Sandustry Tools
The handheld and drone items you bring into the pixel world — from the Grabber and Flamethrower to the Digger and Hauler drones.
Hands and heat
The tools you hold
Grabber is the first upgrade target for Fluxite. Flamethrower and Cryoblaster are the hot and cold pair.
Grabber is the first upgrade target for Fluxite. Official beginner text says larger manual hauls beat a weak belt. Demo Hotfix 8 added Hydro Sponge on the Grabber; it only works above ground. Shovel opens dirt. Drill opens Stone and Crackstone.
Flamethrower is the documented ice cutter and Residue burner. It also ignites flowers, which Steam lists as a production path. Cryoblaster is the cold counterpart. Vacuum relocates jammed pixels. Grappling Hook is vertical travel.
Guns and drones
Every tool, catalogued
Gun is precision, Rocket Launcher is volume. Digger and Hauler are the official drone pages.
| Name | Role | Unlock | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grabber | carry | Starting / Fluxite upgrades | Manual haul tool. Official beginner page recommends early Fluxite into Grabber capacity. The Hydro Sponge upgrade lets it pick up liquids including water and lava, but only works above ground. |
| Shovel | dig | Starting | Early dirt and sand digger. Swap to Drill or explosives once you hit Crackstone. |
| Drill | dig | Research 2500 Gold | Needs Rocket Launcher and Florinol Battery. Uses Energy. Slow but precise hard-rock digger — the Laser is faster but burns about 2000 Energy per second. |
| Flamethrower | heat | Research 400 Gold | Official ice cutter and Residue burner. Also ignites flowers. |
| Cryoblaster | cold | Research 1000 Gold | Writes infinite Snow. Freezes Water and turns Lava into Cinder. |
| Vacuum | move | Research 2000 Gold | Relocates loose pixels out of corners and jammed belts. |
| Grappling Hook | travel | Tools research | Vertical travel between factory floors and vault shafts. |
| Gun | break | Research 1500 Gold | Precision breaker. Worse than rockets for volume, better on a Shaker deck. |
| Rocket Launcher | break | Research 2000 Gold | Volume mining. Demo Hotfix 8 nerfed it against Redsand. Also reignites hardened Florinol. Upgrades double damage and add max ammo; recharging returns all rockets at once. |
| Corraller | critters | Research 1250 Gold | Capture tool. Lumlings (blue) released this way become a water source, Shinelets (glowing) make light, and the Red Weaver produces red sand while looking like part of the terrain. |
| Digger Drone | drone | Research 2500 Gold | Autonomous mining drone. |
| Hauler Drone | drone | Research 3000 Gold | Autonomous transport drone for gaps you have not belted yet. |
| Sweeper Drone | drone | Research 800 Gold | Official tree drone. Earlier buy than Digger or Hauler. |
| Recon Drone | drone | Research 2500 Gold | Official exploration drone. |
| Flare Gun | utility | Research 150 Gold | Official tier-1 tool. |
| Flashlight | utility | Research 600 Gold | Official handheld light. |
| Laser | dig | Research 5000 Gold | Late Energy-hungry miner. Drains roughly 2000 Energy per second but blasts through rock almost instantly — carve large caves fast, but it has no upgrades and is not precise. |
| Locator | explore | Research 3000 Gold | Fill with Void Juice to scan for artifacts. |
| Recall Shard | travel | Research 4000 Gold | Official recall tool. Pairs with a Voidbloom-powered portal. |
| Void Gun | dig | Late tools | Official excavation tool on the main-page grid. |
| Volcanizer | heat | Utility tools | Creates lava on demand with no caveats. Once unlocked it solves nearly every heat problem in your factory — fill thermal buffers instantly. |
Starting / Fluxite upgrades
Manual haul tool. Official beginner page recommends early Fluxite into Grabber capacity. The Hydro Sponge upgrade lets it pick up liquids including water and lava, but only works above ground.
Starting
Early dirt and sand digger. Swap to Drill or explosives once you hit Crackstone.
Research 2500 Gold
Needs Rocket Launcher and Florinol Battery. Uses Energy. Slow but precise hard-rock digger — the Laser is faster but burns about 2000 Energy per second.
Research 400 Gold
Official ice cutter and Residue burner. Also ignites flowers.
Research 1000 Gold
Writes infinite Snow. Freezes Water and turns Lava into Cinder.
Research 2000 Gold
Relocates loose pixels out of corners and jammed belts.
Tools research
Vertical travel between factory floors and vault shafts.
Research 1500 Gold
Precision breaker. Worse than rockets for volume, better on a Shaker deck.
Research 2000 Gold
Volume mining. Demo Hotfix 8 nerfed it against Redsand. Also reignites hardened Florinol. Upgrades double damage and add max ammo; recharging returns all rockets at once.
Research 1250 Gold
Capture tool. Lumlings (blue) released this way become a water source, Shinelets (glowing) make light, and the Red Weaver produces red sand while looking like part of the terrain.
Research 2500 Gold
Autonomous mining drone.
Research 3000 Gold
Autonomous transport drone for gaps you have not belted yet.
Research 800 Gold
Official tree drone. Earlier buy than Digger or Hauler.
Research 2500 Gold
Official exploration drone.
Research 150 Gold
Official tier-1 tool.
Research 600 Gold
Official handheld light.
Research 5000 Gold
Late Energy-hungry miner. Drains roughly 2000 Energy per second but blasts through rock almost instantly — carve large caves fast, but it has no upgrades and is not precise.
Research 3000 Gold
Fill with Void Juice to scan for artifacts.
Research 4000 Gold
Official recall tool. Pairs with a Voidbloom-powered portal.
Late tools
Official excavation tool on the main-page grid.
Utility tools
Creates lava on demand with no caveats. Once unlocked it solves nearly every heat problem in your factory — fill thermal buffers instantly.
Upgrades
Fluxite upgrades versus research
Research spends Gold and unlocks the item. Fluxite spends on the item you already hold. Do not mix the wallets. Scanner-style Fluxite upgrades appear in community notes as a way to read combinations without alt-tabbing; treat those names as upgrade flavor until the official Upgrades page exists.
Loadout
A small kit that covers Early Access
Grabber, Flamethrower, Vacuum, Grappling Hook. Add Drill when stone appears, Cryoblaster when you need plugs, rockets when you need a hole, Corraller if you actually want wildlife. Everything else is a specialization.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Official beginner advice: Grabber capacity with Fluxite.
No. Rockets open volume. Flamethrowers cut ice and burn Residue with far less collateral.
The official tool page is Digger. Some homepage redlinks say Digger Drone for the pad. This roster keeps the existing page name.