GUIDE · SURVIVAL & MANAGEMENT
Frozen Ship Tips & Tricks
The distilled wisdom — the stuff that turns a doomed expedition into a thriving colony. Use it as a checklist alongside the deeper guides linked below.
The Non-Negotiables
| Tip | Why |
|---|---|
| Always return before 18:00 | Night is ~−67°C and instantly lethal outside |
| Secure wood first (~600/day) | It's your heating fuel — warmth is life |
| Staff kitchen from hour one | 60 meals/day for 20 crew, or morale collapses |
| Rotate, don't grind | Fatigue → illness → death spiral |
| Protect faith | Avoidable deaths unravel the colony |
Scavenging Tips
- Run in teams, not solo. Predators and hostile camps prey on lone runners.
- Loot by need, not by greed. Weight and time are real; a packed crew moves slow and risks curfew.
- Learn building types, not maps. The world is procedural — hospitals = medicine, industry/rail = scrap + wood.
- Keep a buffer. Turn back with margin; the sun doesn't wait.
- Upgrade coats and thermal gear first. Spend surplus fabric and synthetic materials on warmer coats and thermal equipment for your exploration teams before you sell them. Better gear slows cold exposure dramatically, so scavengers survive longer runs farther from the ship — the investment pays for itself surprisingly fast.
- Plan routes around stoves. Abandoned buildings you can light are warm waypoints: heat up, re-orient, then push on. They turn a lethal overstay into a managed detour.
Economy Tips
- Sell surplus scrap, hoard food/wood/medicine. Trade only above your one-day floor.
- Take trader quests that don't risk a curfew-stranded crew.
- Trade from surplus, never desperation.
Morale Tips
- Build the infirmary the moment illness appears.
- Celebrate safe returns — small wins stabilize faith.
- Use laws (rest, rationing) early and gently, not mid-crisis.
What to Prize Changes as the Run Goes
The frozen world opens simple and gets sharper. Early on, almost every run is about wood and scrap metal — you're just trying to stay warm and keep the boiler fed. Once heat and food are stable, medical supplies become priceless: an outbreak is a compounding disaster, so stockpile medicine before you think you need it. Further into a campaign, ammunition often becomes more valuable than almost anything else, because the threats you can't avoid (armed survivors, dangerous wildlife) are best answered with a loaded gun and spare rounds. Let your loot priority follow that arc instead of grabbing everything indiscriminately.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the #1 tip for new players?
Respect the 18:00 curfew above all else. Every other system assumes your crew makes it back alive each night.
Should I expand fast or slow?
Slow. Lock warmth + food + a basic scavenge loop first, then build. Over-expansion before stability is the classic early-game failure.
Any "pro" habit worth forming?
Plan your next scavenge run the night before. Assign roles and pick targets while safe aboard, so dawn is execution, not deliberation.