Graveyard Keeper 2 Research Tree: Building and Smithing Unlocks and How to Get Them

In Graveyard Keeper 2, colored technology points buy access to blueprints, recipes, and perks through the research tree. Nodes belong to separate branches, and each unlock requires specified quantities of points in red, green, and blue. Some starting nodes are exceptions: you can activate them only by speaking to a particular character.

Quick answer: Unlock each node’s blueprints and recipes by paying with red, green, and blue points. Speaking with the Bishop unlocks the first Wood node; the blacksmith conversation unlocks the Smithing branch.

How research points and node unlocks work

There are three point colors—red, green, and blue. Most nodes charge a combination of them, although certain perk nodes demand mostly blue. Paying the cost makes the node’s entries appear in your build and craft menus, with the resulting blueprints and recipes immediately usable at the appropriate workbench.

Because the nodes form connected paths, unlock the left-side nodes before advancing rightward through a branch. You can access Building and Smithing immediately, but every other category needs an unlock first. A character or brief task, rather than points, controls access to each branch’s first node.

How to earn technology points

Technology points come from research you carry out at the Study Table, using Science Points and Faith. Here is the sequence to get that pipeline running.

Progress through the early quests involving the Plague Doctor and the characters that follow. These open up your underground workspace and give you access to the Study Table.

Build a Writing Desk beneath your home so you can produce study materials.

Use materials including skin taken from bodies to make Science Kits or clean paper.

Take those items to the Study Table and decompose or study them. This converts them into active Science Points.

At the Study Table, combine Science Points with Faith to investigate rare items, organs, and building components. Every research subject awards the red, green, and blue points used for node unlocks.

Some stations and furniture start broken. Walk up and use the Craft prompt to repair them before you can work at them — the kitchen table, for example, needs 3 planks and 2 simple iron parts.

Repairing Kitchen Table — Repairing a broken station via the Craft prompt. Shown at 00:13 in The Ginger Empire’s video. Image: Lazy Bear Games

Wood building research nodes

The Wood branch is the longest in the Building tree. It runs from planks and workbenches up to conveyors, assembly benches, and factory-scale kits. The Concept of Wood opens the branch once you speak with the Bishop.

Technology	Unlocks	Cost
The Concept of Wood	Board, Short Log, Sawhorse blueprint	Speak with the Bishop
Woodworking 1	Wooden Plank, Woodworking Workbench 1	10 Red
Chopping	Firewood, Wood Wedge, Chopping Spot blueprint	8 Red
Suit Up!	Dresser with mirror blueprint	15 Red
Tool Rack	Tool Rack blueprint, Simple Chest blueprint	35 Red
Zombie Assistant	Zombie Supplier Station	35 Red, 5 Green
Oiled Wood	Oiled Plank, Wooden Kit I, Wooden Trinkets	20 Red, 20 Green
Woodworking II	Bronze Chisel, Furniture Kit I, Woodworking Workbench II	40 Red, 5 Green
Circular Saw	Circular Saw blueprint, Wooden beam, Oiled Beam	35 Red, 10 Green
Wooden Joint	Wooden Joint	90 Red, 25 Blue
Wood Carving	Carved Wood, Large Chest blueprint	120 Red, 30 Blue
Conveyors	Conveyor Belt, Conveyor Splitter, Underground Conveyor blueprints	70 Red, 20 Blue
Artisans I	Builder blueprint, Smithy blueprint	75 Red, 25 Green
Assembly bench	Wooden Kit I, Stone Kit, Assembly Bench I blueprint	75 Red, 20 Blue
Crate	Crate, Supply Pallet blueprint	100 Red, 10 Blue
Wooden Kit I	Wooden Kit I, Auto-hammer blueprint, Conveyor Chest I blueprint	100 Red, 10 Blue
Zombie Delivery	Zombie Supply Porter blueprint, Supply Station blueprint	110 Red, 10 Blue
Building Kit I	Building Kit I, Building materials I, Factory Lantern blueprint	110 Red, 10 Blue
Market Stalls II	Furniture Maker, Baker, Fish stand blueprints	130 Red, 30 Green
Assembly Bench II	Iron Tools, Assembly Bench II blueprint	110 Red, 20 Blue
Artisans II	Tavern blueprint, Brewery blueprint	110 Red, 75 Green
Furniture Kit I	Drill Press blueprint, Furniture Kit I, Furniture I	120 Red, 20 Blue
Wooden Kit II	Wooden Kit II, Conveyor Chest II, Porter Station blueprint	120 Red, 20 Blue
Kitchen Supplies	Cutlery I, Kitchen Utensils	120 Red, 20 Blue
Market Stalls III	Alchemist blueprint, Jeweler blueprint	150 Red, 50 Green
Appliances I	Appliances I, Supply Pallet II blueprint	130 Red, 20 Blue
Bioreactor	Zombie Power, Bioreactor blueprint	130 Red, 20 Blue
Clothes I	Clothes I, Sewing Machine blueprint	130 Red, 20 Blue
Zombie Mechanisms	Zombie Mechanism, Engineering mechanism, Lathe blueprint	140 Red, 20 Blue
Assembly Bench III	Sculpture Kit II, Cutlery II, Assembly Bench III	150 Red, 30 Blue
Furniture Kit II	Furniture Kit II, Furniture II	160 Red, 30 Blue
Building Kit II	Building Kit II, Building materials II	160 Red, 30 Blue
Clothes II	Clothes II	160 Red, 30 Blue
Appliances II	Appliances II	170 Red, 30 Blue

The Chopping node creates the Chopping Spot and gives you Firewood, which burning stations like furnaces and ovens consume. A station with a fuel requirement remains inactive until its supply is stocked.

Stone building research nodes

The Stone branch covers stone cutting and polishing, brick making, pottery, marble work, and fabric. The Concept of Stone is the entry node and costs 15 Red.

Technology	Unlocks	Cost
The Concept of Stone	Stonemason’s Workbench blueprint, Piece of Stone	15 Red
Tool Rack	Tool Rack blueprint, Simple Chest blueprint	35 Red
Pottery I	Clay Plate, Potter’s Wheel blueprint	10 Red, 5 Green
Stone Polishing	Polished Stone, Stone Kit	20 Red, 5 Green
Brick Making	Brick, Kiln blueprint	15 Red, 5 Green
House Repairing	Building Kit I	45 Red, 10 Green
Stone Carving	Carved Stone	60 Red
Ceramic Firing	Clay Urn	55 Red
The Concept of Marble	Marble Plate	80 Red, 30 Blue
Marble Polishing	Polished Marble, Stone Marbles	100 Red, 20 Blue
Marble Carving	Carved Marble	175 Red, 50 Blue
Fabric	Fabric, Spinning Wheel blueprint	100 Red, 10 Blue

Smithing research nodes

Smithing begins with simple ironwork and extends through steel equipment, jewelry, and glassware. Speak to the blacksmith to open the first Iron node; afterward, its paths lead to tools, weapons, smelting improvements, and precious metals.

Technology	Unlocks	Cost
Iron	Furnace blueprint, Iron Ingot, Swamp Iron	Talk to the blacksmith
Primitive Forging	Wooden anvil blueprint, Nails, Simple iron parts	10 Red
Tools	Shovel 1, Pickaxe 1, Axe 1	20 Red
Advanced Forging	Anvil blueprint, Complex iron parts, Iron Chisel	40 Red, 5 Green
Inborn Blacksmith	Blacksmith perk	20 Red, 30 Blue
Weapons	Sword, Iron Armor	55 Red, 25 Green
Martial Skills	Prayer for Retribution, Prayer for Protection, Big Guy perk	10 Red, 75 Blue
Steel	Anvil II blueprint, Steel chisel, Iron hammer	100 Red, 50 Green, 10 Blue
Steel Weapons	Steel Sword, Steel Armor	100 Red, 20 Green, 10 Blue
Skilled Casting	Steel sword with gem, Damask sword with gem	300 Red, 50 Green, 50 Blue
Sword Master	Sword Master perk	50 Red, 100 Blue
Engineer	Prayer for Excellence, Water Pump blueprint, Engineer perk	50 Red, 100 Blue
Steel Tools	Axe II, Shovel II, Pickaxe II	100 Red
Advanced Smelting	Furnace II blueprint, Steel ingot	50 Red, 20 Green, 10 Blue
Rules of Burning	Lantern network blueprint, Place for lantern blueprint, Fireman perk	10 Red, 50 Green, 30 Blue
Iron Castings	Furnace III blueprint, Steel parts	200 Red, 50 Green, 20 Blue
Jeweler	Silver ingot, Gold ingot	100 Red, 50 Green, 20 Blue
Precious Little Things	Jewelry table blueprint, Gold jewelry details, Jewelry	150 Red, 50 Blue
Glass	Glass	10 Red, 10 Green
Glass-blower	Conical flasks	30 Red, 10 Green, 10 Blue
Glass-blower II	Advanced conical flasks, Lens	50 Red, 10 Green, 30 Blue

The furnace associated with the Iron node, along with all other burning stations, uses firewood for fuel. Make it through the Wood branch’s Chopping node and keep it in a Firewood shed. The Firewood shed I blueprint comes from the metallurgy research line and costs 10 Red plus 10 Green; the shed also needs firewood stocked inside it to supply nearby workbenches.

Unlocking Firewood Shed — The Firewood shed I blueprint in the build menu. Shown at 01:45 in The Ginger Empire’s video. Image: Lazy Bear Games

How to confirm a node unlocked

After you pay a node’s price, it becomes lit to show that research is complete, and its contents appear at their relevant destinations. Building plans enter the build menu, recipes become available at their corresponding workbenches, and perks can be equipped.

When a node grants a perk, open the Inspirations menu and use mastery points to activate it. A blueprint reward, by contrast, immediately lets you place the new station or upgrade.

Unlocking Cook Perk — The Inspirations menu, where mastery points activate perks. Shown at 02:20 in The Ginger Empire’s video. Image: Lazy Bear Games

Work through the Wood and Stone branches to keep your graveyard expanding, then move into Smithing once you have the blacksmith on side and a steady flow of firewood to keep the furnaces running.