Sons of the Forest Beginner Guide — First Hours
Start with the game's own order: get warm and sheltered, equip the GPS, find the Puffton family, then build a base and work through the 16 caves. The checklist below has 8 steps, each in the game's own words.
- Checklist8steps, ticks kept in your browser
- Game hints4027 searchable here
- Caves16plus 7 bunkers
- Key items37gear worth a trip
Tick the steps as you go; the checklist remembers them in this browser only. Every step links to the page that goes deeper.
Your first hours, step by step
The order is ours; every line in quotes is the game's own text. Where a step has a page of its own, the link sits under it.
Watch your vitals before anything else
Maintaining your thirst, hunger and rest will keep your vitality high. Your available stamina is only as high as your max vitality. The prompts say it plainly: "You are hungry", "You are thirsty", "You are Tired".Get warm and build a shelter
"You are Cold. Use sticks to build a fire" and "You are Tired. Use a tarp to build a shelter". Use Tarps to Build Shelters or Extend Structures.Winter survivalEquip the GPS and find the Puffton family
Your gps can show you important locations on the map. The first objective on screen is "Find the Puffton Family". The map marks 3 spawn points: Mountain Crash Site, Ocean Crash Site and Forest Crash Site.Interactive mapLearn to build and craft
Learn the basics of construction. You can carry up to two logs at a time. Build storage to store items.Base building calculatorHunt, cook and stay healthy
Build traps to capture small animals. Some cooking recipes can grant useful bonuses. Consuming dirty, poisonous or rotten foods will make you sick, limiting max health.How to healFight smart
Axes can be used to cut down trees or dismember enemies. Crouch in bushes to hide from enemies. Explosives and molotovs are effective against most enemies. Burning bodies will produce bones.EnemiesGo after the gear in the caves
The map holds 16 caves and 7 bunkers, and 37 key items worth a trip. The cave order says which to do first.Cave orderMake friends
Kelvin is with you from the crash; Virginia roams the island and warms up to you slowly.How to befriend Virginia
The game's own hints, searchable
27 of the 40 hints the game shows on its loading and in-game tips, grouped by topic. Search a word or narrow by topic.
27 hints
| # | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Craft bone armor with bones, rope and tape | Building and crafting |
| 2 | Craft cloth with booze to make a molotov cocktail | Building and crafting |
| 3 | Burning bodies will produce bones | Combat and stealth |
| 4 | Crouch in bushes to hide from enemies | Combat and stealth |
| 5 | Explosives and molotovs are effective against most enemies | Combat and stealth |
| 6 | Tip: crouch in bushes to hide from enemies | Combat and stealth |
| 7 | Your gps can show you important locations on the map | Map and GPS |
| 8 | GPS LOCATORS CAN BE PLACED ON SURFACES OR GIVEN TO NPCs | Map and GPS |
| 9 | Tip: your gps can show you important markers in world | Map and GPS |
| 10 | Jump twice to dismount from the knight v | Other |
| 11 | In Multiplayer, be nice to each other. | Other |
| 12 | Tip: try not dying so much | Other |
| 13 | You can carry up to two logs at a time | Survival |
| 14 | Being cold will limit your vitality | Survival |
| 15 | A higher comfort rating will regenerate more rest when sleeping | Survival |
| 16 | Some cooking recipes can grant useful bonuses | Survival |
| 17 | Drying racks are more effective when placed in warmer areas | Survival |
| 18 | Wearing flippers when not in water will slow you down | Survival |
| 19 | Maintaining your thirst, hunger and rest will keep your vitality high | Survival |
| 20 | Consuming dirty, poisonous or rotten foods will make you sick, limiting max health | Survival |
| 21 | Sleeping indoors is more restful than sleeping outside | Survival |
| 22 | Your available stamina is only as high as your max vitality | Survival |
| 23 | Performing different actions will increase your strength level | Survival |
| 24 | Your health, melee and tree damage will increase slightly when you gain a strength level | Survival |
| 25 | Tip: being cold will limit your vitality | Survival |
| 26 | Build traps to capture small animals | Survival |
| 27 | Some clothing items are warmer than others | Survival |
FAQ
What should you do first in Sons of the Forest?
Look after hunger, thirst and rest, build a fire when cold and a tarp shelter when tired, equip the GPS and head for the first objective: "Find the Puffton Family".
Which cave should you do first?
Our cave order page lists them in order; the map has 16 caves in all.
Where should you build your base?
See best base locations; the base building calculator prices any build.
Pages to keep open
Related pages
Sources
PinDrop is fan-made and not affiliated with Endnight Games.