Conan Exiles is out in Early Access on Steam, and one of the most important elements of the game is crafting. In the game, it’s important to equip yourself with better arms and armor, as well as build up your base. But where do you start? Luckily, we’ve got the basics covered, from Knowledge Points to materials to recipes.
Understanding Knowledge Points
As you level up by exploring, killing enemies, and gathering materials, you’ll earn Knowledge Points that you can spend to unlock new recipes. You start with the Survivalist and Weaver Knowledges, giving you access to basic recipes for creating picks, torches, and clothes.
On the Knowledge screen, things you know are shown in green, bits you could learn are shown in yellow, and things you don’t meet the prerequisites for are shown in red. Highlight any Knowledge to see its prerequisites, as well as the recipes it teaches. Items related to it in the tree will also be highlighted in the full list of Knowledge.
Gathering Materials
Basic materials can easily be found just by wandering the world. Stones and branches are lying all over, while plant fiber can be harvested from common bushes. Once you’ve learned the Apprentice Craftsman knowledge (level 2), you’ll unlock the recipe for the Stone Hatchet, allowing you to chop down trees and gather wood.
Other resources require a bit more effort. You’ll have to seek out iron and coal deposits, mining the nodes with a pick for the ore you need. Then you’ll need the Blacksmith knowledge (level 10) to build a Furnace and smelt the ore into usable materials.
How Crafting Works
Hand-Crafting: Many basic items, and even some advanced objects, can be built directly from your inventory screen. This is how you’ll make basic tools and most crafting stations. If you have enough resources in your inventory, just select the item you want to make, hit craft, and wait for the item to be finished.
Crafting at a Station: Crafting at workbenches is just as easy. Here you have to add your materials to the central pool, but once you’ve done that the process is exactly the same. Finished items will show up in that same pool.
Bear in mind that some types of stations require fuel to work—for example, Furnaces need coal to keep the fires lit while they’re smelting. If you have a valid item being prepared in such a station, the soon-to-be-finished product will appear in the crafting queue.
Melee Weapon Recipes
Most melee weapons are crafted at the Blacksmith’s Bench, which is learned alongside the Furnace as part of the Blacksmith Knowledge. More advanced weapons will require you to learn the Master and Journeyman Craftsman Knowledges.
- Iron Pick (5 branches, 20 iron bars, 5 leather)
- Iron Axe (5 branches, 20 iron bars, 5 leather)
- Iron Warhammer (8 branches, 30 iron bars)
- Iron Broadsword (5 branches, 20 iron)
- Iron Poniard (5 branches, 20 iron bars, 10 leather)
- Iron Pike (8 branches, 30 iron)
- Stygian Khopesh(5 branches, 20 iron)
- Falcata (5 branches, 20 iron bars)
- Throwing Axe (5 branches, 10 iron bars)
- Cutlass (5 branches, 20 iron bars)
- Stygian Spear (30 iron bars, 15 twine)
- Steel hatchet (5 branches, 20 steel bars, 10 leather)
- Steel Pickaxe (5 branches, 20 steel bars, 10 leather)
- Longsword (5 branches, 20 steel bars)
- Ancient Khopesh (5 branches, 20 steel bars)
- Cimmerian Battle-Axe (5 branches, 20 steel bars)
- Steel Poniard (5 branches, 20 steel bars, 10 thick leather)
- Pick Axe (5 branches, 20 steel bars, 10 leather)
- Steel Trident (8 branches, 30 steel bars, 15 twine)
Armor Recipes
Armor is built almost exclusively at the Armorer’s Bench, and like melee weapons, more advanced bits of armor require more advanced Craftsman Knowledges.
- Wooden Targe (16 wood)
- Light Chestpiece (10 twine, 25 hides)
- Light Wrap (8 twine, 20 hides)
- Light Boots (5 twine, 13 hides)
- Light Gauntlets (5 twine, 13 hides)
- Light Turban (5 twine, 13 hides)
- Iron Targe (16 wood, 16 iron bars)
- Medium Harness (25 leather, 30 iron bars)
- Medium Tasset (20 leather, 24 iron bars)
- Medium Boots (13 leather, 15 iron bars)
- Medium Gauntlets (13 leather, 15 iron bars)
- Medium Cap (13 leather, 15 iron bars)
- Steel Heater Shield (16 wood, 16 steel bars)
- Heavy Pauldron (45 thick leather, 30 steel bars)
- Heavy Tasset (36 thick leather, 24 steel bars)
- Heavy Sabatons (23 thick leather, 15 steel bars)
- Heavy Gauntlets (23 thick leather, 15 steel bars)
- Heavy Helmet (23 thick leather, 15 steel bars)
- Ancient Shield (16 wood, 16 iron)
Archery Recipes
Basic Hunting Bows and Flinthead Arrows are made by hand from branches, hide, twine, and stone, but all more advanced forms of archery including Crossbows (which you’ll need the Arbelist Knowledges for) are made at the Carpenter’s Bench.
- Shaped Wood (10 wood)
- Crossbow (7 branches, 26 iron bars, 13 silk)
- Hyrkanian Bow (7 branches, 13 thick leather, 13 silk)
- Ironhead Bolts/Arrows (10 branches, 10 iron bars)
- Razor Bolts/Arrows (10 branches, 10 steel bars)
- Fire Bolts/Arrows (10 branches, 10 steel bars, 10 brimstone)
Those are all the basics! There are far more recipes to be uncovered and items to be built, but listing those out is a job best suited to the excellent Official Conan Exiles Wiki.