Task guide / Upcoming Early Access · Oct 27 devlogs
Survivors & Workers
Start recruitment with Weak survivors and improve Outpost Reputation by building shelter structures and clearing enemy camps. For supply care, NPCs use their own inventory first; the automatic nearest-chest restock rule is specifically documented for Workers. Keep their food, water and medicine available before assigning a long job.
Updated 2026-10-30 · Upcoming Early Access · Oct 27 devlogs
What to do, in order
Start with Weak survivors. The announced tiers are Weak, Average and Strong; Strong survivors may still refuse even with enough Outpost Reputation. Check the recruitment requirement shown in the conversation before choosing a candidate.
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Recruitment expectations Tier / condition What the official update says Weak The easiest starting tier; Weak survivors can be found in buildings in their areas. Average More skilled and harder to convince than Weak. Strong More skilled; can still refuse even when you have enough reputation. No one recruited yet Two Weak survivors appear nearby at the start. Raise Outpost Reputation by building structures at your shelter and clearing enemy camps. If recruitment is blocked, compare the candidate’s requirement with your current reputation and continue those two activities before asking again.
Open the Residential menu to review resident condition. In the earlier official Demo interface shown below, each row lists a name and role plus Health, Food, Water and Morale. Open the full screenshot to see the broader Residents and Storage panels.
Open full screenshot ↗Devlog #2 / earlier Demo interface. This focus window shows one Worker’s name, role and four status fields; open the full screenshot for the complete Residents and Storage panels. Supply food, drinking water and medicine in the NPC inventory first. Workers who run out go to the nearest chest to restock. If nothing is available, the NPC tells you it is hungry, thirsty or needs medicine. If a Companion or Guard struggles, provide items directly instead of assuming Worker restocking is guaranteed for that role.
For a gathering job, use the Loot Order panel to choose the material and an amount, or the maximum limit. Workers deposit the haul in suitable storage and notify you when done. Hover the job for its description and watch shortage notifications.
If an NPC has nowhere suitable to deposit, it keeps the items and warns you rather than scattering them on the ground. Place suitable storage so the delivery can proceed. For a Raw Fish order, also provide a Fishing Rod in the NPC’s own inventory/backpack or a nearby chest; the NPC keeps that rod after use.
When the order is complete
A recruited resident has supplies, the ordered resource arrives in storage and the game gives the completion notification. Fed and hydrated NPCs are also documented to slowly regenerate health.
If recruitment or care stalls
If a resident refuses, recheck tier and reputation; enough reputation is not a guarantee for Strong survivors. If a Worker requests supplies, check both its inventory and the nearest chest contents. If it keeps a full load, give it suitable storage. Continued failures may be bugs: note role, supplies, job and game build when reporting them.