Build a RimWorld Killbox That Still Works (1.6) | Layout + Turret Planner

RimWorld 1.6 Killbox Planner

Build a Killbox That Still Works

Use a two-corner entry, keep the last bend clear of low cover, and size the lane around your squad. This page gives you a copyable footprint, a fast build-cost snapshot, turret spacing rules, breacher answers, and an indoor panic hall that keeps drop-pod raids from ending the run.

Version: Vanilla 1.6.4633 Corner rule: no sandbags or barricades on the final bend Mini gap: 4 to 5 tiles Autocannon: minimum range 8.9 Panic hall: 7 to 9 long, 3 to 4 wide
Hero panel for how to make killbox rimworld
Quick Build Planner

Start with a short shotgun tunnel if your colony is compact. Move to a longer rifle lane once you have more shooters, better armor, and at least one heavy turret behind the line.

Recommended Lane 8 wide × 10 deep
Primary Weapons Chain shotgun + heavy SMG
Turret Upkeep 160 steel for a full reload cycle
Fallback 2 melee, 1 EMP, second hallway ready
Build Item Estimate Use
Blueprint panel for how to make killbox rimworld

Copy the shape, then adjust the width and depth to your pawn count. The safest default is still a one-wide tunnel, two 90° turns, and a clear first stop inside your cone of fire.

Last Corner Fix
Corner fix panel for how to make killbox rimworld
Keep the final bend empty Do not place sandbags or barricades on the last corner tile or the first two tiles of the lane. Raiders can use that low cover instead of walking into the open.
Slow them earlier If you want path cost, put low cover or rough ground farther back in the tunnel. The final bend is for exposure, not comfort.
Give cover to your shooters, not to them Sandbags and barricades are walkable cover. Save them for your firing line, your intercept points, and your indoor fallback hall.
Turret Layering
Mini-Turret
Autocannon
Build
100 steel + 3 components if built in steel
or 70 steel + 30 plasteel/uranium + 3 components
350 steel + 40 plasteel + 6 components
Hit Points
100 HP
380 HP
Power
80 W
150 W
Range
0 to 28.9
8.9 to 32.9
Burst
2 × 12 damage every 4.8s
3 × 27 damage every 3.5s
Explosion
3.9 radius on destruction
5.9 radius on destruction
Full Barrel Refresh
80 steel
180 steel
Best Use
Cheap extra DPS and bait behind the line
Mid-range punch once heavy turrets are online
Turret Gap Test 4 tiles
Mini-Turret Risk Playable, but keep firefoam close.
Autocannon Risk Too tight for heavy blast overlap.

Use 4 to 5 tiles for mini-turrets and at least 6 clear tiles for heavy turrets. Keep turrets about 4 tiles behind your pawns so a single pop does not wipe the line.

Breach Response
Conventional raid

Hold the lane and let the box work

This is the raid type the killbox is built for. Power the turret grid, draft the main line, and let the first safe stop happen inside your lane.

Do This
    Avoid This
      Drop-Pod Panic Hall
      Panic hall panel for how to make killbox rimworld
      • Shape: 7 to 9 tiles long, 3 to 4 wide, straight if possible.
      • Cover: barricades for your line, open floor for their entry.
      • Supplies: one shelf with EMP, medicine, and spare utility gear.
      • Light: keep your line bright and the enemy entry dim.
      • Roof: if you have overhead mountain, it is the safest place to anchor the fallback hall.

      When pods land inside the base, the goal is speed. Draft to the panic hall, peel with two melee pawns, and stop treating the outer killbox as the current fight.

      Terrain, Loadout, And Finishing Rules

      Terrain Slowdown

      Terrain Path Cost Best Use
      Shallow water 30 Good before the funnel. Do not stand your own shooters in it.
      Marsh 30 Useful as a natural slowdown in the approach if the map already gives it.
      Chest-deep water 42 Strong slowdown, but routing gets awkward fast. Use only if the map naturally forces it.
      Deep water Impassable Treat as a wall, not as part of the lane itself.
      Sandbags / barricades 42 Walkable cover. Great for your line, bad on the final bend.

      Minimum 8-Pawn Defense Team

      • 2 melee peelers: shield belts later, body-block jumpers and drop-ins.
      • 4 lane shooters: chain shotguns for short tunnels, assault rifles for long lanes.
      • 1 EMP slot: mandatory if termites, centipedes, or heavy mechs are common.
      • 1 flex slot: smoke, medicine, or another rifle depending on the raid pool.
      • Indoor reserve: do not commit every drafted pawn to the outer line at once.

      Always Keep These Rules

      • Separate power: put the killbox on its own switch so you only energize it for real fights.
      • Firefoam nearby: one popper comfortably covers two turrets. Do not stretch a single popper over the whole lane.
      • Second line ready: breaches and pods punish colonies that only have one fight space.
      • Vanilla-first: if you use security mods, trenches and concealed barriers belong in the slowdown zone, not on the final stop tile.
      Do killboxes still work in 1.6?
      Yes. The fix is not “bigger box,” it is cleaner tile discipline. Keep low cover off the last bend, make the first safe stop happen in your fire cone, and keep a second line for special raid types.
      When should I pick a rifle lane instead of a shotgun tunnel?
      Pick rifle lanes once you have 9 to 10 shooters, better armor, and enough room to hold a deeper line. If your base is compact or indoors, shotgun tunnels are still the faster answer.
      How many turrets should a normal colony run?
      Two mini-turrets is enough to start. Push to four minis only if you can afford the upkeep and replacement risk. Add an autocannon once heavy turrets are researched and you have real mid-range coverage behind the line.
      Why do autocannons feel bad in close fights?
      They cannot fire under 8.9 tiles. That makes them excellent backline guns and terrible “save me right now” turrets. Pair them with humans carrying shotguns, ARs, and EMP.
      Best fast answer: build the two-corner tunnel, keep the last bend empty, hold 4 to 5 tiles between mini-turrets, and never let the outer killbox be your only defense layer.