In the world ofSteamworld Build, you’ll be settling down to make a city of your own and make your way in the wilds of the world. You’ll need Steambots, money, and plenty of resources to keep your city going and to do that, you’ll have to delve into the abandoned mines beneath you.

The first layer of the mineshaft you’ll get into is Dusty Caverns, and this long unused mine is filled to the brim with resources. You’ll find chests likely left behind by the Steambots who came before, and even some danger, but you’ll need everything you find within Dusty Caverns if you want to succeed.

Selecting the Abandoned Minecraft building to see what it needs to be repaired on the Fossil Park map in Steamworld Build.

How To Unlock The Dusty Caverns

The Dusty Caverns are unlocked uponrepairing the Abandoned Mineshaftand is the first layer of the mines you’ll gain access to.

To repair the mineshaft, you’ll needeight Boards, at least18 Engineer Steambotsavailable in your town, and1,200 Money. Also, theTrain Station must be repaired.

The first level of the Mineshaft, Dusty Caverns, with a large Miner quarters and several machines running in Steamworld Build

What Resources Can You Expect In The Dusty Caverns?

The main resources you’ll find within Dusty Caverns areScrap Veins,Ironium Veins, andDirty Water.

You’ll also begin to find staple,single-extraction resourcessuch asGold Nuggets,Rubies, andTool Veins.

A Prospector Steambot transports away a box of Scrap away from a Scrap Vein embedded in a bedrock wall in Dusty Caverns in Steamworld Build.

Scrap Veins

Scrap Veins arepermanent resource veinsthat provideScrap, which you’ll need in order toproduce Tools,Pickaxes, andSpare Partsfor various Steambots, such as yourEngineers.

You’ll need touse Prospector Steambotsto mine and transport goods from them initially, and once you unlock the Workshop quarters, you’ll be able tobuild a Scrap Extractorto automatically harvest Scrap for you.

A large red Ironium Extractor machine automatically extracts Ironium from a large, spiked Ironium Vein in a bedrock wall in Steamworld Build.

Prospector Steambots handle thetransport of most resources,so you’ll want to have alarge set of quartersfor your Prospectors to keep up withquicker transportation and extraction.

Scrap Extractors can be produced afterunlocking Mechanic Steambotsonce you have at least120 Engineersand building aWorkshop at least three by three tilesfor them.

A large vein of Dirty Water sprays into the air near a constructed metal bridge over a pit in Dusty Caverns in Steamworld Build.

Each Scrap Extractor costs1000 Money,five Boards, andfive Tools.

Ironium Veins

Ironium Veins are another type ofpermanent resource vein, and these provide you withIronium.

You’ll need Ironium toproduce Sheet Metalfor various buildings,fuel Cattle Farmsfor food production for buildings like the Burgermeister, and it also plays a part inproducing higher-tier toolslike the Carbide Drill.

A small Miner Steambot quarters with a fallen rock chunk having destroyed a tile of it and several other fallen rocks around it due to instability in Dusty Caverns in Steamworld Build.

Prospector Steambotsalso mine and transport Ironium to your town, and once you’veunlocked the Sheet Metal Factoryand can produce Sheet Metal, you’re able to build an Ironium Extractor to extract it automatically. Each Ironium Extractorcosts 4,000 Money,10 Tools, andsix Sheet Metalto make.

Dirty Water

Dirty Water is apermanent resource vein, and it provides you withDirty Water, which can bepurifiedinto regular Water in aWater Purifier building.

You’ll need this Water tofuel the Wash Service Shopand later buildings, such as the Steam Furnace.

A Prospector Bot running over an installed Steam Vent and receiving a speed boost in Dusty Caverns in Steamworld Build.

Unlike Scrap and Ironium, Dirty Watercannot be extracteduntil youattach a Dirty Water Extractorto it, which can be constructed after buildingat least a three-by-three Workshop, unlocking the ability to produce Sheet Metal.

Each Dirty Water Extractorcosts 6,000 Money,six Tools, andfour Sheet Metalto make.

A set of Rocket Parts lying in the dirt next to two Pillars and several Miner Steambots go past it in Dusty Caverns in Steamworld Build.

What Hazards Will You Find In The Dusty Caverns?

The main hazard you’ll deal with isInstability. As youexpand out into the cavern layerto excavate resources or make space for your Steambots, you’ll causeinstability in the ground above. Failing to deal with instability withinseveral minuteswill cause theground to begin to collapse.

During a collapse,large chunks of rockand dirt willrain down on random tilesat an increasing rate, and anyinfrastructure such as Steambot quartersorWorkshop machineswill be destroyed by the fallen rocks.

AnySteambots caughtunder these rocks will alsobe either damaged or killed, and will need to berepaired by a Mechanic.

Instability can befixed by placing Pillars, whichreinforce a five-by-five gridaround them andpermanently affect the stabilityof an areaunless removedor destroyed.

Miner Steambots alsoautomatically reinforce walls,and these reinforced wallsprovidestability up to one tile awayfrom them.

What Blueprints Can You Find In The Dusty Caverns?

Each layer within the Mineshaft has aparticular blueprintyou can find that unlocks a new piece ofquality-of-life improving infrastructure.

The blueprint found in the Dusty Caverns is for theSteam Vent,which provides alarge boost of speedto any Steambot thatpasses over it.It is found in one of therandomly placed cheststhroughout the layer, but it isguaranteed to be in one of them.

Steam Vents and other Infrastructure items have to beinstalled by a Mechanic Steambot.

How To Find Dusty Cavern’s Rocket Parts

One of your main goals is tolocate Rocket Parts, andtwo sets of themcan be found oneach layerin the mines.

Rocket Parts can be found bydigging out the cavern layernormally, but they can belocated far quickerand more exactly byusing a Radar System.

The Radar System can be placed afterunlocking the Surveillance Facilityquarters afterrecruiting at least 200 Engineers, and you’ll need at least athree-by-three facilityas per usual to be able to place or operate one.

Rocket Parts appear in theirown small clearings, and you’ll needsix miners to dig them up. It takesaround a minuteof real-time for a Rocket Part to be dug up, and afterwards you’ll need tointeract with itto collect it.