How to easily craft a Tent Shelter in Sons of the Forest?

Sons of the Forest is a sequel to 2014’s The Forest, a survival horror game set in a mysterious island where players must fend off against both mutated monsters and nature itself.

As is expected from a survival horror title, Sons of the Forest also has players craft both essential and advanced items to help them during their stay in the campaign. One basic item players must construct to protect themselves and save the game is a tent shelter, which will be the focus of this article.

Note: Gameplay and exploration spoilers for Sons of the Forest will follow, discretion is advisable.

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How to build a tent shelter in Sons of the Forest?

Placing the tarp on the ground (Image via YouTube/WoW Quests)

To begin crafting the tent, players must first obtain two key items - a Tarp and a Stick.

Tarps can be found by scavenging through the various crates and loot you find when you first start the game, while sticks are easily obtainable by using the axe to chop down any shrubs you may come across.

To build a tent, simply follow these steps in order:

1. Collect at least one tarp and stick each. Each tent consumes one of these items, so make sure you have enough in stock.
2. Open your Inventory (I key) and look at the top-right and click on it to equip the tarp.
3. Head to solid ground if you have not already.
4. Look for a solid, flat patch of land. With the tarp equipped, place it on the ground (as indicated by a dotted rectangle).
5. Press the left mouse button to place it on the ground, and then turn your attention to any corner.
6. A white marker will appear, and you can press the left mouse button to pitch a stick up the tarp. Repeat this for all four corners if required.
7. While it is possible to modify the appearance of the tarp further by using more than one stick, it is generally not recommended to do so since it will consume your sticks and has no added gameplay advantage.
8. The tarp can be also recycled and picked up holding down the C key for later use.

Players can now choose to rest in their tents, which is ideal for progressing through the day undisturbed. This is essential to avoid negative status effects from piling up on your character. Alternatively, players can also choose to save their game within the pitched tents, as Sons of the Forest features no autosave functionality.

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What can players build in Sons of the Forest?

While a tent shelter is relatively straightforward and easy to build in Sons of the Forest, there are options to build more complex, lavish residences that are far more durable than the basic tent.

These bases are more of endgame territory as they are used to fend off against mutant attacks, although they require considerably more time, effort, and resources to build.

They include:

• Small Log Cabin: Requires a moderate amount of logs to build. Much sturdier than a basic tent.
• Tree Shelter: Requires stairs and/or a rope wall. Offers excellent protection against foes. Arguably the best base in-game.

Sons of the Forest was released as an early access title on PC on February 23, 2023.