In Raft, you start on a raft in the middle of a wide ocean and must survive. How you manage your resources, how you survive in harsh environments; all that stuff is your job. However, certain tips can help you get ahead.
You must keep an eye on your health, hunger, and other needs. You must craft tools, make food, and fend off predators. Additionally, you will find land, research opportunities, and interact with other players which will contribute toward survival in Raft.
1. Monitor your health, hunger, and thirst
Your basic survival includes tackling three needs: hunger, thirst, and health. You can monitor all these using the bars on the left of the screen. Additionally, if you are looking for something underwater, you will have to be careful about your Oxygen Level as well.
As you start on a small wooden raft, look around for sources to expand and develop your boat. Just for this sole purpose, crafting a net is essential since it will capture any floating materials around, saving you from the tough work.
Alternatively, you can use your hook to bring in the floating items. Beware of the Shark circling, though. Moreover, we would not recommend going too far from the raft to look for resources since the raft will then float away.
2. Craft the hammer
To step up your craft-constructing game, you’ll need some essential tools for the job. If you’ve been fortunate enough to collect sufficient resources around the raft, you’ll have unlocked the ability to construct a Builders Hammer.
You craft this by going to your inventory (I or tab button) and heading to the tools tab. The hammer is one of the most important tools for survival in Raft. It lets you craft other items and also allows you to repair your raft.
3. Gather food & water
You can go about two ways to ensure a steady supply of food resources. One method is to grow your food. This is done by placing a planter and having different vegetables grow in it.
From time to time, you’ll receive barrels in your inventory, allowing you to obtain beans, potatoes, and more. You can have them placed in the planter for a renewable source of food. Make sure you water them well and are near them to avoid any seagulls taking a go at your hard work.
The other way of getting food would be to use the ocean around you for fish using a fishing rod. You will need to craft one before you go about this business. Once you catch a fish, you’ll also need to cook it for the hunger bar to go up. For this purpose, you’ll need a grill and a source of fire. A wooden plank would do.
As mentioned above, water is crucial not only for quenching your thirst but also for growing more food. Fortunately, you’ve got lots of water all around you in all directions. However, unfortunately, it’s too salty for anyone’s good.
Thankfully, you can construct a purification station and boil the water here (fire/wooden plank). You can collect the water from the sea in a cup or any container of your choice.
4. Learn how to effectively deal with the shark
If you’ve grown tired of the constant looming threat that is the shark, you can take measures to deal with it. Of course, jumping into the water is not one of them. You would need to craft a weapon, a wooden spear will do.
Wait for the shark to approach your raft. Then strike it with the spear until you’ve shown it who’s the boss around your raft. It will take about 3-4 hits until the shark’s gone off. You can also use shark bait to distract or lure the shark into a specific place.
5. Unlock the research station
As you progress higher in the game, you’ll need more tools, weapons, and other facilities to increase your chances of survival. This is where the research station comes in for survival in Raft.
There is a tonne of items available in the research menu. Unlocking and crafting these require blueprints from barrels and other resources. You’ll need to place the item on this research station for the process to commence.
6. Interact with other rafts
You’ll also encounter other players’ rafts, which you can choose to ram against or cooperate with. You’ll get many supplies by going about it the ole’ devilish way, i.e., destroy their boats.
Make your way to them by sails or paddles, and once you’ve collected the loot, head back to your raft quickly to avoid sharks or other rafts.
7. Make use of islands
On these small islands, you can find a lot of resources like coconut seeds, plants, and other sources of food. Additionally, the water around these islands is shallow and suitable for exploration purposes.
Just make sure you anchor your raft somewhere safe first. Alternatively, if you can’t afford the luxury, rush for your raft as soon as you get off the island for survival in Raft.