Helium is one of those resources that quietly becomes essential in StarRupture. Early on, you’ll pick it up without really trying, but as soon as the game starts asking for bigger quantities, you’ll realize it’s not something you can casually farm forever. Knowing where it comes from and when to properly invest in it saves you a lot of backtracking later.
Helium farming happens in stages. First, you scavenge what you can while exploring. Once you’ve unlocked the right tech, you can switch to proper extraction. This guide walks you through both.
StarRupture: Complete Helium farming guide and location walkthrough
As you explore early-game regions in StarRupture, keep an eye out for small glowing purple rocks on the ground. These are Helium ore pieces. They’re easy to spot because they emit a soft purple glow and release a bit of smoke from the top. You can collect them using your mining harvester, and they show up often enough that you’ll slowly build a decent supply just by exploring normally.
Meteorites are the other big early-game source. When small or medium meteorites crash into the planet, mining them breaks them down into multiple resources. Helium regularly shows up among the drops, making meteorites the most reliable way to gather the resource early on. If you see one nearby, it’s usually worth the time to mine it fully.
That said, these methods are only meant to carry you through the early part of the game. Purple rocks and meteorites won’t meet long-term Helium demands. Once crafting and upgrades start asking for more Helium, you’ll need to find large Helium deposits instead of relying on scattered pieces.
But don’t rush into this too early. Helium does not work with standard Ore Extractors. You need a dedicated Helium Extractor, and that’s locked behind progression with the Selenian Corporation.
To unlock the Helium Extractor, you need to reach Level 6 with the Selenian Corporation. Getting there means completing multiple corporation projects and requests, which usually involve delivering processed materials and crafted components, like refined metals and electronics.
If crafting everything feels slow, there’s another option. You can replace some of these requirements with Data Points, which you earn by placing discovered items into the Analyzer as you explore the planet. This helps speed things up if you’ve been scanning consistently.
Once you reach Level 6, the Helium Extractor becomes available. From this point on, Helium becomes much easier to manage.
Large Helium deposits appear as purple-colored areas on the map once you’ve unlocked it. In the world, they’re hard to miss. You’ll see pink glowing rocks with thick purple gas rising straight from the ground.
If you spot purple smoke coming from the terrain itself, you’ve found a Helium field in StarRupture. These deposits are usually located:
- East of the starting area
- Northeast of your initial location
- Further north, beyond early-game resource zones
One important thing to keep in mind is that these regions are dangerous. Enemies like Slashers, Spitters, Bio units, and Flingers commonly patrol these areas. Before heading out to scout Helium fields, it’s a good idea to unlock a pistol so you’re not caught off guard.
Helium isn’t something you need to prioritize immediately since large-scale extraction only becomes possible after unlocking the Helium Extractor. However, it’s still smart to locate Helium fields early, mark them, and start thinking about where you might place a second base later.
Doing this ahead of time makes the mid-game feel much smoother and prevents Helium from becoming a sudden progression roadblock in StarRupture.
Also read: Best beginner tips and tricks for StarRupture
