Character Progression & Leveling
The journey through the Exiled Lands is one of constant growth and adaptation. Understanding how to efficiently progress your character and level up is paramount to survival and eventual dominance. This section will guide you through the early, mid, and late game strategies for maximizing your experience gain and developing a formidable exile.
Early Game: Survival and Basic Crafting (Levels 1-20)
Your initial hours in Conan Exiles are about establishing a foothold and learning the ropes. Focus on basic survival needs and gathering resources to craft essential tools and shelter.
- Gathering & Crafting: Almost every action in the Exiled Lands grants experience. Chop down trees for wood, harvest plants for plant fiber, and mine stone. Crafting simple tools like a Stone Pick and Stone Axe provides immediate experience boosts.
- First Shelter: Constructing a basic shelter is crucial. Start with a Sandstone Foundation, Walls, and a Roof. Each piece placed contributes to your experience. A small 1x1 or 2x2 hut is sufficient to protect you from the elements and sandstorms.
- Hunting Small Game: Early on, focus on easily defeated creatures. Rocknoses and Hyenas near the starting river provide decent experience and valuable resources like Raw Meat and Hide. Cooked meat is essential for sustenance.
- River Exploration: Stick to the starting river for safety and resources. The riverbanks are rich in Stone, Wood, and Plant Fiber. You'll also encounter less aggressive wildlife.
- Basic Weapons: Crafting a Stone Sword or Stone Spear will significantly improve your combat effectiveness against early threats.
Mid Game: Iron, Exploration, and Thrall Recruitment (Levels 21-40)
As you gain levels, new crafting recipes and opportunities open up. This phase focuses on acquiring better gear, exploring more dangerous areas, and beginning your thrall collection.
- Iron Acquisition: Your primary goal should be to locate and mine Iron Ore. Good early-mid game locations for Iron include the areas around the Shattered Springs or the hills north of the starting river. You'll need a Furnace to smelt Iron Ore into Iron Bars.
- Iron Tools & Weapons: Upgrade to Iron Pickaxes, Iron Axes, and Iron Weapons as soon as possible. These significantly increase your gathering efficiency and combat prowess, allowing you to take on tougher enemies.
- Thrall Breaking: Begin the process of acquiring thralls. You'll need a Truncheon (crafted from Iron Bars and Leather), Fiber Bindings, and a Wheel of Pain. Early thralls like Fighter Thralls from small camps can provide valuable combat support and experience from their kills.
- Dungeon Exploration (Early): Consider tackling easier dungeons like the Dregs once you have decent iron gear and perhaps a thrall. Dungeons offer substantial experience, unique loot, and lore.
- Building Expansion: Expand your base with more advanced building materials like Reinforced Wood or even Stonebrick for better defense against purges and other players (if on a PvP server).
Late Game: Steel, Advanced Dungeons, and Legendary Gear (Levels 41-60)
The endgame is about mastering the Exiled Lands, acquiring the best gear, and conquering the most challenging content. Your focus shifts to specialized resources and high-level combat.
- Steel Production: The next major material upgrade is Steel. To craft Steel, you'll need Iron Bars and Tar (obtained from a Tannery processing Hide) combined in a Furnace with Coal to create Steel Fire, which then makes Steel Bars.
- Advanced Dungeons: With Steel gear and powerful thralls, you can now tackle more difficult dungeons such as the Black Keep, Sunken City, or the Warmaker's Sanctuary. These dungeons offer the best experience, unique legendary weapons, and rare crafting components.
- Boss Fights: Seek out world bosses and dungeon bosses. These encounters provide massive experience rewards and often drop legendary items or unique crafting recipes. Prepare thoroughly with strong armor, weapons, and healing items.
- Obelisks and Teleportation: Activate all Obelisks across the map. This allows for fast travel, significantly reducing travel time and making resource gathering and dungeon runs more efficient.
- Specialized Thralls: Focus on acquiring high-tier thralls, especially Named Thralls (Tier IV). These thralls offer superior combat abilities and crafting bonuses, making your base and expeditions far more effective. Look for them in specific camps like Sepermeru or the Volcano region.
- Exploration of the Frozen North and Volcano: These regions offer the most challenging enemies and the most valuable resources, including Star Metal and Obsidian, essential for crafting the strongest weapons and tools.
General Leveling Tips:
- Crafting Spree: When you need a quick burst of experience, craft large quantities of simple items like Stone Arrows, Plant Fiber Clothes, or Twine. These are cheap to produce and provide consistent experience.
- Discovery Bonus: Explore every corner of the map. Discovering new locations, camps, and points of interest grants a one-time experience bonus.
- Journey Steps: Pay attention to your Journey Steps (accessible via the character menu). Completing these objectives provides significant experience rewards and guides you through the game's mechanics.
- Kill Everything: Don't shy away from combat. Every creature you defeat contributes to your experience pool. Even small animals add up over time.
- Food Buffs: Certain foods can provide temporary buffs, including increased experience gain. Always check the effects of cooked meals.