Grounded has a lot of things going for it, including an entertaining story and complex game mechanics that keep players coming back. A big part of that interest comes down to combat. Plants and critters across the backyard drop numerous components used to craft and augment weapons. Among these augmentations is the Fresh element. And though you may be familiar with elemental affinities, Fresh just sounds odd. What does it do? Read on to find out.

What Does Fresh Damage Do in Grounded?

Fresh is one of the elemental damage augmentations in Grounded. Put simply, weapons with the Fresh affinity will deal more damage to creatures that are weak to it and vice versa. Although it doesn’t do anything by itself, Fresh Damage plays into the game’s system of elemental strengths and weaknesses.

Grounded includes four different types of damage augmentations: Fresh, Salty, Sour, and Spicy. Various creatures will be either strong or weak against those different affinities. For example, Dust Mites, Mosquitos, Stinkbugs, and most Infected enemy variants are weak to Fresh. Sour, on the other hand, is a weakness shared almost exclusively among boss creatures.

Like other affinities, you can either apply Fresh manually or use a weapon with a default augmentation. Some weapons, like the Salt Morning Star or the Mint Mace, both come with these alternate damage types in the recipe. You can apply these to normal weapons when they’re upgraded to level 5. Then, you can choose which augment you want to put on your weapon.

You’ll have to find the right materials to upgrade your weapons for each alternate damage type. Fresh Damage, for example, can be crafted with Mint Globs you’ll find around the backyard.

In a nutshell, Fresh Damage deals extra damage to enemies weak to the element. Conversely, weapons with this affinity will be ill-suited to creatures strong against Fresh. In order to make the most out of combat, you’ll need weapons of multiple affinities. When you find one you like, you can choose your augment to suit the occasion.