Chromatic Metal is one of the most sought-after materials in the game. From the offset, players are made to search and create it. So how exactly do you find it? Since the new many new players find themselves questioning everything about chromatic metal. After all, it is one of the most important materials you will need to survive in the unforgiving universe.
From the start of the game, players are told to find one material, and it will quickly become the bane of everyone's existence. Most fans know how important it is to find and hold onto all the chromatic metal they can, but you've got to get hold of it first! Here's a step-by-step guide and everything you need to know about how to get chromatic metal.
Step 1: Chart The Area
Whilst it is possible to simply scan the area that the player is in, using a save beacon to "chart" the nearby area will do the same thing just a load better. It will allow the player to see much further and be able to spot those key mineral deposits, it can also be pretty useful because it can give you a key marker if you end up getting lost. To create a save beacon the player will need 2 metal plating and 15 sodium nitrate, so not that difficult really!
Charting the area can reveal a multitude of secrets within the planet so whilst searching for chromatic metal, it is extremely easy to get distracted by the abandoned buildings and stumble across a broken ship!
Step 2: Mine
This is one of the most important steps but the player has to make sure they have enough ferrite dust to get that Terrain Manipulator going!
To get hold of chromatic metal, the player needs to find a deposit of either Copper, Cium, Emeril, or Indium. Whilst Copper is the most common deposit to find, the other materials have a much better ratio, meaning you'll get the most out of your materials. To find out if a planet has any of these deposits, simply fly towards the planet in your ship and scan the planet itself. Whilst it is good to look for a planet with Indium or Emeril, the player may need to warp multiple times, so newbies should really just look for Copper.
Step 3: Place In A Portable Refiner
The last step is relatively simple. The player must build a Portable Refiner so they can take their copper or other materials and make it into chromatic metal. To make a Portable Refiner, simply access the build menu and scroll to "portable technology", the player should then have to hit the up button and select the Refiner. Using 1 metal plating and 30 oxygen, it's a pretty easy task to complete.
If the player fuels the portable refiner (place Carbon or Condensed Carbon in the top slot) and puts in the Copper they will find that every 2 they put in, 1 Chromatic Metal comes out. For Cium the ratio is 1:1, for Emeril, it's 2-3, and for Indium, it's 2:4. The ratio is greatly added if the metals are Activated. To find activated deposits the player must look at different planets such as planets orbiting yellow stars (for Activated Copper).
What Is Chromatic Metal Used For
Now you know how to make Chromatic Metal, it's important to realize just how much you're going to be using it. Chromatic Metal is used for practically everything, from warping to upgrading so it is certainly one of the most sought after materials in the game.
From the offset, players are required to find some Chromatic Metal in order to do their first warp. They need it for antimatter and occasionally to fix their ships too, making it vital to keep hold of some at all times. Moreover, once the player is more familiar with the game they tend to find themselves needing to upgrade their exocrafts, exosuits, and their base. Chromatic Metal will be required to upgrade most exocrafts and, once they have found a Drop Pod, this material will be required to fix it so the player can grab an additional exosuit slot for free. This hard to come by material is also used in making base computers, advanced signal boosters, agricultural terminals, construction terminals, and many more.
Other Places To Find Chromatic Metal
It may seem particularly daunting or boring when players have to hunt for an endless amount of Copper just to get a pitiful amount of Chromatic Metal out of it. However, there are many other ways to get hold of this precious metal, just some of them are rather expensive.
One of the most popular ways Galactic Trade Terminal, whilst effective to get a few extra, it can cost a fair amount. Lastly, Chromatic Metal can be rewarded for completing Nexus missions as well as a reward for sending your freighter out on a mission to get metal. Ultimately, there are many ways to get hold of Chromatic Metal, yet most players never have enough on them.
