The oil rigs are the highest-value PvE loot runs in Rust — and the most contested. Both rigs share the same loop: get there by boat or heli, clear the scientists, hack the locked crate, survive the Chinook that answers it, then get out with the loot before the sirens bring every neighbouring team to your position.
They have also been in the game since 2019, which means a great deal of rig advice has been copied forward without ever being checked. This guide separates what actually happens from what guides keep repeating.
Large vs Small: which rig should you run?
| Large Oil Rig | Small Oil Rig | |
|---|---|---|
| Levels | 7 + helipad | Compact, multi-platform |
| Scientists | 23 | ~12 |
| Heavy scientists on hack | 10–12 | Heavy response by Chinook |
| Elite crates | 2 | A couple |
| Military crates | 8 | Several |
| Keycards | Green (L3), Blue (L4), Red (L6) | Blue |
| Scientist boat patrol | Yes | — |
| Radiation | None | None |
| Recycler | No | Disputed — see note |
| Best for | Teams of 3+ | Solo / duo |
The locked crate loot pool is the same on both rigs. That is the key fact most players miss: the Large Rig only pays more because of the extra elite and military crates. A duo should usually take the Small Rig instead.
Source disagreement, flagged deliberately: frozen-rust.com lists a recycler on the Small Oil Rig (and none on Large); whenisforcewiperust.com states neither rig has a recycler and attributes the confusion to the research table on Level 6 of Large. We have not resolved this ourselves — it has plausibly changed across patches. Check in game before you rely on it, and plan to carry components home either way.
The run, step by step
- Get there. RHIB, rowboat, minicopter or scrap heli. The Large Rig also has a moonpool under the structure (added April 2024) that lets you dock below the waterline and climb a tube to Level 3 with no scientists in it — and it slips past the boat patrol.
- Clear the scientists first. Work upward using container cover. Do not start the hack until the deck is clear.
- Swipe your cards. On Large: green at Level 3, blue at Level 4, red at Level 6. On Small: a single blue card opens the military-crate room and the hackable crate. All cards are optional extra loot — none of them are needed to hack the crate.
- Hack the crate. Hold E. A fixed 15-minute timer starts, sirens sound, and a Chinook drops heavy scientists on the helipad.
- Hold low, not the helipad. The heavies land on top and sweep it first. Let them come down to you, and funnel them through a single doorway rather than fighting in the open.
- Loot and leave. Grab the crate at 0:00, plus military and elite crates and scientist drops.
Every timer that matters
| Timer | Duration | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Scientist respawn | ~24 min | Return whether you are there or not — ruins your exit |
| Normal crates | ~30–36 min | Standard container respawn |
| Card room crates | ~65 min | Tied to the puzzle reset, not the crate timer |
| Locked crate hack | 15 min | Fixed, cannot be sped up or extended |
| Full rig reset | ~30 min | After the last player leaves the area |
| Anti-camping radiation | ~45 min after hack | Only once the crate has been looted |
The 24-minute scientist respawn is the one that catches people. Hack the crate, spend fifteen minutes hiding, and the scientists you killed on the way up are back before it opens. Your entrance is not your exit.
The crude oil pump to the Dome
Since the Power Trip update (6 August 2026), the rigs are tied to the Dome. Once someone gets the Power Plant to phase 3, the switch inside the Large Oil Rig red card room comes alive. Flip it and the Dome pumps crude for 20 minutes.
| Rig switch | Crude output |
|---|---|
| Large Oil Rig | ~3,000 (full rate) |
| Small Oil Rig | ~1,500 |
| Both together | ~4,500 |
You cannot pick the crude up by hand. You need a modular car with a tanker module, a hose tool to connect it to the pump, and a car lift to unload it. The October 2026 update also added a short delay before the oil starts flowing after the switch is flipped. Refine it at a refinery at the fixed 1 crude → 3 low grade ratio.
Six myths guides keep repeating
| Claim | Reality |
|---|---|
| “Bring an electric fuse” | Neither rig needs one. Both are permanently powered and every locked door is a card reader. |
| “Swipe a red card to hack the crate” | The locked crate needs no card at all. The red card opens a separate room next to it. |
| “Large Rig has a recycler on Level 4” | Neither rig has one. The research table on Level 6 of Large is the likely source of the mix-up. |
| “You need a hazmat for the radiation” | There is no radiation during a run. Anti-camping rads start ~45 minutes after a hack, once the crate is looted. |
| “Other players can extend your timer” | They cannot. Player input stopped affecting the countdown. |
| “You can craft at the Level 3 workbench” | The tier 2 bench on the Large Rig is a prop. It does nothing. |
Common mistakes that lose rigs
- Hacking the crate the moment you arrive. Clear, loot the card rooms, then start the timer — otherwise you fight heavies and the patrol at once with a full inventory.
- Parking at the dock. It is the first place anyone checks. Tuck the boat under the structure.
- Fighting heavies in the open on the top deck. Every one of them shoots you at once. Take a stairwell.
- Bringing every card but no meds. Cards are worthless if you die on Level 2.
- Assuming the rig is empty because it is quiet. A team that already hacked the crate is deliberately silent, waiting out the same fifteen minutes you are.
- Standing under the Chinook. It touches down on the helipad. Be somewhere else.
- Planning to recycle on site. Assume there is no recycler. Bring bag space, not optimism.
Heavy scientists are not regular NPCs
They wear far more armour — surviving multiple body hits and demanding several headshots to kill (roughly five versus three for a normal scientist) — and they carry powerful weapons including the M249. Treat them like kitted players: take cover, fight from angles, prioritise headshots. Their drops are the real reason to contest the rigs: rocket launchers, night vision goggles and high-tier medical and weapon loot.
Related guides
- Monument Loot Tables — what the crates can roll
- How to Get Low Grade Fuel Fast — refining the crude
- How to Get Scrap Fast — the recycler economy
- Rust Tech Tree Guide — spending the scrap