No Mans Sky - How to Get Chromatic Metal

In No Mans Sky NEXT, Chromatic Metal is an essential resources required to start your base building operations. Although the game teaches you how to craft it through the tutorial, returning players to No Mans Sky will be clueless to creating this essential resource. Follow the guide below to learn how to get Chromatic Metal.

In game hints describe Chromatic Metal as "a valuable metal used in the creation of many advanced technologies". Players should note that this material is a processed metal alloy, created in a Refiner from the stellar metals. The rarer the stellar metal used in the refinement, the more Chromatic Metal is produced. One of the key uses for Chromatic Metal is to craft Antimatter - another very sought after material!

This guide is particularly useful for returning players that have decided to create a new character (and why not given the improved character creation process) but who are skipping the tutorial process.

Step by Step

1. Collect resources

Use the Terrain Manipulator tool so you can farm large resource nodes on planets. The specific resources you're looking for (as of v1.5) are Copper, Cadmium, Emeril or Indium. These are the only (Stellar) resources that the Portable Refiner accepts at the moment. Copper is the easiest to find but the other rarer resources will yield more Chromatic Metal so bear this in mind.

The best way to find resource nodes is of course to use the visor - this highlights points on interest on planets. It's worth saving time by flying into space and scanning planets from high above before venturing down to the planets surface.

2. Build a Portable Refinder

Next, build a Portable Refiner which can be crafted from Oxygen and Metal Plating, and once built it can be placed anywhere. Simply press UP on the D-Pad and select "Portable Machines" to find the Refiner. Don't worry, the Blueprint for the Refiner is given early in the game so it should already be in your possession or will be very soon.

When ready, place the materials you collected into your Refiner (using the Input menu) and add a smidge of fuel (Carbon etc.) to power the machine. Press the play button and wait for a couple of minutes for the conversion process to occur. Eventually the Chromatic Metal is available from the machine, allowing you to continue your base building.

If you want to become even more efficient, place several Refiners side by side at once. They can work in parallel to save time.

Good luck!