The Freighter Refinery in No Man’s Sky: A Comprehensive Guide

The freighter refinery in No Man’s Sky is a crucial piece of technology that allows players to process raw materials into more advanced and useful resources directly from their capital ship. Unlike the refiners found on planetary bases, the freighter refinery operates within your freighter’s internal space, providing a convenient and mobile refining solution. This makes resource management much more efficient and allows for on-the-go crafting of critical components and materials. It’s an essential tool for any spacefaring explorer looking to maximize their time and resources. This module is placed as an entire room and comes with its functional units pre-installed.

Understanding the Freighter Refinery

How Does it Work?

The freighter refinery functions similarly to the refiners you find on planets, allowing you to combine raw elements into refined products. There are two primary types of refiners available: Medium Refiners and Large Refiners. Medium Refiners are capable of combining two ingredients to create another material, while the larger and more efficient Large Refiners can handle three ingredients. You access the refining interface directly through the refiner’s icon within your freighter base. Just like the planetary version, you can either drop materials onto the icon for an automated refining process, or manually select the icon and choose your desired ingredients and recipe through the refinery control screen.

Advantages of Freighter-Based Refining

Having a refinery on your freighter offers several significant advantages over relying solely on base-bound refiners:

• Mobility: Refine resources wherever you are in the galaxy, without needing to return to your base.
• Efficiency: Quickly transform gathered materials into usable components. This minimizes downtime and allows continuous exploration.
• Integration: The freighter refinery integrates seamlessly with your other freighter-based operations, creating a comprehensive mobile base.

The Importance of Refining in No Man’s Sky

Refining isn’t just about turning one material into another; it is the heart of crafting and progression in No Man’s Sky. The refined elements form the backbone of creating advanced technology, crafting vital components for ships and exosuits, and building complex base structures. Essentially, the freighter refinery allows a player to become self-sufficient by crafting necessary resources, enabling them to overcome limitations while exploring the universe.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What are the different types of refiners available on a freighter?

There are two types of refiners you can install on your freighter: Medium Refiners and Large Refiners. Medium refiners combine two inputs to produce an output, while large refiners can handle up to three inputs for more complex recipes. The Large Refiner is the biggest Refiner and is considered the most useful, and unlike the medium refiner it does not require refuelling.

2. How do I build a freighter refinery?

The freighter refinery comes as a pre-installed module and cannot be built separately. It appears as a complete room when you’re in the freighter base building interface, and does not require any additional resources for its construction.

3. Do freighter refiners require fuel?

Medium Refiners do require fuel to operate, but Large Refiners do not. The absence of fuel requirements for large refiners is a substantial benefit, allowing for uninterrupted refining operations.

4. How many refiners can I have on my freighter?

There isn’t a set limit on the number of Refiners on your Freighter, but there are limitations in place to ensure optimal game performance. Specifically, you can only have a limited number of Large and Medium Refiners in a given area. You can build no more than two Large Refiners and three Medium Refiners in a 50u area on your freighter.

5. What are some common materials that can be refined in a freighter refinery?

Many materials can be refined within your freighter’s refiner, including:

• Carbon: Made from Cactus Flesh.
• Silver: Made from Dirty Bronze, Living Slime or Residual Goop.
• Platinum: Made from Geodesite, Iridesite, or by combining Silver and Gold.
• Nanites: Made from Runaway Mould or combinations of Platinum, Gold, and Silver.
• Emeril: Can be refined by itself from its raw form.

These are just a few examples. The possibilities for material transmutation are vast, ensuring no two player’s refining setups need to be identical.

6. What is the purpose of refining Cactus Flesh?

Refining Cactus Flesh results in Carbon, a crucial resource used for powering various technologies and crafting a myriad of items in No Man’s Sky.

7. What is Dirty Bronze, and how do I obtain it?

Dirty Bronze can be obtained from the following sources:

• It can be obtained from Blueprint can be found in Manufacturing Facilities and Operations Centres, or purchased from Synthesis Laboratory for 250 Nanites.
• Available from some Galactic Trade Terminals.
• Can be obtained from Frigate expeditions.
• Can be received after analysing Glowing Mineral.

8. What can I do with Nanites?

Nanites are a currency in No Man’s Sky used to purchase a vast array of technology blueprints, upgrades, cosmetic items, and more. They’re acquired by completing various tasks throughout the game but can also be refined from materials such as Platinum and Gold.

9. Why is Gold an important refined material?

Gold is a key ingredient for crafting advanced products like Starshield Batteries, Stellar Extractor Rooms, and Venom Urchins, making it an essential component to acquire in your travels.

10. Can I refine Emeril?

Yes, Emeril can be refined. It’s a resource used in many crafting recipes and it can be refined in both portable refiners and freighter refiners.

11. What is the function of Food Products?

In addition to its obvious use in health, food products in No Man’s Sky serve several other crucial purposes such as:

• Acting as bait for fauna.
• Providing various Exosuit bonuses.
• Being presented to Iteration: Cronus in the Space Anomaly for Nanite rewards.

12. What is the Purge?

The Purge is the final story mission of the Artemis Path. It tasks the player with finding a way to the final Atlas Interface at the center of the galaxy.

13. What is the Galactic Hub?

The Galactic Hub Project is the largest and oldest active civilization in No Man’s Sky. It’s a popular area for players to congregate and explore together.

14. How many frigates can be a part of my fleet?

You can have a maximum of 30 frigates in your fleet. This includes traditional frigates and expedition reward frigates such as the Normandy and the Leviathan. Frigates can be dismissed/deleted from your fleet in the same manner as deleting a tech or item from your inventory

15. Is there a building height limit in No Man’s Sky?

Yes, there is a build height limit of around 1,000 units above your Base Computer, so you won’t be able to build structures infinitely into space.