Navigating the Pacific Northwest wilderness in Days Gone means managing scarce resources across five distinct settlements. You can't share your hard-earned camp credits between regions, and trust levels gate your access to vital gear. Wasting bounties on early-game aesthetic upgrades or low-tier firearms will leave you stranded when hordes attack.
Your primary focus should center on balancing early bike range in Copeland's Camp, securing firepower at Hot Springs, and saving the bulk of your resources for Iron Mike's Camp and the southern endgame hubs. Let's break down where your credits and bounties actually belong.
Understanding How Camp Economies Work
Every camp operates on two separate currencies: credits earned from bounties, meat, and missions, and trust earned solely through main story progression, side jobs, and survivor rescue events. You can have 5,000 credits stocked up, but if your trust level is stagnant at rank one, top-tier merchants won't sell to you.
- Credits are local: Money earned in Cascade does not transfer to Lost Lake or Crater Lake. Spend what you earn where you earn it.
- Trust unlocks tiers: Reaching Trust Level 2 and Level 3 opens up massive mechanical upgrades and military-grade weaponry.
- Hostage allocation matters: When rescuing survivors in the wild, sending them to specific camps rewards you with trust. Never send hostages to Tucker's camp if you want efficient trust gains, as she only rewards low-value credits.
Early Game: Copeland and Hot Springs
During your time in the Cascade and Belknap regions, you'll deal with Copeland's Camp and Hot Springs. Neither camp offers ultimate endgame gear, but neglecting them entirely makes early survival miserable.
Copeland's Camp: Prioritize Mobility
Copeland focuses exclusively on your Drifter bike. Early on, your fuel tank barely gets you across a single region, and your engine sounds like a lawnmower alerting every Freaker within a mile.
Put your early credits toward upgrading Copeland's fuel tank and exhaust. A larger tank stops you from constantly walking your bike or hunting for fuel cans. Skip the visual upgrades entirely—they cost precious credits and offer zero survival utility. Once you hit Trust Level 2 here, grab the upgraded engine components, then pull back on heavy investment.
Hot Springs: Prioritize Firepower
Run by Ada Tucker, Hot Springs specializes in firearms and melee weapons rather than bike parts. If you're struggling with combat encounters or find your starter weapons taking too many shots to drop a breaker, this is your stop.
Aim for Trust Level 2 here to unlock reliable mid-game assault rifles and special weapons. However, don't grind out every single minor upgrade here. You'll soon cross into Lost Lake, where the gear quality jumps significantly.
The Mid-Game Turning Point: Iron Mike's Camp
Iron Mike's Camp (Lost Lake) is the single most important settlement to invest your time, bounties, and plant sales into. Unlike the northern camps, Lost Lake bridges the gap between mid-tier survival and end-game dominance.
Get friendly with Iron Mike as fast as possible by completing every side job, clearing local infestation zones, and hunting wildlife in the area. Reaching Trust Level 2 and Level 3 here unlocks standard-setting weapons like the Chicago Chopper (at subsequent southern camps) and exceptional bike parts that rival anything else in the northern territory. Hoard your animal meat, wolf pelts, and Freaker ears during your early travels so you can cash them in here for an instant trust boost.
Late Game: Wizard Island and Diamond Lake
Once the narrative opens up the southern volcanic region, you'll encounter Wizard Island and Diamond Lake at Crater Lake.
- Wizard Island: This is your primary endgame destination for devastating military-grade weaponry. Save your major credit reserves for this camp. The ultimate primary and special weapons live behind Wizard Island's Trust Level 3 wall.
- Diamond Lake: Often skipped by rushing players, Diamond Lake offers specialized bike frames and heavy-duty armor upgrades that make fighting hordes much safer.
Split your focus between these two southern camps based on whether you need a heavy machine gun or superior bike durability for horde evasion.
Common Investment Mistakes to Avoid
Many players fall into traps that drain their resources and stall their progression. Watch out for these missteps:
- Buying cosmetic bike parts too early: Custom paint jobs and frame decals don't help you survive an ambush. Buy performance parts first.
- Over-investing in Copeland's max tier: While fuel and engine upgrades are mandatory, don't waste thousands of credits maxing out every minor stat in Cascade when Lost Lake offers superior baseline tech.
- Hoarding ears past the cap: Your inventory caps out at 999 items. If you hoard Freaker ears endlessly without selling them to camps, you're missing out on steady trust progression.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I spend credits on ammo at camps?
Generally, no. Ammo is cheap to craft or scavenge out in the world from police cars and NERO checkpoints. Save your camp credits for permanent upgrades, weapons, and bike parts that you can't find lying around.
Can I unlock Level 3 trust with every camp before moving south?
It's technically possible through exhaustive grinding of hordes and hunting, but it's unnecessary. The game naturally paces your trust levels as you clear out regional side content and progress the main storyline.
Which camp has the best gun in the game?
Wizard Island hosts some of the most powerful firearms in the game, including top-tier assault rifles and machine guns that make late-game horde clearing manageable.
Does selling meat to camp kitchens matter?
Yes. Selling animal meat and plant herbs to camp cooks provides a balanced payout of both credits and trust. It's one of the most reliable passive income streams while exploring the wilderness.
