Welcome back, shape enthusiasts! In this guide, we’ll explore the powerful new mechanic unlocked around Milestone 7 or 8 in Shapez 2: Pinning. Whether you’re here from curiosity or deep into your factory’s expansion, learning how to master the Pin Pusher is a crucial step for creating complex, multi-layered shapes that were previously impossible.

What Is Pinning?

Pinning allows you to modify the vertical alignment of shapes by inserting a layer of pins underneath them. By pushing a shape upward with pins, you gain more control over how it interacts when stacked with other shapes. This tool becomes essential when a goal shape calls for components to sit on different vertical layers.

Let’s break it down:

• You start with a simple shape—say, a half-circle.
• Normally, stacking two halves from opposite sides forms a full circle.
• But what if you don’t want a perfect stack? What if one half-circle should float above the other? That’s where the Pin Pusher comes in.

When a shape passes through a pin pusher, it’s raised by one vertical level, and a layer of pins is left beneath it. You can keep stacking pins repeatedly—though the game only allows a maximum of four layers. If you try to push a shape past the fourth layer, the top shape is deleted, leaving only the pins. This can be exploited to create some strange and advanced visuals.

Use Cases for Pinning

• Offset Layering: If you want two shapes to sit on different vertical layers but not stack directly, pin pushing one of them allows for a tiered layout.
• Complex Shape Design: Some advanced milestones require the use of pinned shapes.
• Shape Manipulation Tricks: Using pin pushers creatively lets you make shapes that would be logically impossible with just cutting, rotating, and stacking.

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Building a Modular Pinning Blueprint

Here’s how you set up an efficient and modular pin pusher layout:

• A pin pusher is a simple 1-in, 1-out machine.
• The ratio is 3 pin pushers per fully saturated belt, matching the ratio used in cutter and destroyer modules.
• You can reuse the exact same build format as a destroyer module—twelve machines arranged cleanly in a line.

Steps:

1. Take your destroyer module layout (3×4 arrangement).
2. Replace destroyers with pin pushers.
3. Route belts identically through the machines.
4. Duplicate the setup for additional layers if needed.

This setup handles full-belt throughput with no slowdowns and can be placed anywhere as a drop-in module.

Visual Design Tips

To make your pin pusher blueprints visually distinct:

• Cut your input belts before entering the pin pusher module. This small detail separates your layout from similar destroyer lines.
• Think of it like this: destroyers look like clean swords, and the pin pusher has a “cut” aesthetic when viewed from above. Small design language choices like these help tremendously when working at scale.

Stacking Multiple Pinnings

Need to push a shape up multiple levels? Just stack the modules. Add a second or third pin pusher module after the first—each one increases the layer height. Watch how your shape evolves:

• First pin raises it.
• Second pin pushes it higher.
• Third pin may exceed the layer cap, causing the top layer to vanish.

This technique is useful when crafting visually impressive, high-tier milestone shapes—or just for experimenting with the game’s more bizarre combinations.

Final Words

Pin pushers are deceptively simple but unlock a world of creative design and problem-solving. With a basic 3×4 blueprint and a bit of belt routing, you can integrate pinning into your factory without slowing production. Modular, compact, and incredibly satisfying, this tool will be part of your go-to setup from now on.