Rust: December Update Implements Excavator Changes, Introduces the Permanent Store

By Benjamin Paraggua Published 12/03/21 EST

Rust has some pretty interesting changes and improvements thanks to its newest update. This patch brings in a new permanent store where you can buy premium cosmetics. Besides that, the Excavator has received massive improvements.

Excavator Changes

First of all, the Excavator is now more efficient than ever. This is because a unit of diesel fuel now powers for two minutes and can produce the following:

100 HQM
2,000 Sulfur Ore
10,000 Stone
5,000 Metal Fragments

Moreover, you can find a Communications Relay situated next to the generator and it starts charging when you turn on the Excavator. Once it is full, you can use the terminal to call in some supply drops.

Permanent Store

Do you want to buy premium cosmetic items? You can do that now thanks to the new permanent in-game store. This place also sells premium items, with more to come in the future.

One of the things that you can buy right now is the Nomad Skin - a reskin replacement of the Hazmat suit. To apply this, all you have to do is select the appropriate option when you are crafting the Hazmat suit. Alternatively, you can place the suit on a repair bench.

Other store items that are offered with the opening of the permanent in-game store can be found here.

Various Improvements

The first-person spectate mode is improved. The developers want to give spectators greater immersion by seeing things with their own eyes. Standard game elements are also present like the vitals, compass, and hotbar, among other things. This view mode automatically activates once you’re spectating in first-person view.

After you’ve applied the update, you may notice that something has changed in the forests. This is because some of the visuals have been improved without sacrificing performance. Hence, forests should look denser now than before.

Update Highlights

Enhanced First Person spectate
Excavator supply drops
Excavator 2.5x more yield
Exposed bear, boar, and chicken populations in Server Admin UI
Compound Bow moved to T1 Techtree
Compound Bow loses condition while drawn back
MP5 NPC drop chance lowered
Watchtower decay, health, and craft time higher
Table item craft no longer need metal fragments
[MLRS] Increased the target hit area, and rockets cluster less towards the center. In general, it's now better for larger bases vs. precision targeting
[MLRS] The MLRS UI now supports characters from other languages
[MLRS] The MLRS rocket explosion ground effect now plays at the true hit point rather than directly below the main explosion
[MLRS] Reduced MLRS rocket world model size and mass to 25% of actual size and mass. No more giant rockets