The Ancient Caves are no joke. If you’re just starting out on Len’s Island, the Caves are one of the first structures you can enter — and probably get killed in while exploring. Thankfully, death has few drawbacks, but surviving the Caves is going to require more than dying and respawning. Here are some tips on beefing up to brave the Caves.
First, you really need food. It’s recommended to grow some crops, bake some bread, and generally just stockpile on food for the trip. The Caves are a very long dungeon, a lot longer than one might think. Growing a storage of Blueberries is a good first step, but learning how to bake bread will really take you the extra mile.
Next, you need to gear up. The Marlin Sword is a great beginner weapon for initial forays into the Caves, but it definitely isn’t enough. You will notice that the nearby town of Bridgewater has a handful of weapons for sale — you can buy one if you’re flush with cash, or forge a potentially stronger one if you have a higher leveled Workbench.
Finally, while traversing the Caves you will have to take stock of, and make use of, certain scenarios. First, the Darkness will often have a spawning node nearby. You need to take out the node first — otherwise, you’ll get overwhelmed by enemies very quickly. Second, if you see an unlit Brazier, you need to light the fire. Not only does this brighten the area, but it also provides a passive +5 healing per second as long as you remain around the bonfire. Lanterns, however, do not provide this passive bonus.
