Sons of the Forest is a terrifying new survival game that’s so popular it’s making Steam crash. Arriving on a mysterious item with a squad of mercenaries, your mission quickly goes bad as your chopper crashes — leaving you as the only capable survivor on the team. Working with a fellow NPC squad mate, you’ll need to scavenge, build, and fight to survive the horrors of this very strange place. Creatures crawl out of the woodwork to menace you during the night, and your simple stone weapons won’t be enough to fight back the gargantuan creatures that begin to spawn later in the story.
Your goal from the beginning is to escape, but to escape you need to access the dark heart of the island itself. Hidden deep underground and behind a very strange door, you’ll need multiple sets of key items to peel back the layers of what’s going on here. If you want to know the basics on how to escape, we’ve got a simple, straightforward guide explaining how to complete Sons of the Forest. Cover yourself in mutant meat and steady your spear, here’s everything you need to know about story progression.
More Sons of the Forest guides:
How To Get The Shovel & Unlock Hidden Underground Locations | How To Unlock The Mysterious Door | How To Find A 3D Printer | How To Get The Pistol | Where To Find The Best Weapon | All Keycard Locations | Silencer Location | How To Make Bone Armor & Farm Bones | Flashlight Locations | How To Catch Animals | Can Opener Location | How To Craft Healing Mix
Ending Guide | How To Escape The Island (Or Stay Forever)
Your first major mission in Sons of the Forest is acquiring the shovel. This allows you to access hidden Maintenance Hatches marked by green GPS dots on your map. These hatches lead to Keycards, which are required to reach the hidden door that leads to the endgame.
There are three major steps required to reach the end of the game. Each step has multiple sub-requirements you’ll have to accomplish to reach your goal — all while trying to survive and fending off nightmarish creatures. We can’t explain how to survive, but we can explain the basic steps needed to escape the island.
Step #1: Get The Shovel
The Shovel is the first key item needed to progress deeper into the island. Before you get the Shovel, you’ll need two separate traversal items — the Rebreather and the Rope Gun. Get more details about unlocking the Shovel with our full guide here.
- Rebreather: Located in a dangerous cave on the beach of the island. Look for a cave marker near the water. You’ll find a Stun Gun on an alternate path. Keep going to find a pool with the Rebreather and extra air tank. You can use it to exit via an underwater cave to the sea.
- Rope Gun: Located in a cave nearest the hidden bunker entance (green marker) in the center of the map that leads to a 3D Printer. This is the only 3D Printer available until you get the Shovel / Keycards.
The Rebreather is required to reach the Rope Gun. Then, you need both the Rebreather and Rope Gun to access the Shovel.
- Shovel: At the cavern in the center of the island, at the base of the mountain, where a river forks. There are three dead bodies on stakes in the water facing the cave. At the entrance, you need to use the Rope Gun to get inside. There are also long underwater sections that require the Rebreather.
The cave with the Shovel is extremely dangerous. Currently, it is possibly the most dangerous location — you don’t have access to more powerful weapons you’ll unlock later, making this very difficult. Bring grenades, time bombs, arrows, ammo, food and water. Be very prepared, and don’t be afraid to use everything you have to survive.
After unlocking the Shovel, you’ll have access to many new areas with loads of resources and more powerful weapons. Use everything you can to get it.
Step #2: Getting The Keycards
Now that we have the Shovel, you can reach a mysterious hidden door in the underground. To access the hidden door that leads to the endgame — we need to find three key items. First, you need to acquire the Maintenance Keycard and the VIP Keycard.
- Maintenance Keycard: Located in Maintenance Hatch A. Find the green GPS marker on the map marked by two old golf carts. Use the Shovel to dig and reveal a hidden hatch.
- The hatch leads into a hidden underground home with a 3D Printer. Take the keycard.
The keycard can be used to unlock many new areas. Check more underground areas with keycard locks to unlock some of the best weapons in the game. These areas are also packed with useful weapons, ammo, and non-perishable foods.
- VIP Keycard: To get the VIP Keycard, travel to the Food Storage Bunker. This is a cave (marked with a green GPS dot, not a cave marker) that you can access without the Shovel.
- Inside the storage room filled with food items, there’s a locked keycard door. Use the Maintenance Keycard to unlock a path inside — it leads to a large, flooded hydroponics growing area.
- Follow the path until you reach a nicer section of the underground. Find the Security Room to acquire the VIP Keycard. The dining room is guarded by a pair of powerful cannibals.
With the VIP Keycard, we can finally find the mysterious hidden door.
Step #3: Unlocking The Hidden Door & Reaching The Artifact
To access the ending and escape the island, we need to find our way to a strange hidden door. After collecting the VIP Keycard, we’ll be able to reach this spooky door.
- Hidden Door Location: Use the VIP Keycard at the Exterior Bunker Entrance — near the beach, marked with a green GPS dot, you’ll find a ‘main entrance‘ by the docks that leads into the underground facility.
- The VIP Keycard unlocks the main entrance, leading into an opulent Luxury Bunker.
Check in the back of the mansion for a bathroom. In the bathroom, one of the walls is blown out. Walk through the steam to find a strange, ancient doorway.
What to do with this door? It isn’t clear at all. There is a handprint in the door, but that won’t help you. If you want to open the door, you’ll need to enter a dangerous Mountain Cave Complex.
- How To Unlock The Hidden Door: Travel to the cave complex shown in the screenshot above. The cave entrance is near a large lake on the map. Travel to this cave. The Rebreather is required to explore this cave.
- Swim deep into the cave. You’ll encounter cultists and people wearing high-tech suits. Deeper in the cave, you’ll find ancient gold structures. Eventually, you’ll reach a chamber with demon enemies — lanky, pale mutants that twist themselves to attack. The Cross is extremely effective against these enemies.
The gold structure is where you’ll find the Gold Armor — there is a burnt black skeleton near praising men in high-tech suits. Collect it and climb the nearby ropes. There are multiple ropes leading into chambers with more regular enemies, so be prepared to fight.
With the Gold Armor, you can now open the Luxury Bunker Hidden Door. Before entering the door, there’s one more item you absolutely need to get first.
- Where To Get The Cross: The Cross is located in the same cave as the Rope Gun. It is being held by one of the corpses. It is very easy to miss. One of the dead bodies is holding it in his hands.
The Cross is a powerful weapon against the demons we’re about to face. Put on the Gold Armor and interact with the Luxury Bunker Hidden Door to reach the endgame.
The final path leads you through a volcanic underground that is swarming with demonic creatures — mutants with extremely long legs that are also incredibly resistant to damage. The only way to efficiently fight them is with the Cross. Raising the Cross will burn the demons, and even works against multiple demons at the same time.
This is a long path, but even a solo player can reach the end with minimal supplies. While wearing Gold Armor, you’re extremely resilient against demon attacks. Demons can hardly scratch you and will flee (and burn) at the sight of the raised Cross weapon.
There is a powerful demon boss at the end of the hellish caverns. Be prepared for a longer fight.
- Reaching The End: At the end of the path, you’ll finally reach the artifact. After the cutscene plays, you’ll be able to choose your ending. You can board the helicopter to leave or return to the island.
Whatever your choice, you’ll earn one of two ending achievements. We’re positive there are many more secrets to discover on the island. This is just the beginning.
