Heart of the Forest
All 36 nodes across 8 tiers, what they cost, and where your 17 tokens should go. Pick your tier.
Recommended HOTF Tree
Heart of the Forest
Inside your first 250 trees of the day. Early Bird is worth +100 Fortune and +20 Sweep, which beats anything else those tokens could buy.Past 250 trees, so Early Bird is dead weight. Reset the tree, it refunds in full, and spend those tokens on the top row instead.
At tier 1 you hold 1 tokens, and this build spends 1.
Buy in this order: Sweep.
Reset and rebuild at tier 2. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 2 you hold 3 tokens, and this build spends 3.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest.
Reset and rebuild at tier 3. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 3 you hold 5 tokens, and this build spends 4.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck.
Reset and rebuild at tier 4. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 4 you hold 7 tokens, and this build spends 7.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness.
Reset and rebuild at tier 5. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 5 you hold 11 tokens (including the 2 from Center of the Forest), and this build spends 10.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness → Center of the Forest → Daily Wishes → Early Bird → Lottery.
Reset and rebuild at tier 6. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 6 you hold 13 tokens (including the 2 from Center of the Forest), and this build spends 13.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness → Center of the Forest → Daily Wishes → Early Bird → Starlyn Supreme → Speed Boost → Efficient Forager → Lottery.
Reset and rebuild at tier 7. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 7 you hold 15 tokens (including the 2 from Center of the Forest), and this build spends 15.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness → Center of the Forest → Daily Wishes → Early Bird → Starlyn Supreme → Speed Boost → Efficient Forager → Half Full → Ricochet → Lottery.
Reset and rebuild at tier 8. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 8 you hold 17 tokens (including the 2 from Center of the Forest), and this build spends 17.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Center of the Forest → Daily Wishes → Early Bird → Free Trial → Efficient Forager → Half Full → Forest Strength → Two-for-one → Timber → Essence Fortune → Forest Speed → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness.
At tier 1 you hold 1 tokens, and this build spends 1.
Buy in this order: Sweep.
Reset and rebuild at tier 2. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 2 you hold 3 tokens, and this build spends 3.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest.
Reset and rebuild at tier 3. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 3 you hold 5 tokens, and this build spends 5.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → Collector.
Reset and rebuild at tier 4. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 4 you hold 7 tokens, and this build spends 7.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness.
Reset and rebuild at tier 5. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 5 you hold 11 tokens (including the 2 from Center of the Forest), and this build spends 9.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness → Lottery → Center of the Forest → Collector.
Reset and rebuild at tier 6. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 6 you hold 13 tokens (including the 2 from Center of the Forest), and this build spends 12.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness → Lottery → Center of the Forest → Starlyn Supreme → Speed Boost → Efficient Forager → Collector.
Reset and rebuild at tier 7. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 7 you hold 15 tokens (including the 2 from Center of the Forest), and this build spends 14.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness → Lottery → Center of the Forest → Starlyn Supreme → Speed Boost → Efficient Forager → Half Full → Ricochet → Collector.
Reset and rebuild at tier 8. The tree refunds every token and whisper, so there is no reason to save any of this for later.
At tier 8 you hold 17 tokens (including the 2 from Center of the Forest), and this build spends 17.
Buy in this order: Sweep → Foraging Fortune → Luck of the Forest → Hunter's Luck → 250 Gifts → Center of the Forest → Iron Lungs → Foraging Madness → Starlyn Supreme → Ricochet → Timber → Two-for-one → Forest Strength → Half Full → Efficient Forager → Essence Fortune → Forest Speed → Lottery.
Tier 11 of 17 tokens
Sweep
Only node open. Maxing it costs about 1.76M Forest Whispers, over half of that in the last ten levels.
Tier 23 of 17 tokens
Foraging Fortune
+3 Fortune per level, 50 levels. Biggest non-gear Fortune source in the game.
Damage Boost and Axe Toss are axe abilities, so a second one is a swap, not a stat. Collector levels off your collections instead of whispers.
Tier 35 of 17 tokens
Skip it
Galatea's Might is Pressure Resistance, not Fortune or Sweep. It is the cheapest node in the tree, so it is easy to waste 1.2M whispers on by mistake.
Hunter's Luck is drop chance. Good for money, no tracked stat.
Tier 47 of 17 tokens
Best tier in the tree
Unlocks Torrhus Canyon. Costs switch to Desert Whispers from here up.
Foraging Madness is +50 Fortune and +10 Sweep for one purchase. Take it before another level of anything.
Lottery is one random roll per SkyBlock day from four: +50 Fig, Mangrove or Helix Fortune, or +10 Sweep. So the Sweep roll lands about one day in four.
Tier 511 of 17 tokens
Center of the Forest, and a gateway you have to pay for
Center of the Forest is the best node in the tree and almost every guide undersells it. Level 1 is free and hands back a Token of the Forest, level 3 turns every log and Tree Gift into whispers, and level 5 gives a second token. It pays for itself twice over.
The catch: upgrading it is irreversible. Whispers spent here are the only ones a tree reset does not refund.
Free Trial is 200 Forest Whispers per Fig and Mangrove Tree Gift. No stat, still worth it.
This tier is also a wall. Tree Whisperer, Center of the Forest and Free Trial are the only three ways up, so you are paying for one of them whatever you do.
Tier 613 of 17 tokens
Maniac Slicer
Sweep from your Mana, so its value is your mana pool. It is an axe ability, so it does nothing while Damage Boost or Axe Toss is selected.
Homing Axe ignores the optimal cutting pattern. Convenience, not throughput.
Tier 715 of 17 tokens
Half Empty, in a group
+1 Fortune and +0.4 Sweep per level per player with Half Full, level 25 max, 5 players max. So +125 Fortune and +50 Sweep at the top.
Conflicts with Half Full, and pays zero solo. Best tokens in the tree if you forage in a coordinated group, dead weight if you do not.
Tier 817 of 17 tokens
Forest Strength and Forest Speed
Percentages of your Strength and Speed, so worthless on a low stat build and excellent on a high one. You enter those two by hand since the site cannot read them.
Also here: Essence Fortune, and a perk paying 25 whispers per Critter hunted.
Two currencies
Tokens of the Forest unlock perks. 17 exist against 36 nodes: 15 from tiering up and 2 more from Center of the Forest, at its levels 1 and 5.
Center of the Forest costs no token. It needs an adjacent perk like everything else and it is paid for in whispers only, then it hands two tokens back. It is the one node on the grid that is pure profit, so take it the moment it is reachable.
| Tier | HotF EXP | Cumulative | Tokens | Held | SB XP | Also |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 1 | +35 | |
| 2 | 3,000 | 3,000 | +2 | 3 | +45 | |
| 3 | 9,000 | 12,000 | +2 | 5 | +60 | |
| 4 | 25,000 | 37,000 | +2 | 7 | +75 | Access to Torrhus Canyon |
| 5 | 60,000 | 97,000 | +2 | 9 | +90 | Foraging Clover Emblem |
| 6 | 100,000 | 197,000 | +2 | 11 | +110 | |
| 7 | 150,000 | 347,000 | +2 | 13 | +130 | Golden Foraging Clover Emblem |
| 8 | 200,000 | 547,000 | +2 | 15 | +180 |
EXP comes from Tree Gifts and Starlyn Contests (100 to 750 at Moonglade, 150 to 900 at Torrhus). First three contests each day add 1,200 EXP, which becomes 1,200 whispers at tier 8. Galatea Training adds 1% to 10%.
Axe abilities
Damage Boost, Axe Toss, Maniac Slicer. Unlock all three, only one is ever selected. Level 1 to 5, raised by Center of the Forest. Nothing on Huntaxes or at the Hub.
Maniac Slicer is the only one giving a tracked stat, and the site assumes it is the one you have selected.
Damage Boost cooldown120s to 100s
| Level | Duration | Cooldown |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 seconds | 120 seconds |
| 2 | 10 seconds | 115 seconds |
| 3 | 10 seconds | 110 seconds |
| 4 | 10 seconds | 105 seconds |
| 5 | 10 seconds | 100 seconds |
Center of the Forest
The most undersold node in the tree. Level 1 is free and hands back a Token of the Forest, level 3 turns every log and Tree Gift into whispers, and level 5 gives a second token. Upgrading it is IRREVERSIBLE: whispers spent here are not refunded when you reset the tree, unlike everywhere else.
Level by level2 tokens, plus whisper income
| Level | Cost | Cumulative | Reward | SB XP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Free | Free | +1 Token of the Forest | +25 |
| 2 | 50,000 FW | 50,000 FW | +1 Axe Ability Level | +35 |
| 3 | 100,000 FW | 150,000 FW | 20 FW per Fig/Mangrove Gift, 2 FW per log. 20 DW per Helix Gift, 2 DW per Helix log | +50 |
| 4 | 200,000 DW | 150,000 FW + 200,000 DW | +5 Tracking on Tree Gifts | +65 |
| 5 | 300,000 DW | 150,000 FW + 500,000 DW | +1 Token of the Forest | +75 |
FW Forest Whispers, DW Desert Whispers.
Level costs
levelCost = floor((nextLevel + 1) ^ exponent)
Exponents: Sweep 3, Foraging Fortune 3.05, Deep Waters 2.9, Galatea's Might 3.2, Half Empty 4.1, Ricochet 5.5. Higher exponent, faster runaway. Spreading whispers across several part levelled nodes beats finishing one.
Sweep1,758,267 total
Increases Sweep.
Sweep = level × 1
| Levels | Band cost | Cumulative | You hold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 to 10 | 4,347 | 4,347 | +10 Sweep |
| 11 to 20 | 49,005 | 53,352 | +20 Sweep |
| 21 to 30 | 192,655 | 246,007 | +30 Sweep |
| 31 to 40 | 495,305 | 741,312 | +40 Sweep |
| 41 to 50 | 1,016,955 | 1,758,267 | +50 Sweep |
Forest Whispers.
Foraging Fortune2,114,821 total
Increases Foraging Fortune by 3 per level, to 150.
Fortune = level × 3
| Levels | Band cost | Cumulative | You hold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 to 10 | 4,848 | 4,848 | +30 Fortune |
| 11 to 20 | 56,572 | 61,420 | +60 Fortune |
| 21 to 30 | 227,278 | 288,698 | +90 Fortune |
| 31 to 40 | 593,359 | 882,057 | +120 Fortune |
| 41 to 50 | 1,232,764 | 2,114,821 | +150 Fortune |
Forest Whispers.
Deep Waters1,215,894 total
Increases Pressure Resistance by 1 per level, to 50.
Pressure Resistance = level × 1
| Levels | Band cost | Cumulative | You hold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 to 10 | 3,488 | 3,488 | +10 Pressure Resistance |
| 11 to 20 | 36,767 | 40,255 | +20 Pressure Resistance |
| 21 to 30 | 138,430 | 178,685 | +30 Pressure Resistance |
| 31 to 40 | 345,136 | 523,821 | +40 Pressure Resistance |
| 41 to 50 | 692,073 | 1,215,894 | +50 Pressure Resistance |
Forest Whispers.
Galatea's Might3,683,370 total
Grants 0.5% Combat Stats on Galatea per level, to 25%.
Combat Stats = level × 0.5%
| Levels | Band cost | Cumulative | You hold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 to 10 | 6,745 | 6,745 | +5% Combat Stats |
| 11 to 20 | 87,093 | 93,838 | +10% Combat Stats |
| 21 to 30 | 373,239 | 467,077 | +15% Combat Stats |
| 31 to 40 | 1,020,239 | 1,487,316 | +20% Combat Stats |
| 41 to 50 | 2,196,054 | 3,683,370 | +25% Combat Stats |
Forest Whispers.
Half Empty3,551,741 total
Gain Foraging Fortune and Sweep for every player on your island running Half Full. Capped at 5 players.
Fortune = level × 1 per player, Sweep = level × 0.4 per player
| Levels | Band cost | Cumulative | You hold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 to 5 | 2,668 | 2,668 | +5 Fortune, +2 Sweep per player (at most +25 and +10) |
| 6 to 10 | 47,328 | 49,996 | +10 Fortune, +4 Sweep per player (at most +50 and +20) |
| 11 to 15 | 266,359 | 316,355 | +15 Fortune, +6 Sweep per player (at most +75 and +30) |
| 16 to 20 | 905,551 | 1,221,906 | +20 Fortune, +8 Sweep per player (at most +100 and +40) |
| 21 to 25 | 2,329,835 | 3,551,741 | +25 Fortune, +10 Sweep per player (at most +125 and +50) |
Desert Whispers.
Half Full3,551,741 total
Gain Foraging Fortune and Sweep for every player on your island running Half Empty. Capped at 5 players.
Fortune = level × 1 per player, Sweep = level × 0.4 per player
| Levels | Band cost | Cumulative | You hold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 to 5 | 2,668 | 2,668 | +5 Fortune, +2 Sweep per player (at most +25 and +10) |
| 6 to 10 | 47,328 | 49,996 | +10 Fortune, +4 Sweep per player (at most +50 and +20) |
| 11 to 15 | 266,359 | 316,355 | +15 Fortune, +6 Sweep per player (at most +75 and +30) |
| 16 to 20 | 905,551 | 1,221,906 | +20 Fortune, +8 Sweep per player (at most +100 and +40) |
| 21 to 25 | 2,329,835 | 3,551,741 | +25 Fortune, +10 Sweep per player (at most +125 and +50) |
Desert Whispers.
Timber4,705,857 total
Grants Timber, the chance to fell an entire tree in one hit.
Timber = level × 0.1
| Levels | Band cost | Cumulative | You hold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 59,049 | 59,049 | +0.2 Timber |
| 3 | 100,000 | 159,049 | +0.3 Timber |
| 4 | 161,051 | 320,100 | +0.4 Timber |
| 5 | 248,832 | 568,932 | +0.5 Timber |
| 6 | 371,293 | 940,225 | +0.6 Timber |
| 7 | 537,824 | 1,478,049 | +0.7 Timber |
| 8 | 759,375 | 2,237,424 | +0.8 Timber |
| 9 | 1,048,576 | 3,286,000 | +0.9 Timber |
| 10 | 1,419,857 | 4,705,857 | +1 Timber |
Desert Whispers.
Early Bird
+100 Fortune and +10 Sweep, first 250 trees per day only. Not counted in any total on this site, because it would overstate a full session. The switch above shows both.