The devs made the conscious decision to leave out most weapons. They had already made first-person shooters, most notably Natural Selection and Natural Selection 2. So they wanted to try something different. On top of that, the game's director went on record saying that the Sandy Hook mass shooting was one of the major reasons why he decided to leave guns out of the game.
Underwater survival game Subnautica has a lot of things that can kill you. As has long been a point of contention among players, you can’t do much to kill things back. This weekend, one of the game’s developers revealed the reasoning behind Subnautica’s lack of lethal weapons.
kotaku.com
From Kotaku:
"(...)Charlie Cleveland, Subnautica’s game director, responded to a post on Steam this weekend explaining that real life gun violence, including the Sandy Hook shooting, inspired him to depict something other than guns in his game. He described it as “one vote towards a world with less guns,” one in which “we use non-violent and more creative solutions to solve our problems. (...)”
Ok, so I'm not looking for a spoiler, just to have my math/theory checked. I'm trying to come up with a design for a self-sustaining and safe mini-base. I've somewhat worked it out but I'm falling slightly short on power. So, I'm looking for some spoiler-free feedback
For the base itself, the smallest I think I can have it is a moonpool, a scanner, and a multi-purpose room. I'd love to skip the moonpool, but I recently discovered it's not entirely safe to park a Seamoth "outside", even with the lights off. The scanner is only temporary, in a sense. I'm intending to build a chain of bases that get progressively deeper to look for things and really only the deepest base will need a scanner. However, I tried this even without a scanner and it didn't seem to help the power situation.
And then there's the multi-function room. It has a biofuel generator in the center, a water filtration unit to the side and a few planters around the room. I'm experimenting with lantern plants, bulbo trees, and melons figuring out what works best for me. I also have an exterior planter under the moonpool for gel sacks.
All this together and the biofuel generator is not quite cutting it. I don't even have a battery charger running (yet) and just with this, I'm running at a net loss. It's not quick, but my 500 max energy is on a trickle of a decline. I tried taking out the scanner room to simulate a base from which I've moved on, but that didn't seem to make much of a difference.
I could add another room with another reactor. That should keep my generation above my needs, but then that's another multipurpose room and not a very mini-base.
Maybe I should get rid of the Seamoth? It's "safer", but is it really? Pretty much anything that can take me out can also take out. Then I don't need the moonpool. Actually, scratch that. It's a crazy idea. I'm a coward and need the Seamoth as a security blanket.
On that note, I'm not a superfan of the gel sacks, but only because I can't grow them inside.
Since we're on the subject. I also considered switching from being plant focused to adding a multipurpose room with an aquarium and using fish instead. It would synergize with the salt production (cured fish) for travel food. But then again, I'm looking at a bigger base.
Also, another rando question. The game let me put a scanning station on top of a multipurpose room. However, I couldn't connect them with a ladder or anything. Did I miss something?
Ideally, I wish I could cram everything I need into an X-chamber and go even that small, but that's definitely not viable.
The moonpool doesn't really consume that much energy, not even when recharging a vehicle. What's eating up your energy reserves is, on the one hand, the scanner (when it's actively scanning), and on the other hand, the water filtration machine (when it's making salt and / or water bottles). A good rule of thumb for the scanner is to use it sparingly. You should only scan when you really need to, for example if you're looking for a specific mineral, resource, wreck, etc. Once you've found it, go get it, and then turn the scanner off. In other words, don't just leave the scanner working overnight. For the water filtration machine, be sure to always leave two salt deposits and two water bottles on it. It might be tempting to pick them up so you can store them in a locker, but don't do it. Leave them at the machine. That way, the machine will stop filtering and it won't eat up your energy reserves. Of course, you can pick them up and have the machine make more, if you want to fill up a locker for example, but always make sure to leave your last batch at the machine itself.
Instead of making several multipurpose rooms, you could make one large room and fit several bioreactors in it. A multipurpose room requires 6 titanium, and you can only fit one bioreactor. A large room can fit four bioreactors. So, you would need 24 titanium in order to build four multipurpose rooms, against 2 plasteel ingots (20 titanium + 4 lithium, in total) for the large room. Not a staggering difference, so you decide what's better.
In any case, if a single bioreactor isn't meeting your energetic requirements, then you might want to consider making a thermal plant, or maybe several of them. This will of course restrict the location for your base, but the upside is that you don't have to worry about fueling them with flora or fauna specimens, like the bioreactor.
An extreme option would be to build a long line of vertical connectors, until you reach the surface, and make a compartment (I, L, T or X), and then make some solar panels on top of them. I did that once with a base that I had in the Bulb Zone. Be prepared to use a lot of titanium, though.
Finally, since you've already discovered uraninite, you could make a nuclear reactor. I almost never make them, simply due to ideological / ecological reasons, but hey, it's just a video game, so have at it, if you're cool with it lore-wise.
On the subject of gel sacks, aquariums, farming, etc., there's a few things I could recommend, but they're mildly spoilery, so I won't say anything. On that note, if you want to know what's the best flora / fauna to use as fuel for the bioreactor, I could tell you, but it would be somewhat spoilery as well.
The game let me put a scanning station on top of a multipurpose room. However, I couldn't connect them with a ladder or anything. Did I miss something?
Nope, you didn't miss anything. It's just a quirk of how base-building was implemented in the game. You can make a base that consists of just a scanner room, a hatch, and a solar power, and everything works just A-OK. It looks like it's floating, but it doesn't move. The same goes for a base that consists of nothing but an observartory, a hatch, and a solar panel.
I considered this. I could fit an alien containment in the center (peepers or reginalds) and bioreactors on either side. The water filter is against a wall, and then I would have plenty of space for plants/lockers, etc. It's only slightly more resource intensive than three stacked multipurpose rooms doing the same (two more titanium, four lithium).
I've been experimenting, and I think something is wrong. I don't even have a scanner attached right now. It's just a moonpool, water filter, two bioreactors, and an alien containment. However, I'm still slowly losing energy.
I don't want to be limited by thermal energy. My goal is to put together a spartan put-this-anywhere base.
I'm about to call it quits on this water filter. It's just a massive energy hog, or maybe just bugged. Instead, maybe have a MPR with a bladderfish containment? It's poor water, and I'm not sure if just one tank would do the trick, but I don't have any other ideas.
If killer aliens with lasers own this planet, why was the island empty? Why wouldn't they have some kind of base or outpost there? With their apparent technology, this shouldn't be an untamed ocean planet. Any civilized race would likely have built a thriving metropolis here. But, I haven't seen any other intelligent life. No human survivors, no aliens, nothing.
I think about the First Island. That's where the laser came from that shot down the Sunbeam. But, is there anything else there? Maybe it's just an automated system set to blast away at anyone flying by the planet. It never tried to communicate. It just reported findings.
I build a stasis rifle and test it. It performs as expected. I pack up the Seamoth for another expedition. Food, water, meds, and batteries. I grab the alien tablet from Paradise Island as well. You never know.
I head towards First Island. It's a little desperate, but I don't really see another option.
I circle the island to scout it out. I see two of these cubic things attached to a larger alien structure. There is no entrance. These must be the batteries.
I decide my ingress is a beach next to a massive alien structure. This must be the weapon. Nobody greets me as I disembark. The island itself is riddled with caverns so I check these out first. It will give me an opportunity to see from a distance if there's any activity in the alien base triggered by my arrival. The only inhabitants I meet are cave crawlers and some kind of docile flying creature.
I wind through the caverns and find myself at this structure. I scan it and the report is that it could be a teleportation device, or it could be ceremonial. There's a pedestal for inserting something, but it doesn't seem interested in the alien tablet.
I head to the facility next. I need the alien tablet to disable the force field. I ready my stasis rifle and move onward.
The facility is...empty. I find a few data nodes, but the PDA needs time to translate the alien language. I scan a few of the structures, just to try and learn more.
I find a few of these strange green cubes. According to a scan, they're some kind of power supply. I make a note to go back to the ceremonial gate before I leave.
I find a few pieces of alien technology on display. I scan them, but they are far too advanced to generate any blue prints and I can't find a way to open the cases.
I find a control room. I attempt to activate it, but this weird guy pops out, takes a sample from my arm, and access is denied.
Apparently, the “infected” cannot operate the weapon. And, this planet is under a quarantine. Disappointing, but this tells me a number of things. First, this is how I can disable the weapon. Second, the alien people knew about the infection. Third, they quarantined the planet because of it.
The PDA's timing couldn't be better as the translation is complete.
The disease is "Kharaa". It's some kind of bacteria. The lifepod info panel did advise me that the water had a high bacteria count, come to think of it. This planet is a quarantined planet that has a facility designed to develop a cure for this disease. However, they clearly did not succeed. But, this facility is somewhere 800m below the surface! I think my deepest dive so far has been only 300m.
I'm astounded by this discovery. The aliens aren't trying to keep people out. They're trying to keep everything in.
I return to the alien arch. The pedestal accepts one of the green cubes from the weapon tower. Sure enough, it is a gate. To where? I don't know. It must be somewhere on the planet. With how “strict” the aliens are about the quarantine, surely this isn't a way off the planet. There is only one way to find out. But first, I get my bearings. i check my HUD. Staying Alive Outpost is 1.3km southwest. The Aurora Outpost is 1km to the south-southeast. The Seamoth is not far from my current position. I can triangulate with that.
Surprisingly, without any fear, I step through the arch.
I end up in a similar cave with a similar arch. Is there a third island on this planet? I check my HUD and see I moved 2.4k south-southwest based on the Seamoth location. Staying Alive Outpost is 1.3k north. Aurora Outpost is 1.6k northeast.
Wait a minute.
This isn't a third island. I find my way out of the cave and confirm this is actually Paradise Island, where I picked up the last fragment for the stasis rifle, among other things. Why would the aliens gate here, but then not set up any kind of operations?
I pass back through the gate and return to the Seamoth. This is a lot to take in. I cruise back to Staying Alive Outpost, trying to make sense of it all along the way.
At base, I sift through all the logs. The aliens were here at some point. They knew of the disease and quarantined the planet with prejudice. They built a facility deep within the planet to study and hopefully cure it. Another group of humans were here. They contracted Kharaa and set about trying to cure themselves. They were here after the aliens, which is why they had the tablet. Did they find the First Island? Did they discover the disease research facility? Is that why they decided to build outposts deeper and deeper into the planet? Were they working their way towards the alien disease research facility?
Part of me thinks I should follow the trail of the last group on this planet. Part of me thinks that, whatever they were doing, didn't work out for them so following their trail would have the same fate for me. I cruise around for a while in safer areas while I think this over...
I was so freaked out when it happened, I didn't even think to get a screenshot of the encounter itself.
Something is communicating with me! I have no idea what it is. At first, I thought I was being attacked by some kind of mesmer, but this “thing” is much bigger than that. It clouds my vision and appears before me. It has a voice, and it asked, “What are you?” The tone seems to suggest general curiosity over hostility. But, it vanishes as quick as it appeared.
I rush back to base. I need to be somewhere I can collect myself. I'm not alone here after all. Why is this thing curious about me? Surely this being must have some kind of awareness of other humans. Between the Aurora survivors and the prior group, humans must have hit this creature's radar at some point. Perhaps there's something different about me. That crewman from the lifepod started developing symptoms shortly after landing. Meanwhile, I've been here for over three months now and feel just fine. That could just be hope talking, though.
Before I can even start to make sense of this, the radio alerts me to a message. It's Alterra HQ. They can't come get me, but if I can get off the planet, they can pick me up. They sent me the code for the captain's quarters on the Aurora. This is where I can pick up the plans for an escape vessel. I head back to the Aurora. It is still the smoldering wreck that I left not too long ago. I rush to the captain's quarters, punch in the code, grab the data box, and head back home.
I also have a beacon for one more outpost from the prior group. I figure I might as well check that out and then make a new plan. I end up in a large underground cavern with strange, glowing bulbs. There's a teleporting creature wandering around, but I give it plenty of space.
Hovering around the outpost is this creature. I turn off my lights then carefully circle around and keep the outpost between us. I approach the base, adjusting my position as necessary. Then, I pop out of the Seamoth and find a way into the outpost. Immediately, I realize I'm still wearing my radiation headgear and not my rebreather. I forgot to switch it back out after the Aurora. I'll just have to be quick. I scan an alien containment pod. There's a databox swith specs for charging fins. I find a couple of PDAs. I'm almost able to scan the creature by hiding at a breach in the outpost. However, it gets too risky. After one of my returns to the Seamoth, the lights somehow come on when I exit and the creature attacks the Seamoth. I hide in the outpost until that passes.
When I return to the Seamoth, it's barely functioning, but I turn off the lights and rush out of the cave. I make a beeline for the surface where I can repair the pod in safety.
Back at the base, I look through the PDA data. I believe this was the final stop for the prior group. One of the entries indicates that the base was breached, likely by the same type of creature, and that was probably the end of them. I don't have a lead for any deeper bases.
In a way, it's comforting. The infection didn't ultimately get them. They just perished from the wildlife before they could get the the disease research facility. It sounds like that, after the creature attack, the one survivor went back to Paradise Island to die there rather than pursue a cure.
I have no intention of dying on this planet. I find a cure, I can disable the weapon, and I can blast off to be picked up by Alterra. I just need to figure out where, somewhere 800m below the surface, the aliens put this disease research facility.
Did I miss something at Paradise Island? There was a gate there, but no other signs of alien involvement. Was the location related to the disease research facility? If so, why not just gate directly there? I throw the prior groups beacons on my HUD. They went from Paradise Island, to Ozzy's Cave, to their final outpost. I look at the trajectory and it doesn't add up. They head northeast to Ozzy's caves, then back southwest again to their final outpost. They end up not far from where they started, just deeper. Did they even have a proper lead?
I suppose my only option is to pick up their trail. I have an idea. I had seen a nice spot for a base near Second Officer Keen's pod. It's rather close to both Paradise Island and the final outpost. There's an alien vent nearby so that might also point to something. A small base with a scanner is my best bet to see if I can pick up a trail.
I've picked up a fair number of schematics along the way. A small base with a scanner room, moonpool, food and water, and some kind of power source. I can build a series of these as I have a trail to follow.
I deconstruct my other outposts for the resources. I spend some time with the habitat builder and work out a new outpost design. It's not as compact as I would like. I know I'll need biofuel at the first base. I might have thermal options later, but thermal plants are external to the base (which only means more room), and I want this design to be a base I can plop anywhere, since I don't know where I'm going.
The water filtration device is a massive energy hog. A single biofuel generator can't keep it running, certainly not with a moonpool and scanner. Food and water are a bottleneck, specifically generating food that can travel for a spell on an expedition, and water efficient enough so I'm not filling my backpack with it for longer trips. I experiement with adding a second generator, but that still doesn't solve the problem. I am not looking to build a chain of factories. I just need an effective small base that will let me focus on my search.
All together, my “simple” base design requires over 125 units of materials. This is going to take a couple of trips. I work out the logistics. What do I have to take on the first trip to get the basics down? Probably the moonpool, the first MPR, the Biofuel generator, the Marblemelons so I can start getting it running. Titanium for lockers to store materials for build prep. This, I can fit in my inventory and Seamoth.
Well, it seems like I'm not making any friends. I can only assume I'm the remaining target. Now that I think of it, it's rather odd they didn't notice me when I searched the weapon base, but only much later. Nevertheless, my plan remains the same. And, if they are hunting me, then it's a good thing I plan to stay on the move.
I load up for the first run and get on my way. There's no time to waste.
Paradise Outpost is now established. I have worked out a little hack for the power-guzzling water filter. A single bioreactor holds enough energy in reserves for the water filter to run a cycle and not tap out all the power. Once it runs a cycle, it will shut off until I empty it. So, I let it run a cycle and shut off, then give the bioreactor time to replenish its reserves. Only then do I empty the filter so it can start another cycle.
Because I have a tank of bladderfish, I don't need the water filter for my day to day needs. Instead, its only purpose is to generate better quality water for expeditions. Additionally the salt serves a similar purpose. I have a tank of reginalds, which I can cook if I'm staying nearby, or cure if I want to bring food for travel.
As for the bioreactor itself, I figure I can feed it whatever I have in surplus, be it fish or marblemelons.
I spend the next few days or so running the scanner for anything potentially interesting. I also scout out the lay of the land, taking the mobile cameras as far as they can go. I don't get far and I don't find much, aside from another alien vent to the southwest. Going deeper into the planet, my cameras could barely make it to the Final Outpost. I'm quite disappointed. For all the work that went into setting up this base, just to have nothing really come of it, has me rethinking my approach.
I'm going to need to build another outpost and based on how far I can scout, and it won't even be that far from my current position. It has to be smaller. It has to be something I can ferry in a single trip, drop and then get to work scanning. I question the need for the Seamoth. It's not safe to scout with it (at least, the cameras are safer for scouting). If I get attacked in it, I'm not really that much safer than if I'm swimming out and about. If I'm building smaller outposts, within 500m of each other, then I should never be too far from a safe haven, anyway. Then again, it's only five units of materials for a moonpool and the seamoth adds extra storage to the mix. I don't need long term travel food like salted reginalds and water from the purifier. Hell, I could live on just marblemelons, which can also power a bioreactor.
So, MPR with a bioreactor, a growbed for marblemelons, and a scanner room are the bare essentials. I'm sure I'll need a battery charger. Do I need a medkit station and fabricator everywhere? I do need to make components for each next base. I guess we'll still throw in a moonpool. And then a couple lockers and a beacon. I'll also want to drag the alien tech (tablets and ion cubes) with me wherever I go, and maybe a few spare batteries. That's another eight units.
The Seamoth holds 48, I have about 24 free in my inventory. That's 72 units for a single trip. I think this setup puts me at about 65 plus whatever reinforcements are needed as I go deeper (and those are 4 each).
No, wait, I can do better. I can build a smaller base, and I can still have the water filter water and preserved food.
I head back to the Staying Alive Outpost. That is the first step.
If something is hunting me, it's not doing a very good job of it. I mean, I've literally already been found and then let go. And, it's been months of "infection" with no symptoms. I say this gives me a little breathing room.
Back at Staying Alive Outpost, I work on a little project.
This is step one.
Staying Alive Outpost is now my supply outpost. I move my reginald tank here. I decommission the bladderfish tank. Then, I set up a solar array to support a room full of water filtration machines. The salt byproduct will preserve reginalds. Both this and the WFM waters are emergency rations only. My day-to-day source of food and water will be marblemelons that can grow in my chain of outposts. I'll keep a locker full of emergency provisions (WFM water, cured reginald, med kits) in every outpost, or perhaps just my most forward outpost.
I spend time gathering the resources that I'll need for this venture while building up a reserve of water, fish, and medkits. I need almost all the minerals, some table coral, and lubricant. I gather a locker each full of everything and stock up my titanium warehouse as best as I reasonably can. When I'm ready for the next outpost, I will come back to Staying Alive Outpost, grab a build loadout and then head out to the new site.
Paradise Outpost becomes Alpha Outpost. I cut down on the design to streamline things. Now, it's just a moonpool, scanner room, and single MFR. The latter has a bioreactor, battery charger, locker with emergency provisions, a locker with miscellaneous supplies (including alien tech) and my marblemelons. The scanner will move to my most forward base. This is the model for future bases as well.
I work out the build logistics. It takes 49 units of materials to build this outpost. That's only one unit more than the seamoth can currently hold. I'm tempted to replace a storage unit with sonar. That will help me drive around without lights (which can attract critters). This would mean 32 storage on the Seamoth, and around 24 personal storage. That's 56 total. It's a little tight if I need to replenish emergency provisions, but it should be fine.
I decide to build the sonar. I figure I could swap it out for storage if I need to for building a new base and then take it along with me to swap back, only adding one more unit to my payload.
Now that my new arrangements are complete, I can get back to the mission at hand.
I think I have an idea of what the prior team tried to do. They figured out they needed to find the alien research facility and had to dive deep to do it. The base I found in Ozzy's cave must have been the first attempt. But, it was a dead end. They couldn't go deeper. So, they backtracked to Paradise Island and found the location for the Final Outpost. And that's where it ended for them.
Does the Final Outpost area go deeper? I'm not sure. I take my cameras as far as they can go and only find the squids and teleporting creatures. I somewhat am able to reach the bottom of the cave, but only in certail places, so I can't tell if goes deeper. On top of that, because of the teleporters and squids, I can't seem to find a good spot to put down the next outpost. I could put Beta Outpost just about 300m from Alpha before the cave with the critters. It's a little wasteful, but it will let me scout a little further.
Or, I could pull back, pick a different direction, and maybe find a path of less resistance. After all, if the prior group was eaten, and I follow their course, then I could end up a main course for a squid...
I really like these reports, they remind me of my first run through this game. As you've already noticed, it's incredibly puzzling. It just goes to show that a game can do just fine setting up a story, an atmosphere and an overall challenge without the need for lore-dumps, quest markers or even NPCs. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with any of those things, but Subnautica shows just how different a game can be from a design perspective.
The devs definitely know their stuff with sandbox design. As "annoying" as some people may find it, I actually kinda like that they gave me beacons to follow for a bit and now it's like, you've been here for a while, you should be able to figure it out from here. I think the "figuring out things" is a missing element in a LOT of games. I don't want to be spoonfed brain candy. I mean, I'm kind of a nerd and I want to do some nerdy-thinky things when I game.
No spoilers, but I would say that I'm a little "annoyed" at the wall I'm hitting in the Final Outpost cavern. I could probably load up the Seamoth with gas torpedoes and take out the squids and maybe the teleporters. Or, I could blast them with the stasis rifle and thermoblade them while they are frozen. But, that's a little brute force. I'm less worried about the squids than the teleporters. I can give the squids a wide berth and they leave me alone, but the cave is crawling with teleporters. I crossed paths with one at one point and it really messed up both me and the Seamoth. I'm just avoiding them. There's nowhere safe there, and I can't scout further with cameras. And so that's the thing, the only really effective strategy I've found is put as much distance as possible between me and anything with teeth.
But, the weirder thing about it is that I don't actually want to kill any of them. The devs did a great job giving me the feeling that this is their planet and not mine. As dangerous as they are, I'd be a real bastard if I went on a massacre just to get myself some breathing room.
I think I'll be looking for another way down. There's a lot of planet I haven't really explored much. I can't imagine that there aren't multiple paths here, especially considering the design approach the devs seem to have.
Have you scanned the teleporting creatures? If not, you might want to. Not that it will help you get to 800m (so what I just said is technically not a spoiler, lol) but you'll get just a tiny bit of lore that you might find especially interesting.
I'm not attempting a water ballet with those blinky bastards. I don't expect I'd survive the experience.
That's actually something that irks me a little. I really want to scan, well, everything. But, some things I won't dare go near. I just had a shark go to town on my Seamoth and barely got away. It would be cool if there was a scanner attachment/upgrade for the seamoth, though. It's fast enough, I'd consider chancing it then.
Actually, I really shouldn't complain. I could just suck it up, hit it with a powered stasis rifle shot, and then I'd have the space/time to scan it. I might actually try that...
I spent an unreasonably long amount of time trying to scan the birds. I am also in the "scan everything" category, since learning more about the world around me is half the fun.
Side note, I just recently discovered one of the rare biomes, the only one where a certain species lives, after years of playing the game on and off. I don't use guides, that should be clear by now. And I drowned just seconds before I completed my base there. My bioreactor was built, I just didn't have any, well, bio for it.
I do some scouting with the cameras again around the Alpha Outpost.
[A new location]
I find another alien structure. It's small and there's not much to it, but for the cost of one purple tablet, I pick up a number of ion cubes.
I poke around the Final Outpost again, looking for anything to give me a lead. However, at max camera range it's all a big question mark.
I decide to take the path less traveled, as it were. Wasn't there some famous person who said something to the effect of if you do what others have done, you'll get what they get? Well, the prior group got eaten, so I'm going to tread a different path.
I don't want to try to dig in around the Aurora. It's pretty shallow there, and with all the radiation, it would be a different kind of hassle. There doesn't seem to be anything further south of Paradise Island. I tried going a bit west, but there were dunes with reapers, which are worse than the squids. I guess my only option is north. I scout out around the First Island again, but only find shark-infested waters and nowhere worth putting down. I then circled around west and south, intending to pass through the mushroom forest area on my way back to base.
I find a deep ravine along the way. I estimate it goes 500-600m down. That's even deeper than the Final Outpost. I don't dive all the way to the bottom, but far enough to see what appears to be a cave network accessible from the bottom of the ravine. While I had to pass a teleporter to get here, the bottom of the ravine itself appears to be rather tame. The PDA advises me that some massive skeletal remains are nearby. I'm fine with that. Dead things aren't likely to try to eat me.
The Seamoth is running low on juice, though, so I return to base to refresh. Perhaps I'm being optimistic, but I prep for an outpost build loadout. If this next trip pans out, then I'll set up immediately.
I consider just breaking down Alpha Outpost and moving it to the new spot, but I leave it. I may need it as a backup plan if this new route becomes a dead end.
I lay down Bravo Outpost and get the scanner up and running.
I'm seriously asking, is that boxy area a bug or did I actually find something huge? It looks like blank cells off the game map or something.
I sent the cameras out from Bravo Outpost and find another alien arch. However, it doesn't look like this one can be reactivated.
Deeper in the cave, I find a leviathan and a horde of other teethy creatures. I'm not sure what's worse, this or the squids and teleporters. From this location, though, I see the cave goes much deeper. I don't have a way to get a camera there, but I think of an idea where I can get the Seamoth past those critters.
There are some mushrooms growing near the base and they might just save my life. I harvest a few for seeds and take them back to Staying Alive to set them up in a grow bed. When I have a fresh crop to harvest, I mix them with some other components and create a defensive perimeter module for the Seamoth. Back at Bravo, I take another run on the area with the cameras, noting the position and movement pattern of the critters, especially the leviathan.
I work it out that if I hug the left side of the cave, I can stay out of sight of the leviathan and most, if not all, of the toothy snakes. I do so and find a path that leads further down.
At about 800m, I see evidence of another alien structure. This has to be the disease facility. I rush through the tunnel to see where it led.
The alien facility is not far. However, there is a teleporter in the area, which manages to sneak up on me in my haste. Fortunately, I keep my wits about me, blast it with the stasis rifle, hop back into the Seamoth and then make an expeditious retreat.
I set up Charlie Outpost at the entrance, just out of range of the teleporter. This outpost is even more cut down than the Alpha and Bravo. There's no moonpool, and just a single locker for supplies. I'm not too far from Bravo here, and expect this to be my last stop, so I just need a safe place from where I can run cameras to scout out the facility.
When Charlie is up and running, I find the entrance with the mobile camera and use it to scout out the facility. There are multiple data nodes, as well as what appears to be a biological research lab with many specimens on display. I'm certain that one of those nodes will be the cure. If not, then scanning the subjects will reveal something. With my survey of the facility complete, I hop in the Seamoth and make a mad dash for the entrance. The teleporter catches my scent, but I blow by so fast that I lose it by the time I get inside.
The facility is quiet. Nothing is alive here. I scan everything I can and pull all the data nodes. Back in the Seamoth, I rummage through the data I have collected.
So, to recap, there is no cure here. There might be a lead on a cure at some facility another 600m deeper where my Seamoth can't go. Also, the infection is now quickly running through my body and I have about two weeks to cure it.
I'm tempted to just go build the escape pod and take my chances with the space laser...
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