Approximately Up Ship Blueprints (B Key)

Approximately Up ships are modular and disposable — tutorials recycle your first hull, missions add mass, and co-op sessions end in explosions. Blueprints let you snapshot a working garage layout and reload it later without rewiring from scratch. Press B to open the blueprint menu, save with the plus button, name your design, and load to replace the current garage contents. This guide covers save/load workflow, Earth-vs-Moon spawning quirks, and launch-week habits so you keep flyable hulls before the demo sunsets.

Pair with Controls, Build Your First Ship, and Moon Landing — all three reference blueprint saves during progression.

Opening the blueprint menu

Action	Key / UI
Open blueprints	B
Save current garage	Plus (+) button, then name
Load saved blueprint	Select entry → Load → Replace garage
Close menu	B or ESC

Blueprints store part layout and wiring in the current garage — not in-flight state, cargo, or mission progress. Save before ending fly mode if you just landed a successful test; save after garage edits when you finish a wiring pass.

Community tutorials stress: if you quit without saving, the blueprint may be gone when you return. Treat B → + → name like Ctrl+S in other games.

Save workflow (recommended)

1. Finish edits in garage mode (G).
2. Press B → + → enter a clear name (earth-lifter-v3, moon-tug-rcs).
3. Optional: launch test with R; if successful, save again with incremented version.
4. Before logging off, open B and confirm your latest name appears.

Naming convention tips:

• Prefix by world: earth-, moon-, oldara-
• Note thrust type: atmo, electric, hybrid
• Mark mission fit: icecream, package-1.2, fred-star

Compare part choices on the Tier List before duplicating a weak hull under three names.

Load and replace garage

Load → Replace garage swaps the entire build zone with the saved snapshot. Current unsaved garage work is overwritten — clone tricky sections with C or save a backup blueprint first.

Use loads to:

• Swap between Earth lifter and Moon tug at the same station
• Restore a hull after a catastrophic test flight without Time Rewind
• Share baseline layouts in co-op — one player loads while others review (Co-op guide)

You cannot merge two blueprints in one garage automatically — load one, manually copy sections, save a new combined blueprint.

Earth vs Moon spawning note

Players report a world spawn quirk: after some Moon missions, resetting may return you to Earth unless you pick spawn location from the main menu (Earth HQ vs Moonstep). Blueprints are tied to your account/library, but where you stand when you load depends on spawn selection.

Moon mission workflow from community guides:

1. Save lunar-ready hull as blueprint on Earth.
2. Travel or menu-spawn to Moonstep.
3. Load blueprint if the pad garage is empty or you need a fresh copy.
4. Fly mission; save again on Moon if you improved the design.

See Missions Walkthrough for ice cream delivery prerequisites.

What blueprints do not save

Blueprints do not preserve:

• Mission cargo state (freezer power, package inside bay)
• In-flight damage or detached parts mid-run
• Objective completion or unlocked parts inventory
• Co-op session if only one player saved locally — confirm host saves

Inventory unlocks from missions persist on your save file; blueprint files are hull templates only.

Blueprints before full release

The Launch guide notes the demo delists August 6, 2026. Before launch:

1. Blueprint every hull you might want to recreate in the paid game.
2. Screenshot wiring from cockpit monitors if blueprints fail to migrate (save migration not confirmed).
3. Export notes: TWR values from Thrust Calculator, part lists, RCS knob settings.

Even if saves transfer, having named blueprints speeds day-one exploration of 17 planets.

Blueprints for challenge builds

Minimal hulls — like No Frame Challenge ships without Frame/Window blocks — should be blueprinted before teardown. Contest rules required screenshots with the timeboard; saving the blueprint preserves the design for post-event bragging.

For Fred’s Star finale prep, maintain separate blueprints:

• scanner-radar-oldara — monitors + power branches
• moon-approach-backup — atmospheric + electric mix

Troubleshooting

Problem	Fix
Blueprint missing after restart	You likely quit without B → + save
Load grayed out	Open garage on a station with a build pad; some UI requires G off
Wrong hull after load	You chose Replace garage — reload previous save blueprint if you kept one
Blueprint from demo gone after launch	Demo data may not migrate — use screenshots + notes
Co-op partner sees old hull	Host must load; clients rejoin or sync in garage

Related guides

• Build Your First Ship — first hull worth saving
• Power and Data Routing — wiring to snapshot
• Moon Landing — lunar blueprint workflow
• Launch guide — demo sunset timing

Press B early and often. Approximately Up rewards iteration — blueprints turn one good afternoon in the garage into a fleet you can reload whenever the front falls off.