{"id":21846,"date":"2026-06-10T16:45:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T16:45:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/satisfactory-milestones-tech-tree\/"},"modified":"2026-06-10T16:45:36","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T16:45:36","slug":"satisfactory-milestones-tech-tree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/satisfactory-milestones-tech-tree\/","title":{"rendered":"Satisfactory Progression Guide: Milestones, Tiers and the Space Elevator"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Satisfactory does not have a traditional skill tree. Instead, your whole campaign is structured around two interlocking systems: Milestones<\/strong> you complete at the HUB Terminal, and Project Assembly phases<\/strong> you deliver through the Space Elevator. Together they form the game’s tech tree, and understanding how they gate each other is the single most useful thing a new pioneer can learn. This guide walks through the HUB, the ten Milestone tiers, all five Space Elevator phases, and a sensible order to tackle everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The HUB and how Milestones work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The HUB (Habitat and Utility Base) is the first structure you build and the heart of your factory. Its key feature for progression is the HUB Terminal<\/strong>, where you select a Milestone, feed in the required materials, and unlock its recipes and buildings on completion. There are 10 tiers of Milestones, numbered Tier 0 through Tier 9<\/strong>. You do not pick freely from all of them at once; the game opens tiers in waves as you progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tier 0 is the onboarding tier<\/strong>, made up of sequential HUB Upgrade milestones that must be done in order. Working through them changes the HUB’s appearance and hands you the foundations of automation: the Portable Miner, Equipment Workshop, Craft Bench, Smelter, Constructor, Miner Mk.1, Conveyor Belts and poles, Storage Container, Biomass Burner, and crucially the Space Elevator<\/strong> itself, along with starter recipes for iron and copper ingots, plates, rods, wire, cable, concrete, screws, reinforced iron plate, and biomass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Completing Tier 0 unlocks Tiers 1 and 2<\/strong>. From that point on, milestones within an available tier can be completed in any order you like, so you can prioritize what your factory needs next. Every tier beyond 2 is gated behind a Space Elevator delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Space Elevator and Project Assembly<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Space Elevator is where you deliver Project Assembly Parts<\/strong> to complete the game’s five phases. Each phase asks for progressively more advanced components, and completing a phase is what opens the next batch of Milestone tiers. The first four phases each unlock higher tiers; the fifth and final phase launches Project Assembly and awards the Employee of the Planet<\/em> cup in the AWESOME Shop. The parts themselves, like Smart Plating, Versatile Framework, and Modular Engine, are themselves recipes you unlock through Milestones, so the two systems constantly feed into one another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is the full delivery list for each phase, verified against the official wiki, along with what completing it opens up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Phase<\/th>Name<\/th>Parts required<\/th>Unlocks<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
1<\/td>Distribution Platform<\/td>50 Smart Plating<\/td>Tiers 3 & 4<\/td><\/tr>
2<\/td>Construction Dock<\/td>1,000 Smart Plating, 1,000 Versatile Framework, 100 Automated Wiring<\/td>Tiers 5 & 6<\/td><\/tr>
3<\/td>Main Body<\/td>2,500 Versatile Framework, 500 Modular Engine, 100 Adaptive Control Unit<\/td>Tiers 7 & 8<\/td><\/tr>
4<\/td>Propulsion<\/td>500 Assembly Director System, 500 Magnetic Field Generator, 250 Thermal Propulsion Rocket, 100 Nuclear Pasta<\/td>Tier 9<\/td><\/tr>
5<\/td>Assembly<\/td>1,000 Nuclear Pasta, 1,000 Biochemical Sculptor, 256 AI Expansion Server, 200 Ballistic Warp Drive<\/td>Project Assembly launch + Employee of the Planet cup<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Notice the difficulty cliff between Phase 1 (a trivial 50 Smart Plating) and Phase 2 (thousands of parts plus a brand-new component). That jump is intentional: Phase 1 is essentially a tutorial delivery, while everything after it expects real automated production lines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What each tier roughly unlocks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The tiers follow a clear thematic arc from hand-crafting toward exotic matter. The exact contents shift between updates, so treat the themes below as the shape of progression rather than an exhaustive list. Tiers 1 and 2 cover base infrastructure such as Base Building, Logistics, Field Research, the Assembler and the AWESOME Sink. Tiers 3 and 4 (Phase 1) bring industrial production: coal power, trucks and other vehicles, steel, and Hypertubes. Tiers 5 and 6 (Phase 2) introduce oil processing, fluids, fuel generators, trains, and the Manufacturer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tiers 7 and 8 (Phase 3) move into high-tech territory: bauxite and aluminum refinement, hazmat equipment, nuclear power, drones, and the Particle Accelerator. Finally, Tier 9 (Phase 4) is the exotic-matter endgame with converters, quantum encoding, and portals. By the time you reach Phase 5 you are working with some of the most demanding recipes in the game, like Nuclear Pasta and Ballistic Warp Drives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recommended progression order<\/h2>\n\n\n\n