Best Permanent Base Location

[Revan84]

This is just something I'm curious about. I've been playing this off and on since it first came out and through all the updates and changes. So, with how things are now, where is the best place to have or fortify your main base? Out somewhere on the water just building entirely your own structure, take over an island and use those buildings, take over an island and build over/within those buildings, or stay on starter island and just castle it up? I've tried all those and depending on if I'm solo or co-op can kinda change things up a little.

I'm just wondering, really. Currently I have built up the Mutant Settlement not far from starting island. I'm not using any of the existing structure since it's fairly small so I've built up a kind of upside down pyramid on the top floor where I start with 1 foundation square and just go up and out and the higher the floors I go the further out each higher floor goes. Looks pretty crazy from far away. But I'm thinking/trying to get somewhere more central just to make fly times easier for all my farming/gathering between all the islands I occupy. I don't really know anybody else that plays this so I haven't seen or heard of any unique builds unless I go watch YouTube and I just can't get into all that reality tv announcer guy persona that so many people have. It's either that or they just look/sound depressing. Whatever, rant for another time, ttyl

[stretch]

Honestly I don't really trust the devs after their past efforts. They have wiped all my previous big, well thought out bases so now I just build on the starter island and build the bare minimum to allow me to play through without raids. The raids have just been too buggy to enjoy so without them I do 95% of the game and just miss that aspect. Once they work properly I will try them again but spawning in your base and warping through walls just doesn't do it for me.

One build I filled the entire inside of one of the warehouse island buildings. That was fun but post redesign it's just too far from the shore to enjoy. It was never close but felt worse after. Maybe I just forgot how far it was originally? Might be good for those who use the helicopter and just not for boats.

[Blud]

Build a base beside the trader ( and turn off annoying raids).

[FeroFerreTuliLatus]

I normally build over open water near to the trader, which works well, provided you build at a good height above the water surface. My most recent game I tried building on Two Rock Beach, and really like it: it's easy to build an elevated base that the bad guys can't get into, it has respawning goodies like mushrooms, roast pig, metal and rubber, and once you have AP mines available to you, it's quite easy to make it totally raid-proof, even if you're not there.

[Floxy_Swoosh]

So far, I love the Pirate Hideout near the trader.
There's only one entrance that is easily defended. (You'll have to venture out to take on/lure some raiders who cluster in the back. Try land mines when you get them.)
There is sea water INSIDE the structure for your traps & filling your purifiers.
You can use the existing crumbling interior structure, or build your own inside the large empty INTERIOR space in the front.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3376807340
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3376864880

[ddoerr]

It really depends if you have raids turned on or off. With raids on I agree with ThatsTheTeacher on the bridge but the location is not ideal for me. I like best is Pirate Hideout that Floxy mentioned & for the reasons he stated. But until the issue of enemy walking through walls & warping inside gets fixed, no base is safe...no matter how high or well defended it is.
With Raids Off, a good place in early game is anywhere you want close to the trader & starter resources you need. It doesn't need to be big or heavily invested. Mid to late game...travel distance doesn't really matter so much. I also build small outposts on conquered enemy bases that are far from the center. That's as far as I ever get before an update ruins my saves & it's startover time :)

[bassebrumbrum]

Originally posted by FeroFerreTuliLatus:

I normally build over open water near to the trader, which works well, provided you build at a good height above the water surface. My most recent game I tried building on Two Rock Beach, and really like it: it's easy to build an elevated base that the bad guys can't get into, it has respawning goodies like mushrooms, roast pig, metal and rubber, and once you have AP mines available to you, it's quite easy to make it totally raid-proof, even if you're not there.

Same here, very close to the trader.
My generator and solar/wind turbine are actually right next to the trader.
And they won't get through this defense hehe

And if you want a helicopter, you can easily build a platform up there with a door into the house.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3375450982

[wetbee]

Like someone commented on about loosing a build after an update, the safest place to build is on the original island. I've been here with many builds since the beginning. Now I build a small base across from the store. Build going up instead of wide. A ladder to get up seems to be beyond the enemy's grasp. But really they never get that close with the island covered with land mines and gun emplacements. Sometimes I just watch and go down and collect the goodies. You need goodies to get better ones. If you drop a flag on an isle that you conquered, say goodbye to the stuff they drop, they won't come back. So don't lay a flag and you can come back and get more goodies.

[Oragepoilu]

The island quite close west of the trader is a bit tedious to clear early game but there is a large concrete building you can build on, with a small metal ramp that lead inside it. they can't walk in and get stuck under the building, so you can just leave some trap (like thorns, I made it works on the hardest difficulty with just that all the way to end game) here while you hide and/or repair some foundations now and then because they still sometime shoot trough stuff.

[busterbloodvessel]

three barrel island

[Clif]

Never saw much advantage building off Casteway Is. I play single with raid level on low. Castaway has the most resources, mushrooms, strawberries, offshore scallops, swordfish, onshore wood and some iron ore. Spend the first day getting scrap iron, cloth, wood build up metal platforms high on the central rock with a short step that requires a hop up to reach the platform, it'll stop the raiders. Get to work: bed, torch flame, stove, water, research table first; get to level 2 fast as possible for crossbow, level 3 for blackvpowder. with black powder pistol then you have power to expand take two rock Is. claim, it has quick respawn meat station, same with Kracken island meat station, great resource for food and gas production. Put all your production on first level of base, build up two or three levels. Once you get AP mines and regularly plant them around the baddies won't be able to touch you. You don't need much defense other than that. I only place a few rolls of barb wire and a couple of steel plates as decoys near my steps to attract invaders that try to wreck them and I shoot them from high up on my platform with crossbow, molotov or blackpowder pistol. Haven't lost a base yet with this strategy.