Rust Tool Cupboard Guide (TC Guide) – Upkeep, Tips, Radius, & More
Mastering the Tool Cupboard in Rust: A Comprehensive TC Guide, Tips & More
Understanding the Tool Cupboard (TC) is essential for any Rust player looking to secure their base and manage decay effectively. This guide will walk you through the ins and outs of the TC, complete with in-game examples and strategies to optimize everything regarding it. Additionally, we’ll include helpful admin-related information for all of you server owners! We’d also like to thank the contributors of the Facepunch Wiki for supplying visuals for the cupboard along with another helpful resource you can view!
Important Tool Cupboard Information And Features
- This prevents other players who are not authorized on the tool cupboard from building within the area.
- The tool cupboard is lockable with a key lock or a code lock.
- By default 10 players can authorize, however, modded servers or group limit servers can modify this.
- The tool cupboard has a total health bar of 100hp.
- The best item to destroy a tool cupboard is shooting the ground just below it with 5-6 fire arrows.
- Tool cupboards do not overlap, however, you can place several just outside of each of their zones to encompass a large build area for yourself (a compound).
- Anyone can still place twig floors and triangle floors on bases regardless if they are authorized or not to assist with raiding. So build with that in mind.
Decay Prevention with TC
Decay is a normal threat in Rust, and the TC is your best defense against it. You can easily counter it by storing resources in your TC, which will prevent your structures from deteriorating.
By default, the time at which each base will fully decay after your upkeep has run out will be the following:
- Twig will decay in 1hr after there is no wood left in the TC
- Wood will decay in 3hrs after there is no wood left in the TC
- Stone will decay in 5hrs after there is no stone left in the TC
- Metal will decay in 8hrs after there are no metal fragments left in the TC
- Armoured will decay in 12hrs after there is no high-quality metal left in the TC
Example of the Small Visual Indicator Above Health Bar
Example the User Interface When Inside of the Tool Cupboard Menu
Grief Protection
If your TC is destroyed but still has resources, it will provide upkeep for an additional 24 hours. This feature prevents griefers from easily taking over your base. Keep in mind that some servers, especially modded, may modify this information to accommodate for faster base decays and overall reduce entity count.
Tool Cupboard Radius
Visual Upkeep/Decay Examples Provided by the Facepunch Wiki
The cupboard radius that it will protect is quite dynamic based on your structure. Meaning, if your base is a simple 2×2 square then your radius will be pretty centered and symmetrical around that. If your base is very linear or obscurely shaped then you’ll have a pretty equally obscure authorization range as well. Here are two examples.
The general range from your base to the outermost part of a tool cupboard’s authorization zone is roughly 17.5 meters for reference.
Image Source: https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/the_tool_cupboard
More Visual Examples For Protected and Unprotected Bases
The following examples display bases that will or will not decay based on certain conditions and scenarios, however, there are many other structures that can be built that are not included here. If you’re unsure if your base is protected due to a unique layout you may want to monitor it over the next hour or two in the event it begins decaying then you can take action.
Utilizing External TCs
As mentioned Tool Cupboards cannot overlap with each other, however, you can utilize several to create a larger ‘claimed’ area by utilizing a term called “External TCs” which means placing extra on small foundations around your base.
How to Destroy a Tool Cupboard
Here we’ll list several different scenarios in which you can destroy the cupboards, however, the absolute best method which is also very cheap is utilizing fire arrows. Since all you will need to craft them is 3 normal arrows, 6 low-grade fuel, and 30 cloth! Also worth noting is that this method is extremely fast compared to utilizing melee tools.
- 5-6 Fire Arrows – (Best Method) – Must shoot the ground just below the TC as shown below
- 10x Explosive bullets from a Semi-Automatic Rifle (fast)
- 1x Satchel Charge (fast)
- 190 hits with a Salvaged Axe (slow)
- 390 hits with a normal Hatchet (slow)
Admin Information
There’s not a mountain of information that’s useful for admins at least regarding commands, moderation, etc. However, we’ve dug up as much as we could regarding any plugins that are affiliated with tool cupboards and the few commands that are available to help you moderate your Rust server.
Community Tool Cupboard Related-ish Plugins
Commands
- ent auth (Lists in your F1 console who is actively authorized on this cupboard you’re actively looking at)
- ent who (Provides the Steam64ID of the user who placed the tool cupboard you’re actively looking at)
- decay.upkeep_grief_protection (The time in minutes that upkeep costs last after the cupboard is destroyed) (Default: 1440 (24 Hours))
- server.listtoolcupboards (Prints all the Cupboards on the server)
Frequently Asked Questions
We try our best to unpack all of the information here, however, if you’re looking for something specific we’ve tried our best to find the most commonly asked questions we could to quickly help so you can continue building your base.
- How do Tool Cupboards in Rust work?
- Tool cupboards in Rust grant building rights within a defined area, preventing unauthorized construction and decay. They require resource deposits like wood, stone, and metal fragments to maintain the integrity of player structures over time.
- Can I pick up my tool cupboard?
- Unfortunately not. On a vanilla Rust server, the only way to remove a tool cupboard is simply by destroying it. However, the fastest way to destroy it is with 5-6 fire arrows! Some modded servers offer a /remove command which allows users to remove entities but is not available on vanilla Rust servers.
- How far does a tool cupboard reach in Rust?
- The range is roughly 17.5 Meters from the outermost part of the base it’s connected with and associated too.
- Can you have multiple Tool Cupboards in Rust?
- Only one authorization per tool cupboard, meaning you can have additional tool cupboards but they are only placeable outside of the authorization zone from your nearby TC.
- What is a TC in Rust?
- TC is a short acronym for “Tool Cupboard”. Most players when typing in chat will often refer to it as “TC”. It’s the most imporant part of a base. For the cost of 1000 wood you will need to place this within a base and supply it with resources in order to maintain the upkeep of your base to prevent it from decaying or other players the ability to build on your structure.
- How much health does a TC have?
- 100hp and can be easily destroyed with 5-6 Fire arrows fired at the ground just at the base of it, along with a single satchel charge or C4 explosive.
- How do you break a TC in Rust?
- Simply fire 5-6 fire arrows at the ground in front of the tc right where it meets the ground. The damage from the arrows along with the fire afterwards will break it in just a handful of shots.
- How do you stop building decay in Rust?
- To stop your base from decaying in Rust you’ll need to place sufficient resources within your Tool Cupboard inside of your base. An example, if you have a stone base with a wood door, then you’ll need to place stone and wood you can collect from nodes and trees within your cupboard.
- What is TC Griefing in Rust?
- TC or Tool Cupboard griefing is when a player places tool cupboards around a base sealing it up with walls disallowing the user within the base from expanding their base. More information about griefing can be found within our What is Griefing in Rust article, along with tips to prevent and overcome it!
Conclusion
Fully understanding the information about tool cupboards in Rust can increase your chances in-game and overall make you a more efficient player by understanding how to quickly destroy them, utilize them to their fullest, and more!
If you enjoyed this article consider browsing our other such as a recent one on How to Safely Increase Your Rust FPS. Also, feel free to leave a comment and give us any feedback you have!
