To use tools, select it by right-clicking on the tool (PC) or scrolling to it with the right analog stick and pressing the right button of the D-pad (PS4). Go up to the tree (axe) or boulder (pickaxe) and hold down the left mouse button (PC) or X button (PS4) to wear them down to states you can gather with.
You can gather Gold Nuggets by trading meats with the Pig King (if he’s available in the current world); mining yellow-streaked boulders, which are dominantly available in Rockylands; or finding them scattered around Graveyards. Once you make your science machine, it will immediately prompt you to place it down (press X or left-click). Choose the area to place the machine wisely since after placing it, you won’t be able to pick it up again.
You can create Cut Stone through the Refine tab in the science machine, and costs 3 Rocks to make. You can get Charcoal by burning down a tree with a torch, but you have to be careful since fire
You can add Twigs, Honey Comb, and in Reign of Giants only, Ice as ingredients despite being generally inedible. Some recipes call for those too, in fact. Despite being edible, you can’t add Rot, Seeds, Petals, Rotten Egg, Hatching Tallbird Egg, Cooked Mandrake, Koalefant Trunk, Deerclops Eyeball, Guardian’s Horn, Batilisk Wing, Leafy Meat, Foliage, Light Bulbs, or Glow Berries as ingredients.
Don’t put in too many Monster Meat, Monster Jerky, or Durian in one recipe, since it would yield a Monster Lasagna, which actually damages instead of heals and also inflicts a large penalty on your sanity. Only do so if you plan on adding a Twig in your recipe.
Most of the time, you’ll fumble and accidentally make a meal that’s less filling than the individual dishes itself, but don’t worry! Most Crock Pot dishes don’t call for specific ingredients unless specified, so experimentation is the key! Twigs and Mushrooms (especially Red Cap Mushrooms most commonly found during the day) are the most efficient fillers, since Mushrooms are poisonous and actually carry penalties when consumed, but when used as an ingredient it will carry none of the risk for Monster Lasagna, and Twigs are completely inedible but can be used as an ingredient. Berries are also an acceptable filler, but only because it’s one of the most readily available food in the world.
