Sam crossing a crevasse while carrying a heavy load of cargo
Cargo refers to any item or shipment that Sam is entrusted with delivering, ranging from essential supplies to personal belongings. As a porter, Sam traverses the world during his expedition, transporting cargo and making deliveries to help reconnect the country.
Overview[]
Normally, cargo containers are wrapped in damage sensor tape, which changes color based on the cargo’s integrity—from yellow to red. Sam can carry a substantial load: items on his back, one in each hand, on both shoulders, and at his hips. Managing weight is essential. Too much weight on Sam's back can throw off his balance, and heavier loads make movement more difficult. To help navigate the terrain and ensure successful deliveries, Sam can use various tools, including floating carriers, vehicles, climbing anchors, and even ladders.
Cargo Types[]
There are generally three types of cargo that Sam will need to transport during his expedition:
- Delivery Cargo - Important, often story-critical cargo that Sam must deliver to the cities, Bridges facilities, or preppers in order to expand the chiral network and advance his journey.
- Lost Cargo – Cargo that does not progress the story, but grants Sam likes and other helpful rewards. Delivering lost cargo can also establish or strengthen connections, helping expand the chiral network and unlock materials for fabrication. Lost cargo periodically appears on the map as blue hexagons marked with a small person icon, indicating the intended recipient. These items can be usable or non-usable, and may become damaged due to exposure to timefall or water. Damaged cargo can be repaired using container repair spray.
- Dropped Cargo – Cargo that usually belongs to other online players. It appears in green and displays the player’s name. Dropped cargo is most often equipment or usable items that Sam can either use himself or return to their original owner. If Sam drops a piece of cargo and moves too far away, it may become classified as lost cargo.
Container Sizes[]
Most of the cargo Sam carries is packed into standard-sized containers, which are influenced by both the size and weight of the cargo. These containers can be classified as small (S), medium (M), large (L), or extra-large (XL), with each size affecting how the cargo is delivered. Small containers take up 1x1 space, medium ones take up 1x2, large ones take 2x2, and XL ones take 3x2.
Sam’s backpack has a maximum capacity of 4x2 spaces, which can fit 8 Small, 4 Medium, 2 Large, or 1 XL + 1 Medium. Anything that doesn’t fit in the backpack will be placed on the stack above, which has a 10x2 capacity. Additionally, Sam can only carry small containers on his shoulders and hips.
Damage Sensor Tape[]
Damage sensor tape.
The Damage sensor tape is a reactive tape Sam wraps around cargo he carries as a porter. The tape contains a sensor in its threading which tells how much damage has been dealt to cargo by changing its color accordingly[1]: yellow for normal, orange for damaged, red for critical and brown for destroyed.
The benchmarker label on the tape reads: "The sensor is always active and will instantly develop color if damage is received. Match the tape's color with the reference chart to estimate damage. To extend the service life keep cold when not in use. Avoid prolonged exposure to heat and sunlight."
Lost cargo[]
Picking up orders from a delivery terminal is not the only way to obtain cargo for delivery. Strewn across the world, containers of lost cargo may be encountered. Lost cargo can be very beneficial, netting porters additional likes outside of standard orders. While mostly optional, there are some cases in which delivery lost cargo is the only way to initiate an interaction with a previously unmet prepper. Below are tables of the various lost cargo containers that can be found:
| Death Stranding | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Icon | Description | Recipient | Size | Weight | Max. likes |
| Alcoholic Beverages | "A selection of luxury alcoholic beverages." | George Baton | M | 15.0 kg | ≈ 40 | |
| Antique Housewares | ||||||
| Antique Watches | ||||||
| Backup Fuel | ||||||
| Carbon Exoskeleton Parts | ||||||
| Cell-simulation Medicine | ||||||
| Character Figurines | ||||||
| Chiralium-contaminated Cargo | "Cargo that has been contaminated by chiralium, and subsequently abandoned. Should be disposed at the bottom of a crater lake." | - | M | 5.0 kg | - | |
| Collection of Photos | ||||||
| Components from an Old Aircraft | ||||||
| Confidential Documents | ||||||
| Emergency Gas Fuel | "Highly pressurized fuel that must be handled with care." | Nick Easton | XL | 15.0 kg | ≈ 140 | |
| Emergency Provisions |  |
"Resources for day-to-day living." | George Baton | L | 35.0 kg | ≈ 40 |
| First Aid Kits | ||||||
| Food Samples | ||||||
| Fresh Water | ||||||
| High-bounce Springs | ||||||
| High-performance Underwear | ||||||
| Materials for Large-scale Construction | "Construction materials used to repair and expand various buildings." | |||||
| Medical Instrument |   |
"A highly prized precision instrument used for medical purposes." | Phillip North | S | 2.5 kg | - |
| Medical Supplies | ||||||
| Model Weapon | ||||||
| New Motors | ||||||
| Old Components | ||||||
| Old Magazines | "Examples of a paper-based mass medium that was once widely read and much loved." | George Baton | M | 7.0 kg | ≈ 40 | |
| Old Media | ||||||
| Old Ornaments | ||||||
| Old Photographs | ||||||
| Old Sound System | The Musician | |||||
| Old War Footage | ||||||
| Organic Fertilizer | ||||||
| Ornaments | ||||||
| Performance-enhancing Beverages | ||||||
| Plant Samples | "Precious samples of plants that can only grow in certain types of terrain." | Nick Easton | S | 1.1 kg | ≈ 80 | |
| Pre-Stranding Movie Footage | ||||||
| Precision Instrument |  |
"A delicate instrument that must be handled with care." | Alex Weatherstone | M | 15.0 kg | - |
| Preserved Foods | ||||||
| PSP™ System |  |
"A powerful and highly versatile portable video game console, first released in Japan in 2004." | The Collector | S | 1.4 kg | - |
| Rare Miniature Cars | ||||||
| Ration Packs | ||||||
| Sewing Kit | ||||||
| Sleeping Tablets | ||||||
| Small Medical Instrument | ||||||
| Special Device | "A custom-made device built to order for a specific purpose." | |||||
| Special Fuel | ||||||
| Special Machine | ||||||
| Special Solvents |  |
"Organic solvents that are used for a number of specialized purposes. Highly flammable." | The Craftsman | L | 32.0 kg | - |
| Spiritual Medicine | ||||||
| Tablet | ||||||
| Tableware | "Elegant, beautifully decorated tableware." | Nick Easton | M | 7.0 kg | ≈ 60 | |
| Tar Samples | ||||||
| Test Materials | ||||||
| Timefall-resistant Clothes | ||||||
| Timefall-resistant Wood | "Wood samples from a forest that experiences heavy timefall." | Nick Easton | M | 7.0 kg | ≈ 60 | |
| Toolbox | ||||||
| Tools | ||||||
| Toys | ||||||
| Tranquilizers | ||||||
| Underwear | ||||||
| Death Stranding 2: On the Beach | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Icon | Description | Recipient | Size | Weight | Max. likes |
Notes[]
- A replica roll of damage sensor tape is provided with the collector's edition of Death Stranding.
References[]
- ^ @HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN (28 June, 2018). This tape’s so called Damage Censor Tape uses for Sam’s case in DEATH STRANDING. [...]