09 — Wipe Day Playbook

Last updated: May 18, 2026

Wipe day is the most important day of a Rust wipe. The decisions you make in the first 6 hours dictate the rest of your week. This file is an hour-by-hour optimal solo progression, with branches for duo/trio where the playbook diverges.

The goal of wipe day is to end hour 24 with: a stone 2x2 honeycombed base, a workbench 2 setup, ~5 weapons, a hazmat suit, 50+ HQM stockpile, ~500+ scrap banked, and at least one auto-turret in place.

Pre-wipe (the 30 minutes before the server resets)

If your server posts a wipe time, be ready 30 minutes before.

• Discord/chat notification on for your group
• Coffee/snack ready — first hour is intense, no breaks
• Maps research: check the upcoming wipe seed if posted, identify your spawn target and base location candidates
• Discord voice connected if playing with others
• Mouse and headset comfortable

Pre-wipe is also when you read the patch notes for the upcoming wipe. Anything change? Mortar buff? New tea? You want to know before you make in-game decisions.

Hour 0: Spawn and orient (0–15 min)

You spawn naked with a rock and a torch. The first 15 minutes is purely orientation and starter resource collection.

• Run away from the spawn area (other naked spawners are competition, even if neutral)
• Hit trees and stone nodes you pass. Aim for 500 wood + 200 stone in the first 15 minutes
• Punch a deer if you see one (gives you cloth + meat + fat)
• Find a river — drink water, fill water jug if you have one
• Note the biome you spawned in. Snow = cold problem. Desert = food problem. Forest = ideal.

By minute 15: ~500 wood, ~200 stone, hopefully some cloth and food. Hungry but alive.

Hour 0–1: Establish a temp 1x1 (15–60 min)

Find a base location. Ideal: near a road or monument for travel access, hidden from immediate sight lines, not too close to a major monument (PvP magnet) but close enough to walk.

• Pick the spot, place a building plan, lay a foundation in wood (50 wood for floor)
• Walls (50 wood × 4 = 200 wood), ceiling (50 wood)
• Frame + wood door (100 wood)
• Total: ~400 wood = 1 foundation + 4 walls + 1 ceiling + 1 doorway + door
• Place a Tool Cupboard (1k wood)
• Place 2 small wood boxes inside (50 wood each)
• Place a sleeping bag (30 cloth)

By minute 60: tiny wood base, sleeping bag in case you die, TC active. Drop your initial loot in boxes.

Cost so far: ~1,500 wood, ~200 stone, ~30 cloth. Easy first-hour farm.

Hour 1–2: Upgrade to stone, basic combat (60–120 min)

Time to harden up and get a weapon.

• Farm more stone (target 2,000 stone for upgrading the base to stone)
• Find a barrel or two near roads, recycle the components
• Visit nearest Lighthouse: 50–80 scrap, components, free crate loot
• Upgrade the 1x1 to stone using the hammer. Walls go from 10 HP to 500 HP.
• Craft a hatchet and pickaxe (better farming tools) at the inventory crafting menu

Combat readiness: by minute 120 you should have a bow (200 wood + 50 cloth) or have looted a basic weapon. A bow with wood arrows works for medium-distance encounters.

Hour 2–4: Workbench 1, sheet metal door, road farming (2–4 hr)

• Get 75 scrap to research the Workbench 1 (or buy at Outpost for 500 scrap if you've got it)
• More accurately: 500 scrap is the Workbench 1 cost. You research items at WB1 for cheaper costs.
• Get 75 metal frags for a sheet metal door (replace the wood door — wood is too soft past hour 2)
• Hit roads: trash heaps, road signs, oil cans. ~50 scrap/hour walking the roads.
• Hit the Abandoned Cabins or Oxum's Gas Station: easy crates, no scientists.
• Look for animal spawns: pigs/deer for fat/meat/cloth, wolves for cloth.

By hour 4: stone 1x1, sheet metal door, ~150 scrap banked, WB1 placed (1,000 scrap cost) or saving up for it.

Hour 4–8: 2x2 base build, weapons up (4–8 hr)

This is the most important window. You're transitioning from "I have a temp shelter" to "I have a real wipe base."

Build the 2x2

• Farm enough stone: target 15,000 stone (this lets you build a 2x2 with full honeycomb plus 3,000 buffer for upgrades)
• Farm enough wood: 5,000 wood
• Frags: 1,000+

Build the 2x2 next to your 1x1 (or replace the 1x1 site if you can keep TC active). Layout: - 4 foundations in a 2x2 square - Walls all around in stone - Honeycomb layer (one stone wall behind each external wall) - Doorway with sheet metal door - Second floor for loot room - Bunker hatch (ladder hatch) under TC for soul stash

Construction time: ~90 minutes solo, ~45 minutes for duo.

Weapons

By hour 8 you want at least: - 1 Bow with wood/stone arrows (defense / hunting) - 1 Crossbow (50 scrap research, 200 wood + 75 frags, good single-shot) - 1 Eoka Pistol (75 wood + 30 frags + 15 metal blade; cheap close-range shotgun) - Optional: 1 Revolver (research 75 scrap, 200 wood + 200 frags + 30 cloth + 1 metal blade)

Eoka is wipe-day MVP. 1-shot kill at close range, dirt cheap to craft, looks innocuous.

First combat encounter

You will get into a PvP fight in hours 4–8 unless you're hiding. Some rules: - Don't take fights you don't have to win. Run away, lose 20 wood and 5 cloth instead of 1k of gear. - If you have to fight, peek-shoot don't strafe-shoot. Wipe day gunplay is messy. - Carry only what you need. Don't bring your stash to a monument. If you die, it's no big deal.

Hour 8–12: Workbench 2, electricity prep, hazmat (8–12 hr)

• Get 500 scrap total for Workbench 2 research (or have bought it via direct purchase at Outpost for ~2,500 scrap)
• WB2 unlocks: AK, MP5, sheet metal armor, hazmat suit, electrical components, industrial pieces, sprinklers
• Research priority order at WB2: Hazmat suit > Auto turret > Targeting computer > Sheet metal armor > Auto turret ammo recipe
• A hazmat suit lets you run Power Plant, Water Treatment, Train Yard, all the radiation-heavy monuments

By hour 12 you should have: - WB2 placed in your base - Hazmat suit (replaceable as it degrades, craft 2) - 1 sheet metal weapon (Custom SMG or similar) - 1 sleeping bag plus a respawn point at a forward outpost

Hour 12–18: Mid-tier monument farming (12–18 hr)

This is when scrap-per-hour scales fastest. With WB2 + hazmat + green/blue cards, you can hit Power Plant, Water Treatment, Train Yard.

• Bring: 2 green cards, 1 blue card, 2 fuses, hazmat, MP5 or AK if available, 1 backpack
• Run Power Plant: ~300–500 scrap per run, 25 min
• Run Train Yard: ~250–400 scrap per run, 25 min
• Cycle through 2–3 monuments back-to-back, recycle on-site before heading home
• Scrap target: 1,500+ banked by hour 18

Auto turret install

By hour 16ish you should have enough HQM (50+) to craft your first auto-turret. Process: 1. Craft Targeting Computer (10 scrap + 5 HQM at WB3, or buy at Bandit for 75 scrap) 2. Craft Auto Turret (1 targeting computer + 1 SMG body + 6 HQM + 5 rifle bodies at WB3) 3. Solar panel + battery setup (see 03_Electricity.md) 4. Wire it up at your front door, point at the entry path

A wipe-night base with an armed turret survives most casual raids.

Hour 18–24: Workbench 3, end-of-day stockpile (18–24 hr)

• Research Workbench 3 at WB2 → 1,000 scrap research + place WB3 (cost: 1,000 frags + 5 gears + 100 HQM at WB2)
• WB3 unlocks: rockets, C4, the M249, MP5, the explosive ammo, satchel charges, Bolt-Action Rifle, more
• Priority research at WB3: Bolt-Action Rifle > C4 (for raids) > Rocket Launcher (defense) > Sheet Metal Helmet > more turret ammo recipes

By hour 24: - 2x2 stone honeycombed base - Sheet metal/armored door + bunker - Workbench 1, 2, 3 all installed - 1 turret armed at front door (with backup ammo) - ~3,000 scrap banked - ~500 metal frags, 100+ HQM, 5,000 stone in TC - 2–3 mid-tier weapons (AK, MP5, Bolt) - Hazmat suit (or 2) - Sleeping bag at home + at one forward outpost - 0–1 PvP kills (whatever, they happen)

This is wipe-day-good. You're set up for the rest of the wipe.

Duo / trio divergences

Duo (2 players)

• Same playbook but everything happens ~2x faster
• One farms wood/stone, other farms scrap
• 2x2 base can be larger or honeycomb thicker since you have more material throughput
• Hit Cargo Ship together when it spawns (one on deck, one in boat as overwatch)
• One sleeps server-night while the other plays — you can effectively be online 16 hours/day combined

Trio (3 players)

• Massive force multiplier. Wipe day ends with 3x3 base, full industrial system, 2 turrets, full WB3
• One dedicated farmer, one PvPer, one base-builder/electrician
• Run Underwater Labs by hour 12 with boat
• Hit Bradley APC by hour 16 if you have rockets
• Cargo Ship every spawn is doable

Clan (5+ players)

• Different playbook. You're building a compound, not a base. Multiple farmers in parallel.
• Compound design with external walls and outbuildings (greenhouse, vehicle bay, scrap-farm building)
• One person does electricity/industrial, two do walls and storage, one does combat/scouting, one does economy/scrap
• WB3 by hour 8. Full hazmat suits by hour 6. Compound walls up by hour 12.

Wipe-day mistakes to avoid

1. Spending too long at spawn. First 15 minutes should be running and farming, not deliberating.
2. Building a complex base first. The 1x1 is your starter. Don't try to build the 2x2 with honeycomb at hour 0 — you'll be raided before it's done.
3. Carrying scrap on monument runs. Bank it at base before going. Death = lost scrap.
4. Engaging every PvP fight. If you don't have to win, don't fight. Save the gunfights for when you have gear.
5. Skipping the Lighthouse. Free easy crates, multiple spawns. Hit at least 2 in the first hour.
6. Forgetting the sleeping bag. Place one near your TC immediately. If you die you respawn home.
7. Going to Launch Site too early. Hour 18+ minimum. Earlier and you die to radiation/scientists.
8. Not researching hazmat. Locks you out of mid-tier monuments for half the wipe.
9. Stockpiling too much in TC. TC has 24 slots only. Use boxes for the bulk, TC for upkeep materials.
10. Forgetting upkeep math. Stone walls decay 5 HP/hr outdoors. A 2x2 honeycomb base has ~30 walls. That's 150 HP/hr eaten if your TC is empty. Stack the TC.

Energy and food management on wipe day

• Eat every hour or so. Pumpkin, cooked deer, anything > 30 calories.
• Drink water hourly. Rivers everywhere.
• Cold biome = night problem. Build near a small fire if outdoors. Indoors with TC = safer.
• Health regens slowly; bandages speed it. Craft 5–10 bandages before going to a monument.

Pro tips on wipe-day specifically

• Pre-farm your base location's resources. Don't farm + travel + farm. Pick a spot, farm everything within 200m, then build.
• Bind keys efficiently. Hammer on a quick-bind key. Building plan on another. Wire tool quick-pick. These save real time.
• Carry a bow at all times early. A bow with wood arrows costs 1 cloth + 1 wood per shot. Surprisingly effective vs. nakeds.
• The "scrap tour": before sundown on wipe day, do a quick lap: Lighthouse → Abandoned Cabins → Junkyard → Recycler at Junkyard → home. ~200 scrap in 45 minutes.
• Sleeping bag in bushes between your base and a frequent monument route gives a respawn closer to action.
• Don't underestimate the bow + Eoka combo. Bow for medium range, Eoka for close. Both cheap. Both effective in untrained hands.
• Wipe day server population peaks at hour 2–6. Plan major moves around the population cycle.
• Avoid clans for the first hour. They sprint to monument spawns and you're not going to outrun a 5-stack. Stick to roads and small monuments.
• The first turret is the biggest psychological raid deterrent. Even one turret at the front door makes most raiders pick a different base.