Grounded: Beginner's Guide & Best Tips

Introduction – Why Grounded Ruins Your Life (In a Good Way)

Look, I’ve been gaming since before the Xbox 360 was cool. I’ve played survival games that made me want to punch my monitor (looking at you, early-access DayZ). But Grounded? This game hit me like a surprise wolf spider in the dark – terrifying, but I couldn’t stop coming back. You’re a kid shrunk to the size of a bug in a suburban backyard, and everything wants to eat you. It’s Honey, I Shrunk the Kids meets Dark Souls with a side of base-building addiction.

What makes it special? The scale. You’re not just surviving – you’re crawling through sprinkler systems that feel like Niagara Falls, fighting ladybugs that are the size of tanks, and realizing that a single acorn top can be your roof for a week. I love that the game respects your intelligence. It doesn’t hold your hand after the first hour. You’ll get two-shot by a stinkbug because you wandered too close, and that’s your fault. But I also hate how the game sometimes spawns a wolf spider directly behind you when you’re just trying to pick clover leaves. That’s not “challenge,” that’s just mean.

I’ve got over 300 hours across three playthroughs. I’ve built a castle out of grass planks, died to drowning because I got stuck under a leaf, and rage-quit after a solo run against the Mantis on Woah! mode. This guide is everything I learned so you don’t have to suffer the same stupid deaths I did. Let’s get you from “what’s a weevil?” to “I just parried a wolf spider into the dirt.”

Getting Started / First Steps – What I Wish I Knew Before My First Night

Your first ten minutes are critical. The game throws you in with nothing but a pebble and a dream. Here’s what you need to do immediately, not after you’ve starved to death twice:

• Spam the “interact” button on every dry grass blade you see. You need at least 20 grass planks to build a basic shelter. Don’t try to fight anything yet – you punch slower than a sloth with arthritis. The weevils will run away, and the aphids will mock you.
• Build a lean-to before sundown on day one. I cannot stress this enough. Night one, I didn’t build anything and slept in the open. A wolf spider appeared from nowhere and literally chased me for ten minutes while I screamed into my mic. The lean-to is your save point. Make it with 3 plant fiber and 3 stem fiber. That’s it.
• Your first weapon should be the pebblet axe, not the spear. The axe cuts grass faster and is your primary tool for gathering. The spear? It’s okay, but you’ll craft a bow within an hour that outclasses it. Don’t waste resources on the spear unless you’re desperate.
• Water is life, literally. You can drink from the juice box puddles early on, but you will die of dehydration. Build a canteen (3 mite fuzz, 1 sprig) as soon as you can. Fill it from the pond near the oak tree. That pond also has water fleas that look harmless but will three-shot you. Don’t swim in it until you have armor.
• Marks on your map are your best friend. When you find a science station (BURG.L’s little outposts), mark it on your map. Those are your fast-travel points later. Also, mark the locations of ant hills, spider dens, and termite mounds so you don’t accidentally run into them while panicking.

One specific moment: My second attempt at a playthrough, I found a Rotten Ladybug armor piece near the oak tree by the plant pot. I didn’t know it was there. That single armor piece let me survive two more hits against larva, which let me farm ant parts. Look up the locations of rotten gear on the wiki – it’s not cheating, it’s a head start.

Core Mechanics & Progression – How the Game Actually Works (Not the Tutorial)

Forget the tutorial lady explaining mutation slots. Here’s the real deal.

Your brain is your skill tree. You unlock science (brainpower) by analyzing resources at the BURG.L lab or field stations. You start with 5 brainpower. Every time you analyze a new resource (like a grub goop or a flower petal), you get +1 brainpower. This unlocks new structures, weapons, and recipes in the Smithy station. Don’t waste your resources on analyzing common stuff early – analyze stinkbug gas sacks, ladybug heads, and larva spikes first. Those unlock Tier 2 tools and armor.

Mutations are not optional. You have four slots once you lift the early cap (do BURG.L’s quests to unlock more). The game doesn’t tell you this, but some mutations stack. For example, Meat Shield (unlocked by eating 10 different foods) and Buff Lungs (run for a long time without stopping) together will double your stamina. I run Coup de Grass (crit chance, unlocked by crit-killing bugs) with Hunter’s Prowess (damage after parry) and I can kill a wolf spider in 9 hits with a mint mace. The meta? Don’t listen to the meta – listen to your playstyle. If you suck at perfect blocks, run Blademaster (reduced stamina cost on swords) and spam attacks.

Armor sets are not equal. The Ladybug armor is the noob trap. Everyone says it’s tanky. It is. But the Koi Scale armor (from the koi fish in the pond) gives you faster stamina regen and a chance to block attacks without perfect timing. I switched from Ladybug to Koi and suddenly I could parry three wolf spiders at once. Don’t sleep on the Mitey Leggings either – they give +1% crit chance per piece, which stacks with Coup de Grass up to 15% crit rate.

Weapons have “movesets.” The spear has a thrust that’s fast but low damage. The axe has a wide swing that’s slow but staggers. The mosquito needle? It has a life steal effect that heals you for a small percentage of damage dealt. I once fought the Broodmother solo using only the needle and healing items, and I won because I kited her around a rock. Kiting is your friend. If a bug is too strong, lead it into another bug and let them fight. Stinkbugs and wolf spiders will gladly agro on each other – I’ve collected so many free parts from watching a wolf spider eat a stinkbug.

Expert Tips & Tricks – The Stuff You Only Learn After 200 Hours

Here’s the chunky stuff. Forget the beginner guides. This is the golden egg.

• The mint mace is the best weapon in the game, but only if you craft it early. You find mint pieces in the haze area (northwest of the map near the sprinkler). Each piece gives you 1 of the 4 needed to craft the mace. I rushed this weapon on my third playthrough and killed the Assistant Manager in under 20 seconds. It does 40 base damage plus a freeze effect that slows enemies. Don't wait for late game.
• Bombardier beetle parts are a pain to farm, but worth it. You can’t kill one easily early – they shoot acid that chunks you. But if you lure one to a spider web, the wolf spider will kill it for you. Watch from a safe distance. I’ve farmed 15 beetle parts this way without swinging a weapon.
• Plants respawn, but not all of them. Grass clumps and dandelions repop every 3 in-game days. Mushrooms? They’re on a 7-day cycle. Mark the spiderweb limestone near the berry bush – that area has a mushroom patch that spawns every 7 days exactly. I’ve built an entire mushroom brick base off that one location.
• The diving bell spider is your best friend for early pond gear. Kill one (they’re near the submerged caves in the pond) and you get spider silk rope and spider parts that let you craft the bubble helmet. That helmet lets you breathe underwater for 5 minutes. That opens up the entire pond biome before you even touch the deep end.
• Jump on ladybugs. If you stand on a ladybug’s back, it can’t turn to hit you. You can literally ride it while hitting it with a hammer. I call this “the taxi service method.” Works for black ants too, but not fire ants – they have a different attack pattern.
• When building bases, always place a lean-to inside a pre-built structure. The lean-to is your respawn point. But if you build it in the open, a wolf spider might destroy it while you’re asleep. I had to rebuild my base three times because I didn’t put walls around my lean-to. Lesson learned.

Common Mistakes to Avoid – What Got Me Killed, Frustrated, or Both

I’ve died more times than I’d like to admit. Here’s what I did wrong so you don’t have to.

• Building your base in the open. My first base was near the starting area on the baseball. I thought it was safe. It’s not. Wolf spiders patrol that area every 3 minutes. They destroyed everything. Build under a leaf or inside a log. The oak tree area has a hollow log near the fence that’s perfect – it’s safe from everything except the occasional ant.
• Hording grass planks in your inventory. They take up 3 slots each. I once had 40 planks and couldn’t sprint from a bee. Drop them in a pile near your base. They don’t despawn for a long time. Or build a chest specifically for them.
• Ignoring the water flea. In the pond, the water fleas are annoying but the real threat is the sunfish. I thought I could swim across the pond to the lab. I made it halfway before I was eaten. There’s a reason the game warns you about deep water. Use the bridge of rocks near the juice box to cross.
• Fighting the Mantis without a full set of spicy armor. The Mantis is weak to spicy damage. I went in with Ladybug armor and a mint mace. She jumped on me and I was dead in 3 hits. The Spicy Coaltana (from the BBQ spill area) is the go-to. Also, bring 10 smoothies and 5 bandages. I only brought 3 smoothies and died from DoT poison.
• Not having a debug stick. The debug stick is a tool you can get from BURG.L’s quests that lets you remove misplaced structures. I built a giant staircase that led to nowhere and had to destroy it piece by piece with a hammer. The debug stick saves hours of tedium.
• Believing the anti-science faction’s propaganda. There’s an optional path where you side against BURG.L. I did that on my second playthrough. It locks you out of almost every upgrade. The game basically punishes you for being a rebel. Stick with BURG.L until you’ve beaten the final boss.

FAQ – The Questions You’ll Actually Ask

Q: Is Grounded hard?
A: Yes, but not unfairly. The early game is brutal because you don’t know spawns. Once you learn bug patrol routes and build a solid weapon, it becomes manageable. The Woah! difficulty is for masochists. I’ve beaten the game on Normal and Medium – Medium feels balanced for a first-timer.

Q: Can I play solo or is it only multiplayer?
A: You can 100% play solo. I did my first playthrough alone. The game scales difficulty based on player count. Solo means fewer bugs but also no one to revive you. Bring lots of healing items. If you have friends, the game is hilarious – we once built a catapult to launch aphids at each other.

Q: What’s the best base location?
A: The oak tree area is a safe bet – central, close to resources, and has a respawn point nearby. For the ultimate late-game base, I built on the bird bath. It’s high up, safe from all ground bugs, but you need a zipline to get supplies up there. The pond islands are also a good choice – nothing can reach you.

Q: How do I deal with wolf spiders?
A: Perfect block timing. They have a tell: they rear up and do a double slam. Perfect block the first hit and you’ll stagger them. I use a mint mace with Coup de Grass and can kill one in 12 hits. If you’re early game, just run. They’re faster than you but will give up after 30 seconds if you break line of sight.

Q: Is the Broodmother fight worth the headache?
A: Yes, but only for the Broodmother armor set. It gives you poison resistance and a damage buff. I didn’t bother with it on my first run and regretted it when I hit the upper yard. The fight requires about 20 smoothies and a tier 3 weapon. Use the spicy staff if you have it – it melts her.

Q: What’s the deal with the haze?
A: The haze is a gas cloud in the northwest part of the map. You need a gas mask (from stinkbug parts) to survive. Inside, you’ll find infected bugs and the mint pieces I talked about. I went in without a gas mask once and died within 10 seconds. Craft the mask before you even go near that area.

Q: Can I tame the pets?
A: You can “tame” a weevil, aphid, or gnat using specific treats (like mushroom pieces or tick parts). They’ll follow you but can’t fight. I tamed a weevil named “Sir Poops-a-lot” and he died in a wolf spider attack. It’s more for flavor than function. Don’t rely on them for combat.

Q: The final boss – is it worth the build-up?
A: The final boss (the Infected Broodmother or the Mantis, depending on your choices) is a big difficulty spike. The Mantis took me 15 tries on Normal. But the reward (end-game gear and a secret ending) is satisfying. I’d say the journey to the end is better than the boss itself – the story is actually surprisingly touching. No spoilers, but bring tissues if you’re a softy like me.

That’s it, rookie. Go out there, get shrunk, and make that backyard your own. And remember: if you hear chittering at night, it’s already too late.