Which artifact is in Upper South Cave?

Upper South Cave holds the Artifact of the Pack, which is tribute for Megapithecus, Dinopithecus King, Crystal Wyvern Queen, Thodes, the Widowmaker.

Where is the entrance to Upper South Cave?

The entrance is at 71.3, 57.2 on The Island.

What should you bring to Upper South Cave?

Hide Armor or Flak Armor for land sections. SCUBA or Lazarus Chowder for underwater sections. Torch Crossbow Cooked Meats Medical Brews Bug Repellant Stimberrys or Stimulants Fria Curry or an Otter are needed for some armor combinations Grappling Hook are needed for reaching the Artifact quickly, lets you mostly skip contact with water, or alternatively a Zip-Line Anchor when riding a Ravager Pump-Action Shotgun or Shotgun with ammo. GPS for if you get lost you can look at it and find where the artifact is or find where the entrance of the cave is to get out.

UPPER SOUTH CAVE

Artifact of the Pack · cave on The Island

View on The Island map → Artifact of the Pack →

Screenshots

with the interior map click to expand

The Cave

guide

The Upper South Cave is a cave to the north of the swamp on The Island. The cave contains the Artifact of the Pack, needed to summon the Megapithecus. This large cave was considered one of the hardest caves prior to the Snow Cave and Swamp Cave, added in PC Update v252.0. The Mammoth and Lystrosaurus dossiers can be found here, as well as Helena Note #11.

Hazards

Cold (-5°C) underwater.
Swarms of enemies underwater.
Risk of drowning in underwater tunnels.
Mega Rabies from Megalania or Onyc.
Arthropluera in the upper parts can one-shot most armor.

Recommended Equipment

Hide Armor or Flak Armor for land sections.
SCUBA or Lazarus Chowder for underwater sections.
Torch
Crossbow
Cooked Meats
Medical Brews
Bug Repellant
Stimberrys or Stimulants
Fria Curry or an Otter are needed for some armor combinations
Grappling Hook are needed for reaching the Artifact quickly, lets you mostly skip contact with water, or alternatively a Zip-Line Anchor when riding a Ravager
Pump-Action Shotgun or Shotgun with ammo.
GPS for if you get lost you can look at it and find where the artifact is or find where the entrance of the cave is to get out.

What You'll Be Dealing With

assembled from what lives in this cave 8

UnderwaterGrabs and pinsArmour damageTorporSwarmsColdHeat

Piranha — Attacks in shoals the moment you enter the water, and does not stop.
Do not enter the water on foot. There is no gear answer, only a mount.
Sarco — Rolls a survivor in water and is fast on land as well.
Megalosaurus — Active and aggressive at night, sluggish by day. Its bite grabs and pins a survivor, and it hits hard enough to end a cave run outright.
Run the cave in daylight where the cave's day/night cycle allows it. Do not use splash damage near one.
Arthropluera — Its ranged acid attack damages armour directly — primitive Flak breaks in one or two hits — and armour damage cannot be repaired if the piece is destroyed.
Wear Hide rather than Flak and carry Fiber and Hide to repair. Kill it at range; it out-damages armour faster than you out-heal it.
Araneo — Webs you in place from range, which stops you kiting and stops a mount fleeing. Its bite applies torpor.
Kill it at range before it closes. Bug Repellant makes it ignore you entirely.
Pulmonoscorpius — Torpor per hit, higher than almost anything else its size, and it is fast.
Bug Repellant, and Stimulant for when it lands hits anyway.
Titanoboa — Applies heavy torpor per bite and is quiet enough to reach you before you see it.
Stimberries or Stimulant on your hotbar. Two bites will drop an unprepared survivor.
Onyc — Attacks in numbers, drains stamina, and is small enough that most mounts cannot hit it.
A shotgun, or a pike on foot. They path erratically, so aimed single shots waste ammunition.

Not a threat: Dung Beetle

Each line above is a fact about the creature and its own in-game behaviour — attributed to this cave only because the cave contains it. It is not a walkthrough, and it does not claim to describe the layout or the route.