Greetings Pilots!
Happy #tomsday everybody! We hope all Captains that signed a delivery Contract with Tom Settler's Premium Buddies enjoyed their newest shipment of shiny Colonization gear!
Yesterday's article featured a lot of new cards you might want to bring with you for your Colonization needs.
If you follow our Spoiler articles, you have already seen a lot of different cards and mechanics found in our Alpha Edition. With eXode, we strive to give you as many options to customize your game as possible. At the same time we want the game to be as accessible as it can be.
In a rush? Just pick your Origin and you are good to go!
But if you really want to make the most of your game? There are so many fun and viable setups to discover!
All choices are built on each other. By picking an Origin you limit the number of ships and type of crew you can pick from. The ship? It dictates how many crewman you can have. Each crew member can be equipped with a weapon, armor and so on. You can even pick some specific cargo or some special passengers you want to bring. Each choice you make can help you with your game. But they are all optional.
In eXode, we want to give you the freedom to explore at your own pace, find your own sweet spot. So lets take a look at some more options available to you! How about installing some Software?

Every piece of Software has it's own requirement and can only be installed to certain kinds of cards. The Planetscan VX (as its name implies) is used to upgrade a Ground Radar. If you install it to any of your modules, it gains the ability to perform additional scans: Minerals scan, Deep ground scan, and Major Landmarks scan. Once set up, the new scanning methods allow you to generate additional reports on your surroundings. This way you will have an easier time to decide where to go first or what to do next.
Software can be preinstalled on any Ground Radar you bring when you set up your Evacuation or you can bring it with you to your colony and install it there. To install the Software, you need to find somebody with some basic understanding of computers. The difficulty to set up the software is measured by its Tech level stat. Software also takes up space on the module you install it on. The space of any module typically equals its quality level. In order to install the Planetscan VX, you will have to find a Ground Radar of at least quality level 3 and a technician that can handle a Tech Level of 5.
The number of Software available in the Alpha Edition is very limited, but you can find some more in cargo crates during the Evacuation. In case you find a Software you do not need, you can always have somebody crack it. This way the Software cannot be used any longer, but its code can be used to create other pieces of Software. Creating your own Software is one of the many amazing things you can do with eXodes crafting system.

Talking about crafting, if you want to start producing or researching chemicals (like the different drugs the Syndicate loves to use) you will need some Chemical Cuves. This installation comes with the Interior trait. Any card with this trait can only be placed inside another building and will need the amount of Habitat noted on the individual card.
Please note that the card does not feature the Dropable trait. If you plan to set up your own little drug laboratory right away, you should definitely bring at least a single copy with you to Evacuation.

Some people might argue that it is more important to provide your colony with food rather than drugs. If you are one of them, you might be interested to bring some Biodomes with you. They work the same way the Chemical Cuves do. If you want to do some farming or start agricultural research you will need Agricultural Space. They do not come with the Interior trait though, so you don't need Habitat to set them up first. They also come with some basic Atmospheric Shielding, just don't expect it to resist any more severe conditions.

As you may have noticed, most of the Prefabs available to you require some amount of Energy to function. In a best case scenario, you will have your own power source up and running. Getting to that point might take you some time though. Until you manage to produce the needed energy yourself, you could rely on the usage of Energy Cells. Each copy provides you with 100 Energy charges which should be enough to keep your initial colony going for about a week.
This is also an excellent card to showcase the workings of the Upgradable and Droppable traits. If you bring a card with you during Evacuation, the card is bound to your game and can't be used for another game or traded for as long as the game is going. Once the game is finished, the card goes on cooldown and can be used again afterwards. If you choose to drop a card to your Colony, the card will be burned (and thus removed from your collection), but it will be available for use in your Colony immediately.
At common rarity, acquiring some Energy Cells should not be too hard. It is then up to you how to use them. If you choose to bring them with you in your Evacuation, you should really try to upgrade them to their full capacity as that will increase the amount of charges provided considerably. If you drop them, you can just burn them one by one whenever you need more energy.
It is a decision you will have to make: In Evacuation, they will take up space and you will need several copies for upgrades to make the most of it. In return, you keep the card and can use it again if you start another game. If you decide to drop it, you can use the cargo space for something more valuable and you only need to drop a single copy whenever you are running low on energy. Burning them means you will have to acquire new copies if you want to start another game, though. As you can see, both options have their ups and downs and it will be up to you to make the right call in the right situation.
That is all from us for today. The finish line is already in sight but we still have some more cards to show you before our Booster Opening event. Cards like this fancy racer will definitely help you to get there faster:

As always, your input is valued and appreciated so we would love to hear it!
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