The islands you buy have creatures that attack you; your starting island doesn't. This chapter covers where you're safe, what happens when you lose a fight, what follows you and what doesn't, and what waits beneath the islands.
What Happens When You Die
If your health runs out, you get back up at the spawn point with half health. Your items, your credits and everything you've unlocked stay where they are. All you lose is the walk back.
Your Base Is Safe
No enemies ever appear on your starting island. Build your base there: you can build without watching your back, and leave the game running and step away.
They Don't Follow You
Every creature is tied to the area it spawned in. Get far enough away and it lets you go and heads back. Nothing raids your island, nothing appears behind you, no waves come on a timer. You always choose the fight.
An Island Fills Up Once
The moment you buy an island, its enemies are placed on its surface: one Warden and ten more creatures. What you kill on the surface doesn't come back. Beating the Warden once gives you the Warden Core you need for the Rift Mastery research.
A Dungeon Under Every Island
Every island you buy has a dungeon beneath it, reached through a passage: doors, switches, pressure plates and chests. Some chests need a key made at the Enchanter (Dungeon, Relic, Gilded); and some chests aren't chests. Some materials, such as Corestone, are only found underground.
The Crownward
The 5th island is an arena: it has no Monument, and the Crownward waits in the middle. Beating it gives you a Crown Shard (for the Ascendancy research) and an Ember Egg, once.
Dragos hatch from eggs: the Tide Drago's is the reward for "The Herd" quest, the Fen Drago comes from a dungeon treasure, and the Ember Drago from the Crownward. You pick one with P and call it with T. Fighting dragos only attack something that is hunting you; they never start a fight on their own and leave farm animals alone. They don't die either: when their health runs out they lie low for a while, then get back up at full health. The Fen Drago never fights; it makes resources drop 15% more materials.