Craft Stations

Overview

Craft Stations are the workstation buildings that unlock recipes in Windrose. The game groups 68 distinct stations into ten categories, each with its own base station and optional upgrade extenders. Placing a station inside Bonfire range activates its craft menu; snapping an extender inside the base station's footprint widens that station's recipe list without creating a separate craft UI.

This hub page links every craft station in the current build. Base stations sit at the top of each table; extenders attach to a base station and are listed beneath it. Utility stations (Bonfire, Tent, Fast Travel Point, torch, disassembly, explosive barrel) sit in a separate Utilities section because they do not follow the base-extender pattern.

Why Station Categories Matter

Each category shares a common set of requirements and a shared Bonfire-range rule. Alchemy, Cooking, Jewelery, and the equipment workshops require a roof and bonfire range; Refining stations mostly require outdoor placement and bonfire range; Merchants require a roof, bonfire range, and a Merchant Contract item from the Traders quest line. Utility stations (Bonfire, Tent, Floor-Standing Torch) have flexible placement, and the Dockyard stations (Shipwright's Workshop, Wharf) require specific shorelines.

Alchemy

Four alchemy stations produce potions, elixirs, grogs, and reagent bases. The Alchemy Table is the base station; the other three are upgrade extenders that snap onto it.

Cooking

The Cooking Fire is the base cooking station. Its four extenders unlock knife, pot, provision, and dryer recipe families respectively.

Personal Weapons and Ship Fittings

The Blacksmith category holds the two forge bases plus shared extenders. The Weaponsmith Workshop produces personal weapons; the Shipwright's Workshop produces ship cannons and fittings.

Armor and Clothes

The Armor and Clothing Workshop produces armor pieces across the Survivor, Tracker, Flibustier, Marksman, and Conquistador set lines. Three extenders handle materials, fitting, and footwear.

Jewelery

Two jewelery stations cover the ring-upgrade economy. Every ring line routes through the base Jewelery Table.

Workbench

The Workbench is the universal base-station for tools and basic crafted items. Unlike most base stations, the Workbench does not require Bonfire range for basic recipes.

Refining

Seven refining stations convert raw inputs into intermediate materials. Most refining stations have Bonfire and specific-placement rules; the Large Smelting Furnace and Charcoal Kiln also require outdoor placement.

Utilities

Utility stations cover base camp anchors, travel, and miscellaneous functions. Most utility stations have flexible placement rules; the Bonfire is the most important utility in any camp layout.

Merchants

Three NPC traders route Piastres into ship-crew-wide material supply. Each merchant requires a corresponding Merchant Contract consumed on construction.

Farming and Dockyard

Two smaller categories round out the station list: Farming (seedbeds for climbing plants) and Dockyard (shipyard-adjacent stations that share the shoreline requirement).

Placement Strategy

A typical first-day Windrose camp follows the same station placement order across every playthrough. This minimizes backtracking and gets crafting running as fast as possible on a new island.

• Hour 1: Place a Bonfire and a Workbench. Nothing else crafts until these two are in place. Build a Tool Shelf immediately; it costs zero materials.

• Day 1: Add a Cooking Fire under a roof. Snap a Cutting Table onto it for fillet recipes. Place a Tent near the hostile biome you are about to explore.

• Week 1: Build out the refining camp: Smelting Furnace, Charcoal Kiln, Spinning Wheel, Tanning Rack. Place a Millstones for Bone Meal.

• Mid-game: Add the three workshops (Weaponsmith, Armor and Clothing, Shipwright's) with their extenders. Plan an indoor forge with shared Water Barrel.

• Late-game: Upgrade the refining camp to a Large Smelting Furnace for Mire Metal. Place a Jewelery Table with both extenders. Build a Wharf on a shoreline for ship expansion.

• Endgame: Add all three settlement Merchants once Merchant Contracts are available. Place Fast Travel Bell pairs at high-traffic points across your explored island chain.

Tips

• Every station except the Bonfire, Tent, Floor-Standing Torch, Seedbed for Plants, Fast Travel Point, and Workbench basics requires the Bonfire's range to function. Plan the Bonfire position first.

• Extenders do not stack across multiple base stations. A single extender can only serve one base station at a time, and the extender must be placed inside that base station's footprint radius.

• Comfort bonuses from fire sources (Bonfire, Charcoal Kiln, Large Smelting Furnace, Cooking Fire) do not stack with each other. Place one per room to claim distinct Comfort slots.

• Merchant stations are gated by Merchant Contracts. These drop from the Traders quest line; check the active quest log before committing to a merchant placement.

• Stations decay over time in the current build. The Bonfire and Merchants have million-plus Max Health, but most craft stations cap at 4,500 and will eventually require repairs.

See Also

• Base Building

• Crafting

• Comfort System

• Settlement Building

• Merchant Contracts