Sons Of the Forest Top Ten Best Base Locations (And Why They’re Great)
Gameplay spoilers throughout, No story spoilers. This guide was written during a single-player run on Hard Mode. Take your own gameplay settings into account when applying these suggestions.
With the 1.0 release of Sons of the Forest coming in little under a month, fans are excited to see what final additions will complete a game that is already full of character and mystery. However, with a game that can already be as time-consuming as Sons of the Forest, those ready to settle in for the long hall aren’t going to want to plan out a big base (or a little one!) somewhere that doesn’t make their own gameplay more user friendly. Here are the top ten locations for bases taking items, enemies, convenience, and Kelvin’s uselessness into consideration (I really don’t give him enough credit; he tries his best).
Peak lazy.
10. The Miner’s Camp
It is an easy trek from the drop point. Just follow the beach.
The Miner’s Camp is a great location if you want to create a large base using the least number of items. Whereas most above-ground habitations are scarce, the miner’s camp is one of the limited areas that has many buildings close together; and big ones at that! Because of this, the player is able to avoid a great amount of log farming—as well as some of the more finicky aspects of base-building.
The Miner’s Camp is pretty bare in terms of items; however, it does have an infinite amount of Solafite Ore and crossbow bolts if you use the save/reload method. If you don’t know what that means, any time you load a save all the items are reset. By saving and immediately reloading the save you can quickly max out your inventory with anything that is in the vicinity. I personally don’t suggest building the base around the buildings, but instead above the buildings. By running zip-lines between the three buildings along with a tree fort you can have a very large base that is inaccessible by any cannibals. It’s unfortunate that there is no gun ammo; however, the crossbolt ammo is convenient when it comes to miner’s camp raids. It can do significant damage to enemies hiding below your ropes and can be retrieved after use. Additionally, if you have any explosives you can use them without having to worry about blowing up your own base.
I would have put the miner’s camp at a better place on the list if it weren’t for the fact it suffers from beach syndrome. While it has ample lumber to build an excellent base, its placement on the edge of the map makes it exhausting if you need to get anywhere on the other side of the island. You’ll likely only use this as your homebase when you are trying to upgrade your equipment with Solafite ore.
This area is easy to find as you can see the buildings poking up from the beach.
If you are a new player, the least confusing way to get to this location is to simply follow the beach up the left hand side from the drop point. It will take a little longer than running through the forest, but won’t require climbing any mountains and cannibals will be visible from a long ways away. You’ll pass two sailboats on the way there that can help you stock up on some goods. You’ll know when you’re there because the camp is easily visible from the beach.
9. Atop Mt. Pointless
At least the sunset is nice.
This is by far the worst place to build a large base. Like, there might not be a single spot less convenient. It’s far from any trees. Kelvin is not a good climber. You’re going to only have half of your stamina unless you’re holding a torch due to being cold/wet. But that’s why we’re not going to build a large base at all. Frankly, there’s not much use for anything beyond a tent here.
The reason for pitching a tent on the mountaintop is because of how easily you can get to large swaths of the map quickly if you have a sled (make sure to find a 3D printer first since it’s the only way to make a sled). While there is no fast-travel; having a tiny base on the mountain allows a save point. If you find yourself 10-minutes-deep into a walk down the North side of the map without any productivity, then you can quickly reload your mountaintop save and head South without having to make the trek back. This is most convenient if you are still unfamiliar with the map and want to quickly get an understanding of the island.
Accessing the mountain is significantly less difficult than it looks, but only if you take advantage of some of the game's unintended mechanics. By spamming the jump button while running forward on steep cliffs, the player is able to climb areas of the mountain that they are intended to go around even if they have depleted stamina. Being that it is the highest point in the game it is very easy to find as all you have to do is look up.
8. The Drop Point
I made this base before I realized many of them can still jump over low walls…
The Drop Point could be in the top three if it wasn’t for it also having a bad case of beach syndrome. Without the use of a vehicle, it can easily take the player ten to twenty minutes to get to the other side of the island; and with a vehicle you are likely to wreck into the rocks and trees due to how heavily wooded this area is. The drop point takes the cake for the easiest location to get to, as all a player must do to get there is start the game.
One of this location's most appealing aspects is its abundance of respawnable equipment that cannot be farmed from environmental sources. In an amount of space that can’t take more than 5 seconds to get across you can find circuit boards, rope, flares, grenades, rifle ammo, C4 brick, medicine, and tape. A short trip down the left side of the beach can lead you to the most easily accessed cave, which has 9mm ammo, air tanks, and a GPS location upon immediate entry. If you have the means to venture a short distance further, then there are also respawnable sticky bombs. Unfortunately, despite the drop points abundance of items, it does not have a 3D printer nearby.
While the area does seem to have a lot of hungry tourists, building your base on the actual beach makes it easy to see the cannibals coming, allowing you to easily pick them off; or if you're just starting off—be able to kill them slowly with weak weapons. Kelvin doesn’t have any trouble maneuvering the area, so most of the heavy lifting can easily be delegated to the poor soul. Additionally, he plays out as an easy target between you and the cannibals if you prefer to have a living distraction. The only downside in terms of terrain-related items is a lack of large stones. I tried to have Kelvin build a fireplace, but he could only find four stones. Fortunately, stones are rarely a necessity until you’re ready to build the more complicated traps, but you will have moved on to a different base by then.
7. Lone Cabin
The worst part about this location is how much ski-rental costs have increased post-Covid.
This is an excellent location if you want to focus on building something nice without the constant bombardment of cannibals. The lone cabin is located as close to the center of the map as you will find that isn’t inconvenient. You will find very few cannibals up this far simply because they’re not what you would call professional climbers. The cannibals that rarely will appear will all be in front of the base, which is a massive lake. Unlike most of the camp options in the game, there is very little forest here for a game that has the word in the title. The forest is the cannibal’s best friend.
The Lone Cabin–a base location that I’ve named because… there is already a lone cabin there–is convenient if you don’t want to waste your time building the necessities of a base. There is one large house that has plenty of room for fancy beds, animal heads, and storage locations. There are many trees behind the cabin, so despite being so close to the mountain Kelvin manages to do alright cutting them down without having to run off. I suggest making the cabin the front of your base and building backwards as the lumber is toppled. If you are a hunter, you will find no problem finding deer. Conveniently, their hide can be used to craft armor that can fight the low temperatures.
Its off-center location makes it perfect for if you want to explore with your sled without making the obnoxious decision to reach your lone tent on top of Mt. Pointless, but only for the East side of the map. It is nice that the mountain behind the cabin can be climbed quickly to access the West side; however, this is only possible if you’re good at using the jump spam method. It has an abundance of large stones, so if you have the same weird craving that I do to have Kelvin build fireplaces everywhere, then you won’t be disappointed.
Despite its good location, The Lone Cabin is not by any major bunkers or caves. There are no unusual items to be found inside the cabin; nor in the direct vicinity. This should only be a problem if you want to build the more complex traps that are available in the caves. Its convenience will only be found in the player that is either uninterested in the story or past it. This is a peaceful place where you might build your final base, but it will not help advance your progress.
6. At An Enemy Base Camp
Unfortunately, you will be forced to face the fact that even cannibals are human.
While the expected constant threat of enemies make this a really tough place to build a base without a massive amount of ammo and strong weapons; if you can hold your own in combat it is a really fun place to practice making traps.
Most base camps are set up in a circle surrounding an impaled victim. They have little houses that have ramped roofs so if you run at them from the back you can cross over without jumping. I built a perimeter using logs around the base while leaving the enemies buildings accessible. I would place different traps in front of the houses, so that way when an enemy ventures over his old home he is trapped like a rat on the other side.
If on the off chance you’re defeated in combat you will wake back up tied to a post in the safety of your own base. This gameplay mechanic can also help in deciding where you want to place your enemy camp base. Most advanced traps require golf cart batteries, which can be hard to come by. I suggest exploring until you find a place with two golf carts broken down next to each other. Place a GPS locator and then blow yourself up. You’ll wake up at the closest enemy basecamp to the batteries.
5. Inside Any Cave Entrance
Just don’t forget to bring a light source.
This method has many limitations since you are not capable of bringing large items (logs, large stones, etc.) into cave entrances. Being that those are all the basis for a typical base you are severely limited. However, if you are okay with living in a pre-built house this option has a variety of benefits.
For one, ironically, you will not be plagued by cannibals inside the entrance of cannibal infested caves. Creating a base further from the entrance is not feasible outside of presenting yourself a challenge. You’re not really going to want to have any storage inside of a cave-base because Kelvin will be entirely unable to give you a hand. He’s not smart enough to slide between a couple rocks.
The true benefit to a cave base does not come due to convenience. You can frankly just make unique areas. You’re going to want to pick this kind of base if you want to have a little fun or are a professional home decorator. This should probably be at a less worthy place on the list, but I’m leaving it here solely because of its uniqueness.
4. Isle of the Masochist
I think the map explains this location's inconvenience more than my words ever could.
The appeal for this area is very similar to the appeal for Mt. Pointless in that it is a worthless place to put your base that you will thoroughly regret. Unlike Mt. Pointless’ ability to help you gain a better understanding of the island, the Isle of the Masochist has no such convenience. The area that could have been the smartest to build your base on is plagued with cannibals. There is very little in terms of items unless you’re raiding a cannibal base. Some halfway decent items are by the location, but you must spend a lot of time shoveling them out of the ground, which is, by far, the worst mechanic in the game. This area has something far worse than beach syndrome, as you are on an entire island. You are beyond the beach.
I’ve added this because if you like combat it is a pretty cool place to build a base and the large retaining wall behind the camp guarantees that the cannibals can only come from 180 degrees. This is an endgame base for people who like to play their games on hard mode.
3. Amid the Golf Course
Hazards present a much harsher punishment than a mere +1 on your scorecard.
Of my locations the golf course is where I would suggest building a city. Yes, a whole entire city. There are huge swaths of land, pre-cleared and ready to go. There are plenty of golf carts, which can be convenient if you’re making a gargantuan base. This is the type of base you’re going to want to build if you are playing multiplayer.
Cannibals will never be hard to see as they will have to traverse large fields in order to get to you. The forgiving terrain makes it easy for Kelvin to get around and do the dirty work. Since I am mentioning the golf course as a whole, it’s hard for me to say whether or not you’ll find the respawnable items satisfactory–as one part of your metroplex may be far away from another part.
2. The First or Second Maintenance Bunker
Your choice of bunker should rely on whether you want quick access to the Drop-Point or Solafite ore.
While you aren’t going to find as many helpful items as The First Bunker, there are a variety of helpful items down in the maintenance bunkers. I am leaving out the third bunker, as it did not finish construction by whoever got eaten before us. You’ll have easy access to 3D printers. Both of these bunkers will have a new GPS location as well as a pre-built, king-sized bed. Other than evil babies you will not find any enemies inside of these bunkers.
However, I am not suggesting you actually build your base down in the bunker. I am suggesting you build the base around the entrance to the bunkers. You can easily enclose their entrances in a way that if you are low on health and need to quickly retreat from cannibals, you will be able to get down that ladder from the safety of your house without getting murked waiting on the main character to finish his cutscene.
Kelvin is obviously unable to make his way into the actual bunker but he won’t have any hiccups helping you out above ground, which is really what is important. The areas are already pretty cleared out in terms of trees so you won’t have to tear anything down beyond what you need for supplies. There are no naturally occurring barriers–such as rivers, lakes, islands, cliffs, etc., etc., so you will have to spend a little extra time making your base safe; which is a longer amount of time that you are vulnerable to cannibal attacks.
1. The First Bunker
I love tree forts.
I say the first bunker, but I am aware that there is really no “first bunker.” It’s all about the way you explore and where you end up first. However, it turns out that I am writing this article, and it was my first bunker so, today, it will be your first bunker as well.
This is a great place to post up assuming you can get a treehouse built (or any equivalent that the cannibals can’t reach). The area is constantly plagued by cannibals; something that can be very inconvenient if you are early in the game and, like me, this is one of the first areas that they started to feel incessant. The key to making this location great is building a tree-fort in front of the bunker entrance with a rope-bridge or zip-line that leads to the lip of the rock above it. With a safe place to start your building, you can quickly build outwards. It takes work to make this work well, but I think you’ll find if you can get it to that state that you will be happy with further expansions.
Below the center of the base is a direct entrance to a bunker with access to really good arrows and crossbow bolts, printer ink AND a printer, ammo, and all sorts of other electrical equipment.
There is one thing about this area that is both a blessing and curse: All NPC’s fear of water. There is a very small river in front of the entrance to the bunker. If you are building a base in front of the bunker, then Kelvin will always go to the closest tree to what you are building. Many times, that tree is on the other side of the river. Well, Kelvin runs very far away and goes around because I guess he doesn’t want to get his feet wet. This can be very time-consuming.
However, this AI failure applies just as efficiently on the cannibals. They may be five feet in front of you and then walk completely off the map to go around part of the water. I built a bridge over the tiny river and neither the cannibals nor Kelvin were willing to walk across it.
