Military Crates are the green mid-tier crates you find inside monuments, usually in radiation zones. Each one gives a guaranteed 8 scrap plus a decent shot at components like SMG bodies, rifle bodies and tech trash. Guns are rare in them now (well under 1% each), and since the August 2026 power grid update their most useful drop for a lot of groups is the Heavy Fuse.
Every chance below comes from Rust Labs' current Military Crate table and is per item, per crate.
Where Military Crates spawn
Rust Labs describes them as spawning near points of interest, most often in radiated zones, and the Fandom wiki notes they only appear at monuments. You will not find them on roadsides like brown crates.
The reliable spots:
- Military Tunnels. The red card Laboratory room has two military crates next to three elites, and more sit on the shelving in the far left room and in the mine near the Shelter 4 exit.
- Large Oil Rig. Military crates spawn on levels 2 through 6, including behind the green and blue card doors.
- Small Oil Rig. Two military crates on a shelf in the small yellow building on level 4.
- Nuclear Missile Silo. The surface loot spots (propane trailer, red truck building, hangar bay and comms tower) roll either a brown crate or a military crate.
- Trains. Rust Labs lists a separate Wagon Military Crate that rides on train wagons.
- Other radiated monuments with keycard rooms usually have a few as well. Counts change with monument reworks, so treat any exact number in an old guide with suspicion and check in game.
Military Crate loot table
Main drops
| Item | Amount | Chance |
|---|---|---|
| Scrap | 8 | 100% |
| SMG Body | 1 | 20% |
| Metal Pipe | 5 | 17% |
| High Quality Metal | 15-24 | 17% |
| Tech Trash | 2-3 | 16% |
| Rifle Body | 1 | 13% |
| Basic Blueprint Fragment | 1 | 10% |
| Targeting Computer | 1 | 9% |
| CCTV Camera | 1 | 7% |
| Heavy Fuse | 1 | 6% |
| Metal Armor Insert | 1 | 5% |
| Large Backpack | 1 | 5% |
| Prototype, Reinforced, Efficiency Workbench Upgrade | 1 | 2% each |
| Auto Turret | 1-2 | 1% |
| Supply Signal | 1 | 1% |
The long tail
After that the table drops to 0.4-0.5% per item. That tier includes a Custom SMG (0.5%), Thompson, Semi-Automatic Rifle, Python, Pump Shotgun, Rocket Launcher, Homing Missile Launcher, Flamethrower, F1 grenades, NVGs, heavy plate armour and a long list of electrical parts and building items. Guns from this tier spawn badly damaged (Rust Labs lists the Thompson and SAR at 10-20% condition).
So do not run military crates hoping for a rifle. Run them for components, fuses and blueprint fragments.
Why Heavy Fuses make them worth running
The Power Trip update (August 2026) tied a lot of monument content to the Power Plant grid. Charging the Airfield terminals, the Launch Site satellite computer and similar systems needs fuses. The Livestock update (October 2026) went further and added Powergrid loot rooms at Launch Site, Military Tunnels, Airfield, Train Yard, Water Treatment and others. Those rooms stay shut until enough Heavy Fuses are in the Power Plant.
At 6% per crate, Heavy Fuses are not common, but military crates are one of the steadier sources. A group that runs Military Tunnels or Oil Rig regularly will stack a few over a wipe.
Military Crate vs Elite Crate
The short version: elite crates roll about three times the scrap and much better guns, while military crates are easier to reach and are the only one of the two with Heavy Fuses.
| Military Crate | Elite Crate | |
|---|---|---|
| Guaranteed scrap | 8 | 25 |
| High Quality Metal | 15-24 at 17% | 15-70 at 28% |
| Tech Trash | 2-3 at 16% | 2-9 at 28% |
| SMG Body | 1 at 20% | 1-3 at 33% |
| Rifle Body | 1 at 13% | 1-3 at 23% |
| Blueprint fragment | Basic, 10% | Advanced, 10% |
| Workbench upgrades | Prototype, Reinforced, Efficiency (2% each) | Salvage, Accelerated (4% each) |
| Heavy Fuse | 6% | Not in table |
| Supply Signal | 1% | 4% |
| Assault Rifle | Not in table | 4% |
| Ballistic armour | Not in table | 3% per piece |
| Typical location | Mid and high tier monuments | Launch Site, Military Tunnels, Oil Rigs, Missile Silo |
Two takeaways. First, if you are short on Advanced Blueprint Fragments, only elite crates (and locked crates) give them; military crates give Basic ones. Second, the component rolls in an elite crate are bigger on both chance and amount, so one elite crate is usually worth several military crates once it all goes through the recycler.
How to farm military crates
- Hit them on the way to elites. Military Tunnels and both Oil Rigs mix military and elite crates in the same rooms. Nobody runs a monument just for the green crates, but you should never leave them behind.
- Use the train. Wagon Military Crates come to you, and a train run passes through a lot of loot quickly.
- Recycle the components. SMG bodies, rifle bodies, tech trash and targeting computers all feed the recycler. The scrap farming guide has routes that fit these monuments in.
- Keep fuses separate. Hand Heavy Fuses to whoever on your team is working the Power Plant grid instead of letting them sit in a box.
If you want the full elite breakdown, the Elite Crate loot guide lists every chance in that table.
Sources
- Rust Labs: Military Crate
- Rust Labs: Elite Tier Crate
- Rust Labs: Loot Containers
- Rust Fandom wiki: Loot Crates
- Rust official news: Power Trip (August 2026)
- Rust official news: Livestock Update (October 2026)
- Corrosion Hour: Military Tunnel Monument Guide
- Corrosion Hour: Large Oil Rig Monument Guide
- Corrosion Hour: Small Oil Rig Monument Guide
- Corrosion Hour: Nuclear Missile Silo Monument Guide
- Corrosion Hour: Player-Maintained Monument System