Subnautica 2 Biomes Guide: All 13 Current Zones (2026)

Updated 2026-10-14: corrected after a fact check against the official Subnautica 2 wiki. We removed the "Fabrication Module" and "depth-rated hull sections" advice: there is no Fabrication Module (you build a Fabricator inside a seabase), and the depth upgrade that gates Root Canyon is your Tadpole's Depth Module, swapped the Seaglide for the Wakemaker, and fixed the old name: "Sparse Plains" was the Tar Delta region, not the Intermediary Basin.

TL;DR: 13 named zones across the current map labels: Coral Gardens (8 zones, 0-266m), the Tar Delta's Intermediary Basin (0-250m), Karakorum Ruins (3 zones, 0-750m), and the Void (0-3,100m, out of bounds). The Collector Leviathan patrols the Intermediary Basin and Karakorum Metal Farms. The Shiver Leviathan guards the Void. The stationary Great Jaw sits in the Dolerite Spires. Start in the Shallows, work through Coral Gardens, then push into Karakorum Ruins once your Tadpole has its Depth Module.

Subnautica 2 biomes: quick answer

The current official biome wiki lists 13 named zones: eight in Coral Gardens, three in Karakorum Ruins, the Intermediary Basin in the Tar Delta region, and the Void. Great Trench and Xanadu are listed as potential future biomes, not current explorable zones. Older coverage calls the Tar Delta "Sparse Plains" or "Scorpius"; the region is still mostly unfinished and past the Early Access barrier.

Subnautica 2 status: Early Access 1.2 and the current map

Early Access 1.2, the Buddy System update, added proximity chat, player revives, emotes, player trading, two character options, and many fixes. The September 1 hotfix then improved Collector Leviathan pathing and corrected save, base, and localization issues. Unknown Worlds' roadmap still describes the next large drop as an expansion of the world, biomes, creatures, resources, tools, vehicles, and story, but gives no firm date. The 13-zone roster below is therefore a current-build snapshot, not a final map count.

Subnautica 2 biomes: key takeaways

• 13 named zones on the current official wiki: Coral Gardens, Karakorum Ruins, the Tar Delta's Intermediary Basin, and the Void
• Coral Gardens is the starting region and contains 8 of the 13 biomes, including the Shallows where your Lifepod sits
• The Collector Leviathan patrols two zones: Intermediary Basin and Karakorum Metal Farms
• The Shiver Leviathan guards the Void, the out-of-bounds zone beyond the Early Access boundary
• The Great Jaw, a stationary ambush creature, sits in the Dolerite Spires
• Depth ranges span 0m (Shallows, Intermediary Basin, several Coral Gardens biomes) to roughly 3,100m in the Void
• Great Trench and Xanadu are listed as potential future biomes and aren't accessible in the current build

How Subnautica 2 biomes work

Subnautica 2 structures its world around the region labels used by the current wiki rather than one continuous descent. Coral Gardens wraps around your starting Lifepod and contains most of the early-game biomes. The Tar Delta sits beyond Coral Gardens; its only reachable zone is the Intermediary Basin, a trench patrolled by a Collector Leviathan. Karakorum Ruins is the mid-to-late game region, built around ancient alien architecture and story content. The Void is not a region you explore, it's the boundary that marks the edge of the current Early Access map.

Within each region, individual biomes still vary a lot by depth and resource type. The deeper you go, the more your equipment needs to catch up, and the harder it gets to scan creatures safely. Skipping a biome isn't just an exploration gap, since biome-specific fauna feeds the DNA modification system covered in the creature evasion guide.

The recommended approach mirrors how the regions are laid out: treat Coral Gardens as your research base, Intermediary Basin as an early Leviathan-avoidance lesson, and Karakorum Ruins as the mid-game push once your Tadpole and Biomods can handle it.

Screenshot: Subnautica 2 (Unknown Worlds)

Biome reference table

Great Trench and Xanadu appear on the developer's own biome map as "potential future biomes" and are not part of the current Early Access build.

The Shallows: your starting biome

The Shallows is where you land, literally. Your Lifepod, the Welcome Center, and your first Colonist Bunker are all here, and the biome runs a manageable 0-224m. It's the calmest zone in the game: no Leviathan-class predator patrols it, and the resource list (Coral Shavings, Fibrous Pulp, Quartz, Copper, Titanium) covers your entire first crafting queue.

Base placement: build your first base close to the Lifepod. A seabase Fabricator comes first, because the Lifepod's own Fabricator is corrupted and can't make advanced recipes. Put lockers next to it (it pulls ingredients from them) and a Solar Panel on top: in the Shallows, solar works fine.

First session checklist:

1. Collect Titanium, Copper, and Quartz from the Shallows seafloor
2. Build a seabase with a Fabricator, lockers and a Solar Panel
3. Craft a Wakemaker for faster swimming
4. Scan the passive fauna around the Lifepod for early DNA data
5. Push toward Intermediary Basin or the Dolerite Spires once your base is stable

GODEEPER: Creature behavior and threat notes across every biome, including how to read a Leviathan's aggro range before you commit to a scan. Subnautica 2 Creature Guide →

Screenshot: Subnautica 2 (Unknown Worlds)

Intermediary Basin: the Collector Leviathan's territory

Intermediary Basin is the trench between Coral Gardens and the Overgrown Ruins, 0-250m, and you have to cross it to reach the mid-game. That makes it the first place most players meet the Collector Leviathan, an aggressive squid-like predator about 110m long whose grab kills a diver outright.

The Collector is fully unkillable, so the skill here is reading its patrol rather than fighting it. Scanning it with the Bioscanner gets you the Sonic Echo biomod. The full breakdown of its patrol pattern, scan window, and escape routes is in the dedicated Collector Leviathan guide.

Dolerite Spires: home of the Great Jaw

Dolerite Spires sits in the south-west corner of the Coral Gardens region, 0-128m deep. It's an easy biome to explore in general, but it hosts one specific hazard worth knowing before you go in: the Great Jaw, an enormous stationary ambush creature that works like a giant Venus flytrap. It doesn't hunt, it waits, and it's only dangerous if you trip its tendrils. The Great Jaw guide covers the full trigger mechanics and the loot inside it.

The rest of Coral Gardens: Graveyard, Lead Zone, Necrolei Hills, and the Raceways

Coral Gardens has six more named zones worth knowing at a glance beyond the Shallows and Dolerite Spires:

• Graveyard (0-266m): salvage-dense, built around the Tailings Village and Tadpole Pens. A good mid-early stop for scrap and Deepwing Egg Clumps.
• Lead Zone (34-65m): small and specific, this is the most reliable place to find Lead ore in the current build.
• Necrolei Hills (0-100m): the place for Necrolei Cysts, Medical Gel Sacs and Water Slugs.
• Plateaus (23-119m): home to Camp One, Old Habitat outposts, and a mix of early resource nodes.
• North Raceway and South Raceway (North depth currently unspecified; South 0-85m): open, low-threat terrain with standard Copper, Quartz, Salt, and Titanium deposits.

None of these host a Leviathan-class predator, which makes them good low-risk stops while you gather what you need for the deeper regions.

Karakorum Ruins: Metal Farms, Overgrown Ruins, and Root Canyon

Karakorum Ruins is the mid-to-late game region, and it's where the story content concentrates. Three biomes make it up:

Karakorum Metal Farms (0-500m) is the second zone the Collector Leviathan patrols, alongside its Intermediary Basin territory. It's also rich in Atacamite and Celestine.

Overgrown Ruins (0-600m) holds the Axum Observatory and the Rosetta Stone, the current story endpoint in Early Access. Reaching and repairing the Observatory concludes the current narrative arc, so this is not a biome to skip if you care about the story so far.

Root Canyon (364-750m) is the deepest biome you can actually explore in the current build, home to the Therapy Room and Stairway to Heaven wrecks. Your Tadpole's default crush depth is 250m, so fit the Depth Module Mk. 1 (450m) before you push in.

GODEEPER: A deep base needs a generator that works below 200m, where Solar Panels stop. Subnautica 2 Deep-Sea Base Guide →

The Void: the Early Access boundary, not a biome to explore

The Void is not a content biome, it's the edge of the current map. Depth here runs down to roughly 3,100m, but the number that actually matters is the Early Access boundary itself: cross it, and a Shiver Leviathan spawns, a massive female carrying three fast males that can destroy a Tadpole in one clamp. Retreat back inside the boundary and it breaks off immediately.

Treat the Void as a wall, not a zone. Players who go looking for undiscovered content past the map edge find an unkillable pack hunter and nothing else. The full survival breakdown, including the one safe scan window, is in the Shiver Leviathan guide.

Step-by-Step: recommended exploration order

Based on the region layout and equipment requirements, this sequence minimizes unnecessary deaths and maximizes research value per hour spent:

1. Shallows (0-224m): first few hours. Build a seabase Fabricator and lockers. Scan the passive fauna around the Lifepod.
2. Dolerite Spires and the rest of Coral Gardens (0-266m): scan the Great Jaw from outside its tendril range, gather Lead in the Lead Zone, and top off resources before pushing east.
3. Intermediary Basin (0-250m): scout the Collector Leviathan's patrol from a distance before attempting a scan.
4. Karakorum Metal Farms (0-500m): Troilite, Atacamite and Axum Bacterial Cultures. A Collector patrols the water above the farms.
5. Overgrown Ruins (0-600m): the story-relevant push. Repair the Observatory once your gear supports 600m.
6. Root Canyon (364-750m): the deepest region worth exploring, once your Tadpole has the Depth Module Mk. 1.
7. Void boundary: avoid unless you specifically want the Shiver Leviathan's databank entry, and go in with Camouflage unlocked.

Tips

Scan everything you can reach safely. The DNA modification system is tied to creature scanning data, not story progression, so players who skip scanning in early biomes arrive at later regions with thinner build options than they should have.

Treat a Leviathan's detection cue as a timer, not an alarm. Both the Collector and the Shiver give you a window to react before they close the distance. Retreating immediately is almost always the right call.

Stage secondary bases between regions. A small base at the edge of Karakorum Ruins cuts down the logistics of operating at 500-750m compared to running everything from your Shallows base.

In co-op, designate someone to handle the Overgrown Ruins scanning pass. It benefits from focused attention rather than being squeezed between shared objectives.

For timing expectations across the whole build, the Subnautica 2 how long to beat guide breaks down runtime by playstyle. The early access tips guide covers the equipment progression that unlocks access to the deeper regions.

Frequently asked questions

How many biomes are in Subnautica 2 Early Access? 13 named zones: Coral Gardens (8), Karakorum Ruins (3), the Tar Delta's Intermediary Basin (1), and the Void (1). Great Trench and Xanadu are listed as potential future biomes but aren't in the current build.

What biome should I go to first? The Shallows, since that's where you spawn. From there, work through the rest of Coral Gardens before pushing into Intermediary Basin or south into Karakorum Ruins.

Where is the Collector Leviathan? It patrols two zones: Intermediary Basin and Karakorum Metal Farms. Both territories are avoidable if you know the patrol boundary.

Can you kill Leviathans in Subnautica 2? No. Leviathans like the Collector and the Shiver can't be killed. You avoid, distract or stun them.

What is the Void? The out-of-bounds zone at the edge of the current Early Access map, patrolled by the Shiver Leviathan. It's not meant to be explored, it marks where the playable content currently ends.

Is the Overgrown Ruins story-relevant? Yes. It holds the Axum Observatory and Rosetta Stone, the current story endpoint in Early Access. Skipping it means missing the context building toward whatever comes next.

Related Reading

• Subnautica 2 Creature Guide: full behavior notes and scanning strategy for the fauna in each biome.
• Subnautica 2 Base Building Guide: first base, Fabricator and power.
• Subnautica 2 Complete Guide Hub: survival, biomes, base building, DNA mods, and all cluster guides.
• Subnautica 2 Leviathan Guide: Avoid, Scan, Survive: Subnautica 2 leviathan encounters: patrol patterns, safe scanning range, and how to escape when aggro fires.
• Subnautica 2 Deep-Sea Base Guide: which generator works below 200m and how Power Transmitters link it.
• Subnautica 2 Vehicles Guide: the Tadpole, its Haul and Scout Ray chassis, and depth modules.

References

• Subnautica 2 on Steam: current Early Access store page, price, and features.
• Subnautica 2 Wiki: Biomes: official biome list, current region labels, and depth ranges.
• Subnautica 2 official announcements: Buddy System update and September hotfix notes.
• Unknown Worlds Early Access roadmap: official roadmap for future world and biome expansion.
• Subnautica 2 developer vlog: official Unknown Worlds video.