Which action should you try?
- Red: mine stone or clear junk, then check the red counter after the action.
- Green: gather berries or mushrooms, or harvest a crop.
- Blue: try anatomy or autopsy work rather than repeating basic gathering.
These are early-game actions to test, not guaranteed yields. A release-updated guide groups chopping wood with red points, while a build-data mechanics reference says wild trees and bushes mostly give green. Do not rely on chopping wood for a missing red-point cost without checking the pickups and counter in your build.
Match the missing color to an activity
| Missing currency | Early action to test | Before spending |
|---|---|---|
| Red | Mine a stone node or clear junk; inspect the dropped points and counter after one action. | Useful for early Building and Metallurgy research. Check the exact cost on your chosen node. |
| Green | Gather wild food or harvest a crop; compare your counter before and after. | Often needed for Farming and Cooking. Not every nature action gives the same amount. |
| Blue | Progress to corpse anatomy or autopsy tasks and watch the blue counter. | Associated with Anatomy and Alchemy. Do not assume a first-game book or recipe still provides it. |
Points can remain on the ground before collection, so inspect the pickup as well as the counter. If nothing changes, do not repeat a costly action on the assumption that it awards the missing color; check the reward in your own build first.
No reward from a fight or Study Table?
The Steam 1.007 notes, September 28, state that zombie victories now earn red Tech Points. If a fight gives none, check the installed version before using more battles as your red-point plan. No fixed award per fight is established here.
The same update addresses the Study Table failing to award Science and items that could not be studied; 1.005 had addressed the table becoming non-interactable. A table that will not respond, a Science reward that does not appear, and a colored pickup outside reach are different symptoms. Record which one occurs after checking the update. These Steam notes do not establish that every console build has the same fixes.
The action produced points, but you cannot collect them?
Separate a missing reward from a missing pickup. The publisher's current known-issues list now places out-of-bounds research pickups in the 1.007 fix group for most platforms, still pending on Switch 1 and 2. Its September 24 snapshot described 999 as an intended counter cap; that statement is absent from the October 8 page, so check the value and behavior in your installed build.
If the on-screen pickup lands outside the reachable area, repeating the same action may lose more points; record the location, action and platform/build for a support report. If a counter already reads 999, check whether spending that color allows the counter to increase again before classifying it as missing pickups.
The publisher does not give a recovery procedure for an out-of-bounds pickup. This is a distinction to check on screen, not a promise that the lost points can be restored.
Enough points, but the technology is still locked?
- Open the target node: read all three colored costs, not just the largest counter.
- Trace its incoming line: the official Building screenshot shows The Concept of Wood branching toward Woodworking I and Chopping; later paths connect through tools and stone work. Unlock the visible prerequisite first.
- Check non-point gates: story or NPC progress can also control availability. A full point balance does not bypass a quest lock; follow the exact condition the UI shows.
- Recheck the desired recipe or station: buying a technology may unlock a blueprint, but it does not automatically supply materials or place a workbench.
This is a way to diagnose a blocked node, not a full-release graph or optimized unlock order. Costs, hidden nodes and all later quest gates require a current-build audit before this site can offer a complete planner.
Tech Points versus Inspiration
The developer describes a retained Technology Tree plus a new talent system. The release-updated gameplay guide shows routine actions filling a separate Inspiration meter; a filled bar grants a star to spend on perks or talents. Check the Inspirations tab for that star. The red, green and blue counters instead fund the visible Tech Tree costs.
If you need a worker's mastery or a personal perk, look at the relevant worker and Inspiration screens; collecting blue Tech Points alone is not a substitute. Likewise, a star does not unlock a tech node whose colored currency or prerequisite is missing. This page does not state a fixed Inspiration gain rate or universal Faith cost.
Continue from the specific blocker
- Looking for the station to make a Tooth? Follow the Formulation Bench unlock and building checks.
- Need Pottery for the rod quest? Follow the fishing unlock checks, then inspect Pottery I in the Building tree.
- A zombie still stops after one craft? Use the worker, job and supply checklist; the character's Tech Points do not diagnose every station fault.
- Trying to reach a later location? Milestone activation is separate from Tech Point spending.
Verification notes
- Official Steam game page — developer Tech Tree screenshot used above; the UI visibly shows counters and node connections.
- Release-updated beginner guide — gameplay screenshots, point sources, Inspiration and story gates.
The linked build-data reference above documents the color conflict; this site has not replayed the actions in a full-game save. Check the point color and amount in your own build.