How to Get Plasteel in RimWorld (1.6) — You Can't Craft It
RimWorld 1.6 · Core
Fast answer: you cannot craft plasteel from steel in Core — there is no smelting or machining recipe for it. Get it by mining compacted plasteel (40 per tile), buying it (market value 9), shredding heavy mechanoids, drilling deep deposits, or running a long-range mineral scanner. Save your first ~50 for a multi-analyzer — it unlocks fabrication and everything that needs plasteel gear.
No steel → plasteel recipe. Smelting steel, machining benches, and drug labs cannot produce plasteel in vanilla Core. If a mod page promises a recipe, that is modded — not base game.
Every Core source
| Source | What you get | Key numbers |
|---|---|---|
| Mine compacted plasteel |
Grey-blue veins on the map — mark tiles and mine | 40 per tile · veins 2–8 tiles |
| Buy from traders |
Metallic stuff category — orbital bulk/exotic, caravans, settlements | market value 9 silver |
 Shred mechanoids |
Centipede / termite parent: steel + plasteel. Walkers: steel only | see mech table below |
 Deep drill deposits |
Underground plasteel after ground scanner finds a deposit | 10 per portion · deposits 2–10 tiles |
 Long-range mineral scanner |
Remote lump quest — caravan out, mine, haul back | MTB 4d · guaranteed 8d · 700 W |
Mine compacted plasteel
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Spot grey-blue veins on your map (mountain and large-hills maps spawn them most often). Each tile is compacted plasteel — 40 plasteel per tile, veins typically 2–8 tiles.
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Select a colonist → open the orders tab → click mine, then drag over the vein. Or right-click the vein and choose mine. Mining skill and tool quality affect speed; yield per tile stays 40.
orders → mine -
Keep a hauler nearby or assign a dedicated miner. A full 8-tile vein = 320 plasteel — enough for multi-analyzer (50) plus flak helmets and a shield belt with change left.
Buy plasteel
Traders list plasteel as metallic stuff. Base market value is 9 silver per unit; expect markup on buy price depending on negotiation and trader type. Orbital bulk-goods and exotic-goods traders are the usual mid-game fix when map veins are thin.
When to buy: you need 50 for multi-analyzer now and cannot wait for a scanner cycle. Silver is often faster than hoping for map RNG — especially on flat maps with no surface veins.
Shred mechanoids for plasteel
After machining research, shred corpses at a machining table (or crafting spot). Base yields below are multiplied by your shred efficiency (Crafting skill).
| Mechanoid | Steel | Plasteel | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Centipede | 30 | 10 | Heavy walker — shred every corpse |
| Termite | 30 | 10 | Same parent yield as centipede |
| Lancer | 15 | 0 | Walker — steel only, no plasteel |
| Scyther | 15 | 0 | Walker — steel only |
| Pikeman | 15 | 0 | Walker — steel only |
Five centipede kills at base efficiency = 50 plasteel — exactly one multi-analyzer. Do not shred lancers expecting plasteel.
Deep drill and scanners
Deep-drill plasteel deposits yield 10 per portion in lumps of 2–10 tiles — a reliable long-term lane once you have scanner + drill infrastructure. Long-range scanner build cost: 200 steel, 6 components, 2 advanced components, Construction 8.
What to spend plasteel on (Core recipes)
| Item | Plasteel | Also costs | Research |
|---|---|---|---|
| multi-analyzer |
50 | 40 steel, 20 gold, 8 components | multi-analyzer |
 flak helmet |
10 | 2 components + 40 metallic stuff | flak armor |
 shield belt |
20 | 50 steel, 2 components | shield belt |
 charge rifle |
50 | 2 spacer components | pulse-charged munitions |
 charge lance |
60 | 3 spacer components | pulse-charged munitions |
 recon armor |
80 | 3 spacer components, 10 uranium | recon armor |
 recon helmet |
30 | 40 metallic stuff | recon armor |
 marine armor |
100 | 4 spacer components, 20 uranium | powered armor |
 marine helmet |
40 | 40 metallic stuff | powered armor |
Practical spend order
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First ~50 → multi-analyzer. It is the first industrial plasteel sink that also speeds up research (+10%) and is the prerequisite for fabrication — which gates charge weapons, recon/marine armor, and most late plasteel recipes.
architect Tab → misc →multi-analyzer
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Next: flak helmets (10 each) and shield belts (20) if raids are the pressure — good plasteel-per-survival ratio before you commit to 80–100 armor pieces.
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After Fabrication + ChargedShot / ReconArmor / PoweredArmor: charge rifles (50), recon suit (80 + 30 helmet), then marine kit (100 + 40 helmet). Ship parts (280 / 140 / 40) are endgame sinks — plan around scanner income, not your first vein.
DLC: Anomaly adds transmute recipes; Odyssey adds shuttle and asteroid economy paths. This guide covers Core only.