Crafting is an important element of the Starfield formula. Knowing how to build stuff can save you both time and money. However, like any other RPG, there are certain prerequisites attached to this mechanism. Firstly, you will need the skills to craft; then comes the workbench, and finally, you must gather all the required resources. Among these resources, adhesives are probably the most important ones.
You will need plenty of adhesives to build outposts and craft custom weapon mods. However, it isn’t a common resource, and you can’t find it in random spots. Furthermore, you must collect a ton of adhesives right after landing on the first planet. Therefore, this article explains how to get adhesives either from vendors or harvest them for free.
Table of Contents
What are Adhesives?
Adhesive is a complex compound in Starfield that is used to build outposts and craft weapon and armor mods. For instance, you will need 3x adhesives to build a weapon workbench. Furthermore, once you have the workbench, you will need additional supplies to attach reflex sights or other scopes to your weapons.
In other words, adhesive is an important element for both building and crafting. However, it is a rare compound that you can only harvest from specific biomes or purchase from exclusive vendors. Moreover, there is an RNG element attached to this resource. So, even if you find it in the inventory of one merchant, it isn’t guaranteed to find it again after the inventory regenerates.
How to Get Adhesives?
As you probably know by now, just how important adhesives are for crafting and building in Starfield. You can easily farm tons of this resource from several sources.
For instance, if money isn’t an issue, we have found the perfect merchant with guaranteed adhesives. Similarly, if you don’t mind traveling to distant planets, you can find it in abundance on a specific spot. Lastly, you can even build your very own adhesive farm to get a regular supply without wandering around empty deserts.
Here is a list of all the ways to get adhesives in Starfield:
Where to Buy Adhesive?
The easiest way to find loads of adhesives without wasting your time is to head to the nearest merchant and buy them. Unfortunately, while adhesive can be purchased from a number of vendors, the RNG element doesn’t always guarantee its availability.
The good news is that one specific vendor will always have at least 12 adhesives unless you deplete his inventory. So, the best place to buy adhesives in Starfield is Jemison Mercantile in New Atlantis. He will sell you 12 adhesives for 11 credits a piece. Once you buy all available items, find a bed and rest for 24 or 48 hours to replenish his inventory and repeat the process.
There are quite a few other merchants who sell adhesives. However, it isn’t always available in their inventory. Here is a list of all the merchants where you can find adhesives:
| Merchant | Location |
| Jemison Mercantile | New Atlantis |
| Shepherd’s General Store | Akila City |
| Denis Averin | Cydonia |
| Sieghart’s Outfitters | Neon |
| New Homestead Store | New Homestead |
| General Goods | The Key |
| General Store | Paradiso |
| UC Exchange | Cydonia |
| Clint’s Collectibles | Gagarin Landing |
How to Extract Adhesives?
Unlike minerals like metal and aluminum, you can’t find adhesives on every planet. Firstly, it is a naturally occurring compound only found in the roots of specific plants. Moreover, these planets grow in unique biomes on distant star systems.
So, if you don’t want to spend your hard-earned credits on buying adhesives, you can always find them in abundance if you know where to look. For instance, the best place to extract adhesives is from the Sweetwater Cactus plant. However, this plant only grows in the desert swamps of the Gagarin planet in the Alpha Centauri system.
Once you enter the planet’s orbit, choose a landing site near a swamp. Next, take out your scanner and look for the sweetwater cactus plant (the small, twisted cactus). Finally, go near the plant and extract its root. You can then use this root as an adhesive in your crafting recipes.
Alternatively, if you are not interested in plants, you can also extract adhesive from killed animals. Evidently, there is a high chance of dropping adhesive from fauna or flora. However, these animals only graze in specific biomes like Delta Pavonis in the Magnar System and Garmin in the Alpha Centauri system.
How to Grow Sweetwater Cactus?
The next method is often overlooked for its complex requirements. However, if you spend just a few hours, you will gain an unlimited supply of adhesives to use in different recipes. For this method, you must unlock level 1 botany and Outpost Engineering Rank 1.
Secondly, sweetwater cactus only grows in its home biome. So, you must set up your outpost in the desert swamps of the Gagarin planet in the Alpha Centauri system. Lastly, you must gather the following resources:
Greenhouse:
- 3x Reactive Gauges* (1x Aluminum, 1x Iron)
- 5x Adaptive Frames (2x Aluminum, 1x Copper)
- 4x Fluorine
- 3x Sealant
Extractor – Water Vapor:
- 5x Aluminum
- 3x Benzene
- 4x Membrane
Wind Turbine:
- 5x Aluminum
- 3x Nickel
- 2x Cobalt
Once you fulfill all the requirements, set up your base camp right next to the swamp where you found the wild cactus. Next, take out your scanner and scan the sweetwater cactus enough times until it is 100% scanned.
The next step is to build your outpost and all the required structures to power your greenhouse. You can find all the options in your building’s control panel. Finally, wait until the cactus matures, harvest its roots, and rest again to repeat the process.
Lastly, if you wish to increase your production, you can either set up multiple greenhouses or unlock a commercial greenhouse through the Horticulture 1 lab project. Also, in order to maintain multiple sweetwater cactus greenhouses, you can connect the water supply to a single water storage.
Console Method to Get Adhesive:
This final method uses console commands; some even consider it cheating. Secondly, if you use this method, all Starfield achievements will get disabled for the rest of the playthrough. Fortunately, you can always re-enable them with mods.
The good thing about this method is that it saves your time, energy, and money. You don’t even have to move a single step to get unlimited adhesives in your inventory. To add adhesives, bring out the console menu by pressing “~,” type the following command and press enter:
player.additem 000055B1 100
In this command, 000055B1 is the item id for adhesives, and 100 is the number of adhesives that you wish to add. For example, if you want 1000 adhesives, add another zero. However, make sure you have enough carrying capacity; otherwise, you won’t be able to run or use Boost Pack without dropping the extra items.
Conclusion:
Crafting is a major element in Starfield. While it saves you money and time searching for your desired items, fulfilling the requirements can be pretty bothersome. For instance, you will need a workbench and gather all the required resources to craft an item. Among these resources, adhesives are the hardest to find. Therefore, this article explains how to get adhesives in Starfield and the best places to farm them.
