North Bastion is the frozen mountain region added by The Last Caretaker Update 6.0: The Jump, which went live on October 19, 2026. You reach it only through the Transfer Gate at Lazarus Complex, after you progress the Project Crossing quest, power the gate and enter a valid destination address. The patch notes name its dock, hangar, central spire, industrial sector and cold vault, but they give no map coordinates. A free Recall button on the gate console takes you back to where you came from.
Summary: The Last Caretaker North Bastion
- Release: Update 6.0, The Jump, build 0.10.0.653173, went live on October 19, 2026.
- Access: the Transfer Gate at Lazarus Complex is the first route to North Bastion.
- Gate cost: large gates cost 216 to 557 kWh for 45 to 180 seconds of open time.
- Return: the Recall button takes you back to where you came from for free.
- Cold: low temperatures slow and damage you, so heaters and the boiler matter.
- Crates: the patch notes do not say what happens to crates you carry through a gate.
What Is North Bastion in The Last Caretaker?
North Bastion is a completely frozen mountain region where the main story continues. Channel37, the developer, describes it as a place with its own dock, hangar, central spire, facilities, infrastructure, records, loot, enemies and story. It is the first destination of a new system called Project Crossing.
The arch at Lazarus Complex, which many players have walked past for hours, turns out to be a Transfer Gate. According to the studio’s announcement, it belongs to an ancient network built to join registered locations across vast distances. Update 6 launches the quest to uncover it, restore it, supply what it needs and complete the first crossing.
Cold is the new survival pressure. Low temperatures now slow and hurt the Caretaker, and the HUD shows the temperature when it gets cold. You can read the full notes in the official Update 6.0 patch notes on Steam.
Update 6.0 The Jump Patch Notes: Key Changes
The notes are long, so here are the changes that affect a North Bastion trip.
| Area | What changed |
|---|---|
| North Bastion | A new snowy region with a new main-quest chapter |
| Transfer Gates | Travel between registered locations, with a new questline, technology and records |
| Cold | Low temperatures hurt and slow you, with new heaters, a boiler and ice-blocked doorways |
| Methane | A new Methane Extractor and single-use methane canisters |
| Quality of life | Your own map markers, sliding down ladders and a new Accessibility tab |
| Performance | Less stuttering and faster module catch-up when you return to a location |
| Balance | Health injectors are slightly less effective, and the UV Light skill costs 2 points instead of 3 |
The studio notes that this is its eighth Early Access update, even though it is labeled 6.0. The public beta ran first, so many fixes in the notes came from release candidates, and the final build is 0.10.0.653173.
North Bastion Locations
No official map or coordinates exist yet. What the patch notes do give is a list of named places, which you can use as a checklist. The table below only includes locations that the notes mention.
| Location | What the notes mention |
|---|---|
| Starting hangar | A heater and more loot were added, and terrain clipping was fixed |
| Bastion Dock (north dock) | An elevator, a swarm of enemies, memories and geometry fixes |
| Cold Vault | The gate and the first station sit closer together now, with extra paints and loot |
| Industrial Sector | Steam sockets were added, and a new ventilation tunnel links it to the spire |
| Water Treatment area | A water treatment pool and collision fixes |
| Food Sector | A spot where players could get stuck was fixed |
| Central spire and elevator | Invisible walls at the top were removed, and the elevator sound was fixed |
| Spire of Exodus | A statue cave with collision fixes |
| Laboratory | A hologram of Anna and a module holder in Anna’s lab |
| Observation room | Missing items were added |
| Outpost | Holes, clipping and ice chunk fixes |
| Warehouse | Floating lights were fixed |
| Buoys around the Bastion | Now hold loot |
Use the new map markers to track what you find. You can place and remove your own markers on the world map, and gates now have a map icon. The grid scanner and map also zoom toward your cursor, which helps in a large complex.
Transfer Gate Guide: How to Reach North Bastion
The gate is the only way in. A forum reply from a player says plainly that the area is only accessible by transfer portal. The studio describes the process as part of the world, not a menu: you discover the gate, understand its technology, activate it and establish a valid destination before the first crossing.
Here is the sequence, combining the official notes with a third-party guide. Treat the guide’s details as unconfirmed.
- Reach the Project Crossing room at Lazarus Complex. The third-party guide says the gate structure sits on the roof.
- Work through the quest. The quest is called First Crossing in the notes, and a later build added an “Activate portal” task.
- Handle the Continuity Token. The notes mention continuity token tasks and say the token cannot be destroyed. The third-party guide says you scan it and reproduce it in a Fabricator.
- Power the gate. The gate console shows the battery’s charge, capacity and power flow.
- Enter the destination address. You can type it with the keyboard, using the number keys, the period and backspace.
- Walk through, or fly. The studio confirms you can fly through an active gate.
The studio also changed the gate lights so that they show whether the gate has power, not whether it is opening or closing. Check them if the gate does not respond. For another game where a new region demands new survival tools, see our Once Human Isles of Abyss guide.
North Bastion Power Requirements
Power is the main cost of a crossing. After the release candidates, the rules became clearer.
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Large gate cost | 216 to 557 kWh for 45 to 180 seconds of open time |
| What the price includes | The power to keep the gate running for the time you buy |
| Extensions | They only sell time that the battery can power |
| Dialing | It no longer drains power before the gate opens |
| Console | Shows charge, capacity and power flow |
That means you should charge your battery before you dial. A gate that stays open for the full time you pay for will not drop you mid-trip, but a weak battery limits any extension. The notes do not give a fixed number for small gates or for the first crossing, so check the console before you commit.
How to Return Without Losing Crates
The official return method is simple. The gate console has a Recall button that takes you back to where you came from for free. A later build lets you go through the recall gate in a vehicle, and it only closes once your character has passed through, so piloting a drone does not close it.
The patch notes do not mention crates at all. Therefore, we cannot confirm whether a crate you carry through a gate arrives intact. Here is what the notes do say about carrying things:
- Items stowed on your back now count toward carry weight, and the stow range is shorter.
- Felis units can now be stowed.
- A cable you are holding is dropped before you teleport.
- Vehicles can go through the recall gate.
Because the crate rule is unconfirmed, test with a low-value crate on your first trip. If the crate arrives, you can plan bigger hauls. If a crate does not arrive, leave valuables behind. We will update this section when the studio or players confirm the behavior.
Cold Survival: Heaters, Boiler and Ice
North Bastion is dangerous without heat. The update adds small, medium and large heaters and a boiler, and some doorways are sealed by ice that you must melt with heat or break.
- Small heater: it holds its temperature for a long time and radiates a lot of heat, but only warms a small area.
- Large heater: it is more efficient than the earlier version.
- Heat spreads and stays. Areas you have warmed now stay warm instead of cooling down again.
- Durability: heaters and the boiler now wear out.
- Weapons and fire: weapons radiate more heat, and the flamethrower gives off heat.
- Methane: the Methane Extractor only builds on suitable components and not on ice tiles.
Sharks and night swarm eggs no longer spawn in freezing areas. Cold also affects the gyrocopter’s rotors, so check the weather before you fly. A third-party guide adds that gas supply and protection from the cold become immediate concerns, which matches the new quests, including one called Create heat that completes when you find a boiler.
Anna’s Story and Quests in North Bastion
The main quest continues with a new chapter. Anna’s reconstruction sequence adds Permanent Memories, and Anna’s interactions stay available after the story ends. The notes say North Bastion remembers her, but Anna does not remember it.
Two quest tips from the notes help: you can finish the North Bastion quest by entering through the vent, and the Create heat quest completes when you find a boiler. A hologram of Anna now appears in the laboratory, and items she gives you go straight into your inventory.
Tips and Common Mistakes
- Skipping the battery check. Charge the gate before you dial.
- Carrying valuables as a test. Crate behavior is unconfirmed.
- Ignoring the cold. Cold damage and slowness build up quickly.
- Forgetting the Recall button. The return is free.
- Looking for a map. Place your own markers instead.
- Trusting coordinates from videos. The studio did not publish any.
Conclusion
North Bastion opens through the Lazarus Transfer Gate, and Update 6.0 gives you a free Recall button for the return trip. Charge the gate, bring heat and test a spare crate before you commit valuables. Check the official patch notes for later builds, since the studio keeps fixing the Bastion.
FAQs
When did Update 6.0 release?
The Jump went live on October 19, 2026 as build 0.10.0.653173.
How do I reach North Bastion?
Complete the Project Crossing quest at Lazarus Complex, power the Transfer Gate and enter a valid destination address.
How much power does the gate need?
Large gates cost 216 to 557 kWh for 45 to 180 seconds of open time.
How do I return from North Bastion?
Use the Recall button on the gate console. It returns you to where you came from for free.
Will I lose crates going through the gate?
The patch notes do not say. Test with a low-value crate first.
How do I stay warm in North Bastion?
Build heaters or the boiler, melt ice with heat and keep warmed areas sealed.
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