High-value material fixes: Stapler, Jailbroken CPU, and Enethiol

Quick answer

For Staplers, check Plaza Warren trades and higher-level office desks before wasting them on low-value crafts. Staplers are also a component in Soup (see cooking guide) Bowl crafting (1x Metal Scrap, 1x Stapler, 1x Glass Scrap, 1x Test Tube). For Jailbroken CPUs, farm Lab Sector Security Bots with powered defenses when possible: pull robots into a controlled lane where cover, traps, or power support reduce chaos, and deposit drops immediately. For Enethiol, prioritize Manufacturing West and Flathill sources early, because it gates too many science upgrades to ignore. Enethiol depends on sulfur and ethanol access, so plan those routes before you need the chemistry output. The key insight: each of these materials is a route problem before it is a crafting problem.

Step-by-step route setup

1. Identify the bottleneck material before starting the route: Stapler, Jailbroken CPU, or Enethiol.
2. For Staplers, check higher-value office desks and Plaza Warren trade options before wasting them.
3. For Jailbroken CPUs, plan Security Bot farming around powered defenses or controlled combat spaces.
4. For Enethiol, prioritize Manufacturing West and Flathill sources before late science upgrades stack up.
5. Return and deposit rare materials before starting optional side farming.

Material priority table

Source-backed route identity

These three items should not be farmed with the same mindset.

That split is the value of the guide. A generic "where to find materials" list does not tell the player when to stop, what risk to prepare for, or which storage rule prevents an accidental spend.

Why these materials feel worse than they are

These items are frustrating because they do not behave like common scrap. A player can search many containers and still feel unlucky, then waste the first copy on a craft that does not solve the real blocker. The fix is to decide the next recipe before the farming run starts. If the next craft does not immediately unlock a sector, a defensive upgrade, or a major science step, store the material and wait.

For Staplers, the mistake is treating them like flavor junk. Once a route or recipe needs one, every desk becomes part of a targeted check. For Jailbroken CPUs, the mistake is fighting bots in bad rooms. Pull the fight toward cover, a door, or a base defense lane, then deposit the drop before greed adds another risk. For Enethiol, the mistake is reacting late. If a science route depends on it, gather the surrounding chemistry inputs before the bench is already blocked.

Farming loop

1. Write down the exact craft that needs the material.
2. Check whether the route is container-based, enemy-based, trade-based, or chemistry-based.
3. Empty inventory before the run so a rare drop is not competing with low-value clutter.
4. Return after the target item drops instead of turning the run into a general loot sweep.
5. Update storage labels so the material is not spent accidentally later.

Storage rule

Create a "do not spend" crate for bottleneck materials. Put Staplers, CPUs, Enethiol, Optic Lenses, and similar blockers there until the recipe is chosen. This prevents the quiet failure where a rare part disappears into a low-impact craft and the real upgrade waits another hour.

If an item blocks several recipes, spend it only when the craft opens a route, improves survivability, or unlocks a repeatable farm. Convenience crafts can wait.

Inventory setup by material

The point is to reduce accidental mixed-purpose runs. A mixed run feels efficient at the start, but it usually ends with a full inventory, unclear priorities, and one rare item spent or misplaced.

Spending priority

Use this order before spending any bottleneck item:

1. Route unlocks and survival upgrades first.
2. Repeatable farming improvements second.
3. Co-op utility third.
4. Convenience crafts last.

This rule prevents the common problem where the first rare copy goes into a nice quality-of-life item and the next mandatory craft stalls.

When to stop farming

Stop as soon as the current blocker is solved plus one spare. Farming five extra rare parts feels efficient until it delays the route that would unlock a better source. For example, once you have the CPU, hose, or Enethiol needed for the next upgrade, bank it and progress. Return for stockpiling after the route is safer or the tram network is open.

The goal is not a beautiful storage room full of rare materials. The goal is a base that can craft the next meaningful upgrade on demand.

Common mistakes

• Farming generic junk piles when the bottleneck has a better targeted source.
• Using rare materials immediately, then discovering the next upgrade needed the same item.
• Fighting Security Bots in open spaces when a controlled lane would make the CPU farm safer.
• Starting chemistry output only after the upgrade chain is already blocked.