How to Get a Ladder in Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Climb to New Heights!

The ladder is an essential tool in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, allowing you to access the higher elevations of your island and unlock new areas, resources, and perspectives. Early in the game, the lack of a ladder can feel incredibly limiting. This guide provides detailed instructions on how to obtain the ladder, step-by-step, so you can expand your island exploration and start terraforming with ease.

Why You Need a Ladder in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Before diving into the ‘how,’ let’s discuss the ‘why.’ The ladder provides access to several important aspects of the game:

• Exploration: Without a ladder, large portions of your island are inaccessible. These upper levels often contain valuable resources.
• Resources: The higher cliffs can have different types of flowers, trees (yielding different types of wood), and even bugs and fish.
• Terraforming: Unlocking the Island Designer app and the ability to terraform requires access to higher elevations, making the ladder a prerequisite for significant island customization.
• Villager Homes: Eventually, you may have villagers who choose to build their houses on the upper levels, meaning you’ll need a ladder to visit them easily.
• Museum Expansion: Once you unlock the art wing of your museum, you will need to explore all parts of the island to find Redd and purchase art. Sometimes Redd can be found on the upper levels of your island.

The Step-by-Step Guide to Obtaining the Ladder

The process of getting the ladder involves progressing through the early stages of the game and completing specific tasks related to inviting new villagers to your island. Here’s a detailed breakdown:

Step 1: Get the Museum Built

The very first step is to progress far enough to get the museum built. Tom Nook will task you with catching five different bugs and fish. Once you’ve collected those, you need to give them to Tom Nook. Blathers will then arrive on your island the next day, setting up a tent. You then need to donate a certain number of items to Blathers, which prompts the construction of a permanent museum. This process takes about 2 in-game days total and must be done first before anything else can happen.

• Catch Bugs and Fish: Explore your island and use your net and fishing rod to catch five unique creatures. Look under trees, near flowers, and in the rivers and ocean.
• Talk to Tom Nook: After catching the required creatures, speak with Tom Nook in Resident Services. He’ll express interest in having Blathers come to your island.
• Receive Blathers: Blathers will arrive the following day and set up a tent.
• Donate to Blathers: Donate bugs, fish, and fossils to Blathers until he announces plans to build a proper museum.
• Museum Construction: The museum will be under construction for one day and will open the day after.

Step 2: Build Nook’s Cranny

Once the museum is under construction, Timmy and Tommy will want to build a shop on the island. They need your help to gather resources. You’ll need to collect 30 wood, 30 hardwood, 30 softwood and 30 iron nuggets.

• Gather Resources: Hit trees with a flimsy axe (craft one if you don’t have one) to collect wood, hardwood, and softwood. Hit rocks with a shovel to get iron nuggets.
• Give Resources to Timmy: Talk to Timmy in Resident Services to give him the gathered resources.
• Nook’s Cranny Construction: Timmy and Tommy will begin construction, and the shop will open after one day.

Step 3: Upgrade Resident Services

This is another unskippable step. To move forward with the ladder quest, Resident Services needs to be upgraded from a tent to a proper building. This occurs after you’ve built Nook’s Cranny. The upgrade happens automatically after some time passes. You’ll know Resident Services is upgrading when Tom Nook announces it in his morning announcements. The building will be closed for one day during the upgrade.

Step 4: Place Plots for New Villagers

Once Resident Services is upgraded, Tom Nook will have a new task for you: preparing the island for new residents. He’ll ask you to choose locations for three new villager homes. This is where the quest line that unlocks the ladder begins.

• Talk to Tom Nook: After the Resident Services upgrade is complete, speak to Tom Nook.
• Receive the Housing Kits: Tom Nook will give you three housing kits. Each kit contains everything needed to designate a building plot.
• Choose Locations: Explore your island and decide on suitable locations for the new houses. Consider factors like proximity to amenities, aesthetic appeal, and overall island layout.
• Place the Plots: Go to your inventory, select a housing kit, and choose “Place Item.” This will place a sign in the chosen location, marking it as a building plot. Repeat for all three kits.

Step 5: Build the Furniture for the New Homes (The Key Step!)

After placing the plots, return to Tom Nook. He will inform you that each house requires specific furniture, both inside and outside. He will then give you the recipes for this furniture. This is the step that rewards you with the ladder recipe.

• Talk to Tom Nook: Return to Resident Services and speak with Tom Nook after placing the housing plots.
• Receive the Furniture Recipes: Tom Nook will provide you with the DIY recipes for the required furniture. He will also give you the ladder recipe at this point. Pay close attention to the materials required for each item. There will be interior and exterior items.

The furniture crafting process is essential. You’ll need to carefully read the recipes and gather the necessary materials. You will need to craft the items to continue inviting more villagers to the island.

Step 6: Craft the Ladder

Now that you have the DIY recipe for the ladder, you can finally craft it. You will need the following materials:

• 4 Wood: Obtained by hitting trees with an axe.
• 4 Hardwood: Obtained by hitting trees with an axe.
• 4 Softwood: Obtained by hitting trees with an axe.

Follow these steps to craft the ladder:

• Go to a Workbench: Interact with any workbench on your island (e.g., the one in your house or in Resident Services).
• Select “Craft”: Choose the “Craft” option.
• Find the Ladder Recipe: Scroll through your list of DIY recipes until you find the ladder.
• Craft the Ladder: Select the ladder recipe and confirm that you want to craft it. The ladder will then be added to your inventory.

Using the Ladder

Once you have the ladder, using it is simple:

• Equip the Ladder: Open your inventory and select the ladder. Choose “Equip.”
• Approach a Cliff: Stand at the base of a cliff.
• Press A: Press the A button to place the ladder against the cliff. Your character will automatically climb up (or down).
• Unequip Ladder (Optional): You can leave the ladder in place for future use or unequip it to carry it with you. Note that ladders left in place will disappear if you adjust the cliff with terraforming tools.

Tips and Tricks for Efficient Ladder Use

• Keep a Ladder Handy: Always carry a ladder with you, especially when exploring new areas of your island.
• Multiple Ladders: Consider crafting multiple ladders to leave in frequently accessed locations.
• Ladder Placement: Think about where you place your ladders. Well-placed ladders can streamline your travel around the island.
• Terraforming Planning: As you start terraforming, use the ladder to plan your cliff layouts and ensure easy access to different areas.
• Angled Cliffs: Note that you can place ladders on diagonal parts of a cliff, allowing you to ascend cliffs that aren’t completely flat.

Troubleshooting

If you’re having trouble getting the ladder, here are a few things to check:

• Have you built the Museum? The Museum needs to be built before Nook’s Cranny can open.
• Have you built Nook’s Cranny? Nook’s Cranny must be built before Resident Services can be upgraded.
• Is Resident Services upgraded? The Resident Services building upgrade is necessary to proceed with inviting new villagers.
• Have you placed all three housing plots? Make sure you’ve placed all three housing plots before talking to Tom Nook about the furniture.
• Double-Check the Recipes: Ensure you’re crafting the correct furniture pieces according to the recipes Tom Nook provides.

Beyond the Ladder: Exploring Alternatives and Later-Game Options

While the ladder is your primary means of vertical traversal early on, there are other options to consider later in the game.

Incline Construction

Once Resident Services is fully upgraded, you can speak to Tom Nook about infrastructure projects, including building inclines. Inclines offer a permanent, aesthetically pleasing way to connect different elevations on your island. You can have a maximum of eight inclines on your island. Building an incline costs bells and takes a day to construct.

Using the Vaulting Pole

You receive the vaulting pole before the ladder. While the vaulting pole doesn’t let you climb cliffs, it allows you to cross rivers, opening up other areas of your island early on.

Terraforming for Natural Ramps

With the Island Designer app and terraforming, you can create natural ramps by shaping the land. This allows you to seamlessly connect different elevations without needing ladders or inclines. This is a more advanced technique that requires careful planning and execution, but the results can be stunning.

Conclusion

Obtaining the ladder in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a crucial step in unlocking the full potential of your island. By following these detailed instructions, you’ll quickly gain access to higher elevations, new resources, and the ability to terraform. Enjoy exploring every nook and cranny of your island and creating the island of your dreams!