Salvager is a career to retrieve lost or stolen items such as commodities, data and materials. These are found in space or on celestial bodies. It can be collected by using a Cargo Scoop or Collector Limpets in space or by hand on foot. Megaships also have cargo that can be looted. The collected items can be sold for credits.
Salvage types[]
Salvageable Commodities are divided into 2 classifications: "Legal Salvage" and "Illegal Salvage". An item's legal status is identified by the HUD when it is targeted. Trafficking in illegal salvage is a crime and may result in penalties from local security forces.
Cargo that a pilot both jettisons and abandons becomes legal salvage. However, if it's only jettisoned then it becomes illegal salvage for everyone except them. Cargo that is already marked as stolen can only be jettisoned.
Legal Salvage[]
Legally salvaged cargo functions just like purchased cargo and can be sold to Commodity Markets unless prohibited there. Some types of legal salvage can be handed in to a Search and Rescue Agent.
Legal salvage can be found in the following locations:
- Points of Interest on the surface of planets and moons.
- Scattered inside the docking bays of damaged starports.
- Non-Human Signal Sources.
- Signal Sources that only have "Xeno Hunting" as a related activity still have a chance of containing legal salvage. However, investigating these sources risks encountering hostile Thargoid Scouts.
- Signal Sources that have "Search and Rescue" as a related activity will always contain legal salvage.
- Degraded Emissions.
- Signal Sources that have "Search and Rescue" as a related activity will always contain legal salvage.
Illegal Salvage[]
Salvager Type-9 and a limpet
Illegally salvaged cargo is marked as stolen and functions similarly to Illegal Goods - it can only be sold to Black Markets and you can get a fine or bounty for being fully scanned by law enforcement while carrying it.
Some missions on Bulletin Boards ask you to illegally salvage something floating in space in a certain system and smuggle it back into the starport.
Illegal salvage can be found in various System Signal Sources - especially Weak Signal Sources and Salvageable Wreckage.
Locations[]
These are recommended locations to find salvageable items.
| Location | Notes |
|---|---|
| Impact sites (e.g. data from a downed satellite on a planet) | Data from a downed satellite on a planet |
| Megaships | |
| Minor Wreckage | |
| Salvageable Wreckage | |
| Titan debris | At the wreckage of a destroyed Thargoid Titan. |
| Vehicle debris |
Looting Megaships[]
Megaships can be looted for cargo, data and materials. Note; profitability is currently low and the risks are high. You ship must be equipped with:
- For data terminals (Hackable Comms Array, Hackable Data Transmitter): At least a Limpet Controller cable of launching Recon Limpets for data terminals (like a Recon Limpet Controller or an Operations Multi Limpet Controller). Recon Limpets are one time use only.
- For Cargo Bays: a Limpet Controller capable of launching Hatch Breaker Limpets (like a Hatch Breaker Limpet Controller or an Operations Multi Limpet Controller). Hatch Breaker Limpets are one time use only.
- To efficiently collect the containers ejected by Cargo Bays, a Limpet Controller capable of launching Collector Limpets (like a Collector Limpet Controller or an Operations Multi Limpet Controller).
- Ideally, to stay in silent running longer, a Heatsink Launcher to get rid of high heat if you can not exit Silent Running soon.
If you use an Operations Multi Limpet Controller and launch the maximum of collector limpets, you will not be able to launch any Hatch Breaker Limpets or Recon Limpets. In order to immediately destroy all active limpets, turn the power to the Limpet Controller off. When you turn it back on, you will be able to launch new limpets.
Recommended ship is the Alliance Chieftain which it can run cool and has decent optional space. Running cold helps you to avoid turrets. For weapons optional is 3x Seeker Missile Rack.
For Hacking and simple investigation of cargo, any cold running ship is suitable (like the Mandalay or any Diamondback variant) because you only need to pack the limpet controllers you need and space for the limpets.
If you stay undetected, you can avoid all fights because you will not gain any bounties or fines.
Find a Megaship[]
To find a megaship you need to check their Flight Operations Plan, because they move around the galaxy.
Canonn Research has Flight Operations Plan details. Inara has a search function for Megaships. The data on Inara is sometimes out of date because it does not take into account the Flight Operations Plans of the Megaships. Megaships show up as a System Signal Source (Point of Interests) in a star system. They are not visible on the system map.
Cargo Bays[]
When you're in a star system make sure to display System Signal Source (Point of Interests) in the Navigation Menu. Select a target and visit it. Fly within 4 km of the ship and scan it with the Data Link Scanner. Once you see the scan animation you can check the Contacts tab in the left HUD panel. That will show Cargo Bays and Data Terminals. Select the Cargo Bay and scan it with the Manifest Scanner. The inventory tab in the left HUD panel shows all the cargo and quantity.
Scan the cargo bay with the Data Link Scanner. Select Sub-Targets. The left HUD panel will show a Recon Limpet Docking Point. Select the Limpet Docking Point, then switch to the Hatch Breaker Limpet Controller. Make sure to a heatsink ready.
In order to maximize the time you can stay in silent running, disable all modules except sensors, the limpet controller(s) you need to hack and collect, as well as life support.
Now enable Silent Running and launch the limpet. The authorities will be alerted the moment the hacking of the cargo bay starts. If the authorities find you close to the cargo bay or picking up the stolen goods, you will get a bounty on your head and the authority ships and also the megaship's turrets will become hostile. Stay in silent running as long as you are near the cargo bay or collecting the illegal cargo. After the cargo is ejected, deploy (open) the Cargo Scoop and let the Collector Limpets retrieve the loot. Make sure to only exit silent running when away from the cargo bay and do not get caught by the authorities while using silent running. System Authority ships will scan you for illegal goods. If they find any on you, you will get finded or a bounty (which as before, will turn them and the megaship turrets hostile).
The Cargo Bay must be opened with the Hatch Breaker multiple times to get all the loot. Continue to do so until you fill your cargo hold.
Hackable Comms Arrays and Hackable Data Transmitters[]
The Megaship has a Hackable Comms Array or a Hackable Data Transmitted. Move to within 350 meters and scan it with the data link scanner. It will show one (Hackable Data Transmitter) or two (Hackable Comms Array) new Recon Limpet docking point on the sub target tab. Hacking is an offense that will get you a bounty if you are not in Silent Running. As with the cargo bays, make sure you have a heatsink ready.
In order to maximize the time you can stay in Silent Running, disable all modules except sensors, the limpet controller(s) you need to hack and collect, as well as life support. Note that using Silent Running will automatically disable your Shield Generator. You can only turn on the Shield Generator while you are not using Silent Running. So be careful while flying in Silent Running because any contact with the Megaship, cargo, or any other ship will damage your hull.
Then enable Silent Running and launch the Recon Limpet. If there are multiple docking points, you can hack them in parallel if your Limpet Controller allows this.
After the hacking is complete and as long as no system authorities are nearby while you are close to the target, you can exit Silent Running. If system authorities are nearby, move away from the target under SIlent Running and exit Silent Running when 1 km away from the target.
Iff the target is a Hackable Comms Array, when the limpets finish hacking the Comms Array it will eject a couple of cannisters with the data. These data cannisters must be scooped up. It's fast to do this with collector limpets, particularly if you want to stay in Silent Running while collecting the data cannisters. This is because using the thrusters causes a higher heat buildup than staying stationary.
If the target is a Hackable Data Transmitter, the hacked data will be stored directly in your ship like with wake scans and Private Data Beacon scans.
Clear fines and bounty[]
If you acquired a bounty, find an Interstellar Factor in a system that is not ruled by the party that issued the bounty on you and that ideally has low security or anarchy. This is because when a system authority ship scans you and finds stolen goods on you, you will get fined or a bounty (which will make the system authority ships hostile). Then clear your bounty there. For example the Inara website has a list of the nearest Interstellar Factors. Also check that the Interstellar Factor has a Black Market. In the station menu: go to General Services -> Contacts -> Interstellar Factors Contact to pay your fines and bounties. Then go to the Black Market via the station menu to sell your stolen goods.
Items to salvage[]
These salvageable commodities, data and materials can be obtained through piracy or retrieved from sites with preexisting wreckage, abandoned structures, or alien structures. Salvage is usually marked stolen or illegal in most systems. Certain Salvage items, such as Escape Pods and Black Boxes, can be given to a Search & Rescue Contact at most Stations.
Videos[]
Gallery[]
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