Subnautica 2 Map Guide: All Regions, Points of Interest & Coordinates

Why You Need This Guide

Subnautica 2 has no in-game map. The developers want you to feel the disorientation of exploring an alien ocean. Fair enough. But after your third time getting lost trying to find Camp One, disorientation stops being atmospheric and starts being annoying.

This guide functions as your unofficial map. Every named location, its approximate coordinates, distance from the Lifepod, compass heading, and what you’ll find there. Print it out, bookmark it, or pull it up on a second monitor. You’ll reference it constantly.

Coordinates use the XYZ system visible in the pause menu: X (east/west), Y (depth), Z (north/south). All distances are measured from the Lifepod as the origin point.

Starting Area: Lifepod & Surroundings

Lifepod (Spawn Point)

Coordinates: Your world’s origin — write these down on first load. Depth: Surface (Y: 0) What’s here: Free oxygen supply, Fabricator, emergency storage

The Lifepod is your permanent anchor. It floats on the surface and never moves. Every distance and heading in this guide is measured from here. If you haven’t written down your Lifepod coordinates yet, do it now.

The Lifepod Fabricator never needs power. Even after you build 5 bases with their own Fabricators, the Lifepod remains a reliable emergency crafting station.

Welcome Center

Direction: Southeast Distance: ~85-90 meters Depth: 15-25 meters (shallow) Compass heading: ~135-145

What’s here:

• Supply caches with emergency rations and water
• Introductory data logs (crew member backstories)
• Early technology fragments for scanning
• Tutorial-adjacent lore entries

The Welcome Center is your first exploration target after building the Scanner. It’s close, shallow, and safe. The supplies here buy you time before you cure Digestive Incompatibility.

Camp One

Direction: Northeast Distance: ~240 meters Depth: 30-50 meters Compass heading: 60

What’s here:

• Tuba’s Blackbox (3rd in recovery sequence)
• Storage containers with mid-tier materials
• Habitat Builder fragment spawns (check thoroughly)
• Data logs expanding the crash narrative
• Potential food supply caches

Camp One is a semi-established camp — someone survived here for a while before things went wrong. The storage containers often have materials you can’t easily find in the wild at this stage. Scan everything.

The swim from Lifepod to Camp One takes 3-4 minutes at normal speed. Bring a full oxygen tank and a Compass.

Old Habitat

Direction: North Distance: ~350 meters Depth: 40-70 meters Compass heading: 0 (due north)

What’s here:

• Quaker’s Blackbox (4th in recovery sequence)
• Habitat Builder fragments (most reliable source in the starting area)
• Abandoned base structures with scannable technology
• Mid-tier resource deposits nearby

The Old Habitat is an abandoned base. This is where you almost certainly get your 2nd Habitat Builder fragment scan, unlocking the ability to build your own bases. The trip is longer than Camp One — budget 5 minutes of swimming each way and bring extra air.

Mid-Range Locations

Tadpole Pens

Direction: East Distance: ~675 meters Depth: 50-100 meters Compass heading: ~90

What’s here:

• Zip’s Blackbox (6th in recovery sequence)
• Tadpole vehicle fragments
• Vehicle bay technology
• Deep-water transition resources

This is a long expedition. At 675 meters, you’re looking at 8-10 minutes of continuous swimming without a vehicle. The Tadpole vehicle is strongly recommended before attempting this trip. If you’re swimming, drop Beacons every 100-150 meters to create a return trail.

The Tadpole Pens are a pre-crash facility where vehicles were maintained. There’s scannable technology here related to vehicle construction and upgrade modules.

Blackbox Locations (In Recovery Order)

Here’s the full Blackbox sequence with directional reference:

#	Crew Member	Direction from Lifepod	Distance	Depth	Biome
1	Anita	Northeast	Short (~100-150m)	Shallow	Kelp Forest
2	Chap	South-southeast	Short (~150-200m)	Shallow	Kelp Forest edge
3	Tuba	Northeast (heading 60)	~240m	30-50m	Camp One
4	Quaker	North	~350m	40-70m	Old Habitat
5	Wander	Variable	Mid-range	80-150m	Coral Gardens
6	Zip	East	~675m	50-100m	Tadpole Pens
7	Iso	Deep	Far	100-200m	Alien Ruins

The first four Blackboxes are all accessible from the starting area without a vehicle. Blackboxes 5-7 require progressively better equipment — at minimum an upgraded oxygen tank, ideally the Tadpole.

Biome Regions

Kelp Forest

Location: Surrounds the Lifepod in all directions Depth range: 0-80 meters Approximate extent: 300-400 meters from Lifepod in most directions

The Kelp Forest is your safe zone. Tall kelp stalks grow from the seabed to near the surface. Limestone outcrops, Quartz, and basic biological samples are everywhere. All starting locations (Welcome Center, Camp One, Old Habitat) are within or at the edge of this biome.

Key resource coordinates to note:

• Dense limestone clusters (Titanium/Copper) tend to concentrate on flat seafloor sections at -30 to -50m
• Quartz formations cluster near rocky outcroppings
• Angel Comb spawns are scattered throughout but concentrated in mid-Kelp Forest areas

Coral Gardens

Location: Beyond the Kelp Forest, predominantly south and west Depth range: 60-200 meters Approximate distance from Lifepod: 400+ meters

You’ll know you’ve entered the Coral Gardens when the kelp thins out and large branching coral structures appear. Colors shift to reds, oranges, and purples. The water feels different — more open, less sheltered.

What to find here:

• Mid-tier minerals for advanced crafting
• Tadpole fragments in debris fields
• Wander’s Blackbox (5th recovery)
• Biological samples for DNA Modification research
• First encounters with aggressive predatory species

Mark the transition point with a Beacon. You’ll cross this boundary many times.

Thermal Vents

Location: Deep, below the Coral Gardens Depth range: 150-400+ meters Approximate distance from Lifepod: 600+ meters, predominantly downward

The Thermal Vents are not a place you stumble into — you have to intentionally descend past the Coral Gardens. The seafloor drops sharply, water temperature rises, and volcanic fissures glow on the ocean floor.

What to find here:

• Rare ores not available in shallower biomes
• Thermal Generator placement spots (16 energy/sec per generator)
• Heat-adapted creatures for DNA Modification
• Advanced technology fragments

Required gear: Tadpole vehicle, Heat Tolerance adaptation, upgraded oxygen, Flashlight

Alien Ruins

Location: Mid-depth, accessible from the Coral Gardens Depth range: 100-250 meters Approximate distance from Lifepod: 500+ meters

Geometric structures that look nothing like natural formations. Smooth surfaces, angular corridors, alien materials. You’ll find Iso’s Blackbox here — the final Blackbox of Chapter 1.

What to find here:

• Iso’s Blackbox (7th, final recovery)
• Alien data logs (major lore entries)
• Advanced technology fragments
• Unique biological samples
• Ion-based crafting materials

The Void

Location: Beyond all inhabited biomes, the map edge Depth range: Effectively infinite Distance from Lifepod: Varies by direction, typically 800+ meters

If biomes stop, the seafloor vanishes, and the water goes dark — you’ve entered The Void. Turn around.

Optimal Exploration Routes

Route 1: Early Game Circuit (First 2 Hours)

Lifepod → Welcome Center (SE, 85m) → sweep Kelp Forest for Angel Comb → Camp One (NE heading 60, 240m) → return to Lifepod → Old Habitat (N, 350m) → return to Lifepod

Total distance: roughly 1,200 meters round-trip. Stick to the top 50 meters. No vehicle needed.

Route 2: Mid Game Push (Hours 3-5)

Base → Coral Gardens transition (mark with Beacon) → sweep for Tadpole fragments → Wander’s Blackbox → return to base for resupply → Tadpole Pens (E, 675m from Lifepod) → Zip’s Blackbox → return

Total distance: 1,500+ meters. Tadpole vehicle recommended. Drop Beacons every 100m on the Tadpole Pens route.

Route 3: Deep Game Expedition (Hours 6-10)

Base → Coral Gardens → descend to Alien Ruins → Iso’s Blackbox → full scan of Ruins → optional push to Thermal Vents → return via Beacon trail

Total distance: variable, mostly vertical. Tadpole required. Bring backup batteries, food, water.

Building Your Personal Map

Since the game won’t give you a map, build one yourself. Here’s how:

1. Keep a coordinate log. Notepad app, physical notebook, spreadsheet — whatever works. Log every location with XYZ, depth, and a description.

2. Name Beacons systematically. Use a format like “POI-Name -Depth” (example: “Camp1 -35m”). Consistency matters when you have 30+ Beacons.

3. Sketch biome boundaries. After 5 hours, you’ll have enough data to draw a rough overhead map showing where each biome starts and ends. It doesn’t need to be pretty. It needs to be functional.

4. Track Leviathan territories. Mark any area where you’ve encountered or heard a Leviathan. These zones are relatively consistent. Knowing where they patrol lets you route around them.

5. Share with co-op partners. In 4-player co-op, a shared coordinate spreadsheet saves everyone time. One person finds a resource cluster, everyone benefits.

Distance Estimation Without Coordinates

Sometimes you need a rough distance estimate without pausing to check coordinates:

• Swimming speed covers roughly 5-6 meters per second at full speed
• A 1-minute swim equals about 300-360 meters
• If a location takes 4 minutes to reach from the Lifepod, it’s approximately 1,200-1,400 meters away
• The Tadpole moves significantly faster — roughly 2-3x swimming speed depending on chassis

Count seconds while swimming in a straight line. Multiply by 5-6 for approximate meters covered. It’s imprecise, but it gives you a working estimate for placing Beacons and planning oxygen.