How to Play Stillskin Forest
Last checked · Checked against the development build
How do you play Stillskin Forest?
Each run starts on Day 1 in morning light. Spend the day scavenging food, medicine, weapons and ammunition and reading clues; use the 40-second dusk to get somewhere defensible; then survive the three-minute night as the infected multiply and hunt. Revive teammates who go down. The run ends when everyone has fallen, or when your squad completes one of the story endings.
- Full day
- About 8 minutes
- Day phase
- 5 minutes (incl. 20 s sunrise, 40 s dusk)
- Night phase
- 3 minutes
- Run starts
- Day 1, 8:00 a.m.
By day: scavenge and prepare
A few infected roam in daylight, but far fewer than at night (seven on Day 1). This is the time to leave camp, choose a route and search. Loot sits on real surfaces in houses, the hospital, the store and along the trails; walk up to it and press E. Empty loot spots refill at dawn.
- Pick up food and a First Aid Kit before you need them.
- A melee weapon such as the Baseball Bat handles single infected quietly. Save guns for emergencies; they are loud.
- Read notes. They point toward Blackthorn and the story.
At dusk: get somewhere you can hold
Dusk lasts 40 seconds and is announced on screen. On Night 2 and later it may also announce a special night. Use it to regroup with your squad, close doors, and decide whether you will hold a building, keep moving, or hide.
At night: survive
The infected population jumps (45 on Night 1) and they spot you from further away. Your headlamp shows you more but also makes you easier to see. Gunfire, alarms and sprinting all draw attention; see Detection and noise.
You can fight, run, or hide. If you go down, a teammate has 20 seconds to revive you.
How a run ends
When the last survivor falls the run is over: the squad's stat cards appear on the roof of St. Agnes Hospital and everyone votes to Return to Camp for a fresh Day 1. A run can also end in victory by completing the Rite of Stillness or destroying the Heart of Stillskin.