Behind the numbers

What goes into each calculation

A cycle, an estimated day and a batch are different units. This page shows how CaveCrafter turns recipes and prices into comparisons, and where each mode uses proportional quantities or whole cycles.

By EsquivaZero · Reviewed on September 20, 2026

1. Recipe and effective parameters

Each factory level determines the quantity produced, duration, power consumption and inputs of a cycle. CaveCrafter starts with these catalog values and applies the parameters selected in the planner.

• Mastery: reduces inputs using the multiplier associated with the mastery level. The multiplier is not the level number itself: in the current catalog, mastery 10 divides inputs by 1.0525.
• Boost: the applicable boost halves the cycle duration. It does not double the output or change the inputs and power of a single cycle. The mine and factories have separate boost selections.
• Power: the value entered is the cost in COIN of 100,000 units of power. If it is zero, the calculation assigns zero cost to power; this does not mean the factory stops consuming it.
• Buying and selling: the engine uses the purchase price and selling price supplied for each token, including fees when configured. Do not apply the same fee again to the result.

Effective input = input at the selected level ÷ mastery multiplier
Power cost = power consumed ÷ 100,000 × price of 100,000 power

COIN is the unit used to compare values in the planner. These numbers are not an automatic conversion to reais, dollars or an available wallet balance.

2. Profit from one cycle when buying inputs

In Buying inputs, each immediate input is bought at the unit price being considered. The result compares this purchase and power with the sale of all the output from one factory cycle.

Revenue = cycle output × selling price per token
Input cost = sum of (effective quantity × purchase price)
Cycle profit = revenue − input cost − power cost

3. Daily playing time: a proportional estimate

The hours-per-day setting accepts 1 to 24 hours, including fractions. For Profit Day, the engine divides this time by the effective cycle duration, taking the applicable boost into account. The calculation retains fractional cycles.

Equivalent cycles per day = available hours ÷ cycle duration in hours
Estimated daily profit = profit from one cycle × equivalent cycles

The level details show the reference catalog. To compare your customized scenario, use the results calculated with your current settings.

4. Buying base resources or part of the chain

Buying base resources expands inputs down to the resources classified as basic in the catalog. The expansion considers levels and mastery at each stage and adds the power used throughout the chain. The table's costs and profit correspond to one cycle of the final factory; Sell Price remains the selling price of one token.

In this comparison, upstream quantities are proportional to the output required. It does not automatically simulate the surplus caused by rounding every factory up to whole cycles. For a batch with that surplus, use Simulation.

In Production Line, you can also view the tree with cycle rounding enabled. At each stage, the requested quantity is divided by the output per cycle and, with this option, rounded up. This may increase consumption in upstream branches.

Cutting a branch replaces production at that occurrence with a purchase of the corresponding resource. Its upstream inputs and the power of the interrupted part leave the mixed-purchase scenario; the rest continues to be calculated normally.

5. Simulation: balancing the entire batch

Simulation combines production of the same token across all columns. Internal demand is added up before calculating automatic cycles for upstream factories. Final products use the cycles you choose; the stages supplying them use enough whole cycles to meet demand.

The shared stock in this simulation is the calculated production of the batch itself, not a reading of your wallet or in-game inventory.

Internal use = the smaller of production and consumption
Sales quantity = the greater of (production − consumption) and zero
Required purchase quantity = the greater of (consumption − production) and zero

• Final product: a produced token that does not supply another active recipe in the batch.
• Surplus: the excess of an intermediate token after meeting the batch's consumption.
• Required purchase: the shortfall needed to supply recipes, including inputs with no active factory in the simulation.

Batch profit = final-product sales + surplus sales − required purchases − cost of all power

Row and column totals are parts of this same result. Adding them to the summary again would double-count the values. Batch profit is also not automatically a daily profit.

6. Understanding the limitations

The result depends on the recipes, prices and parameters available at calculation time. The tool does not guarantee that a trade will have liquidity or execute at the displayed price, nor does it automatically include every external transaction cost. Market changes, delays in starting cycles and differences between your settings and the real factory may change the result.

The combination search compares a limited set of candidates using a heuristic. A suggestion that improves on the current scenario does not prove that it is the best of all possible combinations. Check levels, purchases, power and sales before applying it.

If a result looks inconsistent, first check the purchase mode and the column's unit; then review levels, mastery, boosts, power, daily playing time and price updates. To report a discrepancy, use the project's contact details.