Arid
36 ratings
Simple Tips
By Dombie The Zombie
Some ways to make your life easier. I will be writing what I have experienced WHILE playing the game and what may help you out.
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Map 1 and Map 2 (Part 1)
Edit: This is based on a playthrough during Update 2: Moon Valley

1. Horde every last bit of coffee and alcohol imaginable; If anything should take up valuable space, it's those

2. DO NOT use all of your coffee/alcohol unless absolutely necessary (two areas recommended, so far, are in the mineshaft that you climb down into [Getting the First Encounter achievement in Map 1] and in Map 2 when you'll have to clean out some planks and boulders); Always keep at least 1 coffee if possible if you're playing on the harder modes

3. Sprinting doesn't affect the main stats as far as I know, so use it whenever possible

4. Try speeding through the maps for the best results and even make dedicated saves for exploring areas before actually committing to it.

5. Always use Save/Load function before doing something that may result in the loss of fatigue

6. Trust me, Fatigue will drain your resources and time faster than anything else, especially on harder modes

7. Clay is your best friend in the day, it's heavy, and is everywhere; Use it! [Edit: Clarification, it provides a sunscreen effect for a short period of time]

8. Map 1's mineshaft monsters [First Encounter Achievement area, only] do not do a lot of damage (have not checked the Fatigue stat, so be warned), and every tool you need to escape is in the cave. Simply run past the monsters towards any signs of ropes. You may be slow as heck, but the monsters are even slower

9. Map 1 has a lot of clean water but a lack of decent food without traps, while Map 2 has a ton of canned food but also plenty of dirty water that you want to first clean; Please plan accordingly.

10. I know it's tempting to carry everything with you, but never overdo your weight limit; Most items, with the exclusion of Canned Coffee and maybe craftable Alcohol, are not worth the hassle. Don't let that stop you from taking tools and food, however. You may want to bring a couple of Picks to Map 2 for an easier time (unless you've been collecting a bunch of scrap metal lately :P )

11. Using traps is vital to long term survival, so build them and collect many seeds if you wish to always have a food source.

12. Unless you're being chased, need to do a certain task, or being beat down by the sun, having no Fatigue won't be much of an issue if you have the food and water. If there is a health drain, it is very slow Nope. As for the effects, it will slow you down even further than the base speed [No sprinting :( ]. This is definitely not recommended, especially on harder modes, as the ability to Sprint conserves vital resources and makes exploring much faster. Even when Sprinting is modified to affect base stats and walking becomes more efficient, this method is still not recommended due to it slowing your base walk speed as well. Hilariously enough, however, despite its description as of the writing of this guide, you are still allowed to jump while fatigued [This is due to the fact that Jumping doesn't use fatigue, only stops its regeneration; Who knew?].

13. Always pick the Prickly Pears, as they can be cooked into Alcohol (this will help with fatigue at the cost of Thirst; Make sure to use these over Coffee while in Map 1)

14. Neglecting crafting is like neglecting to replace your tool shed items; They're gonna break, you're gonna snap, you'll waste plenty of time and resources on finding and using up the best tools on the market, and then you're going to find out that you desperately need them later on when you only needed to grab a cheap alternative to do one simple job. Crafting tools may not be too valuable in Map 1, but you will want to make some in Map 2

15. I've run out of tips at midnight, so...something about fatigue. Yeah, don't forget that!

Hope you found this guide just as useless/useful as I did.
Currently playing with the Extreme stat settings, Realistic day/night cycle, and 'The Sun Is Lava' exposure/cooling systems turned on
Map 2 (Part 2)
Alright, now that I've arrived at the second part in the area, here is some spoilers (so watch out)

1. You know those invisible creatures from the Mineshaft? Yeah, they're here, too. Note: Despite being completely tired, the main character can still outpace the monsters, at least for my playthrough.

2. Walk your way into the closest building and close the door; As far as my save goes, they can't get in. Currently, I'm unsure whether they only wander during the night.

3. For the easiest experience, you need 8 Planks, 4 Metal Scrap and 4 Nails

4. When heading towards the new tower after passing through the canyon that you came from, DO NOT head into the first building on the left, past the mine. Those are the new 'bee' enemies; Go inside when it is nighttime and take your chances with the desert sasquatches, instead. And, if you go in at night, the character will still say 'BEES', but don't panic: it's safe. The other buildings are fine, however.

5. Make yourself a decent hammer. Trust me, you will need it to craft a tool to escape the desert. Pick up anything with the name Sulphur; This will also be required. Also, scrap metal will be important. If you have any of these materials and find the crafting bench at the tower's peak, store all of these items in the nearby containers.

6. Warning, make a save before entering a mineshaft, especially if you see a white line drawn towards a crouch area. If you wander into that area, everything in Map 2 will be RESET (you could also use this to exploit loot spawns should you choose to take all of the required materials for the flare gun with you, however) Edit: I have found out that this was merely a glitch due to a crash, so don't worry about it too much; Be sure to save a lot on harder modes, anyways. Every minute counts.

7. There is some Sulphur out in the barren desert as well; Go through the closest cave (the one where a chalk line in next to a breakable rock) to the main tower and exit to look out into an endless field of sand with a plane in the distance, immediately turn right and avoid the bees until you find a pit of deceased survivors and a large chest; Search it. Another Path: Head under the main bridge by going down the canyon. Once there, turn left and head on until you find the pit of deceased survivors.

8. Once you've unlocked the quest to make a flare gun; Take all of the Sulphur and create explosive powder with them. Search through the crafting menu for all of the parts required.

9. Luckily, once you have created the Flare Gun, the last objective is to reach the tallest mountain, which also happens to be in the furthest cave. I can't recall which one, exactly. However, if you start hearing a waterfall, you are going the right direction. It's a straight forward journey from here to the top. You'll get even get a shortcut back to the first map of the game if you so desire; Make a save there for the earliest convenience of playing after the game. Once you're at the top of the mountain, the game will warn you that shooting that flare up there will end the game; This is your last chance to save your game. Don't get excited for a grand finale escape mission (at least until future updates), however. When the cutscene ends, the game ends. That's it. (Un)fortunately, traveling down the mountain, at least for me, turned on Sasquatches for the region permanently, both night and day. The maps prior to the last one don't have that effects, as no spawns were placed for the creatures there.

10. Enjoy the rest of game through a previous save. Remember these next tips.
a. TRAPS, use them!
b. Exploring previous maps can yield those items you have left behind [Not tested]
c. Sleep is nearly pointless at this point; Don't waste other resources if you don't need the speed.
d. Survival will feel easy, as the game was designed in service to the main quest.
9 Comments
starrborrn 28 Aug, 2022 @ 11:33am 
@taking wing use the mortar and pestle and alo vera leaves to make aloe vera lotion it has the same effect as clay for sun protection.
mtripp1 5 Apr, 2022 @ 7:10am 
Please place map access in the game. Also there is a survival principal 3 minutes w/o air, 3 days w/o water, 30 days w/o food, the games character whines to much even for a desert.
Dombie The Zombie  [author] 14 Dec, 2021 @ 3:55am 
It is a nice feature
Taking Wing 13 Dec, 2021 @ 6:02pm 
Ohhh okay. For the longest time I thought it was something you only use AFTER getting a sunburn. I never used it because I haven't yet let the bar go all the way out before finding shelter. Finally figured out that sunscreen just makes the bar move more slowly. Very helpful, indeed.
Dombie The Zombie  [author] 11 Dec, 2021 @ 3:38am 
Clay can be used as sunscreen for a short period of time, at least for the build I was playing
Taking Wing 8 Dec, 2021 @ 8:16pm 
So why is clay your friend during the day? The only use I've found for it is making the mortar and pestle.
Dombie The Zombie  [author] 22 Jul, 2021 @ 1:04am 
Hope this helped out :)
Bear 21 Jul, 2021 @ 12:05am 
this seems like it'd be super helpful! thanks!
Ninjadude 4 Jul, 2021 @ 5:33pm 
thx