Raft Beginner's Guide
Survive the opening hours, secure food and water, expand safely and establish the research and collection systems that make Raft sustainable.
Overview
← Raft Guide Hub · Progression Route (upcoming guide) · Resources (upcoming guide)
Your first ten minutes
Use the Plastic Hook to collect planks, plastic, palm leaves and barrels while your raft drifts through the debris field. Barrels are especially valuable because they contain mixed resources. Craft a Building Hammer but do not spend every plank on extra foundations. Your immediate goal is a stable freshwater source, not a sprawling base.
Water, food and safe expansion
Craft a cup and Simple Purifier, fill the cup with seawater and use the purifier to produce freshwater. Keep drinking and refill it regularly. Add a Simple Grill and fishing rod or grow potatoes and beets in crop plots. Expand a few foundations so equipment is not crowded, and keep spare planks for cooking, purifying and repairs.
Defend the foundations
The shark regularly bites exposed foundations. Hit it with a spear to interrupt attacks and repair damage with the Building Hammer. Later, add Foundation Armor to key perimeter pieces so the shark cannot chew through them. Do not waste early resources fighting the shark in the water when you can defend from the raft's edge.
First island expedition
Anchor before stepping onto an island so your raft does not sail away. Collect surface fruit and trees where available, then dive around reefs for scrap, sand, clay, metal ore and seaweed. Look for useful cave or hillside resources but keep an eye on air and shark attacks. Bring a spear and hook, and return with a full inventory instead of repeated tiny trips.
Research and automation
Use a Research Table to unlock new crafting options by inserting materials and clicking Research. Progress toward a better purifier, better hook, storage and Collection Nets. Nets automatically catch debris flowing past the raft, freeing your time for fishing, farming and navigation.
Beginning the story
As you acquire metal, copper and vine goo, craft electronics for a Receiver and three Antennas. Place the array with the required separation and height, power the Receiver, and enter the story code shown in your notebook. This takes you to the Radio Tower, the first location on the eight-destination story route.
Common beginner mistakes
Do not swim far from your raft while it drifts. Do not let your last planks disappear into decorative building. Keep spare hook materials and a second container of water for trips ashore. Store valuable metal and electronics before risky dives. Build for resource flow and survival first, then decorate when the routine is self-sustaining.
Beginners' departure checklist
Before the first serious story trip, confirm your purifier can supply more than one drink, you have a working grill or stored meals, the raft has a spare hook and spear, the damaged foundations are repaired, and storage has room for loot. If any one of these is missing, spend another debris cycle preparing. An unprepared journey costs more time than postponing it.
Step-by-step field checklist
- Keep a spare hook and collect barrels before expanding.
- Build drinkable-water production and a dependable grilled food source.
- Repair foundations whenever the shark attacks and save spare planks for emergency repairs.
- Research one copy of new materials to unlock better equipment.
- Use nets to automate basic supplies, then gather underwater ore for advanced technology.
What to do if progress stalls
If thirst and hunger keep interrupting building, reduce expansion and dedicate the next cycle to water and food storage. If your inventory is clogged with flowers and decorations, create labelled storage so valuable ore and electronics cannot be accidentally discarded.
Preparation and practical takeaway
The starter goal is a sustainable raft with spare tools, basic protection and a researched route to the Receiver, not an enormous first-day base.
