--- update ---
This guide still valid but it should be noted that Frontier increased the quantity of reward mats a lot, both in missions and HGE, and i mean A LOT, almost sufficient to reach the maximum available capacity starting from scratch in a single HGE.
for quantity/time efficiency is suggested to use HGE and Jameson as in guide below, downgrade using cross-trade as needed and use missions for mats absent in HGE/Jameson Site.
New mats reward have been introduced in Thargoid War by defending invaded system, more will come with PP v2.0 with "care packages" that will reward credits and engineering materials... so "avoid" Dave's Hope, Crystalline Shards, Brain Tree, yes/no...
...yes, currently are less efficient; no, because I've had some great sessions exploring while collecting mats along the way.
your personal taste, your free choice, below you will find the available options.
--- update ---
Methods to gather engineering materials changed in time, cmdrs complain about the waste of time in gathering process, new ships and modules coming in game, old engineered modules become obsolete and we miss a "scrap and recover material" option in game, so...
Disclaimer,
guides are suggestions to adapt to your playing style, they show gathering methods and most time efficient ones, but repeat... adapt to your way to have fun.
relogging trick is a personal choice, FDevs removed from HGE time ago and could happen to other in future, I neither suggest nor condemn it.
I personally verified all the information contained in this post but things change over time, any update will be appreciate, send me a PM in case.
Tools and web sites
ED Odyssey Materials Helper, an awesome tool to help you gather materials, planning engineering and more, both for ship and on-foot (Python Mk2 already added).
High Grade Emissions Finder, quick search of systems with HGE filtered by materials.
Engineering Material Finder, some video guide are deprecated but tables still valid and very useful.
EDCoPilot another excellent tool, as example, we can use for navigation to Brain Tree spot, you will find coord in link below.
All-in-One vIdeo guide to farm ALL ship eng. materials
Cross-trading of materials
Find nearest Material trader for cross-trade, click on "Change Search" to modify your reference system.
another options is to use ED Odyssey Materials Helper, under Materials tabs look at "Closest trader".
Raw Materials specific
Raw materials Brain Trees text guide (UPDATED version) suggested see notes
Raw materials Brain Trees video guide
Encoded Materials specific
Jameson Crash Site video guide for encoded
Manufactured Materials specific
below some INARA template i made to help find nearest trader/HGE, click on "Change Search" to modify your reference system.
You have high chance to find in HGE what you need, not 100% because some parameters overlap, but for sure will be a G5 man. material.
Proto Heat Rad. & Proto Radiolic Alloy (Alliance/BOOM)
Proto Heat Rad. & Proto Radiolic Alloy (Indipendent/BOOM)
Improvised Comp. (Indipendent/Civil Unrest)
Improvised Comp. (Alliance/Civil Unrest)
Pharmaceutical Isolators (Indipendent/Outbreak)
Pharmaceutical Isolators (Alliance/Outbreak)
Pharmaceutical Isolators are the worst to gain, just gather easier G5 (see uninhabited systems below) and cross trade.
Manufactured G5 Materials that you can gain only as missions reward are Biotech Conductors and Exquisite Focus Crystals, you can do:
- Passenger Missions: here is an old but valid Robigo Mines passenger mission guide w/ ship build.
- AX Rescue Missions: <will add a guide asap>
uninhabited systems that spawn alot of HGEs, I verified this systems and will add more if available in the future,
HGE 100% Proprietary Composites and Core Dynamics Composites:
LTT 3010
LP 413-18
HGE 100% Imperial Shielding:
Laguz
21 Eridani
most materials can be gather during play session and activites:
- Scan wake during approach to station or landing phase
- Scan ship while traveling in supercruise
- Add a collector limpet in your combat build for CZ or Compromised Nav beacon, to easy gather spoil of combat.
- During Exobiology activities and Brain Tree are present, do some gather, maybe you already sampled it, but remember Cordycep Growth Grade 1 (Iron, etc.), Polyporous Growth Grade 2 (Arsenic, etc.), Mussidae Seed Pod Grade 3 (Molybdenum, Cadmium, etc.), Phloem Excretion Grade 4 (Yttrium, Polonium, etc.)
- (be welcome with more suggestions to add)
Notes:
FDevs announced a general rewamp of engineering, both ship & on-foot, so...and indeed it happened, see notes at the beginning of the postBrain treesMissions reward for raw materials is efficient, old guides about crystal shard is alot less efficient but still valid if u like an exploration & gather voyage.- guides will be added, updated or remove if deprecated
- TehTOECUTTER did another guide one year ago, spots are less efficient but still valid
