Select Water Merchant if you want the water-testing and purification kit from the start of the September demo. Buy or collect water, inspect its reported quality, process it with the equipment you actually own, bottle the result, then check the customer's budget before closing the sale.
What is different about the Water Merchant start?
The official demo description confirms that the Water Merchant scenario now starts with water testing and purification equipment. This is a meaningful difference from the earlier Playtest. If you follow an old guide that tells you to buy the initial kit first, check which build it was made for.
A day 1–25 hardcore Water Merchant run and later demo stream are useful visual companions, but hard-mode expenses and individual prices should not be assumed to apply to every start.
The basic water loop
- Acquire the water. Customers and traders may offer containers; verify what is really being offered.
- Test or inspect. Do not rely only on a seller’s stated grade. A recorded run shows a merchant advertising one grade while the player finds another.
- Choose the treatment. Compare the current water state with what your filter or purifier can actually improve. These tools have condition and supply constraints.
- Prepare a container. Bottles are part of the practical cost; quality alone does not complete a sale.
- Check demand and budget. A buyer who wants water may still be unable to purchase your highest-quality bottle.
- Record the margin. Include the original water cost and any consumable or container costs.
The machine-breakdown video at 02:20 shows inspection and filtering in action, including depleted durability. It demonstrates a high-quality result in one run, but does not establish a universal filter recipe.
Water types and descriptions
The footage refers to names such as rust water, base water and ghost water. Treat these as game categories you should verify in the item interface, rather than a universal ranking with fixed sale prices. Exact treatment outcomes can depend on equipment and the starting condition. In one run the player experiments with filtering versus purifying and explicitly revisits an earlier assumption; a single clip is not enough for a guaranteed conversion chart.
| Question | Check in your own run |
|---|---|
| Is the seller telling the truth? | Inspect or test the actual container before buying. |
| Is processing worth it? | Compare the visible output quality with treatment costs. |
| Why can’t I finish the batch? | Verify bottle availability and tool condition. |
| Why won’t this customer buy? | Check their remaining credits and requested goods. |
| Why is profit inconsistent? | Check daily demand, input cost and processing overhead. |
Should you buy the moisture farm immediately?
Not automatically. A Water Merchant stream around 17:30 shows the player weighing a moisture farm against tools, a scanner and the power budget. Their choice changes with available cash. Keep the rent reserve untouched and ask whether you have the equipment to use the machine once purchased.
Common water mistakes
Don’t buy stock on verbal claims alone. Don’t forget bottle costs. Don’t sell a useful production input because a buyer happens to offer a quick price. And don’t treat a currently profitable water method as permanent: the demo has recently revised this system. To plan the entire day, combine this page with the money and rent guide and machine upgrade guide.
Last checked September 16, 2026. Instructions refer to the September demo unless otherwise stated.