Space Engineers is Keen Software House's block and voxel sandbox, on Steam Early Access from 23 October 2013 and fully released on 28 February 2019. You build ships, stations and rovers from large grid blocks 2.5 metres per edge or small grid blocks at 0.5 metres, and anything you build can be ground down, shot apart or flown into a mountain. The vanilla Star System holds eight bodies, and their ore rules set the whole progression: platinum appears only on moons and asteroids, uranium only on asteroids.
This guide covers everything you need: core mechanics, the best builds, equipment worth investing in, location progression, and the tips that actually make a difference.
Core Mechanics
Large and small grid building
Large grid blocks measure 2.5 metres per edge and small grid blocks 0.5 metres, so a small block holds one one hundred and twenty fifth of the volume. Choosing the wrong grid is why most first rovers cannot be powered or moved.
Ore refining and assembly
The Refinery converts ore to ingots at fixed yields, 70 percent for iron, 40 percent nickel, 10 percent silver, 1 percent gold and uranium and 0.5 percent platinum. The Basic Refinery cannot process silver, gold, uranium or platinum at all, and the Survival Kit only handles stone.
Thruster and gravity flight
Atmospheric Thrusters do nothing in vacuum, Ion Thrusters do almost nothing in atmosphere, and Hydrogen Thrusters work everywhere at the worst fuel cost. Any ship that leaves a planet needs at least two of the three, staged by altitude.
Oxygen, hydrogen and life support
The O2 H2 Generator melts ice into gas, producing 250 litres of oxygen or 500 litres of hydrogen per five second cycle on large grid. Your suit holds 125 litres of hydrogen, a Hydrogen Bottle holds 400, and bottles in inventory refill the jetpack automatically.
Block damage and repair
Every block carries its own integrity value. The Grinder strips blocks back into components and the Welder rebuilds them, and pairing a Welder with a Projector holding the original blueprint is the entire ship repair loop.
For a deeper dive into how these systems interact, see our Space Engineers combat guide.
Builds Overview
| Build | Tier | Playstyle | Key Stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atmospheric mining ship | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Hydrogen launch vehicle | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Refining station | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Survival rover | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Combat gunship | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
For full build breakdowns with gear and stat priorities, see our Space Engineers builds guide. For rankings, check the tier list.
Equipment Guide
| Equipment | Why It Matters | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Hand Drill | The handheld mining tool every survival start ships with. | The first hours on any body, and precise digging where a ship mounted Drill would carve out far too much. |
| Grinder | Breaks blocks back down into their components. | Recycling the starting drop pod, stripping cargo ship encounters and undoing misplaced blocks. |
| Survival Kit | A combined respawn point, small assembler and stone processor. | The opening minutes of a survival start, before a real Refinery and Assembler exist. |
| Refinery | The full refinery, running at roughly twice the speed factor of the Basic Refinery and the only version that processes silver, gold, uranium or platinum. | Everything past the first hour, and mandatory before any rare ore run is worth making. |
| Artillery Turret | One of the free Warfare 2 additions in update 1. | Base defence and ship engagements at ranges where a Gatling Turret cannot reach. |
Hand Drill: The handheld mining tool every survival start ships with. It cuts voxel terrain and pulls ore into your inventory, and it is the only option until a Drill block exists on a working grid.
Grinder: Breaks blocks back down into their components. It is your salvage tool, your demolition tool and the only way to recover material from a wreck or a mistake.
Survival Kit: A combined respawn point, small assembler and stone processor. 100 kg of stone yields 3 iron ingots, 0.24 nickel, 0.4 silicon wafers and 1.4 gravel, and it cannot touch ore of any kind.
Refinery: The full refinery, running at roughly twice the speed factor of the Basic Refinery and the only version that processes silver, gold, uranium or platinum. It accepts four Speed, Yield or Power Efficiency modules.
Artillery Turret: One of the free Warfare 2 additions in update 1.200, a long range large calibre turret whose shells have real travel time and bullet drop rather than hitscan behaviour.
Full breakdowns in our Space Engineers weapons guide.
Location Progression
| Location | Level Range | Key Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| EarthLike | Starting world | Iron, silicon, cobalt, lake ice, breathable atmosphere |
| Moon | First trip off world | Platinum for Thruster Components and Jump Drives |
| Mars | Mid game colony | 4.1 percent ore coverage, the richest planetary surface in the game |
| Pertam | Advanced | Iron and nickel in bulk, and a genuine test of a lifter design |
| Triton | Mid to late game | The most complete single planet ore spread, plus easy surface ice |
EarthLike: 120 km across at 1.0 g, with breathable air at 1 atm reaching 14.4 km up and 3.5 percent ore coverage. Silicon, magnesium, iron, cobalt, nickel, gold, silver and ice are all here; platinum and uranium are not.
Moon: 19 km across at 0.25 g with no atmosphere whatsoever, so atmospheric thrusters and wind turbines are dead weight. Ore coverage is only 1.4 percent, but it carries platinum, which no planet does.
Mars: 120 km at 0.9 g with a full 1 atm atmosphere 14.4 km deep that contains no oxygen. Atmospheric thrusters and wind turbines work there; your lungs do not, and the wiki steers you toward solar rather than wind.
Pertam: 60 km across at 1.2 g with an atmosphere only 1.6 km thick, which makes it the hardest launch in the game. Ore coverage is 0.3 percent and ice sits underground beneath oases and discoloured sand.
Triton: 80 km at 1.0 g with breathable air in the valleys, surface ice lakes and 3.5 percent ore coverage. It holds every ore except platinum and uranium, which no planet has anyway.
See our maps & locations guide for detailed area breakdowns and our walkthrough for the optimal progression path.
Tips That Actually Matter
- Uranium has not spawned on planets or moons since version 1.189. Nuclear reactors, railgun sabots, artillery shells and rockets all depend on it, so a planet locked base is permanently on solar, wind and hydrogen.
- Platinum appears on moons and asteroids but never on planets, and Thruster Components need it. Ion Thrusters and Jump Drives are therefore gated behind leaving the surface, so plan the Moon run before designing anything for deep space.
- The Basic Refinery cannot process silver, gold, uranium or platinum. Hauling those ores home while you still only own a Basic Refinery is the most common wasted expedition in survival saves.
- Atmospheric thickness matters far more than density. Every atmospheric body sits near 1 atm at sea level, but the shell is 14.4 km on EarthLike and Mars, 3.9 km on Triton, 1.6 km on Pertam, 1.15 km on Europa and 0.6 km on Titan.
- Reactor fuel maths is blunt: 1 kg of uranium ingot yields 1 MWh. A Large Reactor at its full 300 MW output burns a kilogram every twelve seconds, which is why nobody leaves them idling.
- Batteries limit throughput as well as capacity. A large grid Battery stores 3 MWh but moves only 12 MW in or out, so a hydrogen heavy ship can still brown out on spin up with a full bank.
- Wind Turbines need atmosphere, clearance and a static grid. They produce nothing in space, nothing on the airless Moon and nothing on a moving vehicle, and ground level placement gives 150 to 200 kW against 200 to 400 kW when elevated.
- Ice is the real fuel supply. Roughly 1,000 kg of ice becomes about 20,000 litres of hydrogen, so scout an ice source before committing to a hydrogen design. On Pertam the ice is underground, beneath oases and discoloured sand patches.
- Carry a spare Hydrogen Bottle at all times. The suit reservoir holds 125 litres against the bottle's 400, and bottles in inventory refill the jetpack automatically once the suit drops to roughly a quarter.
- Turn autorespawn off at world creation if friends might join later. That setting cannot be changed once the world exists, and discovering it forty hours in means starting over or living with it.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Mining platinum ore while only owning a Basic Refinery, which cannot process it at all.
- Building a large grid rover where small grid at 0. 5 metre blocks would have been powerable and mobile
- Fitting only Atmospheric Thrusters, then stalling out a few kilometres up, or far lower on Titan and Pertam.
- Planting Wind Turbines on the Moon, which has no atmosphere for them to work in.
- Prospecting planets for uranium, which has not spawned there since version 1. 189
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do I find uranium?
Asteroids only. Uranium was removed from planet generation in version 1.189, so nuclear reactors and every ammunition type built on uranium ingots require reaching an asteroid field first.
Why can I not build Ion Thrusters?
Thruster Components need platinum, and platinum spawns on moons and asteroids but never on planets. A Moon or asteroid trip is a hard prerequisite before efficient vacuum propulsion or a Jump Drive is possible.
Which planet is the best place to settle?
Triton on most counts. It is 80 km across at 1.0 g, has breathable air in the valleys, 3.5 percent ore coverage, surface ice lakes and every ore except platinum and uranium, neither of which any planet carries.
How big is a block?
Large grid blocks are 2.5 metres per edge and small grid blocks 0.5 metres, which puts a small block at one one hundred and twenty fifth the volume. Grid choice changes mass, power draw and material cost by two orders of magnitude.
Is Space Engineers still supported, and what about Space Engineers 2?
The first game left Early Access on 28 February 2019 and still receives major updates, with Apex Survival adding food, farming and radiation on 9 August 2025. Space Engineers 2 entered Early Access on 27 January 2025 on the VRAGE3 engine, opening with Creative Mode only.
More Space Engineers Guides
- Space Engineers Best Builds
- Space Engineers Tier List
- Space Engineers Walkthrough
- Space Engineers Beginner's Guide
- Space Engineers Tips & Tricks
- Space Engineers Weapons Guide
- Space Engineers Combat Guide
- Space Engineers Boss Guide
- Space Engineers Maps & Locations
- Space Engineers Crafting Guide
- Space Engineers Classes & Characters
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- VRChat Guide: sandbox game with similar mechanics
- Garry's Mod Guide: sandbox game with similar mechanics
