Remove Default Gear in Phasmophobia

Phasmophobia’s eerie world of ghost hunting relies heavily on your equipment choices. The van, your mobile base, starts each contract with a set of basic tools known as default gear. While helpful for beginners, this preset loadout can limit your strategies, especially when aiming for high-risk, high-reward runs or specific ghost identifications. Knowing how to clear out this default equipment opens up a world of customization, allowing you to tailor your inventory to the mission’s demands.

This guide dives deep into managing your van’s contents, from stripping away starter items to crafting optimized loadouts. Whether you’re a new investigator struggling with cluttered inventory or a veteran pushing for prestige levels, mastering gear removal will elevate your hunts. We’ll cover the interface, step-by-step processes, strategic benefits, and advanced tips to ensure you’re always one step ahead of the spectral threats.

Understanding the Van’s Starter Inventory

Every Phasmophobia contract begins with your truck pre-stocked with essential evidence-gathering tools. This default gear includes one each of core items like the EMF Reader, Spirit Box, Ghost Writing Book, D.O.T.S. Projector, Thermometer, UV Light, and Video Camera. These basics cover the primary evidence types needed to identify ghosts, making them invaluable for early levels when funds are tight.

However, as you level up and unlock tiered equipment, these level 1 items become bottlenecks. They break easily, offer limited functionality, and take up slots that could hold stronger alternatives. The truck’s inventory system doesn’t automatically upgrade; it sticks to these starters unless you intervene. Recognizing this setup is the first step to liberation—your van isn’t locked into mediocrity.

Default gear serves a purpose: it ensures solo players or low-level teams can complete contracts without prior purchases. But for efficiency, especially on high-multiplier difficulties, going barebones or custom can multiply your earnings. Players often overlook that this preset is removable, leading to unnecessary clutter and failed objectives due to inferior tools.

Navigating the Equipment Management Screen

The heart of gear control lies in the lobby’s shop interface, accessible before launching a contract. This screen displays your available items on the left, the truck’s current loadout in the center, and loadout slots on the right. Icons represent each equipment type, with quantity selectors below.

To interact, use the prominent plus (+) and minus (-) buttons next to the truck panel. The plus adds selected items from your stock to the van, while the minus removes them. Quantities matter—set to 1 and add to place a single unit; adjust higher for multiples. This bidirectional control is key to precise inventory management.

Loadouts add another layer. Save custom configurations by adjusting quantities, naming the preset, and hitting save. Switch between them pre-contract for quick setups. The interface also tracks your money, total items (capped at 999 per type), and prestige restrictions, which lock higher tiers until unlocked.

Step-by-Step: Clearing Default Equipment

Removing starter gear is straightforward but requires attention to detail. Follow these steps in the lobby:

1. Open the Shop: From the main menu, enter a lobby and select the shop tab.
2. Inspect the Truck: Note the default items listed—typically one of each evidence tool.
3. Select Quantities: For each item in the truck (EMF, Spirit Box, etc.), set the quantity slider to match what’s loaded (usually 1).
4. Initiate Removal: Click the red ‘Remove’ button. This clears the selected quantities from the van.
5. Repeat for All: Go through each default item until the truck is empty.
6. Verify: Double-check the center panel shows zero across the board.

A common pitfall: forgetting to match quantities before removing. If the slider is at 0 or mismatched, nothing happens. Always align it first. Post-removal, your van starts pristine, ready for custom additions or a no-gear run.

Why Go Gearless? Benefits of an Empty Van

Ditching defaults isn’t just cleanup—it’s strategy. Running with an empty truck minimizes losses on death (only defaults return anyway), reduces hunt risks from dropped items triggering ghosts, and maximizes multipliers on nightmare or insane difficulties.

Early-game grinders benefit most. High-multiplier maps like Edgefield with 13x rewards yield massive XP and cash without gear costs. Focus on objectives using house-provided items (flashlights, shoes) or ghost behaviors for evidence. This ‘minimalist hunt’ hones observation skills, teaching EMF spots, interaction patterns, and speedrunning.

Stats show gearless runs can net 2-3x more money per minute versus cluttered setups. No equipment means no sanity drain from unused tools, fewer interactions luring hunts, and pure objective completion for bonuses.

Building Custom Loadouts for Success

Once cleared, populate strategically. Prioritize based on difficulty and team size:

• Solo Play: 2x Thermometer, 1x each evidence tool (focus UV/EMF for quick IDs).
• Team Hunts: Distribute— one player carries video/D.O.T.S., another sanity tools.
• High-Risk: Salt, Incense, Crucifixes for hunt control; minimal evidence gear.

Prestige players, locked to tier 1? Double up on thermometers (ghosts ignore multiples) and use motion sensors for hunts. Save loadouts like ‘Evidence Max’ or ‘Survival Kit’ for swaps.

Advanced Strategies and Loadout Optimization

Beyond basics, leverage loadouts for prestige climbing. Tier 1 gear sucks, but empty-van runs on 10x+ multipliers (e.g., Point Hope) grind levels fast. Combine with no-evidence objectives like ‘low temp no thermo’ by using house clues.

Team coordination shines: assign roles via shared loadouts. One scouts with sound sensors, another records. Post-hunt, alive players auto-retrieve gear; deaths only lose additions.

Shop economics: Sell excess for cash, but stockpile for loadouts. Consumables like incense auto-replenish if unused. Track via the interface’s totals.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does default gear always load?

Yes, every contract auto-includes one of each starter evidence item unless manually removed.

Can I remove gear mid-contract?

No, changes only apply in lobby. Plan ahead.

What if I’m prestige-locked?

Stick to tier 1, but empty van for grinding unlocks.

Do loadouts persist across games?

Yes, saved loadouts stay in your profile.

Losing gear on death?

Only added items; defaults return.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Remove Button Grayed Out: Match quantity slider to truck contents first.
Gear Not Saving: Ensure loadout slot is selected and named.
Prestige Limits: Higher tiers grayed until unlocked via levels.

Update your game—patches tweak shop UI. Community forums confirm these steps work post-reworks.

Elevate Your Ghost Hunting Game

Mastering default gear removal transforms Phasmophobia from gear grind to strategic mastery. Empty your van, craft loadouts, and chase those multipliers. Whether solo grinding or team raiding, a clean truck means focused hunts and bigger payouts. Experiment, adapt, and watch your investigator rank soar.