OilLab — Little Crew, Big Oil

Build your field. Place a crew hut, oil well, tank and dispatch using Build. Click and drag to position a building, then Place. Click individual path and road tiles, or hold to paint any route you like. Use Pan to move the map. A single path or road tile beside any building edge connects it. You do not need to surround buildings. Paths and roads cannot cross foundations. Use labeled attachment points for pipes and power. Connect worker paths from the hut to every work site and roads from dispatch to tanks. For pipes, connect an OUT to a matching IN. Wells feed crude tanks directly. Junctions split or merge flow according to available supply and storage space.

Hire your people. Each hut supports 6 workers; upgrade it to 9, then 12. Build more huts to support a larger crew. Connect worker paths to queued buildings. Hire a construction worker to automatically build equipment, a rig worker to prepare wells, a well operator to pump oil, and a driver to sell it. Construction workers move to the next connected job automatically. When a rig is ready, select it and press Drill. Different formations call for different drill bits. Steer past rocks, heat and fault zones. Click a worker, then a highlighted work site to assign them. They stay assigned until you choose Automatic. The Crew button shows everyone in one roster.

Keep oil moving. Tanks take the fluid type of their inlet supply. Each connected pipe network carries one fluid only. Keep refinery fractions on separate networks; straight four-way crossings pass over each other without mixing; corners and T-junctions connect. Red pipes indicate incompatible fluids and stop flowing until separated. A tank holding fluid keeps its type; empty it and rewire to change type. Tank outlets feed other tanks, refineries, generators and factories. Drivers sell deliveries. Open Market to sell continuously, wait for $12+ oil, or stockpile. Watch the forecast and keep enough cash for wages. Full tanks limit output; pipes have no flow cap.

Grow your business. Reinvest oil sales in more wells, workers and better equipment. Mechanics repair equipment; experienced workers earn specialties. Buy improved roads and individual building upgrades to solve bottlenecks. Select a producing well and Manage well to balance flow, wear and reservoir pressure. Choose faster pumps or durable equipment. Money shows profit and expenses. Drag in any direction to expand. There is no fixed well or worker limit. One minute is a game day; costs and rates are game-scaled.

Turn oil into everyday products. Build a refinery, generator and factory from Build → Industry. Refineries split crude into fuel, petrochemical feedstock, base oil and bitumen together. Connect pipes and power cables to your factory. Choose bottles, motor oil, tires or asphalt. Order the other materials in Supplies; deliveries need a road to dispatch or rail. Factories combine ingredients in batches. Drivers and trains sell finished goods. Compare sale prices and supply costs, then reinvest the profit.

Juniper Basin Startup

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A little crew.
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