Nebulous: Fleet Command is the hardcore version of Homeworld I didn’t know I wanted

A new angle on real-time 3D space strategy

Image credit:Hooded Horse/Rock Paper Shotgun

Every “incoming missile” alert in Nebulous: Fleet Command spawns a host of questions, scattering through your brain pan like chaff. The most important of those questions is: “which missiles, exactly?” There are many species of self-propelled ordnance in this dangerously engrossing space sim from Eriadanus Industries - you can design your very own in the fleet editor - and while all are bad news, some are far worse than others.

The least deadly varieties take their targeting information from the ship that fired them. In a straightforward engagement, you’ll be able to see the vessel concerned, but craftier admirals might use one tougher frontline ship as a spotter, sharing lock-on data with another, undetected artillery platform lurking in the radar shadow of an asteroid. If there are no ships visible at all, the missiles could be self-guided with their own radar equipment, and the knock-on question there is exactly how far away they’ve come from, and via what precise twists and turns.

I haven’t managed this myself, but according to Fleet Command’s dense tutorial missions, you can plot paths for certain kinds of missile, waypointing them around the map to catch the enemy flagship from behind, then letting the homing mechanisms take over (which assumes the enemy flagship is where you think it is). Given that such missiles share sensor data with the rest of your fleet that fired them, they can also be used for reconnaissance, though you certainly shouldn’t treat them like disposable probes.

Both these varieties of rocket-powered nuisance can be dispersed or destroyed using launchable decoys, point-defence turrets and “cunning” evasive manoeuvres - aka, slam that frigate around by 120 degrees and set to “flanking” speed, at the risk of burning out your engines. Changing direction is very effective given reasonable timing. Many missiles, you see, have their targetting data loaded into them the second before they fire, so if you alter course immediately after they fire, you can throw off the incoming salvo.

But every so often, you read the horrible word “hybrids”. These are the velociraptors of the missile menagerie, equipped with a second-stage “sprint” feature that makes rudimentary evasion and point defence all but useless. The game’s kindly tutorial lady describes avoiding a hybrid as like avoiding a telegraph pole that is corkscrewing towards your face at a kilometre a second. Which I think is underselling it, because telegraph poles do not have massive bombs attached to them, and they aren’t capable of tracking your movements across several million cubic kilometres of vacuum.

Image credit:Hooded Horse/Rock Paper Shotgun

There are two things that can stop a hybrid. Firstly, laser turrets. And secondly, another missile, providing it’s launched well before the hybrid’s sprinting phase. Offensive missile vs defensive missile exchanges are among the many quiet beauties of a simulator that can seem desperately fiddly and obscure - nebulous, one might say - with an acronym-sodden HUD’s worth of menus within menus. Glittering red darts surge out of the black and are joyfully met by a coruscating green swarm of smaller interceptors, bursting into puffs of foil. It’s lovely to witness. But then a few of the red darts make it through, and now you’ve got no thrusters or radar coverage down one whole side of your cruiser.

I’m picking apart all these details in hindsight, flashback by flashback. During the handful of Nebulous: Fleet Command battles I’ve played, I’ve been swamped in white noise, paralysed by the spectacle of icons converging on my battered and protesting fleet. Fleet Command can feel absolutely overwhelming. The early access build gives you little in the way of an on-ramp beyond the tutorial - no story mode, at the time of writing, just a selection of deathmatch variants and objective modes to play against the AI or, shudder, the game’s small community of inevitably over-practised players. But if you’re any kind of naval tactics nerd, Fleet Command is fascinating to think about.

Nebulous: Fleet Command’s early access plans include a full-blown single-player Conquest mode reminiscent of Battlefront, which joins up skirmish battles into an on-going campaign for control of a solar system, together with a “story-driven conquest scenario”. They’re also working on carriers and fighter craft, procedurally generated asteroid “thickets”, and various AI improvements such as the ability to make assumptions about the player’s behaviour. You can keep track of it all on the dev’s public trello . Launched in February 2022, the game will spend “up to two years” in early access. It already has a pretty prosperous modding scene .

Let’s talk about direct fire engagements - a complicated dance of hulls that is at once agonisingly slow and incredibly fast. Slow, because the game’s ships are ponderous - having locked onto an enemy, it may take them moments to get close enough that every shot has positive odds of connecting. And fast, because there are a frightful number of micro-managerial decisions to make while these juggernauts are approaching each other.

For one thing, there’s the question of spreading out your damage. Every ship in Fleet Command is a 3D arrangement of components and armour-plating. When you come under fire, the components on that side get hit first. Thus, if you charge directly at something that’s shooting armour-piercing shells at you, your ship’s forward components will end up full of holes. This includes your bow thrusters, which will be a problem for you when you realise your fuel lines are on fire and struggle to reverse out of harm’s way.

Image credit:Hooded Horse/Rock Paper Shotgun

So what you want to do instead is “angle-tank”. Fleet Command offers up a dizzying assortment of movement options, from plotting out patrols through having ships orbit a point in space to ordering your ship to travel in one direction indefinitely. When it comes to straight-up duels, you can give your ship a heading, which forces them to fly at a certain angle to the direction of movement. This will likely make inefficient use of their thrusters, but it will also hopefully mean that incoming shells hit your armour at an angle, deflecting a bit of damage.

Still, the components on that side will still take a beating. So you’ll probably want to keep rolling and angling your frontline ships as they advance on the other fleet, to layer out the punishment. Doing this will also reduce the chances that your repair teams - represented as tiny hammer icons, roving each vessel’s schematic - aren’t killed when patching up systems under fire. But don’t roll around willy-nilly, because there are certain parts of your ship that shouldn’t take damage in any circumstances. The comms systems that allow ships to receive orders, for instance, or the power reactor. If it takes too much heat it might overload, which is not a great outcome for either the spacecraft in question or any vessels nearby.

Phew. Phew! It’s a lot, isn’t it? I haven’t even touched upon the basics of reconnaissance and electronic warfare - actively jamming enemy radar with cones of static, or minimising the odds of being scanned by spacing formations out and turning ships to present a smaller surface area for radar waves to bounce off. I haven’t mentioned crew morale, or how you can tweak certain systems on the go - having your missiles launch “cold” and ease around the launching ship with thrusters before engaging their main engine, for example, to ensure an unobstructed line of flight.

Image credit:Hooded Horse/Rock Paper Shotgun

• Developer: Eridanus Industries
• Publisher: Hooded Horse
• Release: Out now in early access
• On: Windows
• From: Steam (includes a demo)
• Price: £25/€30/$30

At times Nebulous: Fleet Command feels like a vicious trap for Homeworld players desperate to play something, anything in the same vein. It certainly takes inspiration from the grand old dame of 3D real-time space strategy - the same boxy, diecast ship aesthetics, and a familiar bass drop when you switch to the holographic planner view. But then you try to play it like Homeworld, and realise you can’t just drag-select fleets and right-click them at the enemy - this is a Serious Simulation, in which your prowess as an admiral can be deduced near-exactly from the distribution of shell craters on each hull.

Again, it can be absolutely overwhelming. But it’s never brutally so. Look at the delicacy and obvious delight with which all these moving parts have been put together. Marvel at the symphony of each ship in motion - the way its course and orientation correspond to the flickering of thrusters across its length, as though the hulk were skimming through the void on feathers. If Eridanus Industries can find a way to convey the intricacies of Fleet Command more gradually, perhaps expanding the current narrated tutorial into a full single player campaign, this could be a space navy simulator for the ages.

Nebulous: Fleet Command

PC

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All 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints and where to get them

These areas have the highest chance of giving you Blueprints

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Looking for more Arc Raiders Blueprints? It’s a special day when you find a Blueprint, as they’re among the most valuable items in Arc Raiders. If you find a Blueprint that you haven’t already found, then you must make sure you hold onto it at all costs, because Blueprints are the key to one of the most important and powerful systems of meta-progression in the game.

This guide aims to be the very best guide on Blueprints you can find, starting with a primer on what exactly they are and how they work in Arc Raiders, before delving into exactly where to get Blueprints and the very best farming spots for you to take in your search.

We’ll also go over how to get Blueprints from other unlikely activities, such as destroying Surveyors and completing specific quests. And you’ll also find the full list of all 75 Blueprints in Arc Raiders on this page (including the newest Blueprints added with the Cold Snap update , such as the Deadline Blueprint and Firework Box Blueprint), giving you all the information you need to expand your own crafting repertoire.

In this guide:

• What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?
• Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes
• Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders Blueprints obtained from quests Blueprints obtained from Trials Best Blueprint farming locations

What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?

Blueprints in Arc Raiders are special items which, if you manage to extract with them, you can expend to permanently unlock a new crafting recipe in your Workshop. If you manage to extract from a raid with an Anvil Blueprint, for example, you can unlock the ability to craft your very own Anvil Pistol, as many times as you like (as long as you have the crafting materials).

To use a Blueprint, simply open your Inventory while in the lobby, then right-click on the Blueprint and click “Learn And Consume” . This will permanently unlock the recipe for that item in your Workshop. As of the Stella Montis update, there are allegedly 75 different Blueprints to unlock - although only 68 are confirmed to be in the game so far. You can see all the Blueprints you’ve found and unlocked by going to the Workshop menu, and hitting “R” to bring up the Blueprint screen.

It’s possible to find duplicates of past Blueprints you’ve already unlocked. If you find these, then you can either sell them, or - if you like to play with friends - you can take it into a match and gift it to your friend so they can unlock that recipe for themselves. Another option is to keep hold of them until the time comes to donate them to the Expedition.

Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes

Below is the full list of all the Blueprints that are currently available to find in Arc Raiders, and the crafting recipe required for each item:

Note: The missing Blueprints in this list likely have not actually been added to the game at the time of writing, because none of the playerbase has managed to find any of them. As they are added to the game, I will update this page with the most relevant information so you know exactly how to get all 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints.

Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders

Below is a list of all containers, modifiers, and events which maximise your chances of finding Blueprints:

• Certain quests reward you with specific Blueprints .
• Completing Trials has a high chance of offering Blueprints as rewards.
• Surveyors have a decent chance of dropping Blueprints on death.
• High loot value areas tend to have a greater chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Night Raids and Storms may increase rare Blueprint spawn chances in containers.
• Containers with higher numbers of items may have a higher tendency to spawn Blueprints. As a result, Blue Gate (which has many “large” containers containing multiple items) may give you a higher chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Raider containers (Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, Medical Bags, Grenade Tubes) have increased Blueprint drop rates. As a result, the Uncovered Caches event gives you a high chance of finding Blueprints.
• Security Lockers have a higher than average chance of containing Blueprints.
• Certain Blueprints only seem to spawn under specific circumstances: Tempest Blueprint only spawns during Night Raid events. Vulcano Blueprint only spawns during Hidden Bunker events. Jupiter and Equaliser Blueprints only spawn during Harvester events.

Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, and other raider-oriented container types have a good chance of offering Blueprints. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints have a very low chance of spawning in any container in Arc Raiders, around 1-2% on average. However, there is a higher chance of finding Blueprints in particular container types. Specifically, you can find more Blueprints in Raider containers and security lockers.

Beyond this, if you’re looking for Blueprints you should focus on regions of the map which are marked as having particularly high-value loot. Areas such as the Control Tower in Dam Battlegrounds, the Arrival and Departure Buildings in Spaceport, and Pilgrim’s Peak in Blue Gate all have a better-than-average chance of spawning Blueprints somewhere amongst all their containers. Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storm events also increase the drop chances of certain Blueprints .

In addition to these containers, you can often loot Blueprints from destroyed Surveyors - the largest of the rolling ball ARC. Surveyors are more commonly found on the later maps - Spaceport and Blue Gate - and if one spawns in your match, you’ll likely see it by the blue laser beam that it casts into the sky while “surveying”.

Surveyors are quite well-armoured and will very speedily run away from you once it notices you, but if you can take one down then make sure you loot all its parts for a chance of obtaining certain unusual Blueprints.

Blueprints obtained from quests

One way in which you can get Blueprints is by completing certain quests for the vendors in Speranza. Some quests will reward you with a specific item Blueprint upon completion, so as long as you work through all the quests in Arc Raiders, you are guaranteed those Blueprints.

Here is the full list of all Blueprints you can get from quest rewards:

• Trigger Nade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Sparks Fly”.
• Lure Grenade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Greasing Her Palms”.
• Burletta Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Industrial Espionage”.
• Hullcracker Blueprint (and Launcher Ammo Blueprint): Rewarded after completing “The Major’s Footlocker”.

Alas, that’s only 4 Blueprints out of a total of 75 to unlock, so for the vast majority you will need to find them yourself during a raid. If you’re intent on farming Blueprints, then it’s best to equip yourself with cheap gear in case you lose it, but don’t use a free loadout because then you won’t get a safe pocket to stash any new Blueprint you find. No pain in Arc Raiders is sharper than failing to extract with a new Blueprint you’ve been after for a dozen hours already.

One of the best ways to get Blueprints is by hitting three stars on all five Trials every week. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints obtained from Trials

One of the very best ways to get Blueprints is as rewards for completing Trials in Arc Raiders. Trials are unlocked from Level 15 onwards, and allow you to earn rewards by focusing on certain tasks over the course of several raids. For example, one Trial might task you with dealing damage to Hornets, while another might challenge you to loot Supply Drops.

Trials refresh on a weekly basis, with a new week bringing five new Trials. Each Trial can offer up to three rewards after passing certain score milestones, and it’s possible to receive very high level loot from these reward crates - including Blueprints. So if you want to unlock as many Blueprints as possible, you should make a point of completing as many Trials as possible each week.

Best Blueprint farming locations

The very best way to get Blueprints is to frequent specific areas of the maps which combine high-tier loot pools with the right types of containers to search. Here are my recommendations for where to find Blueprints on every map, so you can always keep the search going for new crafting recipes to unlock.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Dam Battlegrounds

The best places to farm Blueprints on Dam Battlegrounds are the Control Tower, Power Generation Complex, Ruby Residence, and Pale Apartments . The first two regions, despite only being marked on the map as mid-tier loot, contain a phenomenal number of containers to loot. The Control Tower can also contain a couple of high-tier Security Lockers - though of course, you’ll need to have unlocked the Security Breach skill at the end of the Survival tree.

There’s also a lot of reporting amongst the playerbase that the Residential areas in the top-left of the map - Pale Apartments and Ruby Residence - give you a comparatively strong chance of finding Blueprints. Considering their size, there’s a high density of containers to loot in both locations, and they also have the benefit of being fairly out of the way. So you’re more likely to have all the containers to yourself.

Buried City

The best Blueprint farming locations on Buried City are the Santa Maria Houses, Grandioso Apartments, Town Hall, and the various buildings of the New District . Grandioso Apartments has a lower number of containers than the rest, but a high chance of spawning weapon cases - which have good Blueprint drop rates. The others are high-tier loot areas, with plenty of lootable containers - including Security Lockers.

Spaceport

The best places to find Blueprints on Spaceport are the Arrival and Departure Buildings, as well as Control Tower A6 and the Launch Towers . All these areas are labelled as high-value loot regions, and many of them are also very handily connected to one another by the Spaceport wall, which you can use to quickly run from one area to the next. At the tops of most of these buildings you’ll find at least one Security Locker, so this is an excellent farming route for players looking to find Blueprints.

The downside to looting Blueprints on Spaceport is that all these areas are hotly contested, particularly in Duos and Squads. You’ll need to be very focused and fast in order to complete the full farming route.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blue Gate

Blue Gate tends to have a good chance of dropping Blueprints, potentially because it generally has a high number of containers which can hold lots of items; so there’s a higher chance of a Blueprint spawning in each container. In my experience, the best Blueprint farming spots on Blue Gate are Pilgrim’s Peak, Raider’s Refuge, the Ancient Fort, and the Underground Complex beneath the Warehouse .

All of these areas contain a wealth of containers to loot. Raider’s Refuge has less to loot, but the majority of the containers in and around the Refuge are raider containers, which have a high chance of containing Blueprints - particularly during major events.

Stella Montis

On the whole, Stella Montis seems to have a very low drop rate for Blueprints (though a high chance of dropping other high-tier loot). If you do want to try farming Blueprints on this map, the best places to find Blueprints in Stella Montis are Medical Research, Assembly Workshop, and the Business Center . These areas have the highest density of containers to loot on the map.

In addition to this, the Western Tunnel has a few different Security Lockers to loot, so while there’s very little to loot elsewhere in this area of the map, it’s worth hitting those Security Lockers if you spawn there at the start of a match.

That wraps up this primer on how to get all the Blueprints in Arc Raiders as quickly as possible. With the Expedition system constantly resetting a large number of players’ Blueprints, it’s more important than ever to have the most up-to-date information on where to find all these Blueprints.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our Arc Raiders best guns tier list , as well as our primers on the best skills to unlock and all the different Field Depot locations on every map.

ARC Raiders

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC

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