13 Days to Escape Digging Tunnels Guide

The toilet tunnel is the heart of the Cell 13 escape fantasy in 13 Days to Escape [ALPHA]. This guide covers every step from Screwdriver bolts to Power Drill dirt, plus what to expect when day-1 digging soft-cuts into a Day 2 title instead of a finale. Read Tools Guide first if you do not yet own the kit, and keep Suspicion and Stealth open so the meter does not end the dig for you.

You can dig solo or with up to three friends (four players total). More hands clear dirt faster only if someone still watches cameras and roll call.

Preconditions before you dig

Do not jump straight into dirt fantasy without the setup chain:

1. Earn cash on prison jobs — Jobs and Cash
2. Buy Screwdriver (~25) from OJ’s Deals in cell 13 — confirm live price
3. Unscrew toilet bolts → Move aside → expose the vertical shaft
4. Buy Saw (~110) and cut window bars during RETURN TO CELLS
5. During LOCKDOWN, climb out, optionally loot transport cash stacks, take the free Power Drill from the yellow-black hazard workshop bench behind the cell block
6. Return to the shaft and dig

That full narrative lives on the Walkthrough and the shorter Getting Started checklist.

Step 1 — Open the toilet the right way

With the Screwdriver equipped in your cell:

1. Target the toilet bolts
2. Complete the unscrew interaction
3. Choose Move aside when the prompt appears
4. Confirm you can enter or access the vertical opening

If Move aside never appears, you likely still need bolt progress or you interacted with the wrong prop. Do not destroy random cell furniture hoping for a second shaft — stick to the toilet loop.

Stealth note: Finish this while the cell wing is quiet. A guard staring through the bars during bolt work is free suspicion.

Step 2 — Secure the Power Drill on LOCKDOWN

Serious dirt clearing wants the Power Drill:

• Bars must already be cut
• HUD must be in LOCKDOWN
• Exit via the cell window
• Path to the workshop workbench behind the cell block
• Identify yellow-black hazard markings
• Pick up the drill (free in current ALPHA — not an OJ listing)

Optional: snag cash inside the prisoner transport vehicle if the route is clean. Greed loot after a loud fight with cameras is how diggers drop their drill on the floor of a failed run.

Engineer’s starting Spoon can scratch the early dig itch but does not retire the workshop drill requirement for the main loop — see Classes Guide.

Step 3 — Dig technique (hold LMB)

At the open shaft:

1. Equip the Power Drill
2. Aim at diggable dirt
3. Hold LMB to bore continuously
4. Clear downward in steady passes instead of frantic tap spam
5. Pause if suspicion spikes or footsteps approach

Think of digging as a night shift job. Short, clean sessions beat one long noisy sit that invites a sweep.

Vertical shaft mindset

This tunnel is vertical first — you are not landscaping a horizontal subway on day one. Keep clearing down. Reorient only when the shaft geometry forces a new face. If co-op partners dig opposing walls for fun, you waste drill time and stack bodies in one noisy hole — coordinate via the Co-op Guide.

ALPHA expectation — Day 2 title cuts

In early access, heavy day-1 digging may cut to a Day 2 title rather than a full escape ending. That is a pacing / content beat many players hit, not always a softlock. When it happens:

• Keep your tools if the run continues
• Resume jobs for cash the next day cycle
• Return to the shaft and keep drilling
• Do not delete the wiki advice because the cinematic did not play yet

Track patch changes on Updates. RoDark can alter dig depth, timing, and endings while the game stays ALPHA.

STAFF ONLY side objective

Between dig sessions, the STAFF ONLY door mystery is fair game when:

• Suspicion is low
• The wing is empty
• Someone watches CCTV angles
• Your Screwdriver / Saw / Drill chain is not mid-failure

Do not abandon a working shaft because the whole lobby wanted to shoulder-check a locked door. Dig progress is the main quest; STAFF is spice.

Suspicion while digging

Digging is illegal energy. Protect the meter:

• Prefer quiet cell times over mid-roll-call tunnels
• Hide or stash the drill when guards enter
• Avoid four players crowing in voice while standing in a camera cone above the toilet
• If you hit mid-high suspicion, surface, work a legal library or lunch loop, then resume

Remember: 100% suspicion = caught by police. Meter theory is expanded on Suspicion and Stealth.

Multi-day dig plan

1. Day portions: earn, shop, cut bars when ready
2. Lockdown portions: refresh drill access if needed, loot carefully
3. Night / quiet portions: hold LMB on dirt
4. Next day: repeat without skipping roll call
5. Event days: watch New Prison (often Saturdays ~3 PM ET) on Updates so you are not surprised mid-shaft

Codes, when available, will not replace digging — check Codes anyway for cash or gem help.

Troubleshooting

Problem	Likely cause	Fix
No Move aside prompt	Bolts incomplete / wrong tool	Finish Screwdriver bolt work
Cannot reach drill	Bars still up / not lockdown	Saw on RETURN TO CELLS, wait for LOCKDOWN
Dig feels useless	Wrong face / no drill	Equip Power Drill, hold LMB on dirt
Run ends while digging	Suspicion 100%	Surface, cool meter, retry
Day 2 title appears	ALPHA pacing	Continue loop; not always a fail

Related pages

• Getting Started
• Walkthrough
• Tools Guide
• Jobs and Cash
• Suspicion and Stealth
• Classes Guide
• Co-op Guide
• Guides Hub

Open the toilet, earn the drill, hold LMB, and stay patient across days. Cell 13’s shaft rewards inmates who treat digging like a second job — because it is.