Intro to Paths5
crossroads:detailed_crafter
Wait! This is a late-mid-game feature. By this point you should have used <thing><link:intro/beam>beams/$.
<thing>Alchemy/$ and <thing>Technomancy/$ are the two <thing>paths/$ you can spec into. By default (config controlled- may have been changed in your modpack), you can take every <thing>path/$ in singleplayer, but <em>can only pick one/$ <thing>path/$ in multiplayer.
If you can only take on <thing>path/$, pick carefully. A description of each <thing>path/$ is given below. When you unlock a <thing>path/$, you gain access to a huge number of new recipes, machines, and items. These recipes have to be made in a <item>Detailed Crafter/$, which is a special crafting table that can also craft <thing>path/$ specific recipes. In order to unlock any <thing>path/$, you <em>must/$ have discovered every <thing><link:intro/beam>alignment/$ (other than <thing><link:beam/void>void/$)- otherwise the <thing>path/$ will not unlock.

<thing>Alchemy/$ is a <thing>path/$ all about chemistry, materials, and transmutation. It adds a new crafting system based on chemical reactions. <thing>Alchemy/$ allows mass producing gems and metals, making special new super-dense materials that allow controlling gravity, doing terraforming and biome changing, and generally manipulating the forces of nature on a massive scale.
While <thing>Alchemy/$ is powerful, and probably the most straightforward <thing>path/$, it is also dangerous. Mix the wrong endgame chemicals, or spill something unusually dangerous, and you could wipe out your base and the surrounding landscape. It also takes longer to get the most powerful things in <thing>alchemy/$- parts of <thing>alchemy/$ are locked behind obtaining first the <item>Philosopher's Stone/$, and later the <item>Practitioner's Stone/$.
To unlock <thing>Alchemy/$, in a <item>detailed crafter/$, surround a glass bottle with gems (diamond/lapis/ruby/etc) after having discovered every non-<thing><link:beam/void>void/$ <thing><link:intro/beam>alignment/$. The items will be consumed.

<thing>Technomancy/$ is a <thing>path/$ about time manipulation and high-power, high-risk systems. It is also the path with the most cool gadgets. It allows manipulating time in an area, and is fairly simple to start with, but making even a small mistake <em>has drastic consequences/$ (unlike <thing>Alchemy/$, where small mistakes have small consequences).
<thing>Technomancy/$ also allows much more precise control over <thing><link:intro/rotary>rotary/$ systems, making it possible to dramatically simplify and improve existing <thing><link:intro/rotary>rotary/$ setups. Most machines in <thing>Technomancy/$ require having at least one nether star (but won't consume it).
To unlock <thing>Technomancy/$, in a <item>detailed crafter/$, surround a <item><link:rotary/gear_base>small gear/$ with gems (diamond/lapis/ruby/etc) after having discovered every non-<thing><link:beam/void>void/$ <thing><link:intro/beam>alignment/$. The items will be consumed.