The Island of California: Strongholds, factions and wildlife
The game takes place on a mythical Island of California in the gold-rush era, with distinct biomes and iconic California landmarks. Maps are procedurally generated from seeds. Enemy Strongholds of different sizes and tiers are scattered across it, and the island’s top-tier enemy faction is Legión Sangre, an exiled military force whose veterans serve General Guerrero. The details below come from developer posts and may change.
| Named Stronghold | What the developers have said |
|---|---|
| Rattlesnake Junction | Medium; former railway hub; appears in Tier 2–4 regions; can be invaded by Sangre Élite |
| Presidio | Medium; added for the June 2026 Alpha |
| Apex Oil Works and Depot | New for Alpha 5 |
| Modoc | Overhauled for Alpha 5 |
| McCarthy, Observatory, Hacienda, Yellow Pine | Cited as examples of medium-sized Strongholds |
| Alta Mesa | Felt under-populated after the first Alpha; flagged for tuning |
How Strongholds and maps work
The Alpha Recap says there were seven large Strongholds in the pool, with eight spawned on each map, so one repeated. The long-term goal is a larger pool and unique sets per seed. Because of procedural generation, the same Stronghold can turn up in different regions on different servers. Coastlines such as Big Sur, Monterey and Mendocino, Pacific Riviera and South Coast were rebuilt in recent Alphas, and small shipwreck hideouts appear along the coast.
Legión Sangre and Sangre Élite invasions
In Alpha 4 the patch notes introduced the Sangre Élite, General Guerrero’s veterans. After a server has been up for a while, they invade and occupy Strongholds, spreading into Tier 2 and Tier 3 over time. Each invasion lasts about five hours and offers a special Elite Stronghold Chest that is lootable separately from the normal chest. In Alpha 5, Intel from these invasions is how you find the Doomsday Bunker.
World events and vendors
Developer posts name Caravan Defense, Outpost Defense, Legendary Grove, the rare vendor Salvador, Contraband Caches and the Outlaw Strongbox as world events. Abigail is the PvP vendor and Santiago the fishing vendor.
Wildlife
Boars, mountain lions, bobcats, jaguars and birds appear in developer notes. Dire wolves are very rare and their pelts are used in crafting. Legendary spawns such as the Great Bison and White Stag were made rarer on purpose, and the Iron Bison and Hartspear, which developers mention alongside rare spawns with special drops, received custom art and sounds.