Survivors make most of their gear from salvage and hunting. Crafting is simple. If you have the materials and the right place, you make the item. There is no roll.
A raw material lists Crafting lines. Each line shows one recipe that uses it, for example "1 Wood + 1 Duct Tape + 1 Cloth = Splint".
A crafted item ends with a Made from line. It shows the same recipe from the other side.
"Alcohol or Fuel" in a recipe means either one works.
"makes 5" means one recipe gives 5 of that item.
"Workbench" means the recipe needs a Workbench and a Toolbox.
Moonshine counts as 1 Alcohol in any recipe. Fish from a Fishing Kit count as Raw Meat.
Wood is used in so many recipes that three of them are only in the Materials List page.
Every recipe has a tier. The tier sets how long the work takes. The Crafting Tiers page lists the tier of every recipe. New items also show their tier at the end of their Made from line.
Tier 1, Simple. 1 minute. Most hand recipes, such as a Bandage, a Shiv or a Molotov Cocktail.
Tier 2, Basic. 10 minutes. Hand builds with many parts, such as a Barricade or a Spike Board, and cooking such as Flatbread.
Tier 3, Skilled. 1 hour. Most Workbench recipes, such as a Machete, a Backpack or Gunpowder.
Tier 4, Expert. 8 hours. Armor, gun work, bombs and other hard builds, such as Scrap Armor, Reloaded Rounds or a Pipe Bomb. Jerky is Tier 4 because it dries for a day.
Tier 5, Master. 3 days. Tanning Leather, Moonshine in a still, and the heaviest metal armor.
Anyone can make Tier 1 and Tier 2 recipes.
Tier 3, Tier 4 and Tier 5 recipes need the Bench Trained feat. Without it you cannot make them, even with the materials, the place and the tools. You can still use, buy, trade and salvage these items.
Bench Trained is an Origin feat. Smiths, gunsmiths, tailors, bomb makers and other workshop crafters have it.
Features that name an item. A class feature, subclass feature or feat that names an item or a kind of item lets you make it at any tier. Examples are the Chemist bombs, the Armorer, Gunsmith, Surgeon, Pharmacist and Trapper subclasses, and the Still Keeper, Home Chemist and Reloader feats.
Mechanics. The Mechanic class counts as having Bench Trained.
Campfire cooking. Food and medicine cooked over a fire never need the feat. Jerky is Tier 4 only because it dries for a day.
Feats such as Handy and Machinist change where or how fast you work. They do not let you make Tier 3 and up on their own.
Hand recipes take 1 minute and need no tools. You can make them anywhere, even in a dead city.
Hammering nails is Loud. Building a Barricade, a Spike Board or a Nail Bat in a dead city can bring a Zombie Pack. Do it in a safe place.
A Workbench is a place, not an item. Strongholds have them, and so do some safehouses and Picker camps.
Workbench recipes also need a Toolbox. Most take about an hour of work.
Some take longer. Tanning Leather takes 3 days, Moonshine takes 3 days in a still, and Jerky takes a day to dry.
Weapon upgrades, armor, Reloaded Rounds, bombs and most traps are Workbench recipes.
The Chemist class and the Quick Hands feat can make some throwables as an action. They are the Molotov Cocktail, Smoke Bomb, Noise Maker and Bottle Lure. The materials must be in hand.
Most materials are easy to find. These are rare and worth a lot. Spend them with care.
Gunpowder. What it is for: Bombs and Reloaded Rounds. How to get more: Old sealed tins, or make it from Charcoal, Fertilizer and Chemicals.
Chemicals. What it is for: Gunpowder, Stim Shot, Water Tablets. How to get more: Sealed tubs in pool stores, labs and water plants.
Springs. What it is for: Noise Maker, Bear Trap, Crossbow, Prosthetic Arm. How to get more: Mattresses, clocks, car seats and axles.
Alcohol. What it is for: Molotov Cocktail, Antiseptic, Fuel. How to get more: Sealed old liquor, or Moonshine from a still.
Fuel. What it is for: Molotov Cocktail, Oil Lantern. How to get more: Stronghold stills, or make it from Animal Fat and Alcohol.
Brass Casings. What it is for: Reloaded Rounds. How to get more: Pick them up after every gunfight.
Rubber Tubing. What it is for: Slingshot, Goggles, Tourniquet. How to get more: Hospitals, labs, car engines.
Animals cannot catch the Z-Virus, so their meat is safe. Butchering needs a knife. It takes 30 minutes for a Medium animal and 1 hour for a Large one. A failed DC 10 Wisdom (Survival) check gets only half of the table below.
Rabbit. Raw Meat: 1. Animal Hide: 0. Bone: 0. Sinew: 0. Animal Fat: 0. Feathers: 0.
Wild Turkey. Raw Meat: 3. Animal Hide: 0. Bone: 1. Sinew: 0. Animal Fat: 0. Feathers: 2.
Coyote or Feral Dog. Raw Meat: 5. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 1. Sinew: 1. Animal Fat: 0. Feathers: 0.
Wolf. Raw Meat: 8. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 1. Sinew: 1. Animal Fat: 1. Feathers: 0.
Wild Goat. Raw Meat: 10. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 1. Sinew: 1. Animal Fat: 1. Feathers: 0.
Sheep. Raw Meat: 12. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 1. Sinew: 1. Animal Fat: 2. Feathers: 0.
Cougar. Raw Meat: 10. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 2. Sinew: 1. Animal Fat: 1. Feathers: 0.
Wild Pig. Raw Meat: 15. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 2. Sinew: 1. Animal Fat: 3. Feathers: 0.
Deer. Raw Meat: 20. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 2. Sinew: 2. Animal Fat: 1. Feathers: 0.
Black Bear. Raw Meat: 30. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 3. Sinew: 2. Animal Fat: 5. Feathers: 0.
Elk. Raw Meat: 50. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 3. Sinew: 3. Animal Fat: 2. Feathers: 0.
Feral Horse. Raw Meat: 60. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 4. Sinew: 3. Animal Fat: 2. Feathers: 0.
Grizzly Bear. Raw Meat: 60. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 4. Sinew: 3. Animal Fat: 6. Feathers: 0.
Feral Cow. Raw Meat: 80. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 4. Sinew: 3. Animal Fat: 3. Feathers: 0.
Bison. Raw Meat: 100. Animal Hide: 1. Bone: 4. Sinew: 4. Animal Fat: 4. Feathers: 0.
1 Raw Meat is 2 pounds. It spoils in a day unless cooked, dried into Jerky or salted. Most of a big kill is left behind.
An Animal Hide rots in a week unless it is tanned into Leather.
Undead must eat 1 Raw Meat (2 pounds) a day.
After a fight you can recover half of your Arrows and Crossbow Bolts.
Each pistol or rifle round you fire leaves 1 Brass Casing, if you have time to pick it up.
Reloaded Rounds misfire on a natural 1. The gun jams, and clearing it takes an action.