Conan Exiles Beginner Guide: The Perfect Start and First Steps

A good start in Conan Exiles comes down to four steps: pick your character and religion, craft your first tools right away, build a shelter early and secure water and food. This Conan Exiles beginner guide walks you through your first hours in Hyboria step by step.

Conan Exiles drops you into a harsh survival world without much of a tutorial. Get the first hours wrong and you lose interest fast. Get them right and you're hooked before long.

1. Character creation: the foundation of your run

Your first step is creating your character. It's not purely cosmetic: your religion decides which god you get access to first.

Choosing race and religion:

• Your race is purely cosmetic. There are no gameplay advantages, so pick whatever you like the look of.
• Your religion matters more. Each one has its own perks, weapons and buildings. According to Gamer Guides, Set is one of the best early picks (antidote, snake arrows), while Crom gives you nothing at the start. You're not locked in: you can learn other religions later. Only Crom is available exclusively at character creation.

Spending attribute points:

• Early on: points into Vitality (more health) and Expertise (more carry weight, perks for longer tool durability and faster harvesting)
• Later: Strength or Agility for combat, and Grit for more stamina and armor

How each attribute works and which perks you unlock is explained in our detailed Conan Exiles attributes guide.

2. Gathering your first resources

Every Conan Exiles beginner guide starts here, and for good reason.

The fight for survival starts the moment you spawn. These are the resources you need first:

• Stones and branches: all over the ground, the base for your first tools
• Plant fiber and plants: for clothing, rope and your first food
• Water: staying hydrated is vital. Stay close to the river until you have a waterskin

Crafting your first tools: Use stones and branches to make a pickaxe and a hatchet right away. The pickaxe is for stone and ore, the hatchet for wood and hides. Those two are your most important tools for the first hours. What you find where is covered in our Conan Exiles resources guide.

3. Building your first home in Conan Exiles

Without shelter you're exposed to the weather, animals and other players. Build as early as you can.

Picking a spot:

• Close to water, trees and stone, so resources stay in reach
• Away from NPC camps and aggressive animals
• Slightly raised, flat ground is ideal

Build order:

• Start with simple sandstone building pieces. They're quick to craft and good enough for the start.
• Build walls, a door and a roof first. A single room is enough.
• Put a campfire inside right away for cooking and warmth
• Then add storage boxes and your first crafting stations

Upgrading later: Sandstone is just the beginning. Once you have bricks and iron, strengthen your base piece by piece. The endgame waits with tier 3 (Reinforced Stone or Black Ice), but you'll get there soon enough.

4. Early survival strategies for beginners

Food and water:

• Hunt animals and gather fruit to stock up
• Cook raw meat before you eat it. Players report that raw meat makes you sick, but it isn't officially documented.
• Set up a water supply early. A waterskin filled at the river is enough for the start.

Combat and defense:

• Practice fighting on small animals before you attack NPC camps
• Spear and bow are ideal for beginners, since keeping your distance is your best friend
• Always keep an eye on your stamina bar. Without stamina you can't attack or block.

Exploring:

• Explore only the area near your base at first
• The north is too dangerous for beginners. Frost giants and extreme cold wait there.
• Stay in the south along the river and in the desert at first. The further north you go, the tougher the enemies and the climate get.

5. Spending knowledge points wisely

This is the part of the Conan Exiles beginner guide that saves you a respec later.

Every level gives you knowledge points. Spend them carefully:

• Tannery recipes: for leather and Thick Leather, essential
• Blacksmith recipes: for iron tools and weapons
• Skip luxury recipes early on. Basics come first.

Once the basics are in place, you'll want to level up quickly. And with your first captured thrall, a follower takes over the hardest work for you.

Bottom line: how to survive your first hours in Conan Exiles

The start in Conan Exiles is rough, but with a plan like this Conan Exiles beginner guide it's a lot of fun. Secure water and food, craft your first tools, get a shelter up fast and explore your surroundings carefully. You'll get stronger step by step, and Hyboria will open up to you.

❓ FAQ: Conan Exiles beginner guide

Which religion is best for beginners?
According to Gamer Guides, Set is one of the best early picks, while Crom isn't worth it at the start. You can learn other religions later. Your choice of race, on the other hand, is purely cosmetic.

What should I build first in Conan Exiles?
First a pickaxe and a hatchet from stones and branches, then a simple sandstone shelter as early as possible, with a campfire, a storage box and your first crafting stations.

Where should I build my first base?
Near water, trees and stone, away from NPC camps and aggressive animals, on slightly raised, flat ground. The south is much safer for beginners than the icy north.

Which attributes should I level first?
Vitality for more health and Expertise for more carry weight and faster harvesting at the start. Strength or Agility for combat and Grit for stamina and armor come later.

As of October 2026, Conan Exiles Enhanced with patch 3.0.0 (Legacy of the Giant-Kings Part Two). This Conan Exiles beginner guide takes its religion picks from Gamer Guides; the raw meat warning is a player report and not officially documented. More guides on the Conan Exiles overview.