On September 3, 2026, the Rust developers posted an announcement on Steam detailing several systemic changes. The update introduces monument blockers, a scaling upkeep tax based on base size, and several other adjustments.
What changed
Monument blockers are new obstacles added to monuments with red keycard puzzle rooms. They’re meant to slow down early access to loot at those monuments. They require a significant amount of damage to destroy, but once destroyed they won’t respawn. A handful of weaker monument blockers can be destroyed by melee. The developers don’t think this will have an enormous impact on progression speed, but it might make the early wipe a little more interesting for the first joiners. If they aren’t destroyed within the first 24 hours, they will start to decay.
Tool Cupboards now apply an additional upkeep tax based on the number of players in a base. The calculation includes players directly authed on the TC, players deauthed from the TC in the last 24 hours, players authed on a code lock in the base (including guest code access), and players deauthed from a code lock in the last 24 hours. The upkeep rates are tiered: the first 4 players incur no tax, the next 6 players incur 2% tax per player, and subsequent players incur 4% tax per player. A TC with 6 players authed will have +4% upkeep, and a TC with 12 players will have +20% upkeep. The maximum tax amount is 300%. The current tax rate can be seen by hovering over the upkeep cost while the TC is open.
Server owners will find a set of ConVars in the Decay class to modify these behaviours, including disabling the tax entirely.
High quality metal ore nodes and collectables can now be found across the island. They’re extremely scarce, but players will have more luck finding the HQM node in the Jungle.
The Drone marketplace is now connected to last month’s Power Plant system. The server must keep the power plant up and running to operate drone deliveries. The marketplace has a built-in power level that slowly increases when 4 or more fuses are active in the Power Plant. Once the battery hits 50% it can start accepting purchases. As long as at least one fuse is inserted into the Power Plant the battery won’t decrease, but if it drops below 50% the marketplace will deactivate again. The current charge level can be seen from the marketplace map screen.
The Medical Honey Bandage is a new healing item on the Workbench Level 1. It’s designed to bridge the gap between the regular Bandage and Medical Syringe, giving beekeepers another way to use their honey reserves. Players with thriving bee farms often end up with more honey than they know what to do with.
Attack helicopters’ existing cockpit armour will now fall off in stages as it becomes damaged, exposing both the pilot and gunner. The armour conditions are: at 80% health the left panel falls off at 680hp, at 70% the right panel at 595hp, and at 60% the front panel at 510hp. Armoured HABs also have conditional armour: at 90% the left panel falls off at 2250hp, at 80% the right panel at 2000hp, at 70% the back panel at 1750hp, and at 60% the front panel at 1500hp.
Modular car handling has been improved. Steering, turning, and suspension have been tweaked to feel better, and driving for players with higher latency should be improved. A handbrake mechanic has been added, activated by pressing the CTRL key, allowing hairpin turns, tighter corners, drifting, and doughnuts.
Who it affects
The monument blockers affect players accessing red keycard puzzle rooms early in a wipe. The upkeep tax affects any group with more than four players in a base, with larger groups paying proportionally more. HQM nodes affect anyone looking for high quality metal, especially in the Jungle. The drone marketplace changes affect players who use drone deliveries, and the helicopter armour changes affect pilots and gunners of attack helicopters and armoured HABs. Modular car improvements affect anyone driving modular cars.
For every Rust announcement, follow the Rust update tracker.
