99 NIGHTS IN THE FOREST

CULTIST GUIDE

Learn everything about the Cultists, the supporting antagonists of 99 Nights in the Forest. These mysterious followers of The Deer will test your survival skills in raids and strongholds.

Explore Cultist Types

Cultist Overview

6
Cultist Types
100-120
Max Health
7-30
Attack Damage
4
Days Between Raids

Basic Information

Cultists are human enemies that serve as supporting antagonists in 99 Nights in the Forest. They worship The Deer and will attack players during raids or when encountered in their strongholds.

All cultists wear deer skulls, indicating their worship of The Deer.

Species & Behavior

Species: Human

Behavior: Hostile

Walk Speed: 12 (Melee), 16 (Ranged)

Cultists will attack players on sight and during organized raids on the campfire.

Drops & Rewards

Upon death, cultists may drop:

  • Mossy Coin Mossy Coins (0-1)
  • Revolver Ammo Revolver Ammo (0-1)
  • Rifle Ammo Rifle Ammo (0-1)
  • Cultist Gem Cultist Gem (after raids)
  • Gem of the Forest Fragment Gem of the Forest Fragment (raids past night 99)

Cultist Types

Melee Cultist with Old Axe, Spear, or Morningstar

Melee Cultist

The most common type of cultist. They wear brown clothing with a dark jacket and deer skull headpiece. They wield Old Axes, Spears, or Morningstars.

Attack Damage: 7 (Old Axe), 15 (Spear), 30 (Morningstar)

Health: 100-120

Difficulty:
Crossbow Cultist with crimson red jacket

Crossbow Cultist

The second most common cultist type. They wear similar clothing to Melee Cultists but with a crimson red jacket. They always carry Crossbows.

Attack Damage: 15 (Crossbow)

Health: 100-120

They are dangerous at range but weak in melee combat.

Difficulty:
Juggernaut Cultist with metal helmet and antlers

Juggernaut Cultist

A rare, heavily armored cultist type. They wear metal helmets with antlers and have shining yellow eyes. They wield Morningstars and are much stronger than regular cultists.

Attack Damage: High (exact value unknown)

Health: Significantly higher than regular cultists

Difficulty:
Mega Cultist with red skin, giant size

Mega Cultist

A giant version of the Melee Cultist with red skin. They are extremely large (slightly shorter than Large Trees) and can only be spawned by admins during Update Parties.

Attack Damage: Around >100 damage

Health: Very high (requires many Laser Cannon shots to kill)

Difficulty:
Halloween Cultist with special Halloween appearance

Halloween Cultist

Special cultists that appear during the Halloween Update. They can be found in Trick or Treat Houses and are passive while inside.

They are actually just Melee or Crossbow Cultists with special Halloween appearances.

Difficulty:
Resurrected Cultist with Necromancer magic effects

Resurrected Cultist

Cultists that have been resurrected by players using the Necromancer class. They require killing at least 3 cultists for their souls and using the Cultist Staff.

Resurrected Crossbow Cultists attack using melee - they cannot fire ranged weapons.

Difficulty:

Cultist Raids

First Raid

The first cultist raid occurs on the Fourth Day (after about 20 minutes of gameplay). The day before the raid, a red warning appears in the Info Bar:

"Something evil is approaching your campfire... it arrives tonight"

When 20 seconds remain until night, the message changes to:

"You will be attacked tonight, return to your campfire"

Drums will be heard playing, and after night falls, a cutscene plays showing cultists approaching. The Deer arrives but only observes during the first raid.

The first raid only includes Melee Cultists with Old Axes.

Subsequent Raids

After the first raid, subsequent raids occur about every 20 minutes (4 days) and feature:

  • Stronger cultist types (Crossbow Cultists)
  • Better weapons for Melee Cultists (Spears, Morningstars)
  • More cultists per raid (up to 8 maximum)
  • Cultist Gem drops from the last cultist killed
  • Gem of the Forest Fragment drops (after night 99)

Failing to finish a raid by morning causes the Campfire to deplete faster based on remaining cultists.

Raid Mechanics

  • During raids, if you heal The Deer, it will sometimes appear to attack the cultists
  • Cultist corpses can be used as Fuel for the Campfire
  • If cultists remain by morning, a red warning appears: "Some Cultists are still alive near your fire."
  • The number of cultist faces shown over the fire indicates how many cultists remain

Cultist Locations

Strongholds & Bases

Cultists can be found guarding valuable loot in various locations:

  • Cultist Stronghold (marked by three blue diamonds on map)
  • Cultist Hunter Camp
  • Cultist Tree
  • Ice Temple (frozen cultists)
  • Cultist King Base
  • Cultist Base
  • Cultist Laboratory
  • Trick Or Treat House (during Halloween Update)

Environmental Signs

Around the map, players can find signs of cultist activity:

  • Trees with animal corpses or rope
  • Burnt down camps
  • Churches
  • Summoning circles

The loot found varies depending on distance from the Campfire.

Special Locations

Volcanic Biome: Cultists can be found here along with the Cultist King.

Update Parties: Mega Cultists can only be spawned by developers during these special events.

Cultists have more health the higher the level is in the Cultist Stronghold.

Strategies & Tips

General Tips

  • Ranged weapons are the safest way to kill cultists
  • You can get cultists stuck on obstacles like Log Walls or Wood Rain Storages
  • Using a pet can help minimize damage taken
  • Constantly jumping around can help avoid attacks but drains hunger quickly
  • The Cyborg Class makes the first raid easy with the Laser Cannon's splash damage

Advanced Tactics

  • Build spikes/traps and lead cultists into them
  • Standing on tall structures like the Map or Lightning Rod nullifies cultist attacks
  • Climbing atop a Lightning Rod causes cultists to de-aggro
  • When raiding strongholds, peek around corners to shoot Crossbow Cultists safely

Cultist-Related Badges

Combat Badge - First Cultist Raid Survival

Combat Badge

How to Obtain: Successfully survive a Cultist Raid for the first time.

★

Rewards: 2 Diamonds

Infiltration Badge - Cultist Stronghold Defeat

Infiltration Badge

How to Obtain: Defeat the Cultist Stronghold for the first time.

★ ★

Rewards: 4 Diamonds

Volcanology Badge - 150 Sacrifices

Volcanology Badge

How to Obtain: Make 150 sacrifices to the Volcano.

★ ★

Rewards: 5 Diamonds + Lava Fountain furniture

Supporting Badge - 50 Team Kills

Supporting Badge

How to Obtain: Kill 50 enemies while near a teammate.

★

Rewards: 5 Diamonds + x3 Blue Flame fire

Cultist Trivia

  • Cultists worship The Deer, the main antagonist of the game.
  • A Melee and Crossbow Cultist repeatedly appear in the cutscenes after each update.
  • In one trailer for the "Something is Coming" Update, cultists are shown encountering The Ram.
  • In the "Taming" Update cutscene, cultists are about to be attacked by a Wolf when a Camper tames it.
  • If you fail to kill cultists by morning, the Campfire depletes faster with a notification.
  • You used to be able to get cultists stuck on the missing kids signboard, but they now phase through it.
  • Cultists really like cake, shown in the Alien cutscenes and in the Snow Biome.
  • The Juggernaut Cultist is the only cultist with armor and a different size.
  • Cultists are among the few humans known to be in The Forest.
  • During Update Parties, the Mega Cultist charges up power mid-air before fighting.
  • Cultists can be tamed using the Necromancer class after killing at least 3 cultists.
  • Cultists are the most commonly used Entities in the Update Cutscenes.