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Materials are precursors to the Loot and Crafting update. Here, we’ll be talking about the elements that we can discover and collect on the surfaces of planets and in the asteroid rings surrounding certain planets. We can discovered the elements on the surface thanks to our SRV’s scanners and store them in our inventory. A simple Mining ship is enough if you’re working in the rings, but let’s take a look at the surface mining. The good thing is that we can also use the elements in the Synthesis system. Players can create various things by synthesizing these elements. Via the right panel in your ship or SRV → Cargo → Synthesis – Replenish your weapons’ ammo, your oxygen, create drones or other useful things on three levels of qualities.

► The Complete Engineers Materials List ◄

Summary:

• Introduction to Elements
• Surface Mining

Introduction to Elements

There are therefore 25 elements with different properties spread over 5 rarities that can be found on the surfaces of moons and planets. For my part I found all these elements on the Metal Rich and Metallic planets. Rocky brought me a few elements while the Rock/Ice and Icy only brought me very few elements.

Whether they are icy, rocky, rock/ice, metal rich, metallic, the materials are waiting for you. The latter come in different concentrations depending on many physical parameters on the surface: its temperature, its pressure and its distance from the star especially and especially: the age of the star. The younger the star, the more abundant the materials. To find the best planet, you must search for the points below. Do not waste too much time, many planets do the trick, just scan its surface using a Detailed Surface Scanner with your ship, then check the elements’ concentrations in the system map, via the details.

• A relatively young star;
• Craters, mountains and canyons near where you want to land in order to find Metallic Meteorites and Mesosiderites;
• Iron Magma volcanism, Silicate Magma or Silicate vapour Geyser.

Generally, you will find the very rare elements on the Metallic planets, the rare elements on the Metal Rich planets, the rest of them on the Rocky planets.

• Mesosiderites and metallic meteorites are often found in craters, mountains;
  • Rare and very rare are contained in these veins.
• The Bronzite Chondrites can be found everywhere, especially in plains and contain few rare elements;
  • Very common, common in this deposit.
• The Outcrops are mostly found near hills, mountains and contain elements depending on the planet’s parameters.
  • Common to rare if you’re lucky enough.

You have 1000 free slots in your Materials Inventory, use it wisely for the Elements and Manufactured. Here’s how and where to usually find them:

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Surface Mining

Your SRV Scarab has a scanner. The latter emits different sounds and signals depending on the distance of the scanned object and its type. Learn to recognise these audio and visual signals.

► Full scans of audio and visuals on WaveScanner.net! ◄

Look for a signal around you by slowly turning your SRV; you need an appropriate signal depending on what you are looking for. Once you found the signal, go straight to it and find the vein: the spectrum on your scanner should be narrower as you approach. You found a deposit!

 

It is possible to find different veins, commodities and points of interest (POI):

▲ Bronzite Chondrite

• Contains: Generally a vein of Very Common Elements. Some Commons from time to time.
• Audio: “Criiiicricric Criiiicricric”
• Visual: 3 lines at the bottom of the scanner

 

▲ Outcrop

• Contains: A little of everything depending on the planet (mountain, warm, icy, canyon, crater …)
• Audio: It depends what the particular deposit contains: From “Voot !” to “Titicrii” or even “tititi”. I hope you’ll find a lot of “Voot !”… yup Elite is amazing and so are my imitations <3
• Visual: 2 spread lines at the bottom of the scanner. Some parasites between the lines depending on the content – the chunks on the ground change depending on its compositions.

 

▲ Meteorite Metallic

• Contains: Elements varying from common to very rare. Generally a great way to get the rarest materials.
• Audio: “Vooot ! Vooot! Vooot !”
• Visual: 2 close lines at the bottom of the scanner
• Where? My favorite area remains at the bottom of the big craters, go all over the central area, everywhere in there. Around the crater as well.

 

▲ Mesosiderite

• Contains: Common elements. Rare with a little luck.
• Audio: “Tonk ! Tonk ! Tonk !”
• Visual: 1 line at the very bottom of the scanner

 

▲ Point of Interest

• Contains: Randomly between beacons, ship crashes, data points, commodities, others. They are marked by a blue circle if you’re flying above it in your ship.
• Audio: Powerful sound, like a radio signal or a light “grrcriiiii”
• Visual: 2 lines at the very top of the scanner = Data points // 2 lines almost at the top of the scanner = commodities or items

Watch out for drones buried in the ground that could attack you. These are green when idle and red when they go into offensive mode.

 

▲ Geysers and Volcanos

• Contains:  Different materials depending on their compositions
• Audio: Powerful, CRIIIiiiIII for the geysers // Vvcriii for the volcanoes
• Visual: 2 lines at the center for the geysers // 1 line at the bottom for the volcanoes

 

▲ Surface port, ship, outpost, colony, …

• Contains:  ø
• Audio: Powerful, reflecting the radio waves emitted by it.
• Visual: Occupy a very wide area of your scanner.

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With these information, I’m sure you will be able to hunt some elements on the surface! Feel free to share your knowledge with us if you have some tricks or data that could improve the overall guide. Thanks!