What a rescue changes
Four missing children are the rescue objective. Check the board at camp, then follow the marker. The Compass keeps that marker on screen after you use the board. Each child you bring back to the campfire increases how many days the counter jumps at night. IGN describes that as a multiplier per child and does not print a single public number for it, so read the jump on the counter rather than assuming a fixed bonus.
You do not need every child to reach day 99. A badge named Self-Preservation is described for reaching day 99 with none of them rescued. Beds add their own +1 each. Children and beds stack, which is why a finished camp skips ahead instead of playing 99 separate nights one by one.
The fire's light is what clears fog. If a cave is still outside the revealed map, upgrade the campfire before you hike toward the poster.
Reported cave gates
An October 2026 location guide gives this order. Treat the animal counts as that guide's report. IGN only confirms the sequence: wolves, then alpha wolves, then bears, and a key after enough of them die.
| Child | Reported fire level | Reported key |
|---|---|---|
| Dino Kid | Level 2 or 3 | 5 red-collared wolves, red key |
| Kraken Kid | Level 4 or 5 | 4 blue-collared alpha wolves, blue key |
| Squid Kid | Level 5 | 2 yellow-collared bears, yellow key |
| Koala Kid | Level 6 | 6 gray-collared bears, gray key |
The first two rescues are doable with a Spear if you target-lock and keep walking backward. The bear caves are the point where a gun, bandages, and a teammate stop being optional comfort.
Bring them home
Kill the guards, take the key, pick the child up, and drop them at the campfire. Dying on the walk back wastes the clear. Loot a Bandage or Medkit before the farther caves. Hospital buildings are the ones with a green stripe, and they are a reported bandage stop. The Workshop can craft bandages once the anvil is repaired.
Do the closer wolf cave before you spend a day hunting bears you cannot reach yet.