Short answer: Haywire Zones are the special weather of four Isles of Abyss seas: Mist of Deceit in Reefshadow Bay, Black Tide in Misty Marsh, Time Rain in Spring Valley and Skyfire in Falling Ember. Each has a counter: the Blaze Core Lantern for the mist, the Black Tide Protective Mask for Sanity loss, the Time-Reverse Raincoat or Cookies for the rain. Skyfire has no dedicated item; tough hull materials and dodging the meteors are the answer.
On this page
The four Haywire Zones at a glance
The first sea, Fragrant Cape, has no Haywire weather. Each of the other four seas has one weather of its own. The table pairs each weather with its sea, what it does to you, and the item that counters it. Each sea’s islands, terrain and dangers are on its own page; the Isles of Abyss map compares all five.
| weather | sea | what it does | counter | how you get the counter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mist of Deceit | Reefshadow Bay | Cold; shorter sight, and the lower your HP the smaller your view | Blaze Core Lantern (clears fog, warms you, uses durability) · Mist Core Clarity Soup (Cold Resist, see through the fog) | Lantern from the Tech tree test server · recipe amounts not confirmed yet |
| Black Tide | Misty Marsh | Stardust pollution keeps deepening; Wild, Phantasmal and Mirror pollution zones appear; Sanity drops | Black Tide Protective Mask (slows Sanity loss) | Tech tree test server · recipe amounts not confirmed yet |
| Time Rain | Spring Valley | Hunger and thirst drain faster; durability of items in your backpack keeps dropping; crops and animals grow faster | Time-Reverse Raincoat (immunity, a little slower, uses durability) · Time-Reverse Cookies (immunity for a while) | Raincoat from the Tech tree test server · recipe amounts not confirmed yet |
| Skyfire | Falling Ember | Meteors damage players and buildings and heat the area; Deviants guard the big ones | No dedicated item announced. Tough hull materials and dodging | Iron and steel hull parts unlock through Tech |
src: Isles of Abyss dev blog (2026-10-16) · patch notes (2026-10-21) · Gotcha Beast KJvFq__cWp8 @10:00, @10:22, @10:40 (test server) · MaleOreo d6qDYAK-qkQ @00:21
Two items cover temperature more broadly: the Cooling Patch removes Heatstroke, and All-Weather Stew raises both Cold and Heat resistance. One test-server guide says the fourth and fifth seas you reach have islands with extreme temperatures, and suggests cooking All-Weather Stew in bulk at your base. test server
How each weather plays out
- effect
- Temperature drops and the fog closes in. Your view shrinks as your HP falls, so taking damage makes it harder to see the next threat
- counter
- Blaze Core Lantern, plus Mist Core Clarity Soup or All-Weather Stew for the cold
- phase II
- Figures that look like you appear in the fog early-access server report
- more
- Reefshadow Bay
- effect
- Stardust pollution deepens across the marsh and new pollution zones spawn in set spots. Sanity is the stat under pressure
- counter
- Black Tide Protective Mask; drinks such as Old Captain’s Spirit and Heavenly Calm Soup restore Sanity
- catch
- Gathering Black Tide Clots costs Sanity, and you get more Clots the higher your Sanity is, so wear the mask while you gather
- more
- Misty Marsh
- effect
- Energy and hydration drain faster, and everything in your backpack slowly loses durability
- counter
- Time-Reverse Raincoat for long trips, Time-Reverse Cookies for short ones
- upside
- The same rain speeds up crops and animals, in the wild and on your territory. Killing enemies or harvesting in the rain gives Bottled Raindrops
- more
- Spring Valley
- effect
- Meteors hit players and structures, including your ship, and heat the ground around them. Large meteors come with Deviant guards
- counter
- No item. Iron or steel on the outer hull and bow, and steer clear of impact points
- tip
- Mining a meteor out brings the area’s temperature back to normal; the bigger the meteor, the harder it is to mine
- more
- Falling Ember · hull materials
src: dev blog (2026-10-16) · patch notes (2026-10-21) · Doomeris zIDlwmX7CPg @02:41–05:01 · Open World Games 1_YBnzhRRZ8 @03:41 (early access, sponsored)
Resources you only get in Haywire seas
Each weather comes with something worth collecting. These are why you sail into the bad weather instead of around it.
| resource | sea | how you get it | used for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mist of Deceit Wicks | Reefshadow Bay | gather Mist Core Grass | cannon shells, power facilities |
| Black Tide Clots | Misty Marsh | black water near spore growths; costs Sanity | diving gear, water circulation facilities |
| Stardust Ore | Misty Marsh | brought in by the Black Tide | not detailed yet |
| Black Tide Fuel | not tied to one sea in the notes | Drilling Well on your ship → abyssal sea oil | Fuel Propeller, Generator (raises power cap) |
| Bottled Raindrops | Spring Valley | kill enemies or harvest crops in Time Rain | water production, farming and breeding facilities |
| Skyfire Gold | Falling Ember | mine meteors | alloy ship structures, auto-gathering facilities |
src: dev blog (2026-10-16) · Grizl o5-Cq9fuLF0 @01:41 (Drilling Well → fuel)
Black Tide Fuel is listed with the Haywire resources, but you make it with a Drilling Well rather than by gathering it in one sea. One test-server guide also says the water purifier recipe now needs Black Tide Clots from the timed Black Tide pollution zones. test server How these feed into hulls, engines and generators: How to build a ship.
Fix: I can’t see anything in Mist of Deceit
Work down the list.
- Switch the Blaze Core Lantern on. It clears the fog around you and warms you. If you don’t have one, look for it in the Tech tree.
- Check its durability. The lantern wears down while it’s on. A broken lantern does nothing.
- Heal up. Your view in the mist shrinks as your HP drops. Topping up HP widens it again.
- Wait for a calm spell. Haywire weather pauses now and then; turn the lantern off then to save durability.
- Eat Mist Core Clarity Soup. It raises Cold Resist and lets you see through the fog without the lantern.
More Haywire reading
- Isles of Abyss map: all 5 sea areas
- Reefshadow Bay · Misty Marsh · Spring Valley · Falling Ember
- Diving guide: pollution, oxygen and cold underwater
- Isles of Abyss hub
FAQ
Is Haywire weather active all the time?
Do Haywire Zones change during the scenario?
Where do I get the counter items?
Is there an item that protects against Skyfire?
The Haywire timeline on my custom server shows the wrong effect. Is that a bug?
What changed
- v3.1.1 · 2026-10-23Page created.
Sources
- Starry Studio (oncehuman.game), New Survival Scenario Isles of Abyss Launches Officially on October 21 (dev blog, 16 Oct 2026)
- Starry Studio (Steam), Ocean Expansion: Isles of Abyss Is Now Live (patch notes, 21 Oct 2026)
- Starry Studio (Steam), 3.1.1 Bug Fixes (October 22): Haywire Zones timeline in custom servers
- MaleOreo (YouTube), ONCE HUMAN ISLES OF THE ABYSS GUIDE! (Ship Building, Haywire Zones & Mechanics): lantern, calm spells, mask, raincoat
- Gotcha Beast (YouTube), How to Be Ready Day 1: The Ultimate Isles of Abyss Guide: Tech unlocks for Haywire gear, Skyfire, All-Weather Stew (test server)
- Grizl (YouTube), Once Human Isles of Abyss: Build a Better Ship & Upgrade Smarter: Drilling Well and fuel
- Doomeris (YouTube), EVERYTHING ABOUT ISLES OF ABYSS - SHIPS, CANNONS & NO CRADLE?! (Full Dev Blog read-through)
- Open World Games (YouTube), Once Human’s New Free Ocean Expansion Looks INSANE!: Phase II figures in the fog (early-access server, sponsored)
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