Figuring out progression in Sons of the Forest can be tricky. That’s why we’ve put together a spoiler-free walkthrough for those who need a nudge in the right direction. Our guide covers the game at launch, so don’t be surprised if things have been moved or added to the story in subsequent updates.
Sons of the Forest Spoiler-Free Walkthrough
Table of contents
Below is a complete progression guide for Sons of the Forest. We’ve done our best to keep this walkthrough spoiler-free, so we will only be pointing you in the right direction to complete the game from start to finish. Also, we don’t help you find every item and weapon in the game, just the essentials needed to make it to the end. So, be on the lookout for resources and non-essential landmarks throughout your journey.
You should first build a small base (see here for our suggested build location). Then, you can throw Kelvin inside to keep him safe, build a few shelves to store excess items and concentrate on progressing through the game. It’ll likely take you an hour or two to build a base and store the gear you’ll need to make your journey.
However, if you just want to get started, you don’t necessarily have to build anything. As long as you have a tarp to create a temporary shelter and some sticks to make fire, you just have to worry about food and water, which can be scavenged all over the island.
Spawn Point
You’ll start Sons of the Forest in one of three locations: the mountain, the forest, or the beach. The forest is the best of these three because it’s closest to our preferred base location and your first few objectives.
Objective 1: Get the Maintenance Keycard
To complete Sons of the Forest, you need to access the locked areas in several bunkers found on the island. To start the process, you’ll need to find the Maintenance Keycard.
To get the Maintenance Keycard, you need to get the Shovel, and to do that, you need two more items: the Rebreather and the Rope Gun.
The Rebreather can be found in a cave (2) seen on the map above. Then head to another cave (3) to get the Rope Gun. Once you’ve got those items, you’ll need to use them to explore a third cave (4) to find the Shovel.
Luckily, getting the items is the hard part. The Maintenance Keycard is in a bunker (5) buried in an open area that you have to dig up with the Shovel.
Objective 2: Get the VIP Keycard
Now that you have the Maintenance Keycard, you must head to the Food Storage Bunker (6) and get the VIP Keycard from the locked area.
Objective 3: Get the Golden Armor
You’ll have to trek all the way to the southeast part of the island for this, so stock up. You’ll find a cave entrance here (7) but quickly discover it’s a secret lab. Explore the inside to find the Golden Armor and the Golden Mask (which is optional).
Objective 4: Enter the Final Bunker
To finish the current iteration of the Sons of the Forest progression, you’ll need to enter the Final Bunker (8). There’s a door inside that requires the Golden Armor to unlock. Head through it and follow the path, and you’ll eventually get a choice to leave in a helicopter or stay behind and continue living on the island.
