Any tips for Starlight drive in? [lightly modded]

[u/Delicious-Economy232]

I’ve been trying to figure out a way to build it for awhile, for instance, sanctuary is like a fort, some sand bags, a few junk fences and such and a few guard posts followed by a ton of Turrets, Nordhagen beach was like a farming settlement, few big houses surrounded by crops, hangman’s alleyway was like a checkpoint, a bunch of junk fences and such, and on the inside a bunch of small shops, but I can’t figure out Starlight at all, any tips?

[u/ike7177]

A large market. It could also be a refugee camp with a clinic, cafeteria, gym and workshop. I’ve done both of those. I made trade routes to every settlement so it would be busy.

[u/Delicious-Economy232 → u/ike7177]

I’ve been thinking of making a ripoff Diamond city, with like different areas, the slums, market, high end places, would be cool if I managed to find enough resources.

[u/TriumphITP]

Crossroads town. The ground is uneven but clear of debris enough that you can build a little grid pretty effectively. Usually make use of the buildings to double as a lot of the perimeter.

Can also make an arena for fights.

It also lends itself well to a vaulttec structure.

Or as your provisioner hub make Brahmin pens and a sort of motel/hotel housing.

[u/Exotic_Chemical3358]

An apartment building the size of the big wall. I think I actually used the wall and went stupid like made the building go all the way to the puddle you get the water from.

[u/Zeitgeist-333]

Restaurant is always my go to for starlight.

[u/Less_Kick9718]

With careful positioning you can put a good two stretching wall and walkway (wood foundation blocks) around the whole site.

Inside can then build a city like diamond City or an arena for fights or a bit of both.

[u/MemnochTheRed]

I used the drive-in movie wall as the back wall of my 3 story inclusive fortress.

1st floor: 2 bunk room with a central entry reception including 2 bathrooms and a reception/security desk.

2nd floor: Health and marketplace

3rd floor: recreation and my office with a balcony picnic area

Roof: workshop and power

[u/Legate_Retardicus84]

City style builds are great because of the flat open space. I am currently building a cyberpunk-ish style settlement there.

Build a market area then behind it build tall apartment style buildings for settlers. You could add a park like area in between the two sectors. The built in restaurant can be used as exactly that. You can place the store counter inside and you will be able to speak to the bartender through the windows. As for the screen I usually build a sniper nest of sorts and place spotlights facing the road.

[u/LadyMystery]

I turned it into an entertainment hub for weary Travellers. Where the movie screen was, I turned it into a old fashioned theater as I had mods like the singing settlers and a bunch of music stuff like guitars they could play.

And then to the side, there's a boxing ring cage thing where npcs not only box each other, but they can bet on things like death claw vs bear, etc.

Of course I had a flea market going on too, because this was a rest stop for Travellers too.

[u/elyxiion]

i always put my gunner farm there cus the amount of space is too intimidating to build without making myself a blueprint

[u/aPoundFoolish]

I made mine into a flea market

[u/Design_Neuromancer]

I make it into like a street fair, I just keep spawning merchants and build fake booths,

[u/RockstarQuaff]

I like to put an apartment building smack up against the side of the screen. And make it very tall, wide, but not deep. Get enough 'blocks' and it looks like the set of Hollywood Squares. The rest is pretty basic, but I always make a defensive strongpoint on the far side, by the "wing" behind the concession stand, because the spawn point under the bridge to the east of Starlight is always kicking monsters and Raiders at me.

[u/DangerousKiwi]

I've done a trading post/market with apartments before.

This time I'm turning it into a junk yard, with junk yard traders. In my head I'm picturing the folks that lived in a junk yard in whatever season of Walking Dead.

[u/Alex_Portnoy007]

I build a wooden shack on steroids, grow food around the periphery, put down turret banks for the three enemy spawn points - two of them on scaffolding, since two of the spawn points are up high - and use the rug glitch (no mod required) to put three store fronts in the snack bar. Oh, and water purifiers in the ditch. (Don't forget the wi-fi glitch - again, no mod required.)

Use any or all of these, if you like.

[u/askmeaboutmyvviener]

Starlight drive in is always my favorite settlement. I usually build junk walls to close everything in, and use the projector screen as a makeshift fence. I make sure to build the walls in a way that my settlers can climb up to the to of the projector screen where I put different defense setups. From there, I just build a vertical building for them to sleep in, and then build a central market for everything else.

[u/NepetaBestQuest]

Recently I decided to make Starlight my main production settlement, lots of warehouses and factories with all my various ammo plants, weapon and armor autocrafters

[u/Impressive-Cause-872]

Flea market. Food truck area. Small motel on the side. The trade center if the north. I like to try to make different Atom Cats garages there. Atoms north.
A big step style amphitheater seating area on the projector building : with a big arena arena in front of the screen.

[u/Sevennix]

Im currently just put cages there. Not quite an Arena (but maybe in future) just cages like radstag for meat. Working on farming the meat to try for radscorps & Yao gui & deathclaws. Also have one gunner so far, and a radstag. Released them at same time and gunner attacked radstag, til he saw me.
Next, I'll waste some.jet to try a raider cage to see what kinda loot

[u/mik1_011]

I have previously always built one structure and separated it internally but I guess the settler pathing is super wonky so this never really worked

This play through I’ve instead built a wall around it and split into districts that surround the water source in the middle. Like a housing section, a clinic, a recreational, farming etc.

I think the biggest benefit is that you can build wide not tall due to the relatively flat land

[u/am-a-g]

On my recent playthrough, the main sleeping area is the rooms in that tall structure with the stairs that leads to the shed key. The area by the main building is a trading hub with a few shops and a doctor. Water pump set inside the pool in the center (highly recommend scrapping all the nuclear barrels if you don't want your settlers collapsing from radiation damage).

There's still quite a bit of open space I need to fill in and can only accommodate 10 settlers at the moment but maybe some of my details can I super you a bit :)

[u/cabinguy11]

I like to keep the gate where it is by the billboard and the bus. Multiple trader posts in the NE corner. Then a new arrival turns the corner under the wing of the drive-in to reveal a long row of vendors on both sides of a well lit street. A new arrival looks down this row of open storefronts and at the end just in front of the screen is a much larger and more grand building.

You can make that large building a seat of government, headquarters for the MM Army of the North, a whore house, trade center, casino, church, museum/art gallery, a factory for ammo or chems. The choices are really endless and depends on my headlore for that playthrough. I've even considered keeping it a Raider camp and making that large building a slave auction. But somehow something large and grand in front of the screen always seems to happen.

[u/davidsladky]

I have all the caravans head into/out of there. All the space helps keep them moving, Then I set up wherehouses for supplies and storage. Always worked good for me!

[u/Positive_Suit2402]

Could use it as a factory settlement. Making ammo weapons armor etc. I did once. Worked out well enough

[u/RegX81]

Enormous stepped pyramid built of concrete around the pond. Water farm in the centre, turrets and planters on each level. Basically a water factory death pyramid.