How to Get Wood and Planks Without Punching Trees

You Need an Axe First

Bare hands will not give you logs. Craft a Flint Axe from Flint Shards (see the flint shard guide), then use it on tree trunks to harvest logs. With logs in hand, place them in a crafting grid to produce planks, then arrange planks to produce sticks. This is the standard wood chain, just gated behind the axe instead of bare hands.

Sticks and Plant Fiber

If you are short on wood, Plant Fiber gathered from grass is an alternative binding material. A Flint Knife converts Plant Fiber into Plant String, which substitutes for sticks in several early recipes. Plant String is also used in tool binding recipes that would otherwise demand sticks, so collect grass aggressively on day one.

What Planks Unlock

Planks feed into the Flint Knife, Flint Hoe, and other flint tool recipes that need a wooden handle. They also build the Fire Starter, which is how you light a campfire without flint and steel. Do not burn your first logs on decoration — save them for tool handles and the Fire Starter until you have a stable wood supply.

Sustainable Loop

Once you have an axe, replant saplings and keep a small tree farm near your base. Logs become planks, planks become sticks, sticks become handles, and handles become the next tier of tools. Break the loop and you will be back to punching gravel for flint shards.