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beginner guidePATCH 2026.10.15

Conan Exiles Beginner Guide for the Unreal Engine 5 Update (2026)

By VGSources Team 11 min read

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Conan Exiles Enhanced is the 2026 Unreal Engine 5 version of the Steam PC game. It keeps the survival, building, combat and progression systems of Conan Exiles while adding a higher-fidelity renderer, revised interface and performance work, connected Exiled Lands–Isle of Siptah travel for expansion owners, improved save handling and crafting from nearby storage. A new player should first confirm the substantially higher PC requirements, choose a ruleset that matches their tolerance for loss, then spend the opening hour securing water, basic tools, a compact base and a dependable food-and-healing loop.

This guide follows the current PC version through Hotfix 3.0.1 (October 8, 2026), explains what changed from the UE4 game, and gives a practical route from character creation to your first serious expedition.

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What Conan Exiles Enhanced changed

Funcom released Conan Exiles Enhanced on Steam on May 5, 2026. It is a free upgrade for existing and future Steam owners, not a separately sold sequel. The PC game moved to Unreal Engine 5, received a visual and interface refresh, and brought eight years of post-launch content onto the new foundation. Existing progression paths remain supported, although save and server handling depends on the platform and branch you use.

The largest world-level change affects owners of Isle of Siptah. The Exiled Lands and Siptah are now parts of one connected game world, so one character can travel between them. Siptah access still requires owning that expansion; the integration does not make the DLC free.

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Current update timeline

Date Version or release What it means for a beginner
May 5, 2026 Conan Exiles Enhanced Free Steam upgrade to Unreal Engine 5 with refreshed visuals, UI and performance targets.
May 5, 2026 Enhanced launch patch Backwards-compatible UE4 save support, multiple single-player/co-op save slots, merged maps, and crafting, building and repair from nearby storage or follower inventories.
September 15, 2026 Update 2.2.0 Moved Enhanced to Unreal Engine 5.8.2 and introduced Iris networking. Iris reduces repeated replication work, but it does not remove every server limit caused by very large builds.
October 6, 2026 Patch 3.0.0: Legacy of the Giant-Kings Part Two Added Mysterious Rifts in enemy camps, selectable hostile arenas, new materials and rewards, armor filters, legendary dismantling and additional sorcery.
October 8, 2026 Hotfix 3.0.1 Addressed crashes, Steam Deck stability and several new gameplay and interface problems.

That timeline matters because an old guide may describe UE4 graphics, separate map starts, single-save limitations or crafting that requires carrying every ingredient. Those instructions no longer describe the current Steam build.

Check your PC before creating a character

Enhanced has a materially higher hardware floor than the older low-end survival-PC setup. Compare your system with Funcom’s published targets before troubleshooting in-game stutter. An SSD is part of both configurations, not an optional quality-of-life upgrade.

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Component Minimum published target Recommended published target
Operating system Windows 10 64-bit Windows 11 64-bit
Processor AMD Ryzen 5 3600 or Intel Core i5-10400F AMD Ryzen 7 5600X or Intel Core i7-11700F
Memory 16 GB RAM 16 GB RAM
Graphics card NVIDIA GTX 1070 Ti or AMD Radeon 5700 XT NVIDIA RTX 3060 or AMD Radeon RX 6700
Video memory At least 8 GB VRAM Not separately stated by Funcom; the listed cards are the reference class.
Graphics API DirectX 12 DirectX 12
Storage and connection SSD and broadband internet SSD and broadband internet

These are published target classes, not a guarantee of a particular frame rate. Server population, construction scale, background applications and graphics settings can all change the result. A machine below the minimum may launch but is outside the supported performance expectation.

Choose the ruleset before you build a permanent home

Your first important decision is not a weapon; it is the world in which your character will live. The ruleset determines whether another player can attack you, how much control you have over settings, and how painful a mistake feels while you are learning.

Start Risk from other players Control Best use What to plan for
Solo or co-op None unless invited players cause the problem High control over your own save and pace Learning combat, building and recipes without social pressure Back up the save and use the multiple single-player/co-op slots to separate experiments.
Official PvE Players cannot normally destroy your base through PvP, but competition for space and resources remains Official server rules and schedule A populated world with lower loss risk Choose an active server with acceptable population and latency; land claims and crowded building areas can affect your plans.
Official PvP Other players can threaten your character, inventory and base according to server rules Official rules, limited administrative control Players who want raids, alliances and constant strategic pressure Keep valuables distributed, build defensibly and assume an exposed base can be found.
Private server Depends on the owner’s settings and community Highest control, but someone must host and administer it Friends who want custom rates, rules or a curated community Check uptime, backups, moderation and the exact settings before investing in a long-term character.

Official, private, Legacy and console environments do not share identical support. If you are joining friends, ask for the server type, region, rules and whether it runs the current Enhanced branch before making a character.

Your first hour: a reliable opening route

Use the early journey objectives as a checklist rather than wandering until you are overburdened. The sequence below gets you from spawn to a defensible foothold without requiring rare drops.

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  1. Confirm the world and spawn safely

    On a solo or co-op game, create the character and note the save slot. On a server, read the rules and identify the nearest respawn or bed location. Do not sprint toward a visually impressive landmark before you know where you will recover your gear.

  2. Collect the three opening materials

    Gather plant fiber, branches and stone in the immediate area. Make the simplest harvesting tools and a basic weapon as soon as the recipes unlock. Tools speed every later step; carrying a large pile of raw stone without the ability to process it only consumes inventory space.

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  3. Secure food and water

    Hunt small, manageable animals or collect the safest available food source, then cook it when you have the required station. Locate a reliable water source and learn the route back to it. Stamina is also a survival resource: avoid exhausting the bar while far from shelter, because combat and climbing both depend on it.

  4. Unlock the first survival and building knowledge

    Spend early knowledge points on the tools, weapons, clothing and building pieces that solve immediate problems. A modest armor set, a shield or a weapon style you can control, and the first construction pieces are more valuable than an ambitious recipe you cannot yet craft.

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  5. Pick a compact starter-base site

    Look for practical access to water, stone, wood and a route toward future travel. A small, flat footprint near resources is easier to defend and expand than an isolated cliff-top that forces every supply run to become a climb. In PvP, avoid obvious approaches and exposed silhouettes; in PvE or solo, prioritize convenience and room for workstations.

  6. Place shelter, storage and a respawn point

    Build a tiny enclosed room first, then add a bedroll or bed and organized storage. Keep an emergency tool, weapon, food and healing items on your character rather than storing every useful object in one chest. The goal is a recoverable base, not a finished estate.

  7. Establish a repeatable resource loop

    Make short trips for wood, stone, fiber and food, return to process them, and replace what you used. Once your shelter and supplies are stable, upgrade armor and weapons before attempting distant camps, caves or bosses.

How nearby-storage crafting changes your routine

Enhanced can pull resources for crafting, building, repairing and clothing dyeing from nearby storage and follower inventories. You no longer need to carry every bar, hide and plant fiber to the workbench. This is one of the most useful changes for a new player because it turns your starter base into a material hub.

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Arrange the base for the effective radius

Place chests, workstations and the containers used by followers close enough for the nearby-inventory system to detect them. The game does not give you a single universal distance that works for every layout, so test a recipe from the workstation: if a material is missing despite being in a chest, move the chest closer or confirm that the item is in a supported container.

Keep a portable emergency kit

Nearby access is a base convenience, not protection against being stranded. Carry a small reserve of food, healing, a repair option, a torch or light source and the weapon you actually know how to use. On a dangerous trip, take only the resources you can replace; leave the bulk of your stock behind.

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Use followers as part of the supply network

When the system can read a follower’s inventory, you can reduce trips between a thrall or companion and a workstation. Still check where valuable items are stored before relocating a follower or entering combat. Convenience does not remove the need for organization.

Travel between the Exiled Lands and Isle of Siptah

For players who own the Isle of Siptah expansion, the two maps are connected. Treat Siptah as a progression and travel choice, not as a mandatory second character start. You can develop one character, move when your equipment and supplies justify the trip, and return to the other map as your goals change.

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Expansion ownership remains the gate: Enhanced’s map integration does not grant Siptah to accounts that do not own it. A new player can learn the core survival loop on the Exiled Lands and postpone the additional map until they have reliable armor, healing, a storage routine and a reason to travel.

Save slots, migration and platform limits

The Enhanced launch patch added multiple single-player/co-op save slots and supported backwards-compatible UE4 save paths. Returning players should identify the correct branch and verify the save before making changes to a long-running world. Make a backup of important local saves before migrating, changing branches or installing major updates.

Steam Enhanced

Steam PC is the supported Unreal Engine 5 path and receives current patches, including Update 2.2.0 and the 3.0.1 hotfix. Use this branch if you want the current graphics, connected-map features and new content.

PC Legacy

The PC Legacy branch allows players who deliberately remain on UE4 to continue using that environment. Funcom’s FAQ says Legacy will not receive new updates, support, Bazaar access or official servers. It is therefore a compatibility choice, not an equivalent version of the current game.

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Console

The FAQ states that consoles remain on UE4 while Funcom considers future Enhanced availability. Do not assume that a Steam guide’s UE5 settings, map integration or patch behavior applies to a console copy.

Gear, combat and when to attempt difficult content

Early deaths usually come from trying to solve a preparation problem with bravery. Before leaving the starter area for a difficult camp or dungeon, have armor that covers the relevant slots, a weapon with a moveset you can read, healing, cooked food and enough stamina to retreat. A shield can make learning enemy timing easier; a two-handed or ranged style can work as well if you understand its spacing and stamina cost.

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Upgrade in practical stages

  • Stage one: improvised tools, basic weapon, simple clothing, cooked food and a shelter with a respawn point.
  • Stage two: reliable armor, a chosen weapon style, organized storage, repair supplies and a regular food pipeline.
  • Stage three: improved stations, stronger materials, followers and a base positioned for longer expeditions.
  • Stage four: specialized equipment for camps, dungeons, sorcery objectives or the map-specific challenges you choose to pursue.

Do not dismantle your only working weapon to chase a material upgrade. Keep one dependable loadout while experimenting with new recipes.

What the new Rifts are and when to try them

Patch 3.0.0 introduced Mysterious Rifts in enemy camps across the Exiled Lands and Isle of Siptah. Rifts lead to hostile arenas with selectable challenges and offer new materials, rewards and additional sorcery. They are escalation content, not a replacement for the opening survival tutorial.

Attempt a Rift after you can reliably defeat ordinary enemies, manage stamina, heal during a fight and recover from a failed run. Bring a weapon you have tested, spare healing, repair capability and only the valuables you are prepared to risk. If the selectable challenge overwhelms your current equipment, leave, improve the base and return rather than treating the first failure as a signal to abandon the character.

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Performance checklist for Enhanced

If the game performs poorly, troubleshoot in a controlled order so you know which change helped.

  1. Update to the current game build, including Hotfix 3.0.1, before changing configuration files.
  2. Confirm the game is installed on an SSD with adequate free space. A nearly full drive can undermine loading and shader work even when the drive is technically an SSD.
  3. Close background workloads such as browsers, recording tools or downloads, then retest the same location and camera angle.
  4. Lower resolution first if the graphics card is the limit. If the problem is scene complexity, reduce view distance, shadows and effects one at a time.
  5. Restart after major settings changes and compare the same activity: a quiet beach is not a useful benchmark for a crowded base or combat arena.
  6. If crashes began after an update, verify the installation through Steam, remove unsupported modifications temporarily and test a clean session.

Update 2.2.0 added Enhanced graphics settings and performance fixes, but Funcom does not promise one frame rate for every combination of hardware, server population and build scale. Iris networking reduces repeated replication work; it does not eliminate limits created by enormous player structures.

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Common beginner mistakes and fixes

Building too far from essentials

A scenic location can become an exhausting commute. If every trip for stone, wood or water consumes more food than it produces, move the starter base or establish a small outpost before expanding.

Carrying the entire inventory everywhere

Use the nearby-storage system at home and travel with a deliberate loadout. Losing a single expedition kit is recoverable; losing every resource you own slows all progress.

Ignoring the server’s social rules

On official servers, read the rules for building, combat windows and claims. On private servers, ask the administrator about rates, wipes, backups and moderation. A ruleset you misunderstand can look like a bug or unfair loss.

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Entering a Rift before basic preparation

Rifts are designed as optional escalation. Finish the first armor, food, healing and stamina loop before selecting a challenge, and keep your best reserve in storage.

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Assuming every platform has the same update

Steam Enhanced, PC Legacy and console UE4 environments have different content and support. Check the branch and platform before following a setting or migration instruction.

A sensible first-week plan

Session one: survive and stabilize

Finish the opening knowledge unlocks, build a compact room, place storage and a respawn point, and learn one safe route to food and water. Do not spend the session chasing distant landmarks.

Sessions two and three: improve the loop

Organize chests by raw materials, processed materials, food and equipment. Upgrade armor and your chosen weapon, add the stations needed for the next tier, and make short scouting trips rather than one huge expedition.

Sessions four and five: expand deliberately

Choose whether the current site can support a larger base. In PvP, improve concealment, defensive approaches and storage distribution. In PvE or solo, prioritize efficient workstation placement and room for followers.

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After the foundation is reliable

Explore farther, recruit followers, investigate sorcery and decide whether Siptah travel or a Rift challenge serves your next goal. Keep one safe return route and enough supplies to recover from a failed attempt.

The winning beginner habit in Enhanced is controlled escalation: establish a recoverable base, learn one system at a time, and increase risk only when your food, healing, equipment and save strategy can absorb a mistake.

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beginner guideConan ExilesConan Exiles EnhancedIsle of SiptahSteamsurvival gamesUnreal Engine 5

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