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Tools and Equipment - Version 20 vs Version 21
Jun 8, 2026, 11:34 PM
Removed duplicate in-body wikilinks
Jun 10, 2026, 02:24 PM
Added per-species Distraction Flare responses and a cross-reference to the Flares page
11Tools and equipment in Subnautica 2 are the items players carry, craft, and use to interact with the world of Proteus. Players start with basic gear and unlock recipes for more advanced equipment by exploring deeper biomes and scanning fragments. Crucially, Subnautica 2 has no weapons of any kind: every item in the toolkit is a collection, survival, or utility tool, in line with the game's no-weapons philosophy.22Confirmed Tools and Equipment44The following items are confirmed for the current Early Access build. Where a detail is uncertain, it is flagged as such.66ItemTypePrimary FunctionScannerToolScans creatures, objects, and fragments. Scanning drives blueprint unlocks. Returns with a hovering radar-hologram upgrade that helps locate resources.Habitat BuilderToolThe sole base-construction tool. Used to lay out and assemble base structures, including the Dive Elevator.FabricatorCrafting stationCrafts small items from gathered materials. The Lifepod has a limited built-in Fabricator; a full Fabricator is a base module.ProcessorCrafting stationRefines raw ore into ingots in bulk. Ingots cannot be made at a standard Fabricator; the Processor is required.BiosamplerToolThe signature new tool. Extracts creature DNA and is the entry point to the Adaptation and BioMod systems.WakemakerTool (handheld)Handheld twin-fan propulsion tool that boosts swim speed. Battery-powered; the player is visually obscured while using it. Unlocked from several fragments.Distraction FlareToolThrowable lure that exploits reactive creature AI, drawing a creature's attention away from the player.Sonic ResonatorToolMining tool that breaks large mineral deposits with focused sound. Doubles as the nearest thing to a defensive tool by briefly stunning predators.Survival Tool / MultitoolToolA basic early tool for harvesting in the opening hours. Exact naming varies and is not fully confirmed.88Fabrication vs Processing1010Crafting in Subnautica 2 is split into two stations with different jobs. The distinction matters because the wrong station cannot do the other's work.1212StationMakesNotesFabricatorSmall items and equipmentHandles fabrication of small craftables. The Lifepod has a limited built-in version; the full station is a base module.ProcessorIngots from raw ore (in bulk)Handles processing: refining raw ore into ingots. You cannot make ingots at a standard Fabricator.1414In short: fabricate small items at the Fabricator, refine raw ore into ingots at the Processor. See Crafting and Resources for the full progression and resource list.1515Scanner1717The Scanner returns from the franchise with a significant upgrade. It carries a hovering radar hologram that helps players locate scannable objects, materials, and fauna across Proteus's large map. Its core function is unchanged: scanning fragments, creatures, and objects drives blueprint unlocks, which is the backbone of the progression loop. The radar pairs well with the resource-node system, since materials appear as distinct nodes on the seafloor, letting players home in on exactly what they need.1919Biosampler2121The Biosampler is the signature new tool of Subnautica 2 and the entry point to the game's biology systems. Players use it to extract genetic material from living creatures; those samples feed the Adaptation and BioMod systems, which let the player evolve their own body to survive harsher conditions. This makes the Biosampler central to progression in a way no prior franchise tool was, because it turns the player character itself into something you upgrade. See the dedicated Biosampler page for full details.2323Wakemaker2525The Wakemaker is a handheld twin-fan propulsion tool, not a vehicle. The player holds it to boost swim speed; it runs on a battery, and the player is rendered visually obscured while it is active. Its blueprint is unlocked from several fragments found in the world. Because it is a tool rather than a craft, it sits in the equipment roster alongside the Scanner and Biosampler rather than with the vehicles. See the dedicated Wakemaker page for full details.2727Distraction Flare2929The Distraction Flare is a throwable lure that exploits the reactive AI of hostile creatures, including the Collector Leviathan. The Collector constantly re-evaluates its surroundings using a stimulus system that reacts to light, sound, and movement. A thrown flare creates a light-and-sound stimulus away from the player, drawing the creature's attention toward the flare and opening a window to slip clear.3131Because the creature weighs the flare against the player's presence, the distraction is temporary rather than permanent, and the Collector's shockwave attack can knock flares away, so flares are a tool to buy time rather than a guaranteed escape. This fits the no-weapons philosophy: players outsmart predators through environmental manipulation rather than killing them. Quiet swimming in dark water, using terrain as cover, and deploying flares as decoys are all evasion strategies.3434Flare responses differ by species. A lit Distraction Flare pacifies the Nibbler Mango outright, while the Marrowbreach is strongly attracted to one, so a thrown flare clears either hunter off a route. Hammerheads are drawn to flares as well, and the June 1, 2026 hotfix fixed a bug that occasionally left them ignoring the lure. The Flares page tracks per-species responses in more detail.36+Sonic Resonator3638The Sonic Resonator is the game's main mining tool and, in a world with no weapons, the nearest thing to a means of self-defense. Its primary job is gathering: a focused pulse of sound shatters the larger mineral deposits that cannot be collected by hand, releasing the material inside. Aimed at a creature, the same pulse briefly stuns it, opening a short window to escape or to grab a passive fish. It charges slowly, which makes it unreliable against fast attackers, but it dependably buys a moment against slower mid-sized threats.3840Upgrading it to the Feedback Resonator turns that close-range pulse into a ranged blast. The projectile travels a set distance before bursting, so threats and obstacles can be hit from a safer distance. The upgrade is also a progression gate: only its ranged blast can break the armored Bloom Cankers that seal certain Angel Comb organisms, which in turn unlocks Adaptations such as Axum Vision. It is built from a Sonic Resonator together with refined materials; exact recipe quantities are not detailed here.4042PDA (Not Yet Confirmed for Subnautica 2)4244The PDA has been a staple of the franchise as the player's logbook, database, and crafting menu. For Subnautica 2 specifically, however, a PDA is not directly confirmed in current sources. It is likely present by convention, since scanning, blueprints, and a database all need a host interface, but until it is shown explicitly its exact form and features for this game should be treated as unconfirmed. Where this wiki refers to scan-driven blueprint unlocks, that progression is confirmed independently of whether the interface is branded as the PDA.4446No-Weapons Design Philosophy4648Subnautica 2 has no weapons of any kind, and Leviathan-class organisms are mechanically invincible and cannot be killed. The design intent is direct: predators are problems to interact with, run from, or outsmart, not to kill. The reasoning given is that simply bashing creatures until they die is unsatisfying, and that any tool resembling a weapon should help creatures and the world rather than eliminate parts of the environment that bother the player.4850The replacement for the old knife is a non-lethal cutting tool used for harvesting and physical interaction rather than combat, and the developers have acknowledged that more non-lethal interaction options are still being added. The thrust of the design is to make players solve problems without killing the creature, and to lean on evasion, distraction, and the environment instead of force.5052Advanced and Future Equipment5254Beyond the confirmed items above, players find recipes for more advanced tools, equipment, and submersibles as they explore. The tool roster will expand throughout the Early Access period as new gear, craftables, biomes, and creatures are added. Expected directions for future equipment, based on the franchise's patterns, include:5456Diving gear with enhanced depth ratings or environmental protectionAdditional non-lethal interaction tools to round out the no-weapons toolkitSpecialized equipment tied to specific biomes or creaturesUpgrades that extend the capabilities of existing tools5658Specifics of cut and retained equipment, and exact recipes for confirmed tools, have not been publicly enumerated, so they are not listed here.
