Artillery wagon

The artillery wagon is a specialized train wagon that functions both as a long-range mobile artillery piece and as a high-capacity transport for artillery shells. Each artillery wagon holds up to 100 artillery shells and can load/unload with inserters like any other wagon, but it accepts only artillery shells as cargo. Artillery wagons can fire shells either automatically (when stopped) or manually via the Artillery targeting remote; they share the same long-range, high-damage characteristics as stationary artillery turrets.

Artillery wagons have two distinct firing modes. In automatic mode, a stopped artillery wagon scans nearby chunks and automatically fires at enemy structures (spawners and worms) within its automatic range of 224 tiles (7 chunks). Automatic mode cannot select mobile units (biters and spitters) as targets, though mobile units can still be damaged by shell impacts. In manual mode the player uses an Artillery targeting remote to point-and-click a location on the world or map; manual mode reaches 560 tiles (17.5 chunks) and can be used to target unexplored map areas — shells will reveal each chunk they traverse. The targeting remote displays how many fire-ready artillery pieces (loaded and, for wagons, stationary) are in range of the cursor when held. Researchable range upgrades increase both automatic and manual range by +30% of base range per level.

Artillery wagons fire relatively slowly by default, but firing speed can be improved by infinite artillery firing speed research at +100% per level, which applies equally to wagons and stationary turrets. Artillery damage research raises shell damage and increases the evolution threshold at which spawners and worms are killed in a single shot; most non-behemoth worms and many spawners are killed in one shot at base damage, while behemoth worms and very high-evolution spawners may require additional damage research or multiple hits.

There are important operational limitations and logistical considerations. Artillery wagons have a minimum range of 32 tiles; they will antagonize nearby enemy mobile units at the impact location, often drawing aggressive attack waves toward the wagon. Automatic-mode firing cannot target mobile units, and the wagons have a low built-in rate of fire unless upgraded. Shells have a stack size of 1, so buffers and inserters move only single shells at a time; the wagon’s 100-shell capacity and the stationary artillery turret’s 15-shell capacity affect resupply planning. Artillery wagons are heavy for train acceleration calculations (weighing the same as four regular cargo wagons, or two locomotives), which makes train composition and fuel choice important; nuclear fuel provides a +250% acceleration boost, making it especially effective for artillery trains.

Operational rules for trains with artillery wagons: an artillery wagon can fire while stopped at a train stop, but it will not fire when stopped at a red signal or while moving. A train in automatic mode that is "No-Path" will not fire. When part of a player-driven (manual-mode) train, artillery wagons fire whenever the train is stopped, regardless of where. When stopped at a train stop, aiming and shooting count as activity for schedule-based inactivity departure conditions; the wagon performs an automated scan at a rate of one chunk per tick and only counts as inactive after scanning all chunks and finding no enemies.

Practical notes and tips:

• Use artillery wagons as the most space-efficient rail transport for artillery shells (100 shells each vs 40 in a regular cargo wagon), but remember they are not mass-efficient: they are heavier than regular cargo wagons.
• Combine artillery wagons with onboard storage and nearby assembly/supply to reduce single-shell handling overhead caused by the stack-1 shell.
• Defend artillery wagons with walls and turrets or move them frequently; heavy shelling provokes large coordinated enemy attacks centered on the firing location.
• Prefer train stops (not red signals) if you want automatic firing, or drive the train manually to allow firing from any stop.
• Invest in artillery range, damage, and firing speed research to improve effectiveness against high-evolution spawners and worms.