The short answer
Make a Scanner, improve your oxygen supply, then visit the Welcome Center for Habitat Builder scans. Return with a specific blueprint or material goal before attempting a deeper expedition.
Before you start
- Early Access 1.2 plus Buddy System Hotfix 1.
- Distances in this edition are approximate published routes from the starting Lifepod.
Choose the next unlock
- Make your Survival Multitool and keep food and water ready.
- Gather for the Scanner; use it before searching for equipment fragments.
- Add an Air Bladder and Standard Air Tank as materials become available.
- Visit the Welcome Center, then build a powered base with room to expand.
- Use the full Fabricator and Processor for later tools.
Sources for this section
Give each trip a stopping point
Kingy’s suggested trip plan: pick one target, identify the return direction and leave inventory space for it. Return when that goal is complete or your oxygen reserve requires it. The wiki does not assign a universal safe dive time: equipment, depth and detours change it.
The starter-kit calculator combines three early recipes. It excludes food, water, the Multitool and spare batteries, so treat its output as a shopping list for the selected equipment.
Sources for this section
Your checklist
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Research checked 2026-09-12. This is a source-based guide; Kingy has not independently play-tested these steps. Evidence and coverage.