Broken bridges are the first real wall you hit in Outbound, and the raised drawbridge blocking the road makes the situation look worse than it is. The fix is straightforward once you know what to build, but the game does not spell it out clearly. This guide covers all three broken bridges in the first biome, where to get the materials, how to run your Sawmill, and exactly how to lower that drawbridge once you cross.
What do you need to fix the broken bridges?
Every broken bridge in Outbound requires Everwood Planks, which you produce at a Sawmill workstation inside your campervan. The Sawmill converts raw Everwood logs into planks at a ratio of 2 Everwood per 1 Everwood Plank. Raw Everwood is scattered across the ground near trees with brown trunks, and dead Evertree logs lying on the ground yield 5 Everwood each when chopped with an Axe.
To build a Sawmill, you need 10x Everwood and 2x Scrap Metal. The Scrap Metal is easy to find, there are three or four pieces sitting right next to the Signal Tower where you download the Sawmill blueprint.
Sawmill conversion rate
How to unlock the Sawmill blueprint
Head west from the first broken bridge and follow the path until you reach a Signal Tower next to a rocky outcropping. Interact with the terminal to download the Sawmill recipe. Terminals that have recipes available appear white on your map, so check your map if you are unsure which towers to visit.
Once you have the recipe, enter Build Mode next to your campervan after setting camp. On keyboard that is B; on a controller, press right on the D-pad. Navigate to the microscope icon in the Build menu, then select the Woodworking category (the log icon) to place your Sawmill. The Sawmill is a tabletop workstation, so you need a counter surface installed first.
How to run the Sawmill
Load Everwood logs into the Sawmill, press the OFF button to switch it on, then either wait or sleep to let it process. Sleeping is the faster option early on. The machine will run through your logs and produce planks while time advances.
Where are all three broken bridges located?
The first biome contains three broken bridges. Each one uses the same materials and the same repair mechanic, but the plank costs scale up significantly as you progress east.
All three bridge locations
The first bridge sits just north of the Fire Lookout, the first landmark you encounter after leaving the starting area. Follow the road north past the Fire Lookout and you will run straight into it. This is the bridge most players need to fix before anything else.
The second bridge is east of the starting area and loops back toward it. Many players miss this one if they follow landmarks without exploring the full map. Check the edges of your map to uncover it.
The third bridge is at the top of a steep winding incline to the far east of the map. Your campervan cannot climb that path without the Motor I upgrade, which requires the Vehicle Researcher workstation and the Bolt Press, both unlocked by visiting Signal Towers. Motor I costs 10x Bolts, made by feeding scrap metal into the Bolt Press. Once you get up there, budget 30 Everwood Planks for the repair, which is not a small task. That bridge leads toward Sunbeam Acres Farm.
Do not attempt the eastern mountain incline before unlocking Motor I. Your van lacks the power to climb the path and you will waste time backtracking.
How to lower the drawbridge in Outbound
The drawbridge cannot be lowered from the starting side of the river. You have to cross using one of the repaired bridges first. Fix either Bridge 1 or Bridge 2, drive across, then make a sharp turn toward the drawbridge.
Once you arrive at the drawbridge, look for a small control center to the right of the bridge. Head inside and flip the switch. The prompt reads "lower drawbridge" and a single interaction is all it takes. There is also a Bottle Cap on the counter inside worth grabbing.
The bridge stays down permanently after you flip the switch. You only need to do this once.
After crossing the drawbridge area, the opposite bank opens up new resource types including a different wood variety and a tough ore blocking the tunnel to the next map. You will need upgraded tools to harvest any of it.
Tips for managing Everwood Plank production
The math on plank production feels painful early on. Fixing all three bridges costs a combined 50 Everwood Planks, which means processing 100 raw Everwood logs through your Sawmill. Here is how to keep up:
- Pick up loose Everwood from the ground constantly. It is everywhere near trees with brown trunks and costs nothing.
- Use an Axe on dead Evertree logs lying on the ground for 5 Everwood per log, which is the most efficient collection method.
- Sleep between Sawmill runs rather than standing around waiting. The machine processes while you sleep.
- Build up a stockpile before tackling Bridge 3. Thirty planks is a lot to produce in one session if you are running low on logs.
Everwood ground pickup spots
What opens up after crossing the river?
Getting across the river is a real turning point in the first biome. The eastern bank has new resources, new Signal Towers with additional blueprints, and eventually the path toward the mountain incline. The third bridge at the top of that incline leads to Sunbeam Acres Farm, where you can unlock Thread for crafting.
If you want a companion for the road while you are exploring, the guide on how to get a dog in Outbound walks you through finding the Paws & Whiskers Lodge and adopting one of four available dogs with companion abilities.
For everything else the game throws at you, the full Outbound guides collection has you covered as you work through the biomes.