Hypertube

The Hyper Tube is a pipe-like transport system used to quickly transport Engineers over long distances. A Hyper Tube Entrance is required for entry, but not for an exit, where a Hyper Tube Support suffices. Hyper Tubes aren't directional and can be entered from both ends if the Entrance is placed on both ends.

Engineers can change the travel direction or nearly stop during mid-flight by holding the directional key. No Tube junction or crossing is allowed. If the Tube is built through terrain or trees, the Engineer inside will be able to clip through.

Speed
Travel speed is affected by whether traveling upwards or downwards and by the number of sharp turns. Hypertube railgun/cannon: Speeds exceeding 500 km/h can be reached by chaining Hyper Tube Entrances, making it faster than the Electric Locomotive, which can be used for effectively crossing large distances. Chaining over 17 entrances is not recommended as the speed gained in the tube will shoot the player beyond the map boundary.

The Hypertube cannon can be constructed as follows:
 * 1) Build a row of foundations of 1 tile x 9 tiles
 * 2) Every 4 meters, place a Hyper Tube Support, up to 17.
 * 3) From each support, build a short Hypertube of 2 meters each, except for the last segment.
 * 4) The last segment should be slightly longer and curved 30 degrees upwards and point towards your target destination of the map. Use the mouse wheel to control the vertical tilt.
 * 5) Delete all the other Hypertube support. (You may delete all supports)
 * 6) Build Hyper Tube Entrance at the beginning of each segment.
 * 7) Power all entrances.

To use the Hypertube cannon:
 * 1) Save your game
 * 2) Wear a Jetpack and enter the 1st entrance for the longest distance.
 * 3) If overshot, reload and enter from 2nd entrance for a shorter distance. If still overshot, enter from the 3rd entrance.
 * 4) Build walls or jelly at the other end to land safely without a jetpack.

To use the cannon for fast map exploration:
 * 1) Build The HUB near the cannon.
 * 2) Store all your inventory at a safe place, do not bring anything along.
 * 3) Launch across the map at any angle.
 * 4) Kill yourself by simply let the cannon to throw you outside the map, or click respawn in the esc menu.
 * 5) After respawn, adjust the last tube to a slightly different angle, then repeat the launch. Eventually, the entire map will be revealed.

Construction
The Hyper Tube has 4 construction modes: Default, Conveyor 2D, Noodle, and Vertical. Tubes don't transmit power, therefore each Entrance must be separately powered to be usable.

Engineer damage

 * While inside, the Engineer will not aggro nearby hostile creatures, however, damage will be dealt if they come in contact, which may even throw the Engineer out of the Tube.
 * The Tube does not shield from Poison Gas or Radiation.
 * Fall damage will be inflicted if the Tube is exited vertically downwards too quickly

Trivia

 * Hyper Tubes somewhat resemble the Tube Transport System from Futurama.
 * In a multiplayer game, Engineers phase through each other if more than one are within, and can drag Engineers standing on the top of the Tube. The Tube can be constructed into a loop once another Engineer enters it, getting them stuck with no exit.
 * The metal rings on the Tube aren't spaced out evenly.

History

 * Patch 0.3: Introduced