Deadly Days: Roadtrip Astronaut Unlock: Shuttle Guide

How to Unlock the Astronaut

The Deadly Days: Roadtrip astronaut unlock comes from finding and defending the Space Shuttle during a regular run. Head for the canyon map marked with a space shuttle icon, then find the shuttle’s question-mark event marker. Completing the event unlocks the Space Suit and gives you access to a survivor built around armor and critical hits.

Complete this objective before entering Endless Mode. Finding a shuttle and waiting beside it during Endless won’t unlock the Astronaut.

Follow this route:

1. Look for the shuttle icon during route selection. Choose the dedicated canyon map when it appears.
2. Locate the question-mark marker. The Astronaut event is marked with a “?” to help you find it.
3. Find and defend the Space Shuttle. Complete the defense objective while surviving the surrounding zombies.
4. Look for the Space Suit reward. After the run, check your character selection for the Astronaut.

Bring a loadout that can handle sustained pressure before committing to the defense. Use your backpack’s adjacency effects to strengthen your weapons, and merge matching equipment when you have the opportunity.

Official page: Deadly Days: Roadtrip (store.steampowered.com)

Where the Space Shuttle Spawns

The dedicated canyon map guarantees a Space Shuttle spawn. Update 0.17 introduced this map specifically to make the Astronaut easier to find, so the shuttle icon is the detail to watch for when choosing your route.

Older directions point players toward mountain, snowy, or desert locations. Follow the dedicated map icon instead: Update 0.18 removed shuttle spawns from maps that aren’t designated shuttle maps.

There are two separate navigation clues:

• Space shuttle icon: Identifies the dedicated map during route selection.
• Question-mark marker: Helps locate the event once you’re exploring the area.

Don’t spend a long run searching every canyon corner on an unrelated map. Check the route’s map icon before choosing your stop.

Why Waiting Beside the Shuttle Can Fail

The unlock depends on completing the shuttle event, rather than surviving until a particular stage time. Waiting for the Reaper is a separate objective and won’t substitute for the shuttle defense.

If you’ve already entered Endless Mode, make another attempt during a regular run. Update 0.18 also fixed shuttle events appearing in Endless, so older instructions built around finding one there are outdated.

What the Astronaut’s Armor Build Does

In version 1.0, the Astronaut’s “+Crit per Armor” bonus is 3% per armor per rank. Ranks 2 and 3 now work correctly; the earlier rank-1 value of 10% was replaced.

Image: PlayStation Store

The Astronaut starts with a Space Suit and a pistol. The suit ties protection to offense, but its armor also carries a movement penalty:

• Each armor negates the damage from one hit.
• Movement speed is reduced by 3% per armor.
• Armor regenerates when a new day starts.
• The Astronaut’s critical chance bonus scales with armor and the effect’s rank.

Plan around that speed tradeoff when adding armor. Keep your route to the bus manageable, and leave room to move when the horde starts closing in.

For an armor-focused loadout, consider the Shield Generator introduced in version 1.0. It restores one armor every 10 seconds, but taking damage resets that timer. Keep moving through open space to give its recovery effect time to trigger.

Version 1.0 also allows critical chance above 100% to reach higher critical tiers. Each full extra 100% adds the critical damage bonus again, while the remaining chance can roll one additional tier. Luck affects only that remaining chance. Normal critical hits appear red, the next tier appears orange, and tier 3 and above appear yellow.

Inspect your weapon tooltips for critical chance and critical damage, both displayed in version 1.0. Use those values to track the offensive side of your armor build as you rearrange equipment.