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The Merlies Guide

How to Beat Pipe Exploration

Recommended Preparation

Biome

Pipes & Underground

Difficulty

Medium

How to Unlock

The third officially named traversal verb: "explore empty pipes". The underground network is the world's hidden circulatory system — tight, dark and, in the words of one official screenshot, surprisingly cozy once the Merlies move in.

Unlock

Empty pipes

How to Get It: Entrances appear across the biomes, most logically in the ruins where human infrastructure surfaces. No unlock is mentioned — the gate is navigation skill and squad care in enclosed spaces.

How It Works

Small Birds, Giant Tunnels

Scale is the whole trick: a drain pipe is a cathedral to a Merlie. The store text's examples of upcycled everyday objects (a lamp as a house, an ice cube tray as a store room) all live at this scale — the pipes are where that sense of size is most physical.

The Cozy Underground

Official screenshots of the underground show warm, lamp-lit workshop spaces the flock has claimed. The pipes connect these pockets into routes that skip the hazards of the surface — slow but safe, which fits a game about bringing every bird home.

Watch for light: lamp glow marks where Merlies have settled, and settled areas usually connect to more pipes.

How to Use It

Going Under

  • Enter pipes from the ruins first — the densest infrastructure means the most connections.
  • Move deliberately; dead ends are common and the flock turns around slowly.
  • Use underground routes for hazardous surface stretches once you know the layout.

Last updated: September 27, 2026

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