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Metro 2039Blueprints and Scanning
In Subnautica 2 most blueprints are learned by scanning fragments with the Scanner, some in one scan and many in two or three; others unlock on picking up a material, from recipe data cards, or are known from the start. The Bioscanner, a Scanner upgraded at the Modification Station, is needed to scan creatures for Biomods. This page lists the key blueprint locations on the launch build, with the guides' conflicts.
Subnautica 2 teaches its blueprints mainly through the Scanner: aim it at a fragment (a broken device, a crate or a wreck part) and the blueprint unlocks, some at once and many after two or three different fragments, with a pop-up and the Blueprints menu showing progress (Game Rant, May 14, 2026). Others come by picking up a new material, from recipe data cards near wrecks, or are known from the start. Scanning creatures fills the Databank, and scanning them with the Bioscanner, a late upgrade of the Scanner, unlocks Biomods. Blueprint positions below are from guides written on the Early Access launch build (May 14 to 23, 2026); Unknown Worlds publishes no list, and update 1.2 cut the Repair Tool to two scans. Blueprints are shared in co-op. In Kysen's May 14, 2026 guide, on the launch build, the Habitat Builder shows 1 of 2 after its first scan, while the Biolab unlocks in one.
Quick facts
| Main method | Scan fragments with the Scanner (one to three scans per blueprint) |
| Other methods | Pick up a new material; recipe data cards; known from the start |
| Rescan | Scanning something already known gives a few materials |
| Bioscanner | Needed to scan creatures for Biomods; made at the Modification Station |
| Count | "Over 100 blueprints" (Destructoid's recipe list) or "200+" (its locations guide), May 16, 2026 |
| Co-op | Blueprints and Databank entries are shared |
| Changed since launch | Repair Tool needs two scans (1.2, Aug 19, 2026) |
Sources: Game Rant, May 14, 2026; Destructoid's recipe list and locations guide, May 16, 2026; Game Rant's co-op guide, May 14, 2026; Unknown Worlds, Aug 19, 2026.
How do blueprints unlock in Subnautica 2?
Four ways, in Game Rant's and Destructoid's launch-week guides:
- Scanning fragments. The usual way. Some blueprints take one scan, many need several copies; the Blueprints menu shows how far along each is. A scanned object that is already known gives a few materials instead.
- Picking things up. Collecting a new material adds its recipes to the Fabricator: a Pent unlocks the Biofuel Block, a Medical Gel Sac unlocks Fiber Mesh, the first Lithium unlocks the Plasteel Ingot (Game Rant; Lithium).
- Recipe data cards. Some recipes are taken from a card or box beside a wreck rather than scanned: the Tadpole Depth Module Mk. 1 is on a card by Tadpole remains below a hole near "Blackbox - Ruby 2", about 300 m south (165 degrees) of the Alien Ruins (Game Rant, May 16, 2026). Buddy System Hotfix 2 (Oct 6, 2026) fixed recipe boxes looping after being used.
- Known from the start. Survival Multitool, Scanner, Air Bladder, Basic Fins, Standard Air Tank, Basic Battery, Copper Wire, Water, Basic First Aid Kit, Distraction Flare, Corridor, Solar Panel, NOA Terminal, Scanner Station, the Reaper Leviathan statue, and basic materials such as Glass, Fiber, Rubber, Grease and Mild Acid (Destructoid, May 16, 2026).
"Requires unknown tool" on an object means a tool you have not unlocked yet; come back later (Game Rant).
Where the fragments are
The Lifepod's NOA hands out black box waypoints, and early black boxes sit next to key scans and Adaptations (Game Rant, May 14, 2026): following NOA is the simplest route to most blueprints. Most furniture, storage, lighting, Tailing furniture and posters are scanned in labs and abandoned bases (Destructoid). The Scanner Station can also track Alterra bases and Cicada Wrecks within 300 m.
Some blueprints have very few spawns. In IzPrebuilt's May 25, 2026 video, on the May 2026 build, the Wall Rack, which also unlocks the writable signs, needs three scans, and only four of its five spawns can be scanned (the one in the wreck by the Lifepod is inside a wall); Growbeds spawn in only one place, on the main story's route.
Key blueprint locations
Distances and headings are from the Lifepod unless noted, on the launch build. Where guides disagree, both are given.
| Blueprint | Scans | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Flashlight | 2 | A metal container at the bottom of the hole under the Lifepod; a rock formation about 30 m east (Game Rant). Destructoid: the crashed lab near the Lifepod, and a lab table in a cave 110 m at 250 to 300 degrees |
| Habitat Builder | 2 | Welcome Center, about 80 m southeast: a metal crate outside, and a container through a hole in the floor (Destructoid). Game Rant's guides also name the Gene Donor about 160 m at 20 degrees, a cliff-top base at 225 m, and a platform near the Angel Comb |
| Sonic Resonator | 2 | A shelf in Quaker's abandoned base about 415 m north; a white box on a metal platform about 235 m at 248 degrees, with Wander's audio log |
| Wakemaker | 3 | 95 to 125 m north-northwest, at 18, 27 and 53 m deep |
| Repair Tool | 2 since 1.2 (3 at launch) | Chap's base, 217 to 220 m south-southeast, on a table; a crashed base 250 to 270 m south, on a sofa; a deep base 347 to 350 m northeast |
| Processor | 1 | Quaker's abandoned base about 412 m north, second room, right corner (Game Rant); the Power Transmitter's lab about 300 m at 30 degrees (Destructoid) |
| Power Transmitter | 1 | A lab about 300 m at 30 degrees (Destructoid); next to the second Hydroelectric Turbine fragment (Game Rant) |
| Hydroelectric Turbine | 2 | About 350 to 364 m and 390 to 400 m south-southwest, near the current behind Camp One |
| Bioreactor | 3 | Chap's blackbox cave, 220 m south; a metal crate 390 m east by the volcanic area, beside a coral dome; Old Habitat, 380 m north, west wing |
| Biobed | Quaker's Meetinghouse Colonist Bunker, 250 m southwest, or Chap's blackbox room (Destructoid) | |
| Battery Terminal | 2 | The Old Habitat (Game Rant) |
| Scanner Station | 1 | Known from the start (Destructoid); a fragment in Camp One about 240 m northeast, in a room tilted about 80 degrees (Game Rant) |
| Rebreather and Moonpool | One room behind an engraved hatch at about 88 m deep, about 240 degrees from the Lifepod | |
| Tadpole | 3 | 145 m at 195 degrees, about 90 m deep, then the Rebreather room and the base of a giant clam beside it (Destructoid). Game Rant: Blackbox - Ruby 400 m northeast, a colonist outpost, and the Unauthorized NOA Modification bunker 280 m southwest. PCGamesN: the Tadpole Pens, which also give the Dock and Vehicle Fabricator. TheGamer adds a fragment by the Lead deposits about 254 m east-northeast |
| Modification Station | A Cicada Wreck in the Alien Ruins, behind a door the Repair Tool opens | |
| Bioscanner | 1 | A crashed base about 540 m at 125 degrees from the Alien Ruins, beside a tower with four purple lights |
| Improved Fins | 3 | In and around the abandoned base in the Alien Ruins |
| Feedback Resonator | 2 | East of the Alien Ruins past the Angel Comb: by the green pools, and in a Cicada Wreck in distant ruins |
| Engine Efficiency | Inside the Alien Ruins base, through the hatch and right | |
| Strike Armor | 203 m at 195 degrees from the Alien Ruins, on a platform with boxes | |
| Cavitation Muffler | Northeast of the Angel Comb toward the Metal Farms, on a half-buried platform | |
| Photovoltaic Charger | The Cicada Wreck crashed base, with the Bioscanner | |
| Tadpole Depth Module Mk. 1 | Data card | By Tadpole remains about 300 m south (165 degrees) of the Alien Ruins; Game Rant's later guide: 268 m at 155 degrees from the cliff holes |
Sources: Game Rant's guides of May 14 to 22, 2026 (Flashlight, Habitat Builder, What to Do First, Sonic Resonator, Wakemaker, Repair Tool, Processor, power, batteries, Scanner Station, Tadpole, Bioscanner, Improved Fins, Feedback Resonator, upgrades, depth); Destructoid, May 16, 2026; PCGamesN, May 18, 2026; TheGamer, May 16 and 22, 2026; 1.2.
Many of the distances differ by 10 to 50 m between guides: they measured to different spots or from different sides of the Lifepod. The Old Habitat is the largest conflict: 375 to 380 m north in most guides, but about 220 m southeast in Game Rant's battery guide. Update 1.1 also moved some wreck rewards when it added traversal and oxygen puzzles to wrecks (Unknown Worlds, Jul 8, 2026), so a fragment may not be exactly where a May guide puts it.
Scanner and Bioscanner
The Scanner (Titanium x2, Quartz x2, Basic Battery x1) is known from the start and does blueprints and Databank entries. The Bioscanner is the same Scanner upgraded at the Modification Station with Enameled Glass x2 and Conduit Crystal x3; its blueprint is one scan in a crashed base about 540 m at 125 degrees from the Alien Ruins (Game Rant, May 16 and 22, 2026). Only Bioscanner scans count toward Biomods, so creatures scanned before must be scanned again (TheGamer, May 20, 2026). Since update 1.1, each Bioscan also counts toward extra passive Biomod slots, and the Biolab shows the total (Unknown Worlds, Jul 8, 2026). The Bioscanner also repairs the alien power plant turbine. Both tools are on Tools and Modifications. In Lucky Ghost's May 14, 2026 video, on the launch build, the handheld Scanner's screen also works as a radar, with orange dots for nearby scannables, pickups and your Tadpole.
Update 1.2 made Axum Bacterial Culture and the Deepwing Egg Clump scannable, and sources of acid show as green dots on the Scanner's HUD (Unknown Worlds, Aug 19, 2026).
Gift and event blueprints
Some blueprints were given rather than found. The Reaper Leviathan statue, first meant for launch-week buyers, went to every player on every platform after the game passed 5 million wishlists (May 11, 2026). A Seamoth Statue was a Twitch Drop for watching the May 9, 2026 showcase for 20 minutes, claimable in Settings through Jun 30, 2026 (Unknown Worlds, May 2, 2026). The Lost River Poster was promised to all players if the Alterra Career Event reached 100,000 applications, and it is in Destructoid's May 16 list (Unknown Worlds, May 2, 2026). Update 1.1 added the World Tree Relic decoration seen in the trailer. These decorations are on Base Building.
Frequently asked questions
How do I unlock blueprints in Subnautica 2? Scan fragments with the Scanner (one to three scans each), pick up new materials, use recipe data cards beside wrecks, or use the blueprints known from the start. Following NOA's black box waypoints leads to most early fragments.
Where is the Habitat Builder blueprint in Subnautica 2? At the Welcome Center about 80 m southeast of the Lifepod: one fragment in a metal crate outside and one through a hole in the floor (Destructoid, May 2026).
What is the difference between the Scanner and the Bioscanner in Subnautica 2? The Scanner learns blueprints and Databank entries; the Bioscanner, an upgraded Scanner made at the Modification Station, is the only way to scan creatures for Biomods and passive Biomod slots.
What are data boxes in Subnautica 2? Recipe data cards and boxes beside wrecks that give a recipe when you interact with them, such as the Tadpole Depth Module Mk. 1 by Tadpole remains south of the Alien Ruins.
How many scans does the Repair Tool need in Subnautica 2? Two since update 1.2 (Aug 19, 2026); it needed three at launch.
Are blueprints shared in Subnautica 2 co-op? Yes. Blueprints and Databank entries are shared by everyone in the session; inventory and Adaptations are not.
Sources
- Subnautica 2: How to Scan & Unlock Blueprints, Game Rant (William Parks), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: Beginner Tips & Tricks, Game Rant (William Parks), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2 Progression Guide: What to Do First, Game Rant (William Parks), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: Multiplayer & Co-Op Guide, Game Rant (William Parks), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Get a Flashlight, Game Rant (Hamza Haq), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Get the Habitat Builder, Game Rant (Mehrdad Khayyat), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Harvest Large Resource Nodes & Clear Bloom Biofilm, Game Rant (Mehrdad Khayyat), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Get Wakemaker, Game Rant (Hamza Haq), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Get a Repair Tool, Game Rant (Mehrdad Khayyat), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Build Processors and Craft Ingots, Game Rant (Mehrdad Khayyat), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Add Power to Your Base, Game Rant (Hamza Haq), May 16, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Recharge Tools and Batteries, Game Rant (Hamza Haq), May 16, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Build a Scanner Station, Game Rant (Hamza Haq), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Build a Tadpole, Game Rant, May 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Get Bioscanner, Game Rant (Mehrdad Khayyat), May 16, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Get Improved Fins, Game Rant (Mehrdad Khayyat), May 16, 2026
- Subnautica 2: Feedback Resonator Location, Game Rant (Nahda Nabiilah), May 17, 2026
- Subnautica 2: All Tadpole Upgrades and Tool Modifications, Game Rant (Mehrdad Khayyat), May 22, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Go Deeper with the Tadpole, Game Rant (Nahda Nabiilah), May 16, 2026
- Subnautica 2: How to Get Lithium, Game Rant (Hamza Haq), May 16, 2026
- All Subnautica 2 blueprint locations, Destructoid (Arka Sarkar), May 16, 2026
- All blueprints and recipes in Subnautica 2, Destructoid (Madison Benson), May 16, 2026
- How to build a Tadpole in Subnautica 2 and all upgrades, PCGamesN (Christian Vaz), updated May 18, 2026
- How To Unlock Every Biomod In Subnautica 2, TheGamer (Kaitlyn Peterson), May 22, 2026
- Subnautica 2: Where To Find Lead, TheGamer (Kaitlyn Peterson), May 16, 2026
- A Complete Guide To Stats In Subnautica 2, TheGamer (Kaitlyn Peterson), May 20, 2026
- A Thank You to Our Community for 5 Million Wishlists, Unknown Worlds, May 11, 2026
- Watch the Subnautica 2 Pre-Launch Showcase on May 9!, Unknown Worlds, May 2, 2026
- Subnautica 2 Early Access Launch Events, Unknown Worlds, May 2, 2026
- Subnautica 2 Early Access 1.1 - Adaptive Measures Update, Unknown Worlds, Jul 8, 2026
- Subnautica 2 Early Access 1.2 - Buddy System Update, Unknown Worlds, Aug 19, 2026
- Subnautica 2 Early Access Buddy System Hotfix 2, Unknown Worlds, Oct 6, 2026
- Subnautica 2 - The Ultimate Beginner Guide!, Kysen, May 14, 2026 (video)
- Subnautica 2: 10 Things The Game DOESN'T TELL YOU, gameranx, May 16, 2026 (video)
- 14 Blueprints You May Have Missed in Subnautica 2, IzPrebuilt, May 25, 2026 (video)
- Subnautica 2 - 10 HUGE Things I Wish I Knew Sooner!, Lucky Ghost, May 14, 2026 (video)
- Subnautica 2 | Early Access: First Dive Showcase, Subnautica, May 9, 2026 (video)
Moments
Subnautica 2 - The Ultimate Beginner Guide!
Kysen
Subnautica 2: 10 Things The Game DOESN'T TELL YOU
gameranx
14 Blueprints You May Have Missed in Subnautica 2
IzPrebuilt
Subnautica 2 - 10 HUGE Things I Wish I Knew Sooner!
Lucky Ghost
Subnautica 2 | Early Access: First Dive Showcase
Subnautica
Photos
Related
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LeadIn Subnautica 2, Lead lies on the seafloor northeast of the Lifepod at about 60 m deep, below a Cicada Wreck, though guides disagree on the distance (about 254 m or about 340 m). It is needed for the Sonic Resonator, Germanium Ingots and Sugar of Saturn.
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ResourcesSubnautica 2's resources run from Titanium, Copper and Quartz around the Lifepod, through Silver and Lead to the north and northeast and Gold, Sulfur and Lithium in the hot volcanic area, to Celestine, Conduit Crystal, Troilite and Atacamite in the far east. This page lists each one with where guides found it on the launch build, the tool it needs and what it makes.
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SilverIn Subnautica 2, Silver is found in shallow caves north of the Lifepod, marked by orange Pent plants at the cave mouths, and Unknown Worlds added more Silver to the early game region in Hotfix 2 and in Coral Gardens in update 1.1. It makes the Standard Air Tank, Wiring Kits, the Wakemaker and Silver Ingots.
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TroiliteIn Subnautica 2, Troilite is a late-game resource broken out of green Mineralized Clinkers with the Sonic Resonator around the green pools of the Axum Metal Farms, far east of the Alien Ruins and below about 400 m, with a Collector Leviathan nearby. Hotfix 2 added more Troilite areas, and it makes Mangalloy Ingots, the Ultra High Capacity Air Tank and the Depth Module Mk. 2.
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Base PowerSubnautica 2 bases run on Solar Panels (1 to 8 energy per second by time of day), Hydroelectric Turbines in water currents, Thermal Plants by heat vents and Bioreactors burning fuel, linked by Power Transmitters and buffered by Power Storage. Without power a base makes no oxygen.
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Best Base LocationsThe guides' best base spots in Subnautica 2 are a plateau by a water current about 200 m east of the Lifepod for free turbine power, the thermal vents about 630 m east for steady Thermal Plant power, and an outpost near the Alien Ruins about 1,150 m east for the late game.
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FarmingFarming in Subnautica 2 means Growbeds, built for Titanium x1, that grow plants from a seed item such as a Pent, Lucifer Rotsac or Fibrous Pulp, and since update 1.2 Necrolei Cysts. The Metal Farm, an Axum machine, grows a chosen resource on base power.
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Anemone HillsThe Anemone Hills are Subnautica 2's biome of towering pink-and-green anemones about 300 m northwest of the Lifepod, 0 to 151 m deep, where the infected Heat Tolerance Angel Comb waits behind Bloom you clear with the Sonic Resonator.
See also
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BiomodsSubnautica 2's Biomods are swappable abilities chosen at a Biolab, 5 active and 10 passive on the launch build, four of them known from the start and the rest unlocked by scanning creatures with the Bioscanner. Update 1.1 added two Biolabs and passive slots earned by scan counts, and Early Access 2 (December 2026) moves Dash to the Fins and adds new Biomods.
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Tools and ModificationsSubnautica 2's tools are the Survival Multitool, Scanner, Flashlight, Habitat Builder, Sonic Resonator, Wakemaker, Repair Tool, Air Bladder, Distraction Flare and, since update 1.2, the Tracking Tag, plus two Prototype Tool Modifications made at the Modification Station, the Bioscanner and the Feedback Resonator. There are no weapons. This page gives each tool's recipe, blueprint and use.
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Crafting RecipesSubnautica 2's recipes by station, as listed by Destructoid on May 16, 2026 (the Early Access launch build) with conflicts from other guides beside them, for example Titanium Ingot (Titanium x3 at the Processor), Wiring Kit (Silver x1, Copper Wire x1) and Basic Battery (Copper x2, Acidic Raion Pouch x1). Hotfix 3 cut Interior Wall cost to a quarter, and no guide has republished a full list since updates 1.1 and 1.2.
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EquipmentSubnautica 2's wearable equipment is three air tanks (Standard, High Capacity, Ultra High Capacity), Basic and Improved Fins and the Rebreather, all made at the Fabricator, while carrying space grows at seven Upgrade Biobeds (five add 3 inventory slots each, two add a quickbar slot). The Standard Air Tank and Basic Fins are known from the start; the others are scanned or crafted from them.
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Fabricator and ProcessorIn Subnautica 2 the Lifepod's Fabricator is damaged and cannot be fixed, so recipes marked "Requires Fully Functional Fabricator" need a new Fabricator built in a powered base (Titanium, Copper and Quartz, one each). Ingots come from the Processor, whose blueprint is scanned from a broken Processor in an abandoned base north of the Lifepod and which draws 10 energy per second.