Cannonball Run — Four Attempts, Three Deaths & Our First Landing | Oxygen Not Included

The Cannonball Run finally reached another planetoid. It only took four landing attempts and three permanent casualties to get there. We began again with 20 duplicants at maximum speed and no pause, using our reconstructed control group and a revised research sequence. This time, we corrected last week’s biggest mistake. Oxygen masks came before rockets. The first platform was unlocked around cycle 8, both colonies began searching the star map, and approximately five dupes were transferred to Stinkano to distribute the workload. Then the first rocket launched late in cycle 29. Lindsay—our ace pilot with +9 Piloting—carried the Trailblazer module to Canopalin. What followed was a series of increasingly educational disasters. She suffocated before completing the landing sequence. We reloaded. She found oxygen but couldn’t reach the returning rocket. We reloaded. She reached another air pocket but couldn’t swim through the terrain. We reloaded. Finally, we got the sequence right: • Deploy the refined-metal cargo • Land near accessible oxygen • Deconstruct the Trailblazer • Build the rocket platform • Add the ladders immediately • Land the rocket • Construct the Printing Pod • Get Lindsay home alive The repeated attempts weren’t about hiding a failed run. We practiced the sequence until we could execute it successfully. Canopalin now has a Printing Pod, giving us three planetoids under control and two qualifying colonies—but it still isn’t sustainable. Camille was printed there and suffocated before she could establish meaningful infrastructure. Elsewhere, Stinger died near the main colony’s saltwater pump, and Ruby was accidentally left behind during teleporter preparations. Three permanent deaths. The stream also exposed the next major engineering problem: landing life support. Rogueaxe proposed carrying oxygen tanks aboard the rocket and emptying them on the destination planetoid. That could turn the landed rocket into a temporary, self-contained field station while the new colony gets established. We also discovered that food can be manually relocated directly into the rocket, eliminating the refrigerator from the build and freeing valuable interior space. Another strategic assumption is now under review: Not every planetoid needs a complete spaceport. Some may only need a platform and telescope nose cone for reconnaissance. Full rocket infrastructure can be reserved for the colonies that become actual launch hubs. We ended around cycle 37 with: • Two operational rockets • Three planetoids under control • Approximately five dupes on Stinkano • A Printing Pod established on Canopalin • Lindsay alive and scouting again • The original colonies stable • The Tear Generator still undiscovered This save continues next Friday. We also announced Cannonball Run: Safe Mode for the first Friday of every month. We’ll pause, examine the sequence step by step, and engineer improvements together as a community. Finally, congratulations to Rogueaxe on becoming The Workshop’s first Senior Engineer. The promotion was well earned. 🔧 Join The Workshop:   / discord   Come build with us. 📅 Weekly Schedule 🟡 Fast Friday – Cannonball Run. Maximum speed. No pause. 🔵 Wind Down Wednesday – Creative engineering and workshop sessions. 🔴 Sabotage Sunday – Viewers try to break the colony! 🟣 Manic Monday – Engineering challenges, experiments, and community projects. Take care of yourself and each other... ...and leave something a little better than you found it.