Image source: Ubisoft
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is an open-world RPG developed by Ubisoft, set in the visually stunning world of Pandora. Given that crafting and RPG mechanics are the core of its gameplay loop, there’s plenty to get your head around after starting. Here’s a detailed Frontiers of Pandora starter guide to help you navigate its beautiful but deadly world. We’ve updated this article over time with more detail.
Beginner Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Walkthrough
Before you embark on your adventure, note that you’ll have a choice between playing in Guided or Exploration modes. We’ve broken everything down in a dedicated guide here, but know that you can switch between these after starting — so don’t sweat it too much!
Character Creation
Following the cutscenes, you have the opportunity to shape your character. Customize your avatar’s appearance, selecting facial features, hair, skin, voice, and body type. The process begins with choosing the gender of your Na’vi character. This choice forms the base upon which other cosmetic changes are made. The voice options for your character remain the same regardless of the gender you choose.
- Face: You can select from 10 pre-set faces. After choosing a face, further customization is possible by altering features such as eye color, nose shape, and mouth. While these alterations are not drastic, they allow for some level of personalization.
- Hair: The game offers a variety of hairstyles. This aspect of customization provides a significant impact on the overall appearance of your character, given the diversity in styles available.
- Skin: While skin pattern choices might not be very prominent in the character creation mode, they play an important role in the game. The skin patterns have different bioluminescence effects, which become more noticeable and impactful in darker environments within the game.
It’s fair to say that by comparison to other RPGs, the character customization in Avatar Frontiers of Pandora is somewhat limited. This is presumably due to the necessity of the character being a Na’vi, the tall blue humanoid alien central to the Avatar universe.
First Steps in Pandora (Tutorial)
The game starts with a series of cutscenes, setting the stage for your adventure. You begin as a Na’vi child in the RDA ambassador program, quickly learning about the harsh realities of your situation. A dramatic series of events leads you to a stasis pod, marking the end of the opening sequences.
Your initial objective is basic survival – find food. Navigate through the facility to the canteen, where you’ll find Dry RDA Rations. Consuming these will restore your hunger and kickstart health regeneration. However, the tranquility is short-lived as the RDA invades, prompting you to make a daring escape.
This segment acts as a movement tutorial, teaching you how to run, slide, and maneuver through tight spaces. You’ll encounter So’lek, a formidable Na’vi warrior, who assists you with a radio and guidance. Stealth becomes a crucial element as you navigate the facility, avoiding RDA soldiers and learning the basics of combat.
Upon meeting So’lek outside the facility, you receive your first Longbow and an introduction to crafting. This is also where you’re introduced to the Na’vi Senses, an essential tool that highlights interactive objects and provides critical information about your surroundings.
Understanding the HUD
The game’s HUD (Heads-Up Display) is your dashboard to Pandora, featuring several key elements:
- Tracked Quest: Displays your current quest and objectives.
- Ikran Indicator: Shows the location of your Ikran mount if nearby.
- Compass: Indicates your direction, enemies, and points of interest.
- Healing Pouch: Represents the number of healing items in your possession.
- Health Bar: A vital indicator of your character’s health.
- Hunger Bar: Shows your hunger level, affecting health regeneration.
- Grenades and Ammo: Displays the count of grenades and ammo for your weapon, including reserve ammo.
- Ammo Type: Indicates the selected ammo type for weapons with multiple ammo options.
Active quests are marked with blue light pillars on your map. However, they can blend into the environment, so regularly switch between Na’vi vision and the map. Pink/purple lights indicate locations of Tarsyu Flowers for Ancestor skills. Use waypoints and custom markers for effective navigation.
Your Mission with the Resistance
After collecting Dapophet Pods for So’lek, you face RDA soldiers and an AMP. Successfully dealing with these threats marks the beginning of your true freedom in Pandora. Your next step is to join the Resistance, using your Na’vi Senses and the map to navigate the treacherous terrain of Pandora.
Reaching the Resistance HQ, you reunite with familiar faces and meet new allies. Here, the story unfolds further, and you’ll then have the chance to get started on main quest and explore side missions, free-roaming pandora.
From here on out, use our interactive map page to track down quest objectives and resources. And remember, the game can be played with a buddy in co-op.
All Avatar Frontiers of Pandora Skills
Skill points are earned through various activities in Frontiers of Pandora, such as completing quests, discovering locations, and interacting with specific elements in the world. You’ll spend these points in the skill trees to unlock or upgrade abilities.
The skill system allows you to tailor their character’s abilities to their preferred playstyle, whether it be combat, stealth, exploration, or a balanced approach. It’s worth planning skill upgrades, as some skills may be more beneficial at different stages of the game or in certain situations.
Some skills complement each other and can create powerful combinations when used together, so experiment with different skill combinations to suit your playstyle.
Memories of the Survivor
- Focus: This skill tree is centered around survival and resilience. It enhances the ability to withstand damage and recover health.
- Key Skills: Skills in this category typically include increases to health pouch capacity, faster healing rates, and abilities that enhance the player’s survivability in harsh environments.
- Importance: Ideal for those who prefer a head-on approach to combat or those who find themselves frequently in tough situations.
Memories of the Warrior
- Focus: Concentrated on combat and offensive capabilities. This tree boosts the player’s prowess in battle.
- Key Skills: Unlocking additional weapon slots, improving weapon handling and efficiency, and enhancing combat moves are part of this category.
- Importance: Essential for players who prioritize combat versatility and strength, allowing for a more aggressive playstyle.
Memories of the Hunter
- Focus: This skill tree emphasizes stealth, hunting, and efficient resource gathering.
- Key Skills: Skills include improved stealth abilities, enhanced tracking, and increased efficiency in gathering resources and crafting.
- Importance: Perfect if you enjoy a stealthy approach and want to maximize your efficiency in utilizing Pandora’s resources.
Ancestor Skills
- Focus: Unique to “Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora,” these skills are tied to the lore of the game and offer unique abilities.
- Key Skills: These skills are unlocked by finding Tarsyu Flowers and can range from unique combat abilities to special environmental interactions.
- Importance: These skills add depth to the gameplay and allow you to engage with the world of Pandora in unique ways.
Crafting and Cooking
The cooking system in the game is designed to provide players with various buffs and health regeneration, making it an essential aspect to master for effective gameplay.
You’ll unlock new recipes by experimenting with various ingredient combinations. Consuming these cooked dishes not only replenishes energy, aiding in gradual health regeneration but also provides specific buffs dependent on the ingredients used. The buff effect of a dish is determined by the first ingredient added, irrespective of its quality.
Remember, the quality of resources affects the effectiveness of crafted items and meals. Each ingredient in the game is linked to a distinct buff, ranging from increased damage against wildlife to enhanced resistance against fire.
Best Frontiers of Pandora Recipes
Here are some of the best recipes to try in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, along with their buffs and required ingredients:
- Crunchy Seafood
- Buff: Stealthy III (45% increase to stealth)
- Ingredients: Octofin fish and Feather Blade Seed
- Cheesy Sahena
- Buff: Fleet-Footed and Fighter’s Boon II (10% movement speed, 40% increased damage to RDA)
- Ingredients: Zakru Milk + Fiery Herbs
- Novao’s Signature Zangke
- Buff: Energized (Increased healing efficiency)
- Ingredients: Available for purchase from Novao in Zeswa Circle for one favor
- Mushroom Spice Bowl
- Buff: Tracker’s Boon II (40% damage increase to wildlife)
- Ingredients: Fiery Spices and Sage Mushroom
- Mushroom and Fruit Salad
- Buff: Hearty I (30% increase to base health)
- Ingredients: Any Fruit and any Mushroom
- Egg-Washed Roast
- Buff: Bark Skin I (30% less damage from wildlife and RDA)
- Ingredients: Any Fatty Meat and any Egg
- Sweetened Niktsyey
- Buff: Fleet-Footed and Firewalk I (10% movement speed, 35% increase in fire resistance)
- Ingredients: Swamp Hive Nectar and Shelter Fruit
- Egg-Stuffed Mushroom
- Buff: Ambush I (35% stealth damage)
- Ingredients: Any Mushroom and any Egg
- Fruit and Meat Skewer
- Buff: Fury I (35% increase to all damage)
- Ingredients: Any Lean Meat and any Fruit
What to Do First in Avatar Frontiers of Pandora
Familiarize Yourself with Na’vi Senses
One of the most crucial aspects of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is mastering the Na’vi Senses. Similar to Eagle Vision in Assassin’s Creed, this ability highlights your objectives, enemy positions, and useful environmental elements. Activate it with R1/RB to see the blue glow indicating your objective and to identify flora, fauna, and enemy weaknesses.
By familiarizing yourself with this feature early on, you’ll find navigation and resource gathering much more intuitive. It helps in identifying objectives, spotting enemy weaknesses, and discovering new flora and fauna.
Increase Health Pouch Capacity
Frontiers of Pandora features a dual system of health and energy. Health can be replenished using Dapophet Pods and cooked meals, while energy regenerates health over time but is consumed by activities like fast traveling. Increase your health pool by interacting with Bellsprig flowers and by increasing your health pouch capacity through skill trees.
The game begins with a limited health pouch capacity, making you vulnerable in combat. Prioritize increasing your health pouch capacity in the Memories of the Survivor skill tree. This not only provides more healing charges but also enhances your overall survivability in the game.
Unlock Your Fourth Weapon Slot
The game offers a variety of weapons, each suitable for different combat situations. Initially, you’re limited in how many you can carry.
Unlocking a fourth weapon slot via the Memories of the Warrior skill tree allows for greater flexibility in combat, letting you adapt to various challenges and preferences.
Learn to Navigate Pandora Efficiently
Before acquiring mounts like Direhorse or Ikran, you’ll rely heavily on foot travel. Pandora’s terrain calls for skilled navigation. Practice performing different jumps and identify key plants that aid in travel. This knowledge significantly speeds up your movement across the landscape.
Embracing the Na’vi culture means interacting with the environment and wildlife respectfully and sustainably. Hunting and gathering cleanly not only aligns with the game’s ethos but also yields better quality resources.
Avoid Polluted Items
Polluted items, often found near RDA sites, are less efficient in crafting, cooking, and healing. Focus on collecting quality resources away from polluted areas. Once an RDA site is cleared, the surrounding environment and its resources return to their pristine state.
Get Used to Hacking
The Systems Interrogation Device (SID) is a versatile tool that you will obtain early in your journey. SID is crucial for overcoming numerous obstacles in your adventure. Its capabilities include disrupting hostile equipment and fixing electronic mechanisms that may impede your progress. There are a few different mini-games and ways to use it. Head over to our dedicated guide for the full breakdown.
Frontiers of Pandora Beginner Tips & Tricks
Once you’ve mastered the basics you’ll become more comfortable questing around Pandora. Here are some tips and tricks we recommend keeping in mind, though:
Pet Your Ikran – Bonding with Your Mount: Ikrans are more than just a means of travel; they are companions in your journey. Interacting with your Ikran, such as petting, strengthens your bond with it, enhancing your experience and connection to the world of Pandora.
Use the Hunter’s Guide Tracking Fauna and Flora – The Hunter’s Guide is an invaluable resource in the game, cataloging the diverse species you encounter. Check out our full list of all resources in Avatar Frontiers of Pandora and where to find them.
Pinning entries – using pins in the guide makes them easier to track in Na’vi vision, simplifying your exploration and resource gathering.
Crafting Usage: Learn to identify these plants as they can be used to craft useful items like poison arrows, adding another layer to your combat strategy.
Quest Clues – During quests, you’ll often come across investigation points that need to be interacted with. Make sure to actively engage with each clue, as this is essential to progress in quests and unravel the storylines.
Utilize Changing Stations – Changing Stations located in Na’vi camps allow you to personalize your character’s appearance.
Manage Ammo – RDA ammunition is a finite resource that cannot be crafted and must be scavenged or obtained from defeated enemies. Managing your ammunition effectively is key, especially during intensive combat scenarios. This involves balancing the use of Na’vi and RDA weapons based on availability.
Use Spare Parts Wisely – Spare Parts are a valuable currency in the game, used for trading with NPCs and crafting. While it’s tempting to spend them on new gear and upgrades, it’s wise to reserve some for essential crafting, especially for ammunition which can’t be crafted otherwise.
That wraps up our Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora beginner walkthrough and starter guide. For more on the game, keep it locked to We Game Daily.
