GRAVHOUNDS Extraction Guide: When to Call the Ship

Every GRAVHOUNDS run ends with the same decision, and it is not a fight. It is a call: stay for one more pod, or get on the ship while the getting is good. Players who learn this decision early progress faster than players who learn to aim.

This guide covers how extraction actually works, the thirty-second window, what to carry, and the rule that separates a good run from a great one.

Official source: GRAVHOUNDS on Steam ↗ — the collector ship is the only way off a planet, and extraction converts loot into permanent progress.

The collector is the ticket

The collector ship is not a taxi you can call twice. It is the run's only exit, and it is also the thing the swarm wants to destroy. That single fact explains most of the game's base-building logic:

• Turrets protect the collector because the collector is the exit.
• Pipes return to the collector because that is where resources are banked.
• The exit pipe points away from the collector because the countdown starts there.

If the collector dies, the run is over. No respawn, no second ship. Bank what you can carry, if the game lets you, and take the lesson into the next drop.

The 30-second window

When extraction starts, a countdown begins. You have thirty seconds to be aboard. That is enough time to cross a well-built base and not enough time to cross a bad one.

Three habits make the window survivable:

1. Build the exit pipe before you need it. A straight line from the collector toward open ground, ideally ending at a teleporter.
2. Start moving at twenty-five seconds, not at five. The last ten seconds are for boarding, not for looting.
3. Do not fight on the ramp. Enemies will follow you to the ship. Board, do not clear.

The most common extraction death is a player who stays to revive a teammate at second ten, dies, and takes the whole run with them.

When to call it

There is no single correct minute, but there are reliable signals:

Call it when:

• The swarm tier has risen twice since you landed.
• Your backpack is full and the blueprint is secured.
• The base has lost a generator and you cannot rebuild before the next wave.
• A teammate has gone down twice.
• You have completed the objective you came for.

Do not call it when:

• You are one pod away from a build spike and the base is stable. One more wave is fine.
• A teammate is thirty seconds from the collector with a blueprint.
• The wave is already inside the base. Then you run, and the call is late.

The distinction is between "one more reward" and "one more risk." Take the first; refuse the second.

Loot priority

You cannot carry everything. When the backpack is full, drop in this order:

1. Blueprints. Permanent, and the only loot that changes future runs.
2. Titanium. Converts into base value and upgrades.
3. Electrium. Important, but replaceable next run.
4. Biomass. A heal, not an economy.

If you are over capacity on the ramp, drop Biomass first, then Electrium. Never drop a blueprint to carry rocks.

The revive decision

Downed teammates create the only true moral choice in the game:

• Before the countdown: revive if the path is clear. A teammate is worth more than a resource node.
• During the countdown: revive only if you can do it in under ten seconds and still board.
• After the countdown starts and the teammate is far: leave them. A dead packmate costs one run; a failed extraction costs the loot.

This is not cruelty. It is the same math the game uses: the ship leaves, and the run's value is what is on it.

What extraction actually gives you

Extraction converts:

• Blueprints into permanent unlocks.
• Resources into lab upgrades.
• Milestones into Research Points.
• Run data into the next run's knowledge.

A failed run still gives some milestone credit, which is why the game is forgiving in the long term. But a failed run gives no loot, and loot is the compounding part.

Post-extract routine

The thirty seconds after extraction matter as much as the run:

1. Spend Research Points. A banked upgrade does nothing.
2. Check the blueprint screen. Confirm the unlock registered.
3. Check the roster. A new hound may be available.
4. Pick the next planet for a reason. Blueprint, resource, or objective — not habit.

Players who skip step one are effectively playing with fewer upgrades than they have earned.

Extraction on different planets

• Green-band planets: extract at minute ten to twelve with a full backpack. There is no reason to stay.
• Amber-band planets: extract after the objective and one blueprint. The swarm escalates faster than the loot improves.
• Red-band planets: extract immediately after the boss or the blueprint. The planet does not get richer; it gets angrier.
• Boss planets: kill, bank, leave. A second phase is not worth the backpack.

Five extraction mistakes

1. Calling the ship before the blueprint is secured. The blueprint is the run.
2. Staying for one more pod with an empty base. Greed is the real final boss.
3. Fighting on the ramp. Board first.
4. Reviving at second five. You will both die.
5. Forgetting to spend RP afterward. The run's value is only realized in the lab.

FAQ

How long is the extraction countdown? Thirty seconds from the call to the ship leaving.

Can I call the ship twice? No. The collector is the only exit.

What happens if I miss the ship? You are left on the planet. Treat it as a lost run.

Should I always extract with a full backpack? No. Extract with the blueprint and enough resources to matter. A full backpack is not worth a death.

Do resources carry between runs? Only extracted resources. Anything left on the planet is lost.

Further reading

• IGN hands-on preview ↗
• Steam Community hub ↗

Summary

Secure the blueprint, watch the swarm tier, call early, board first, spend RP after. The resources guide covers what to carry; the walkthrough covers when each planet is worth the trip.