Once Human is a unique survival crafting game that combines base-building, exploration, and a mysterious post-apocalyptic world filled with mutant creatures called Deviants. Whether you’re a newcomer or a seasoned player, mastering its mechanics can be challenging due to its detailed survival systems, complex progression, and shifting environments. This guide dives deep into ten key areas—from scenario selection to resource management, base-building, and seasonal planning—to help you build a solid foundation and excel in the game.
- Choose the Right Scenario and Start Smart
Choosing the right scenario is the first step to success. Once Human offers various scenarios such as Manibus, Evolution’s Call, Prismverse’s Clash, and Way of Winter, each with different environmental hazards and difficulty levels.
Starting with a classic PvE scenario like Manibus is recommended for beginners. It provides easier weather conditions and access to fundamental resources. Way of Winter, with its extreme cold and heat zones, should be reserved for players who understand survival intricacies.
Early placement in a scenario is crucial. Settling near water sources, wood, and copper deposits will help you gather basic materials without frequent long trips. Use the base relocation feature once you progress to move your base closer to rare resources without rebuilding from scratch.
- Build a Resource-Rich and Flexible Base
Your base is the heart of your survival. Choose a location close to fresh water, ore veins, wood, and wildlife to ensure easy access to essentials.
Start by constructing core buildings: foundations, a workbench, stove, refrigerator, and a bed. These provide crafting options, food preservation, and health recovery.
A few important points:
- Upgrade your base gradually with improved foundations and walls to protect against enemy Deviants.
- Store your valuables securely using storage units and territory terminals.
- Save building drafts to quickly reconstruct if you move your base.
Relocating your base smartly when better resource clusters appear will save you time and effort.
- Master the Memetics Skill Tree for Efficient Progression
Memetics is the upgrade system split into categories such as Infrastructure, Crafting, Logistics, and Building. Unlocking the right technologies speeds up crafting and enhances base capabilities.
Prioritize unlocking smelting, refrigeration, and crafting workbenches first. These allow better resource refinement and food preservation, essential for longer survival.
Strategically save Memetic points and choose upgrades that suit your playstyle. For example, Logistics upgrades improve carrying capacity, while Infrastructure boosts base defenses.
- Balance Survival Needs: Food, Water, Sanity, and Weight
Keeping your survival meters balanced is critical:
- Cook raw food before eating to prevent sickness.
- Boil or purify water to avoid dehydration penalties.
- Maintain sanity above 50%; low sanity reduces health and induces negative effects.
- Use beds to recover sanity and health; consumables like Sanity Gummies also help.
- Adjust character weight to affect stamina, carrying capacity, and melee damage. Moderate weight balances speed and power.
Carry basic survival gear like cooked food, clean water, and healing items when venturing outside your base.
- Capture and Manage Deviants Wisely
Deviants are key companions that assist in crafting, gathering, and combat.
Types include:
- Logging Beaver for wood gathering
- Digby Boy for mining ore
- Growshroom for farming
- Electric Eel for generating power
- Combat Deviants for defense
Store Deviants in Securement Units at your base to keep them safe. Happy Deviants work more efficiently, so provide them with good conditions such as music, lighting, and flowers.
- Enhance Mobility with Motorcycles and Teleport Towers
After progressing through the main questline, crafting a motorcycle significantly increases your travel speed and map coverage.
Use Teleport Towers to fast travel between distant locations. This is useful for gathering resources quickly or escaping threats.
Additionally, switching between Eternaland worlds near resource-rich areas helps farm materials efficiently by exploiting resource respawns.
- Craft Weapons and Mods Strategically
Early on, craft a Tier II Crossbow. Crossbows are ammo-efficient, and their bolts can be recovered, saving valuable resources.
Prioritize gathering Stardust, a rare resource essential for calibrating weapons and crafting advanced gear.
Unlock Mystical Crates scattered throughout the map to obtain rare blueprints and weapons. Focus your Stardust on high-impact items rather than trivial upgrades.
- Optimize Game Performance
To enjoy smooth gameplay, adjust performance settings:
- Disable mouse smoothing and overlays.
- Cap frame rate according to your monitor’s refresh rate.
- Keep your graphics drivers updated.
- Clear cache and shaders regularly to prevent lag spikes.
If public servers lag, consider switching to private scenarios or relocating your base to less crowded regions.
- Prepare for Extreme Conditions in Way of Winter
The Way of Winter expansion introduces harsh temperature zones that challenge your survival skills.
To stay warm in cold zones:
- Gather and cook Polar Peppers and Spiketomatoes.
- Build heaters, campfires, and use winter gear.
- Avoid prolonged night exposure.
For heat zones:
- Use cooling fans and heat-resistant armor.
- Seek shelter during the hottest hours.
Completing weekly commissions in this scenario grants XP and unlocks advanced build features.
- Plan for Seasonal Resets and Private Servers
Once Human resets its servers regularly, wiping many player-built structures and progress.
Before resets, store essential materials, blueprints, and Deviants in your personal Spacetime Backpack to keep them safe.
Private servers offer customization of game rules, weather, and resource availability, providing a more tailored experience.
Eternaland mode allows you to keep and develop your own world, untouched by seasonal wipes, giving you a lasting space for experimentation.
Conclusion
Mastering Once Human requires a balance of strategic base-building, resource management, Deviant companionship, and adaptive survival tactics. By choosing scenarios carefully, prioritizing Memetics, maintaining survival meters, and optimizing movement and crafting, you set yourself up for long-term success. Preparing for seasonal resets and utilizing private servers ensures your progress endures beyond temporary world changes. Use these tips to thrive in the ever-evolving world of Once Human.
