Once Human blends survival building with looter‑shooter mechanics in a post‑apocalyptic sandbox. You awaken as a Meta‑Human in a world overtaken by Stardust‑mutated foes. While the game offers vast potential—base building, Deviant companions, looting, crafting—its survival systems, seasonal wipes, and scenario complexity can overwhelm new and returning players alike.

This guide focuses on actionable, in‑depth strategies across ten areas—from weight management and base mobility to Deviant utility, performance optimization, and server navigation—to help you confidently establish a stronghold and progress season after season.

1. Optimize Character Weight for Playstyle

Your initial Body weight affects agility, stamina, melee power, and carrying capacity.

• Underweight (<65 kg): Faster, more stamina, but lower carry and melee impact. Great for agile playstyles with frequent dodging and exploration.
• Moderate (65–85 kg): Balanced—good stamina, stability, and decent carry load. Ideal for most builds and flexible movement.
• Overweight (>85 kg): Higher carry and melee damage, but slower animations and roll speed. Best for tanky, loot‑focused characters.

Tip: Start moderate, then adjust weight using consumables (“Fried to Crispy” for gaining, rotten food for losing—though the latter requires antibiotics).

2. Build a Flexible and Resource‑Rich Base

Your first base should be near vital resources like wood, ore, water, and wildlife.

• Build essential structures early: Foundations, Bed, Stove, Crafting Bench, Refrigerator.
• Use the relocation feature: You can pick up and move your entire base without rebuilding. Relocate instead of dismantle when better spots open.

Smart Base Tips

• Settle centrally in your build zone to avoid boundary issues—it’s easier to expand.
• Upgrade infrastructure through Memetics to improve resource effectiveness and tech access.

3. Prioritize Early Progression and Memetics

Memetics are your skill tree, divided into crafting, infrastructure, logistics, and building branches.

• Unlock foundational tech first: Smelting, Essential Tools, Refrigeration, and Disassembly.
• Every five character levels you choose a random "Memetic Specialization." Coordinate these with teammates to ensure complementary abilities.

Use commissions, main quests, and milestone tasks to level quickly. Focused progression opens crafting tiers and boosts survival tools faster.

4. Resource, Food, Water, Energy, Sanity Management

Once Human’s survival loop relies on managing multiple meters.

• Keep food, water, and energy above 30% to maintain stamina, movement, and morale.
• Sanity drops when exposed to pollution or defeat enemies. Lose too much and you begin taking health penalties.
• Use beds to heal. Sanity Gummies or rest restore sanity.
• Preserve food using a fridge. Deconstruct foundations to stash food in base storage—food won't spoil during the move.

5. Capture and Deploy Deviants Strategically

Deviants are allies with powerful roles. Types include:

• Combat Deviants: Assist in battle.
• Territory Deviants: Automate resource gathering and production.
• Gadget Deviants: Provide active abilities.
• Furniture Deviants: Decorative buffs.

Always store Deviants in the Independent Secure Unit at your base. Keep them happy—let them enjoy music, bright lights, or flowers—to boost efficiency.

6. Use Crossbows and Mods for Early Advantage

Crossbows are reliable ranged weapons early on. They allow you to retrieve bolts and conserve ammo.

• Prioritize crafting at least a Tier II Crossbow at your base.
• Upgrade with mods like Munitions Amplifier to increase damage and bolts.
• Unlock weapon and armor blueprints by finding Mystical Crates in settlements (purple markers). Seek powerful blueprints like Hunter 500 Frag early for advantage.

7. Join a Hive for Social and Tactical Benefits

Hives are your game’s social backbone—multiplayer teams with shared territory and goals.

• Hives provide better resource pooling, base defense, and raid potential.
• To join one, use the social menu or create your own with friends.
• In PvP scenarios, hives offer safety in numbers; in PvE they speed crafting and exploration.

Hives also allow coordination of Memetic specializations and keep your base safer between wipes.

8. Embrace Scenario Layers and Seasonal Resets

Once Human servers reset every season, refreshing maps and objectives.

• Only certain progress carries over—cosmetics, memories, blueprints, mods, and your Eternaland world.
• Once Human 2.0 will introduce community scenarios and private server customization.

Use the reset as a chance to experiment. Transfer what matters to Eternaland—your permanent personal world—to retain resources despite wipes.

9. Stay Warm or Cool in Extreme Zones (Way of Winter)

The Way of Winter expansion introduces extreme cold/heat mechanics:

• Cold: Eat Polar Peppers or Spiketomatoes, craft rustic gear, build campfires or heaters.
• Heat: Use cooling fans, heat‑resistant armor, find shelter.

Travel smart—activate Teleport Towers to minimize exposure. Bring survival supplies when crossing harsh zones. Use your Motorcycle once unlocked to traverse quickly.

10. Enjoy Custom Servers and Community Creativity

Recent updates introduced custom private servers:

• Adjust day-night cycles, weather, resource respawn, building difficulty, experience rates, and more.
• Swap between official PvE and PvP scenarios at will.
• Future support includes mods and custom scenarios.

If public servers lag or restrict fun, host a private server to tailor your experience—from cozy base building to ruthless survival. Watch for upcoming Once Human 2.0 roadmap and scenario reveal to make the most of customization.

Conclusion

Once Human shines when you're prepared. Mastering it means refining your character weight, building smart bases, focusing on progression, and managing survival meters. Deviants, crossbows, and hives boost early game power. Private servers open doors to customized gameplay, and seasonal resets let you adapt and refine your strategy.

Surviving in Once Human is as much about clever systems mastery as it is about firepower. Use this guide to push survival to the next level and thrive across seasons.