Has anyone found this mushroom picker? Or maybe you found something else interesting? An interesting cave or location? I've been flying over the map, it's not that big. A lot of places are just empty, but I rarely found caves, because they are not always noticeable. I read somewhere that you can blow up passages in caves, but in which ones? I tried to build a base at the starting location, it seemed to work out and even lived for a long time, but I got bored even with a dildo in my pocket.
Think the mushroom guy is either an effigy, or a WIP enemy for the future.
There are some noteworthy locations around the map that actually do have some loot. But you are absolutely correct to assume most places are empty and not worth exploring. I know there's a cave under the lighthouse, and one or two more scattered around - watch for traps.
Gas mask is found at the end of a partially collapsed train tunnel.
There's a few military locations, including a crashed helicopter that offer some good loot.
I know there's some "caves" that have collapsed entrances, but I've never figured out how to clear the rubble.
There's a unique warhammer that you have to climb up a ruined building for. It's near the center of the map where the birds are flying in a circle, would never know it was there if I hadn't spotted it the first time.
There's also a bunch of items found in the cheat menu that I've never been able to find in game anywhere. It's hard to tell if these are WIP items or if the dev just places shit in weird places.