Pgens adjacent to mass extractors

[nedisalegend]

When pgens are built next to mass extractors, do they reduce the energy required to upgrade the mass extractors? Or do they only reduce the amount of energy required to power the mass extractors?

If so; is it a good idea to build pgens next to mass extractors whilst upgrading, then replace them later with mass storage?

I ask because I saw a pro player do this on youtube and wondered why, as I read that it is not very beneficial to place pgens next to mass extractors

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IhjuFY8t3w

[IronTony]

Pgens adjacent to a mex will reduce the energy cost to upgrade it, but generally you want to have your T2 mexes sourrunded with Mass storage, since you are on most maps limited by mass income. Deleting the Pgens after the upgrade would be very inefficent most of the time so I would not recommend doing that. The YT video focuses on the pocket position on Setons where you are limited by Energy at the start of the game, since you are getting a lot of shared mass via the mid player. That is why the high rated player is doing that.

So what you should be doing is upgrading your mex first and then sourrund them with mass storage.

Also on a side note: mex will still produce mass whilst the upgrade is ongoing, so adjacent mass storage will be bneneficial even while upgrading your T2 to T3.

With best regards
IronTony

[biass]

a strange answer

Yes, pgens adjacent to a mex will reduce upgrade costs, as it will with anything else
Make sure to reclaim them when you're capping your mexes, (storages) so you dont lose out on the storage income
You should have enough power to upgrade your mexes to t3 at the time anyways.

[Hawkei]

Yes, pgens next to mass extractors will reduce the power costs associated with both operation and upgrade - and yes it is often beneficial to do so in the following situations:

1. When the game will be over before the need to surround mexes with storage (such as 1v1 ladder games on 5x5 and 10x10 maps)
2. When you are pursuing an energy intensive eco path in preparation for something like a T3 Air Rush, and therefore, need to conserve every scrap of power.

The simple fact is that early T2 mex upgrades are a massive drain on your power grid, and if you are committed to something like getting early RAS then the adjacency bonus is very useful. Furthermore, once you have RAS, or a T2, or T3 power grid online it is no longer cost effective to keep the T1 pgens. Because of their relatively high mass cost for energy output you are better off reclaiming them so that you can invest the mass in other things.

The practical upshot here is that by the time you are ready to surround the T2 mexes with storage, you should have already reclaimed the T1 pgens.