Sons of the Forest: 5 Best Tips for Beginners

Son's of the Forest is the long-awaited sequel to the critically acclaimed 2014 game The Forest. This time around in the survival horror, you're sent to rescue a billionaire stranded on a deserted island, however, your helicopter ends up crashing on the way. This leaves you and your friends (up to seven) to fend for yourselves. The nightmare is only made worse once you discover you've crash-landed in a forest inhabited by a horde of cannibals who are as terrifying as they are hungry. So, if your first time diving into The Forest is with this sequel, here are the tips you should know before going in.

5. Resources, Resources, and More Resources

One of the most important tips for starting Sons of the Forest is to scavenge as much as you can early on. Right after you crash land, you'll have little to no resources, rendering you helpless. As a result, you'll want to scour your surroundings for whatever you can get your hands on as soon as possible. There are tons of resources, from plants, wood, and stones, all around your starting point to get you started. With that said, you don't have to travel very far to acquire them. So don't wander off immediately, instead, start collecting as much as you can in the area around you.

Essentially, the more resources you can gather early on, the less time you'll have to spend looking for them later on when you're crafting. In Sons of the Forest, the first night is often the most terrifying. As a result, crafting your basic tools and potentially building a fire is imperative. Overall, this is one of the most important tips in starting out the game and making your first night in these haunting woods, the most bearable.

4. Shelter is Essential

Once you've accumulated a fair amount of resources, and know where to get more, you'll want to focus on building some shelter. This tips so crucial because it won't be long before the cannibals roaming these lands learn about your whereabouts and come to take a closer look. Surely once that happens you'll be scrambling to make some shelter. So, be prepared and prevent this from happening as soon as possible; though it is unavoidable that you will come across them.

A shabby little shelter will suffice for the first couple of nights, but you'll quickly want to work towards making yourself a proper base. Our best recommendation for your base location is somewhere warm (away from the snow biome) and with few vantage points. With that in mind, a location near the beach is ideal. You are close to and protected by the water's edge, and you can keep a close eye on your surroundings to know when danger is closing in.

3. Be Conservative

The developers have noted that there are far more guns in Sons of the Forest than in its predecessor. While that means you can easier find yourself a pistol or shotgun, that can't be said for the ammo. In fact, ammo is incredibly scarce and hard to come by. As a result, you'll want to be conservative with your weapons and save the ammo you have for them when you're in absolute need of it. In other words, when you may not make it out alive if you don't. However, there are times you can get by without using guns.

For example, a bow and arrow will be your best alternative to guns. That's why we suggest crafting one as soon as possible, so you can use it took to take on small waves of enemies. Furthermore, it's your best option to use when hunting wildlife. When dealing with cannibals, use your axe or handcrafted clubs if possible. If there are only a couple, you can kite them to get hits in without taking much damage back. This is one of those tips that is critical to the longevity of your survival. Because without ammo in the late game, you can go ahead and consider yourself the cannibals next dinner.

2. Map Your Environment

This is going to sound creepy, but you are almost always being watched by the cannibals in Sons of the Forest. You may not see them, but they most certainly see you. A huge reason for this is that they know the environment far better than you. As a result, it's in your best interest to map the environment to the best of your ability. Learn the cannibals' travel routes and set up markers to help guide you back to your base. The last thing you want is to be aimlessly wandering through the forest and unable to find your way back home before nightfall. In that case, you might as well go ahead and start seasoning yourself.

Knowing what areas to avoid is one of the best tips for mapping your environment. Certain areas of the forest are far more densely populated with cannibals than others; this is due to the fact that you're probably closer to their home than you think. So keep this in mind, because if you have to attack one, you don't know how many others are nearby. Then, before you know it, you're being swarmed.

1. Don't Disregard Kelvin

Out of all the tips in this Sons of Forest beginners guide, the most crucial one is to befriend Kelvin. This is an NPC who survived the helicopter crash with you. Essentially, have to option to take Kelvin in or leave him to fend for himself. While the latter may seem like the best option for you, it's not. Although Kelvin can be extra work in that you have to heal and feed him, he's extremely beneficial to your long-term survival.

Most importantly, Kelvin can help you in fending off the cannibals. Furthermore, he can assist you with building, collecting materials, and most of all, helping you feel less lonely. Because the worst thing of all is being stuck in Sons of the Forest all by yourself; this is a nightmare.

On this note, the longer you survive and the further you explore, the more likely you are to come across the game's other NPCs. One of the best tips we can give you for this is to have your guard up when you first encounter one. Not all of these NPCs will be good friends; in fact, some are quite the opposite.

So, what's your take? Do you agree with our tips? Are there other tips you have for surviving Sons of the Forest? Let us know in the comments below or over on our socials here!