Complete Subnautica Prawn Suit guide: fragment locations, the build recipe, every arm and upgrade, depth modules, and where to find nickel and diamonds.
Subnautica Prawn Suit Guide — Fragments, Arms, Upgrades and Where to Find Nickel
The Prawn Suit (PRAWN = Pressure Re-Active Waterproof Nano Suit Mk.III) is Subnautica's bipedal exosuit: 900 m base crush depth, 1,700 m fully upgraded, a 2×3 inventory for mining, and the only vehicle that can drill the large resource deposits — which makes it mandatory for kyanite, nickel and the rest of the endgame. You get it by scanning 4 Prawn Suit fragments (five spawn in the Aurora's Prawn Bay alone), then building it at the Mobile Vehicle Bay for 2 Plasteel Ingots, 2 Aerogel, 1 Enameled Glass, 2 Diamonds and 2 Lead. This guide covers fragments, the recipe, every arm and upgrade with real numbers, and the nickel/diamond hunting you'll do to feed them.
Here's what you'll learn:
- All fragment locations, from the Aurora shortcut to the wreck route
- The exact build recipe and what it costs in practice
- Every arm and upgrade module, with recipes and effects
- Where to find nickel (Lost River) and diamonds (Sea Treader's Path)
- Piloting tips that stop the Prawn from becoming a tomb
Official resources: Steam store page · Official Subnautica Wiki — Prawn Suit · Official Subnautica Wiki — Nickel Ore · IGN Subnautica page · Wikipedia — Subnautica
Per the official Subnautica Wiki: "It is normal when first piloting a Prawn suit to feel a sense of limitless power. Prawn operators receive weeks of training to counteract this phenomenon. You will have to make do with self-discipline." The PDA quote is a warning, not flavor text.
How to Get the Prawn Suit — All Fragment Locations
Scan 4 fragments to complete the blueprint. Five spawn in the Aurora's Prawn Bay (behind a Laser Cutter door — see our Aurora guide), so one ship run finishes the suit. If you'd rather skip the ship, one fragment each sits in large wrecks in:
| Location | Notes |
|---|---|
| Aurora — Prawn Bay | 5 fragments behind the sealed door; needs the Laser Cutter. The fastest route |
| Underwater Islands wreck | Large wreck, fragment inside |
| Mountains wreck | Large wreck — Reaper-patrolled approaches |
| Sea Treader's Path wreck | Large wreck — also the best diamond source on the map (below) |
The Aurora trip also grabs the Cyclops Engine Efficiency Module, Propulsion Cannon fragments and the door codes. Do the ship before hunting wreck fragments and you'll have the Prawn blueprint before you leave.
Prawn Suit Recipe and Stats
Built at the Mobile Vehicle Bay:
| Component | Amount |
|---|---|
| Plasteel Ingot | 2 |
| Aerogel | 2 |
| Enameled Glass | 1 |
| Diamond | 2 |
| Lead | 2 |
Stat sheet (from the official wiki):
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Health | 600 |
| Base crush depth | 900 m |
| Max crush depth (MK2) | 1,700 m |
| Top walking speed | 14 mph / 23 kph |
| Default arm damage | 50/s |
| Drill Arm damage | 30/s |
| Inventory | Built-in storage, auto-stows mined items |
The Aerogel is the ingredient that gates early Prawn builds — see our gel sack guide for the farming loop (2 sacks + 2 rubies gets you the 2 aerogel you need). Diamonds (2) come from shale outcrops, covered below.
Prawn Suit Arms
Two arms, each slotting on one side:
| Arm | What it does | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Default Claw Arm | 50 damage/s melee; picks up items | All-purpose, frees the other slot |
| Drill Arm | 30 damage/s; mines Large Resource Deposits | Mandatory for kyanite/nickel/lithium deposits; also shreds leviathan-damageable structures |
| Grapple Arm | Magnetic claw for wall climbing and ziplining | Turns the Prawn into a traversal monster — pairs with the Jump Jet |
| Torpedo Arm | Fires torpedoes like the Seamoth launcher | Niche; situational combat |
| Propulsion Cannon Arm | Pushes/pulls loose items and fauna | Fun, rarely essential |
The community's standard endgame loadout: Drill + Grapple. The grapple lets you pull yourself across chasms, and the drill makes mining runs one-pass. The official wiki's arms page details each blueprint source; the Drill Arm fragments come from the Aurora and deep wrecks.
The Prawn can't swim — it walks on the seafloor and thrusters give limited vertical lift. In the Blood Kelp Zone or Underwater Islands, a Prawn without the Grapple Arm or Jump Jet can genuinely get stuck at the bottom of a chasm. Get the Grapple before taking the suit to vertical terrain.
Prawn Suit Upgrades
Crafted at the Vehicle Upgrade Console (needs a Moonpool) and the Modification Station for the top tiers:
| Module | Effect | Recipe (verified on the wiki) |
|---|---|---|
| Depth Module MK1 | 900 m → 1,300 m | 1 Plasteel Ingot + 3 Nickel Ore + 2 Ruby |
| Depth Module MK2 | 1,300 m → 1,700 m | MK1 + 5 Titanium + 2 Lithium + 3 Kyanite |
| Jump Jet Upgrade | Extra booster power for leaps | 2 Nickel Ore + 3 Crystalline Sulfur + 5 Titanium + 1 Lithium |
| Thermal Reactor | Recharges in water above 30°C | 2 Kyanite + 2 Polyaniline + 1 Wiring Kit |
| Storage Module | +6 inventory slots (stacks) | Standard module recipe |
Priority order: Depth MK1 (gets you into the Lost River for nickel) → Jump Jet (mobility) → Thermal Reactor (lava comfort) → Depth MK2 (lava zones). The kyanite guide covers the MK2's kyanite requirement and the lava-zone mining run.
Where to Find Nickel (and Diamonds)
Nickel Ore — found exclusively in the Lost River and parts of the Inactive Lava Zone, per the official wiki. In the Lost River look for it in the Bone Fields, Ghost Canyon, Ghost Forest, Tree Cove and Junction, both as loose ore on the seabed and as Large Deposits (8–16 ore per deposit). You need it for the Prawn Depth MK1 (3), the Jump Jet (2) and the Cyclops Depth MK2 (3). The Lost River sits around 800–900 m — deep enough that a Seamoth MK3 can just reach the entrance but the Prawn or Cyclops is the right vehicle for the harvest. Ghost weed grows in the same biome — grab seeds while you're there (see our ghost weed guide).
Diamonds — come from Shale Outcrops (plus loose crystals). The community's best farm is the Sea Treader's Path: the Sea Treader Leviathans kick up shale as they walk, giving you an endless, safe supply. Mountain Island and its caves, the Grand Reef and the Mushroom Forest shales are the alternatives. You need diamonds for the Prawn itself (2) plus the Laser Cutter and other tools.
A single Lost River expedition can collect nickel (Bone Fields), ghost weed seeds (Ghost Forest), the Lost River Laboratory Cache (Orange Tablet door) and the route to the Inactive Lava Zone all in one pass. Take the Cyclops with the Prawn docked and you never go back up for supplies.
Piloting Tips
- Walk, don't boost. The thrusters are for climbing, not cruising — boosting everywhere drains power and gets you stuck on geometry.
- Use the Grapple + Jump Jet combo to climb cliff faces: grapple the lip, jump, repeat. It's faster than any pathfinding route.
- The Prawn is immune to heat and poison — you can walk on lava-touched terrain and through brine pools that would kill you on foot (the wiki notes immunity to temperature and poison, though not direct lava contact).
- Park it in the Cyclops for deep dives — the Cyclops carries the Prawn to the lava zones and recharges it while docked.
- Be careful with the Reapers: the Prawn can outwalk most of them on flat ground, but a Reaper grab can still wreck it — the Warper guide has the survival rules for the deep zones.
FAQ
How do I get the Prawn Suit in Subnautica?
Scan 4 Prawn Suit fragments to get the blueprint, then build it at the Mobile Vehicle Bay with 2 Plasteel Ingots, 2 Aerogel, 1 Enameled Glass, 2 Diamonds and 2 Lead. The fastest source is the Aurora's Prawn Bay (5 fragments, Laser Cutter required).
Where are the Prawn Suit fragments?
Aurora Prawn Bay (5), plus one each in the Underwater Islands, Mountains and Sea Treader's Path large wrecks.
How deep can the Prawn Suit go?
900 m stock, 1,300 m with Depth Module MK1, 1,700 m with MK2 — the deepest vehicle in the game alongside the Cyclops. MK1 needs 3 Nickel Ore; MK2 needs 3 Kyanite.
What is the best Prawn Suit arm setup?
Drill Arm + Grapple Arm is the standard endgame loadout: the drill mines large deposits (kyanite, nickel, lithium) and the grapple makes the suit climbable and fast. Add the Jump Jet upgrade for maximum mobility.
Where do I find nickel and diamonds for upgrades?
Nickel is exclusively in the Lost River (Bone Fields, Ghost Canyon, Ghost Forest, Tree Cove, Junction) and parts of the Inactive Lava Zone. Diamonds come from shale outcrops — the Sea Treader's Path is the safest infinite farm.
Related Guides
- Subnautica Aurora Guide — Door Codes, Entry & Loot
- Subnautica Kyanite Guide — Lava Zones and Endgame Recipes
- Subnautica Gel Sack Guide — Farming Aerogel for the Prawn Suit
- Subnautica Cyclops Guide — Fragments, Upgrades and Pilot Tips
- Subnautica Ghost Weed Guide — Where to Find It and Its Uses
Last updated: August 13, 2026.
More Subnautica Guides
Subnautica Alien Containment guide: where to get the blueprint, the 5 Glass + 2 Titanium recipe, how breeding and egg hatching work, and the best fish to breed.
Every leviathan in Subnautica and Below Zero: sizes, aggression, spawn biomes, health and how to deal with each — plus the extinct giants.
How to enter the Aurora in Subnautica: every door code (1454, 1869, 6483, 2679), the radiation suit requirement, what tools you need and all the loot inside.
All Subnautica Aurora door codes: 1454, 1869, 2679 and 6483, where each code is found, and exactly what's worth looting behind every door.
Subnautica Below Zero map explained: how big Sector Zero is, every biome with depth ranges, key coordinates, navigation tips and the best map mods.
Is Subnautica Below Zero multiplayer? No official co-op — but a full story-synced mod exists for Windows. Plus Nitrox and Subnautica 2's official co-op.
Subnautica Below Zero Picture Frame guide: the 16:9 aspect ratio you need for photos, where to get the blueprint, and how to load custom images.
Official Subnautica Below Zero pictures and 16:9 wallpapers: where to download store screenshots, wiki art and community shots in full HD.