Permadeath Survival Tips for Non-Speedrunners
As of DESOLATION update.
Spoilers are hidden, but there will still be some. I assume that you have some knowledge of the game.
The primary goal of this achievement is to basically "clear" the game by reaching the center of the galaxy. This is already covered by many online sources, so here are some other tips that would be useful for Permadeath, in particular.
- Backup your save file despite this being permadeath. I understand that this is considered savescumming and is highly dishonorable when we play permadeath/hardcore/ironman games, but for a rapidly developing title like No Man's Sky, this is necessary due to high presence of game glitches that are potentially lethal.
- For some reason, the game's start is extremely difficult, more so than Survival mode. Ignore game prompts and do what you should do to survive. Look for yellow patches of sodium plants. Worry about resource drilling later. You need your sodium. (In real life, be sure to drink plenty and eat balanced food! In addition to the Traveller[!], YOU also need sodium!)
- Pack tons of money by using Cobalt Crash. Farm nanites efficiently by taking "open missions" from stations. I won't elaborate on this as it's equally applicable to Survival (I'll write another guide).
- Be extremely conservative and as hand-off as possible. Buy when you can. Mine if it's safe. Fight for it if you really have to.
- Do NOT explore derelicts or play with any new game features. AVOID using exo-vehicles as much as you can. I lost one save because I somehow snapped around in a derelict and died.
- Always watch your step when walking. For some reason (Murphy's Law?), I keep walking into sinkholes when I'm not looking properly.
- Offense is the best defense. Upgrade your boltcaster and mining beams. The sooner you finish a fight, the better the survival chances.
- The Nexus is a waste of time and is generally not needed, especially if you're speedrunning. You can get nanites by mission farming or talking to Helios.
- Pack rat as much as you can. The more resources you can hold, the less you have to disembark on hostile planets.
- Do the Atlas path. Given the 10 jumps required by Atlas, it's less time compared to having to pop into the Anomaly every time you
.
- You can shoot at ferrite rocks, some plants, most animals, and Sentinels from your ship. Nose down and rain hell like it's Vietnam. This also means you can complete "raid depot" missions with minimal risk.
- Remember that you need a full tank of Hyperdrive to move from the Gateway to the Centre of the Galaxy.
[!] In honor of Hello Games, I use British ("in-game") spelling for some game-specific terms.