Icarus Tech Tree Guide: Tier 3
Pressing P opens the Tech Tree—the comprehensive blueprint catalog detailing every item your character can research and craft. Technology is grouped into tiers unlocked by character level: Tier 1 spans Levels 0 to 9, while Level 10 unlocks Tier 2. Tier 3 starts at level 20 and Tier 4 at level 40.
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The essentials
Items may be checked from level 20 or unlocked at Level 25. Steel tools are a priority since they allow mining of more ores and are more effective weapons. Find them at the end of Tech Tier 2 (also included here):
| Blueprint | Level | Priority | Craft XP | Stack | Use & Crafting Recipe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 3 Core Production Benches | |||||
| Machining Bench | 20 | Essential | 200 | 1 | Central manufacturing hub required to build all Tier 3 benches, anvils, and advanced tools. Crafted with 60 fiber, 50 wood, 20 leather, and 12 stone. |
| Cement mixer | 20 | Essential | 150 | 1 | Produces concrete and concrete items. Crafted with 4 sticks, 12 wood, 12 leather, and 80 stone. |
| Forge | 20 | Essential | 350 | 1 | Forges metallic tools, nails, and melee weaponry. Crafted with 40 iron ingots, 20 wood, and 10 stone. |
| Concrete furnace | 20 | Essential | 584 | 1 | Allows the smelting of gold, titanium, aluminium and platinum. Makes glass from silicon and carbon fiber from carbon paste. Crafted with 80 wood, 120 copper nails, and 12 rope. |
| Biofuel composter | 20 | Essential | 600 | 1 | Allows biofuel to be made from spoild meat, plants and fiber. Crafted with 80 wood, 120 iron nails, 12 rope, and 12 leather. |
| Water purifier | 20 | Essential | 50 | 1 | Grinds bones into Epoxy, wood into Tree Sap, and Iron + Coal into Steel Bloom. Craft at least two (4 stone, 12 silica). |
| Glassmaking bench | 20 | Essential | 50 | 1 | Produces glass products including walls, floors and roofs. (4 stone, 12 silica). |
| Tier 2 Iron Utility Tools | |||||
| Steel Knife | 10 | Essential | 100 | 1 | Significantly faster skinning yield and lethal melee strikes (7 iron ingots, 10 iron nails, 5 wood, 4 leather). |
| Steel Pickaxe | 10 | Essential | 125 | 1 | Higher mining speed and yield; harvests platinum, titanium, and aluminium nodes (6 iron ingots, 5 wood, 4 leather). |
| Steel Axe | 10 | Essential | 125 | 1 | Rapid tree felling and increased wood output per strike (6 iron ingots, 5 wood, 4 leather). |
| Wood Cupboard | 10 | Recommended | 150 | 1 | Provides 45 storage slots in a compact vertical footprint (60 wood, 40 leather). Built at the Crafting Bench. |
Level Progression
XP thresholds and points gained:
| Lvl | XP Next | Bluep. | Talent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 2,400 | +3 | +1 |
| 1 | 5,400 | +3 | +1 |
| 2 | 9,000 | +3 | +1 |
| 3 | 13,200 | +3 | +1 |
| 4 | 18,000 | +3 | +1 |
| 5 | 23,400 | +3 | +1 |
| 6 | 29,400 | +3 | +1 |
| 7 | 36,000 | +3 | +1 |
| 8 | 43,200 | +3 | +1 |
| 9 | 51,000 | +3 | +1 |
| Lvl 10: Tier 2 Tech | |||
Blueprint points unlock items on the Tech Tree. Reaching Level 10 unlocks the Crafting Bench and Anvil.
Weapons, Archery & Ammunition
Ranged combat allows you to harvest skittish game (deer and rabbits) and engage predators safely from rock perches.
| Blueprint | Level | Priority | Craft XP | Stack | Use & Crafting Recipe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wood Bow | 0 | Desirable | 25 | 1 | Starter ranged weapon (30 fiber, 24 sticks). Stealth sneak shots deal 2.5× critical multiplier damage. |
| Stone Arrow | 0 | Desirable | 2 | 50 | Standard ammunition for the Wood Bow (1 fiber, 1 stick, 1 stone per 5 arrows). Recoverable after hitting quarry. |
| Bone Arrow | 5 | Recommended | 3 | 50 | Higher damage output and durability than stone (1 fiber, 1 stick, 5 bone per 5 arrows). Ideal for wolves and juvenile terrenus. |
| Bone Knife | 5 | Situational | 25 | 1 | Longer durability and slightly higher strike damage than stone (2 wood, 2 leather, 20 bone). Useful if iron smelting is delayed. |
| Flare Arrow | 0 | Co-op Only | 2 | 20 | Illuminates distant landscape or signals squadmates at night (1 stone arrow, 2 sulfur). Consumed on impact. |
| Poison Arrow | 10 | Skip | 4 | 20 | Applies poison damage over time (1 stone arrow, 2 poison paste). Non-recoverable and too costly for early game. |
| Fire Arrow | 15 | Skip | 5 | 20 | Ignites targets and cave floors (1 stone arrow, 2 gunpowder). Non-recoverable; risks forest wildfires. |
Hunting Tip
Crouch (Left Ctrl) to activate stealth before drawing your bow. A single headshot on deer, rabbits, or wolves deals massive critical multiplier damage, dropping quarry in one hit.
Weapon Durability
Never venture into caves with an arrow supply under 40 or a knife under 50% durability. Keep loose stones handy for quick hotbar repairs!
A Chemist’s Nightmare
Game developers love treating the periodic table like a ladder of magical durability. In reality, a platinum pickaxe would feel like swinging an awkward, leaden weight that blunts on its first boulder, while a lithium hammer is so soft you could slice it with a butter knife.
Take that lithium hammer out in an Icarus downpour and it wouldn't explode, but it would fizz furiously, corrode on contact with the rain, and coat your hands in caustic lithium hydroxide!
Stick with steel for believable metallurgy—even if the game insists on fantasy physics.
Shelter, Building Sets & Storage
Structures protect workbenches, beds, and chests from storm exposure and prevent gear degradation.
| Blueprint | Level | Priority | Craft XP | Stack | Use & Crafting Recipe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wood Building Base Set | 0 | Essential | 15–25 | 10 | Floors, walls, ramps, and doors (approx. 20 wood, 12 fiber per piece). Handles normal winds and mild storms. |
| Wood Building Advanced Set | 5 | Essential | 15–20 | 10 | Half-walls, half-floors, and stairs. Crucial for creating interior shelving and climbing up cave ledges. |
| Small Wood Crate | 0 | Essential | 30 | 5 | Provides 10 item slots of sheltered storage (16 fiber, 24 wood). Must be enclosed under a roof. |
| Medium Wood Crate | 5 | Recommended | 45 | 5 | Holds 20 item slots and can be vertically stacked 2 high (32 fiber, 32 wood). Keeps floor area clear. |
| Thatch Ladder | 0 | Situational | 10 | 5 | Cheap, lightweight climbing tool (8 sticks, 12 fiber) to scale high cave nodes or ravines. |
| Wood Beam | 0 | Situational | 15 | 10 | Provides structural integrity support for overhangs and multi-story open-world bases (12 wood, 4 fiber). |
| Thatch Building Set | 0 | Skip | 5–10 | 10 | Quick to erect (fiber, sticks), but disintegrates in almost any storm event. Avoid wasting points here. |
Base Placement
Build cabins slightly back from canyon entrance pathing lines. Wolves path along canyon walls and will attack wooden door frames if they spot movement through windows.
Storm Integrity
Keep a Wood Hammer in a quick-access slot. Hitting storm-damaged walls immediately restores structure health before structural collapse.
Camp, Cooking, Lighting & Agriculture
Managing warmth, light, hydration, and nutrition directly affects your max health and stamina pools.
| Blueprint | Level | Priority | Craft XP | Stack | Use & Crafting Recipe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bedroll | 0 | Essential | 60 | 1 | Sets permanent respawn point (hold E) and skips night storms (20 fur, 20 fiber, 10 sticks, 10 leather). Requires shelter. |
| Campfire | 0 | Essential | 40 | 1 | Cooks raw meats/crops, generates charcoal, and provides sleep warmth (24 stone, 8 sticks, 8 fiber). Deploy outdoors. |
| Stone Firepit | 5 | Essential | 75 | 1 | Enclosed fireplace safe for wooden interiors (100 stone, 25 wood). Fueled by wood, coal, or charcoal. |
| Wood Crop Plot | 5 | Recommended | 30 | 5 | Cultivates domestic Soybeans, crops, and later coconut trees right at your base (20 wood, 8 fiber, 10 dirt). |
| Floor Torch | 5 | Situational | 15 | 5 | Fixed ground light source for workstations (16 sticks, 8 fiber, 4 stone, 10 charcoal). Frees up player hands. |
| Wood Torch | 5 | Situational | 15 | 1 | Weather-resistant handheld torch (40 fiber, 8 sticks, 8 sulfur). Burns noticeably longer than the rag torch. |
| Oxidizer | 1 | Low Priority | 40 | 1 | Converts raw oxite into gaseous O2 (10 bone, 20 leather, 24 fiber, 8 sticks). Direct oxite consumption from suit is faster. |
| Basic Water Purifier | 10 | Skip | 30 | 1 | Cleans contaminated pond water (30 sticks, 25 fiber, 4 stone, 10 charcoal). Caves contain pure drinking water. |
Safe Indoor Heating
Never light an open Campfire inside a wooden room—it will spark and set the flooring on fire! Save raw stone until Level 5 to craft the enclosed Firepit.
Charcoal Byproduct
Allowing campfires and firepits to burn low-grade wood or spoiled meat produces Charcoal, a vital component for gunpowder and Tier 2 steel bloom.The fastest way to make charcoal is to set up a number of campfires and put 100 sticks as fuel in each. Later you can make sticks from wood by spending two talent points - much quicker than collecting them.
Medical, Tonics & Starter Armor
Buff items and protective gear mitigate melee strikes, poison spit, fractures, and exposure debuffs.
| Blueprint | Level | Priority | Craft XP | Stack | Use & Crafting Recipe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic Bandage | 0 | Essential | 80 | 10 | Halts bleeding debuffs inflicted by wolves and predators (40 fiber or 6 wool/silk). |
| Wood Splint | 0 | Essential | 30 | 5 | Immediately cures sprains and broken legs caused by cliff falls (10 sticks, 4 fiber). Carry at least one. |
| Health Recovery Concoction | 0 | Recommended | 45 | 10 | Restores 100 health over time (3 oxite, 2 salt, 3 bone). Excellent for rapid recovery after bee swarms. |
| Bone Armor Set | 5 | Recommended | 20–35 | 1 | Solid defense against physical attacks and minor cold (140 bone, 48 leather full set across 5 pieces). |
| Suture Kit | 5 | Situational | 35 | 5 | Treats deep wound debuffs that ordinary bandages cannot heal (1 bone needle, 2 fiber). |
| Cloth Armor Set | 5 | Skip | 10–20 | 1 | Costs 440 fiber for a full set. Provides negligible physical protection and breaks quickly under assault. |
Medical Readiness
Never traverse canyon ravines without a Wood Splint on your hotbar. A broken leg slows character movement to a crawl, leaving you defenseless against wolf attacks.
Skip Cloth, Craft Bone
Save plant fiber for shelter parts and bandages. Bone armor offers substantially higher damage absorption against predator bites.
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