New Material: Depleted Exorium

[XenoCow]

Basic Idea:
Turn used generator fuel rods into a new, useful material variant.

Problem:
This idea doesn't solve any problems, it just adds depth to the game and a new opportunity for endos to make money.

Details:
I suggest adding a new material, depleted exorium into the game. The material can be obtained from smelting down empty fuel rods and then separating it out from the other materials through the normal recycling process that is to come. The material would be more dense than normal exorium, but be very prone to fracture damage (brittle).

As armor plating it would act like ceramic plates used in bullet proof vests. It could stop huge amounts of damage but shatter after very few hits (think shatter after one rail shot but stop that shot completely).

As a component material, it could be used (as is currently stated for normal exorium) as a penetrator core for ballistic weapons (more on that HERE).

Effects:

• Players could start recycling factories that specialize in collecting and refining the depleted exorium from all the used fuel rods, promoting more ways to play.
• Players not interested in recycling their fuel rods will have incentive to keep and sell their used fuel rods to recyclers (promoting business and reducing lag from cleaning up garbage floating around).
• More nuanced choice of armor for larger craft that can afford the weight (and cost).
• New types of ammunition (again see HERE).

Conclusion:
This feature adds a lot and, as far as I can tell, doesn't have any negative consequences (the use as armor may be the only one since it could potentially be very expensive to plate a ship with). I wouldn't expect it as an addition any time soon, but think it would add depth and more business opportunities to the game.

Thoughts?

 

[Joelfett]

If exorium is a starbase equivalent to uranium, it could be possible to repurpose it to make heavy AP munitions and fuel reprocessing fragmentation charges and expensive high yield explosives, since they are brittle and supposedly volatile

 

[Venombrew]

i really like the recycling factory idea. not only does it work in the way your talking but i can see a multitude of uses for this. a stand alone job, but would probably work great with those dedicated to engineering and salvaging. it also could be heavily intertwined into the crafting system giving it a lot of use and a real purpose to invest into one. one of my crew members has his sights heavily set on being a scrapper, he could rent 2 lots next to one another for a shop on one and junkyard/recycler in the other, able to profit even more as a junker with 2 jobs feeding the same profits with very little extra work.

in real life when bonding metal we have several different adhesives, most which are partly acquired through the recycling. different bonds needed for combining alloys(some could work better than ours depending on material used), refining it for cheap but somewhat durable plating material, a lot could be used for it. An outer casing for explosive devices, OR since we will be able to weld endo bodies parts from dead endos onto our still alive endos to replace missing limbs, recycling could help create a new system of prosthetics or endo repair materials, it would create a new combat class, MEDIC, as well as supplies to those looking to be medics. Instead of relying on finding a dead endo to use his arm, a medic could weld a prosthetic to you instead.