General
Wipe Day Guide
Force wipes, server resets, first hour strategy, and early-wipe progression guide.
Force wipes, server resets, first hour strategy, and early-wipe progression guide.
Wipe day resets everything and provides fresh starts. Force wipes occur monthly on a fixed schedule. Server wipes vary by server. Understanding wipe mechanics and optimizing first-hour progression determines your wipe success. Players who establish Workbench Level 1 in the first hour maintain advantages through entire wipes.
Force wipes occur on the first Thursday of every month. Facepunch releases mandatory updates that all servers must apply. Force wipes reset everything: the map, all player structures, vehicles, deployed items, and learned blueprints. A new procedurally generated map spawns with unique monument locations. All players start from zero knowledge.
Server operators choose optional wipe schedules independent of force wipes. Some servers wipe weekly on Thursday. Others maintain longer wipe cycles. Most server wipes reset the map but preserve learned blueprints. This gives returning players early advantages. Check your server's specific wipe schedule before beginning.
Before wipe day, gather supplies for launch. Farm cloth, leather, and basic components. Stack items useful for early game. Some servers allow inventory persistence while others wipe everything. Understand your server's wipe mechanics.
Players joining immediately at wipe spawn face intense competition. Waiting 30 minutes removes casual players but reduces competition. Choose your strategy based on server population and playstyle.
You spawn on a beach with a rock and a torch. Immediately check the map. Identify the nearest road, closest monument, and Outpost location. If you spawn far from useful resources, consider respawning to find better spawn location.
Start gathering immediately. Hit trees for wood, stone nodes for stone, and harvest hemp for cloth. You want basic resources stockpiled before engaging other players. Gather aggressively the first 10 minutes.
Craft a stone hatchet and stone pickaxe as soon as materials allow. These tools accelerate gathering significantly. They're mandatory for efficient early-game farming.
Craft a sleeping bag and place it away from beaches in a concealed location. Sleeping bags provide respawn insurance. Losing the first bag to raiders is common. Establish backup respawn points immediately.
Craft a hunting bow for basic defense and animal hunting. Bow provides early-game protection and hunting capability. It doesn't require ammunition.
Build a small starter base: a 2x2 or 2x1 with a door frame, metal door, and airlock. Include a Tool Cupboard inside. Find building location near a road but away from major monument traffic initially. Larger bases attract raiders early.
Upgrade walls from twig to wood to stone progressively as resources allow. Lock the base immediately. Research code locks if you don't have the blueprint. Key locks are security liabilities.
Your critical goal is establishing a Workbench Level 1 inside your base. This enables blueprint researching and crafting. Workbench Level 1 is the foundation for progression. Secure one within the first hour.
While building, run nearby road barrels for components and scrap. Road barrels provide easy scrap accumulation. Split attention between building and barrel running.
With Workbench Level 1, prioritize scrap gathering. Run road barrels and hit recyclers at nearby locations. Scrap enables research and blueprint learning. Accumulate 1,000 scrap for Workbench Level 2 progression.
Start running tier 0 monuments for green keycards. Satellite Dish, Harbor, and Sewer Branch provide green card access. Use green cards to farm tier 1 content.
Research essential blueprints: code lock, ammo, medical supplies, and components. Prioritize based on your base plans and defense needs. Don't research vanity items early.
Farm sulfur, gunpowder components, and high-quality metal. Different servers emphasize different resources. Understand wipe meta and farm accordingly.
Workbench Level 1 inside secure base. If you don't have this, you're behind. The fastest early-wipe players establish level 1 workbenches within 45 minutes.
2,000 scrap accumulated. Code lock researched. Basic ammunition researched. Foundation for progression set.
Workbench Level 2 acquired or researched. Multiple buildings for storage and crafting. Running tier 1 monuments safely.
First hour, hide from PvP. Build quickly and discreetly. Avoid advertising your base location. Once secure, defend aggressively against early raiders.
Build additional defensive buildings. Stone walls stop early-game raiders but eventually fail to explosives. Expect raids later in wipe. Plan base with raid progression in mind.
Upgrade to heavy armor and quality weapons as progression allows. Tier 0 bow users die to tier 1 weapon users. Weapon escalation is critical for PvP survival.
Organized teams multiply early-game speed. Designate roles: gatherer, builder, researcher, and runner. Coordinate who farms what. Teams with efficient division of labor outpace solo players significantly. Wipe day is when coordinated teams establish lasting advantages.
Learn about your first day for detailed early-game guidance. Understanding monument puzzles accelerates tier 1 access. Check scrap farming for efficient early accumulation. Research recycling strategies for quick scrap. Learn about animal hunting for food sources. Early-game weapons are covered in combat guides.