Setting Up Your Custom Teleporter in the Glass Desert
Once you arrive in the intriguing Glass Desert, your first priority should be to establish a teleporter for easy access. To maximize convenience, I recommend placing the teleporter in the central part of the zone, just behind the Tangle Gordo. On your Ranch, position the teleporter behind your house, utilizing one of the two gadget spots available.
This location in the Glass Desert is advantageous not only for its centrality, but also due to the abundance of nearby gadget sites where you can gather Slime Science Resources. As you bring life back to the Glass Desert, you’ll also encounter plenty of Dervish and Mosaic Slimes in this area, alongside a small group of Tangle Slimes nearby.
Getting Acquainted with the Glass Desert
During your initial venture into the Glass Desert, focus on two essential tasks: familiarizing yourself with the zone and securing your teleportation portal. It’s advisable to refrain from collecting slimes from the Glass Desert until you’ve unlocked at least one of the Range Exchange’s additional plots of land. Unlocking Mochi’s Manor is often the easiest option, granting you five extra plots to work with.
After acquiring more land, you’ll have ample room for the three types of slimes found in the Glass Desert: Mosaic, Tangle, and Dervish. Refer to this checklist for your first visit to the Glass Desert:
- Scout the zone and become acquainted with its layout
- Set up your custom teleporter
- Unlock extra plots of land through the Range Exchange
- Pop the Tangle Gordo for Tangle Slimes and the Mosaic Gordo for Mosaic Slimes
- Activate the Rock Plort water fountain located near the center of the zone
- Collect Mosaic, Tangle, and Dervish Slimes for your Ranch
- Gather Silver Parsnips and Prickly Pears to start gardens.
For a helpful visual reference of various locations throughout the Glass Desert, consult the map shared by a Steam user here.
Activating the Plort Fountains
Each fountain in the Glass Desert requires activation. To activate the Rock Plort Fountain, head slightly southeast of the Tangle Gordo. It’s the easiest fountain to activate, with all three Rock Plort Statues conveniently close by. For precise locations, refer to the Glass Desert Slime Rancher wiki or watch my video on Rock Plort Statue locations.
Directly west of the Tangle Gordo, you’ll find a small island accessible by jetpack. This island is home to the Mosaic Plort Fountain, with its three statues located in close proximity. Check out my video on Mosaic Plort Statue locations for visual guidance.
The Tangle Plort Fountain presents a greater challenge, as locating all three statues can be tricky. One statue is situated north of the ramp leading from the Ancient Ruins, while another can be found beside the crumbled rock wall leading to the Dervish Gordo. The final statue rests on a raised platform slightly southwest of the Dervish Gordo, requiring some effort to reach. For precise coordinates, consult my video on Tangle Plort Statue locations.
The Dervish Plort Fountain proves the most difficult to activate. While two statues are relatively easy to find, the third is situated above the fountain, necessitating the use of your jetpack to reach it. For map locations of each Dervish Plort Statue, consult the Slime Rancher wiki or watch my video guide.
Utilizing Ancient Water
Once you’ve successfully activated a fountain, make sure to use the Vacpack to gather water from it. This will grant you the “Ancient Water” buff, which lasts for 30 seconds. The buff enables you to activate inactive plants throughout the Glass Desert. An inactive plant is depicted below:
To activate an inactive plant, simply splash it with Ancient Water. For a detailed map showcasing the locations of these inactive plants, refer to the Glass Desert map provided earlier. Each time you activate a plant, you create a small ecosystem teeming with various slimes, fruits, vegetables, and other treats.
Seize this opportunity to collect Mosaic, Dervish, and Tangle Slimes for your Ranch. Tangle Slimes can be rather elusive, but you can typically find them south of where you discovered the Tangle Gordo. Look for a raised platform with stairs leading up to it, where an inactive flower hides in a small cubby. Once you’ve reactivated the flower, Tangle Slimes will start appearing in the area.
Additionally, keep an eye out for Fire Slimes while exploring the Glass Desert. These unique slimes occasionally manifest during fire events, indicated by a red glow, smoldering rocks being tossed about, and pillars of flame. When the rocks hit the ground, Fire Slimes emerge. Remember that Fire Slimes can only be housed inside an Incinerator on your Ranch, where they feast on the ash generated by shooting food into the Incinerator. While farming their Plorts for sale may prove labor-intensive due to Incinerator maintenance, you might consider keeping them on your Ranch to deposit their Plorts into the Refinery, enabling the creation of gadgets requiring Fire Plorts.
Unveiling the Final Hobson Notes and Watching the Credits
One last task awaits you in the Glass Desert: discovering the final set of Hobson Notes and watching the end credits. Rest assured, the game does not conclude with the credits but instead grants you access to “The Vaults” through a flag triggered by viewing the credits.
To find the final Hobson Notes, head to the northernmost point of the Glass Desert. There, you’ll encounter a note leading up to two doors beside a switch, with another note positioned in front of the doors. These notes present Hobson’s perspective on life, posing the choice between following one’s passion or embracing adventure.
Upon reading the final note, you’ll receive a Starmail from Casey, Beatrix’s love interest who has been sending you mail throughout the game. Exiting this Starmail triggers the credit roll, accompanied by a heartfelt love song dedicated to Beatrix and Casey.
I found the story of Slime Rancher to be charmingly executed, with tidbits of lore scattered throughout the game. The game truly surprised me with its narrative. Now, after the credits roll, you will receive a Starmail from Hobson, informing you of three secret vaults ready for exploration.
The Endgame Checklist
As you near the game’s end, a few tasks remain to complete. Depending on your progress thus far, you may still need to:
- Burst the Tangle Gordo, Dervish Gordo, and Mosaic Gordo in the Glass Desert
- Activate all four fountains in the Glass Desert
- Restore vitality to all the plants in the Glass Desert
- Find the final Hobson Notes and watch the credits
- Accomplish all Range Exchange Helper Quests
- Collect all the Treasure Pods
- Create the perfect Slime Rancher Ranch
- Automate your entire farm using Advanced Helper Drones
- Visit “The Vaults”
Feel free to tackle these tasks in any order you prefer. For further details, consult my comprehensive endgame Ranch setup guide, tailored for both Slime Science and maximizing your New Bucks!
Remember, you can adjust the Ranch setup according to your preferences. The layout shown above represents lessons learned from my second playthrough, accounting for mistakes made during my initial experience. Even if you choose a different configuration, you can still glean valuable insights by observing the combinations and placements of slimes in my setup.
In summary, as you venture further into the Glass Desert, take advantage of its resources, activate the fountains, and unlock the mysteries within. Enjoy the endgame content, explore “The Vaults,” and savor the final stage of your Slime Rancher journey. Happy ranching!
