Sky-bases are bases built into the sky that excel in all stages of the game. Skybases usually have the high ground and vantage point that can allow it to be used offensively and control the map.
A skybase's height advantage provides several benefits, including the ability to Artillery enemies at extremely far range, using condensers effectively, and creating a central point for a Transceiver network. The height advantage also makes it difficult to raid: It is much above an enemy player, and an enemy on the ground cannot get in a position to hit the skybase. Skybases range from quick and simple skybridges to armored, well defended megastructures. They can be difficult to construct.
This page also covers Skybridges, which are referred to as "Simple Skybases" for consistency.
Construction & Usage[]
Skybases are diverse, ranging from simple to armored.
Notice how the keeps alternate in direction
The first part built on all Skybases is the Stem, which connects the base to the ground, using Keeps. Keeps are placed on top of each other, rotating each alternating keep by 180 degrees. The height limit in Eclipsis is 255 studs, and skybases are constructed using a block at the bottom and 4 alternating keeps on top to reach this maximum height. Keeps are much more effective than Ladder Blocks as they have more volume, health, and height. The player will run a pipe up to the top of the skybase to take power from the bottom of the base to the top. The player will also place a Distributor and Fabricators on the 4th keep, as the fabricator range will run out from the ground to the 4th keep. A player may put a Boost Pad on the bottom. You will need a ground base consisting of at least 3 maxed Well Pumps to make a skybase.
Sky-bases can be completely detached from the floor that incorporate a Spatial Anchor these variants of Sky-bases are called UFO bases, but are usually attached to the floor. Typically, direct power and connection to the ground is better in a sky-base than solely Transceiver power, as a lack of iridium or a destroyed tranciever can result in the entire sky-base toppling.
People sometimes build up using ladders, but this is rarely a good idea due to the ladder block's low health. Ladder Sky-bases should be reserved only as Transceiver posts or UFO bases.
Players may also build Skybases on top of Spires, or the tall terrain structures that naturally generate. Spires are easily to climb and have high durability. However, spires are easier to raid and are harder to defend than normal structures.
Simple Skybases[]
Simple Skybases, or Skybridges, incorporate bridges, which are cheap and easy to make. They allow the player to base far distances, are cheap, and are quick. They are primarily used for Artillery rushing, in which the player bridges to an enemy base and builds artillery to attack it. This type of skybase is always built in highly competitive matches. They are good for extending out quickly, but are more vulnerable to attacks. However, shields and point defenses are often used to defend.
The player simply bridges forward with Bridges. When fabricators can no longer place more bridges, the player will place a Distributor and Fabricators. The player also should put a Spawn Point. Players additionally can put Turrets and Shield Generators later on, but they must make sure they have enough iridium. A player will put Artillery to bombard an enemy base. Artilleries have much more range when higher up, and this will allow the player to destroy bases at a distance. Bores are another option, although costlier. Spatial Anchors and Transceivers are optional.
Some weaknesses of this skybase is that it uses bridges. Bridges do not have much durability, and the skybase can easily be toppled. However, the point of the skybase is to be quick rather than durable. Players typically build lots of shield generators to give the skybase more durable. However, iridium draining structures, such as Point Defenses, Bores, and even Shield Generators are cannot be used if the player doesn't have enough iridium production. Therefore, it is recommended to skybase only after the player has a good amount of iridium production.
Skybridges are the most common type of skybase.
Armored Skybases[]
Armored Skybases incorporate walls, which are durable and have more surface area than bridges. They are used more defensively than Skybridges, as they have much more health, but are hard to extend out quickly. These types of skybases are vulnerable to bore spam, but are resistant to cruise spam and LS spam.
Armrored Skybases usually contain rows of sideways-facing Walls connected bottom to bottom together (walls snap next to each other). The walls are usually 2 walls thick, as it provides double the health. The wall skybase in the photo has a Spawn Point, Shield Generators, Condensers (notice how they are connected together), a Spatial Anchor, Distributors, Fabricators, a Spatial Anchor, Tanks, and more. The spatial anchor is usually connected to 5 condensers. The large surface area of this skybase allows the player to build several structures. The skybase is defended by Point Defenses and/or Arc Turrets.
An armored skybase. Notice the Spatial Anchor, Condensers, and Wall placement
These Skybases allow both Artillerys and Bores, due to its high iridium production. Bores are very effective at taking down an enemy skybase with your skybase. In addition, it allows Cruise Missile spamming. Cruise missile spamming is very effective on a skybase, as the player can easily bombard a base below it, or destroy an enemy skybase.
Note that these Skybases consume lots of iridium to build, and take a long time to make. Unlike simple Skybases, they are usually only built if the player has a strong sprawl/sea base first. Due to this, several players decide to make simple Skybases and later convert them to armored Skybases.
Skyfighting[]
Skyfighting is the clash between two skybases. In skyfights, players use Artillery to try taking out chunks of an enemy base. Then they build their skybase forward with Distributors and Fabricators. Their ultimate goal is to get in range in order to bombard the Stem of the skybase or destroy the enemy's ground base. Players usually inch forward with artillery, one bridge at a time. They do not want to overextend. Players must have a Spawn Point on their skybase in case they die.
One strategy players use when skyfighting is destroying the bridges of their skybase. This makes their skybase harder to hit from enemy artillery.
Another common strategy is placing Walls. This blocks enemy projectiles and gives you time to build.
In addition, players curve their bridge placement when skyfighting. This can give a player a preferable angle to destroy the enemy skybase.
Players can use Bores and Cruise Missile Spams, but those strategies usually use up more iridium.
Here are some example Skyfights between some excellent players using Simple Skybases (note that these were recorded before the November 19 update, so the Skybases are at a higher elevation than possible now). Skybasing begins at 3:40 in the first video and 1:02 in the second video.
Skyfights between armored Skybases are more rare, but include other methods of combat. Bores are used much more often, as well as Cruise Missile Spam. This is an example (skybasing begins at 4:40 in the first video, the height is the old meta. The second video was created after the height change):
In team fights, some player in a team Skyfight, and other players in a team attempt to take down the skybase another way.
Infiltration[]
Skybases are very difficult to raid, especially armored Skybases, due to their height and use of turrets. Artilleries and bores on the ground cannot range a skybase without the skybase firing back, so direct attacks are usually the most effective.
Simple Skybases in the early game are much more easy to take down than armored Skybases. Players usually target the stem of the skybase, which is it's weak point. Players also target the Spatial Anchor. One thing to note is that players often defend the bottom of the skybase well, but neglect the top of it. A player can therefore ladder up to a skybase and take it down.
Armored Skybases are usually well defended from most raids and rushes. They are well protected from Laser Strikes and Cruise Missiles, and cannot solely be taken down using these. Typically, a player will cripple an armored skybase with Laser Strikes and Cruise missiles, then use their own skybase to finish it off.
Oftentimes, a player will simply approach the enemy base with a Rocket Launcher and rocket the stem. However, this can be countered by spamming walls, or directly killing the player with weapons or turrets. Satchel Charges and Laser Drills are good for taking out Skybases at close range, but Arc Turrets can counter this. Players can also pair a Rocket Launcher with an Orbital Shield, preventing enemy projectiles from harming them.
Laser Strikes are very effective. One laser strike can cut a simple skybase in half, and even has enough power to cut the stem of the skybase. A player should use Shield Generators to defend against laser strikes. An effective laser striker will constantly be preparing new Laser Srikes, and will harass the enemy by continuously laser striking the skybase, using barges, until it is weakened or destroyed. Laser strikers should aim to take out as much of the enemy skybase as possible, so placement is key. Laser strikers therefore attempt to get as far into an enemy base as possible before using their laser strike.
There are several ways a player can approach an enemy skybase. One way a player can do this is by laddering up, and using an Orbital Shield to stop enemy turrets from harming you. Another method uses a Barge and a Wall attached to it to stop turrets from hitting you. Probably the fastest and most direct way is using Barge. It can be a simple barge, with just a Platform Block blocking the driver's compartment. Due to the new height decrease, Boost Pads can reach the very top of enemy Skybases if placed at a small elevation.
Cruise Missile Spamming is a very effective way to take out Skybases, but players will usually spam walls in front of the cruise missiles.
Barges are usually good at taking down Skybases. The best barge to use for Skybases is a Bore barge, as the Bore beams can focus on one target, and the barge will be hard to hit, as it is continuously in motion.
Trying to set up Priority Beacons can be very difficult with an enemy skybase present, as the skybase can easily attack your beacon spots.
Skybases are usually weak before they have been fully created, and a player should try to destroy a skybase as soon as possible.
Typically, the best way to fight a skybase is to use your own skybase (see skyfighting above). That is why it is so important to make Skybases in matches.
Defence[]
Skybases are often very dominant in matches, but also very brittle. They easily can be seen and targeted by other players. Oftentimes, players will extend their skybase too far, making it vunrable to enemy attacks.
Apart from direct skybase combat, the two main strategies the enemy will use to take down your skybase is Cruise Missile Spam and Laser Strike.
Supporting a simple Skybase with walls and Shield Generators is a good idea later game. Note that while a Sea Base can be protected by spamming Shield Generators, a Skybase must have physical strength in the form of solid defensive structures. Enemy players can easily cut your skybase using Cruise Missiles or a Laser strike. Simple Skybases are extremely brittle against these two strategies, but armored Skybases are much more durable and resistant.
If an enemy player is nearing your skybase or actively damaging it, try physically attacking the enemy with your own handheld weapons. Enemies outside of their base do not have an iridium advantage.
The best way to defend a cruise spam is to either spam Walls in front of the missiles, cruise spam back to the enemy, or physically destroy the enemy's cruise spam by rushing their base.
Spatial Anchors are incredibly important to use in your skybase, as it can hold it up if the enemy cuts it down. Typically, players do not attach spatial anchors to their main production line, because it can deactivate if the main iridium system loses iridium. Instead, they create its own iridium system, attaching 5 Condensers and a tank to the Spatial Anchor. Spatial Anchors must be very well defended, as they have very little health.
If a player cannot stop a laser strike on their skybase, they can minimize the damage. This can be done by placing large blueprints to block the strikes, or build a solid defensive structure on the spot the strikes are hitting the skybase.
Players can use large blueprints, such as Reservoir blueprints to anchor parts of their skybase together.
A very common strategy is to start the game with a simple skybase, then later convert it to an armored skybase by reinforcing it with walls once a team has got more iridium and there are threats of more dangerous attacks.
Attacking from Below[]
Oftentimes, you may lose a skyfight, resulting in the destruction of your skybase, and the enemy skybase over your base. If an enemy skybase in position to bombard your base, there are still some solutions that may save the situation, or at least delay the enemy. This can allow you to rebuild your skybase and skylight again. With this being said, it is possible to win against a team with a skybase without making a skybase of your own
Bore spamming is a very popular solution against Skybases, utilizing several bores on the ground to quickly take out a skybase. However, this strategy requires a lot of iridium production.
Cruise Missile Spamming is a very popular strategy and almost always utilized in ground to sky situations.
Players should continue to use Tactical Strikes. Players should continue to use Laser Strikes to cripple or cut the enemy skybase. An interesting feature about Orbital Shields is that they block enemy projectiles from the inside as well as the outside. A defending player can use this to their advantage by placing their orbital shield around enemy attacking weapons, such as Artillery, bombarding your base. This will block enemy projectiles, such as artillery shells, from hitting your base.
| Components | |
|---|---|
| Objects | Mainland • Spires • Well Pipe • Starter Island • Lobby • Gold Well Pipe |
| Game Features | Practice Mode • Day/Night cycle • Iridium • Iridium Ocean • Iridium Crystal • Blueprint • Badges |
| Player | Player • Mounted Iridium Tank • Portafab • Pistol |
| Other | Known Bugs • Controls • Game Updates • Eclipsis lore |
| Concepts | |
| Base Types | Skybase • Sea Base • Ruin Base • Edge Base |
| Base Strategies | Rushing • Sprawling • Turtling |