Where to find Subdetection Units in Genshin Impact

Subdetection Units are mechanical beetles found around Fontaine in Genshin Impact. They are local specialties that are used for ascending Wriothesley, so if you intend to pull for him, you may want to start farming them now.

Best farming route for Subdetection Units

Subdetection Units can be found on land in the Lissey and Fontaine Research Institute areas of Fontaine. They can be found flying around or sitting on objects. Look out for their flashing abdomen and mechanical fluttering noises. They don’t flee, so they’re not difficult to catch, though they will become alarmed and flash red. 

There are currently 69 Subdetection Units in the overworld. Some locations are locked behind progress on certain world quests:

• Four require partial completion of Road to the Singularity.
• Three require solving a puzzle as part of Treacherous Light of the Depths. 
• Two are located in the Fortress of Meropide, in an area locked behind the latter part of Unfinished Comedy.

Our route on the official interactive map includes all 69 Subdetection Units, but you can skip the areas you don’t have access to. These parts of the route are towards the end (sections 12, 13, and 14).

Like other local specialties, Subdetection Units respawn 48 hours after collecting.

Like Scarabs, Subdetection Units also count as wildlife. You can hit them to kill them and make them drop to the ground. They don’t despawn when killed though, so you can still pick their poor little corpses off of the ground.

Where to buy Subdetection Units

There are, unfortunately, no NPCs that sell Subdetection Units.

How to use Subdetection Units

Subdetection Units are used when ascending Wriothesley and possibly other characters in the future. You’ll need 168 of them in total, meaning you’ll need to clear your world about two and a half times. If you can’t wait for them to respawn, see if a friend will let you raid their world. Remember to always ask before taking materials in co-op!

You can also catch them with Omni-Ubiquity Nets to add to your teapot. They flash different colors when you approach them, so they make for cool pets. Note that if you catch one with an Omni-Ubiquity Net, it will count as a furniture item, not a normal resource. The beetles you catch as furniture can’t be used as materials to ascend characters.

There are currently no crafting or cooking recipes that require Subdetection Units.