Beating up bugs is an integral part of the Grounded experience. Though many are docile and seem undeserving of your spear, the materials they drop can all be fashioned into helpful gear and equipment.
The general rule with Obsidian’s new survival game is that the bigger the critter, the harder they are to beat. Makes sense for a mite-sized hero, right? From the fuzzy gnat to the gruesome wolf spider, here’s the complete list of Grounded insects, where to find them, and, most importantly, how best to kill them.
Small bugs
Lawn Mite
- Where to find: By logs or tall grass
- Recommended equipment: Basic armor if taking on many
Lawn Mites are annoying little things. The headcrabs of Grounded, you might say. These small critters are extremely aggressive, and where there’s one, there are often many. They’re quick and easy to take down, but their small size and speed can mean they’ll lunge at you before you even spot them on the ground. Without any armor at all, they dish out some respectable damage. Take on too many of these early on and you could face an early grave.
That being said, all you really need to do to kill a Lawn Mite is give it a swing or two with a basic weapon. The stun from a hammer can make for an easy follow-up attack, but you might want to go for something fast, like a spear, to take it down before it has a chance to scurry around and confuse you.
Gnat
- Where to find: They find you.
- Recommended equipment: Anything
These fuzzy little fliers occasionally come in for a quick bite, which is just soft enough to have headphone users swat around in real life. Gnats usually come in pairs. That’s how it seems to be, anyway. After coming in close, they’ll slowly fly away again, pitching up and down as they go.
You have to be fairly precise to hit these things while they’re up there, so keep jumping and swinging with whatever tool you have. It only takes two punches to take one down, but with how much they move, it’s best to get it over in a single strike of something sharper.
Aphid
- Where to find: Anywhere, but mostly tall grass
- Recommended equipment: Anything
Aphids are the small, green critters that like to run ahead, look back, and run off again as you get close. They’re not up for a fight at all, and taking one down shouldn’t take more than a single strike. They’ve been known to climb up plant stems and even hang upside down on them, so be sure to land a striking blow once you catch up with them before they decide to retreat far out of your reach. They’re a good source of meat for the barbeque. That’s about it.
Weevil
- Where to find: Anywhere
- Recommended equipment: Anything
Like the Aphid, Weevils are used for little more than ways to keep your foot meter topped up. Its long nose, however, is an essential part of the Gas Mask craft. Weevils make quite a bit of noise. They sound like grumpy old men shuffling their way down the street. So if you haven’t seen other bugs chasing one down in a little while, just listen out for their distinct sound.
Spiderling
- Where to find: Around spider nests, like by the marshland northwest of the Mysterious Machine
- Recommended equipment: Anything
Spiderlings are a great source of spider silk — assuming you can get to the things without their broodmother taking a chunk out of you. Spiderlings can be atop web-decorated mounds or deep in tunnels. You’re probably going to want to farm these outside if possible, though. If a full-blown spider attacks in a tunnel, you’re not getting out of there alive.
The scream of a spiderling will still put most on edge, but when four or five unarmed punches is all they can take, don’t expect much of a fight unless their parents get involved.
Medium bugs
Grub
Where to find: Any semi-open area with plenty of unobstructed dirtRecommended equipment: Anything (Acorn Shovel needed to initiate)
There’s a little hesitation needed when calling a Grub a medium bug, but it’s certainly larger than the critters up above.
The juicy Grub is an insect found burrowing under the soil. Not in a cave, but just below your feet. All you need to do to uncover it is to follow the dirt trail it leaves behind and stab the tip of the soil with an Acorn Shovel.
That alone stuns the Grub as it pops out of the ground. Since it’s already taken some damage from the shovel, one or two more hits of virtually any item will burst the bug.
Worker Ant
- Where to find: Anthills (northwest of the Mysterious Machine) or chasing smaller bugs
- Recommended equipment: Minimal armor + hammer and another weapon
Despite their size, Worker Ants hit pretty hard — especially without any armor at all. If you really want to skip making something like Grub Armor early on, the secret to beating up armies of Worker Ants lies in a good blunt weapon.
Whacking ants with something as simple as the Pebble Hammer will knock them into a daze. While they’re stunned, you should have just enough time to switch to a stronger weapon, like the Axe or Spear, to deal the final few blows.
Get a couple of ants together in the same spot and you’ll be able to take them all down at once. Just be careful with taking too many on, though. If they manage to surround you, you won’t stand much chance.
Soldier Ant
- Where to find: Anthills (northwest of Mysterious Machine) or occasionally wandering around
- Recommended equipment: Grub Armor or better/equivalent + Ant Club
The aggressive type of ant, these are denoted by their rather large and sharp pincers in place of the Worker Ants’ shorter, rounder nibbler. Another way to discern the Soldier Ant over the Worker Ant is how it responds to you. If it starts a fight with you, it’s a Soldier. If not, it’s a Worker.
Soldier Ants have quite a bit more HP than their lackeys, making them tougher targets. They also take more hits of a good blunt weapon like the Ant Club to stun, making them particularly hard to fight early on. If you want to take these on without much armor to your name, learning to Perfect Block their attacks is key. Their attack comes far later than their animation lets on, so keep your block up until you learn when their attack actually comes down.
Bombardier Beetle
- Where to find: Near the big rake
- Recommended equipment: Grub Armor or equivalent, Spear for spinning
Bombardier beetles are fairly uncommon, and while they might not look too menacing, they’re about as tough as the dreaded Orb Weaver spider. Luckily, they have a fairly similar attack pattern, meaning many of the strategies we use to take down the Orb Weaver can be applied here.
What this means is getting close to the bug and circling it as you attack with the spear. Keep some stamina in reserve so you can hit sprint as it readies its attack, and you should find yourself on its rear or flank before the attack lands.
Unlike the Orb Weaver, the acid the Bombardier Bug spits from its back to its front lingers on the ground, so you’ll have to pull back slightly as you spin to kite it away from this until it dissipates.
Killing a Bombardier Beetle is essential to crafting the Tier 2 Insect Axe — something you’ll need to harvest Berry Leather and continue your upgrades.
Larva
- Where to find: In a burrow to the east of the mysterious machine
- Recommended equipment: Basic armor, Ant Club
Larva attack quite quickly and wiggle around left and right, but so long as you understand how squishy they are, they should be able to take them on no problem. They’re weaker than the Soldier Ant in terms of HP, but try to take on a train of them and you’ll be overwhelmed quickly.
The best way to take on Lavra is to camp at a frequent spawn point and take each one out as they emerge on their own. The spot straight down from Oak Lab is a good place for this. A couple swings of the Ant Club should knock them into a daze long enough to finish them off.
Large bugs
Ladybug
- Where to find: Anywhere, sometimes munching on grass or smaller critters
- Recommended equipment: Grub Armor with Ant Club (Gas Mask helps)
Most people love them — others really hate them. The docile Ladybug is one of the first bigger insects you’ll come across in Grounded. They won’t harm you — until you harm them, at least. Take a swing without the right equipment, though, and you’ll be knocked into next week faster than you can follow up your attack. Master of the almighty bonk, the Ladybug isn’t terrifying to fight. Unlike the spider, which attacks with its grotesque fangs, the Ladybug more or less headbutts you into submission. But there is one way to fend it off.
Aside from learning to perfectly block its attacks to avoid damning stuns, there’s an easier way to send it packing than careful timing of deflects and stamina management — mounting it. That’s right. It’s not foolproof, but one way to “cheese” a Ladybug fight is to get up on its back and beat it down. It can’t do much to attack someone bold enough to climb aboard, so assuming you can keep your footing, getting the drop on a Ladybug should circumvent the need to gear up before taking one on the normal way. It’s a shortcut to some decent equipment, at least.
Stinkbug
- Where to find: Open area to the far west of the mysterious machine
- Recommended equipment: Grub Armor with Ant Club (Gas Mask helps)
You might have come across a couple of Stinkbugs by accident on your early travels. They’re large, flat-looking critters. A little cockroach-like in appearance, for lack of a better term. They often duke it out with the Ladybugs and, like the girls, they’re not to be taken lightly.
Stinkbugs not only hit hard, but they poison, too. They do this by excreting a cloud of poison gas around them after a long charge-up time. You’ll notice this when they stick their butts in the air for longer than the average attack. If you see that coming, back up.
Wait for the smoke to clear or kite them out of it and begin stunning them into submission. Ant clubs are great for this, so swing away. They take a real beating, so you’ll have to wait between flurries to block counter-attacks and let your stamina build back up before delivering the final few blows.
Grub armor should be more than enough to take these on, assuming you have a couple restoratives to top you up in case you miss a block or two. That particular set’s stamina-boost skill will help you get a couple more swings out of the Ant Club, too, so it’s a no-brainer.
You’ll need to kill a Stinkbug to craft the Gasmask. Once you have it, killing additional Stinkbugs should be easy, as it’ll allow you to whack them while they’re gushing out their poison cloud for some easy free hits.
How to beat spiders in Grounded
Orb Weaver
- Where to find: Roaming the grass, by wooden stakes to the north
- Recommended equipment: Ladybug or equivalent, Ant Club
The Orb Weaver is one of the easier spiders to take on in Grounded. Its patterned butt may make it scary, but learn to get up close without freaking out and you’ll have all the tools you need to take it on without even getting scratched.
The secret to fighting the Orb Weaver is to take advantage of its slow attacks. They may look fast, but the way the Orb Weaver has to wind up for each bite means it’s super easy to evade. No blocking necessary.
What you want to do is lure the Orb Weaver into an open area. Get in close, and just start strafing around it as you swing. Stay close enough and you’ll always find yourself on its flank by the time a bite comes down. Nailing this method means you’ll be able to take on the dreaded Orb Weaver without any armor at all. Just pack a fast weapon (like a spear) and you should be good to go with a little bit of practice.
Wolf Spider
- Where to find: Undergrowth, like under the oak tree, by the lab, or the berry shrub
- Recommended equipment: Ladybug or equivalent, Mint Mallet
Unless you’re some hardened veteran, you won’t be taking on the dreaded Wolf Spider without first gearing up. Unlike the Orb Weaver, you more or less have to take a few hits to succeed here.
The way to beat the Wolf Spider lies in the Perfect Block technique. Learn its attack animations, nail the timing, and you’ll negate every ounce of damage it puts out. Holding block will deplete your HP (and your armor) fast, but learn to Perfect Block and you’ll be able to get by with just a few emergency Band-aids on hand.
You’re going to want a high-tier weapon (like the Mint Mallet) to reliably take these on. Anything else and the fight will go on too long, increasing your chances of failing too many blocks and biting the dust.