The Flashlight - An Underappreciated Tool

lordoffilinglordoffiling Join Date: 2017-08-10 Member: 232342Members
edited May 2018 in Subnautica General Discussion
So... for a very long time, I was wreck diving with the Seaglide. Hell I was doing everything with it! Headlight plus speed boost? Sign me up! What else could I possibly need?

Flashlight? Why bother? There’s a headlight on my seaglide!

Well...

Just out of curiosity, I decided to try out wreck diving with a flashlight, challenge myself, I thought.

O M G

The light the flashlight gives off is so much brighter and so much clearer! It floods an entire compartment with clean white light, I find fragments I’d missed completely, see details, navigate easier...

If you skipped the flashlight in favor of the seaglide, do yourself a favor and try it!
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Comments

  • Kouji_SanKouji_San Sr. Hινε Uρкεερεг - EUPT Deputy The Netherlands Join Date: 2003-05-13 Member: 16271Members, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue
    Yep, not to mention the Seaglide uses "world lights" so to speak. Meaning that if you're too close to a surface/wall, the light does nothing :D
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  • RezcaRezca United States Join Date: 2016-04-28 Member: 216078Members
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Yep, not to mention the Seaglide uses "world lights" so to speak. Meaning that if you're too close to a surface/wall, the light does nothing :D

    The flashlight was like that once upon a time too, if I recall. That is, the light cone's falloff was very hard. It'd light up nicely, get less effective as you got closer to a surface, and then outside its cone of influence it'd just abruptly go totally dark. The smooth transition we have now wasn't a thing.
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  • HikawikaHikawika England Join Date: 2018-04-06 Member: 239843Members
    try a led light, you can put down in a dark ish room and pick it up again,also u cann equip it so shine some light..not much unless u stop swimming
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  • Kouji_SanKouji_San Sr. Hινε Uρкεερεг - EUPT Deputy The Netherlands Join Date: 2003-05-13 Member: 16271Members, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue
    Apparently flares are criminally underrated, just threw on in a wreck for fun and BAM you can see everything as if you're suddenly clairvoyant!
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  • HikawikaHikawika England Join Date: 2018-04-06 Member: 239843Members
    yea lol. done that too
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  • FlametuskFlametusk Sparse Reef Join Date: 2018-01-24 Member: 235582Members
    The pathfinder tool is also very useful. It's like having small beacons that don't have pings, but do point to other ones. In fact, I don't use it for navigating in caves. I use it for pointing towards points of interest.

    And another source of light that I've never seen used as a source of light is a slower one, but very bright. Extremely bright. Just grow some creepvine, using the seed clusters.
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  • elfcrisiselfcrisis Join Date: 2017-05-13 Member: 230466Members
    re: flares, yeah it's funny how they shine through everything. I keep forgetting to use them because they don't stack and I don't want to carry them around, but they are useful.

    And I do like the flashlight for exploring wrecks. Sometimes the speed of the Seaglide can be a bad thing, causing you to miss things or get hung up on pieces of the wreck. Plus I like the color of the light it gives off, much warmer than the Seaglide.
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  • Mattar19KMattar19K Join Date: 2018-02-05 Member: 236945Members
    I will have to try the flares. I'm just scared they will burn out before I can get my butt back out of the wreck...
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  • MaalterommMaalteromm Brasil Join Date: 2017-09-22 Member: 233183Members
    Flares last for a long time.
    You can pick it up after dropping it and will work as a blindly powerful flashlight.

    I use them on the early game for night diving and exploring caves before making a flashlight, when flares become obsolete.
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  • 0x6A72320x6A7232 US Join Date: 2016-10-06 Member: 222906Members
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Apparently flares are criminally underrated, just threw on in a wreck for fun and BAM you can see everything as if you're suddenly clairvoyant!
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Flares last for a long time.
    You can pick it up after dropping it and will work as a blindly powerful flashlight.

    I use them on the early game for night diving and exploring caves before making a flashlight, when flares become obsolete.

    Not to mention they're good for distracting certain predators and much cheaper than a creature decoy (good for Stalkers & Bonesharks? Not sure which ones)
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  • scifiwriterguyscifiwriterguy Sector ZZ-9-Plural Z-α Join Date: 2017-02-14 Member: 227901Members
    edited May 2018
    Mattar19K wrote: »
    I will have to try the flares. I'm just scared they will burn out before I can get my butt back out of the wreck...

    Once upon a time, flares didn't burn out and still had their magical x-ray light. I used to use them for marking wrecks I'd explored. Then reality got to them and the burn-out thing was implemented. Oh well.

    But I agree: flashlights are a great tool. So great I once made an ad for them. :smiley:
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  • RezcaRezca United States Join Date: 2016-04-28 Member: 216078Members
    0x6A7232 wrote: »
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Apparently flares are criminally underrated, just threw on in a wreck for fun and BAM you can see everything as if you're suddenly clairvoyant!
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Flares last for a long time.
    You can pick it up after dropping it and will work as a blindly powerful flashlight.

    I use them on the early game for night diving and exploring caves before making a flashlight, when flares become obsolete.

    Not to mention they're good for distracting certain predators and much cheaper than a creature decoy (good for Stalkers & Bonesharks? Not sure which ones)

    People say that but.... Bonesharks (The ones "distracted by lights") were more interested in me than in the Flares xD Every time I tried tossing one at the ground and standing back, they'd swim past the flare to bite me instead.

    Maybe they just really don't like me xD
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  • MaalterommMaalteromm Brasil Join Date: 2017-09-22 Member: 233183Members
    Rezca wrote: »
    0x6A7232 wrote: »
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Apparently flares are criminally underrated, just threw on in a wreck for fun and BAM you can see everything as if you're suddenly clairvoyant!
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Flares last for a long time.
    You can pick it up after dropping it and will work as a blindly powerful flashlight.

    I use them on the early game for night diving and exploring caves before making a flashlight, when flares become obsolete.

    Not to mention they're good for distracting certain predators and much cheaper than a creature decoy (good for Stalkers & Bonesharks? Not sure which ones)

    People say that but.... Bonesharks (The ones "distracted by lights") were more interested in me than in the Flares xD Every time I tried tossing one at the ground and standing back, they'd swim past the flare to bite me instead.

    Maybe they just really don't like me xD

    I think it works on Crabsquids too. Never tried though, I just swim past most things.
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  • Kouji_SanKouji_San Sr. Hινε Uρкεερεг - EUPT Deputy The Netherlands Join Date: 2003-05-13 Member: 16271Members, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Rezca wrote: »
    0x6A7232 wrote: »
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Apparently flares are criminally underrated, just threw on in a wreck for fun and BAM you can see everything as if you're suddenly clairvoyant!
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Flares last for a long time.
    You can pick it up after dropping it and will work as a blindly powerful flashlight.

    I use them on the early game for night diving and exploring caves before making a flashlight, when flares become obsolete.

    Not to mention they're good for distracting certain predators and much cheaper than a creature decoy (good for Stalkers & Bonesharks? Not sure which ones)

    People say that but.... Bonesharks (The ones "distracted by lights") were more interested in me than in the Flares xD Every time I tried tossing one at the ground and standing back, they'd swim past the flare to bite me instead.

    Maybe they just really don't like me xD

    I think it works on Crabsquids too. Never tried though, I just swim past most things.

    Rude...
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  • MaalterommMaalteromm Brasil Join Date: 2017-09-22 Member: 233183Members
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Rezca wrote: »
    0x6A7232 wrote: »
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Apparently flares are criminally underrated, just threw on in a wreck for fun and BAM you can see everything as if you're suddenly clairvoyant!
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Flares last for a long time.
    You can pick it up after dropping it and will work as a blindly powerful flashlight.

    I use them on the early game for night diving and exploring caves before making a flashlight, when flares become obsolete.

    Not to mention they're good for distracting certain predators and much cheaper than a creature decoy (good for Stalkers & Bonesharks? Not sure which ones)

    People say that but.... Bonesharks (The ones "distracted by lights") were more interested in me than in the Flares xD Every time I tried tossing one at the ground and standing back, they'd swim past the flare to bite me instead.

    Maybe they just really don't like me xD

    I think it works on Crabsquids too. Never tried though, I just swim past most things.

    Rude...

    *splish, splash*
    I swear I heard something back there...
    Meh, it's too far behind now anyways...
    *splash, splish*
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  • Kouji_SanKouji_San Sr. Hινε Uρкεερεг - EUPT Deputy The Netherlands Join Date: 2003-05-13 Member: 16271Members, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue
    edited May 2018
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Rezca wrote: »
    0x6A7232 wrote: »
    Kouji_San wrote: »
    Apparently flares are criminally underrated, just threw on in a wreck for fun and BAM you can see everything as if you're suddenly clairvoyant!
    Maalteromm wrote: »
    Flares last for a long time.
    You can pick it up after dropping it and will work as a blindly powerful flashlight.

    I use them on the early game for night diving and exploring caves before making a flashlight, when flares become obsolete.

    Not to mention they're good for distracting certain predators and much cheaper than a creature decoy (good for Stalkers & Bonesharks? Not sure which ones)

    People say that but.... Bonesharks (The ones "distracted by lights") were more interested in me than in the Flares xD Every time I tried tossing one at the ground and standing back, they'd swim past the flare to bite me instead.

    Maybe they just really don't like me xD

    I think it works on Crabsquids too. Never tried though, I just swim past most things.

    Rude...

    *splish, splash*
    I swear I heard something back there...
    Meh, it's too far behind now anyways...
    *splash, splish*
    i635n00antuu.jpg
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  • GlitchTMGGlitchTMG Join Date: 2018-05-30 Member: 241002Members
    Oh yeah, I've appreciated the Flashlight since I first started playing, just a few updates before the Full Release. The Seaglide light is convenient, but just doesn't cut it for those darkest places. Flares seem to be pretty good too, though I don't use them much. I should try them more often, get a better feel for how well they work at attracting things like Bonesharks! That would be really useful if I'm trying to slowly move through a pack of them in a Seamoth while collecting things, to keep them from wrecking it. If that works, it would make several things quite easier...
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  • elfcrisiselfcrisis Join Date: 2017-05-13 Member: 230466Members
    @GlitchTMG I haven't found the flares effective against bonesharks. It's been hinted that they work against crabsquids and maybe reapers, but I haven't tried those either.
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