Gold is the currency that unlocks everything in Sandustry, because you spend it on Research to unlock new machines. This guide covers the three machines that produce gold and how they chain together.
The core recipe
The community's shorthand for Sandustry's material flow is:
2 sand : 3 water : 4 red sand = 3 gold : 8 fluxite
This means water plus sand makes gold, and gold is the input that eventually becomes fluxite. Early gold comes out probabilistically (a Shaker does not produce gold every cycle), while later machines produce it deterministically.
The three gold machines
1. Shaker
The Shaker is your first and simplest gold machine. It is cheap to unlock (Tier 1 research, 20 gold) and gives you your first trickle of gold, though its output is probabilistic early on.
2. Kinetic Slag Press
The Kinetic Slag Press takes Burnt Residue, drops it from 25+ blocks high, and turns it into 1 Gold + 1 Seed per press. The Seed feeds the next machine.
3. Planter Box
The Planter Box grows Seeds into Flowers. A Flower's stem is Moss, and its flower gives Gold and Amethelis. Amethelis then loops back into Voidbloom production for fluxite.
How to get the inputs
- Sand — mine the surface. It is everywhere.
- Water — a caught Lumling produces water, or pipe it from a water source with a Pump and Liquid Vent.
- Red sand — a distinct terrain type found in specific areas; mine it like sand.
- Burnt Residue — the by-product of burning slag (see the slag burner page).
Where gold goes
Gold is spent on Research, which is gated by your Factory Level. The tech tree has three tiers:
- Tier 1 — Shaker (20g), Logistics (30g), Hover (50g), Map (100g), Flare Gun (150g), Filter (250g), Sprint Boost (200g), Wall Light.
- Tier 2 — Kinetic Press (500g), Flamethrower (400g), Burner Belt (500g), Thermal Buffer (1000g), Sweeper Drones (800g), Flashlight (600g), Conveyor Portal (750g), CryoBlaster (1000g).
- Tier 3 — Fluids (1250g), Planterbox (2000g), Gun (1500g), Pyro Dispenser (2000g), Clearing Frame (1000g), Vacuum (2000g), Activity Heatmap (700g), Aerokinetic Fan.
Get your gold line producing before you try to climb the tech tree — research costs climb quickly, and a steady gold supply is the only way to keep up.