Basic Guide to Survival

*This page is a guide on how to survive in the Betweenlands once you have entered the dimension. If you need to know how to get to the Betweenlands, visit the How to Get There page. If you need to know how to install the Betweenlands mod, click here.*

The first thing you should know about the Betweenlands is that it will not be as easy to survive here as it is to in The Overworld. Many otherwise normal mechanics have added layers and depth added to them.

Terrain can be much harder to navigate, mobs are often much more dangerous, some plants are poisonous to touch, and you must always be aware of not only your hunger and health bar, but also your Decay bar and the Corrosion of your tools. The player also accumulates a stench from being here too long, and begins disliking certain foods that they are eating too much of.

## Getting Started

### Overworld Items

There are certain items that do not function in the dimension. Any non-Betweenlands food and potions (besides Rotten Flesh) brought into the dimension immediately turns into Rotten Food and Tainted Potions respectively. Attempting to place Torches in the dimension will cause them to extinguish into Damp Torches, which do not provide light. Tools and weapons can be brought but are much less effective while in the dimension, as any non-Betweenlands tools are slower and creatures are resistant to non-Betweenlands weapons. Clocks, Compasses, Vanilla Beds, Bone Meal, and Flint and Steel also do not work as they normally would as the environment is too damp and corrupted, though there are some alternatives available for their functions.

Assuming you get there through a Portal Tree, you can get a head start by using the Weedwood in the tree's floor to make tools. The Betweenlands has its own versions of most vanilla items, so players can choose to enter as prepared or unprepared as they want, although remember you can always return to the Overworld for more if you wish. Later on, one can also craft a Swamp Talisman in case they loose the starting tree.

### Basic Mechanics

*(More info is available on each mechanic's corresponding page)*

While in the Betweenlands, players have a have a Decay bar that gradually inflicts Slowness and reduces maximum health as it depletes. It can be refilled with Balls of Sap from Sap Trees, or Weeping Blue Petals from Weeping Blue flowers. These items can be obtained in the swamp biome.

Most Betweenlands tools will be affected by Corrosion, which gradually reduces their effectiveness over time. Corrosion can be removed in the Purifier, or prevented with Scabyst, which will be underground, although these will likely not be needed until later, as Corrosion takes a long time to accumulate.

Most Betweenlands foods are affected by Food Sickness, requiring the player to eat a variety of foods, as frequently eaten foods become less filling the more times they're eaten in a row.

### First Resources

When you first enter, it is recommended to survey your surroundings. Most biomes within the Betweenlands contain the necessary materials to get started, but some are more difficult to traverse or contain more dangerous enemies, such as the Deep Waters and Sludge Plains biomes. Others, such as the Coarse Islands, Raised Isles, Patchy Islands, and Swamplands biomes, are more beginner-friendly. In any case, it is useful to take note of whatever resources or hazards you find in the surrounding environment.

Some of the most important resources to look for at the start of the game are: Weedwood Trees for tools, Sap Trees for Balls of Sap to cure Decay, and Swamp Reeds for other useful tools such as Buckets or a Simple Slingshot.

If in a Marsh biome, look for Weeping Blue flowers instead of Sap Trees to keep your Decay bar filled.

Swamp Hags are common hostile mobs that are easy to kill and drop Slimy Bones, which are used for better tools and armour. Slimy Bones can also be found as Slimy Bone Ore underground, spawning commonly close to the surface.

### Food

There are plenty of food sources in the Betweenlands. Beware that most foods are affected by Food Sickness, so it is a good idea to look for and consume multiple sources of food. Black Hat and Flathead Mushrooms, Balls of Sap, and Chiromaw Wings are exempt from this mechanic. Food can also be farmed.

* Swamplands biomes are covered in two types of mushrooms: Black Hat Mushrooms and Flathead Mushrooms. These mushrooms can be harvested and will provide minimal amounts of hunger points, but will also inflict the negative Hunger status effect, similar to vanilla Rotten Flesh.
* Patchy Islands biomes can occasionally contain Giant Bulb-Capped Mushrooms, with smaller Bulb-Capped Mushrooms growing around them. When harvested, these mushrooms can also be eaten, inflicting the Nausea and Night Vision status effects for a few seconds.
* Silt Crabs and Bubbler Crabs can be found crawling around on Silt Beaches in Patchy Islands and Swamplands biomes, respectively. They will attack you before attempting to run away, but as long as they are not in a swarm they are easy to deal with. If you are successful in killing some, they will drop Crab Claws, which can be eaten. They can also be crafted into Crabsticks without cooking, which restore more hunger than the claws. Both Crab Claws and Crabsticks can also be smoked once you obtain a Smoking Rack, for even greater sustenance.
* Swamp Reeds can be cooked into Dried Swamp Reeds. 4 of these can be crafted into a Reed Donut. They are also used in many crafting recipes, and are very common and easily regrow like vanilla Sugar Cane.
* Swamp Kelp is a water plant that can be found in water bodies, and can be harvested and grown like vanilla Kelp. When cooked in a furnace, it can be eaten for decent sustenance.
* Mire Snails, Blood Snails, Anadia, and Frogs drop raw meat, which can be eaten as is, or cooked or smoked to be more filling. However, Blood Snails are hostile and may be difficult to face when starting off, and there is a Frog variety that is poisonous to touch.
* Barnacle Clusters can be found growing off of Cragrock Spires underwater in Deep Waters biomes. These can be harvested when at full maturity, dropping Barnacle Flesh that can be eaten as is, or cooked or smoked like meat. Additionally, matured clusters drop Barnacle Larvae, which can be used to easily grow more Barnacle Clusters at the start of the game without the setup that other "crops" require, though it is worth noting that going underwater can be dangerous.
* 4 Nibblesticks can be crafted out of 2 Nibbletwig Logs. Although they don't restore much hunger and incur Food Sickness more quickly than other foods, Nibbletwig Trees are fairly common and can be easily regrown. Eating Nibblesticks may also grant a small amount of XP.
* Sludge plains biomes, although dangerous can contain lots of food, just craft a Shovel and dig up the Sludgy trail that a sludge has left behind. This can be smelted into Sludge Jello. Combine this with sap to get Sap Jello, which restores decay. Wights Hearts can also be consumed, but we recommend not battling these until you are ready.
* Chiromaw Wings will reset food sickness, dropping from Chiromaws.

### Biomes

The Betweenlands has multiple Biomes with unique resources.

* Swamplands biomes have a decent landmass and relatively thick groups of Weedwood, Rubber, and Nibbletwig Trees.
* Patchy Islands biomes have many good early sources of food as well as Weedwood and Hearthgrove Trees, but are also home to Leeches, Blood Snails, and Shamblers.
* Marsh biomes contain plentiful loot in the Marsh Ruins, but are also home to Shallowbreaths, deadly clouds of gas, and Peat Mummies, rare but powerful monsters that rise out of Peat or Mud to hunt down players. On top of this, there are plenty of Mud patches and Swamp Water pools to slow the player.
* Coarse Islands, Raised Isles, and Deep Waters biomes contain Cragrock, which is essential for many crafting recipes, as well as Swamp Kelp as a food source. Deep Waters biomes also contain a variety of sea life and are a prime location to hunt or fish for Anadia. The Raised Islands in Raised Isles biomes provide a great vantage point to survey the land below, but be on the lookout for Chiromaw Matriarchs and their Nests, which are especially dangerous for an unprepared player.
* Sludge Plains biomes are covered in Mud and Sludgy Dirt, which greatly hinders movement. Peat Mummies, Tar Beasts, and Sludges are found here. Although there are often loot-filled Sludge Plains Ruins, this biome is extremely dangerous and avoiding it until you are prepared is highly recommended.

While traversing the dimension, be careful not to be poisoned by Poison Ivy, stung by Nettle, or get stuck in Mud, as it will slow you down, and possibly summon a Peat Mummy.

### Rift Cycle

Instead of a traditional daylight cycle, the Betweenlands contains a Rift that occasionally opens and closes, letting in whatever light is available in The Overworld at the time for random intervals spanning several minutes. While the Rift cycle does little to affect mob spawns or behaviour, taking note of the state of the Rift can help you to understand how the natural sky light of the surface correlates, and plan expeditions accordingly.

The Betweenlands is at its darkest when there is absolutely no Rift in the sky. It is very difficult to see at this time, even with several light sources.

When the Rift is close to opening or closing, you will hear rumbles from the sky. As the Rift is opening, however, you will hear a louder, pronounced cracking sound. While the Rift is open, the sky light it produces depends on the time of day in the Overworld as shown through the opening:

* If it is night in the Overworld, the Rift provides a small amount of light, enough to see around more and make out further details.
* If it is day in the Overworld, the Rift provides the most amount of light, making it much easier to see.

The size of the Rift does not have any effect on the amount of light it produces.

## The Next Steps

When a suitable location is found, players can set up a base of operations and craft a Moss Bed to set their spawn.

After becoming somewhat settled, the player can choose to work towards whatever they wish. There are many options available, such as diving into the complex systems of Farming, Fishing, and/or Herblore, spelunking in the Cavern and Lake Cavern layers underground, exploring the dimension's Biomes, raiding Structures, and/or defeating Chief Mobs and Bosses.

This concludes the Basic Guide to Survival. There's still plenty of content in the Betweenlands yet to be discovered and even more yet to be implemented, so go on and explore the mod. You may find yourself surprised. And possibly very spooked!