Some Basic Gameplay Information

This guide contains some basic gameplay information I've picked up while playing the game.

Introduction

This guide is a work in progress. I'm creating new sections focused on topics. The old sections with random hints and tips are still in the bottom half of the guide and will eventually be included in specific topical sections.

Check back occasionally and see what has changed.

Before we get into the hints and tips, I thought I'd make a few points that I've gathered from my more than forty hours in the game.

This Game Is All About Problem Solving

Some games are about demonstrating skills, fast reactions, lightning quick reflexes, etc. Expeditions A MudRunner Game is all about problem solving. Each Expedition, Task or Objective you select will present you with a number of problems. There will be difficult terrain to overcome. There will be fuel limitations, supplies needed, objectives to discover. There will be choices to be made regarding trucks, upgrades, inventory, fuel, supply, specialists. You will need to reassess your route planning as you uncover unexpected hazards. You will have to deal with damaged trucks and low fuel/supplies. But you can mitigate some of the challenges with good planning. And as you play you will determine how to overcome the remaining problems. That's the challenge of Expeditions A MudRunner Game.

This is NOT SnowRunner 2.0, SnowRunner the Sequel, etc.

A lot of folks have been complaining about how things look different than SnowRunner, or there aren't as many trucks as SnowRunner, etc, etc. All I can say here is you can drive yourself crazy (or everyone else too) by trying to compare the game to SnowRunner. Yes, there are some elements of SnowRunner in this game, but as the devs have repeatedly said, this is a different game than SnowRunner.

You Need To Put in the Work to Get Better at this Game

This is another issues some folks seem to be complaining about, that there must be something wrong with the game because they are having a tough time with it. Expeditions is not an easy game, not because there is something wrong with it, but because it is intended to be challenging. Even if you played a lot of SnowRunner, that's only going to be of limited help.

This is my progress so far in the game. I've only had one expedition which required more than one attempt; it took me three actually. Otherwise I was able to complete each expedition the first time, not because I'm some off-road guru, but because I put in the work to figure out how to accomplish the objectives.


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Surprisingly, the Game Actually Gets Easier As You Play

As you progress in the game, you unlock more items to help you play better. Specialists and truck upgrades make the missions easier to complete. Cargo drones can help to keep you supplied on the map. Radar helps you find upgrades in the field as well as airdrops and other items.

And the biggest contributor to making the game easier is the experience you gain. As you play you'll be better able to judge whether your truck can make it up a slope. You'll learn little tricks to help you climb or go through mud or over rocks. These and other things you learn will make the game less frustrating and hey, you might even enjoy it ;-)

Getting a wheel trapped after a jack-screw respawn and what to do about it.

The below can happen when you respawn your vehicle when using a jack-screw. If you do not position your vehicle with all four wheels well clear of the ground, one of the wheels can spawn *underground*, trapping the vehicle. You cannot pull it loose; I have tried!

If this happens to you, IMMEDIATELY alt+tab out of the game and terminate the game from the task bar. This should prevent the game creating an autosave with your vehicle trapped. Restart the game. You will lose some progress but at least your vehicle won't be stuck.

YouTube™ Video: Expeditions A MudRunner Game | Jack Screw Spawning with a wheel trapped in the rock 

Views: 50

This can happen when you respawn your vehicle when using a jack-screw. If you do not position your vehicle with all four wheels well clear of the ground, one of the wheels can spawn *underground*,...

Fuel, Why it is important and What to Do about It

Fuel is the limiting factor in your missions, your Expeditions. You will need to carry at lot at the beginning of each mission and scrounge what you can as you go along. Fuel can be carried as cargo on the bigger trucks and all vehicles have updates that provide additional storage.

Look for Airdrops to provide more devices, fuel and supplies. Bring an extra vehicle with lots of fuel and supplies and always think about saving fuel. Watch the usage meter in the lower left of the screen and note what activities burn fuel quicker. You'll find that rock climbing and crossing fords really can use up your fuel so do those activities quickly if you can. Eventually you'll be able to use Cargo Drones to bring more fuel but that's still a limited resource. Turn off your engine whenever possible! You can still use your drone and binoculars. Or when checking your map. An idling engine still drinks fuel.

Miscellaneous Odds and Ends

• There is now a photo mode! It is accessed in the Escape menu during gameplay. There are many sliders to adjust the image.
  
  
• You can force the game to do an autosave. Use "Escape" or its equivalent on your controller and select "Return to the Main menu". Do NOT select "Return to Headquarters". By going back to the main menu you will create an autosave. This is handy just in case the game crashes. I've only had one CTD in more than twenty hours, but it might be something to think about.
  
  
• When in-game, if you hit "Escape" you are brought to a menu shown below. The second option is "Profile" which gives you some neat stats.
  
  
  
• I don't know if this is a bug, but sometimes where you have previously built a bridge or cleared an avalanche/rock slide, the game will display an option to spend supplies there again. It doesn't change anything as far as I can tell.
  
• You can change the time of day! When on the map, click "T" (keyboard). Oddly, there is no clock to see, but time will change though dawn, midday, dusk and night, or something to that effect. When it starts getting too dark for me I just go to the map and click three times and it's full daylight.

Old Info Added March 5th, 2024

• Once you have discovered an airdrop, when you mouse over it on the map it will show the inventory items there. However, usually airdrops also contain fuel and supplies. Don't ignore an airdrop after you have taken all the inventory items.
  
• Always bring anchors and jack-screws. This is especially true for trucks that sit high on their suspension.
  
• On some maps you can build bridges and remove avalanches (rock slides), but you need supplies for these. Plan on bringing extra supplies.
  
  
• Always check the upgrades menu before you go on a mission. Add extra fuel cans, supplies and tires. You'll need to add the extra storage and then pick the items you want on the same upgrade screen.
  
• Essentials storage at outposts and bases can provide supplies, fuel and wheels. They start off partially full at the beginning of an Expedition (mission). They are only refilled when you end your current Expedition and start another.
  
• You can send out up to four vehicles at once. Also, you can tow one vehicle with another. This will help at times. When you do, try to keep the engine of the towed vehicle off. Even at idle engines burn fuel. If the towed vehicle's engine is off it will freewheel and save fuel.
  
• There will be missions that want you to send a scout. That’s fine, but scouts have limited inventory, fuel and supplies capacity. Consider sending along a milch cow, a big truck with lots of fuel and supplies plus devices. And that truck can tow your scout too.
  
  
• Trees are insanely strong; this was true in SnowRunner too. If you snag even the smallest branch on your vehicle it will not break and it will stop you. OK, some of the smaller branches will bend out of the way, but still, try to avoid getting too close to them.

Old Info Added March 6th, 2024

• Don't limit yourself to just one truck when you do an expedition. Certain outposts only allow two vehicles to be deployed at that location. If you are on a map with just a single outpost, you will be limited to just two vehicles instead of your usual four. An extra truck can bring your primary vehicle items it needs. And if your primary vehicle spots an upgrade but you don't want to send it there, send your other truck. And remember you are not limited to just the expedition you are on, you can also do tasks and objectives. Once your primary truck has fulfilled its expedition goals, the other truck(s) can do other things.
  
• When preparing to start an Expedition, take a screenshot or at least a long look at the map image on the description page. It will show you objectives or other information that will let you make a better decision about which camp to start from and where to go.

• Once you have unlocked the radar module, consider deploying a truck with radar along with the truck you intend to do a mission, if you are deploying to a location which doesn't have a lot of scanning done around it. Even if the radar truck never leaves the outpost it can scan a lot of ground for you.
  
• One of the best uses of those building modules is to provide you supply anywhere on the map. You can do this once you unlock the Cargo Module. Pair this with an Essentials Storage module and you can send a drone with supplies to anywhere on the map.
  
  
  
• When upgrading your truck, keep in mind that anything that sticks out or below is something that can get hung up on a tree or a rock. In the image below you can see that I've added a horizontal space tire storage under the truck, just forward of the rear wheel. The problem is that if I drive over a tree or a rock, it can snag on that tire storage.
  
  
• Jack-screws and anchors can be very handy. Here's a look at some examples.
  
  

  YouTube™ Video: Expeditions A MudRunner Game | Using Anchors and Jack Screws 

  Views: 100

  Some examples of using jack-screws and anchors.

Old Info Added March 7th, 2024

• Once you have unlocked the radar frame add-on, you can start scouting the maps for objectives, tasks and especially upgrades. The radar is installed on the Step 310E, not the most agile of trucks, but it is surprising how well it can get around the map. You can do the radar scanning not only during a Free Roam Expedition, but really during any Expedition, whether you try to accomplish the expedition goal or not.
  
  Having a map which allows the deployment of four trucks can be very useful in this. A couple of the trucks can pursue the Expedition objective while the radar truck and a support vehicle can roam the map uncovering items. The radar support vehicle can be handy to grab upgrades without having to use the ungainly Step.
  
• There are expeditions that require you to use a truck with the seismic vibrator, which is the Step 301E again. There are a couple of items to watch out for on the Step with the seismic vibrator module. The first is that there is a ladder on the left side of the module and it will fetch up on rocks, boulders and fallen trees.
  
  And on the back of the module there is a step mounted low behind the rear wheels with bars that stick out to both sides. This may interfere with efforts to back up.
  

[Prométhée]

Thanks for guide .

About construction. Is it worth to bye same building on a map ? I dont really know how to use this part of game .
When i start a expédition, there is places where I can bye building … but is it worth it ?

[jztemple]

They do seem to regenerate. I had one expedition which I failed on twice before succeeding and each time I stopped by the same airdrop and got fuel and supplies as well as new inventory items. The devices, bones and scrap metal inventory items seem to be randomly generated, although I've only ever gotten one device from each airdrop.

[ScientistMan96]

Do the Airdrops regenerate with each mission like the storages do, or are they one use only? Like after I grab all the devices/trade goods and fuel/repairs are they just empty marks, or can I trust them to restock at least fuel/repair with each expedition or free roam trip?