Grounded 2 Into the Abyss: How to Unlock the Toe Biter Buggy

The Toe Biter Buggy is the first mount in Grounded 2 that can dive, skim across water, and still cross land, which makes it the go-to ride for exploring Skunk Pond and prepping for the Abyss. Getting it is a long chain of tasks, and one careless step can waste the whole run if the egg rots before you hatch it.

Quick answer: Grab the Aquatic Optical Disc at the top of the Gnarly Bark tree, spend 5,000 Raw Science at a Ranger Station to buy the Toe Biter Buggy and Toe Biter Nest recipes, kill Papa Toe Biter for a Toe Biter Egg, carry the egg home on another Buggy and put it in a Hatchery, then incubate it for 12 in-game hours.

What you need before you start

Everything below assumes you already have underwater diving gear, since the incubation materials come from the pond floor. Line these up first so a single egg run finishes the whole process.

Requirement	Where it comes from
Aquatic Optical Disc	Top of the Gnarly Bark tree
Toe Biter Buggy recipe	Ranger Station, 5,000 Raw Science
Toe Biter Nest recipe	Ranger Station, bought with the same disc
Hatchery	Built at your base
Toe Biter Egg	Dropped by Papa Toe Biter
Tier 3 Omni Clippers and Tier 3 Shovel	Used to harvest underwater materials

Get the Aquatic Optical Disc and unlock the recipes

The disc holds the blueprints for both the mount and its nest. It sits at the very top of the huge tree in the Gnarly Bark region.

Travel to the Gnarly Bark tree and follow the roots until you find an opening in the bark. This leads into a spiral cave packed with hostile bugs. A Soldier Black Ant Buggy makes the climb far easier since it handles the enemies inside while you push upward.

Keep climbing, exiting and re-entering the bark as the path spirals up. On the third pass, near the candles and the memorial photos, climb into an opening that holds a Sour Tang puddle. The Aquatic Optical Disc is next to a corpse beside that puddle. Note this spot, because you return here for the boss.

Bring the disc to any unlocked Ranger Station terminal and hand it over. Buy the Toe Biter Buggy recipe and the Toe Biter Nest recipe for 5,000 Raw Science. Deciphering the disc is also what unlocks the hidden boss encounter back at the memorial.

Image credit: Xbox Game Studios / Paraly5er

Beat Papa Toe Biter for the egg

The Toe Biter Egg only comes from Papa Toe Biter, a tough boss hidden in a cave behind the memorial landmark in Gnarly Bark. Come prepared, because the fight commits you and the room turns hostile once you grab the egg.

Trait	Detail
Weakness	Spicy
Resistances	Fresh, Slashing, Venom, Water, Gas immunity
Weak point	Rump
Recommended weapon	Spicy stabbing or spicy smashing (for example, the Walapino)
Extra threat	Constantly spawns Toe Biter Nymphs

Return to the candle area near the framed photo of the missing children and look behind it to reveal the secret entrance. Clear the Toe Biter Nymph at the mouth of the cave, then drop into the arena where the boss sleeps.

Buff up before you wake it. Food like Cheese ‘n’ Fries and Green Machine boosts stamina and defense, which matters because a clean block eats a lot of stamina and Papa Toe Biter hits hard.

Fight with a high-tier fire weapon and focus the Rump weak point. Skip Fresh and Slashing weapons, since they work against its resistances, and avoid relying on ranged attacks that barely dent its carapace. Clear the Nymphs as they appear so they do not swarm you, and stop attacking before its sweep knocks you away.

Once the boss goes down, loot its body and pick up the Toe Biter Egg from the cave. Nearby Toe Biters turn aggressive the moment you take it, so be ready to leave through the lower exit that drops you into the middle of the Gnarly Bark tree.

Carry the egg home without spoiling it

The egg is heavy and does not fit in normal inventory slots. Bring an existing Buggy, such as an Ant Buggy, into the cave so you can load the egg straight onto it and sprint out instead of hauling it on foot.

Note: The moment you get home, place the egg on an Egg Storage rack. Leaving it on the ground or in a standard slot causes it to rot and spoil, which wastes the entire run.

Gather the materials and hatch the Buggy

Before hatching, build a Hatchery if you do not already have one, then collect the incubation materials from underwater. Equip your Tier 3 Omni Clippers and Tier 3 Shovel and dive Skunk Pond to gather them.

Material	Amount
Horsetail Stem	2
Koi Fish Scale	1
Sunken Bone	3
Pond Moss	4

Place the Toe Biter Egg inside the Hatchery along with the required materials. Dismount first if the station will not accept the egg while you are riding.

Start the timer and let it run for 12 in-game hours. Sleeping in a bed skips the wait far faster than standing around.

You know it worked when the timer ends and the Buggy comes to life at the Hatchery.

Build the Toe Biter Nest to keep the mount

The Hatchery only handles incubation. To store, manage, and name your new mount, build the Toe Biter Nest at your base. Interacting with it gives the Buggy a permanent home.

Material	Amount
Horsetail Stem	8
Sunken Bone	4
Cattail Fluff	6
Lint Rope	3
Algae	5

What the Toe Biter Buggy does

The mount earns its effort in the water. On land it feels like a slower utility ride with modest jump height, but in Skunk Pond it is the fastest way to move around, and its combat and harvesting tools make it worth having before you head into the Abyss.

Use	Detail
Water travel	Very fast across and below the surface of Skunk Pond
Land travel	Rideable but slow-ish with low jump height
Oxygen	Does not add oxygen, so carry your own supply
Harvesting	Clips Eelgrass Strands, Purple Jelly Fungus, and Pond Moss
Combat combo	Three-hit combo applies Venom and Chill on the final hit
Sweep attack	360-style knockback, useful against creatures in water
Diving boots	Cause the Buggy to sink to the pond floor

Treat it as a pond mount first and a fighter second. With your own oxygen sorted, its speed, chill-and-venom combo, and underwater clipping make it the strongest option for tackling everything Skunk Pond and the Abyss throw at you.