The planet you’ve landed on in Satisfactory isn’t always friendly. Nasty creatures are out there, defending their territory. At the same time, you want to expand your factories and research, which inevitably brings you into conflict with local wildlife. The question is how to approach these encounters and which tools you have at your disposal. You should also know which creatures you’ll run into, how they fight, and what they might drop that helps your research. Today we’re taking a closer look at the Satisfactory combat system and how to make the most of it!
Satisfactory weapons guide: All craftable weapons and ammo
You have a total of five weapons to defend yourself against the creatures on this alien planet. It’s a mix of melee and ranged options plus some explosives. With these, you’ll be well equipped to handle most threats.
Xeno-Zapper: This weapon is given to you right at the start and only deals 5 damage. It’s not great, but it’s enough to get you through the early game and handle smaller threats. Later you’ll use Zappers as ingredients to craft the Xeno-Basher and the Zipline.
Xeno-Basher: The second weapon you’ll come across. You unlock it in Tier 3 – Defense Mechanisms, and it deals 9 damage—almost double the Zapper. You need a Zapper to craft it. It’s another melee weapon you swing like a sword.
Rebar Gun: This will be your primary ranged weapon. You can unlock it in the MAM under Alien Organisms—do it early! The pistol uses four ammo types: Iron, Stun, Shatter, and Explosive. Iron Rebar is your basic round; the others are situational. Base damage is 15.
Rifle: Unlocked via the MAM in the Sulfur research line. It holds more ammo than the Rebar Gun, but individual rounds only deal about 3–5 damage. There are three ammo types: standard, homing, and turbo. In total, a magazine can deal roughly 60 to 300 damage—super useful later on.
Nobelisk Detonator: A remote trigger for various bombs. These can deal standard damage, release gas, emit electric shocks, explode in a cluster, or set off a small nuke. Best used against larger groups. Damage ranges from about 50 to 150, plus additional effects depending on the type.
Satisfactory monster guide: Enemy types and the best counters
You know the weapons—so what do you use them against? The planet where you’re building your factory is teeming with unknown fauna. Some creatures fly peacefully, others won’t attack at all, but a few are aggressive. If this bothers you early on, set creature behavior to “Passive” or “Retaliate” in the Options for some peace and quiet.
Creatures fall into three categories: passive, aggressive, and non-interactable. We’ll focus on the first two. The third group only adds to the world’s atmosphere—you can’t interact with them, they take no damage, and drop no loot. This includes most flying animals and some land creatures.
Passive creatures in Satisfactory
These creatures are peaceful and won’t attack you. Some are actually quite useful, so keep an eye out and try to interact with them.
Lizard Doggo: Adorable, dog-like critters—hence the nickname. They’re orange and can be tamed with Paleberries. Approach slowly and calmly so you don’t scare them. Once befriended, they can follow you or collect items.
Bird: A small green bird that won’t harm you.
Power Slug: Found in three colors and essential for MAM research. They don’t attack and deal no damage.
“Bean”: A strange land creature with a big body and thin legs. It can fling you into the air but is otherwise peaceful. Many players love it for its quirky look.
Flying manta: Graceful animals that float through the air… or swim? Later, you can even ride them if you get high enough and manage to jump onto one.
Beetle: Long-legged insects that look dangerous but aren’t. Sometimes they release a gas cloud, but it doesn’t deal damage.
Aggressive enemies in Satisfactory
These aggressive creatures will absolutely try to hurt you—watch out! There are a handful of enemy types, often with variants. Alpha versions, for example, are stronger. Other mutations are themed around elements like radioactivity or gas.
Flying crab: Small flying critters that hatch from egg-like nests. Destroy the egg/nest so they can’t keep spawning.
Spore Flower: A stationary plant that emits poison clouds. Can only be destroyed with the Nobelisk Detonator.
Hog: Dino-like creatures that primarily use charge attacks. Found almost everywhere, sometimes in stronger variants.
Spitter: Adaptable monsters found in many biomes. As the name implies, they spit fireballs at you—fighting them at range is recommended.
Stinger: Creepy spider-like monsters that behave accordingly. Arachnophobes can enable the appropriate setting to replace them with cute cat images. They move fast and can leap or climb—stay alert.
Combat tips, gear, and status effects
- Prepare protective gear: Use the Gas Mask against gas and the Hazmat Suit against radioactivity. This makes exploring areas with Spore Flowers or Uranium much safer.
- Boost mobility: Blade Runners make you faster and let you jump higher. A Jetpack or Hover Pack gives you more control in fights and while dodging. A Parachute saves you from big falls.
- Healing & supplies: Bring Medical Inhalers and put them on your hotbar to heal quickly after getting hit.
- Plan your ammo: Keep enough Rebar and Rifle ammo on hand. Use Stun or Shatter Rebar for groups, Explosive for stationary targets like Spore Flowers.
- Positioning & kiting: Against Hogs, dodge sideways and counter with the Xeno-Basher in melee. Handle Spitters safely from cover at range. Use high ground and terrain for protection.
- Prioritize targets: Destroy crab eggs first to prevent endless spawns. Against groups, the Nobelisk Detonator is great—mind the blast radius.
- Use the loot: Collect Alien Carapaces and Alien Organs for MAM research and new tech (e.g., better ammo, gear, or healing).
Conclusion: Master Satisfactory combat and farm efficiently
While factory building takes center stage, the planet’s lively fauna deserves your attention. From adorable critters to terrifying monsters, there’s plenty to discover. Sooner or later, you’ll need to confront them to find key items and resources during exploration.
We recommend renting one of our Satisfactory multiplayer servers to take on the fight with friends: https://www.4netplayers.com/en-us/gameserver-hosting/satisfactory/. Together, you’ll handle the nastier creatures more easily and secure that valuable loot.
