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Are you dead-set on playing this massive, majestic sauropod, but don’t know the secrets to surviving in such a broken and biased world against your very existence? (Shame, I know.) This guide will let you know about the trick to basic eating and drinking (which for some reason Puertasaurus has a massive problem with.)
Introduction
Hello, I’m Peridot. I’ve been a fan of sauropods for a long time, Puertasaurus being one of the reasons I bought this game. Unfortunately, it seems that Puertasaurus is in a bit of a bad spot right now, as its “head hitbox” is so small and perched up on such a long neck that it’s unable to make proper contact with edible bushes and drinking water.
(Why does Pue have to eat from bushes anyways? Its eating animation literally has it reach up as if it’s eating from a tree.)
However, despite what many might believe, contact is not impossible, though it is incredibly tough and frustrating to master. If you’re like me and you’re determined to play this thing despite its heavy flaws, I’d be willing to share some of what I know. I’ve kept a Puertasaurus on sandbox alive for about 5 IRL days before eventually losing control of my hunger, solely by using the needlessly complex yet necessary consumption methods taught to me by Pue-maining elders. Some of this info I’m about to share is things that I’ve learned, and some of it is things I’ve found out myself.
Are You Sure?
Before you rush in, all eager to try this out and then blame me when you can’t get it immediately (it takes practice!) please note that there are other, similar playables you can try instead.
Camarasaurus, though tiny and not NEARLY as majestic and sizable as Pue, is such a good alternative that even I play it more often. It can defend itself very well, has the scent mechanic, and can drink from essentially any water source as well as eat any bush. But if you’re really… REALLY dead set on Puertasaurus… then read on.
The Best Map
Choosing a server is part of the process of playing Puertasaurus, unfortunately.
THENYAW IS THE WORST POSSIBLE PLACE. Do not play Puertasaurus on Thenyaw. It is a dense, heavily forested map and you will not be able to move even 3 feet without your shoulders getting caught between trees, especially at night. There is also only one potentially viable water source that you can drink from. Thenyaw is a death sentence!
With that being said, there are two viable areas on V3 that I’ve discovered so far. You might want to use a map to locate them if you’re not familiar with V3 yet.
The two areas mentioned are the Second Twin Lake and Titan Lake. You’ll realize why you need to be near only these two soon.
The first area, the one I have the most success with, is Titan Lake. (To the right in the picture.) It is the incredibly spacious lake towards the north end of the map, you may have come across it once or twice. Pue can exploit this area for two reasons-deep water, and its hidden gem, The Sanctuary. Keep in mind you are quite slow and you will have to be moving constantly between Sanctuary (the area north of the lake) and the lake itself constantly to keep up with your thirst and hunger.
The Sanctuary is crucial-it has a large number of respawning bushes, most of which are quite large and most of which are located on hillsides. Its close proximity to a lake of Titan’s size make it an adequate survival area.
The second area is the Second Twin Lake, the larger of the Twins. It too, has a large, deep lake and many bushes located on a hillside, however, it is a dangerous area to be in. Because Twins is almost always the densest and most populated area of most Sandbox V3 servers, it’s usually the site of a lot of ill-natured players and KoSing hooligans.
Being said, it’s possible to defend yourself (you’re a pue) but a lot of these “sport killers” tend to see you as…more of a trophy, than anything, and will be even more focused on trying to take you down. To protect your hide and your dignity, it’s best to simply avoid the area. However, when not populated, it too makes a decent area to live in.
Eating Bushes
Okay, it’s finally time to try eating. It isn’t as simple as approaching a bush and waiting for the “Hold [E] to eat” to pop up, because it won’t. It literally won’t. It won’t unless you follow a very hard consideration and incredibly convoluted process about the bush you’re eating. Trees when!
Puertasaurus leads an incredibly sad life, so it’s important to attempt to eat every bush you encounter. You may not get another for a while. Staying on top of your hunger is an absolute priority. If it gets below half, you may not ever be able to fully replenish it.
First of all, hills are your friends. Using a hill to help raise the bush you’re trying to eat closer to your bent neck helps immensely. That’s why it’s important to be near the second lake or the larger Titan lake, where bushes on hillsides are easy to find. Use hills!
For this example I am not using a hill. It’s still possible to eat from bushes on flat ground, but your window of opportunity to eat them is much smaller. The “window of opportunity” is the short period of time in which the “Hold [E] to eat” notification pops up while you’re moving around the bush, if you approach it correctly. Bushes on hillsides usually have a more forgiving window while bushes on flat ground will usually only give you a second to react.
Second of all, larger bushes are easier to eat than small ones, probably because their hitboxes are larger and easier to attempt reaching. While it’s still possible to eat smaller bushes, I wouldn’t attempt it unless they’re on a hill. Otherwise, it’s nearly impossible. Large bushes on hillsides are the easiest bet. They’re practically a free meal.
The secret to eating as Pue is the fact that the lowest possible point your head can be is when you’re turning, and looking downward to the side. As you’re walking towards it, approach the bush from the side as if you were approaching an enemy, but still look at it. You should do this before you even get close to the bush.
As soon as you get close, immediately crane down your head until you’re looking at the ground, but still make sure you’re turning in a circle around the bush. You may briefly look up just to make sure you’re still on course.
As soon as you get close to the bush while staring downward and turning in a circle in a small radius around it, approach incredibly carefully and watch the bottom of the screen for the “Hold [E]” notification. You need incredibly quick reflexes to catch it, especially if you’re trying to eat off flat ground. Thus, it is important to approach the window carefully. Only move a few feet at a time if you have to, even spamming E helps. Eventually the game will wake up (occasionally it doesn’t, keep trying) and realize that you’re desperately hammering the “E” key in an attempt to eat and allow you your reward.
Once you see the little hunger icon appear on the bottom right, that means you’ve successfully grabbed hold of the bush! Stop spamming E immediately and hold it down until your Pue shoves the whole thing in its mouth and uses its teeth to strip all the leaves off like a cartoon. It takes a little practice to know when to stop spamming, too. I’ve accidentally continued to press E even after I got hold of the bush, which caused me to lose it.
If you somehow miss the tiny window of opportunity you’re given, you have overstepped the bush. You will not be able to walk backwards into the sweet spot you missed. This is incredibly frustrating. If this happens, do NOT continue to walk in a circle. Move away from the bush, turn around, and repeat the same method of approach that you attempted to begin with. This time, remember where that “window of opportunity” was and try to approach it even slower.
Drinking Water
The whole concept of drinking water is the main reason why living around large, deep lakes is a necessity. Pue literally cannot drink unless its shoulders are submerged, but thankfully drinking is a lot easier than eating. All you really need to do is walk into the lake, and keep going until you’re relatively deep in. No gimmick is really necessary here, unlike the difficult and unworthy process of having a snack.
However, like all things, there’s still a catch. You still have to look down, though not to the side and not when you’re turning. You also have to spam E. Still. Even though this is the case, water is still much easier to get a hold of (mainly because you’re surrounded by it). Be careful when entering deep lakes, especially Titan! Pue tends to walk along the bottom. You might slip and accidentally fall into somewhere fatal or inescapable.
Puertasaurus drinks a lot. Okay, that sounded worse than I wanted it to.
What I mean is, it’ll spend a long time drinking water. If you’re at half thirst or lower, it’ll take a while to get it back up to full. Do not dawdle once you’re full. Immediately get out of the lake and continue looking for bushes to eat. No time should be wasted as pue.
Parting Notes
That’s about it for now. Do not be upset when you don’t get it right off the bat. If you’re truly that dedicated to Puertasaurus, it’ll take a lot of dedication and practice to get used to its hectic yet slow paced lifestyle. I suppose that’s the price for playing god.