This guide is built from the official site, Steam and store listings. Advice about priorities is editorial judgment, not a measured test; confirmed systems are described as such.
The dive ends at the base, not at the last Anomaly
The official system description is short. Dive into an Anomaly Zone, fight, choose what to retrieve, and get back. Items you find inside only become usable once you return to the base. That single rule reframes every room you walk into. The goal is not the last creature in the corridor. The goal is the way out, carrying something worth the trip.
So before you move, decide what would make this dive a success. One piece of material for an upgrade you already planned is a success. A full bag with no exit is not. Write the answer down mentally in one sentence, and let it overrule the urge to clear the floor.
Ammo is a budget, and you are the one overspending
Ammunition is finite, and the game says so on its own product page. Every Anomaly you shoot is a withdrawal. Every room you decide to clear is a purchase.
The habit worth building early: enter a room knowing roughly what you have, and leave it alone if the fight will cost more than the room returns. Walking past an enemy is not cowardice in this game. It is inventory management with extra steps, and it is the difference between a dive that pays and a dive that just costs.
Choose the retrieval target before you pick anything up
You cannot bring everything home, so choose the purpose of the dive first. One weapon upgrade, one attachment, one piece of gear. Then take only what serves that purpose.
A bag with a plan is worth more than a bag with variety. The base is where the plan gets tested, and arriving with three unrelated materials means you paid for a dive and did not use it.
One gun you understand beats three you do not
Firearms are customized with attachments, and the official material is clear that the right weapon changes with the situation. That is an argument for carrying different tools. It is not an argument for carrying five on day one.
Learn one weapon first: how it behaves when you fire too fast, how long a reload leaves you exposed, how much distance it actually covers. Attachments make a familiar gun better. They do not make an unfamiliar gun familiar.
Keep one skill for the walk back
Reona has twelve Anomalization skills. The official description calls them attack and defense in one, supporting gunfights and sometimes acting as a decisive trump card.
That phrase is the instruction. The worst moment of any dive is the return, when you are carrying the material you came for and your ammunition is at its lowest. Spend freely on the way in. Hold at least one card for the way out.
Three things to do after you surface
Read the Dive Reports. Defeating Anomalies unlocks write-ups on their ecology, which is the closest thing the game offers to a bestiary, and the cheapest preparation for the next run.
Take side missions as they unlock; the collaboration request was distributed as a pre-order bonus. Side missions are where the game explains who these people are and how they relate to each other. Then spend ten minutes on gear: nine parts, each affecting Reona's stats, with appearance changeable without touching performance. Fix the weakest slot before chasing a better one.
Sources
Anomalith Archive. “First Dive Checklist: Ammo, Extraction, and What to Carry Home.” Last updated 2026-10-29. https://anomalith.net/guides/first-dive-checklist/