Materials

Materials are small elements that can be found from a variety of sources that can be used to maintain or enhance the abilities of your ship and SRV. They have three main purposes: Synthesis, Engineering, and unlocking specialized weapons and modules through a Technology Broker.

Materials do not take up space in Cargo Racks.^[1] Instead, materials have a separate inventory and are only stored in quantities that are small enough that they do not affect a ship's overall mass. Individual materials each have their own maximum storage capacity depending on quality: each G1 material is capped at 300, G2 at 250, G3 at 200, G4 at 150, and G5 at 100. Materials remain available when switching between vehicles, and in the case of vehicle destruction, they are saved by the pilot's escape system. Material Traders found at certain stations can exchange Materials within one category for a different quantity of another Material in the same category.

Material Categories

Materials can be classified into 1 of 3 categories.

Raw Materials

Naturally occurring chemical elements.

Manufactured Materials

Salvageable components from ships and artificial structures.

Encoded Materials

Chunks of data retrieved via scanning.

Material Grades

All Materials are sorted into different grades representing their rarity, with rarer materials providing greater effects when used. Manufactured and Encoded Materials use five grades, from Very Common to Very Rare, while Raw Materials only use four, from Very Common to Rare.