Tech Tier Progression
The whole metal-age ladder on one page. The six bonfire tiers from Stone to Fine Steel, what each unlocks, and the two currencies that gate them.
At a glance
| The spine | Six bonfire tiers, Stone to Fine Steel. Climb by upgrading the bonfire and the metal you can work. |
| Gate 1 | Awareness Strength. Raises the cap on what tech you can learn. Grows from almost any activity. |
| Gate 2 | Technology Points. Pay to unlock a recipe. Earned by reading Ancient and Divine Tablets. |
| Soft gate | Region tier. The ore for each metal lives in higher, hotter or colder regions you must be geared to survive. |
There is no boss key to find. You advance by raising Awareness, spending tech points, and reaching the region where the next metal is mined.
The tier ladder
| Tier | Bonfire | Theme | Material | First mined in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Campfire | The Rise of the Barbarians | Wood, Stone, Thatch, Clay | Eastern Rainforest (T1) |
| 1 | Bonfire | Dawn of the New Tribe | Bone tools, survival tech | Rainforest (T1 to T2) |
| 2 | Bronze Pit Bonfire | Advancement of Bronze | Bronze (Copper + Tin) | W and N Rainforest (T2) |
| 3 | Iron Pit Bonfire | Glow of Iron | Iron | Wetlands, forests (T5 to T7) |
| 4 | Steel Pit Bonfire | Steel Age | Steel | Wasteland, volcano (T8 to T10) |
| 5 | Fine Steel Pit Bonfire | Deep in Ruins | Fine Steel | Frozen tiers, ruins (T11 to T12) |
The two currencies, kept straight
| Awareness Strength | Technology Points | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Raises the tech you are allowed to learn | Pays to actually unlock a recipe |
| How you get it | Combat, crafting, harvesting, building, almost anything | Reading Ancient Tablets and Divine Tablets on the map |
| Mistake to avoid | Expecting it to rise from one activity only | Hoarding tablets unread while tech stalls |
Unlocking bronze (the first real wall)
- Raise Awareness until the bronze techs are available.
- Unlock the Potting Technique, the Kiln Technique, and the Smelting Technique with tech points.
- Mine Copper and Tin in the T2 rainforest. Smelt them into Bronze.
- Craft Bronze tools first. Tool tier gates resource returns, not just damage.
Tool and ore rule
A stone pickaxe on a Tin node mostly returns plain Stone. Swap to a Bronze pickaxe and the same node pours out Tin. Always carry the highest tool tier you can craft, and upgrade tools before you grind a new ore.
Do this in order
- Tier 0 to 1: set up a fueled bonfire, gather Wood, Stone, Clay, and bone tools.
- Read every Tablet you pass for tech points.
- Unlock the three bronze techniques, mine Copper and Tin, build the Bronze Pit Bonfire.
- Recruit tribesmen to automate gathering and smelting before you push to Iron.
- Climb Iron to Steel to Fine Steel as your gear lets you survive the wetlands, wasteland, and frozen regions.
Watch out for
- Treating Awareness, Character Level, and Proficiency as one bar. They are three separate systems.
- Pushing into a higher tier region before your temperature gear can handle its climate.
- Skipping tool upgrades and wondering why a node yields junk.
Related: the region tier cheatsheet for where each metal lives, and the deep knowledge and tech guide for how the two currencies work.