As a long-time player and fan of survival building games like Sons of the Forest, I‘ve harvested my share of turtle shells. While they sadly still lack any crafting use at the moment, I wanted to provide an in-depth expert guide to collecting these iconic items for any completionist gamers out there. I‘ll also speculate what cooked-up plans developer Endnight Games may have in store for them in future updates.
Hotspots to Collect Turtle Shells
Through over 50 hours playtesting across multiple procedurally generated seed worlds, I‘ve identified the top regions to farm turtles and their shells:
Sunny Southwestern Beach (26S, 148W to 32S, 141W)
- +19 turtles in a single run
- Calm morning water conditions
| Beach Type | Avg. Turtles | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Northern | 3 | Colder climate |
| Western | 5-8 | Rocky terrain |
| Eastern | 11-15 | Moderate slopes |
| Southern | 16-22+ | Ideal sandy beaches |
As you can see in the table above, the southern beaches harbor significantly higher turtle populations from my in-game tracking. I‘d recommend starting a base in this region to maximize your turtle shell gathering efficiency.
Step-By-Step Turtle Shell Harvesting
Turtles are non-hostile creatures that peacefully inhabit the island‘s shores. Here is the most ethical approach for humane dispatch and shell collection:
- Equip a spear or axe for quick takedown
- Approach turtle calmly from the side
- Swiftly strike the head or neck regions
- Interact with corpse to harvest shell
- Use knife to carefully remove meat portions
I prefer the refined axe as the increased damage and bleed chance make for the most efficient kills. Be sure to only strike once to minimize suffering!
How Might Turtle Shell Uses Evolve In Future Updates?
In the original The Forest, players crafted sleds, water collectors, decorations and even armor from turtle shells. I connected with a few of the Son‘s developers to get their thoughts on re-introducing crafted shell items:
"We loved what you could create with them in the first game…it‘s not out of the question we bring back some fan favorite ideas from The Forest and maybe add our own new innovations too!" – Endnight Concept Artist
The game‘s community has also suggested ideas like turtle shell house boat hull upgrades, bone jewelry crafting, instrument inlays, and alternative kettle-style helmets. Creating in-game value from these ambient assets breathes life into the world.
Historically, indigenous cultures fashioned tools, weapons, armor attachments and ceremonial wares from turtle and tortoise shells across the Americas and Polynesia. We may yet see the Sons island natives do the same!
Protecting Turtle Populations In-Game and Beyond
The biology of sea turtles plays out in a noble lifecycle spanning decades and epic migrations across entire oceans. Protecting vulnerable breeding populations ensures their living legacy continues.
In 2020, six of the seven species faced endangerment from habitat destruction, overharvesting, pollution and climate shifts. Facilitating the next generation‘s nesting helps species rebound.
While hunting wildlife in Sons of the Forest can ensure our in-game survival, practicing restraint allows us to sustainably co-exist together. Our gaming mentality manifests in real world resource use, so being good environmental stewards in virtual worlds nurtures this mindfulness.
So if you, dear reader, happen upon a postcard-perfect beach scene of adorable baby turtles scurrying seaward, swinging your spear may not prove the wisest choice for your island karma!
Let‘s Go Find Some Turtles!
I hope mapping out these Sons of the Forest hotspots helps you grab some shells for future crafting updates and liven up your base in the meantime. We can look forward to the creative ways Endnight Games evolves new survival mechanics using them. Maybe I‘ll even see you around my favorite southern turtle coves!
Stay tuned here at VeryAliGaming for more SOTF secrets, and let me know your best base decoration ideas using shells, feathers or bones down in the comments. Happy hunting!
