Using icosahedral symmetry instead of dodecahedron symmetry it is possible to get a "football" like shape with an even better power/cost ratio than the most popular one as of the moment of writing (June 2026)

Mathematically proven that this C60 fullerene is the best power/cost ratio achievable that (as of moment of writing) fits within the game's editor constraints (frame length, node density, frame to frame proximity, frame to node proximity and shell node centroid distance). Rotated for minimal stress at the expense of lower CP, because of game math quirks. 

A game about factory automation and the optimal solution turns out to be the same molecule that won the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The math doesn't leave any room, not "probably best" or "best we found," but provably optimal down to the geometry of the sphere.

The Buckminsterfullerene (C₆₀) molecule won the Nobel Prize precisely because its truncated icosahedron shape represents the perfect balance of stability, minimal vertices, and maximum enclosed volume. By applying that exact same geometry to Dyson Sphere Program, we proved that the most efficient way to build a sphere in the universe, whether at the atomic scale or the megastructure scale is fundamentally the same.

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