This Solarpunk Guide details how you can craft the Research Table and unlock all recipes for it to create different useful items. The Research Table is one of the most important stations in Solarpunk because almost every major upgrade depends on it. New crafting recipes, buildings, decorations, and progression to higher-tier levels are all unlocked through research.
Research Table Unlocks Guide – Solarpunk
You will first need a Crafting Table to make a Research Table. This becomes one of your early objectives during the tutorial. Begin by cutting down nearby trees to gather Wood. After that, search for Cotton plants or grow your own. Cotton can be turned into Cloth at the Crafting Table, which is needed to create the Research Table.
Once the Research Table is placed, you can begin unlocking recipes and advancing through research tiers.
Tier 1 Research
Most of the materials needed for the first tier are easy to find on your starting island. Cotton may take a little more effort to locate, but once you find a plant, you can keep growing more by tilling the soil with a Hoe and watering the crop. Harvesting cotton also provides you with seeds, allowing you to maintain a steady supply.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Rain Collector | Wood x2 | Gather wood by cutting nearby trees. |
| Well | Stone x3, Wood x2, Stick x2 | Stones and sticks are easy to find and respawn often. |
| Chest | Wood x2 | Provides extra storage space for items. |
| Beehive | Wood x2 | Produces Beeswax and also unlocks the Candle recipe. |
| Bed | Wood x2, Stick x2, Cloth x1 | Cotton can be collected in the wild or grown on your farm. |
| Unlock Tier 2 | Build-Hammer, Beeswax | Craft a Build-Hammer using 4 Sticks and 5 Stones. Beeswax comes from Beehives. |
Tier 2 Research
Tier 2 introduces several useful utilities. The Furnace becomes especially important because it allows you to refine raw materials into valuable resources. You can process ores, sand, and clay. Building several Furnaces is recommended since many later recipes require large amounts of refined materials.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Deco Tables & Chairs | Wood x5, Stick x2 | Used only for decoration. |
| Deco Plants Pack (Medium) | Leaf x2, Brick x2 | Decorative items for your base. |
| Furnace | Stone x3 | Turns ore, sand, clay, and dirty water into useful materials. |
| Map | Cloth x2 | Allows you to open the map with the M key. |
| Bottle | Glass x2 | Holds water, but it must be boiled first before drinking. |
| Unlock Tier 3 | Iron x1 | Smelt Iron Ore found on the starting island. |
Tier 3 Research
This tier is important because it gives you access to the Airship Dock. Building it allows you to visit other islands and continue expanding.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Airship Dock | Wood x5, Iron x5, Cloth x5 | Needed to build an Airship and unlock travel to other islands. The materials are worth spending early. |
| Storage Shelves | Wood x3, Stick x2 | Let you place chests on shelves to improve storage organization. |
| Signs & Map Markers | Wood x5 | Mark important locations and resources or keep track of extra bases. |
| Magnetic Fishing Rod | Cloth x1, Iron x1, Stick x1 | A useful tool for collecting extra resources, including some hard-to-find materials like Wheat. |
| Deco Couches & Carpets | Cloth x2, Cotton x4, Wood x2 | Decorative furniture items. |
| Deco Plants Pack (Small) | Brick x1, Leaf x2 | Adds smaller decorative plants. |
| Wax Briquette | Beeswax x2, Cloth x2 | A reliable fuel source. One briquette can keep a furnace running long enough to process up to 16 ores. |
| Unlock Tier 4 | Copper | Starting from your location, you can find the Copper on a small island northwest. |
After building the dock, more islands become available. However, storms prevent traveling too far. You will need to visit the Trader in the center of the map and obtain the first Airship Upgrade to continue.
Tier 4 Research
Tier 4 focuses mainly on improved materials and decorative options. Glass Materials become especially useful because they allow you to construct greenhouses.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Glass Materials | Glass x5, Wood x16 | Used mainly for building greenhouses. |
| Iron Tools | Iron x5, Pickaxe | Last longer than stone tools, although they cannot be crafted instantly. |
| Basic Home Decor | Wood x2, Cloth x2 | Decorative furniture and house items. |
| Farming & Animal Decorations | Wood x5, Wheat x2 | Cosmetic objects only. Animal breeding becomes available later in Tier 5. |
| Deco Shelves & Dressers | Wood x5 | Decorative storage furniture. |
| Deco Outdoor Bushes & Plants | Leaves x16 | Adds outdoor plants and bushes for decoration. |
| Unlock Tier 5 | Wheat x1 | Requires the first Airship Upgrade before Wheat can be collected. |
Finding Wheat
To obtain Wheat, you will first need the Airship Upgrade. Purchasing it requires:
- Watermelon x14
- Cotton x12
- Beeswax x20
- Copper x32
After upgrading your Airship, visit the group of islands to the northwest or the larger island northeast of your home island. Wheat grows there, and since many recipes require it, collecting and planting plenty of it is highly recommended.
Tier 5 Research
This tier unlocks the basics of animal farming.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Animal Basics Pack | Wheat x5 | Gives access to Animal Husbandry. |
| Deco Plants Pack (Large) | Brick x5, Leaf x10 | Contains larger decorative plants. |
| Deco Books | Cloth x5 | Decorative books for your home. |
| Trashcan | Wood x1, Stick x1 | Mainly a decorative item. |
| Foodbasket | Egg x1, Sheep’s Milk x1, Truffle x1 | Cannot be completed immediately since some materials require Airship Upgrades 2 and 3. |
| Unlock Tier 6 | Sunflower x1 | Sunflowers become available after obtaining Airship Upgrade 2. |
Some materials become available only after further upgrades. Sunflowers and pigs appear on islands unlocked with Airship Upgrade 2, while Sheep’s Milk requires Airship Upgrade 3 and additional research later on.
Tier 6 Research
Tier 6 brings major improvements to farming and food preparation. The Seedspack research is one of the most valuable unlocks because it removes dependence on naturally spawning plants.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Growbox | Wood x2 | Allows crops to be grown indoors and keeps them protected from weather effects. |
| Decorative Plates & Pots & Pans | Iron x2, Bricks x1, Sticks x1 | Despite the name, the pot and pan are required for creating an indoor kitchen. |
| Cooking | Bricks x5, Wood x2, Iron x2 | Unlocks both indoor and outdoor kitchens for preparing advanced meals. |
| Deco Outdoor Furniture | Cloth x5, Wood x5 | Decorative outdoor furniture pieces. |
| Seedspack | Raspberry x1, Cotton x1, Wheat x1, Carrot x1, Sunflower x1 | Let you create seeds. New crops automatically add their seed recipes when discovered. |
| Pig Shelter | Carrot x5, Wood x5 | Needed for raising pigs, which produce Truffles. |
| Better Animal Feed | Animal Feed x1, Sunflower x2 | Increases the amount of feed produced from each craft. |
| Unlock Tier 7 | Corn x1 | Corn is locked behind Airship Upgrade 3. |
Once Seedspack is unlocked, farming becomes much easier because crops can be converted into seeds. Combining this with Growboxes and glass structures lets you create large greenhouses that keep crops safe from storms.
Bringing a Pig to Your Home Island
Pigs are needed for Truffles, which are required for Airship Upgrade 3. Since pigs do not appear on the starting island, you will need to transport one. First, unlock and craft an Animal Receiving Station through the Tradebot’s Energy Bench. It requires:
- Iron x20
- Silicon x15
- Copper x10
- Leaf x5
Place the station on your home island and assign it a name. Next, craft an Animal Transportation device using:
- Iron x4
- Leaf x15
- Copper x3
Travel to one of the islands opened by Airship Upgrade 2. Pigs can be found there. Use the transportation item on the pig, choose your receiving station, and transport it back home. Make sure the animal has food, water, and shelter.
Tier 7 Research
Tier 7 introduces better cooking options and sheep farming.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Brick Materials | Brick x5, Stone x16 | You can find a permanent clay mine after Airship Upgrade 3. |
| Decorative Haybales | Wheat x5 | Decorative hay bundles. |
| Decorative Barrel & Crate | Wood x5 | Cosmetic barrels and crates. |
| Rocking Chair | Wood x3, Stick x3 | Decorative furniture piece. |
| Picnic Table & Tablecloth | Wood x3, Cloth x2 | Outdoor furniture for decoration. |
| Additional Cooking Recipes | Corn x2, Truffle x2, Raspberry x2 | Unlocks more efficient food options, including Berry Cakes. |
| Sheep Shelter | Corn x5, Wood x5 | Required to keep sheep and progress toward Airship Upgrade 4. |
| Unlock Tier 8 | Paprika x1 | Paprika is found on snowy islands reached after Airship Upgrade 4. |
Sheep become available after obtaining Airship Upgrade 3. Reaching Upgrade 4 opens snowy islands where Paprika can be found.
Tier 8 Research
Most unlocks at this stage are cosmetic, although some recipes remain useful.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Diamond Tools | Diamond x5, Metal Pickaxe | Extremely effective tools, although much of the mining should already be automated by this stage. |
| Deco Music Pack | Wood x3, Iron x2, Cloth x2 | Decorative musical items. |
| Decorative Curtain | Cloth x5, Iron x1 | Decorative curtain pieces. |
| Decorative Cactus and Succulents | Brick x3, Leaf x5 | Adds cactus and succulent decorations. |
| Bath Decoration Pack | Wood x5, Brick x3, Cloth x3 | Decorative bathroom items. |
| Decorative Washtub & Trunk | Wood x3, Stick x3, Cloth x3, Iron x1 | Decorative storage and washing items. |
| Additional Cooking Recipes | Paprika x5, Vegetable Stir Fry, Berry Cake | Includes the Pizza recipe required for the final blueprint. |
| Unlock Tier 8 | Diamond x1 | Gives access to Tier 8 part 2. |
Although most of these blueprints are decorative, the additional cooking recipes are important because they provide access to Pizza, which is needed for the final blueprint.
Tier 8 (Second Section)
The final set of research options contains only decorative items.
| Research | Cost | How to Get/Purpose |
| Decorative Fairy Lights | Iron x2, Copper x2 | Decorative lights. |
| Toilet House | Wood x3, Stick x3 | Decorative structure. |
| Decorative Fireplace | Stone x5, Wood x3 | Cosmetic fireplace decoration. |
| Decorative Logs | Wood x3 | Decorative wooden log pieces. |
Fairy Lights are particularly useful if you are building gardens or outdoor areas, while the remaining items simply add more customization options.
Completing Research Progression
Finishing the last Tier 8 upgrades gives you access to almost everything available through the Crafting Bench. By this point, you will have explored multiple islands, unlocked advanced farming and cooking systems, raised animals, and gained access to nearly every building and decoration available in the game.
That is all for this guide. Additional Solarpunk guides are linked below:
- Solarpunk Beginner’s Guide – Tips and Tricks for Starting the Game
- How to Get Wheat in Solarpunk
- How to Get More Inventory Space in Solarpunk
- How to Make a Greenhouse in Solarpunk
- Solarpunk Resource Mine Locations Guide – Where to Find Permanent Mines for All Resources
- Solarpunk Vending Machine Guide – How to Fix, Sell Unwanted Items
That is everything for our Solarpunk guide on crafting the research table and all of the recipes in the game. If you think we missed a recipe, let us know in the comments section below.
