Hytale is an enormous game filled with lots of stuff to do, and if you're new to this type of game, then you might not know where to go or what to do first. Everyone starts with nothing in their inventory and no clear goal (at least in Exploration mode), and if you're feeling a little lost or overwhelmed, then you wouldn't be the first one. In this guide, we'll be covering the first steps every new Hytale player should do, and we're also going to lay out a simple progression plan for players who want to focus on building their character and getting better stuff.
Hytale is still in early access as of writing this build, so expect a lot of missing content and features. The following guide should cover the majority of the important things players should do in game, but expect some more endgame content and progression paths later down the road once major updates and expansions go live.
Hytale Progression Plan Outline
TL;DR
- Craft tools
- Build a shelter
-
Make equipment from the following ores:
- Copper
- Iron
- Thorium
- Cobalt
- Adamantite
- Visit the Forgotten Temple
- Upgrade your base and gear
- Ancient Gateway Maps
We'll dive into each of these items more in a short while, but if you're absolutely new to Hytale, the list above is the most basic outline of how progression flows. You are completely free to do whatever you want, but if you want a smoother, more streamlined experience, then use this outline as a rough guide.
Exploration is the name of the game in Hytale. You can't create new gear, find new materials, or make any sort of progress if you just stay in one spot.
Crafting Basic Tools
The first order of business is to craft a set of basic tools and weapons, but instead of punching trees and stone, you'll want to pick up Sticks and Rubble. These can be turned into crude equipment that's good enough for basic resource gathering and self-defense.
You can find Sticks and Rubble lying on the ground. The former can also be harvested by punching tall grass or small, thin trees, Meanwhile, the latter can often be found on top of rocks.
Once you get enough resources, press the Tab key to open your inventory, which contains the Crafting Menu. Make your first set of items, then start gathering more stuff in preparation for base building.
Building Your First House
You don't need to make anything fancy, but you do need to have enough space for the following:
- A bed or bedroll
- 12 different crafting stations
- 5–6 large chests
- A farm
You will eventually gather tons of resources, and you'll need a bunch of different workbenches in order to process them all. Everything you can't process can probably be used for something else, so don't just throw things away.
Best Base Locations
Maps in Hytale's Exploration mode are procedurally generated, and the experience is different for each player. However, if you do have the opportunity to choose where to build your own base, we recommend somewhere near water and a red/orange autumn forest zone. You'll need water to get Salt Blocks in Hytale, and you'll need the Bloodcap Mushrooms and various types of wood from autumn zones later on.
Gear Progression
Hytale has a mostly vertical progression system when it comes to equipment. Weapons, tools, and armor are all tiered, which means low-tier gear is bound to get replaced by better ones eventually. The type of material used to make equipment determines its tier, and as of writing, here are the four tiers of gear in the game so far, arranged from worst to best:
- Copper tier
- Iron tier
- Thorium tier
- Cobalt tier
- Adamantite tier
Based on the available armor sets in Creative Mode, there will be some horizontal progression when it comes to gear selection — players will be able to choose between different types of equipment in each tier. For example, instead of using Iron Armor, players can use the Trork Warrior set. Both can be considered to be in the same tier since they have the same defensive values, but the Trork armor increases your Charged Attack damage in exchange for being uncraftable and having lower durability.
You don't necessarily need to craft items from the previous tier of equipment in order to proceed to the next one. If you know where to go, you can go straight to Cobalt tier, but doing so may prove difficult with just crude weapons and no armor.
The Forgotten Temple
One thing players can do at any time is visit the Forgotten Temple. Portals that lead to it are always under ruined temples found in the world. Visit one of the ruins, go to the basement, then walk through the portal there. You'll then find yourself in the Forgotten Temple, which serves as a hub area.
As of writing, the Forgotten Temple is still being actively developed by Hypixel. Most of the buildings in it are not complete yet, but there are a few things you can do while you're there:
- Interact with the altar at the end of the path to record and view Memories
- Interact with the NPC vendors to buy crafting materials, ingredients, recipes, and more
Upgrade Your Base and Gear
One of the core parts of progression in Hytale is the need to upgrade your workbenches. You won't be able to craft certain recipes with a level 1 workbench. With that said, you'll want to collect as many resources as you can. You can view what resources a workbench needs by interacting with it, so take note of the stuff you need to collect in order to improve your crafting stations before you go out on an adventure.
While you're here, be absolutely sure that you make a farm in your base. You'll at least want crops for cooking ingredients and to get Essences of Life from.
Also, as mentioned in the Gear Progression section above, you may find random equipment from monsters or chests while exploring. Some of these might be better than what you currently have, so make sure to check them out.
Outlanders, the hostile NPCs found in tundra regions, have a chance to drop Doomed Outlander weapons. If you ever fancy cool new gear while farming Shadoweave Scraps, keep an eye out for these weapons (once they're fully implemented, of course).
Ancient Gateway
Assuming you've done everything else listed above, you might want to try building an Ancient Gateway next. This is a device that uses Fragments to create portals that lead to new, randomly-generated maps. The maps themselves follow certain themes, and they'll be very different from what you've seen thus far. Open a Fragment, hop through the portal, and explore until you run out of time.
This feature is a WIP as of writing this guide, so don't expect much from it just yet.
Hytale
- Released
- January 13, 2026
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Hypixel Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Hypixel Studios
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Number of Players
- Single-player
- Early Access Release
- January 13, 2026
- Genre(s)
- Open-World, RPG, Sandbox
- Platform(s)
- PC
