Don't Starve is a fun nature survival game with unlockable characters who possess unique traits and abilities that they can use in the game. Your first character is Wilson, a gentleman scientist trapped by the demon Maxwell and dragged into the wilderness. Your mission is to survive by searching for food, fighting the dangerous natives and eventually finding a way back home.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Surviving Day One
Step 1. Collect twigs and cut the grass
At the beginning of the game you will need to collect twigs to be able to cut trees. You can find them on saplings in the game world. Also make sure you pick up the grass when you find it.
- A sprig is a requirement for crafting an ax and torches.
- The twigs can also be used as firewood.
- Grass is useful for making traps, torches, bonfires, and simple armor.
Step 2. Collect flint, stone and wood
As you explore the game world you will find flints and stones scattered on the ground. You will also be able to cut them from the boulders later on when you have the right tools.
- Now you can combine a sprig and a flint to make an ax.
- Use the ax by right-clicking on it from the belt, and then right-clicking on a tree to start cutting it.
- From the tree you will get pine cones (which you can plant to get new trees) and firewood. The flame obtained from wood lasts longer than other materials.
- The ax has a durability of 100 and can be used as a weapon that deals 27.2 damage to enemies.
- With 2 twigs and 2 flints you can build a pickaxe, and start digging.
Step 3. Collect food
Food is very important in this game, because your character has to survive hunger. There are many types of food, but in the early stages of the game the foods you can pick up right away are berries, carrots, rabbits and frogs.
- On the first day, collect 5-10 Berries to survive.
- Eat only when your hunger drops below 80%.
- Create a trap, with 6 grass and 2 twigs. Place the trap over a rabbit hole to catch rabbits or near a pond to catch frogs. Leave the trap on the ground and keep gathering materials, but be sure to check every now and then if you have caught anything. The trap will shake if there is something inside, and simply pick it up to retrieve the trap and the animal inside.
- To get the meat, drag the rabbit or frog icon into your belt on the ground. When the animal remains still for a few seconds as if it were terrified, kill it with the ax to receive its meat.
- Remember that food rots, so only pick it up if you're running out of food.
- The only foods that don't rot are tailbird eggs, mandrakes, deerclops eyes, and guardian's horns.
- You can eat all raw foods, but cooked foods make you recover more health and hunger.
Step 4. Build a bonfire
The bonfire is essential for survival. It is a source of light and heat, and allows you to cook food. Light a bonfire as soon as it gets dark, and stay within its range. Once night falls, it is dangerous to travel, as you may find monsters.
- To light a bonfire you will need 2 wood and 3 grass. Remember not to light it too close to flammable objects such as grass, trees and bushes.
- A bonfire only lasts for 2 minutes and 15 seconds, unless you add more fuel. Be careful, as adding too much fuel can ignite nearby trees or grass, and cause a fire.
- Use a fire pit to be safer, even if it requires more materials than the bonfire.
- You can also use a flashlight as a light source, but it will only last for a minute, leaving you in complete darkness and easy prey for monsters.
Step 5. Collect gold
The next morning, continue to gather food and supplies. Dig the boulders for gold, or look for it in the graveyard. It is difficult to miss the cemetery, with its spooky atmosphere and the fog that envelops it.
Step 6. Build a backpack
A backpack is a survival item that expands your inventory and increases your available slots by 8 units. It is very useful for players who have found the perfect spot for a base camp.
- You can easily make the backpack using the science machine, 4 grass and 4 twigs.
- To create a science machine, you need 1 gold, 4 wood and 4 stones.
Part 2 of 3: Building a Base
Step 1. Find a wormhole
Wormholes are sentient tunnels that connect two points of the world. They may seem like mouths on the ground that open when you approach. When you jump into the wormhole, your character will be spat out on the other side of the tunnel.
- Often wormholes will connect two completely different areas that contain new resources, such as forest and savannah.
- Building the base near a wormhole is a wise choice, to take advantage of the ability to travel fast and escape the attacks of MacTusk, Hounds and Deerclops. When you are ready, you can return to take them out and regain your field. Creating a field on both sides of the gallery is an even better choice.
- Using a wormhole decreases your health. Pick some flowers or get your character to sleep well at night to get her back.
- A diseased wormhole can only be used once, because once it passes through, it withers and dies. Sick wormholes look like healthy ones, but with more yellow or green lips.
Step 2. Make a fire pit
This is a perfectly safe source of light and heat for your base, since the pit cannot ignite nearby flammable materials.
- You can also use it to cook food, and a pit lasts twice as long as a bonfire.
- To make a fire pit you need 2 logs and 12 stones.
Step 3. Create a spear
The spear deals 34 damage and can be used 150 times, making it an effective and easy-to-use weapon for players starting their adventure. Use it to hunt monsters such as spiders, from which you can obtain silk that you can use to craft other items.
- Make your own spear with 2 twigs, 2 ropes and 1 flint using the science machine.
- Make a string with 3 grass.
- You can also take out frogs with your spear instead of catching them with a trap.
Step 4. Make a wood armor
Now that you have a weapon, you will need basic armor to survive the fighting. The wood armor is the easiest to build, with 8 wood and 2 ropes, using the science machine.
Eye: Wearing wood armor makes you slower
Step 5. Create a crate
With all the different materials you have in your belt, it is dangerous to carry them with you when exploring. If you die, the items in the belt will be dropped to the ground. Once you have a base, make a chest to store your belongings.
- Build a 3-axis crate using the science machine.
- Build a board with 4 wood using the science machine.
- You can also create more than one crate.
- You can put food in crates, but it can still rot.
Step 6. Create a tent
The last thing you need to build in your base camp is a tent, to avoid your character having to wait for the sunrise every night, losing health. Using a tent allows you to recover 50 health and 60 health at the cost of 75 hunger, and bring your body temperature back to maximum. You can use a curtain 6 times before it disappears.
- Make a curtain with 6 silk, 4 twigs and 3 strings using the alchemy machine.
- If you don't already have the alchemy machine, you can use the straw bed.
- The straw bed is a disposable survival item that, like a tent, you can use to skip the night.
- Create a bed with 6 grass and 1 rope, using the science machine.
- Using the bed, you will recover 33 health at the cost of 75 hunger.
Part 3 of 3: Creating More Inventions
Step 1. Create a pot to better cook your food
As you continue to play, surviving will become more difficult, and eating cooked morsels, frog legs and berries will not be enough. The foods you collect may also rot and offer no health benefits. You will need a pot to get foods that can better regenerate your health.
- A pot is an object that allows you to combine and cook four objects in a recipe.
- Build it with 3 carved stones, 6 charcoal and 6 twigs, using the science machine.
- Obtain the Machined Stones with 3 Rocks using the Science Machine.
- You can collect coal from burnt trees. If you don't see any burnt trees in the area, look for a small grove (preferably away from dense forest) and burn it down.
- You can create many recipes with one pot, and it is not necessary to use all 4 foods. For example, you will need fish and corn to make fish tacos, and 1 vegetable for a ratatouille.
Step 2. Create an alchemical machine
An alchemical machine is scientific equipment that you can build to unlock other crafting recipes that can help you survive. With powerful weapons and tough armor you can withstand any attack from Hounds and increase your chances of surviving, especially during the harsh winters.
- To create an alchemical machine you will need 6 gold, 4 axes and carved stones.
- With the alchemical machine you can create a freezer, where you can store your food, which will rot slower than 50%.
- A freezer requires 2 gold, 1 axis, and 1 gear.
- You can collect gears from mechanical monsters.
Step 3. Build a farm
You can create a farm in this game. You can easily craft weapons, armor and items with materials you can collect in the game world. A farm on the other hand requires patience, and you will need seeds.
- To get good and quick harvests, you will need an improved farm, which you can build with 10 grass, 6 manure and 4 stones, using the alchemy machine.
- You can find and collect manure by exploring Beefalo fields when you find them. You can find Beefalo herds in the savannah - they won't attack you unless you provoke them.
- You can use manure as a plant fertilizer.
- The seeds you plant on the farm will give you random results, with plants that will produce vegetables or fruit.
Step 4. Build, explore and collect
Now that you have the essential items, you can survive the game for days. Just make sure you've built walls around the base, and have enough food in your freezer. Explore the area to unravel its mysteries, and collect what you need to upgrade weapons and armor. Remember that as you level up you will have to start over.
