What to Unlock First in Slime Rancher: A Comprehensive Guide

The vibrant world of Slime Rancher offers a wealth of possibilities right from the start, but knowing where to focus your efforts early on can significantly impact your ranching success. The optimal initial unlocks provide a strong foundation for resource gathering, slime management, and ultimately, profit maximization.

The very first thing you should unlock in Slime Rancher is the Jetpack. After that, prioritize unlocking the High Walls for your main corral and the Resource Harvester for your garden plots. The Jetpack allows for drastically improved exploration and efficiency. High Walls prevent breakouts of more rambunctious slimes, and the Resource Harvester automates a critical task, freeing you up for other activities.

Early Game Unlock Priorities: Laying the Foundation

These initial unlocks set the stage for a prosperous ranch. Let’s break down why each of these are so important and how to efficiently obtain them:

1. The Indispensable Jetpack

The Jetpack is not merely a convenience; it’s a game-changer. It allows you to quickly traverse the map, reach previously inaccessible areas, and efficiently gather resources. While it requires Energy, learning to manage your energy consumption is a crucial skill in Slime Rancher, and the Jetpack’s benefits far outweigh its cost.

• Why Unlock It First? Unlocking the Jetpack early grants access to more resource nodes, hidden areas with valuable items like Treasure Pods, and allows for faster travel between your ranch and resource locations. This dramatically increases your resource gathering efficiency and overall progress.
• How to Get It: Requires Rank 3 in the 7Zee Rewards Club, and 450 Newbucks. Focus on fulfilling daily and weekly quests offered by 7Zee to rapidly rank up. Selling plorts is the best way to make Newbucks.

2. High Walls: Corral Security is Paramount

Escaped slimes can quickly become a major headache, especially when dealing with Tarr or aggressive species. High Walls are essential for containing your slimes and preventing costly breakouts.

• Why Unlock Them? High Walls are especially important for containing species prone to escapes like Phosphor slimes or even just preventing a large hoard of Pink slimes from overflowing. Reducing the number of escapees allows you to focus on ranch management and resource gathering without constant interruptions.
• Prioritize the Main Corral: Focus on upgrading the main corral where you keep your most valuable slimes. This minimizes the risk of losing valuable plorts or having your ranch overrun by escaped slimes.

3. Resource Harvester: Automating Efficiency

Manual harvesting can be tedious and time-consuming. The Resource Harvester automates this process, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your ranch, such as exploring, discovering new slime species, and completing 7Zee Club challenges.

• Why Unlock It? Freeing yourself from manual harvesting allows you to focus on more profitable activities like slime breeding and exploration. Automated resource collection ensures a steady supply of food for your slimes.
• Strategic Placement: Place Resource Harvesters in garden plots growing food for your most valuable slimes, maximizing your plort production.

Beyond the Basics: Mid-Game Considerations

Once you have these essential unlocks, consider the following to further optimize your ranch:

4. Plort Collector: Maximizing Plort Collection

Collecting plorts manually can be time-consuming, especially with larger slime populations. Plort Collectors automate this task, ensuring that no valuable plorts are left behind.

• Why Unlock It? Maximizing plort collection is crucial for generating income and progressing through the game. Plort Collectors save you valuable time and effort.

5. Air Net: Enhanced Escape Prevention

While High Walls are essential, some slimes are particularly adept at escaping. Air Nets provide an additional layer of security, preventing airborne breakouts.

• Why Unlock It? Air Nets are particularly useful for containing slimes like Flutter Slimes, which can easily escape over High Walls.
• Placement Strategy: Strategically place Air Nets to cover any gaps or weaknesses in your corral defenses.

6. Med Station: Quick Healing and Recovery

Injuries can happen, whether from Tarr attacks or exploring dangerous areas. The Med Station provides a convenient way to heal quickly and get back to ranching.

• Why Unlock It? The Med Station provides a safety net when exploring dangerous areas or dealing with Tarr outbreaks, reducing downtime and allowing you to continue ranching efficiently.

FAQs: Mastering the Art of Slime Ranching

1. How do I earn Newbucks quickly in Slime Rancher?

Selling plorts is the primary source of income. Focus on feeding your slimes their favorite foods to maximize plort production. Complete 7Zee Club quests and sell any extra resources you have accumulated.

2. What are Gordo Snares, and when should I unlock them?

Gordo Snares are used to trap Gordo slimes. Unlock them when you’re ready to expand your ranch into new areas, as Gordos often block access to valuable resources and locations.

3. What are the benefits of upgrading my Vacpack?

Upgrading your Vacpack increases your carrying capacity, allows you to suck up larger items, and reduces the damage you take. Prioritize upgrades that improve your efficiency and survivability.

4. How do I prevent Tarr slimes from spreading?

The best defense is preventing slimes from becoming Tarr in the first place. Avoid mixing three or more types of plorts in a single slime. If a Tarr appears, use water to eliminate it quickly.

5. What are Drones, and when should I unlock them?

Drones are automated helpers that can perform tasks like collecting plorts, feeding slimes, and watering crops. Unlock them when you have a well-established ranch and want to further automate your operations.

6. Which slimes are the most profitable to ranch early on?

Rock Slimes and Tabby Slimes are a good starting point because they eat readily available vegetables and meat. Once you have the equipment, Honey Slimes are incredibly profitable due to the high value of Honey plorts.

7. How do I unlock new areas in Slime Rancher?

You unlock new areas by popping Gordo slimes that are blocking the path or by purchasing keys from the 7Zee Club.

8. What is the purpose of the Lab?

The Lab allows you to craft gadgets and decorations using resources you’ve collected. It’s not a priority early on, but it becomes increasingly useful as you progress.

9. How do I get Slime Science resources?

Slime Science resources are obtained by extracting them from gadgets crafted in the Lab or through resource nodes in the world.

10. What’s the best way to deal with feral slimes?

Feral slimes are aggressive and will attack you. Use food to calm them down or avoid them altogether.

11. How do I breed Largo slimes effectively?

To breed Largo slimes, feed a slime a plort from a different species. Ensure the resulting Largo is well-fed and contained to prevent Tarr outbreaks.

12. Should I focus on expanding my ranch early on?

Expanding your ranch is important, but focus on efficiency and automation first. Secure your existing corrals and automate resource collection before expanding too quickly.

13. What is the Starmail system, and how does it work?

Starmail is a system where you receive messages and rewards from other characters in the Slime Rancher universe. Check your Starmail regularly for valuable information and gifts.

14. How do I use Treasure Pods?

Treasure Pods contain blueprints for gadgets and decorations. Unlock them using Slime Keys to obtain new crafting recipes.

15. What are the best practices for food management in Slime Rancher?

Plant crops that match the favorite foods of your most valuable slimes. Use Resource Harvesters to automate harvesting and ensure a steady supply of food. Efficiently manage food resources to keep your slimes happy and productive.