The Rocket Launcher is the weapon that turns a farming wipe into a raiding wipe in Rust. It is a shoulder-fired tube that holds one rocket at a time and fires three kinds of ammo: the standard Rocket for walls and doors, the cheap High Velocity Rocket for the Bradley and vehicles, and the Incendiary Rocket for turrets and wood. The launcher itself costs no sulfur at all. It is 40 high quality metal and 4 metal pipes at a Workbench Level 2, and the blueprint is 120 scrap.
This rocket launcher Rust guide covers the craft cost and blueprint, every place to loot one with real drop chances, which rockets fit (and the three that do not), how it compares with the Homing Missile Launcher and the MLRS, how many rockets each target takes, what it recycles into, its skins, and the habits that stop you wasting rockets.
- What It Is
- Stats
- Craft Cost
- Where to Find
- Ammo
- vs Other Launchers
- Raid Chart
- Recycling
- Skins
- Tips
- FAQ
What Is the Rocket Launcher in Rust?
The Rocket Launcher is a Very Rare tier weapon that fires unguided rockets. Every rocket in Rust is a separate ammo item, and the launcher is just the tube that fires them, so owning a launcher with no rockets does nothing and owning a stack of rockets with no launcher does nothing either. You need both, and they have separate blueprints.
What makes the launcher special is range. C4 and satchels have to be placed by hand on the wall you want gone. A rocket can be fired from a rooftop, a hill or behind a rock, outside the reach of auto turrets and away from the windows of the base you are raiding. That is why online raids, Bradley runs and turret clearing all start with a launcher, even though rockets are rarely the cheapest explosive per sulfur.
Rocket Launcher Stats
| Stat | Rocket Launcher |
|---|---|
| Craft cost | 40 High Quality Metal + 4 Metal Pipe |
| Sulfur cost | 0 (the rockets are where the sulfur goes) |
| Crafted at | Workbench Level 2 |
| Craft time | 25 seconds |
| Blueprint | 120 scrap at a research table (Workbench 2) |
| Tech tree path | About 1,110 scrap from an empty Workbench 2 tree |
| Rarity | Very Rare |
| Magazine | 1 rocket |
| Ammo | Rocket, High Velocity Rocket, Incendiary Rocket |
| Stack size | 1 |
| Despawn time | 60 minutes on the ground |
| Shortname | rocket.launcher |
| Item ID | 442886268 |
How to Craft a Rocket Launcher in Rust
Once you know the blueprint, stand at a Workbench Level 2 and craft it from 40 High Quality Metal and 4 Metal Pipes. It takes 25 seconds. You do not need a Workbench 3 for the launcher, only for the standard Rocket ammo.
The high quality metal is the real cost. 40 HQM is a full HQM node and then some, or a good run of the recycler. The metal pipes are easy to loot from barrels and crates, but if you craft them yourself each one is 2 HQM and 20 scrap at a Workbench 3, which brings a launcher made entirely from scratch to 48 HQM and 80 scrap.
How to get the blueprint
There are two routes. Put a looted launcher in a research table with 120 scrap and you own the blueprint for the rest of the wipe. Or unlock it on the Workbench 2 tech tree, where the path from an empty tree costs about 1,110 scrap. The research table is almost nine times cheaper, which is why the first launcher you loot belongs in the table, not on your back.
Where to Find a Rocket Launcher
The launcher is Very Rare loot, so you will not find one in roadside barrels. These are the sources worth running, with the chance of a launcher per crate or kill.
| Source | Chance of a launcher | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Locked crate | About 8.1% per crate | Oil Rigs, Cargo Ship, Ghost Ships, Chinook drops |
| Elite crate | About 0.8% per crate | Red card rooms, Underwater Labs |
| Military crate | About 0.4% per crate | Monuments, Military Tunnels, Oil Rigs |
| Heavy scientists | Rare drop | Oil Rigs and Cargo Ship |
| Gone Killing mission | Guaranteed | Floating Citizen at the Floating City |
Locked crates are the best bet by a wide margin. At roughly one launcher every 12 crates, a group that runs both Oil Rigs and every Cargo Ship will see one within the first few days of a wipe. The other free source is the Gone Killing mission: kill 8 scientists on patrol boats for the Floating Citizen and you get a Rocket Launcher and 6 HV rockets.
Rocket Launcher Ammo: What Fits
The launcher fires three rockets. The other three rocket items in the game look similar but do not load into it, which catches a lot of players out.
| Rocket | Recipe | Sulfur | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rocket | 2 Metal Pipe, 150 Gun Powder, 10 Explosives (WB3) | 1,400 | Walls, doors, bases |
| High Velocity Rocket | 1 Metal Pipe, 100 Gun Powder (WB2) | 200 | Bradley, vehicles, players |
| Incendiary Rocket | 2 Metal Pipe, 150 Gun Powder, 75 Low Grade Fuel (WB2) | 300 | Auto turrets, wooden bases |
| Homing Missile | Homing Missile Launcher only. Does not fit. | ||
| MLRS Rocket | The MLRS truck only. Does not fit. | ||
| Smoke Rocket | An unused item that is not part of normal survival play. | ||
Every rocket stacks to 3. Carry a mix: standard rockets for the wall you actually need to open, incendiaries to strip turrets first, and a few HVs in case someone pushes you while you raid.
Rocket Launcher vs Homing Missile Launcher vs MLRS
Rust has three rocket launchers and they do not overlap much.
| Rocket Launcher | Homing Missile Launcher | MLRS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | 40 HQM, 4 Metal Pipe | 20 HQM, 3 Metal Pipe, 1 Tech Trash, 1 CCTV Camera | Not craftable |
| Workbench | Level 2 | Level 2 | None |
| Blueprint | 120 scrap | 60 scrap | None |
| Ammo | Rocket, HV, Incendiary | Homing Missile | MLRS Rockets + Aiming Module |
| Use | Bases, Bradley, turrets, players | Minicopters, scrap helis, attack helis | Map strikes from the Abandoned Military Base |
If you are raiding, you want the Rocket Launcher. The Homing Missile Launcher only locks on to aircraft and does nothing useful to a base, and the MLRS is a monument truck you cannot carry home.
How Many Rockets for Each Target
These are standard Rocket counts from the hard side against undamaged targets, the same numbers as our full Rust rocket guide.
| Target | Rockets | Sulfur |
|---|---|---|
| Wooden door | 1 | 1,400 |
| Sheet metal door | 2 | 2,800 |
| Garage door | 3 | 4,200 |
| Armored door | 5 (4 from the soft side) | 7,000 |
| Stone wall | 4 | 5,600 |
| Sheet metal wall | 8 | 11,200 |
| Armored wall | 15 | 21,000 |
| Tool cupboard | 1 | 1,400 |
| Auto turret | 4 (or 1 Incendiary, or 3 HV) | 5,600 (300 or 600) |
| Bradley APC | 7 HV rockets | 1,400 |
Rockets scale well against doors and badly against high-tier walls, so a rocket raid should follow the doorways. For any other mix of walls and doors, the Rust raid calculator prices rockets against C4, satchels and explosive ammo in one go.
What Does a Rocket Launcher Recycle Into?
A spare launcher is worth a lot of HQM. Since the Power Trip update, recyclers return a different share depending on where they are, so the yield changes with the recycler you use.
| Recycler | Rate | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Red recycler (Power Plant, full power) | 75% | 30 HQM, 3 Metal Pipe |
| Green monument recycler, powered | 60% | 24 HQM, 2 Metal Pipe (chance of a 3rd) |
| Green monument recycler, no power | 50% | 20 HQM, 2 Metal Pipe |
| Safe zone (Outpost, Bandit Camp) | 40% | 16 HQM, 1 Metal Pipe (chance of a 2nd) |
Recycling is only worth it if you already know the blueprint. Until then, a looted launcher should go in the research table. More on the tiers in our recycler guide.
Rocket Launcher Skins
Skins change how the launcher looks and nothing else. Damage, recipe and blueprint are identical, and you can swap skins at a repair bench.
The two best known are the Dragon Rocket Launcher and the RPG Launcher, an RPG-7 style model added to the item store in November 2025. Both are full item skins with their own models. There are also workshop skins for the launcher on the Steam Market, and a Rust Isles launcher skin was one of the streamer Twitch drops. See our Rust skins guide for how skins work and where to buy them.
Rocket Launcher Tips
- Aim high at range. Rockets are affected by gravity. Drop is small inside about 15 metres and severe past 30, so put the crosshair above a distant door, not on it. HV rockets fly much flatter if you need range.
- Hit the seams. Rocket splash reaches nearby building blocks. Fire into the corner where walls and floors meet and you damage several pieces at once.
- Reload before you need to. The tube holds one rocket and the reload is slow. Never walk around a corner on an empty launcher.
- Check your line. Rockets explode on the first thing they touch: a tree branch, window bars or a teammate’s head. Step out fully before you fire.
- Strip turrets first. One Incendiary Rocket kills an auto turret for 300 sulfur. Four standard rockets cost 5,600.
- Keep the launcher safe. Split rockets across your team but give the launcher to whoever is least likely to die. Anyone who kills you with it in your hands gets the most valuable thing you own.
- Repair it. The launcher loses condition as you fire it. Fix it at a repair bench between raids rather than crafting a new one.
Rocket Launcher Rust FAQ
How do you craft a rocket launcher in Rust?
Craft it at a Workbench Level 2 from 40 High Quality Metal and 4 Metal Pipes. It takes 25 seconds, and you need the blueprint first: 120 scrap at a research table or about 1,110 scrap through the tech tree.
What workbench do you need for a rocket launcher?
A Workbench Level 2. The launcher does not need a Workbench 3, but standard Rocket ammo does. HV and Incendiary Rockets are Workbench 2 crafts.
How much scrap is the rocket launcher blueprint?
120 scrap at a research table, using a looted launcher. Unlocking it through the Workbench 2 tech tree costs about 1,110 scrap from an empty tree.
Where do you find a rocket launcher in Rust?
Locked crates are the best source at about 8% per crate. Elite crates (about 0.8%) and military crates (about 0.4%) can drop one, heavy scientists rarely drop them, and the Gone Killing mission from the Floating Citizen gives a launcher and 6 HV rockets.
What ammo does the rocket launcher use?
The standard Rocket, the High Velocity Rocket and the Incendiary Rocket. Homing Missiles only fit the Homing Missile Launcher, and MLRS Rockets only fit the MLRS.
How many rockets does a rocket launcher hold?
One. You have to reload after every shot, and rockets stack to 3 per inventory slot.
What does a rocket launcher recycle into?
20 High Quality Metal and 2 Metal Pipes at a green monument recycler with no power. A powered green recycler gives 24 HQM, the red Power Plant recycler gives 30 HQM and 3 pipes, and a safe zone recycler gives 16 HQM.
Is the rocket launcher worth crafting?
Yes, once you have the blueprint. 40 HQM and 4 pipes is a one-off cost and the launcher lasts many raids if you repair it. The real cost of rocket raiding is the rockets, at 1,400 sulfur each for a standard rocket.
What is the rocket launcher item ID?
The Rocket Launcher shortname is rocket.launcher and its item ID is 442886268.
Sources and Further Reading
- Recipe, workbench, craft time, research cost and recycle output: Rust game item files (items.craft.json and items.recycle.json via rust-game-icons)
- Item ID, ammo and loot tables: Facepunch Wiki, Rocket Launcher
- Skins: RustClash Wiki, Dragon Rocket Launcher
- Stats and raid data: RustLabs, Rocket Launcher