Sandustry Research

Research is Sandustry’s tech tree. Every unlock is bought with Gold, and many tiers also require you to reach the next Factory Level before the new nodes become available. Spending wisely matters: it is easy to blow your savings on side branches and then lack the Gold for the objective that actually opens the next tier.

Below is the full list of research nodes across all six tiers available in Early Access.

Tier 1

Shaker

Sifts Wet Sand into Gold and Residue.

20 Gold

Conveyor Belt

Unlocks Conveyor Belts and Launchers for moving solid materials.

30 Gold

Hover

Unlocks hover mode. Press Space to float in place and pass through your own structures.

50 Gold

Map

Unlocks the full-screen Map and the Minimap.

100 Gold

Flare Gun

Unlocks the Flare Gun to light up dark areas.

150 Gold

Filter

Unlocks the Filter, which works like a Conveyor Belt but can allow one chosen element to pass through.

250 Gold

Sprint Boost

Unlocks Sprint Boost. Hold Shift for a temporary speed boost.

200 Gold

Wall Light

Unlocks the wall-mounted Wall Light.

Not listed Gold

Tier 2

Kinetic Press

Processes Burnt Residue into additional Gold and Seeds.

500 Gold

Flamethrower

Unlocks the Flamethrower: burns residue, melts ice, and vaporizes Water into Steam.

400 Gold

Burner Belt

Unlocks the Burner Belt, which ignites flammable materials when fed heat from a Thermal Buffer.

500 Gold

Thermal Buffer

Unlocks the Thermal Buffer, a heat storage block that distributes warmth to nearby machines.

1000 Gold

Sweeper Drones

Unlocks Sweeper Drones that collect loose materials from the ground automatically.

800 Gold

Flashlight

Unlocks the Flashlight, which shines a light where you aim.

600 Gold

Conveyor Portal

Unlocks Conveyor Portals, letting materials cross production lines without mixing streams.

750 Gold

CryoBlaster

Unlocks the CryoBlaster, which produces infinite Snow to freeze water, solidify lava, or be steamed into rain.

1000 Gold

Tier 3

Pipe

Unlocks Pipes, Pumps, and Liquid Vents for moving fluids.

1250 Gold

Planterbox

Unlocks the Planter Box for growing crops. Wet Seeds grow into flowers that yield Gold and Amethelis.

2000 Gold

Gun

Unlocks the Gun, allowing you to dig at a distance.

1500 Gold

Pyro Dispenser

Unlocks the Pyro Dispenser, which fires flame bursts every few seconds when fueled by an adjacent Thermal Buffer.

2000 Gold

Clearing Frame

A slow belt-like frame that moves objects inside it. Useful for clearing surfaces or pushing floating items such as Wet Seeds in water.

1000 Gold

Vacuum

Unlocks the Vacuum, which collects materials into an internal tank.

2000 Gold

Activity Heatmap

Adds an Activity Heatmap overlay to the map.

700 Gold

Aerokinetic Fan

Unlocks the Aerokinetic Fan, which blows petals and powders through the air. Good for moving large piles of Amethelis.

1500 Gold

Digger Drone

Unlocks the Digger Drone, which digs autonomously.

2500 Gold

Tier 4

Advanced Filter

Unlocks the Advanced Filter, which can filter several element types at once, including liquids and gases.

1500 Gold

Steam Dryer

Unlocks the Steam Dryer for drying materials with steam, plus a condenser that turns gases into liquids using snow.

2500 Gold

Rocket Launcher

Unlocks the Rocket Launcher for demolition and mining.

2000 Gold

Conveyor Belt Mk.2

Unlocks faster Conveyor Belt Mk.2 and Launcher Mk.2.

2500 Gold

Corraller

Unlocks the Corraller for capturing creatures.

1250 Gold

Hauler Drone

Unlocks the Hauler Drone for automated material transport.

3000 Gold

Recon Drone

Unlocks the Recon Drone for scouting unexplored areas.

2500 Gold

Tier 5

Snowmaker

Unlocks the Snowmaker, a powered structure that converts Water into Snow using Energy.

2500 Gold

Florinol Battery

Unlocks the Florinol Battery, which stores Florinol as energy to power machinery or tools.

1500 Gold

Drill

Unlocks the Drill for breaking hard materials; requires Energy. Also requires the Rocket Launcher and Florinol Battery.

2500 Gold

Smelter

Unlocks the Smelter, which smelts elements placed on top using heat from a Thermal Buffer or Lava.

3000 Gold

Energy Siphon

Unlocks the Energy Siphon tool for transferring energy between power stores.

1000 Gold

Flux Emanator

Unlocks the Flux Emanator, which converts Voidbloom into Fluxite.

2000 Gold

Copper Mold

Unlocks the Copper Mold for casting Power Bricks from liquid copper. Power Bricks store large amounts of Energy and can be recharged from a generator. Requires the Smelter and Florinol Battery.

2000 Gold

Void Rift

Unlocks the Void Rift, which produces Void Seeds that can be planted and refined into void elements.

3000 Gold

Energy Connector

Unlocks the Energy Connector for passing Energy between power structures.

1000 Gold

Steam Turbine

Unlocks the Steam Turbine for automated power generation.

3000 Gold

Laser

Unlocks the Laser for sustained excavation through hard materials.

5000 Gold

Recall Shard

Unlocks the Recall Shard, letting you teleport back to a recall portal powered by Voidbloom.

4000 Gold

Locator

Unlocks the Locator. Fill it with Voidjuice to scan for hidden alien artifacts.

3000 Gold

Tier 6

Synthesizer

Unlocks the Synthesizer, which uses Energy to convert one material into another.

7500 Gold

Tips for Spending Gold

• Save for the node that gates the next tier before buying convenience upgrades.
• Kinetic Press and Pipe are common bottlenecks in the early-to-mid game.
• Late-game power requires several Tier 5 nodes: Florinol Battery, Copper Mold, and Steam Turbine work together.
• A few nodes, such as the Drill and Copper Mold, have explicit prerequisites. Check the tooltip before saving up.

Sources

This page is a rewritten reference based on:

• Hooded Horse Official Wiki — Research
• In-game research tree as of Early Access launch (August 2026)