Useful information about equipment and general gameplay that will help you become efficient and professional ghost detectives
 
 

Introduction

Hello fellow ghost hunters/detectives! I am a frequent Phasmophobia player who is really loving the new version update 0.3.0.2.
 
Myself and some friends have discovered some useful tips and information over the course of many hours and figured we should make them public!
 
 
I will endeavour to keep this up to date and add any extra tips suggested in the comments!
 
 
 

General Tips

TURN OFF ALL ELECTRIC ITEMS DURING A HUNT (this includes your Flashlight!). Otherwise the entity will know where you are at all times and head straight towards you! Ensure you do not speak during this time as it will also alert the entity of your position
• When starting, check your objectives to know what will give you extra money.
• Check for the power as it is OFF by default on Professional. There is a white button to the left of the map in the van you can click to toggle the floors.
• Drop all of your equipment with the exception of your Flashlight when you find the room, to have more space for other equipment to bring over. If you’re confident, you can even drop your flashlight.
• Once the entity room is found, quickly bring over spare smudge sticks and crucifix’s
• Drop your flashlight at the map door as you don’t need to get back from the van. This lets you carry 3 things over. You can swap them again when you get back to the door, effectively saving time bringing over equipment.
• Typically good to have 1 person in the van looking at your places cameras while you move them around.
• Swap van campers with low sanity people to reduce hunt chances.
• Ouija boards have a chance of spawning. They are super useful if asked “Where are you”. It may take some attempts from other friends but it should spell out the origin location, saving you a lot of effort.
• You can provoke the entity using words such as: Hunt/ Hide/ Fear/ Scared. As well as calling out its name and apparently swearing at it.
• Be sure to ask the entity “Give me a SON” “Give me a sign” which may trigger activity when searching.
• Once you have 2 pieces of evidence, cycle through which entity options it could be. Typically you will have 2-3 different entity’s. Check to see which evidence is needed for those ghost types so you’re not trying to search for something that you cannot get.
• You can pick up and throw props when you are dead! Be cheeky and make arrows pointing at ghost spawns or points of interest if you want to help your team
   
   
   
   
   
  You will KNOW you found the entity room if you get Ghost Writing, Ghost Orbs , Freezing Temp breaths or EMF Reader. These are typically the most essential ones to look for first to be certain where to gather the other information.
   
   
   
   
   
  Recommended starting equipment
   
   
   
  Professional difficulty:
   
   
   
  Flashlight > Essential for everyone to begin with
   
   
   
  Parabolic Microphone > Best to find the entity room.
   
   
   
  Camera > Good for photos for money, completing objectives and sneaky fingerprints.
   
   
   
  EMF Reader > Decent for finding the general area and maybe an EMF level 5
   
   
   
  UV Light > Okay option for one person if nothing else
   
   
   
   
   
  Non Professional difficulty:
   
   
   
  Same as above, with the exception of the Parabolic Microphone
   
   
   
  Thermometer > Best to find the entity room. All 3 should be taken.

 
 
 

Starter/Evidence Equipment

This list of equipment is vital to discovering what entity/ghost you’re dealing with. You will start with 1 of each but I highly recommend purchasing multiple based on the size of your party.
 

• Spirit Box
   
   
   
  The spirit box is an electrical equipment which when spoken into may provoke a response from the entity. Use this in the room you believe the entity is in. It will only respond when you’re in the main origin room.
   
   
   
  The common phrases I use and cycle through to get a response are;
   
   
   
  Where are you? / Are you friendly? / How old are you?
   
   
   
  You will know if your question is being detected if the X lights up. If the ghost responds the ghost icon will light up (with addition to the audio)
   
   
   
  >A common issue is that your voice may not be recognised, to fix this try alt tabbing in and out of the game and making sure the game is detecting/using the correct mic.
   
   
   
   
   
  
• Ghost Writing Book
   
   
   
  Very simple to use. Simply place this book down in the origin room. The ghost should over time write/draw in the book. Much like the Spirit Box, it will ONLY write when in the origin room.
• Photo Camera
   
   
   
  The money maker and fingerprint cheeser!
   
   
   
  Things to take photos of for money include:
   
   
   
  The Bone/ Voodoo Dolls/ Oujia Board/ Dead bodies/ Thrown Props/ Touched Lights and Doors/ Ghost Writing/ The entity/ Fingerprints/ Dirty water/ Footprints
   
   
   
  >If an entity touches a door near you and you don’t have a UV Light handy, snap a photo on both sides of the door and check your photos and you may be lucky to get a fingerprints photo for easy evidence. You DON’T need a UV light to show the fingerprints or to make the photo a better quality.
   
   
   
   
   
  
• EMF Reader
   
   
   
  Rather straightforward. Decent for finding the area the entity roams. 2-3 readings will typically mean its near/doing stuff and level 5 is the evidence.
• Video Camera
   
   
   
  The Video Camera’s are extremely useful. You can hold one and right click to activate night vision, essentially replacing a Flashlight if you wanted.
   
   
   
  Set these up (typically on a tripod) with the most wide/open view of the area you believe the entity to be in to detect ghost orbs. It’s worth setting up many different angles and trying different spots because ghost orbs can be a bit finicky sometimes.
   
   
   
  I also suggest having your D.O.T.S Projector and Ghost Writing Book in sight so you can see those from the safety of the van.
   
   
   
  >As of the version 0.3, they only work once you exit the van!
• UV Flashlight
   
   
   
  Useful for detecting Fingerprints, Footprints and being a worse Flashlight if needed. Much easier to detect when you turn off your normal Flashlight. Simply scan the recently touched door/salt to see if they left a print. This is typically very reliable.
   
   
   
  > Wraiths DO NOT leave UV footprints in salt. You will still see a normal footprint in the salt though.
• Flashlight
   
   
   
  Self explanatory. Works even when not being held. Always worth buying/taking the Strong Flashlight over the weak normal ones.
• D.O.T.S. Projector
   
   
   
  The most recent addition. This device works best in my experience placed around head height on a wall that is not heavily obscured by props/objects. I would highly recommend purchasing a second one as it will double your chances of seeing the entity.
   
   
   
  You’re essentially looking out for a white incorporeal silhouette that typically moves fast across the lights. This will also make a faint buzzing sound but I don’t find that typically reliable.
   
   
   
  Works best when all other sources of light is off (especially Flashlights)
   
   
   
  > You can also see the D.O.T.S. lights from the safety of a Video Camera from the van.

 
 
 

Purchasable Equipment

• Lighter
   
   
   
  Emits a small amount of light and essential to operate the Smudge Sticks and Candles. Always take two unless you’re playing solo. Try to drop these in a easy to remember visible spot because they can be difficult to find.
• Candle
   
   
   
  When lit, will emit a decent amount of light which is NOT electric and can safely be used during a hunt. Place these in the origin room to light up the room with natural light and complete the objective for the entity to blow it out.
   
   
   
  >Interact with these with a lighter in hand to light the flame.
   
   
   
  > Lit candles with SLIGHTLY reduce the rate at which you lose sanity when you are near them
• Smudge Stick
   
   
   
  The only proactive defence you have against the entity. ALWAYS buy 4. There is a room smudging objective which is useful to confirm the origin room.
   
   
   
  Once you have found the room and are trying to gather evidence, always have a player on standby with a Smudge Stick and Lighter OR both close by to quickly swap to. When the entity is close, light the Smudge Stick to send it off on a random direction for a couple of seconds. Make sure to run as far away as possible and try to break line-of-sight of the entity.
   
   
   
  If your partner has a Smudge Stick, run towards them and get them to protect you. If you run away from them, you’re risking the entity chasing you instead of the person with the Smudge Stick.
   
   
   
  > You must have a lighter in your inventory. It does NOT need to be lit. Press F with the Smudge Stick in hand to light.
• Crucifix
   
   
   
  Your other defensive option is the Crucifix. ALWAYS buy 2. Place this in the origin room to prevent a hunt if the entity tries to hunt within the Crucifix’s range. You will know if this works when the Crucifix appears broken/bitten. Each one can prevent 2 individual hunts.
   
   
   
  You know you’re searching in the right place when the Crucifix stops a hunt.
   
   
   
  > Crucifix’s do NOTHING when the hunt is already active.
• Head Mounted Camera
   
   
   
  A Camera for your head! Don’t forget to equip it on the pegs opposite to the shelves! Typically worth buying if you have the money. 1 per person.
   
   
   
  You can flick through your partners Head Camera’s from the van and help look for Ghost Orbs and D.O.T.S.
• Motion Sensor
   
   
   
  Works like the Infrared Light Sensor. Place on wall to detect movement. Worth taking one for the chance of the task to detect the entity with it. Place it in hallways or doorways next to the entity room. Now also sports a light that goes off when it happens. RIP infrared light sensor.
   
   
   
  > Your dead buddies CAN set this off.
• Parabolic Microphone
   
   
   
  Absolutely crucial to finding the entity in Professional difficulty!! Always take 2 to double your effective searching in the early game.
   
   
   
  Readings of 000.0 means nothing is going on.
   
   
   
  Readings of a constant 003.5 means the entity is in the area/possibly roaming
   
   
   
  Readings of 004.0 is most likely a door being slammed by you or your partner…
   
   
   
  Readings higher than 006.0 mean the entity is very close. Typically the entity room will be a constant high reading.
   
   
   
  It’s worth trying to get evidence in the room with a high reading to confirm that is the room you are looking for.
   
   
   
  Not super important in difficulties below Professional, although still can be useful.
   
   
   
  > Recently added: Occasionally you will be able to hear the entity whisper when using the Parabolic, typically meaning it is in the area you are currently in.
   
   
   
   
   
  
• Salt Shaker
   
   
   
  Pick these up and use them on the floor to place patches of salt for the entity to walk over. Each Shaker has 3 charges. It’s worth bring 2 just in case you place them in the wrong area the first time.
   
   
   
  Good for the objective and to confirm where the entity is roaming.
   
   
   
  > The entity is the only thing that can leave a print. When an entity walks over salt you should be able to hear it walking around for a couple of sounds.
   
   
   
  Note; UV Footprints is NOT Fingerprints evidence
• Sanity Pills
   
   
   
  Always worth taking 4. The only way to bring up your average sanity and decrease the chance of being hunter.
   
   
   
  I would recommend using Sanity Pills when everyone is at around 40% sanity, unless you are working towards the 25% average task (even then this task can be completed safely later). This is because the lower your sanity is, the more likely the entity will hunt, which will further reduce your sanity until it plummets to 0. When you’re at 0 the entity will hunt almost instantly making it incredibly difficult and annoying. Using pills at 0 will only bring you up to around 40%, which is still rather lower and will still allow frequent hunts.
   
   
   
  If you use your pills at 40% and boost to 60-70%, the ghost is MUCH less likely to hunt and give you more effective time without hunts.
• Glow Sticks
   
   
   
  Essentially a usable AOE UV light. I would not recommend using these as they are costly and the torch does a better job in my opinion.
   
   
   
  Fun to rave with though 🙂
• Sound Sensor
   
   
   
  A placed sensor that can listen to sounds like the Parabolic Microphone, feeding this information back to the van. I typically don’t bother bringing these as they don’t have an objective, are rather pricey and other equipment achieve its goal whilst doing other things.
• Strong Flashlight
   
   
   
  Buy these. Don’t bother with the normal weaker Flashlights 🙂
• Thermometer
   
   
   
  Incredibly useful on difficulties that are NOT Professional.
   
   
   
  For non Professional: Most rooms will sit at around 18, the entity room should be sub 10, typically going much lower. Worth buy 2, possibly 3
   
   
   
  For Professional: Not very effective as every room will be cold until you turn on the power, then the rooms respective light and wait to see if the temperature stays cold or rises high. Can be useful if you’re not sure which room it is in when there a close connecting rooms. Probably only worth the 1.
• Tripod
   
   
   
  Put your Video Cameras on these for a better view! Worth buying 2-3.

 
 
 

Thank you!

I hope this guide taught you a new thing or two! Feel free to leave your tips if they weren’t on this list and I will add them when I can <3
 
 
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Good luck and happy hunting
 
 

 
 
I hope you enjoy the Guide we share about Phasmophobia – All Equipment Information and Uses; if you think we forget to add or we should add more information, please let us know via commenting below! See you soon!