I remember the first time the skyline opened and I realized my farm could reach other islands. My hands were sore, the workbench was littered, and the sail on the crashed hull trembled under my breath. You can finish this faster than you think — if you follow the order that matters.
My stack of logs sat under a raincloud for two days. How to craft an airship dock in Solarpunk
You need an airship dock before you can call anything an airship — it’s the base of operations, the place where travel begins and plans become tools. I built mine after a morning of chopping and a single frustrated trip to the furnace.
- 40 Wood: Chop trees with your axe. Wood is abundant; gather it while you clear land for crops.
- Three Cloth: Plant cotton seeds on any suitable plot, harvest cotton, then craft cloth at the workbench.
- 20 Iron: Mine iron ore with a pickaxe, then smelt it in a furnace to get Iron. The furnace needs wood for fuel, so bring extra logs.
How do I craft an airship dock in Solarpunk?
Gain access to the Research Table and progress to Tier 3 research to make the Airship Dock available. Use the workbench to place the dock once you have the materials above. I recommend setting a routine: harvest cotton, smelt iron, and stash wood in one trip — it saves trips across the island.
The first crashed hull I stripped looked like a scavenger’s dream. How to craft your airship in Solarpunk
When you have a dock, the workbench is where the vehicle actually appears. Your first airship will be limited in range, but it gets you off the island and into trade, salvage, and more materials.
- Three Cloth: From cotton processed at a workbench.
- 10 Iron: Smelted iron ore from the furnace.
- One Crashed Airship Component: Salvage these from crashed airships on the first island by stripping parts off wrecks.
How do you get an airship in Solarpunk?
Craft the airship at your dock’s workbench once you’ve gathered the parts above. If you want help spotting crashed wrecks, check the Steam community guides and the game’s subreddit — players often map wreck locations and share salvage tips.
How do you upgrade the airship in Solarpunk?
To push further, you need Airship Upgrade items. Those come from completing trades and missions with NPCs or players; trade frequently and watch the market on Steam Community and Discord channels for offers. I spent a few hours trading surplus cloth and iron for a single upgrade that doubled my range.
Small, practical tips: keep cotton plots near your furnace and workbench, carry an extra pickaxe, and mark crashed ships on your map immediately. Your dock is a small cathedral for machines, and the early grind pays out in routes, rare salvage, and freedom to choose where you plant next.
The airship becomes a passport stitched from cloth and iron once you upgrade it — suddenly islands that felt unreachable are within a single flight. Will you trade, raid wrecks, or claim a new island first?