Among the different energy sources you can choose from in Frostpunk 2, Steam is one of the most elusive. Fortunately, we’ve spent a fair amount of time with the game and have compiled everything you need to do in this guide. Here’s how to get access to Steam in Frostpunk 2.
Where to Find Steam in Frostpunk 2
Like with other resources in the game, Steam is found and used after you progress the story and make certain choices in Frostpunk 2.
Play through the game until you reach the end of Chapter 2. When this occurs, you are faced with a choice of whether you want to Embrace or Defeat the Frost. Your choice sets you on one of two different paths, and each path carries its own technologies and solutions you can arrive at with Research.
To unlock Steam, you need to Embrace the Frost. This aligns you with the Frostlanders and Evolvers, and the technologies you research revolve around diversifying your options for dealing with the cold as a constant of life.
From there, continue to play the game until you survive the Whiteout and need to either Settle or Salvage Winterhome. The former allows you to take advantage of the resources there, while the latter destroys it in order to harvest the cores from its Generator. Choose to Settle it, then send your Colonists there to take care of its poisonous gas vents, and start to make use of the Steam there.
How to Harvest Steam
Once you’re at Winterhome, you can start to harvest Steam just as you would any other resource. Frostbreak your way to any harvesting point denoted by the Steam symbol – shown as a puff of air – and then build an Extraction District there. Make sure you leave enough room to expand the district so that you can maximize the amount of materials extracted, and build some Rail Hubs to drive up their productivity if you can afford it.
Also, remember to keep the terrain in mind. Winterhome has bursts of Poison gas that occur at regular intervals, and the terrain remains toxic until you install special districts to deal with them. Likewise, it’s dangerous to use Rapid Frostbreaking, as it can injure or kill your Colonists to the point that they can’t work there properly.
Regardless, once you have an extraction District set up at a Steam deposit, you can finally use it to fuel your Generators and push toward even more new technologies and a brighter future for New London.
How to Use Steam Power in Frostpunk 2
Or at least, you can if you know how to use Steam Power in Frostpunk 2.
After you harvest Steam, make sure to click on the Generator back in New London. Then, move over to the Generator tab and select your source of Fuel. Steam is the last one you can select, and helps you to cut down on the consumption of both Oil and Coal.
That’s all there is to it. You Can also research special buildings related to Steam in the Research tree, but they aren’t absolutely necessary to your success or the completion of the game.
And with that, you’re all caught up on how to get access to Steam in Frostpunk 2. For more on the game, check out our guides on Whether you should pick Faith or Order and how to get Heatstamps fast.