.
It's cheaper to buy SPS with DEC than trade DEC for the resources to mine SPS! And this is just for one Occupied plot. I have other Occupied plots to cover!
With this in mind, I decided to change the Shard Mines into Natural Resource buildings. I was aware that I would lose the harvested SPS if I change worksites. I thought it was a small price to pay, plus I would end up getting more DEC with these exchange rates and can just swap them for more SPS. It's as if I never got rid of my Shard Mines!
Other Factors to Consider: Natural Resources from Occupied Plots
Now that I know that I can get more SPS (by obtaining DEC from swapping natural resources instead of using them to harvest SPS), I converted my 6 Shard Mines on Occupied plots to Grain Farms (3), Logging Camps (2), and Ore Mine (1). At least for now, I believe this is the play, while the exchange rates for Wood, Stone, and Ore are this high. In case things change in the coming weeks or months, I can always re-build these worksites back to Shard Mines. It'll only take a full 24-hour process anyway!
Just calculating the quantity of natural resources I will receive from these recently converted worksites, I will also get the following:
- Approx. 914 Wood/HR
- Approx. 66 Iron/HR
- Approx. 4,900 Grain/HR
Now swap these for DEC and do the math on how much more SPS I can get. I can even use that DEC to purchase other Splinterlands assets!
Summary
As you can see, I have done deep research regarding what my approach would be moving forward. I initially thought that favoring Shard Mines in lieu of Research Huts would be a good play. It turns out that choosing to gather and sell the natural resources would be more profitable rather than using them to harvest SPS!
I also bought another plot which now increased my total land holdings to 253. I am currently clearing the plot for a potential trade with someone who has a similar plot in a region I prefer!
I am very excited about the 1.75 update. I have to admit, I was nervous at first but it feels good to be able to experiment with my own assets and run the numbers to see what works and what doesn't! It really is like running your own business!
I am glad I mapped out different scenarios on what my approach should be. Even though I ultimately decided to drop both Research and SPS harvesting, I can always switch back to these worksites when the time is right and when it starts to make sense doing so. Either way, you can't go wrong with the type of resources you are harvesting. Even if you are deficient in one resource, you can always trade excess ones for a different resource you need! You can even add to the liquidity markets if preferred!
So, what do you think about my approach? Do you think this makes sense? What would you rather do? I'd like to hear your thoughts!
Final Thoughts
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this article. I hope I was able to provide valuable information and impart some ideas that can help you decide your next steps. I have grown my Splinterlands assets over the years and I plan to keep on building!
Whether you prefer the exhilaration of playing battles, the calmness and idleness of building your digital real estate, or just the fun of collecting these fancy images of collectible cards, I am hopeful that you enjoy your time here in Praetoria!
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, please let me know! Let's all learn and grow together and set each other up for success! VoNak! Together We Thrive, Kapamilya!
Interested in this Digital Land or just Splinterlands in general? Feel free to use my Referral Code and I can help you get started. You can also find me on X or message me on Discord.
