Sandustry Toolkit

Research Order Planner

A recommended order for spending early gold, with the reasoning attached to each step so you can depart from it deliberately rather than by accident.

This order is a community recommendation, not a rule the game enforces. Research costs are not shown because no published figures exist that we could verify — inventing them would make the planner worse than having none. Costs will be filled in from the shipped Early Access data.

  1. 1
    UnlocksCommunity-reported

    The first gold-separation step.

    CostNot documented

    Not yet documented from a verifiable source.

    Why hereGold is the research currency, so the first thing worth buying is the thing that produces more gold per unit of sand.

  2. 2
    UnlocksCommunity-reported

    Conveyors and basic material movement.

    CostNot documented

    Not yet documented from a verifiable source.

    Why hereManual hauling is the largest early time sink. A short belt between the dig site and the shaker removes it.

  3. 3
    UnlocksCommunity-reported

    The Filter building.

    CostNot documented

    Not yet documented from a verifiable source.

    Why hereFilters are how you meter flow. Almost every jam players report — shakers and slag presses alike — is fixed by putting a filter upstream.

  4. 4
    UnlocksConfirmed

    Pipe, pump and liquid vent.

    CostNot documented

    Not yet documented from a verifiable source.

    Why hereWet sand needs water at the shaker. Piping water to the line beats carrying it, and the same network drains rain later.

  5. 5
    UnlocksConfirmed

    Flamethrower, vacuum and grappling hook.

    CostNot documented

    Not yet documented from a verifiable source.

    Why hereThe flamethrower is the gate to burnt slag, which is the input for the whole second gold line.

  6. 6
    UnlocksConfirmed

    The Kinetic Slag Press.

    CostNot documented

    Not yet documented from a verifiable source.

    Why hereTurns the waste stream from your first gold line into a second gold source, so it raises yield without raising mining rate.

  7. 7
    UnlocksCommunity-reported

    Drone logistics.

    CostNot documented

    Not yet documented from a verifiable source.

    Why hereWorth it once the base layout is stable — before that, belts are cheaper and easier to reroute.

The principle behind the order

Gold is both your output and your research currency, so the ordering question is simple: which node returns the most gold or saves the most time per gold spent?

That is why refining comes before logistics, logistics before filters, and the flamethrower before the slag press — each one is a prerequisite for the next thing that raises yield. The slag press is the biggest single jump, because it turns the waste stream from your first gold line into a second gold source without needing you to mine any faster. See building your first automated gold line.

Drones sit last deliberately. They are strong once a base layout has settled, but belts are cheaper and far easier to reroute while you are still moving things around.

Sources