Players that are new to SCUM 1.0 may not be aware just how tough this survival game can be. Players may find the tutorial more navigable than what most other survival games have provided them with, but failing to mention even one element of the game can have players wondering what to do next.

Players may check their inventory to discover that something they were sure they had is no longer with them. This can be credited to how Vicinity works in SCUM, and some players may completely misinterpret how they should be using it.

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How to Store Items and Use Vicinity in SCUM 1.0

When players are deployed onto the island, they won’t have much on them. Players will be told to make a stone knife. After searching for some rocks, they will see several rocks on the top of their screen. These rocks are not in their inventory. If players walk away from the area with their inventory open, they will see them disappear. Likewise, they will come back if they return to that area. This is the game’s Vicinity mechanic.

In order to store items, players will need to drag items they want into their pant pockets, shirt pockets, one of their 2 holsters, or carry them in their hands. If players try to put something in their hands when they have no space, they will end up dropping whatever is currently in their hands. This can have players wondering where their stone knives keep disappearing to. This makes learning inventory management a must.

In order to craft an Improvised Courier Backpack, players will need to have all the items they need in the same area to work with. Once it is all together in the same place, then players will be able to craft one.

How to Craft an Improvised Courier Backpack in SCUM 1.0

Players will need a lot of sticks and might find themselves not having enough to make their backpack when they cut up some bushes. If players cannot find 2 bushes together, a great tip for the game is to craft a bundle of sticks and then carry that bundle to another bush. Players can always make new stone knives, so it is okay to discard one if their pant pockets already have rags in them.

If you have no room in your pockets, leaving the area after making rags will leave those rags behind. Players need to manually designate where they are storing items, and some items may not fit in certain storage mediums.

If players have made the mistake of leaving their rags on the ground and forgetting where they are. This is still early in the game, and they can restart with a new character to get their starting clothing back without amassing a large debt at the start of the game. Once players have all the materials they need, they can type “Improvised Courier Backpack” in the search feature. They can then turn some sticks into rope, tear up some clothing for rags, and then craft their new backpack.

Players can also select various stones to make a stone axe to chop up logs.

Making Early Money Quickly in SCUM 1.0

Backpack Selling SCUM 1.0-1

While there are a lot of better ways to make money later on, players can make several of these packs and fill them with valuable items to sell at the nearest General Store. This can give players enough of an income for a strong early start.

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SCUM Tag Page Cover Art
SCUM
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Released
June 17, 2025
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WHERE TO PLAY

DIGITAL
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Developer(s)
Croteam, Gamepires
Genre(s)
Open-World, Survival
Platform(s)
PC
SCUM