Full Walkthrough — Every Blackbox & the Power Plant
Prologue → First Hour → Flashlight → Angel Comb (Digestion) → Welcome Center → southwest wreck → Tadpole fragments → Habitat Builder → first base → Blackbox chain → Sonic Resonator → Metal Farms → Power Plant finale. This page walks the whole Early Access build end to end.
Prologue & First Dive
You wake in the lifepod. Read the PDA, listen to NOA, check the black box and biological bed, then head out. Key prologue beats: NOA signals mark your next objective, the red devices in the pod start the tutorial, and the Launch prompt only appears once the opening tasks complete. Grab water (Water Slugs), the medkit and Portable Locker before leaving — see Beginner for the full first hour.
Welcome Center & Your First Base
Follow the first NOA signal south-southeast to the Welcome Center. Bring or craft a Basic Battery to power it — the door needs a charge. Inside:
- Bio Lab — pick your first Biomods (Dash + Oxygen Control recommended).
- Scan the Habitat Builder — your base-building unlock.
- Take the Dive Elevator and grab a Beacon.
- Note the southwest wreck — early Tadpole fragment location.
Build your first base near the Welcome Center shallows: shallow, cave-adjacent, Titanium-rich. Power it with the cheapest stable source (bioreactor from fish/organics). Full power math on the Systems page.
Blackbox Chain — The Story Spine
NOA points you to missing colonists; each Blackbox advances story and unlocks new areas. EA route in order:
| Blackbox / Beacon | Location | Unlocks / Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Anita | Angel Comb branch | Digestion Adaptation route; Silver cave access |
| Chap | Chap base | Repair Tool fragment route |
| Quaker | Quaker / Camp One | Camp base spot, beacon, early loot cave |
| Wander | Hot biome edge | Gold, thermal plants, Scout Ray chassis |
| Ruby | Great Jaw ruins | Lithium, Depth Module, alien ruins access |
| Anita 2 | Eastern region | Bioscanner unlock |
| Singh / Zip 2 | Eastern Metal Farms | Feedback Resonator route |
Never skip a Blackbox: each one gates the next area's markers on your HUD.
Tadpole — Your First Vehicle
Scan all three Tadpole fragment sets: Old Habitat, northeast ravine, and the Tadpole Pens. Once built, the Tadpole changes everything — it extends dive range, adds storage and unlocks deeper routes. Priorities:
- Craft the Tadpole Depth Module Mk. 2 early (Lithium + Strong Acid) to reach the Great Jaw ruins.
- Mount a Beacon network along your vehicle routes.
- Use it as a mobile O2 station — park it, refill, continue.
Full vehicle data: Vehicles & Tools.
Angel Comb & the Adaptations
The Angel Comb is the EA's central puzzle. Common mistake: trying to interact with the central bulb first — it stays locked. Instead:
- Follow the tendrils/side chambers extending from the main structure.
- Destroy every connected Bloom Canker with the Sonic Resonator.
- If a canker closes before you hit it, use the Feedback Resonator (upgrade) instead.
- Once all connected targets are cleared, return to the central bulb — it becomes interactive.
Clearing it rewards the Heat Tolerance Adaptation (and the chain unlocks Digestion via Anita's blackbox). Both are required to open the hot biome and the full food economy.
Sonic → Feedback Resonator
The Sonic Resonator is your mid-game workhorse: it shatters resource nodes for a pile of materials in one hit and destroys Bloom Cankers. The Feedback Resonator upgrade (Modification Station) is needed for closed cankers and special deposits. Feedback recipe: 1 Sonic Resonator + 2 Enameled Glass + 2 Conduit Crystal + 2 Strontium.
Scan its fragments on the late alien progression route: Angel Comb chain, Singh blackbox, Cicada Wreck Therapy Room, and the green-glowing Metal Farm pools.
Hot Biome & the Scout Ray
With Heat Tolerance equipped, the hot biome opens up: Gold, thermal plants and the Scout Ray chassis fragments. Route planning matters — bring the Tadpole, pre-dive with a Portable Oxygen Generator, and watch for thermal vent aggression.
The Finale: Powering the Plant
The current build closes with the Power Plant / Alien Observatory sequence:
- Route: Alien Ruins → Power Plant → Observatory → Troilite → Axum → Metal Farm (Troilite is the reactor material).
- Repair the power supply (Repair Tool required — keep it upgraded).
- Solve the final alignment puzzles (Axiom-style plates; check the FAQ for the puzzle answers).
- Power the plant and the Alien Observatory unlocks — the current EA end-state.
Full release plans Chapters 4-10: auto-mining, farming systems and the Mothership vehicle. Everything in this guide is expected to stay structurally valid, but routes will expand.