South Hell Part 1 Walkthrough: Basement, Keys and Exit Crank

Follow the active objective and its counter through these stages:

1. Find the Crowbar and remove the five boards blocking the basement passage.
2. Search the school for the four exit keys and use each one on its matching basement lock.
3. When the door is stuck, collect the required Crank Parts.
4. Return to the exit and complete the Turn the crank counter.
5. Use E Escape once the door opens.

The crank requirements can differ between rounds, so follow the quantities on your current objective. If your objective already says The exit is open — get out, head straight to the door and use Escape.

The boarded opening cannot be cleared by hand. You need the Crowbar before you can open the route upstairs.

1. Search the basement for an outlined Crowbar. Check the floor; it is one possible pickup location.
2. Approach the Crowbar and press E to take it.
3. Return to the blocked opening and use E Remove boards. Keep removing boards individually until the objective reaches 5/5.
4. Walk through the cleared opening, follow the stairs upstairs, and press E to open the door into the school.

The next objective is Find the keys 0/4.

You need the Red, Blue, Yellow, and Green Keys. Search lockers and classrooms, listening for the jingling sound from lockers containing keys.

1. Approach a locker and use E Search.
2. Look inside the opened compartment. If it contains a key, aim at it and use E Take.
3. Carry the key to the basement exit before continuing your search.

An ART ROOM locker is one possible key location. Include it in your search without relying on that room for a particular color.

Each player can carry only one key at a time. If you find another while carrying one, use your current key at the exit first. Alternatively, select the current key and press G when G DROP appears to put it down and free your key slot.

If Find the keys remains at 3/4, continue through the remaining lockers and classrooms and listen for jingling. Once KEY FOUND 4/4 appears, head for the exit with any keys still being carried.

The EXIT DOOR is in the basement. Use Maintenance to return from the school corridors:

1. Find the doorway marked MAINTENANCE and enter.
2. Cross the room and follow the stairs down.
3. Look for the white glow of the EXIT DOOR.
4. Select your key in the inventory, approach the matching colored padlock, and use E Unlock.
5. Check the unlock counter, then return upstairs if more keys are needed.

For example, the Red Key opens the red padlock and disappears from the hotbar after use. Equip the Green Key at the green lock in the same way.

KEY FOUND and Unlock the exit door count different actions. After collecting your first key, you can see KEY FOUND 1/4 while the exit remains at 0/4. Even KEY FOUND 4/4 still requires every carried key to reach its lock and be used. Once all locks are dealt with, follow the next objective; a jammed door sends you back out for Crank Parts.

Use the school landmarks guide to identify other rooms while searching.

When Cartman catches a player carrying a key, the key drops at the capture location and glows white.

1. Follow the Pick up the dropped key objective back to where the carrier was caught.
2. Look for the white glow and pick up the key.
3. Carry it to the basement exit, equip it, and use it on the matching lock.

Recovering the key restores your ability to deliver it; it does not finish the lock. For example, recovering a dropped Green Key can leave the exit at 3/4 until that key is used at the door.

When the objective says the door is jammed and asks for Crank Parts, read its required quantity and search the school again. Listen for jingling and look for an outlined part on the floor.

Places to check include:

• Between the Theater seats: a Crank Part pickup location in an Easy escape.
• A floor marked with court lines: a pickup location in a Medium escape completed in 17:57.

These are possible locations, not a guaranteed route to a part in every round. Approach an outlined CRANK PART and use E Pick up. Continue until ALL CRANK PARTS FOUND appears, then return through Maintenance to the basement exit.

After collecting all required parts, finish the door mechanism:

1. Return to the basement EXIT DOOR when the objective becomes Turn the crank at the exit door.
2. Aim at the crank interaction and hold E to complete a turn.
3. Repeat until the counter reaches its target. At 6/7, for example, one completed turn remains.
4. When the door opens, approach it and use the separate E Escape interaction.

Successful escape leads to YOU ESCAPED and the post-round screen.

Use your active counter to decide when to stop searching and how many turns remain. These examples do not establish a fixed requirement for each difficulty. For the difficulty settings themselves, see the South Hell difficulty comparison.

The exit uses hold E. Hold B cranks the flashlight and does not advance the exit objective.

A power outage can temporarily replace the key objective with Fix the fuse box in the basement, even while you still carry a key. Head downstairs through Maintenance toward the Fuse Box objective. For flashlight charging, batteries, and staying oriented in darkness, use the flashlight and power guide.

If Cartman approaches while you search, hide in a locker or retreat to the basement safe area when you can reach it. Learn the hiding and noise rules in the Cartman survival guide.

With teammates, divide the work:

• Search different rooms so you cover more lockers.
• Have key carriers deliver their keys while players without keys continue searching.
• Return to the exit when all Crank Parts are found instead of continuing the part search.

For lobby setup and starting together, see how to start a solo or group run.