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Terraforming Mars Production
Resolve production, energy-to-heat conversion, megacredits and TR income.
Resolve production, energy-to-heat conversion, megacredits and TR income.
In Terraforming Mars, the Production phase occurs after all players have passed in a generation. The order is important: convert leftover energy to heat first, then collect the resources shown by your production tracks. The stocks already in your resource boxes normally remain there from one generation to the next.
Production order
- Move every energy resource you still hold into your heat resource box. This does not reduce your energy production track.
- Collect MegaCredits equal to your Terraform Rating (TR) plus M€ production.
- Collect steel, titanium, plants, new energy and heat equal to their respective production values.
The producer tracks are rates, not a count of cubes you must discard. A card that raises energy production changes how much new energy you gain in this phase; it does not stop older unused energy from converting.
Worked example: energy and heat
At the end of the Action phase you have 8 energy resources and 5 heat resources. Your energy production is 3 and heat production is 2. First move the 8 energy into heat, leaving 0 old energy and 13 heat. Then produce: receive 3 new energy and 2 heat. You finish the Production phase with 3 energy and 15 heat, assuming no other effects change those amounts. The new 3 energy does not immediately become heat; it can remain available during the next generation.
Worked example: M€ production and TR
Suppose your TR is 24, your M€ production is −2 and you already have 9 M€. Your income this phase is 24 − 2 = 22 M€; add it to the existing 9 to finish with 31 M€. Do not replace your stock with 22. The base rules allow M€ production as low as −5. Other standard production types do not go negative.
What is carried forward?
| Resource | End-of-generation treatment |
|---|---|
| Existing energy | Converted to heat before new energy is produced. |
| Steel, titanium, plants, heat and M€ | Unspent stock stays in its resource box; add this phase’s production. |
| Resources held on cards | Follow the printed card; they are not part of the six standard player-board production boxes. |
Common timing questions
Does raising TR also raise a production track? No. TR adds to M€ income and counts toward final points, but it is separate from the six production rates. A specific card or board effect may change one or more rates.
Can you immediately use the converted heat? Heat is available when you next have a legal action to spend it. The production phase itself is not an extra Action phase. Eight heat can normally be spent as an action to raise temperature by one step if the temperature track permits it.
When is the first Production phase? At the usual end of the first generation, after everyone has passed. Read any corporation or setup effect that changes your starting resources and tracks before applying this procedure.
Related Terraforming Mars guides
Official source
Rules checked October 2026. The numbers above are illustrative, not a sample game state from the publisher.