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Whether you want to solve the island’s mysteries or just live a cozy life in a lakeside shack like a twisted Stardew Valley, there’s plenty to do in Sons of the Forest. The game’s tutorial does a good job of introducing you to the basics, but there are tons of tricks and secrets that can make the game easier and more fun. Whether you’re hunting deer, building a fortress, or navigating terrifying caves, this advice will let you make the most of your time in the woods. Here are 10 tips I wish I’d known before playing Sons of the Forest, in no particular order.
10. Ziplines Make Log Transport Easy
If you played The Forest, you might remember how limited and cumbersome ziplines were. Constructing them was a pain, and even once you’d built them, they weren’t that useful. That’s not the case in Sons of the Forest. Not only are ziplines a speedy way to traverse the island, they also make moving logs far easier. Just attach your chopped lumber onto the line and send it on its way. It will even stack itself neatly into a log-holder if you place one at the other end.
9. Sledding Prevents Fall Damage
The sled isn’t usually the most practical mode of transportation in Sons of the Forest, but it has an underrated feature that many players don’t take advantage of. Using the sled makes you completely immune to fall damage. You can hurl yourself off the tallest mountain in the game, hitting every boulder on the way down, and not take a bit of damage. It’s an incredibly fast and fun way of descending from treacherous peaks, which is all the more reason to craft one.
8. Campfires Dry Meat Faster
Starvation is a constant threat in Sons of the Forest, and there are many ways to avoid it. Even after you’ve perfected the art of hunting, your food will spoil if you let it sit around too long. One of the best ways to avoid this is to hang fish and other meat on a Drying Rack. If you build a fire beneath the rack, however, the meat will dry faster, making it much easier to preserve large amounts of food quickly. Since fires require few resources to craft, there’s no reason not to do so.
7. Wall Torches Can Mark Your Path
Wall Torches can do more than just illuminate your base in Sons of the Forest. Placing them on trees or the walls of the game’s many caves makes it much easier to avoid getting lost when exploring at night. Losing your way and getting jumped by cannibals is a constant threat if you don’t know your surroundings, and Wall Torches will ensure you can always find your way back. If nothing else, they’ll keep your hands free to raise a weapon when the cannibals come.
6. Bows Aren’t the Best for Birds
The bow is a time-tested weapon useful against a variety of enemies. You’ll get plenty of value out of it when hunting deer and fighting cannibals, but it’s not the best weapon to use against birds. The main reason to kill birds is to collect their feathers, and the Zipline Gun is far better for this purpose. With this item, you can shoot a bird multiple times without killing it, and every shot will cause the bird to drop feathers. With these tips, you’ll never run out of arrows in Sons of the Forest again.
5. Opening Your Inventory Can Save Your Life
We’ve all had it happen. You’re minding your business picking some berries when a pack of cannibals ambush you. In an instant you’ve lost half you’re health. Strange as it seems, your best move isn’t to grab armor but to open your inventory. Doing so will pause the game in single-player, giving you a chance to pop some meds or even craft some much-needed arrows. If nothing else, it’ll give you a chance to take a deep breath and hatch a plan before jumping back into the action.
4. Whack Crates To Open Them
You open crates at a decent speed by default, but you can cut crate-opening times in roughly half if you use a weapon instead of your hands. Just whack the closed crate with a spear or other weapon and it’ll dump its contents right away. Although the time saved isn’t usually a huge deal, it can be a lifesaver if you’re trying to scavenge the last goodies from a cannibal camp before the angry owners arrive.
3. Jump Pads Allow For Versatile Glider Takeoffs
The Hang Glider makes traversing the game’s huge map far easier, but there’s one problem. You normally need to climb up somewhere high to use it. By using a Spring Trap you can launch yourself into the air, allowing you to use the Hang Glider from places you’d otherwise never be able to. Combine this with the ability to gain momentum by angling the glider down and then up, and you can navigate difficult terrain in otherwise impossible ways.
2. Explosives Aren’t Just for Combat
Explosives like the Time Bomb are some of the most versatile tools in the game. Sure, you can use them to blow up your enemies, but why stop there? Toss a Time Bomb at some trees to chop them down in an instant. Hunt by throwing bombs at deer or other animals instead of chasing them down with a spear or bow. Disassemble your old and unused buildings in an explosion of wood and debris. Sons of the Forest tips often reward experimentation, so get detonating.
1. You Can Turn Off Structure Damage
If you hate how bases look when they’re covered with spikes and traps but you don’t want your house torn down by cannibals, you can turn Structure Damage off. Just flip the Structure Damage toggle to “Off” in the Settings menu and your bloodthirsty neighbors will no longer be able to destroy your base. Although it affects the game’s balance a bit, there’s nothing wrong with wanting a more relaxed experience.
Sons of the Forest is available for PC.
