Quick Answer: You're not doing anything wrong. Tempered Steel cannot be crafted right now. The recipe unlocks normally once you reach Orc Base II and its Foundry, and it displays as available, but starting the crafting job does nothing. There is no workaround. Progress elsewhere and wait for a patch.
Version note: Status for v1.0.1, current as of July 23, 2026. Assembled from the Steam bug thread, the v1.0.1 patch notes and the developer's pinned known-issues list, linked inline.
Hitting other launch-week issues? The bugs & fixes page tracks every known problem and what v1.0.1 already fixed.
Smelting runs through the furnace and Foundry at the bases — Tempered Steel is the one recipe that currently refuses to start. (Screenshot: Logan Games)
What Exactly Happens
The failure pattern is identical across reports:
- You reach Orc Base II and unlock the Foundry.
- The Tempered Steel recipe appears in the Foundry as available.
- You try to start the crafting job. Nothing happens: no error, no queue, no output.
Because the recipe looks unlocked, most players assume they've missed a material, a quest step, or a hidden requirement. There isn't one. Stop hunting.
How We Know It's a Bug
Three players confirmed the same behavior on the Steam forums between July 14-16, and one opened their save file and checked the recipe state directly. The tempered_steel recipe is correctly flagged as unlocked, but no crafting job can start.
That save-file check is the useful part. It rules out the "you're missing something" theory that keeps players grinding for an answer that doesn't exist.
Current Status (v1.0.1)
- Acknowledged, not fixed. On July 22 the developer posted a pinned known-issues list, and "Tempered Steel can't be crafted even when the recipe shows as unlocked" is the first item, status "reported and being worked on."
- A related readability issue sits in the same list: cobalt, crystal and sea ore can all read as tempered steel once smelted. If your inventory seems to contain tempered steel you never crafted, those are mislabeled bars, not a fix.
- No player-side workaround exists. Don't edit your save — the recipe flag is already correct, so the failure is in the crafting logic itself.
What to Do Meanwhile
Nothing hard-blocks on Tempered Steel, so keep descending and come back after a patch. Rock Bottom keeps every earlier biome open. If you want to use the wait well:
- Follow the normal progression route. The beginner guide covers how freely you can backtrack between layers.
- Clear the deliberate-effort achievements. The hidden crab and the rest of the 100% route never touch the Foundry.
- Post your confirmation in the Steam bug thread if you want to add weight to the report. The developer asks for reproduction details.