Pitons are your lifeline on Mount Kami. These metal spikes create the difference between a controlled ascent and a catastrophic fall back to your last checkpoint. Here's the thing: you can't just spam them everywhere. Understanding when, where, and how to place pitons transforms Cairn from a frustrating experience into a strategic climbing challenge. This guide breaks down everything from basic placement mechanics to finding the game's rare indestructible pitons.
How Does Piton Placement Work?
Placing a piton involves a quick time event that determines whether your safety anchor holds or breaks. On PlayStation, you'll tap Up on the d-pad to initiate placement, then position the piton as close as possible to the white center marks that appear on the rock face. Hit X to drive the piton home.
The closer you align with those white marks, the better your placement. Miss the timing or positioning, and your piton might crack or fail completely when you need it most. On PC, you'll see the corresponding keyboard prompt instead of controller buttons, but the mechanic stays identical.
Once secured, you can rappel down by holding R2 (or your platform's equivalent) and using the left stick to control your descent speed. This lets you shimmy down slowly to scout lower sections or drop quickly when you're confident about the route below.
Pro Tip: Practice piton placement in safe areas before attempting difficult sections. The muscle memory for hitting those center marks becomes crucial during high-pressure moments.
Why Strategic Placement Matters
You start with six pitons in your backpack, and that limited supply forces tough decisions. Place them too frequently and you'll run dry on critical walls. Space them too far apart and a single mistake sends you plummeting hundreds of meters.
The optimal strategy: Position pitons every 10-15 meters of vertical progress, or immediately before challenging sections like overhangs and traverses. Each piton serves two vital functions:
- Checkpoint creation that catches you if you fall
- Full stamina recovery station when you hang from it
What most players miss is that second benefit. When you're clinging to a wall with your stamina depleting, reaching a piton and going "off belay" completely restores your energy bar. This makes pitons essential for tackling extended vertical sections that would otherwise drain you completely.
Stamina recovery from piton
When to Place Pitons
How to Get More Pitons
Your starting six won't last the entire ascent. You'll find additional pitons scattered throughout Mount Kami as loot, with the first one available at the Training Center near the Optional Challenge Reward bag. Check every nook and cranny, especially around established campsites and bivouacs.
Some pitons can be retrieved after use, though the game doesn't make this obvious. When you pass a section and no longer need a particular anchor point, you might be able to pull it free and reclaim the resource. This becomes increasingly important on longer climbs where conservation matters.
Warning
Pitons count toward your six-item maximum capacity. You can't carry unlimited backup anchors, so prioritize quality over quantity when looting.
Repairing Broken Pitons
Pitons break. It's inevitable. The good news? You can repair them at Aava's tent using Climbot, your mechanical climbing companion. Each repair requires two sets of piton scraps, which you'll collect either as loot or by retrieving fragments after a failed placement.
The repair system creates an interesting resource loop. Failed placements aren't total losses since you recover scrap materials. This encourages experimentation with placement techniques without completely punishing mistakes.
Repair costs and materials:
- Standard piton repair: 2 piton scraps
- Scrap sources: Failed placements, loot containers, environmental pickups
- Repair location: Aava's tent via Climbot interaction
Finding Indestructible Troglodyte Pitons
Three special troglodyte pitons exist on Mount Kami. Unlike standard pitons, these indestructible anchors can penetrate harder rock surfaces and never break. They're hidden inside guardian statues scattered across different mountain sections, and finding all three requires deviating from the main climbing path.
All Troglodyte Piton Locations
The Vault Guardian (First Piton) Head left from The Standing Stones campsite. You'll spot The Child bivouac point nearby, which serves as a landmark. The guardian statue sits in a sheltered alcove just beyond this area.
The Ancient Guardian (Second Piton) Look below the bridge leading to The Palace of Wind. This one requires a slight detour downward from the main route, but the distinctive bridge structure makes navigation straightforward.
The Secret Guardian (Third Piton) Unlike the previous two, this guardian statue sits directly on the main path through The Secret area. You'll encounter it naturally during progression, making it impossible to miss.
Important
Troglodyte pitons still count toward your six-piton carrying capacity. They don't give you extra slots; they just provide superior performance in the slots you have.
Accessibility Options for Placement
Struggling with the quick time event for piton placement? The developers included accessibility features specifically for this mechanic. Navigate to Settings > Accessibility Options and you'll find options to skip the timing challenge entirely, guaranteeing successful placement every time.
This same menu contains Manual Limb Selection, which gives you finer control over Aava's movements during climbs. Enabling both features significantly reduces frustration during high-stakes sections where a single failed piton could mean disaster.
The key here is understanding these aren't "easy mode" toggles. They're tools that let you focus on route planning and stamina management rather than reflexes. Many experienced climbers use them to concentrate on the strategic aspects of the ascent.
Advanced Piton Techniques
Rappel scouting: After placing a piton, rappel down to examine the route below before committing to it. You'll burn stamina climbing back up, but the information gained often prevents costly mistakes.
Stamina checkpoints: On extremely long vertical sections, place pitons not for safety but purely for stamina recovery. Hang from them briefly to restore your energy bar, then continue upward.
Scrap collection optimization: When a piton breaks during placement, immediately collect the scrap fragments before they despawn. These materials are too valuable to waste.
Pre-bivouac placement: Before setting up camp at a bivouac, place a piton just above the campsite. This gives you a safety anchor for scouting the next section without risking a fall back to the previous checkpoint.
Common Piton Mistakes
The biggest error new climbers make? Hoarding pitons for "when they really need them." You'll reach difficult sections with six unused pitons in your pack, then fall repeatedly because you were too conservative earlier. Use your pitons. That's what they're for.
Second mistake: ignoring the white alignment marks during placement. A poorly placed piton might hold initially but fail under stress when you actually fall. Take the extra second to center your placement properly.
Third mistake: not repairing broken pitons between climbs. You'll start a new section with a depleted inventory, then scramble for resources mid-ascent. Always visit Climbot before major pushes.
Mastering piton placement transforms your relationship with Mount Kami's challenges. These simple metal spikes become your safety net, your recovery stations, and your strategic tools for conquering the mountain. For more essential climbing mechanics, check out our Cairn: Controls & Input Guide to master the movement system, or dive into our Cairn Beginners Guide for comprehensive survival strategies. Place them wisely, repair them regularly, and you'll find the summit within reach.